For a town with so much crime, they certainly have a hard time staffing their police force. This time around, Denton is subject to some gruesome occurrences. Detectives are trying to track down a missing child believed to be the bait in a blackmail scam while elsewhere, infants are being stabbed in the comfort of their own cribs. If that wasn’t bad enough, a deranged mother has murdered her three children and then leaped to her death in front of an oncoming train.Just like in previous Inspector Frost novels, Wingfield has Frost doing the work of many. This could be due to the fact that the Denton Police Department is so wretchedly understaffed or it could be that Frost simply has nothing better to do. For a man that seems to hate most of the people he works with, he can rarely be found doing anything else. The brief amount of time he does designate to himself are mainly just to sleep and even when he’s done that, he’s right back at his desk.In the first three books, Frost was insufferable to say the least. He disliked most of his co-workers and worked hard to make life miserable for his boss, Chief Superintendent Mullett. This time around, he not only annoys all of those around him but he also succeeded in irritating me.I understand that Frost is written in such a way to come across as abrasive and short with both those he works with and those he investigates but I’m starting to wonder why Mullet even keeps him around. Sure, he eventually gets the job done but is the aggravation worth it in the end? I’ve got to think it isn’t. In today’s day and age, Frost probably couldn’t get away with half of his comments or even a portion of his actions. He’d have so many sexual harassment lawsuits thrown his way he wouldn’t know what to do with himself.I don’t want it to seem like I suddenly have an issue with the character. Frankly, he’s always been crass. I just can’t understand why Wingfield decided to turn him up to eleven this time around. Hopefully in the next 3 books he isn’t so ridiculous and returns to his drier, more subtle style of humour that originally brought out his charm.Cross posted on Every Read Thing
Another great installment of the Inspector Frost series. Very similar to all the others, in that there are many different cases, with lots of different people – some of the threads intertwine and some don’t. Some spark off clues to others, and some are entirely separate.Frost is his usual grumpy self, although this time he has not one, but two colleagues to try and get on side. One of them is a woman, and that means this book is more full than usual of hideous stereotypes and sexism. A sign of the times, perhaps, but it did make me more uncomfortable than normal.There was less depth in this story, I think, than in previous ones. I’ve mentioned before how, if Frost was trudging through a forest in the depths of winter, you could almost shiver along with him. I didn’t really get that this time. The concentration seemed to be more on the gruesome crimes within – and they were certainly more gruesome than ever before.None of these are big complaints though. I read it in a very short space of time, and as it ended, realised I’ve been happy with the way all of these books have finished. That’s not something I can normally say.In fact, my only real complaint is that the fifth book, and only the fifth one, in the six-book series is not available on the Kindle. What is that about?
Do You like book Hard Frost (1995)?
Pretty good read. A lot of the same old sexist reaction to the female inspector in the book, which is really getting tiresome. So some guys don't like being told what to do by a woman. Does *anybody* like being told what to do by *anybody*? Why do all women in crime fiction remind the men of their evil mother/teacher/wife/ex-wife, while (statistically) none of the men remind anybody -- male or female -- of anyone but their unique,individual selves? We're not all flipping archetypes.Anyway. Aside from that nonsense it was truly a fun read.
—Thorn
I'm a big fan of the Touch of Frost TV series and decided to try the books the series was based on. I realize the position Sir David Jason holds in England so I understand the changes made to DI Frost to bring him to television as played by that actor, but it was still disconcerting to find the book Frost to be a little unlikable. He was a bit of a pratt to be honest, and much more perverted than the television version of the same character. Nonetheless, the book was an enjoyable mystery and book Frost grows on you and the more you read the more you start to see the good guy Sir David Jason plays so well.
—Tina
I really like the Wingfield series about an English detective Inspector named Frost. However, there are some parts tough to read.I am not writing about the death of three children -although that was difficult - but about the casual sexism. "Cow" is used 36 times in the story, according to my Kindle search function and none of them are related to the animal that provides steak and dairy products. Frost also likes to poke people in the ass, although he may not be sexist in this regard he is an equal opportunity poker.I don't know anything about the real-life detecting business, but I think Wingfield gets the overwhelming amount of work and the number of cases that need to worked on at the same time right. In this book, Frost is investigating two kidnappings and two murders, along with a handful of smaller crimes, most of which get solved to some degree of satisfaction.Frost's methods stand in opposition to Holmes'. While both are keenly observant, Frost is not at all organized and relies on intuition and gut. He is forgetful and messy, but works around the clock -and looks it - to find answers.I'll read other books in the series but do wish Wingfield could learn a few more sexist slurs just for variety's sake.
—brian dean
