City of Sinners
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- Create Date：2021-05-20 11:55:38
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：A.A. Dhand
- ISBN：0552175552
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Summary
It is an ordinary Yorkshire morning， cold and miserable。
The streets are not yet busy。 Police cars hurriedly pull up in the centre of town， but none of their lights are flashing and the sirens are silent。
A body has been found， elaborately and painstakingly positioned to send a message。 But what message？ And to who？
It’s DCI Harry Virdee’s job to find out。 But Harry doesn’t know that the killer is watching him， that the killer is coming for him。
Because this is personal。
The streets are not yet busy。 Police cars hurriedly pull up in the centre of town， but none of their lights are flashing and the sirens are silent。
A body has been found， elaborately and painstakingly positioned to send a message。 But what message？ And to who？
It’s DCI Harry Virdee’s job to find out。 But Harry doesn’t know that the killer is watching him， that the killer is coming for him。
Because this is personal。
Reviews
John
，
slow burn but great story and the end is v good
Jack Rego
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Virdee books remain compulsive page turners and an insight into Sikh and Islam customs。 The motive for this serial killing has you guessing and the fast paced plot has you riveted。 The dislike for wasps will remain undiminished after reading this book！
Kenny A
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This book was a breath of fresh air for me。 I loved the characters and the religious tension between the families of Harry and Saima is very poignant。 I broke with tradition and read this， the third book in the series， first。 It is a roller coaster， and difficult to put down。 Anything I missed in the development of the characters I will make up as I downloaded the first two books in the series the minute I finished this one。 I can’t fault this book: it can be read simply as a crime book， but als This book was a breath of fresh air for me。 I loved the characters and the religious tension between the families of Harry and Saima is very poignant。 I broke with tradition and read this， the third book in the series， first。 It is a roller coaster， and difficult to put down。 Anything I missed in the development of the characters I will make up as I downloaded the first two books in the series the minute I finished this one。 I can’t fault this book: it can be read simply as a crime book， but also at many other levels。 。。。more
Tom Kirkbright
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Another good entry to the Harry Virdee series and well written as ever but what stopped it being any higher than a 3-star for me was the manner in which the serial killer murdered his victims - it just didn’t do it for me。 3/5
Emma Baker
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Hooked from page 1。 You never know what you're going to get from Harry Virdee。。。。。。one of my favourite fictional detectives that's for sure！ After growing up in Bradford。。。。I love the background and history of the city described in Dhand's books。。。。。。and I like the way he isn't afraid to address the City's problems head on。 Great read。。。already on with the next one 😁 Hooked from page 1。 You never know what you're going to get from Harry Virdee。。。。。。one of my favourite fictional detectives that's for sure！ After growing up in Bradford。。。。I love the background and history of the city described in Dhand's books。。。。。。and I like the way he isn't afraid to address the City's problems head on。 Great read。。。already on with the next one 😁 。。。more
Joseph McCann
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this is the third harry videe story and its just as good as the others。 I didn't want to stop reading it。 Cracking pace， story， just great all over。 this is the third harry videe story and its just as good as the others。 I didn't want to stop reading it。 Cracking pace， story， just great all over。 。。。more
Leo Africanus
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Don't judge me。 Don't judge me。 。。。more
Susan May
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Initially I did not want to read this book because it was about Bradford and I live in this town and thought I could not cope with reading possibly about the issues that I am fully aware of and dislike。 But I am so glad that I did decided to pick it up and I knew after the first few pages that it was going to be good。 It was honest about the problems in Bradford， it was not sugar coated as some people want to do try to make out that the city is a success story。 The story moved fast but did not l Initially I did not want to read this book because it was about Bradford and I live in this town and thought I could not cope with reading possibly about the issues that I am fully aware of and dislike。 But I am so glad that I did decided to pick it up and I knew after the first few pages that it was going to be good。 It was honest about the problems in Bradford， it was not sugar coated as some people want to do try to make out that the city is a success story。 The story moved fast but did not lose anything in this， the characters were strong and it tackled head on the some of the aspects of different groups trying to get along together。 I admit that there was one point that I had to put the book down because I really got into and could not cope with the tension！ One of the shops that was actually mentioned at one point was where I lived and it was owned by my parents， this added a bonus。 Will definitely be reading AA Dhand's other books。 。。。more
