Private Investigator William Garrett spends his days setting up traps to phtograph unsuspecting women in compromising positions to support their husband's divorce cases.

But when a job leads him to meet Clara Morton, wife of a leading facist, he is led into a seedy underworld of obsession, sex, pornography, drugs and murder. As Garrett is pulled further into the mystery, he is faced with police corruption and facist rallys, coming face to face with Oswald Mosely himself.

The novel has a vibrant cast of characters with Garrett supported by his friend and out-of-work actor Ronnie Edgerton, Ronnie's sister and doyenne of the streets and canals, Queenie Maggs, as well as bright young Phyllis Hall.

The plot is twisty, taking the reader from the rich and bohemian of pre-war Birmingham to dark back alleys and grimy canals. The case provides an astute social commentary on Britain in this period and the lasting effects of the First World War on Birmingham's working classes.

In Needless Alley, Marlow evokes a gritty atmosphere of 1930s Birmingham, perfect for fans of Peaky Blinders. It's a much darker tale than most Golden Age crime fiction but it is well balanced with lighthearted banter and heartwarming exchanges between our protagonists.

Needless Alley is a great debut and set up for a compelling detective series.

Set in 1930s Birmingham, this gritty novel centres on private detective William Garrett. The investigation that starts off as a nice easy little earner, turns into a brutal return to his dodgy past and lands much closer to home than he would have wanted. A promising new author.
My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own unbiased opinion.

Hmm.

The best way to explain my feelings on this story is to compare it to others; not great practice, but I feel it works for this. Some stories have multiple perspectives (this doesn't but bear with me here), within which there may be one that you dislike reading. As such, you slog through the difficult chapter because the proverbial carrot is dangling over yonder and you'd like to reach it. This is irritating but fine- just view the big picture.

Now, Needless Alley takes this one step further. Each part takes a vastly different turn, making it feel like a new novel (think along the lines of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell). Of course, that's why a story is split into parts- to signpost this- however, it means that, as a reader, an investment is built for one narrative, only to find that this runs out and one has to have something else instead. It's like ordering something great from the menu and partway through your meal, having your plate swapped when you look away. It might be a decent alternative, but it isn't what you expected.

The affairs of William Garrett are exactly that. The first part focuses, primarily, on his relationships, namely those with Clara and Ronnie, and the part ends on an interesting footing for them all. Yet, the subsequent parts utilise a considerably different tone- one I didn't connect with in the same way.

Nothing here is bad- in fact, it's pretty good- but there isn't enough to make me want to push through the chaff. The carrot is too far away and, from here, looks disappointing.

From the opening paragraphs and pages, the reader is drawn into a grubby 1930s Birmingham where men make their living by seducing wives and photographing them in the act, giving the evidence to the cuckolded husband as proof for the inevitable divorce case. The investigators get caught up in a case where slowly, one of them forms a relationship with the wife under suspicion. This romance ends in tragedy as both halves of the couple are found murdered - and the rest of the book is devoted to the investigation into their murder, delving into murky corners and insalubrious situations.
Plenty to get your teeth into, a well-plotted story that leaves room for sequels in the future.

A bleak, gritty, somewhat seedy novel; not at all what I was expecting, but an enjoyable read. More noir than I had anticipated, but in all the right ways. You’ll need a strong stomach (this one is heavy on it’s themes of sex, violence, abuse) but our MC is compelling and he drives this unusual detective story forward. The conclusion is satisfying, as is the ride along the way. If you’re looking for something a little different, and the noir detective genre appeals to you, then I definitely recommend checking this one out.

A powerful, gritty and extremely well written story. I began expecting a detective story - William Garrett is a man damaged by the First World War, who sets himself up as a private eye, working with his avant garde friend Ronnie. Billy specialises in setting up entrapments for straying wives - Ronnie takes them to a hotel room, and Billy bursts in to get photographic evidence.

He is approached by a wealthy, Fascist businessman to find out if his wife is unfaithful, and a series of events comes into play that will change everything for them all. The story involves love - of a man, a woman, a child - and revenge.

Very gritty, no punches are spared and the reader will need fortitude to get through the maelstrom of violence and anger that is unleashed. Very well, written, true to its setting and gripping to the very end.

