Due to a passing in the family a few years ago and my subsequent health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for years after the bereavement. Thank you for the opportunity.

This police procedural set in Wales (in part) in the late 70s is an absorbing, intriguing read, and it is good to find a new series to read. Highly recommended.

My thanks to Joffe Books and Netgalley for providing a review copy of their eBook, "Murder in the Mine". The comments below are my own.

When a decomposed woman's body is discovered in an abandoned Welsh coal mine, the local police reluctantly call in Scotland Yard to investigate. Detective Chief Inspector John Crow is sent from London to the scene, an area called Rhondda, and an insular hamlet close to the city of Cardiff. There he is teamed up with local Detective Inspector Dewi Jones, an ex-boxer, and together they search for the killer. Once the woman's identity is confirmed Jones and Crow embark on trace her background and figure out the motive for her killing. The search takes Crow as far away as Canada, but it returns to Wales as a potential suspect is identified and quickly arrested at the insistence of the local police brass. Crow is not convinced the killer has been found and he perseveres until
he finds "whodunit".

This is a traditional police procedural murder murder mystery set in the late 1960's. While originally published in 1974, it's not glaringly out-of-date writing, although as the reader is warned, there's no modern scientific (e.g. DNA) or technology (e.g. cellphones) involved in the telling. The story is all about solving the murder mystery with little character development. Crow and Jones make for an odd couple, Jones is the less experienced of the pair in investigating a murder and makes some beginner errors. Crow carries the load of closing the case. The secluded atmosphere of rural Wales and then prevalent Victorian-like morals are aways in the background and play a role in the resolution of the mystery. This book is the fifth in the Inspector John Crow series, but can easily be read as a standalone.

It's an easy and entertaining read, with a neat conclusion that keeps the identity of the murderer hidden to the end.

This is the fifth book in the series featuring Detective Chief Inspector John Crow. I have read, reviewed and thoroughly enjoyed the previous four books and I had high hopes for ‘Murder In The Mine’. I was not to be disappointed as I absolutely loved it but more about that in a bit.
Detective Chief Inspector John Crow is a bit of a funny old fish. He works in the Met and he is considered to be brilliant at what he does but he isn’t exactly a people person. Crow has a way with words. ‘Murder In The Mine’ sees Crow called in to help the police in Wales to investigate the case of a woman found dead down a mine shaft. Crow isn’t exactly thrilled to be sent to Wales and the police in Wales are not especially pleased to see him. There’s a certain degree of hostility and animosity between the two parties. Crow says what he thinks and he doesn’t suffer fools gladly. He doesn’t seem to care whose toes he treads on. Crow can be blunt and he certainly doesn’t beat around the bush. It isn’t long before Crow makes headway in the case. Who is the woman down the mine shaft? Who is the killer? Why did they kill the woman? Will Crow solve the case? Well for the answers to those questions and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
‘Murder In the Mine’ appealed to me in a few different ways. Firstly, I have a huge history in coal mining, which is due in part to my family tree. Life has always been the pits for my family- well at least 6 generations thereof anyway. Secondly, I love the DCI Crow series because it transports me back in time to an era that fascinates me and I love Crow’s bluntness and his brilliant investigative brain. Thirdly, I love the fact that the North East of England appears in the story, although I didn’t realise that until I had got part way through the book. I’m from the North East and I love books that names places with which I am familiar.
It didn’t take me long at all to get into this book. Pretty much by the time I got to the bottom of the page, I just knew that this was one book which I would be binge reading and so it proved to be. I managed to read over a quarter of the book in one sitting without having to move, which is blooming good for me. Usually I have the attention span of a gnat and I am easily distracted but not in this case. The chapters are rather long in length but I was so taken by the storylines, the characters and the author’s writing style that I didn’t notice how long the chapters were taking me to read if that makes sense? Reading this book became addictive and if I had to put the book down then I was counting down the time until I could pick the book up again. I seemed to race through the book and I had mixed feelings about finishing the book. Don’t get me wrong I was pleased to finish the book because I knew how the case ended but I was enjoying the book so much that I just wanted it to continue.
The DCI Crow series is set during the late Sixties and early Seventies when attitudes were different. A couple of times I winced at the terminology that certain characters use but then I told myself that I was judging the terms from a 2019 perspective.
For me ‘Murder In The Mine’ is very well written and cleverly plotted. The author has a writing style that is easy to engage with and he certainly kept my interest all the way through the story. I was gripped by the story and at times I was on the edge of my seat. There were several twists and turns during this book- some of which I was expecting and some of which surprised me. I even found that I was interacting with the book. Yes I know this is a work of fiction but I find that if I really, really enjoy a book, then I tend to ‘live’ the story as if it was real. I even found myself suggesting tips or ideas to Crow then I realised that he didn’t exactly need them since he is an ace detective himself.
In short, I loved reading this book and for me, ‘Murder In The Mine’ is easily the best book of the series so far. The DCI John Crow series just keeps getting better and better. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. Here’s hoping that I don’t have too long to wait. I would definitely recommend this author and this series to other readers. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

This is book 5 in the Inspector Crow series but works very well as stand-alone.

