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Even more uproarious than Sealfinger, the first in the Sam Applewhite series, the follow-up novel Doggerland is full-on chuckle-out-loud delightful – think P.G Wodehouse populated with homicidal maniacs, woolly mammoths, Viking misfits, and British pensioners; cavorting over the ancient lands of Doggerland, buried deep within the wintry waters of the North Sea.
In this installment, Sam Applewhite, her father Marvin, and her eternally sunny millionaire ex-boyfriend Rich, celebrate the Christmas season aboard a decommissioned oil rig, oblivious for only a short time to the murderous mayhem taking place all around them. As the bodies pile up, Sam’s involvement becomes inevitable – and this time she is aided by the vertically enviable Detective Constable Camara, who proves to be not only very tall, (at six and half feet) but actually competent (unlike the previously introduced Sargeant Caesar.)
As the plot, fast and furious, winds forward we meet the residents of the Otterside Retirement Village, are re-introduced to the strangely criminal world of Ragnar Odinson and his clan, and re-visit with Sam in her daft and surreal day job.
As Rich moves forward with his newest ludicrous-yet-possible (?) money-making vision, Sam becomes an unwilling accomplice to the craziness around her – representing a small and uncertain bit of sanity; we think (but are not really sure) that Sam will be our voice of reason as the truly extraordinary events unfold.
Gradually, Sam becomes aware of the bigger plot, one in which “the most masterful players of any game are the ones who make it look as though someone else is in control”.
I laughed, I chuckled,and I laughed again. Even as the bodies fell. (Go figure).
Less graphically violent than Sealfinger, but equally shocking, this series is a perfect blend of dead-pan humor and dead-pan death. Its impossible not to love this series, and the skill that went into it’s crafting.
Note that enjoyment of this wonderful book in no way depends on reading installment 1 first. (It just makes this book even more fun!)
My stop today for Installment 2 “Doggerland” on the @RachelsRandomResources #blogtour for the extraordinary #SamApplewhite three-part series
I can’t wait for installment 3!
