Tuesday, March 03, 2026

Publication Day Review: The Politician: A DS George Cross Mystery by Tim Sullivan

 

Peggy Frampton is very much dead in her bedroom as The Politician: A DS George Cross Mystery by Tim Sullivan begins. The cleaning lady had found her employer dead that morning. Now Cross, the Detective Sergeant from the Avon and Somerset Police, will lead the hunt for the killer or killers as this most definitely is a murder case.

 

At one time, Peggy Frampton was the Mayor of Bristol. In recent years, she has been a social media influencer through an advice column, and a writer. She has a massive online presence and impact, not only in her local Bristol, England, community, but far beyond. She tended to ruffle feathers, at times, with her blunt advice.

 

She is survived by her husband, Peter, and their adult children. Peter is a lawyer. As it happens, he is in London, on a case, and is on the way back home as DS George Cross looks at the body and the crime scene.

 

While some, such as DCI Ben Carson, believe this is aa case of a simple burglary gone wrong, DS George Cross does not. Before much can be done by the local police, due to the high-profile nature of the case, Chief Superintendent Heather Mathews is brought in to supervise. Fortunately for everyone, while she has never worked with Cross before, she knows of him and how he is, and so she allows him wide latitude to pursue the case as he sees fit. That means he can treat it like any other case and not be micromanaged by Carson or anyone else.

 

That is always a plus. Especially here with a case that is complex and constantly evolving as lines of inquiry are adjusted as evidence comes to light. As always, the reader knows that Cross will identify and build a case against those involved. The real question is what else will he and his team unearth in their pursuit of justice for the dead.

 

For that, you will have to read the book.

 

It would also be best if you started with the first read, The Dentist: A DS George Cross Mystery, and work your way forward to this fourth book of the re-released series. This is not a static police procedural series with very little change over time. Instead, and one of the things that makes it so good, characters constantly evolve and deal with things in life, relationships change, and more happens while the police work continues.

 

The Politician: A DS George Cross Mystery by Tim Sullivan is another very good installment of a really good police procedural series. What more could you want?

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3Nu5Hrp

 

 

I received a digital ARC from the publisher, Atlantic Crime, imprint of Grove Atlantic, through NetGalley, with no expectation of a positive review.

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026 

No comments:

Post a Comment