The Echo

Set in the bleak environments of London’s homeless community, The Echo is the mystery thriller from crime queen Minette Walters. It was the smell that Mrs Powell noticed first. Slightly sweet. Slightly unpleasant . . . It shocked her badly to find a dead man in the corner, his head slumped on his knees. Who was Billy Blake, other than a homeless alcoholic who wandered the streets? Why was he found dead from starvation in one of the richest areas of one of the richest capitals in the world? And why did he die alone in the garage of wealthy architect Amanda Powell – a woman whose wealth can only be explained if her husband is dead . . .?

From Kirkus Reviews

Five years after architect Amanda Powell's husband vanishes amid cries of embezzlement, a homeless man calling himself Billy Blake crawls into her garage and, in full view of her well- stocked freezer, starves himself to death. Falling-star journalist Michael Deacon, sent by his muckraking editor at The Street to get a story about the repentant Thatcherite who paid for a stranger's cremation, doesn't manage to make Amanda weep, but he comes away fascinated both by this enigmatic woman--what secrets is she hiding under that handsome exterior? does she think Billy was her vanished husband? or is she trying to expiate his sins by paying for Billy's obsequies?--and by street preacher/petty thief Billy--what demons of his own led him to mortify himself? why did he choose this place to die? who was he before he became a messianic beggar? Deacon buries himself in the story only to see unexpected figures--an underaged street kid Billy had befriended, a lawyer he'd once crossed swords with over euthanasia, a pathologically lonely photo archivist at The Street--surge and squiggle with shocking vitality, like mutating viruses. To get at the truth about Amanda Powell and Billy Blake, Deacon will have to come to terms with an unholy series of surprises about all these figures, including himself. Walters (The Dark Room, 1995, etc.), who's spent too long in Ruth Rendell's shadow, bids fair to break out of the pack with this teasing, impassioned puzzle, which shows her growing and broadening her range with a vitality as alarming as her characters'. (First printing of 75,000; Book-of-the-Month Club Main Selection; $75,000 ad/promo budget; author tour) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

From Booklist

Walters is a gifted storyteller whose rich, dark tales of psychological suspense have led critics and fans to compare her favorably with Ruth Rendell. Her latest book, though, is as baffling and unsettling as wandering through an elaborate maze, with the attendant frustrations, wrong turns, and dead ends. But for readers who persevere, there's also the ultimate reward of arriving in the center of the maze and finally comprehending the ultimate logic of its layout. The story begins with the death of a homeless man, then jumps to an exploration of missing-persons cases. Back to the homeless man--one Billy Blake--the story tells of his death by starvation in the garage of a woman called Amanda Powell. The police are content to chalk Billy's death up to tragic coincidence, but journalist Michael Deacon isn't so sure. Readers are then led through a series of seemingly unconnected events and side plots, including the disappearance of Amanda's husband; Michael's friendship with a young delinquent; the suicide of Verity Fenton, wife of a missing diplomat; a building scam gone bust; and a 50-year-old event whose tragic repercussions reverberate throughout the story before finally revealing the surprising connections among the disparate pieces. There's plenty to like about Walters' latest--rich emotion, psychological intrigue, and deliciously tantalizing mystery--but the plot is looser, stranger, and slightly less compelling than her usual efforts. Still, it's a strong showing and one that's sure to be popular with readers who have grown to expect the unexpected from Walters. Emily Melton --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Amazon.com Review

Minette Walters's expert plotting and her ability to quickly bring a large cast of characters to life put her in the same arena as Ruth Rendell. A homeless man who called himself Billy Blake is found dead of starvation in the garage of an expensive home near London's Thames, and it looks as though he might be a merchant banker who disappeared in 1988 with 10 million pounds. A magazine journalist named Michael Deacon is intrigued by the case and by the missing banker's wife and soon finds that there are much darker overtones to both. Other Walters books in paperback include The Ice House, The Scold's Bridle. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

From Library Journal

The discovery of a homeless man's body in the garage of a banker's wife leads her?and a journalist interested in the homeless?to find out more about the man. They also reinvestigate the disappearance, years ago, of the banker and a sizable sum of cash. More well-crafted psychological suspense from a master.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

From AudioFile

Minette Walters's signature is dark psychological suspense. In this long introspection into diverse lives, a homeless man is found dead of starvation in the garage of a successful woman architect, and a persistent journalist, Michael Deacon, uncovers connections between them. Simon Prebble handles the various challenges of the story and characters with exceptional sureness. He handles Deacon's conjecture of possible crimes and motives with eerie reality and deftly delivers an unusual variety of communications--dialogue, interviews, written faxes, letters, as well as narrative. Key characters cover all ages and classes, from the delinquent teen to the erudite attorney. Prebble portrays them memorably, juggling each as parts of the intriguing puzzle. R.F.W. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

From the Inside Flap

"It was the smell that Mrs. Powell noticed first. Slightly sweet. Slightly unpleasant…It shocked her badly to find a dead man in the corner, his head slumped on his knees."When Billy Blake, a homeless alcoholic, is found dead of starvation in Amanda Powell's private garage in the ritzy docklands area of London, the press arrives in force. But Billy's story is never told because Amanda refuses to comment, and interest in the unknown wino quickly flags.Then, six months after Blake's death, the journalist Michael Deacon discovers that Amanda has changed her tune. Now she is suddenly eager to talk about Billy for Deacon's feature article on poverty and the homeless. More than eager – she seems obsessed with finding out the real identity of her dead visitor. Deacon's curiosity is piqued. Why is Amanda taking Blake's death so personally? Why did he choose her garage to die in? And why is she so anxious to discover his true identity?The more he learns about Blake, the more Deacon can sense echoes of the homeless man's life in his own. Echoes so compelling that Deacon can't let go of the story until he's learned who Billy Blake really was – and why Amanda is almost certainly lying about her own interest in the dead man. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

About the Author

The broadcast of the brilliant film adaptations of her novels on Showcase has crowned Minette Walters the new Canadian queen of British mystery writers. Her career has been little short of astonishing: With her debut novel, The Ice House, she won the British Crime Writers’ Association John Creasey Award for the best first crime novel of 1992. Her second mystery, The Sculptress, won the U.S. Edgar Allan Poe Award for the best crime novel published in 1993. In 1994, she achieved a unique triple when The Scold’s Bridle was awarded the CWA Gold Dagger for the best crime novel of the year. Her fourth novel, The Dark Room, received further critical acclaim when it appeared in 1995. The Echo, her fifth novel, was said by many reviewers to be her best, most intriguing mystery to date. Her sixth novel, The Breaker, was similarly praised and her seventh, The Shape of Snakes, was published to rave reviews. Minette Walters lives in Dorset, England. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

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