Needless Alley: The critically acclaimed noir crime debut (William Garrett Novels)

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I loved this book. I loved William. I loved Phyll, his unlikely ally in the spiral of blood and deception he enters and his guide in some of the hidden places he needs to walk. I loved spotting familiar locations transformed. I loved its engagement with the toxic mess that is British class. Most of all I loved its exploration of a vibrant, jostling city - and of the darkness just beneath the surface. A glorious read. This is a gritty murder mystery set in 1930’s Birmingham. Our main protagonist is William, a private investigator who earns a living by providing evidence for divorce cases for a shady solicitor. One case that he takes on introduces him to Clara, the wife of a rich industrialist and his growing relationship with her makes him begin to look at his life differently. When the murder happens, he begins to act as a proper investigator and starts to see how little he actually knows about people.

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The writing and scene setting in this book was absolutely brilliant. I could see the scenes so clearly I could have been watching on a screen . The setting of 1930s industrial Birmingham will evidently draw Peaky Blinders comparisons but it is not a city I see in books often so I enjoyed the fresh perspective.Publishing director Jade Chandler acquired world rights to the two books from Abi Fellows at the Good Literary Agency. Ronnie is an attractive man, a little fey and living a bohemian life, like a streetwise Oscar Wilde but with a deep libertine streak. This could be down to the effects of war, but more likely his desire for money without honest toil. The fact he can rub shoulders with canal boatmen and drink in their pubs is beguiling if a little unlikely. At heart he is a damaged man with a nihilistic streak.

Needless Alley | Natalie Marlow | 9781399801836 | NetGalley Needless Alley | Natalie Marlow | 9781399801836 | NetGalley

This was Savile Row smut, nicely tailored and nothing vulgar. Smut for gentlemen rather than players. Smut for the officer class, no doubt of that...' There were some very challenging themes, including the tragic impact of WW1 on the young men who had fought and those left behind and bereaved, the sex and drugs industry, the rise of the British fascism movement and the effects of poverty running through it all. I was impressed with the authors knowledge and research that was obvious to the reader.

There are many other interesting characters in the novel; Queenie, Ronnie and Clara to name a few. They all feed into each other nicely, creating a full circle and I found them all to be interesting for different reasons. William's life all changes, when he accidentally meets the beautiful Clara Morton and falls in love. Little does he know she is the wife of a client - a leading fascist with a dangerous obsession. And what should have been another straightforward job turns into something far more deadly. The affairs of William Garrett are exactly that. The first part focuses, primarily, on his relationships, namely those with Clara and Ronnie, and the part ends on an interesting footing for them all. Yet, the subsequent parts utilise a consid Queenie is the strong matronly figure even though she is not the eldest of the three. She’s calm and pragmatic with a survive at all costs attitude which gives her a hard carapace to face the world. Her business dealings include criminal activities but there’s some goodness at heart as she cares for those close to her. A tough woman doing what she needs to survive in a hard man’s world.

New Blood with Val McDermid | 22 July 2023 - Harrogate

Being a Private Detective mostly means taking pictures of wives or husbands in flagrente, often a set-up. Easy money – unless someone dies, of course. In 1930s Birmingham, William (Billy) Garret does this sort of work, although he despises it. In fact he despises his whole life, trawling around in the underbelly of the city, Le Demi-monde, a place where the elite (usually rich men) keep company with and exploit prostitutes (usually female but males always feature). Born into poverty among the bargees who work the city’s canal system, he had been conscripted into the army at the start of the Great War, and developed skill as a trench raider, i.e. someone who crept covertly into enemy trenches for ‘clearance’ purposes, a task that required a strong will. Not a very useful skill in civvy street, but the will power meant he was less damaged mentally than many of his cohorts. Unlike Ronnie, his childhood friend and wartime comrade, for whom Billy maintains an avuncular interest. Ronnie is a tall, elegant, theatrical, Ivor Novello like, dipsomaniac, and Billy pays him to act as seducer in the honey-traps he sometimes needs to engineer. In this case Morton, a rich manufacturer and rising star in Oswald Mosley’s “Britain First” fascist movement, has been receiving letters accusing his wife of being involved in a range of depravities. To find out if there is any truth in this he hires Billy to follow her. When he can find no evidence to present to his employer, Billy sets up a honey-trap, using Ronnie in his usual role. But then the bodies start piling up, and Billy discovers that the Birmingham demi-monde is much worse than Dumas ever envisaged that of Paris.If you do nothing, you will be auto-enrolled in our premium digital monthly subscription plan and retain complete access for 65 € per month. The book has obviously been meticulously researched and it includes cameo appearances from real historical figures such as Oswald Mosely as William finds himself negotiating the seedy side of politics and the rise of fascism. Photographs and film play a large part in narrative and are ultimately responsible for throwing light an all the mysteries. Still, it's his old friend Queenie that William turns to when he gets into trouble, his accent slipping - I loved the way that Marlow played with the characters' speech, you can hear them all clearly in your mind as you read the book - and we then learn a bit of what binds him to her and to his other friend Ronnie. Ronnie plays the honey in William's traps, and he's also another who has a foot in different worlds, more so than even William realises. What a fabulous story! While at heart a detective novel, it is also in many ways a story of love in its myriad forms.