Jacqueline
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Five Star Sinners！ Wow！ Now this is definitely a five star book。 Even though I had to hold my breath a few times （no spoilers， but I’m sure those who’ve read it know what I mean）， I was still captivated。 Not the ending I expected but a brilliant one all the same！ Excellent book， excellent writing， excellent storyline！ Five stars。
David
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Be very interesting to find out what happens next。 Plenty of action。
Steve Munoz
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When a young Asian woman is found dead in a dramatically staged scene at a Waterstones， DI Harry Virdee is called in to investigate。 It soon becomes clear， a seriously dark killer is on the loose in Bradford。 So begins AA Dhand’s City of Sinners， the third entry in the Virdee series。 I love this series and I loved this book。 Dhand excellently weaves several gripping storylines into one satisfying read， further fleshing out the life of Harry in this outing by bringing his wife， Saima， to the fore When a young Asian woman is found dead in a dramatically staged scene at a Waterstones， DI Harry Virdee is called in to investigate。 It soon becomes clear， a seriously dark killer is on the loose in Bradford。 So begins AA Dhand’s City of Sinners， the third entry in the Virdee series。 I love this series and I loved this book。 Dhand excellently weaves several gripping storylines into one satisfying read， further fleshing out the life of Harry in this outing by bringing his wife， Saima， to the forefront。 Through her story the book takes on the very delicate topic of discrimination within the Asian community and achieves that fine balance of having the reader experience the swirl of emotions， from the innocence of love to the pain of intolerance， within a family and culture。 The reader takes in all of this along with the race to solve a string of killings in a gritty setting。 What more could you want？ Nothing， as I gave this book a 5。 。。。more
Patricia Scaife
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I took a long time to start this series and now I'm reading them back to back。 Set in my home city of Bradford， Detective Inspector Virdee is continuing his fight to clean up the city and rid it of violent crime。 I took a long time to start this series and now I'm reading them back to back。 Set in my home city of Bradford， Detective Inspector Virdee is continuing his fight to clean up the city and rid it of violent crime。 。。。more
Em__Jay
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With short， sharp chapters， CITY OF SINNERS is a fast paced and relatively entertaining read。I have read the Harry Virdee books in order and I think this is where I part ways with this series。 I am getting tired of Harry。 In every book， he is front and centre。 There is always a personal connection between Harry and the crime（s）-du-jour。 Dhand has anointed Harry as the saviour of Bradford， and no crime seems solvable unless he's involved。 It's repetitive and has become tedious to read。 I love a g With short， sharp chapters， CITY OF SINNERS is a fast paced and relatively entertaining read。I have read the Harry Virdee books in order and I think this is where I part ways with this series。 I am getting tired of Harry。 In every book， he is front and centre。 There is always a personal connection between Harry and the crime（s）-du-jour。 Dhand has anointed Harry as the saviour of Bradford， and no crime seems solvable unless he's involved。 It's repetitive and has become tedious to read。 I love a good detective series， and I enjoy watching layers of a detective's personality and life be peeled away so we learn a little more about them with each book， and as interesting as the cultural elements are， they are taking over this crime series。 I think what works best for me are stories where the detective is not the primary focus; they are the driver to solving the crime。 I wish Harry spent more time investigating crimes。 And the twist in this book really wasn't a surprise to me。 We might not have known the name of the person（s） committing the murders but the connection to existing characters was obvious。 。。。more
Stephanie Pointing
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Another great one！Really enjoyed this storyline， this series is one of my。favourites！ Look forward to the next one！ Will definitely recommend to others！
Peter
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Outstanding addition to an outstanding series。I never thought that Bradford would rival the Louisiana bayou in my list of favourite literary locations， or that a West Yorkshire policeman be alongside a flawed New Orleans detective in my pantheon of fictional crime heroes。But in the Harry Virdee series， A。A。 Dhand has created a character and location that is up there in the crime fiction stratosphere along with with James Lee Burke's ， "Robicheaux" books。 The writing is not as lyrical as Burkes b Outstanding addition to an outstanding series。I never thought that Bradford would rival the Louisiana bayou in my list of favourite literary locations， or that a West Yorkshire policeman be alongside a flawed New Orleans detective in my pantheon of fictional crime heroes。But in the Harry Virdee series， A。A。 Dhand has created a character and location that is up there in the crime fiction stratosphere along with with James Lee Burke's ， "Robicheaux" books。 The writing is not as lyrical as Burkes but Dhand's Bradford is as dangerous and gritty if not as beautiful and Virdee as flawed and determined as the "Big Mon" himself。In my mind I can think of no greater praise then the comparison with Burke and although the bar is high and although he probably has another step or two to go， if the standard continues， I will happily be anticipating new or re-reading old Harry Virdee escapades， as much as I do Dave Robicheaux's 。 。。。more
