Rules, Regs and Rotten Eggs (The DCI Harriet Martens series Book 7)

The seventh, and final, tale in Keating’s ‘Hard Detective’ series sees Harriet battle self-doubt as she pursues a would-be killer.. Detective Superintendent Harriet Martens resolves to resign when a new assistant chief constable makes her feel inferior. However, her thoughts of resignation cease abruptly when pro-hunting politician Robert Roughouse is struck down at an anti-hunting demonstration. Harriet sees this as a murder attempt, and seeing an opportunity to prove her worth to the ACC, takes charge of the investigation.. Unsure what lies behind the attempted assassination, Harriet goes to interview Roughouse in hospital. But he's not there. Overnight, somebody has moved him to the privately-owned Masterton Clinic.. When Harriet is also denied access to Roughouse at the Masterson, she begins to wonder just who is behind the case, and how they are managing to stay so very well hidden …. Rules, Regs and Rotten Eggs is a fascinating police procedural that looks beyond the standard elements to explore Harriet’s inner psyche as she seeks to prove her value within a male-dominated environment. It’s a good choice for readers familiar with the ‘Hard Detective’ series, but works equally well as a stand-alone novel.. Praise for Rules, Regs and Rotten Eggs:‘A good, old-fashioned police procedural but taken that step further, as you would expect of Keating. Most writers stop at the point where we know who killed the vicar, but Rules, Regs and Rotten Eggs looks at the part played by the Crown Prosecution Service and then at how the perpetrator is brought into custody. … I sat down and read the book through in one sitting on one of those bitterly cold afternoons when it’s folly to be anywhere other than in front of a warm fire. It was perfect for a one sitting book with plenty of twists and turns.’ – Sue Magee, Thebookbag.co.uk. Henry Reymond Fitzwalter Keating (1926–2011) was an English author known primarily for his crime fiction, although he also wrote several non-crime novels and reference books, and spent many years as critic of crime fiction for The Times.