Piece of My Heart

By Peter Robinson

Piece of My Heart is Peter Robinson’s outstanding sixteenth novel in the acclaimed Inspector Banks series. Richly textured with the music and conflicting mores of 1960s Britain, the story weaves between two eras as it explores just how dangerously things can go awry when one generation is estranged from the next, when fathers no longer understand their daughters.

The novel opens in 1969. Yorkshire’s first outdoor rock festival has just finished, and the psychedelic pastoral band the Mad Hatters and other top British groups have departed. Even the last of their fans has gone, leaving behind only a muddy field, littered with rubbish. Volunteers are cleaning up when one of them finds the body of a young woman inside a sleeping bag.

Stanley Chadwick, the straitlaced detective called in to find her killer, could not have less in common with — or less regard for — the people he now has to question: young, disrespectful, long-haired hippies who smoke marijuana and live by the pulsing beats of rock and roll. And he has almost just as little in common with his own daughter, who lied to him about her whereabouts and slipped off to the festival.

More than thirty-five years later, Inspector Alan Banks is investigating the murder of a freelance music journalist who was working on a feature about the Mad Hatters for Mojo magazine. This is not the first time that the Mad Hatters, now aging rock superstars, have been brushed by tragedy, and Banks has to delve into the past to find out exactly what hornet’s nest the journalist inadvertently stirred up.

This eagerly awaited novel showcases the many reasons why Peter Robinson is among the small elite of authors internationally whose mysteries are nothing less than works of art.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Feb 24, 2009
• ISBN: 9781551992006

Peter Robinson

Peter Robinson's DCI Banks became a major ITV1 drama starring Stephen Tompkinson as Inspector Banks and Andrea Lowe as DI Annie Cabbot. Peter's standalone novel Before the Poison won the IMBA's 2013 Dilys Award as well as the 2012 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel by the Crime Writers of Canada. This was Peter's sixth Arthur Ellis award. His critically acclaimed DCI Banks novels have won numerous awards in Britain, the United States, Canada and Europe, and are published in translation all over the world. In 2020 Peter was made a Grand Master by the Crime Writers of Canada. Peter grew up in Yorkshire, and divided his time between Richmond, UK, and Canada until his death in 2022.

Reviews for Piece of My Heart

[dekedastardly · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Piece Of My Heart is my third Robinson/Banks read and likely to be my last.There's nothing objectionable about either the writing or the story, but I feel I've done Banks now, and there's nothing else to gain.Dovetailing two separate murder cases separated by forty years but with much in common is smart but the author had to work really hard on holding the connections at bay, sometimes too hard, and whilst there is a minor twist in the tail it's not an especially satisfying one.Robinson presents us with endless sex, drugs and rock 'n roll cliches of the Sixties, and takes the notion that 'if you remember it you weren't there' far too seriously, even giving us the dead rock star in a swimming pool as a centre piece.Running the two stories in parallel renders this 540 plus pages book a good 150 pages too long with considerable amounts of tedious filler which includes passages with a token Mirrenesque (DCI Tennyson) boss which adds nothing to the story. It's not without some merit as a police procedural, but I would only recommend Piece Of My Heart as a lazy, easy going holiday read.

[gypsysmom_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've never read a Peter Robinson mystery that I didn't like but I would rate this one above the rest. Partly its because the plot revolves around bands from my era (late 60's) and partly because Robinson has interwoven two police investigations more than 35 years apart (1969 and 2005). The 1969 investigation involves the murder of a young girl whose body was found after a huge outdoor concert in Yorkshire. This fictional concert sounds like it would have been great: headliners Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin and local band the Mad Hatters. Cut to 2005 when Inspector Banks is called in to investigate the murder of a free-lance music journalist who was doing research about the Mad Hatters. Inevitably the later case entails digging up the details from the first case but that case was supposedly solved with the accused being sent to jail and dying there. Lots of great music references and a really good mystery. According to Robinson's Official Web Site this book is up for an award at the Theakston's Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival to be held in July of 2008. It's up against some stiff competition but here's hoping.