Thank you to NetGalley and John Murray Press for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Needless Alley is a mystery set in the old film noir mould, but the private detective walks the streets of 1930s Birmingham, catching straying wives in the arms of their lovers, until a beautiful dame asks for help and he is drawn ever further into the sleazy underside of the city. Natalie Marlow has a real talent for evoking the place and time that she is describing, her characters just leap off the page, even the incidental side characters who only grace one chapter. It's a wonderfully written book, dark in tone and content, but utterly brilliant.

After his experiences in the Great War Billy Garrett returns to Birmingham and carves out a living as a private detective specialising in facilitating divorces. He is approached to follow the wife of a prominent businessman but discovers that man's prediliction for young girls overlaps with his adherence to the rising Fascist movement. When his close friend and a client are killed Billy finds himself pulled into a seedy world of pornography.
For a debut novel this book is really assured and the plot is clever enough to satisfy. Some might say it is american noir crossed with Peaky Blinders but it works on many levels. I really liked the whole idea of the underbelly of society indulging their depravities at the expense of the poor, the prostitute who wanted new teeth so she could get a job in a shop really felt honest. This is a very rewarding read.

Needless Alley, Birmingham, 1930s is a dark and dingy place where William runs his detective agency. He's employed on a standard type job, by a husband who believes his wife Clara is having an affair. However when William starts to fall for Clara things get really complicated, dangerous and deadly. This is a story about sex, drugs, pornography, alcohol, violence, abuse and more. So it's not an easy read at times but if you're looking for a gritty, no holds barred detective story then I think this will be right up your street - or Alley!

William Garrett is neither a hero nor a saint but perhaps he can still do some good in the world. The story opens in the bleak rooms of adultery photos. The bread and butter of William’s business, abetter by his old childhood friend Ronnie.
But his next adultery case is for someone rich and cruel, and as he finds out more the case turns to murder and no one is safe.
The book Is set in 1930’s Birmingham in the underbelly of the city. Life is a struggle with only brief glimpses of something better. There is a slightly surreal aspect to the story, as William is hazy much of the time from beatings, booze or drugs. But this adds to the nightmare aspect of the story. A book for someone looking for something a little different to the usual detective story.


I had a copy of this book early through Netgalley

When I think about Uk in the 30s I think about Miss Marple or Peter Wimsey, the Golden Age puzzles classic whodunit.
This quite far from the classic historical mystery set in UK as it's the love child of Cornel Woolrich and Dashiel Hammett even if it's set in Birmingham in 1933
I found it gripping, well plotted, and original. The author is a good storyteller and deliver a solid plot.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Needless Alley is the residence of private detective William Garrett. It’s 1933, and the war veteran is making a living by taking photos of unsuspecting women in compromising situations to expediate their husband’s divorce proceedings. However, falling in love with the wife of one of his clients was not part of the plan and neither are the deadly repercussions…

I found lots to enjoy about ‘Needless Alley’, not least the fact it was set in Birmingham; I do a lot of reading and I’ve not come across a novel set there before. I don’t know a great deal about the city so I wasn’t quite sure where precisely the characters were much of the time but the author certainly evoked the atmosphere of the different areas and the canals and, of course, peppered the characters with the distinctive Midlands dialect.

I quickly became fond of some of the characters, particularly Clara and Ronnie, and warmed up to the main character of William, plus Queenie and, later, Phyll. I enjoyed how the novel is written so that it feels like you are making the discoveries along with William and some of them certainly made me sit bolt upright in surprise!

I found William a little hard to visualise and had to go back to the beginning of the book to remind myself how old he was supposed to be. The text says thirty-six but I sometimes imagined him to be older, in his fifties, even. They do say people were ‘older’ in mindset at the time the novel is set and, in William’s case, this is also possibly due to having taken part in The Great War.

A great read, somewhat different due to its noir feel and chosen location, and one I hope might lead to further novels in a series. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to the publishers and to NetGalley for the advance copy of Needless Alley on which this review is based.

