Thank you NetGalley and RBmedia for the ARC of this audiobook for my honest review

It was alright. I thought the resolved mystery was kind of simple, and it wasn’t very fun to follow along. I also got a bit out off with the constant inclusions about well hercule Poirot would be able to do this but I can’t etc. or TV detectives this and that. I love hercule Poirot, don’t do him like thattt

Detective Peter Diamond is invited to the countryside by a former colleague. She wants him to do some off the record investigation of a murder, for which she believes a neighbor was falsely convicted. I liked the plot and the characters and I also enjoyed Diamond’s fish out of water experiences. There were a lot of red herrings. I did not guess the murderer, and I was not convinced by their motive. Nevertheless, I liked this book.

I have read some of the other books in this series, but you don’t have to do that before reading this book. I have always liked Diamond, who is intelligent, capable and not burdened by drunkenness, addiction, depression or any of the other afflictions that authors like to impose on their detectives. The blurb says that this is the final book of the series, but nothing in the book makes it impossible for there to be another book.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.

Against the Grain by Peter Lovesey; narrated by James Langton; Book 22 of the Peter Diamond mystery series

Peter Diamond and his girlfriend Paloma, vacation in the village of Baskerville, visiting Julie Hargreaves, an old colleague of Peter’s. Julie tells him about her misgivings on the guilt of Claudia, a local woman sent to prison for the death of her ex-boyfriend. He was found dead in the grain silo while searching for the hidden garter, part of a game a group of her friends were playing. Claudia had left the village years back, only returning after the death of her father and her inheritance of his house, which didn't help her case. Diamond is pulled into the mystery of what happened. Did Claudia really set up her ex to his “accidental” death or is something else going on?

This was my first Peter Diamond mystery, and the last in the series. I requested this book confusing Lovesey w/another author I have read and enjoyed in the past. To quote Bob Ross – a happy accident. I will be going back to read this series in order as I really enjoyed this one. British police procedural – although Diamond works mostly alone in this case. Lovesey writes and Langton narrates in a way that invokes the feel of a country village; the relationships of the people. This book can be read as a standalone.

Thank you to NetGalley, RBMedia, Peter Lovesey and James Langton for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

Oh, how I will miss looking forward to new Peter Diamond mystery installments from Peter Lovesey. In the last of the series, Against the Grain, we find Peter being Peter/real-life Columbo-style inspector, but this time, he worked completely as a private investigator for an old friend.

While on vacation, his friend Julie let him know that she had doubts about the guilty verdict of her neighbor. Without her having to explicitly ask, his detective senses were activated all on their own by local pub and market gossip.

As he dug deeper, the plot thickened, and nearly every person in the village was a suspect, until Peter set his sights on a friend of the accused, who acted like an obsessed psychopath.

As ever with Peter Diamond mysteries, the plot takes so many twists and turns before it all becomes clear.

How I will miss his antics and Mr. Marple-ish-meets-Columbo ways!

Thank you so very much to NetGalley and RBMedia for this amazing advanced ARC!!

This was my first book by Peter Lovesey and I was not disappointed! I had heard his series with detective Peter Diamond was a good one, and I have the first part on my TBR and then I came across this advanced listening copy.

Peter Diamond and his partner Paloma are visiting an old colleague who moved to a small village in the country. When they arrive, they discover Julie has gone blind. She tells Peter and Paloma about a mysterious death that happened a couple of years ago. A local woman was sent to prison for the murder but Julie feels something is not right and Peter decides to investigate in true Sherlock Holmes / private investigator style. He changes his style to Columbo, and even comes across someone who reminds him of Miss Marple, and I loved all the comparisons!
The mystery itself was not very exciting, in my opinion, but the book was interesting enough that I will definitely read more in this series.

When a dead body is found in a grain silo in a picturesque village, suspicion falls on a local farmer. But other villagers are not convinced that this individual is in any way guilty. So, what is going on here and who is responsible?

After Detective Peter Diamond and his partner come down to the village of Baskerville to visit an ex colleague of his, he decides to go undercover to see if he can solve the mystery. Because clearly, something is rotten in the village of Baskerville...