[eadieb-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Book DescriptionThe year is 1969. Rock 'n' roll, psychedelic drugs, and peace-loving hippies are thriving in Britain. But in the aftermath of a rock music festival, cold reality strikes when a woman is found murdered in her sleeping bag, callously left among the debris in the concert's wake. Detective Inspector Stanley Chadwick is the hard-headed, straitlaced copper assigned to the case who must reluctantly enter a counterculture world to find a killer. When clues lead him to an up-and-coming rock band, the Mad Hatters, with whom the victim was connected, Chadwick experiences firsthand the dangers of this dark new world of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll.In the present day, Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks is called to the scene of a murder victim who turns out to be a freelance journalist working on a piece for MOJO magazine about the classic rock band the Mad Hatters. Since the sixties, the band has gone through a number of tragedies, losing one member to madness and another to the shallow end of a swimming pool. Putting their checkered past behind them, the Mad Hatters have now revamped their sound and are set to celebrate their forty years in the biz by embarking on their first big concert tour in years.Banks and Detective Inspector Annie Cabbot discover that the dead journalist was onto something big hidden in the band's past, and had stirred up some very serious trouble. As Banks and Annie dig deeper into the phenomenon of the Mad Hatters, they find more than they bargained for, and soon realize that their generation's former free-love lifestyle often comes with a deadly price.In the course of twin narratives, Robinson expertly weaves the stories of two interconnected murders that occur decades apart. As only he can, Robinson has created a novel that is as explosive as your favorite rock album and a plot that moves at breakneck speed, traversing through the tumultuous swinging sixties to present day and back again. Piece of My Heart is an extraordinary thrill ride that uncovers the gritty and violent underbelly of the generation of peace, love, and harmony.My ReviewIn this book 16 of the Inspector Banks series, Peter Robinson does an excellent job in switching between three separate murder cases, two from 1969 and one from the present day, which seem to be related somehow. This book was also an introduction to a new character, Superintendent Gervaise, who definitely is beginning to conflict with Banks and Annie Cabbot's idea of how to run a police department. Peter Robinson is an excellent story teller and this book was a real page-turner for me. I found the hippies from the 60's to be very believable and the plot was very interesting and entertaining. I'm looking forward to reading the next installment and highly recommend this series to those who love mystery thrillers.

[lewilliams-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Two murders in two different time periods investigated by two different investigators was interesting at first. However, after reading maybe the first third of the book, the story lost its appeal for me. There were a few syntax errors I noticed.

[the7ken7petersen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another brilliant story. It is difficult to say too much without giving away the plot but, one of the areas covered in this tale is the concept of a policeman "knowing" the perpetrator but not having the proof. As one would expect from Mr Robinson, this is done so much better than the usual bad cop twists things for a quick settlement of his case.Were I to be churlish, the switching between a current and an historic case, in the early part of the book, became a little tedious but, in truth, when the resolution came, it was so satisfying and I can't see a better way of getting to that point so, no stars lost.I can't wait to read the next in the series - which I have the foresight to have on standby.

[catlady53 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of Robinson's best so far. He manages the two timelines beautifully and finds a comfortable balance between mystery, history and personal stories.

[mahallett · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

too long. too much personal life. good story.

[risa15 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A mystery told in a non linear fashion, events and a murder in 1969 are related to a murder in 2005. A writer of articles about the music (rock) industry is found dead in 2005. In 1969 a young woman is found murdered in the forest just after a huge rock concert in an open field. Banks is called in to investigate the 2005 murder and solves it with the help of a fellow policewoman, Annie.

[jrtanworth · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As usual, Peter Robinson treats us to quality writing and an unexpected resolution to the mystery. This series is great, but this is not my favorite because the time shifts from the sixties to the present gets tiresome.

[librarian1204 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Peter Robinson and Alan Banks. A duo I will read whenever a new one comes out.

[macha_4 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

i like this Yorkshire procedural series about Inspector Banks. this one's got a complicated structure: the PoV alternates between chapters about the first investigation in 1969 and chapters that follow Banks' investigation of a present-day murder that very gradually turns out to be related to the first. not only is the PoV of the lead detectives different, the whole worldview is different, and that turns out to be pertinent to the case. ambitious, to go with that as a form, and it's not seamlessly done, especially with the whole fathers/daughters motif. and yet, an interesting thing to try. one of those books that may improve in my brain over time and end up scoring a significantly higher rating.

[gmac_11 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As he launches a probe into the killing of a freelance music journalist, Detective Inspector Alan Banks finds his investigation journeying back in time more than thirty years and into the heart of the mystery surrounding a decades-old crime

[edwardsgt · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another brilliant Inspector Banks novel from Peter Robinson. This time he cleverley interweaves two stories, one from 1969 , the other contemporary which are somehow linked. Excellent background colour on the 60s and later music scenes, adds to the enjoyment. Highly recommended.

