I never received my copy, so I haven't been able to write a proper review.

When I started reading this book, I was excited. The prose was strong and I felt like I was in good hands. While the prose itself continued to be strong, however, overall the story felt like it was slipping through my fingers. For a while the obliqueness was charming, but ultimately I lost track of what was going on, and why it mattered to the protagonist. I had to keep reading to understand why things were happening, and by the time I understood what was going on, something else was happening.

I couldn't recommend this book, but I would love to see what the author could do with a little more focus on character motivations and a tighter story. The writing itself is strong and the characters are fully realised; I just didn't know where I needed to be looking.

If you're happy to be led along on a story you have no chance of predicting, I would recommend this book. Otherwise, bookmark the author and wait for the next one.

Retired Detective Inspector Thatch is out for a stroll one spring morning and spots a body lying in a field. Multiple mysteries spring from this discovery. Who are the victim and murderer, how can a retired detective investigate the crime, and how (or will) Thatch identify the killer? Despite overwhelming flaws, my desire to learn the answers to these questions and the strange appeal of Thatch kept me from abandoning the book.

Harry H. Dean’s writing style mirrors the literary approach to writing in which the focus is on character development, and the plot receives little attention. It is only in the second half of the book that the action begins to pick up steam. Dean’s use of simile, droll, sense of dry humor, and throw-away lines are positives.

Otherwise, this book is a mess that Dean should not have released in this condition. The errors include but are not limited to the following: paragraph breaks appear mid-sentence; abrupt point-of-view changes without transitions occur from paragraph to paragraph; words are missing (she brought two mugs outside, put them the patio table) or misused (she enrolled on a journalism course); letters are missing (grey cloud rolled in) or incorrectly capitalized (there was A privately owned flat); accidental repetitions appear (he spun it out as long as long as he could), and; sentence fragments abound. The unclear text and lack of transitions sometimes make it difficult to determine whether the scene is a flashback or a current event. The inappropriate use of commas repeatedly occurs, particularly with quotes.

Although massive, problems like these could have been remedied by skilled copy editing and professional formatting. It’s a shame Dean did not obtain the professional help he needed. At times Thatch’s narcissism becomes annoying and offensive even. Still, he is an interesting and likable character, the murder mystery is engaging, and the supporting characters more than carry their weight. ( )

This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

Author Mr. Harry H. Dean's style regarding his book "Thatch":
The style is logical, reasoned, the ample sentences are linked and are enriched by multiple subordinate sentences
He uses an intensely rich, prolix prose: enumerations, accumulations. It excels at juxtaposing words separated by commas. It picks up the pace, creates suspense, and emphasizes abundance.

I enjoyed this fast pace, even frantic, without the error - in my opinion - of adding too much dialogue.

Excerpts:
“Sandwiched between two other cottages which, like most others on the High Street, had benefited from London money, new windows and fresh paint, it stood out like a rotten tooth in the
model's smile."
Or:
"Most of Thatch's collars had been a variety of incompetent and lucky, greedy, conceited, lazy and stupid. Or just plain unlucky. Or poor. All in all, they didn't deserve much of what life had in store for them and were struggling to cope. Among them, however, was a strange jewel, a shining nugget in the mud destined to be caught in the sieve."

From the first page, I felt hooked! The suspense kept me in suspense, and I applaud the idea of ​​the author, describing the symptoms and sensations of a stroke! We had to dare irony at the same time!

Where I was disappointed was when the hero Thatch discovered the body of a young man on the ground in a deserted British countryside.

However, as soon as his ex-wife Sam is mentioned, the rhythm gets bogged down, and the story is put on hold when the author uses too many useless descriptions from page 70 to 88.

He begins to investigate the disappearance of this man, unclaimed, and re-assumes the costume of Inspector, since he is 68 years old and retired!

From that moment on, the thriller dragged on... and that's a shame because it was very well written, the adjectives carefully chosen. But it lacks suspense, the characters are not built enough, and do not seem believable. They didn't "talk" to me.

Only Thatch monopolizes the entire book. Which bored me. It looked like a realistic, narrative and linear fiction since written in the form of a chronological diary - whereas the epistolary genre would have been better suited, with historical, cultural or literary information -
The author wants to create the meaning of a life unfolding as a character experienced from day to day. The causality is well demonstrated, since it is logical, from cause to effect. But boring, because without reversal of situation nor any surprises. ( )

Unfortunately, I did not care for this book. ( )