“The truth is you can’t play
Angry Birds all day. Believe me, I know”
– Mark Timlin
After crime readers thought
we’d seen the last of Mark Timlin’s signature Private Detective Nick Sharman,
an unexpected Christmas Treat has arrived, entitled REAP THE WHIRLWIND; a
collection of five short stories, with a novella that gives this book its
title.
It’s been awhile since we last
met up with the troubled Sarf-London private-eye; though set in those days when
Nick Sharman bumbled along in the 1990s, this new book is surprisingly fresh.
Naturally there is a nostalgic appeal for readers familiar with Mark Timlin’s
voice, that terse urgency of Sharman’s first-person narrative. There is a
broader appeal to those yet to experience the world through those amoral eyes,
and of that voice.
The eponymous novella, as well
as the short stories are concise, judiciously edited with short chapters that
act as a serious of vignettes. We get to meet up with some of the secondary
characters that gave the Nick Sharman adventures [or more aptly put –
misadventures] their unique style. And we laugh, chortle silently at some of
the inappropriate observations.
Reap the Whirlwind starts the
collection and acts a primer to bring readers back to that beat, the cynical
outlook, the grey area of lives lived under neon, and under the cosh.
Read the full review from
Shots HERE
After putting the book down, I
called Mark as I had a few questions, and it had been a few years since I
visited him [and Lucy Ramsey],
Click HERE
for information
Ali: Firstly, the
crime/thriller community thought old Nicky Boy was gone? So, what prompted you
to return to writing about the 1990s before Sharman’s exit?
Mark: I’d grown stale, and bored with writing. Then a ton of things
occurred. My dear old mum died, I got ill. Ill enough to face my maker a couple
of times. Then Lucy and I decided it was just too expensive living in London,
and she in particular wanted a cat and a garden, so we sold everything and
moved down to her old home town in Wales where we have both. Buying an old
house, and bringing it up to speed also took a load of time and money, which
left little outlet for creative thoughts. Then, my brain started buzzing with
plots and dialogue, so I began writing some Sharman again. But not a novel.
Most crime novels these days are too long, but at twenty quid a pop for a hardback
it’s no surprise people want value for their money. So, a novella it had to be,
and other short stories more or less started writing themselves.
As for why the nineties? To me
that was Sharman’s time. And mine. I don’t really think he fits the modern world.
And besides, I can’t pretend to be street these days, as I don’t hang out like
I used to. Also, when I write Sharman, I’m not a seventy-five-year-old invalid,
but a ruthless, sexy crime buster chasing beautiful women. What’s not to like?
Ali: It was funny to see Jack
Robber and some of the names from the day, back in print. Was it easy to get
back into the saddle with all back-story from those novels and short stories of
Sharman and his world?
Mark: The old characters just
reappeared fully formed, and it was great to meet them again. Then, there were
a bunch of new characters who I came to love, and loved writing parts for them.
Ali: I know you relocated out
from London several years back, what was it like to write about the London of
the 1990s from memory, or did you return to get the scent back?
Mark: I haven’t been to London for seven years, and
it seems to have changed, not for the better. I have my memories and I used
them to write the stories. Besides, Sharman’s London is a parallel universe, where
things aren’t quite what they seem.
Ali: I know many compare
Sharman to Marlowe, but for me he’s a British Spencer. Would you care to
comment?
Mark: Marlowe or Spenser.
Blimey, that’s heavy-duty company, and for me to be compared is a rare honour.
I love them both, and even the Spenser novels by other writers are pretty good.
Not quite the voice of the master, but close. If you tied me down and
threatened to tickle my feet, I guess I’d have to go with brother Ray.
Ali: I know from your book
reviewing days, and literary commentary you were always a voracious reader, but
where did your love of reading originate from?
Mark: Reading has always been
one of the loves if my life. I’ll read sauce bottle labels if there’s nothing
else around. The only thing I miss about reviewing is the stacks of books
arriving with every post. I was spoiled, and I still buy hardback novels just
for the feel of the thing.
Ali: Can you tell us a little
about your reading. If memory serves, we were around when John
Connolly arrived on the scene, have you been following his work still?
Mark: I was actually the first
person to review John’s first novel, and I’ve read almost everything since.
Ali: I was fortunate to meet
up with novelist film maker Terrill Lee
Lankford [who works with Michael
Connelly] on the BOSCH
Amazon TV film set. I know you admire both Lee
and Mike’s work, so can you tell us a little more?
Mark: When I was reviewing for the Indie on Sunday,
I reviewed Lee’s novel ‘Shooters’ which to me is one of the great lost crime
novels that every hard-boiled fan should have on their bookcase, but sadly
don’t. He got in touch and we have been exchanging mails ever since. As for
Michael he’s a crime writer who never fails to satisfy, and an all-round jolly
good fella. In fact, I nicked the idea of the Lincoln Lawyer and he became
Bobby D, the Beemer brief in the book. Check it the last page and you’ll find
my few words if thanks. And before you ask, yes I have sent him a copy.
Ali: Last time we met, we were
both engrossed in season one of TRUE DETECTIVE [I’d rather not mention the
following two series….which I loathed], so as a film buff, tells us a little
about what you have been watching that you’ve enjoyed? And TV streaming?
Mark: Crikey, what a question.
Tons of stuff. Scandie, French and Spanish on Saturday night BBC 4. Loads on
Netflix. ‘Guilt’ was great on BBC2. ‘The Irishman’, but maybe a trifle long,
and the stars were too old. ‘The Crime’ from Poland. ‘Mindhunter’, ‘The
Capture’, ‘Traces’. And I’m watching ‘Hazell’ and ‘Special Branch’, as well as
‘Talking Pictures.’
Ali: And how is Lucy Ramsey?
Mark: Lucy is in fine shape,
looking after me and the garden, and cooking up a storm, and we hope to see you
soon too, bud.
More information about Mark Timlin and
Nick Sharman click HERE
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