I have not read the earlier books in this long running series featuring a married couple who solve crimes - she's a novelist and he's a former agent for the National Crime Agency who now investigates insurance fraud. That made it, unfortunately, hard for me to follow this. At the request of Patrick's old boss. they are looking for John Brinkley, who retired from the Met and is suspected of having been on the take. There's a lot of bad guys, a. murder, and other "stuff" but I never felt a connection with the characters. which I'm sure long time readers do. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Wasn't for me but fans of the series will no doubt be pleased.

This book was not for me , I had not realised that this was the last one of a very long series, so I was wrong footed on the characters. I did find the style of writing very irritating and felt very much like I was stepping back into the 50’s with Listen with mother on the radio.
I cannot work out why I felt like that but I was not keen on the first person narrative.
Sorry about that

Even if I liked and found it compelling and entertaining I suppose I missed something as this is the last in a long series.
I liked the well thought characters and the fast paced plot.
I want to read the rest of the series as I thoroughly enjoyed this installment.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I think I’ve read every book in this lengthy series – Gillard’s Sting is number 22 – but blimey, please don’t test me on this latest instalment!

The ongoing saga of crime writer and crime fighter Ingrid Langley and her ex-military and spook husband Patrick Gillard is a veritable alphabet soup of police and government departments – and the couple seem to have worked for the lot over the previous books. But I can’t always remember who’s who within them or how much Patrick, who puts the loose into loose cannon, has pissed them off in the past.

This time out, Patrick, who’s working for an insurance company in Bath, is dragged back into the action when his former NCA boss Commander Michael Greenway turns up on the doorstep and asks him to investigate the disappearance of John Brinkley, a recently retired Met commander. Greenway, though, is a bit stingy with facts and paperwork, to put it mildly, and isn’t always the easiest bloke to track down for extra help.

With me so far? It’s from this point that it all goes a bit hazy in my mind. There’s another cop who wants Brinkley to be found, there’s possible corruption in the mix, plus a load of second division mobsters. And there’s a surfeit of creepy houses as everyone scuttles around Glastonbury, Bath, rural Somerset, Windsor and London in search of the truth.

The books have always been heavy on tell, not show, anchored by Ingrid’s understated and slightly arch narrative. I like her style, but I suspect the tone won’t appeal to everyone. She’s clear-eyed, pragmatic and fully capable of controlling her often reckless hubby. Gillard’s Sting conforms pretty much to the pattern of the earlier books, with plenty of grim things happening, but almost always off-stage.

It’s never clear how old the couple are – I’ve always assumed they’re in their 40s. Patrick has an artificial leg after a military accident, but it doesn’t stop him getting stuck in. And Ingrid juggles the crime fighting with a sketchy background career as a writer and also corralling, with the help of a childminder, a house full of sprogs.

The snag with Gillard’s Sting is that it’s a particularly talky book, anchored in Ingrid’s point of view, and I never felt I got much of an impression of the characters outside of the two leads, hence my confusion. Even series regular DCI James Carrick floats around in the background being vaguely grumpy despite being fairly a significant player. No one gets much in the way of character development, and by the halfway mark I was longing for a cast list so I could remind myself who was who

By the end, there’s a pile of bodies and a faintly bemusing route to getting there. Ingrid seems to have explained or surmised most of it while Patrick, who still has police credentials, disappears into the ether for days on end. It’s all a bit of a plod (‘scuse the pun).

I have a soft spot for this series, not least because I’m fascinated by the two leads. Gillard’s Sting isn’t one of the better books, but what keeps it interesting is Patrick’s increasingly screwed up state and his doubts over what he’s doing and whether he can still operate effectively.

A Gillard and Langley mystery and a worthy addition to this long running and very enjoyable series. It’s high stakes for the husband and wife working partnership as Gillard is brought out of retirement for a new assignment. Both compelling and engaging, as is usual for this series, with likeable and compatible protagonists. Satisfying reading.

I can't quite believe the Patrick Gillard and Ingrid Langley series has reached its 22nd episode with Gillard's Sting, and this latest is as bright and as entertaining as ever. Patrick is lured out of retirement to find a former Metropolitan Police Commander who has disappeared. Amidst strong rumours of corruption. But the complex trail leads to more concealment, deception and impersonation and a great deal of violence. The rapport and dialog between the married couple is as always great fun and delineated with precision and understanding. It's one of those "rattling good tales", undemanding and hugely enjoyable.