Being a Private Detective mostly means taking pictures of wives or husbands in flagrente, often a set-up. Easy money – unless someone dies, of course. In 1930s Birmingham, William (Billy) Garret does this sort of work, although he despises it. In fact he despises his whole life, trawling around in the underbelly of the city, Le Demi-monde, a place where the elite (usually rich men) keep company with and exploit prostitutes (usually female but males always feature). Born into poverty among the bargees who work the city’s canal system, he had been conscripted into the army at the start of the Great War, and developed skill as a trench raider, i.e. someone who crept covertly into enemy trenches for ‘clearance’ purposes, a task that required a strong will. Not a very useful skill in civvy street, but the will power meant he was less damaged mentally than many of his cohorts. Unlike Ronnie, his childhood friend and wartime comrade, for whom Billy maintains an avuncular interest. Ronnie is a tall, elegant, theatrical, Ivor Novello like, dipsomaniac, and Billy pays him to act as seducer in the honey-traps he sometimes needs to engineer. In this case Morton, a rich manufacturer and rising star in Oswald Mosley’s “Britain First” fascist movement, has been receiving letters accusing his wife of being involved in a range of depravities. To find out if there is any truth in this he hires Billy to follow her. When he can find no evidence to present to his employer, Billy sets up a honey-trap, using Ronnie in his usual role. But then the bodies start piling up, and Billy discovers that the Birmingham demi-monde is much worse than Dumas ever envisaged that of Paris.
This is best described as an historical murder mystery and its style does feel fairly authentic to the period, and not a pastiche. It isn’t particularly like any British author of the period (who tended to go in for aristocratic detectives) although Edgar Wallace might fit the bill even though he died the year before this book is set. In some ways its closer to Dashiell Hammett. The initial chapters are fairly flat and, apart from a slight twist, more or less boringly routine. When the first big twist comes along it will catch most readers unawares (I spotted it coming but only when almost on top of it). The pace then picks up considerably as Billy tries to unravel the contradictions that keep wrongfooting him. A bizarre collection of other characters are whisked through, steeped in local colour, mostly motivated by money rather than malice. The contemporary detail feels authentic and is worked into the mix rather than being overlaid like a history lesson. None of the characters are likeable (except Phyl), but in the world of this book that is hardly surprising. The dénouement involves another couple of major twists, which are not difficult to work out if you pay attention to the background of the main characters but are satisfyingly revealed. Overall, it felt like a plot I’d read before.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

I really enjoyed this immersive and gritty historical noir set in 1930’s Birmingham.

William Garrett, Private Enquiry Agent works and lives from his office and digs in Needless Street. A number of jobs come his way via a shady solicitor called Shifty Shirley, facilitating divorces for rich male clients by setting honey traps for their wives. Working with his old friend, a handsome but troubled actor Ronnie Edgerton. Ronnie provides the bate, while William hides ready with his camera to capture the act. William doesn’t like what he does but having known what it’s like to have no money, the financial rewards keep him coming back for more.

One day, however, he meets Clara, wife of his current client, and everything changes. William falls for her and the job he already despises becomes even more difficult. However, trouble brews as Clara’s husband is no other than Edward Morton, rich, ambitious with political aspiration connected to fascist Oswald Mosley. Life soon becomes dangerous for William, and as his plan of action merges with some unexpected disturbing and dark goings on William soon finds himself in trouble.

Gritty, dark and with some violence the story is wonderfully balanced out with wonderful attention to detail, evocative settings of time and place and with the addition of wonderful characters like old love Queenie on her narrowboat and surprisingly resourceful Phyll. All the characters are wonderfully ‘fleshed out’ with each one battling demons and a life lived or being lived. The book is also a well researched and wonderful piece of social commentary of Birmingham at this time.

With great pace and numerous twists and turns this made for an extremely engaging and enjoyable read.

Needless Alley is out on January 19th. Check it out!

This is a gritty murder mystery set in 1930’s Birmingham. Our main protagonist is William, a private investigator who earns a living by providing evidence for divorce cases for a shady solicitor. One case that he takes on introduces him to Clara, the wife of a rich industrialist and his growing relationship with her makes him begin to look at his life differently. When the murder happens, he begins to act as a proper investigator and starts to see how little he actually knows about people.

This is a twisty complicated plot with several surprises for the reader. It’s also a great slice of social history with the growth of fascism and the lack of rights for married women both important elements of the novel. All of the characters are flawed in some way which fits right into the noir feel of this book.

