‘Playground Pets’ by Ron Ellis

Published by Ulverscroft,

1 March 2001.

ISBN: 978-0-7089-4357-1

It's a fortnight before Christmas when Chief Inspector Glass is called to investigate the murder of one Max Cadamarteri, whose current occupation had been playing the back legs of a pantomime cow. He immediately suspects the occupant of the front legs of the cow, Max's lifelong partner Gregory Oliver. 'Crime of passion', declares Glass. But Sergeant Moon is unconvinced and for his pains is despatched to interview all the theatre cast, the backstage crew, and muses Glass, you might as well interview all the front of house people and the management.

For light relief he attends the Police Annual Christmas Party, this year organised by Glass himself and being held at the Compton Road, Welfare and Social Club. All is going swimmingly, particularly some blue movies recently confiscated by the porn squad, until DS Evans shouts, 'Stop the film, that child is my goddaughter'.

I enjoyed all the exchanges between DCI Glass and his Sergeant Moon. I found Glass's sardonic remarks and general outlook on life to be immensely entertaining. The police procedural aspect of the book was also handled well, as these two officers investigate two seemingly unrelated cases. Woven into the story is some aspects of Glass's family life. Particularly that of Glass's son-in-law DCI Robin Knox who is on the trail of a serial murderer, after several young girls have been found dead.

Most disturbing about the book, is that it appears that any fourteen- or fifteen-year-old girl will go with anyone who utters the magic words 'you could be a model'. Even as portrayed in the book, well brought up and seemingly sensible girls, on hearing those words will forget everything and go like lambs to the slaughter.

As a work of fiction, I found the chase interesting as the perpetrators avoided detection and the police closed in, but it is not a comfortable story. That apart I look forward to more tales of Chief Inspector Glass.
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Reviewer: Lizzie Hayes

Ron Ellis. Writer, Broadcaster and Photographer, Ron is the author of the popular series of crime novels set on Merseyside featuring Liverpool radio D.J./Private Eye, Johnny Ace. He also writes the D.C.I. Glass mystery series. As well as his fiction titles, Ron has written 'Southport Faces' a social history of the town seen through the eyes of 48 of its best-known residents. His Journal of a Coffin Dodger, the hilarious adventures of an 84 year old playboy, has been serialised on BBC Radio and poems from his collection of poetry, Last of the Lake Poets, have won several nationwide competitions.
During the 1980's, he conducted over 192 interviews with friends and relatives of John Lennon for Albert Goldman's biography, The Lives of John Lennon. Ron writes the football reports for the Southport Champion and is also their theatre and arts reviewer as well as being a regular contributor to magazines such as Lancashire Life. He runs his own publishing company, Nirvana Books.