The Summons (Peter Diamond Series #3)

by Peter Lovesey

Overview

“The Summons is a classic.” —The Economist

John Mountjoy has escaped from prison and kidnapped the chief constable’s daughter. The only person he’ll parley with is Detective Peter Diamond, who arrested him four years earlier for the murder of a young journalist. Mountjoy, who still maintains his innocence, has a simple request for Diamond. All the detective has to do is find the real killer and clear Mountjoy’s name, and the hostage will be free to go. But in the intervening four years, the trail has gone cold and memories have turned hazy, making the hunt for the killer even more complicated the second time around. Will Diamond get to the bottom of the cold case before another life is lost?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781569478127
Publisher:	Soho Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	06/01/2004
Series:	Peter Diamond Series , #3
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	163,587
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Peter Lovesey is the author of more than thirty highly praised mystery novels. He has been awarded the CWA Gold and Silver Daggers, the Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement, the Strand Magazine Award for Lifetime Achievement, the Macavity, Barry, and Anthony Awards, and many other honors. He lives in West Sussex, England.

Editorial Reviews

A resourceful convict's escape from a prison dubbed ``the British Alcatraz'' launches Peter Diamond's third case (after Diamond Solitaire). Once out of Albany Prison, John Mountjoy kidnaps the Assistant Chief Constable's daughter in order to force the Bath police to reopen his case. His demand: that the detective who put him away for murder now find the real killer. What he doesn't know is that Diamond-fat, bald and brilliant-has resigned from the force in a huff and lives in London, where his odd jobs include ``collecting supermarket trolleys from a car park.'' But his old bosses need him desperately and, to his own astonishment, he begins to be pursuaded that he had indeed goofed the first time. But a race is on between Diamond (with one helper, Detective Inspector Julie Hargreaves) and a team of trigger-happy cops who are itching to run Mountjoy down. The chase leads to a ``crusty'' (hippy) encampment, a horse funeral, a battered husband, ``buskers'' (street entertainers) and a siege of a huge old empty luxury hotel. Except for one irritating device used to delay the denouement, the action proceeds logically, with solid plot construction, savvy dialogue and great good humor. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Crime Writers' Association Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement Recipient 
Mystery Writers of America 2018 Grandmaster 

Praise for The Summons

Winner of the Crime Writers' Association Silver Dagger Award
Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award Nominee
Critics' Choice Award Selection

“Good stuff . . . Breezy, British, and as comfy as a Cotswold cottage.”
—The New York Times Book Review
 
“The Summons is a classic.”
—The Economist
 
“Written with energy and style, a masterly performance.”
—Rocky Mountain News
 
“Lovesey provides a riveting and ingenious plot, clever characterizations, and splendid humor, plus—best of all—the unparalleled Peter Diamond. Rates a definite thumbs-up!”
—Booklist
 
“A splendid idea worked out with surpassing ingenuity. Full marks to Diamond and his inventive creator.”
—Kirkus Reviews

Praise for the Peter Diamond series 

“Peter Diamond is impatient, belligerent, cunning, insightful, foul, laugh-out-loud funny . . . A superb series.”
—Louise Penny

“I’m jealous of everyone discovering Lovesey and Diamond for the first time—you have a wonderful backlist to catch up on. Me, all I can do is wait for the next book.”
—Sara Paretsky

“What'll it be today? A knotty puzzle mystery? A fast-paced police procedural? Something more high-toned, with a bit of wit? With the British author Peter Lovesey, there's no need to make those agonizing decisions, because his books have it all.”
—The New York Times Book Review 

“Mr. Lovesey's narrative is swift, but he takes time out for local color and abundant humor, the latter springing from the book's quirky characters . . . Lovesey is a wizard at mixing character-driven comedy with realistic-to-grim suspense. And in a writing career spanning four decades, he has created a stylish and varied body of work.”
—The Wall Street Journal

“Next to Jane Austen, Peter Lovesey is the writer the tourist board of Bath, England, extols most proudly . . . The enduring draw of the Peter Diamond books derives both from the beguiling Bath cityscape and the brusque character of Diamond himself.”
—NPR

From the Publisher