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Inspector Hobbes and the Blood: Comedy Crime Fantasy (Unhuman Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Wilkie Martin (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 2,698 ratings
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A reporter with nothing to lose. An inspector with something to hide. The Cotswolds’ newest odd couple is on the case…

Of all the journalists at his small-town paper, Andy Caplet is far and away the worst. At least he has a job. But when his latest expose on the strange and scandalous Inspector Hobbes backfires, Andy is left broke and homeless. The inspector’s offer of a spare room for a few days (or months) seems like the only option…

Andy agrees to accompany the inspector to investigate a sudden surge in crime and soon finds himself immersed in a world beyond humanity. It turns out that Inspector Hobbes eats raw bones, their housekeeper collects teeth, and their guests include trolls, dwarves, and ghouls. As Andy tries to piece together the inspector’s true identity, his new partner is hard at work solving unexplainable murders, suicides, and robberies. If they can’t learn to work together and solve the mystery in time, the chilling fate of their charming town will be sealed…

Inspector Hobbs and the Blood is the first book in a series of comedy crime fantasy novels. If you like intriguing characters, hilarious wit, and small-town whodunits with fantasy flair, then you’ll love Wilkie Martin’s fast-paced supernatural tale.

Buy Inspector Hobbs and the Blood to join the madcap mystery today!

Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 5
    Unhuman
  2. Print length
    313 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    January 12, 2014
  6. File size
    1197 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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  9. Enhanced typesetting
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From the Publisher

orange with black grave stones and gold text Inspector Hobbes and the Blood Dark blue with werewolf and lightning at night pink text Inspector Hobbes and the Curse Grey with hills and gold bars and skull and gold text Inspector Hobbes and the Gold Diggers Dark red with roofs and flood water and floating bones and blue text Inspector Hobbes and the Bones Green/blue with green man head and leaves and yellow text Inspector Hobbes and the Common People
1 - Inspector Hobbes and the Blood 2 - Inspector Hobbes and the Curse 3 - Inspector Hobbes and the Gold Diggers 4 - Inspector Hobbes and the Bones 5 - Inspector Hobbes and the Common People
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Customer Reviews
4.2 out of 5 stars
2,698
4.4 out of 5 stars
1,640
4.5 out of 5 stars
1,810
4.4 out of 5 stars
2,166
4.5 out of 5 stars
1,413
Price $1.99 $3.99 $3.99 $3.99 $3.99
Inspector Hobbes, Andy Caplet, Mrs Goodfellow, Dregs ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Billy Shawcroft (dwarf), Featherlight (landlord) ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Rocky ✓ ✓
Les Bashem, Bernie Bulimore (werewolves) ✓ ✓
Violet King, Felix King (werecats) ✓
Kathleen Johnson (daughter?) ✓
Daphne Duckworth ✓ ✓ ✓
Sid Sharples (vampire) ✓ ✓ ✓
Alvin Elwes, Aubrey Elwes, Hilda Elwes, Matilda Kielder, Solomon Slugg (elves) ✓
Yetis, Not Yetis ✓

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Odd, inventive, and genuinely very funny indeed' Katie Jarvis, Cotswold Life

About the Author

Wilkie Martin sets his Unhuman series of novels in the Cotswolds, where he lives with his partner Julia. He introduces readers to a close-knit, small-town community filled with quirky and occasionally dangerous inhabitants, and an 'unhuman' policeman who maintains law and order. Wilkie intersperses writing his novel with short stories and funny poems, which he enjoys performing and uploading to YouTube. His stories reflect his love of the enigmatic, with memorable characters and, like many of the latter, he has a taste for curry. He is a qualified scuba instructor and has dived in many places around the world and in the UK.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00E45A2M8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ The Witcherley Book Company (January 12, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 12, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1197 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 313 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0957635109
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 2,698 ratings

About the author

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Wilkie Martin

Wilkie Martin

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Wilkie Martin is a bestselling comedy and cozy mystery writer. He lives in the Cotswolds, UK with his partner in a town remarkably similar to the fictional Sorenchester of his unhuman series, although he has never come across a policeman there like Inspector Hobbes.

He loves cooking, especially curries which is why his characters tend to like things spicy and despite living as far away from the coast as is possible in the UK, he is a qualified scuba diving instructor.

Wilkie's latest book is a comedy crime fantasy story - Inspector Hobbes and the Common People.

There are now 5 books in his unhuman series of comedy cozy mystery fantasy novels, described by Cotswold Life magazine as 'odd, inventive and genuinely very funny indeed':

I - Inspector Hobbes and the Blood

II - Inspector Hobbes and the Curse

III - Inspector Hobbes and the Gold Diggers

IV - Inspector Hobbes and the Bones

V - Inspector Hobbes and the Common People

They can be read standalone but are best read in order. They are available on kindle, paperback, large print paperback, hardback and audiobooks.

Find the first 3 unhuman books together in his ebook bundle - First Ever Unhuman Bundle.