Diamond is an obstinate and amusing character, and very clever to boot, and this is an entertaining murder mystery, with a good bit of humour thrown in.

Peter Diamond, a police detective in Bath, is contemplating – without much enthusiasm – a retirement. He agrees to go for a short vacation to test the waters of living in the small village community of Baskerville, where, as his partner Paloma suggests, he can relax and enjoy the slower pace. So Diamond, with Paloma and their cat reluctantly in tow, visits his former colleague, Julie.

It turns out that Julie, besides wanting to see Diamond, has another motive. There was a murder committed, and she doesn't believe that the justice has been served: a local woman was sentenced, but the actual murder might be still running loose. Diamond goes undercover, pretending to be just another visitor, and investigates.

I enjoyed this audiobook very much. The narrator's delivery corresponds to Diamond's slightly grouchy nature, and the characters are described warmly, with a certain tongue-in-cheek quality, either when it comes to a moody teenager or a flamboyant charmer. It's interesting to see Diamond conducting the investigation without the support of his team and relying only on traditional methods of talking to people, very much in the tradition of Miss Marple or Lieutenant Columbo, both characters mentioned in the novel. Somehow, our detective seems to enjoy getting the villagers' trust even though his suits and dressy shoes are obviously unfitting for helping deliver a calf or pushing a stuck car. Ultimately, he dons a cowboy hat and joins the Harvest Festival!

Will he uncover the truth about the murders? The bodies in this quiet English village multiply, as in an episode of "Midsomer Murders." Peter Diamond is undoubtedly busier than he expected before his retirement.

In the book Against the Grain, author Peter Lovesey concludes his Detective Peter Diamond Mystery series. Diamond is on holiday in the country visiting his former colleague Julie Hargreaves. But was Diamond invited for rest and to catch up, or was he invited to solve a mystery? Hargreaves weaves the tale and Diamond takes the bait to solve this fascinating case. But the deeper he dives into the case the more convinced he is that things are not what they seem. This is a solid mystery story and a fitting end to a long-running series. I would recommend this book. The audio-book narration was very good. I received a copy of this audio-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Julie Hargreaves invited her old boss, Detective Peter Diamond to visit her village for a holiday but she wants him to investigate a death from years ago. A man died after entering a grain silo.

Well written and well narrated novel (I listened to the audiobook). Enjoyed these characters, storyline and pace of the novel. Village life is different as everyone knows everyone’s business. Who really enticed the man to enter the grain silo and what was he looking for?

3.5 - This was my first Peter Diamond book but the last in a long series that I will go back to! The characters were charming, the story believable, and not having read others from the series, a great ending to Peter's story. I listened to the audiobook and it was well done and the narrator pleasing to listen to. I look forward to reading more about Peter's past!

Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for the audiobook for review.

I was granted an ALC of this book and I had not read any of the previous books in this series so I went to book #1 to check it out. The story has an old school style mystery vibe to it and the audiobook narrator reminded me of 1950’s British announcer/narrator.
The latest story is apparently the last in the series and I can’t speak to the entire series but it appears to have a big fan base. I believe many people will love the wrap up of this series after 40 novels. What an accomplishment for this author. This book wasn’t exactly my style of mystery or rather maybe the audiobook wasn’t engaging enough for me but doesn’t mean it’s a bad book.

Having spent time in Bath, I was attracted to these books from the very first one. Here in the last title the author does what he does best. He tells a good story with a bit of humor.

Peter and his partner Paloma are invited to visit Julie with whom Diamond worked in the past. At first, Peter does not want to go, but he does so persuaded by Paloma. their journey has its challenges.

Peter is surprised to discover that Julie has lost her vision. She has not, however, lost her spirit or acuity. Julie gets Peter involved in the case of woman who may be wrongly in prison for murder. The victim had a rather gruesome death.

Read the book to find out what happened and how the author wraps up this last title. No spoilers.

The narration of the audiobook was spot on. I couldn’t wait to listen. I was very sorry to come to

This is the 22nd entry in the long running detective series set largely in Bath, England. I have read every book and am beyond sorry to know that there will be no more. Still, the author is deserving of retirement at his age.

Many thanks to NetGalley and RB media for this title. All opinions are my own.