Huw
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Absolutely phenomenal！！！ Have read the previous two and they are fabulous。。。 and have just ordered the remaining two。。。 five in total。。。 everybody should read these！！ especially if you love Crime / detective books。。。。 best I have read since completing the Katarina Diamond series and also Robert Galbraith。。。 DHAND is UP THERE with them。
Val Penny
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Amit Dhand is an author I discovered a couple of years ago when he spoke at Swanwick Writers’ Summer School。 He writes very dark， violent crime novels set in Bradford， England。 He also weaves in very interesting personal back stories for his characters。City of Sinners is the third book in his Harry Virdee series。 Each book would work as a stand alone， but why would you deny yourself the pleasure of reading the series？This story starts on a cold Bradford morning。 Police cars hurriedly pull up in Amit Dhand is an author I discovered a couple of years ago when he spoke at Swanwick Writers’ Summer School。 He writes very dark， violent crime novels set in Bradford， England。 He also weaves in very interesting personal back stories for his characters。City of Sinners is the third book in his Harry Virdee series。 Each book would work as a stand alone， but why would you deny yourself the pleasure of reading the series？This story starts on a cold Bradford morning。 Police cars hurriedly pull up in the centre of town， but none of their lights are flashing but the sirens are silent because a body has been found， elaborately and painstakingly positioned to send a message。 It is DI Harry Virdee’s job to find out what that message is。 But Harry does not know that the killer is watching him， that the killer is coming for him because this is personal。I found City of Sinners even more gripping than the previous two novels （Although these were also excellent）。 The reader is taken to the Asian community in Bradford; and there is a series of murders， interspersed with family issues that Harry has to contend with。 This time Harry is specifically targeted by the killer。I have to admit to guessing the reason for this targeting long before it was finally revealed， but this did not spoil the story in any way。 City of Sinners is a thoroughly gripping read that I could not put down。Some of the descriptions are gruesome， but if you can cope with that， I highly recommend it。The AuthorA。A。 Dhand was raised in Bradford and spent his youth observing the city from behind the counter of a small convenience store。 After qualifying as a pharmacist， he worked in London and travelled extensively before returning to Bradford to start his own business and begin writing。 The history， diversity and darkness of the city have inspired his Harry Virdee novels。Val Penny 。。。more
Richard Howard
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Annoyingly I read this and its follow-up in the wrong order。 As with the follow-up， though both are undoubtedly exciting narratives， they are also just a bit OTT。 The series began as a police procedural but seems to have become a bit like 'Luther in Bradford' with two many unlikely occurrences for me。 The backdrop of the city and its diversity and the conflicting traditions of its Asian cultures makes for fascinating reading but what would work on the screen becomes unconvincing on the page。 But Annoyingly I read this and its follow-up in the wrong order。 As with the follow-up， though both are undoubtedly exciting narratives， they are also just a bit OTT。 The series began as a police procedural but seems to have become a bit like 'Luther in Bradford' with two many unlikely occurrences for me。 The backdrop of the city and its diversity and the conflicting traditions of its Asian cultures makes for fascinating reading but what would work on the screen becomes unconvincing on the page。 But， as I said， if you're prepared to suspend your disbelief， it's an exciting read。 。。。more
Ceecee
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It’s been too long since I last read a Harry Virdee novel！ Well， if you like dark and twisty then let me entice you to read this excellent Bradford based series！！！ DCI Harry （Hardeep） Virdee is a really interesting fictional detective for several reasons。 First of all， he’s a Sikh， married to Saima who is Muslim and both of them are rejected by their families for their mixed religious marriage。 In this book Saima， a nurse， becomes closer to Joyti， Harry’s mother when she saves father， Ranjit Vir It’s been too long since I last read a Harry Virdee novel！ Well， if you like dark and twisty then let me entice you to read this excellent Bradford based series！！！ DCI Harry （Hardeep） Virdee is a really interesting fictional detective for several reasons。 First of all， he’s a Sikh， married to Saima who is Muslim and both of them are rejected by their families for their mixed religious marriage。 In this book Saima， a nurse， becomes closer to Joyti， Harry’s mother when she saves father， Ranjit Virdee’s life。 