Find the first 4 unhuman books in the Hobbes omnibus (paperback, hardback and audiobook).

He also has a fantasy thriller - Razor

an a little book of silly verse - Relative Disasters - that chronicles the various humorous but fatal mishaps that happen to family members.

Children's books are written as Wilkie J. Martin, and a cookbook as his character A.C. Caplet.

For an update on when the next book is available visit his website http://www.wilkiemartin.com and signup for his newsletter.

Awards:

Inspector Hobbes and the Blood was shortlisted for the Impress Prize for New Writers 2012.

Inspector Hobbes and the Blood audiobook was a nominee for Audiobook Reviewer (ABR) Listener Award 2018 in Fantasy, Mystery, Humor.

Inspector Hobbes and the Bones audiobook WINNER of Indpendent Audiobook Award Fantasy 2019.

Inspector Hobbes and the Bones audiobook nominee VoiceArts Award Fantasy 2019.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
2,698 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Chi-lover
5.0 out of 5 stars Intelligently witty HOOT!
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2013
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First I must stress this book is not geared towards children, contrary to what the cute cover may imply. That's not to say there is profanity or sexual situations, for there are not. Most of the dialog might go over their young little heads. But if this were to be made into a movie, and it certainly should. Oh it's that good! I believe all the action, and fun creature like characters would delight and entertain children of all ages, while their parents enjoyed the banter. Now, movie aside, this was a fun, delightfully fun book. Despite the title, there wasn't any blood and gore. I'm not a fan of Vampires. I'm prone to nightmares, so was rather leery of the whole "blood" thing. But thanks to the other reviews, I took a chance and am so happy I did. This is a wonderful book. Wilkie Martin is very talented indeed, great job Sir! Am looking forward Inspector Hobbes next adventure. Loved, loved your book!!
7 people found this helpful
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lambchop68
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Read
Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2023
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Kind of Lorel and Hardy meet Harry Dresden kind of vibe. I enjoyed the book, it made me chuckle, and had some very interesting characters.
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MapleLeafAussie
5.0 out of 5 stars A most enjoyable dark mystery read.
Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2019
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The first book in Wilkie Martin’s ‘Inspector Hobbes’ mystery series, this is a highly original contribution to the genre. It is at different times suspenseful, macabre, darkly humorous, and quirky, while maintaining a well-developed and interesting mystery storyline.

The cast of characters is delightful, made up of mismatched and very different personalities that one might not expect to get along with one another at all, and yet they are oddly complementary. In that sense, there is much in this book that challenges the ways in which people often perceive others based on looks, occupation or social status. Inspector Hobbes is an enigma: beneath the intimidating exterior and generally gruff presentation lies a good heart and a very literal sense of humour. Still, he is clearly not your everyday local police inspector, and the questions about his past and his otherworldly nature are both puzzling and captivating. That many of these questions remain unanswered is a point of continued intrigue that holds strong appeal for the natural curiosity that is common among readers of mystery novels.

Similarly, Mrs Goodfellow is both kind and terrifying at the same time, providing yet another contrast to Andy, whose trademark quality is his mediocrity: he wants to be ‘more' than he is but never quite manages it. It is his profound sense of disappointment in his unrealised dreams and his helplessness when the events of life conspire against him that make him relatable to readers and have them silently hoping for better things for him. When he falls in with Hobbes and discovers life beyond his less-than-stellar career in journalism, the unlikely friendship between the two provides a frequent source of both amusement and fascination.

The oddities of the characters and the macabre elements of the story add further layers of mystery and curiosity to the story, which is well-developed and proceeds at a good pace. Unlike some other mysteries, there is nothing predictable or formulaic about this book.

This is indeed a most enjoyable dark mystery story.
One person found this helpful
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Julian Crane
3.0 out of 5 stars Five stars for everything . . . EXCEPT the narrator.
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2017
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Five stars for everything . . . EXCEPT the narrator. He gets a zero . . . & there's so much of him. As another reviewer noted, these books are less about Inspector Hobbes & more, much more, about Andy. And I really, really regret that, as the rest of Inspector Hobbes is very good to excellent, with good writing, intriguing characters, quite a lot of humor, imaginative (though not very frequent) action scenes & acceptable mysteries. So sad.

Inspector Hobbes & his housekeeper are wonderful characters & I loved everything about these books . . . except the narrator, Andy. As a Watson to Hobbes' Holmes he can be forgiven his cluelessness & as an Arthur Dent (who I quite sympathize with) to Hobbes' Ford Prefect, he can be forgiven his 'nervous nature'. But he is also a slacker, an ingrate & a freeloader. And he's "accident prone" mostly because he's careless, lazy & takes no responsibility for himself. He could contribute quite a bit to the household in which he finds himself, but even when he makes the rare attempt, it is usually abortive thru lack of preparation or inattention.

