I should state from the start that author Richard Armour was kind enough to send me a copy of his debut novel "The Habit" for review. In contacting him to thank him, I stressed two points - the first was that, since I try my hardest to assess all books honestly, his generosity would not automatically guarantee a good review if I didn't feel that his book merited one. The second was that I was not personally a fan of crime fiction. Luckily for me, Mr Armour was undeterred.
I asked myself what kind of author would submit his 'baby' to a reviewer who professed to dislike his particular genre intensely and came to the conclusion that he was either someone who had written an excellent book and was confident that it would impress or an idiot! Well, believe me, in this equation, there is only one idiot, since Richard Armour joins a list of authors such as Stephen Booth, Karin Slaughter and Robert Rennick who have forced me to eat my words. "The Habit" is a very exciting debut novel - a tense, taut, cleverly written thriller that is quite simply crime fiction at it's best.
It is the intriguing story of a stockbroker, a detective and a serial rapist. Roger has a highly paid job in the city, while his childhood friend, Frank, is a Detective Sergeant in the police force. The two are close friends and naturally Roger takes a keen interest in Frank's current case, the investigation of a serial rapist who is preying on attractive young women from his black cab. Unfortunately the case becomes more personal for Roger when his younger sister, Penny, becomes one of the rapist's victims.
The reader discovers the true identity of the mysterious rapist quite early on in the book, making a refreshing change from the normal "whodunit". The interest in the story comes from observing the interaction between the three main characters, two of whom obviously not knowing the true identity of the third. Written in short, punchy chapters, it looks at the unfolding events from contrasting viewpoints of straight and first person narrative. (A small word of warning to the sensitive - those chapters written from the rapist's viewpoint do contain some four letter words and references to drug taking.)
It's quite a 'laddish' book, although not to the extent that it excludes the female reader. Set in the moneyed world of high finance, complete with lavish corporate entertainment and the baser pleasures enjoyed on boys nights out, every page offers a realistic and convincing insight into a lifestyle that most of us can only imagine. As a very minor criticism, I have to say that a lot of the references to broking went straight over my head, but I became so caught up in the twists and turns of the plot as it galloped headlong to it's final exciting conclusion that that didn't seem to matter.
"The Habit" delves deep into the dark recesses of the mind of a sexual predator who is simultaneously the hunter and the hunted. It details the cunning 'cat and mouse' games played by the protagonist in a way that kept me hooked from first to last page. Indeed, I read the book at one sitting, unable to put it down once I had started and I am now eagerly anticipating book number two from this author. Since "The Vigilante" is due for publication this year, I am relieved to say that it won't be too long a wait.
Publisher: authorsonline.co.uk
ISBN:075520058 6
Price: £13.50 /$17.99 p/b
Date Reviewed: March 2003
My Rating: 4.5/5
