Diamond and the Eye

An antiques dealer named Septimus Hubbard has vanished from Bath without explanation, leaving behind a locked-up shop and a daughter desperate enough to hire a Philip Marlowe-obsessed private investigator named Johnny Getz. When a body turns up in Hubbard's store, the missing persons case becomes murder, and Detective Peter Diamond must collaborate with the insufferable Johnny Getz while managing his ongoing investigation into a seven-year-old murder case that has shadowed a suspended officer. The twentieth Peter Diamond novel by MWA Grand Master Peter Lovesey is among the series' most overtly comic entries.

James Langton narrates with the dry wit appropriate to Diamond and the book's comedy of procedural cultures, giving Johnny Getz his full satirical potential without letting the parody overwhelm the genuine mystery. His performance distinguishes the hard-boiled American detective fantasy from the more grounded Bath reality with consistent comic timing. At just over nine hours, Diamond and the Eye is an entertaining entry that rewards long-running series fans and newcomers alike.