It’s great to have a novel of this period not set in London or the US. The shady side of Birmingham is vividly described from the backstreets of the city to the canal basin and its inhabitants. The historical setting is very detailed right down to the fake flowers in a room and at first the sheer amount of descriptive detail jarred slightly. As I got into the story though, I ceased to notice it.

This is a brilliant debut novel and I am really grateful to Net Galley and the publishers, John Murray Press for providing my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Needless Alley is a noir thriller set in 1930s Birmingham, with a private eye investigating the seedy underworld around the canals and dodgy photographic studios of England’s second city. I really enjoyed this book as it was something quite different from my usual Golden Age murder mysteries, but set in the same time period.

Atmospheric and thoroughly enjoyable. I really needed to know what had happened and found the creeping fascism plot scarily echoing in today’s politics. I’d love to read more by this author.

Needless Alley is a homage to the golden era of crime fiction encompassing quintessential Englishness married with a touch of the US hard-boiled. Its outlook is more modern though and touches on themes such as the personal damage of war, misogyny, and pornography, not the staples of the novels of the period. This adds a nice dark and seedy touch to the period without getting down to the dregs of society of the Berlin of the period as inhabited by Bernie Gunther. The pornographer is typically a grubby fat man, driven by greed but one who has been an artistic photographer, so his tableaux are tastefully posed.

1930’s Birmingham is convincingly evoked, grimy, dangerous, and unforgiving for the stranger, as good a backdrop for period noir as LA. I particularly liked inclusion of life on the canal basin, as is often quoted Birmingham has more miles of canal than Venice, but that is where the similarity ends. Most industrial cities had their slums, with the exploited inhabitants battling for their existence with fortitude and this is brought to life. They were not without humour though and there is a nice vein of dark course humour running through the prose, in keeping with the period and setting.

The novel comprises two parts which might be thought of as realisation and retribution. The first part is quite gentle as we learn about William and Ronnie and their sordid business plan. As it develops William starts to reassess his life and has a blossoming love affair. The second part, without giving too much away, is much darker as William now finds his focus to become a real Private Investigator and with Phyll as an unlikely ally come sidekick, in search of answers and retribution. Here the storyline builds up a momentum of its own with a real sense of urgency, some violence, deceptions, and a couple of surprises.

William is the hero who has an almost Damascene revelation that what he is doing is wrong. Every case he and Ronnie succeed with destroys the reputation and life of the woman involved. This was a time where life was stacked against women (you may argue it still is) with limited rights and divorce laws favouring the husband. He bears the mental scars of war and comes to realise that he will not find happiness and love living the way he is and so becomes a man looking for redemption.

Ronnie is an attractive man, a little fey and living a bohemian life, like a streetwise Oscar Wilde but with a deep libertine streak. This could be down to the effects of war, but more likely his desire for money without honest toil. The fact he can rub shoulders with canal boatmen and drink in their pubs is beguiling if a little unlikely. At heart he is a damaged man with a nihilistic streak.

Queenie is the strong matronly figure even though she is not the eldest of the three. She’s calm and pragmatic with a survive at all costs attitude which gives her a hard carapace to face the world. Her business dealings include criminal activities but there’s some goodness at heart as she cares for those close to her. A tough woman doing what she needs to survive in a hard man’s world.

The one that caught my imagination was Phyll, who William at first believes is a young boy. He later discovers that she is a bright intelligent young woman with a penchant for men’s clothing and an eye for good tailoring. Another survivor and a bit of a fish out of water with the norms of the day.

Needless Alley is an engrossing historical noir with engaging characters an intense plot and a few surprises for the reader.

Reminiscent of Peaky Blinders this novel is set in 1930's Birmingham. An atmospheric, well written tale of love, hate, revenge and grief. Some great characters throughout. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

This is a fantastic book with twists and turns in the plot and great attention to detail for the time and place the story is set in. 1930s Birmingham is described is such gorgeous detail and the canal wends it’s way through the storyline.
I loved the characters and the plot and will eagerly be waiting for this writer’s next book.

I wanted to love this as a Brummie but sadly it was not my cup of tea. I found it a tad too grim for my taste and a bit heavy on the descriptions. The first is totally on me of course. I am sure people will adore this.