Despite this， Ranjit refuses to open his heart to Saima and emphatically and cruelly rejects her overtures of friendship。 Secondly， Harry for the right reasons often treads a very fine line between lawful and illegitimate methods of bringing perpetrators to justice and achieving results with the aid of his brother Ronnie。 Ronnie has legal businesses and some that are mostly definitely not and he is quite powerful in the underbelly of the Bradford drug scene。 The City of Sinners is probably the grittiest of the series。 There is a vicious serial killer in Bradford who is targeting women who he sees as ‘sinners’ which transpires to mean women ‘who do not stick to their own kind’。 Harry and Saima are examples of what the killers twisted mind rejects and this case becomes very personal to Harry。 This is a brutal case which has hatred and revenge at the heart of it。 It is fast paced， very well plotted and exciting especially the audacious finale。 This can easily be read as a stand-alone but the first two books are also good and it does help with understanding the back history of the Virdee family。 Overall， an excellent read。 。。。more
Bill Lynas
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A A Dhand's third novel featuring DCI Harry （Hardeep） Virdee opens with the discovery of a dead body in a Bradford city centre bookshop。 It's one hell of an opening （which I won't spoil here！） & from that moment on the tension increases chapter by chapter。 Considering I was just reading a crime novel I felt pretty exhausted by the end of this one。Dhand creates a superbly plotted crime story with multiple stories unfolding， but it never confuses the reader。 Harry Virdee is a wonderful creation & A A Dhand's third novel featuring DCI Harry （Hardeep） Virdee opens with the discovery of a dead body in a Bradford city centre bookshop。 It's one hell of an opening （which I won't spoil here！） & from that moment on the tension increases chapter by chapter。 Considering I was just reading a crime novel I felt pretty exhausted by the end of this one。Dhand creates a superbly plotted crime story with multiple stories unfolding， but it never confuses the reader。 Harry Virdee is a wonderful creation & the combination of his work as a rule breaking DCI & his complicated family life made this a compelling read。 。。。more
Shiva Patel
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 City of sinners is the gripping book three in the Detective Harry Virdee series by AA Dhand。Harry is called to an unusual murder scene in Waterstones。 The body of a young Muslim girl is suspended from the ceiling。 As Harry makes enquiries into the case he receives a phone call asking him to go to a local nightclub。 In the midst of young teenagers dancing， there’s a scream and a girl is found stabbed on the dance floor。 Harry tries to capture the killer leaving but no one seeing anything suspicio City of sinners is the gripping book three in the Detective Harry Virdee series by AA Dhand。Harry is called to an unusual murder scene in Waterstones。 The body of a young Muslim girl is suspended from the ceiling。 As Harry makes enquiries into the case he receives a phone call asking him to go to a local nightclub。 In the midst of young teenagers dancing， there’s a scream and a girl is found stabbed on the dance floor。 Harry tries to capture the killer leaving but no one seeing anything suspicious。The killer wants Harry and he does not know why？He calls again and Harry goes to the apartment of the daughter of the politician。 Harry is being lead by a clever serial killer who wants justice in his way。。A fast paced crime thriller which keeps going until the end！ 。。。more
Mai-ana
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I really enjoy these books。 I think part of the reason I enjoy them is because I live in Bradford so I know where Harry is going and can picture the areas so clearly。
Debbie Rayner
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Like Bradford， Harry Virdee is a complex character。 A A Dhand draws both the city and the cop， without fear or favour。 His relationship with his home town， his wife and his boss feel real and avoid the usual cliches。 The story hooked me in from the get go and kept me on the line right through to the end。 Although there are now a series of Harry Virdee novels， Dhand is a new author to me， but one of the benefits of coming late to an author is that you have an immediate back catalogue to work thro Like Bradford， Harry Virdee is a complex character。 A A Dhand draws both the city and the cop， without fear or favour。 His relationship with his home town， his wife and his boss feel real and avoid the usual cliches。 The story hooked me in from the get go and kept me on the line right through to the end。 Although there are now a series of Harry Virdee novels， Dhand is a new author to me， but one of the benefits of coming late to an author is that you have an immediate back catalogue to work through。 I'm looking forward to seeing where Dhand takes Harry next and how the ongoing changes in Bradford are reflected through the series。 。。。more
Agnieska Ieva Banaite