I almost gave up on this book, but figuring that he seemed such a young man he might improve with exposure to the upstanding & compassionate Hobbes, I stuck it out to the end. And he did rise to the occasion when absolutely necessary. But I was mightily shocked when I found that he is supposed to be 37 years old! The scattering of references to his smothering mother, verbally abusive father & one single line about "what happened to [his] sister" (presumably tragic) weren't sufficient, for me, to counterbalance his unlikeability. Perhaps if more of his background had been interspersed in the beginning . . .

With the indications towards the end of book 1 that Andy could improve, I was hopeful when I began book 2. But though "mostly harmless" he continues to be pretty thoroughly selfish & whining. And altho thots of better behavior occasionally cross his mind, he rarely acts on even the smallest, like thanking the housekeeper. I became rather adept at skimming the pages of his "oh pity me & when's my supper going to be". But it's still irritating enough that I will not be continuing the series.
56 people found this helpful
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ulan25
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun!
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2023
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Cozy, goofy, and a lot of fun. Has some fantastic elements but they’re not always where you expect them to be. Like Andy, I often wonder whether Hobbes is pulling my leg! Very enjoyable as an Audible book, too. It was fun listening to it during my walks :)
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Top reviews from other countries

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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspector Hobbes & the Blood
Reviewed in Canada on January 19, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is book 1, but it wasn't my first Wilkie Martin read. That's why I got this book and am looking forward to another. They are mostly stand alone stories. I'm looking forward to the next book.
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Ian Si
5.0 out of 5 stars A great book
Reviewed in France on November 17, 2018
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I enjoy this series very much
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Kermit
5.0 out of 5 stars Schwacher Start einer guten Serie
Reviewed in Germany on April 29, 2018
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Der Anfang dieses Buches ist hart. Die Hauptperson, Andy, ist unsympatisch, die anderen Personen sind stark überzeichnet, die Handlung ist unrealistisch. Das ändert sich, als Hobbes auftaucht. Er ist sofort faszinierend. Die Handlung nimmt fahrt auf und langsam bekommt auch Andy sympatische Facetten.

Das Buch ist auf den ersten Blick ein klassicher Krimi, ähnlich Sherlock Holmes. Es gibt einen genialen Detektiv und einen leicht beschränkten Ich-Erzähler als Gehilfen und Chronisten. Nur sind nicht alle Personen Menschen. W. Martin gelingt es immer wieder, aus diesem Setup lustige bis surreale Szenen zu entwickeln. Das ist es, was mir am meisten an dieser Serie gefällt.

Warum 5 Steren bei einem Buch mit echten Schwächen?

Fantasy krankt of an zu starker Ernsthaftigkeit. Es gibt epische Schlachten zwischen Gut und Böse.
W. Martin schafft es, spannende Geschichten zu schreiben, ohne sich dabei zu sehr ernst zu nehmen.

Ich habe mir gleich das nächste Buch bestellt und dann das nächste und dann das nächste.
Jedes Buch ist besser als das vorherige. Eine wirklich gute Serie. Hoffentlich schreibt W. Martin weiter.
5 people found this helpful
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Ms Louise Wilford
5.0 out of 5 stars A comfort read with belly laughs
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 3, 2016
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I really enjoyed this novel. It is a comfort-read. The narrative voice is straightforward and there are no overblown passages of purple prose or fancy narrative tricks - but it is still imaginative, creative, and above all funny. The narrator, Andy, an average man-in-the-street in his thirties, is a bit, well, let's say 'unlucky' in life. A journalist on a local paper in the Cotswold town of Sorenchester, he is bad at his job and fails to gain the respect of his colleagues. Sent to interview local police detective, Hobbes, he is drawn into a world of strange beings and unexpected adventure. He meets ghouls and trolls, not to mention Robin Goodfellow's wife, and is drawn into Hobbes' current case.

Basically, Hobbes improves Andy's life no end. Andy is a bit of an idiot, accident-prone, timid, not very bright (he manages to burn down his own flat early on in the story!). But Hobbes brings out his braver, better qualities, mostly through being very kind to him. Andy ends up living with Hobbes and his housekeeper, the elderly tooth-obsessed Mrs Goodfellow (a wondrous cook and kung fu expert). Hobbes himself is, Andy concludes, 'unhuman' - he is physically huge, ugly, strong, clever, brave, honourable and with a dark sense of humour. As we learn more about Andy's real father, Hobbes clearly becomes a surrogate father to Andy, both saving him repeatedly and also enlivening his life and self-esteem no end.

This is a warm-hearted, delightful novel, great to read before you nod off in bed or when you're feeling a bit under the weather and need cheering up. It has some laugh-out-loud moments and the central characters are warm, likeable and entertaining.
2 people found this helpful
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Steph D
4.0 out of 5 stars Good fun, great story!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 5, 2023
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I liked this very much, it is only not a five star because the humour feels just a bit over used and clunky at times (think 'Dad' jokes!).

That said, characters are well drawn and it's a great little read - I still really do recommend!
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