Reviews for Allan Pinkerton

The average rating for Allan Pinkerton based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-07-23 00:00:00 Tomas Lajdar True crime The book is based on a true story, which begins after a considerable prologue, on the day of the 1966 World Cup Final with the brutal killings of three London policemen. Incidentally, for those who don't know, England beat Germany by four goals to two after extra time in that final. The prologue to the horrific incident is entirely necessary and relevant, as it explains how the three main characters arrived where they were on that fateful day. There is the policeman, who was the closest buddy of one of the victims. There is the murderer himself. Then there is a self-seeking journalist who follows the story from beginning to end, and adds a fascinating life-story of his own. This is fast-paced and action-packed. It paints a sorry picture of policing in Britain in the second half of the twentieth century, whipped up by the awfulness of Thatcherite Conservatism. The characters are totally believable. After all, they are based on true life. The reader is swept along by what could very be the reality of the detail. I read the book in a single day, and I recommend it to you without fear of comeback.

Review # 2 was written on 2013-07-11 00:00:00 Dan Dems Not so much a sequel to The Long Firm as much as it is a companion piece, returning to the grimy streets of London's west end in the 60's and 70's for a story about crooked cops, small time gangsters and the gutter press. He Kills Coppers is something of a blend of James Ellroy and Guy Ritchie, but the formula that worked so well in The Long Firm fails here. Part of the reason is that the characters aren't quite as interesting in He Kills Coppers. There's no Harry Starks or Jack the Hat. There's also a feeling of "been there, done that" to the whole thing. A lot of the plot twists are fairly predictable. I also wasn't feeling the time jumps. Just when it felt like the story was settling into a rhythm, the narrative would suddenly skip forward 5 or more years. Despite that I didn't hate it at all, and was enjoying it well enough, until I got the the whimper of the ending. It felt very underwhelming, like the story just kind of stuttered to a halt. Some interesting ideas (I think a book about a career cop watching the Met change from the 60's through to the 80's could be really interesting) that weren't fleshed out enough.