A body is found while rescuing a dog who has fallen down a mine shaft and Inspector Crow is brought in to help with the investigation.

However, Crow's role is advisory and he finds that brings with it the expected problems.

What first appears to be a case of a woman upsetting the wrong man takes on a life of its own as it becomes more complex with a lot of false leads.

Wales is well known for the way communities stick together and reject outsiders and this story uses that to make a very interesting story as people protect others and the investigations becomes very entangled with old relationships taking a part.

A very intriguing read that kept the pages turning. Highly recommended to readers who like the older type murder mysteries.

Another great Inspector Crow novel. John Crow, an inspector with Scotland Yard murder squad has been called to Rhondda valley in Wales. The body of a woman has been discovered in the bottem of a disused mining shaft. Even though the people in Wales close rank against outsiders, Crow is able to get the the bottem of the mystery. The story is set in the 70’s and morals and attitudes were very different but it is no detraction to the story. The characters and the setting are pivotal to the story. The author’s knowledge of the law is apparent in the court room scenes. A very good story with a twist at the end. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to netgalley and Joffe books for an ARC, all opinions are my own.

There seems to be to much going off in this story and it makes for a rather disappointing read, still merits 4 out of 5 stars though

Roy Lewis's Inspector Crow crime series is set to reach new audiences as this book was originally published in the 1970s as A Question of Degree. Now republished as Murder in the Mine, it has Dai who has lost his dog. The injured dog is finally found down a disused mineshaft, and shockingly, there just also happens to the decomposing body of a woman, along with jewellery. With the local Rhondda police struggling to find out who the woman is, never mind the killer, Chief Inspector Crow is sent into the South Wales mining community to ostensibly be an adviser and consultant. Finding himself with a host of suspects, it takes a visit to the North East to discover exactly who the dead woman is, and can a confession be trusted? There are plenty of twists, surprises and secrets in this story which evokes the 1970s rather well. This is definitely compelling crime fiction.

4 and 1 / 2 stars

This book is set in the late 1960's through the early 1970's in South Wales

Dai Davies goes looking for his beloved lost dog. He finds him in an abandoned mine shaft. During the rescue operation involving the local rescue crew, he finds the body of a woman in the shaft. Thoroughly shaken, he ascends to the surface and our story begins.

Chief Inspector John Crow responds to the call for his aid in the investigation. He and his counterpart, Dewi Jones in the local village in South Wales, begin to interview the villagers. They still don't know who the woman was. They only know that she wasn't a local citizen. They take a particular interest in the man who found the body, Dai Davies. They finally learn that the woman was Mrs. Donna Stark and she was from up North.

A visit to Donna's home brings valuable clues for Crow. She was involved with someone who now lives in the village where she was murdered. Suspects are identified. A man confesses. Is he guilty? Is he confessing to protect someone else?

Oddly enough, I like John Crow. He kind of looks like a crow himself, but can be gentle and persuasive in questioning witnesses and suspects. He can also be cold and has a will as hard as iron. This is Roy Lewis' best book to date. I enjoyed the others, but this one has them beat. It is well written in a clear and easily readable format. The characters in the book were likable for the most part and their motives were understandable.

I want to thank NetGalley and Joffe Books for forwarding to me a copy of this great book for me to read, enjoy and review.

THIS BOOK WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AS “A QUESTION OF DEGREE.”

Inspector John Crow is back in this 5th book. He's a very tall man, rail thin, bald head, almost looks skeletal. But he's very good at what he does. But not everyone likes him.

Looking for his missing dog, a man discovers more than his pup down the mineshaft. Not only did the man pick up a valuable piece of jewelry ... but also the corpse of the woman who was wearing it when killed.

Much to Crow's disgust, his supervisor is sending him to the village where she was found ... to not investigate .. but to advise mostly. Anyone who knows Crow knows he wants to dig in himself; he's not used to standing around basically talking, not doing.

Reading the reports, he discovers discrepancies which have been overlooked. When they finally identify the young woman, they find that maybe she was not the sweet young thing she was thought to be. Who was she there to see? And why? What was she doing there? New suspects seem to appear almost daily.

