Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond fluctuates between being interesting and being thoroughly unlikable. While not anti-computer, he is quite distrustful of them, and is unhappy with their effect on police work. As a result he has come to style himself as 'the last detective.' His overall personality is overbearing and a bit egotistical which makes him a bit unpopular with both his co-workers and the top brass. As a reader I found that Detective Diamond had his moments, but I liked his second in command, John Wigful, quite a bit better.

The plot centers on a drowned woman who turns out to be a 'retired' soap star with the personality of a rabid mink and the morals of a sociopathic rabbit. Singularly murderable, if I say so myself. The most prominent of the suspects are much more likeable. In a Lovesey novel this usually means that they will be subjected to a fair amount of hectoring by the investigator, and this is no exception. In this case, the police make a highly dubious arrest. Detective Diamond is so disturbed by the process that he resigns his position and resolves to do some investigation on his own.

While the path to the true murderer is a bit complex it does not justify the length of the novel. Pacing is often uneven. Lovesey uses an unusual device in this story, i.e., in addition to the normal third person narrative, two large sections are done in the first person by the suspects. This works fairly well for the narrative done by the victim's husband, Gregory Jackman. Unfortunately, Lovesey does not do as well with Dana Didrikson, the female suspect who is entangled with Jackman. Even if you think it's sexist to believe that women don't quite think like men, you have to concede that it is highly unlikely that Dana's narrative would be exactly like Lovesey's, but such is the case.

In spite of all this criticism, The Last Detective is readable. Lovesey can craft a plot, and does a decent job with most of his characters. It did win the 1992 Anthony Boucher Award for Best Mystery Novel, so it certainly has redeeming qualities. People who like Lovesey will find this their cup of tea. Those of us who find him a bit unsatisfactory will find their opinions softened a bit, but still confirmed.

--Marc Ruby