The Lolita Man

 About the book:

The Lolita Man is a suspense-thriller novel which is written by Bill James. It has been divided into 27 chapters. All the chapters are connected coherently. The suspense that starts from chapter one keeps a reader spell bound till the end. Further, it is published under the banner of Penguin books. This novel is a classic read that has been commended by notorious newspapers and magazines.

About the writer:

Bill James is pen-name of journalist James Tucker. This is his first crime novel which bagged an award in 1986. Bill James is married and has four kids. He is residing in Whales, United Kingdom.

Review:

Since it is a crime novel and it follows intense suspense which unlocks with great interest. The story revolves around Detective Chief Superintendent Colin Harpur which is having an affair with Ruth, widow of another officer. He came across a brutal rape case of an innocent school girl in a luxurious hotel room. As the time passes more cases were reported. Following his investigation, Harpur tour and watched after girl’s colleges as Lolita Man’s targets were teenager school girls. He put an eye on girls who were going by car or alone. Once patrolling around Ash-Tree girl’s school, he noticed a girl was walking alone to home, later he recognized her as Cherryl-Ann, daughter of his friend. Her real name was Jennifer but she liked to be called as Cherryl-Ann. She didn’t go to home rather than wander on streets. Through her odd behavior Harpur smelled Lolita man’s interest in her. He tried to give best security measures to her but unfortunately she was caught by Lolita man. She loved to write and through her diary excerpts Harpur caught Lolita man. This novel had been written from three perspectives; Harpur, Cherryl-Ann and Lolita man which keep reader’s eyes glued to the novel.

The story of this novel was good but it failed to appeal me. This novel has been written in year 1995; therefore, it depicts the scenario and writing style of that era which I couldn’t relate to. I like the character of Harpur. Despite of his differences with Iles, he decided to solve the case alone. Harpur’s character is the strongest character amongst all.