Someone knows. And someone is lying. Someone is a cold-blooded murderer.

When the village Police Chief arrests a man who is living under an alias, Crow is not sure this the man they want. But because the local police don't want to be thought of as not being able to solve a crime, they refuse to listen to Crow and promptly dismiss him.

There is plenty of intrigue, a few unexpected twists, and several suspects. Crow is finely drawn and it's really fun seeing him crime solving .. especially as this story takes place well before DNA, smart phones, and Crow has nothing but instinct and a great mind to go on.

Many thanks to the author / Joffe Books / Netgalley / Books n All Promotion for the advanced digital copy of this crime fiction. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

This is a re-release of Roy's book 'A Question of Degree' which was originally published back in the dark ages of Forensic investigation (1974) which makes it, at times, a bit slow going but also means that the Inspector has to work that much harder to find out what happened and by whom.

As this is book 5 in the series it really helps if you have read the previous books to get the back story behind Inspector Crow and his team and to find out the dynamics of the entire team.

This book starts with someone finding a dead body down a mineshaft and the local police being baffled.

This leads to Inspector Crow being brought in to investigate in a purely consulting and assisting role, which annoys him quite a bit.

The story has loads of twists and surprises throughout, which makes it a great read, although it is definitely showing it's age with some of the comments and generalisations. These don't take away from the story as long as you remember it is set, and was written, back in the 1970's.

Overall this was a good read, which kept me hooked and guessing throughout.

Detective Crow has been asked to consult on a murder in Wales. A local has not been able to find his dog and gets help which eventually he finds the dog down the mine shaft. As he picks up the dog there is a woman's body there too. When it looks like they have the murderer about half way through the book but with Crow's help they find the investigation is not over by a long shot. Through many twists and turns that exposes a complicated line to what really happened.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for a review copy of Murder in the Mine, the fifth novel to feature Chief Inspector John Crow of Scotland Yard’s Murder squad, originally published in 1974.

When Dai Chippo goes down a mine shaft to rescue his dog he finds a brooch then a body. The local Rhondda police get nowhere in either identifying the victim or the murderer so call in the Murder Squad in an advisory and consultative capacity.

I thoroughly enjoyed Murder in the Mine which is an absorbing read with some good twists and turns. It is perhaps not the best novel in the series as I was able to guess one of the big twists long before the reveal but I suspect that this is the result of many years of crime fiction reading rather than a weakness in the writing. The novel is well put together and exactly the kind of fiction I like, a gradual unravelling of facts with one thing leading to another in a logical, believable way and the inclusion of unexpected twists to keep me on my toes. The ending is particularly clever.

With the novel being over forty years old it does contain its share of anachronisms which are slightly jarring to modern sensibilities but, on the other hand, it paints a realistic picture of the era. Obviously there is little in the way of forensics, in fact John Crow is sent to a a forensics conference, demonstrating how unimportant it was then, so case resolution relies on shoe leather, intuition and statement discrepancies. Then there are the attitudes, I found the sweeping generalisations about the Welsh quite amusing, the role of women less so.

I liked the change of emphasis in the novel. John Crow is not leading the investigation, merely advising and consulting, so it brings a different dynamic. He’s not happy about this or the decisions the locals make but what can he do? It’s all politics (so no change there!) but it all turns out well and adds a certain edge to the novel.

Murder in the Mine is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book it was a great experience. It had me glued from first page

Another fantastic classic story from Roy Lewis! Cheif Inspector John Crow at his best! Set in the Rhondda Valley with a body in the old disused pit, Crow has to work with the locals to get to the bottom of this murder. Recommended to all readers who like to delve back into the times of 1960’s and early 1970’s.

A hunt for a missing dog leads to a gruesome discovery down a mineshaft. They find the decomposing corpse of a woman and a piece of valuable jewellery. Detective John Crow has been called in to investigate.

I love this series set in the late 1960/70's. I like a good old fashioned police procedural that solved by the policemans skills rather than the forensic evidence etc that they have at their fingertips today. At first the case seems straightforward as they have a confession. But it's not all as it seems. Crow discovers flaws in the dog owners version. As the investigation widens, more suspects emerge in this fast paced, well written police series. If you like old fashioned police procedurals, this series is for you.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author Roy Lewis for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I do enjoy the Inspector Crow stories. They take us back to a time before the internet and twenty four hour news. When keeping family secrets was the norm. Gossips could cast suspicions around, but things died down and were forgotten. This book is all about secrets.

A good and enjoyable read