DC Smith Investigation Books In Order

Publication Order of DC Smith Books

Peter Grainger is a renowned author, who is widely known for the DC Smith Investigation book series. Despite the fact that Peter Grainger has always been a reader, he admits that he got into the field of crime fiction through various television series such as Frost and Morse. Initially, it was a little bit odd reading about some of the characters, that he had watched before, on television. Many at the time, he found himself disagreeing with what the scriptwriters, as well as the producers, had done. Peter Grainger entered into the writing world by self-publishing his first three novels on Amazon Kindle. After self-publishing these novels, Peter Grainger decided that his next novel was going to be a crime novel. While working on the crime novel, Peter Grainger discovered that it was a little bit easier to pen down crime novel compared to writing general fiction.

DC Smith Investigations

An Accidental Death

A rather refreshing change of pace from the adrenaline filled thriller; An Accidental Death is a brilliantly crafted mystery that is full of well-developed characters. The pacing is much slower, thus giving Peter Grainger time to focus on the characters as well as the environment. In this installment, author Peter Grainger introduces the readers to DC Smith and his protégé, one DC Walters. Unlike a majority of detective narratives and their protagonists, An Accidental Death focuses on creating believable characters and situations instead of foul language, grisly murders, and sexual overtones. Smith, who happens to be a former Detective Chief Investigator, requests a demotion, hence becomes a detective sergeant after departmental politics and a botched investigation. To solve crimes and mysteries, Smith uses his detective and intuition skills to mentor a promising Walter and to solve a suspicious death. In this installment, Smith is beautifully matched with the new police intern, giving the readers thoughtful and spacious views into his present and past life.

The writing is not only quick, but it is also precise, with a welcoming dose of humor. Smith is given a case that was believed to be simple; the tragic drowning of a student. Smith was given the case to tidy up but eventually found out that there was much more to investigate, thus putting himself at odds with various bodies of interest. With that said, An Accidental Death includes a rather complicated plot that shows the importance of having thoughtful investigators.

But for the Grace

In this second installment, DC Smith finds himself assigned to a murder case of an exceedingly generous woman who lived in a retirement home. The woman is one of the members in a group of five people who own a company. Once the death was discovered that it was not natural, there was an investigation to be done on the premise. Once again, Smith works with Waters under the supervision of Reeves. The two are pressurized by the Deputy Superintendent to take the new assignment, which is miles away from their King Lakes Division. While working on the case, Smith is pressurized by his old colleague, who is in charge of running a law firm and also in the process introduces him to his highly attractive accountant. Detective Smith manages to go on several dates with the accountant. However, because his wife passed away around three years ago, Smith is a little bit reluctant to take things to another level with the accountant. Nonetheless, in the process, we get to learn about Smith’s past, when he talks to the accountant, listens to music and plays his guitar.

The theme in the novel But for the Grace is Death and the author; Peter Grainger has handled this theme well. The second theme is the legality of assisted suicide. Smith, the protagonist, continues to prove himself with his subtle wit rings and intelligent police work and in the process bringing reflection to the rather appreciative reader. One of the people who was being investigated suggested that Smith, the protagonist read The Dead, a short story by James Joyce. With that said, author Peter Grainger has brought forth an exceedingly complicated plot with well-written characters. The plot and the stories are strong as well. DC Smith is a deeply complex and wonderfully created character. If you are a fan of DCI Banks by Peter Robinsons, then you are going to fall in love with this installment.

Luck and Judgement

Luck and Judgement are another highly entertaining entry into the, DC Smith Investigations book series. Just like the previous installment Luck and Judgement follows the same pattern as the first two books in the series. Smith takes on a seemingly accidental death and in the process ends up finding so much more. As it was the case with the first two installments, the reader ends up finding so much more about the protagonist DC Smith, his role in Northern Ireland’s military intelligence, his role in bringing forth a serial killer to face justice and his step down from a much higher position. In Luck and Judgement, DC Smith investigates a missing person case, just next to an offshore drilling facility that was located in the North Sea. From the look of things, the death appears to be a simple case of misadventure of slipping from a drilling platform, however as DC Smith continues to dig, the case continues to get more and more complicated. It is believed that one James Bell had just committed suicide, but upon further digging, it is established that he was pushed off.

Luck of Judgement is not only filled with plenty of action, but it is also filled with police procedurals and well-drawn characters. The author, Peter Grainger has a way with measured, contained and realistic mysteries. Over the first three installments, Grainger has built the central core of the characters with wit and subtlety and eventually placed them in rather plausible scenarios and had them looking into human crimes. Apart from examining his place in the force, Smith also examines his age and what his age meant to his career. With that said, Luck and Judgement is a meticulous and fascinating police procedural, that begins with the protagonist, DC Smith, uncovering a more sinister explanation for Bell’s disappearance.