[pw0327 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

After A Strange Affair, Alan Banks inherits his brother's fancy new car, a bunch of fine wines, the massive home entertainment center, and most importantly, the iPod. All just in time to furnish his new home. Life is good right? Well, not exactly. His old boss has retired and a rather disagreeable new boss has stepped in to make Bank's life just a little nastier. The center of the mystery involves two murders again. One in present day Yorkshire and the other in 1969 Yorkshire. If you have read any number of these books, you know that they are connected somehow. Peter Robinson has come up with yet another narrative style to link the two story lines together. The coupling magic of the two themes is music. Whereas Robinson was deliberately circumspect with the music, Banks is a music afficionado of the nth degree, he goes all out in name dropping the sixties icons of British rock. He links in Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Dylan, et. al. to draw a very nostalgic and yet realistic picture of the sixties. The first murder involves a beautiful young girl at one of the notorious ribald all day music festivals that was so famous in the sixties. The other involves a journalist who is following one of the groups that played at that festival. Robinson follows the two murder investigations via Banks and a new character: Inspector Stanley Chadwick. Chadwick is what Banks is not, yet he is also a bit like Banks in his dogged pursuit of the truth. The juxtopositions of the two styles, the two methodologies and morals keeps the story moving along quite well. Once again Peter Robinson has done it, he has managed to propel the two storylines with a new way of telling the story. In the background. the story of Bank's transition to a new life is beginning to rear its head. He is trying to be friends with Annie Cabbot, he is also trying to come to terms with his son't new found fame. He is now living in the shadow of his brother's presence because of all the material possessions that he inherited. It is kind of touching but also discombobulating. I felt Bank's uneasiness with the constant change and I felt like sitting the bloke down with a pint of Black Sheep and talk him through his uneasiness. I enjoyed this book. Once again, Peter Robinson told a grand story and he kept me on the edge and interested. You can't ask for any more from a mystery.

[zandkat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Nice detective. It's a thick book which a like. It interweaves past and present which makes it better then just a ordinary detective. The end could have been better though.

[heptonj · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An excellent book amidst an excellent series about Inspector Banks. A girl is murdered at a rock concert in 1969 which is somehow relevant to the murder of a music journalist over thirty years later. This was like reading two books at once, both being very absorbing investigations. Alan Banks and Annie drag the past back to life when they investigate the Mad Hatter band and question the motives of the officer conducting the 1969 murder enquiry. Absolutely fascinating, excellently done and please can we have some more?

[daftboy1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book. It jumps back and forth from 1969 to the present day but its not confusing and flows nicely. Two police investigations in 1 book. Well worth a read only my second Inspector Banks novels.

[romonko · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love Alan Banks and I love Mr. Robinson's stories about Alan and his crew as they solve murders in Yorkshire. This book was especially enjoyable since there was a lot of name dropping of wonderful bands and the musicians that played in them in the late 1960's and early 1970's. The book has two parallel mysteries - one in October of 1969 at a big rock concert in Yorkshire, investigated by Inspector Chadwick, and another in present-day Yorkshire that is being investigated by Banks and his team. The story flipped back and forth between the two time frames, until it becomes obvious to Banks that the two murders are connected, even though almost 40 years separates them. I enjoyed the book, but it wasn't quite as suspenseful as previous books in the series. Some of the tension was lost in the slipping between the two timeframes. I still enjoyed the book, and this is one of my favourite series right now.

[squirrelhead_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is book #16 in Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series. It starts in 1969 with Detective Inspector Stanley Chadwick investigating the murder of a young woman. She was found on a deserted field after the conclusion of a rock festival, stabbed so viciously a piece of her heart was sliced off.I read several pages before thinking I may have picked up one of Robinson’s books that wasn’t in the DCI Banks series. But knowing the series is written in real time and Banks’ gets older, to set one in 1969 would be unusual.After several pages in the first chapter I noted a different date and year (2005) at the top of a chapter. Finally Alan Banks’ story begins. He is investigating the murder of a music journalist Nick Barber in the Yorkshire dales.If you note the date at the top of the chapters you won’t be confused. The book has this format to the end, switching between the two different time periods, but Robinson deftly threads both story lines of these two cases. It was interesting to read about the bands from 1969 and I certainly recognized my favorite – Pink Floyd. Imagine being able to see them with multiple events in their early years. (I was able to see a concert of theirs in Miami in the 1970s)In the 1969 story, DI Chadwick has to eliminate thousands of people at a concert to discover the killer. Further complications come with his conflict of interest between his 16 year old daughter who is involved with hippies and drugs that overlap into his investigation. The descriptions of people, music, the “free love era” and attitudes are aptly described.In 2005 DCI Banks and Annie Cabbot have their own full scaled investigation of Nick Barber (the music journalist). It appears there is a link between the band Mad Hatters from 1969 festival and the recent murder. Leaving no stone unturned Banks doggedly pursues clues from present day to the current events and Barber’s murder.I was pleased to see DC Winsome Jackman get more page time in this book and hope to see more of her in the future. I still have 7 books to catch up to Robinson’s most current book, When The Music’s Over.