One Man's Opinion: SADIE WHEN SHE DIED by ED McBAIN

'Like a woman in her tenth month, the clouds over the city twisted and roiled in angry discomfort, but refused to deliver the promised snow.'

I was a little taken aback with this. In a recent 87th, I'm pretty sure I came across an old lady called Sadie and imagined she'd be the subject of the book. I couldn't have been more wrong.

Sadie When She Died shouldn't be as good as it is. In some ways, it has a Columboesque feel in that we're pretty sure of our ground from the off. 

Carella and Kling are working the case in the main. It's coming up to Christmas and the world is under pressure to buy gifts and be jolly. The cops, they need to find their pleasure in solving cases. 

This one seems pretty open and shut. A well-to-do lawyer returns home following a burglary to find his wife has been stabbed. There are open windows and there's a trail of blood, prints and witnesses that means new technician Marshall Davies believes he'll have it wrapped up in no time. And he's right, only there's something that doesn't feel right. The husband, when interviewed at the scene, tells Carella that he's 'very glad she's dead' and that he's 'delighted that someone killed her'. 

Carella's spidey-senses prickle at that, as well they might, and because of that we know, just like he does, what has really happened. 

Said husband proceeds to court and taunt Carella for reasons that are difficult to fathom, while Kling is stuck somewhere between trying to forge a new relationship with one of the case's witnesses while hoping to get back together with former sweetheart, Cindy. 

We get to travel to some new places in Isola, viewing it from the top of its range to its bottom. There's a diary code to solve, a cop beating, a series of ex-lovers to be grilled and some great work from the technical team. 

The way the personal and the professional lives of our detectives are wrapped together is a real treat. The case itself is intriguing though not intense, while Kling's relationship dilemmas bring a whole heap of tension to the party.

A load of fun.