Bay Tales 2023

Not a book review this time, but rather a review of a literary event - Bay Tales 2023 held at the Whitley Bay Playhouse. 

We attended the first of these festivals last year, and had such a great time that we booked as early as we could for this years' shenanigans. In a departure from last year, in addition to the main day itself, there were a couple of fringe events. We were able to attend the first of these - "Noir at the Bay" at the Crab and Waltzer pub. The format for this was simple - ten authors read extracts of their work to an enthusiastic audience. There was, of course, an opportunity to buy the books being showcased. Whitley Bay itself is lovely, and we will return to sample the other pleasures of the resort in the summer. And we will most definitely go back to the Crab and Waltzer - apart from anything else they serve the largest portions of chips that I have ever seen.

The event proper consisted of five panels showcasing different publishers' authors. It was a diverse and stellar line-up, as you can see here:

https://baytales.com/baytaleslive2023/

The format worked so well, as it did last year, in large part owing to the excellence of the five moderators - who all led the discussions with skill and insight. I have tried, and failed, to write crime novels myself - so I found the discussions on techniques, inspirations, successes and (particularly) obstacles, to be of particular interest. It is very encouraging to find out that so many top authors have faced, and overcome the same problems as we mere mortals. My ambition is revivified, and I have determined to have another crack at it.

The scale of the event makes it possible for authors and the audience to mingle freely. We were lucky enough to meet Jonathan Whitelaw in the queue to get in, and queued up for one of the book signings with Abir Mukherjee. We also got to chat with some of the other authors. All this confirmed what I have always thought about crime writers: despite being - in at least some sense - mass murderers, they are also lovely people. So we bought a lot of books - as did many of our fellow attendees.

This was a great event, and we will certainly be back in 2024. I must also share with you a life lesson passed on by C.J. Tudor - if you are dismembering a body in the bathroom, take care what happens to the grout.

"The Last Remains" by Elly Griffiths

Firstly, a warning. If you haven't read any of the Dr. Ruth Galloway mysteries before - DO NOT READ THIS BOOK YET. It is the fifteenth book in the series and should be read after all the others. The characters and their relationships have developed over the years, so to get the most from these wonderful books, they really must be read in sequence.

Ruth Galloway and Harry Nelson must be one one of the longest unresolved "will they/won't they" plotlines in detective fiction. Their daughter Kate (or Katie, or Hecate) is now at secondary school - yet at the close of "The Locked Room" they still hadn't sorted out their personal lives. So this novel has been eagerly awaited - not only because we were told that they would finally settle their situation (hurrah!), but that also this would be the last in the series (boo!) - at least for a while.

The book is as beautifully written and pacey as always. The main characters are very well-established, so that whilst they are placed (of course) in some difficult situations, their behaviour is always consistent with how they have behaved in the past. 

Whilst this is probably not the last time we shall hear from Ruth, there is a real sense throughout that this is the end of this part of her story. Many references are made to characters and events earlier in the series - notably from "The Crossing Places" - the first of the books. Some of the new characters are similar types to some in "The Crossing Places". Many loose ends are being tied up.

There's quite a lot going on. A skeleton is found bricked up in a cafe being renovated in King's Lynn. Ruth quickly identifies the body as modern, and Nelson and his team are called in. It turns out to have been a young women who was known to Ruth's friend Cathbad. At the same time the university have decided to close her department, and she becomes involved in the campaign to save it. And all the while, the two of them are grappling with their feelings for each other. All these matters are finally resolved. The denouement that we have all been waiting for comes right at the very end - but I'm cerainly not even going to hint at what it is.

For those of you that have read the earlier works in the series - I don't need to make a recommendation. Of course you're going to read it. For those of you that haven't - do yourselves a big favour. Read "The Crossing Places" and enter the enthralling world of Ruth Galloway. As for me - I'm going to be relying on Edgar Stephens and Harbinder Kaur for a while.