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I bought this book accidentally and didn't think that it gives a lot of information about Asian culture in the UK。 Never thought it could be like how it is shown it this book。 We see some battles between the European and Asian drug dealers， while meanwhile detective with his family drama strutting to find serial Asian sinners girls。 Sometimes it is tense and sounds like a warning to everyone， especially to girls not to betray their kind， culture。 At the end， when the identity of the serial kille I bought this book accidentally and didn't think that it gives a lot of information about Asian culture in the UK。 Never thought it could be like how it is shown it this book。 We see some battles between the European and Asian drug dealers， while meanwhile detective with his family drama strutting to find serial Asian sinners girls。 Sometimes it is tense and sounds like a warning to everyone， especially to girls not to betray their kind， culture。 At the end， when the identity of the serial killer was revealed， it was a bit dramatically scary that the guy could go for woman's betrayal revenge after so many years。 By the way， here， we can find a lot about a woman's strength and even ability to kill in self-defence or assault anger whatever you out it。 Detective solves all problems in a crucial role and shows his dark side too， but， a happy ending also brightens all shady side， which is quite fascinating。 。。。more
Carolyn
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Great read！ Going to backtrack & read books 1 & 2。
Christopher Williams
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First one by this author I have read and quite impressed。 Set in Bradford and very much among the Asian community。 The DCI Harry Virdee character is great and the story develops well and resolves itself in a way that would have been impossible to guess。
Missjoanie
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This is the first in the series I have read to but I will be going back to the beginning。Bradford like many old cities born out of the industrial revolution has both historic beauty and roads if at all possible you don't turn down。Here is where I got to meet DCI Harry Virdee a stalwart of the city， fighting to keep his city together and hoping for a renaissance。This tale takes in the difficulties of modern multicultural societies and this not the simple black versus white which leads to the deat This is the first in the series I have read to but I will be going back to the beginning。Bradford like many old cities born out of the industrial revolution has both historic beauty and roads if at all possible you don't turn down。Here is where I got to meet DCI Harry Virdee a stalwart of the city， fighting to keep his city together and hoping for a renaissance。This tale takes in the difficulties of modern multicultural societies and this not the simple black versus white which leads to the deaths of four Asian women and has links with Harry's own personal history。This is a gritty tale that holds your attention from the off。 。。。more
Matt Rudman
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Taut Police thriller set in and around Bradford。 Great sense of place and interesting family plotting and storylines centring on the hero， Harry Virdee
Mikeh5972
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An absolutely superb read。 This is the third book in the Harry Virdee series and I think it is the best so far。 We have the ongoing estrangement between Harry and his family。 This forms the background to a horrific series of murders aimed at getting revenge on Harry。 I was absolutely gripped by this multi-layered story。 A A Dhand deserves to become a much better known author as he is certainly up there with the very best crime writers。 I will be adding him to my regular list of authors and have An absolutely superb read。 This is the third book in the Harry Virdee series and I think it is the best so far。 We have the ongoing estrangement between Harry and his family。 This forms the background to a horrific series of murders aimed at getting revenge on Harry。 I was absolutely gripped by this multi-layered story。 A A Dhand deserves to become a much better known author as he is certainly up there with the very best crime writers。 I will be adding him to my regular list of authors and have reserved book 4 in this series at the library。 。。。more
Elizabeth Ducie
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Having read books 1 and 2 in the series， I was already a fan of DCI Harry Virdee and his family。 If anything， City of Sinners was even more gripping than the previous books。 Once again， we are in the Asian community in Bradford; and once again we have a series of murders， interspersed with family issues。 And this time， it's a lot more personal， as Harry is specifically targeted by the killer。 I have to admit to guessing the reason for this targeting before it was finally revealed， but this didn' Having read books 1 and 2 in the series， I was already a fan of DCI Harry Virdee and his family。 If anything， City of Sinners was even more gripping than the previous books。 Once again， we are in the Asian community in Bradford; and once again we have a series of murders， interspersed with family issues。 And this time， it's a lot more personal， as Harry is specifically targeted by the killer。 I have to admit to guessing the reason for this targeting before it was finally revealed， but this didn't spoil the story in any way。 A thoroughly gripping read that I couldn't put down。 I did no work at all yesterday， so engrossed was I in this book。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=City of Sinners
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=City of Sinners&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,City of Sinners&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0