Pros Novel Read-Along - Painted Angels by Angelfish - Chapter Five

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

At last!

Painted Angels by Angelfish.
Cover art by firlefanzine

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

There has been a bomb explosion, and like the other emergency services, Bodie and Doyle, now working together as a team, responded. On arrival, however, Doyle remained by the car, too scared to go any further, while Bodie ran straight into the cloud of smoke to help.

Eventually Doyle screws up his courage and joins Bodie, who is assessing what seems to be a detonator. Doyle recognises it as a specific Irish terrorist group, and Bodie immediately knows who he's talking about. They realise that there's a second device nearby, ready to go off when the emergency services have arrived. They find it, and Doyle uses his penknife to cut the wires - a mad guess between red or blue, because it could be either - and saves the situation.

Even as they're laughing in relief, however, one of the first bomb's victims staggers into them and collapses. They're badly burned and blinded, and asking for Richard. Bodie recoils but Doyle pretends to be Richard as comfort as the man dies in his arms.

The next thing Doyle knows is that he's sitting on a wall outside a church with Bodie, though he can't remember getting there. Bodie is rubbing his back, then "tangles... fingers into his hair, carressing" and explains that the first time in such a situation is the worst, and he'll be okay. Doyle points out that he doesn't ever want to be "okay" with this situation, and begins to feel guilty about not having been able to stop it. He knows London so well, he should have seen some sign. Bodie rejects this - "Jesus Christ, Doyle. You'll sink both of us."

Doyle realises he's been in shock, recovers, and just as he's getting up spots a priest helping the victims. He's not impressed - "Oh great... God's here." Bodie's puzzled by this, and Doyle realises that the priest is giving first aid, not the last rites. As he watches the priest, however, and then hears his voice, Doyle realises that he's familiar. ""Gabriel. Gabe!" and begins to walk into the crowd."

So - what did you think?

Comments

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Okay, and my first thoughts as soon as the author described Doyle as clinging to the Capri's open door, while Bodie "didn't hesitate", and then "...Bodie to have run straight into hell, leaving Doyle with his knees turned to water, clutching at the car door..." was - as you can probably imagine - no-no-no-no-NO!

The author is still describing Doyle as "a Stepney beat-copper", completely ignoring the fact that he was a Detective Constable by the time he was recruited to CI5, and had served in the Drug Squad at least, as further experience from being a "beat-copper". Quite apart from the fact that he's surely already used to seeing pain and violence and injury at various levels through this experience, he was also in the Met in London in the 1970s - just checking Wiki for 1970-76 gives 50 terrorists incidents involving bombs (some of which were defused, but many went off). In 1976 there was the Olympia bombing, where "1976 Olympia bombing: A bomb placed by the Provisional IRA exploded in a litter bin at the top of an escalator in a crowded exhibition hall. 20,000 people were attending the Daily Mail Ideal Home Exhibition at the time. 70 were injured." Doyle is not likely to be unprepared to have to deal with this sort of carnage - quite apart from his own CI5 training!

And gaah for super-Bodie (in comparison) running straight in while Doyle cowers. That's just not a Doyle that I can see from the eps, or canon, or a realistic view of London and its emergency services at the time.

Yes, he redeems himself afterwards and is more the Doyle that I know - but why in the world set him up like that? It makes no sense to me... Just as I think I'm starting to believe in the characters, the author does something to make me back off again. By the end of this chapter I'm believing in them once more - but now I'm waiting to be knocked back again, to have them snatched away again...

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[macklingirl.livejournal.com]

I must admit with the Doyle she describes I was thrown out of the story and had to fight to get in again. I think he might be shocked for two or maybe three seconds when he gets there at the moment the bomb blow up, but not when he arrives at a bomb field. At that moment he knows what to expect and his training would rule his body and mind. The knees like water might come afterwards, when the adrenalin flow is ebbing down.

And Bodie the Super-Hero again, who jumps out of the car and into the fiasko without thinking or hesitation. But at the other hand Bodie isn't able to comfort a dying man, which Doyle can do without thinking about it? That doesn't fit for me, even if Doyle's reaction is the reaction I would expect from him.

I know from first hand experience that your brain stops telling you what to do when there is a situation with hurt people. You don't think or hesitate, you're going to help. The shock comes later, so it was ok that Doyle is sitting next Brunswick church without knowing how he got there. That was very realistic.

What doesn't sound right to me is his behavior when he sees Gabe or a man he thinks is Gabe. His behavior reminds me of a Barbara Cartland heroine. Blah.

[shooting2kill.livejournal.com]

When I was reading this chapter a few days ago I actually smiled at the bit about Doyle’s knees turning to water as I knew it would irritate people (and quite rightly so)! And what’s with all the vomiting that goes on in some stories? Do people really vomit *that* easily? In front of other people? But I did enjoy this chapter, apart from the occasional (and puzzling) dodgy characterisations, there’s just something about the writer’s style that I really like - the general tone? Or maybe it’s the use of the present tense which seems to add a sense of immediacy and intimacy to the scene? Including me and enabling me to feel I’m observing them at close quarters, if not actually participating? I don’t know… I seem to find it more difficult to work out why I like a story rather than why I don’t.

Yes, he redeems himself afterwards and is more the Doyle that I know - but why in the world set him up like that? It makes no sense to me

I agree. I think the author’s characterisation of Doyle is strange… why - what is the point - does she persist in making him look such a wimp? And, as you say, denying him his experience of 70s London (in particular) under prolonged IRA threat? Is it just to make Bodie look better? She obviously *does* know the lads well because at other times in the same chapter she gets it spot on, e.g. with the choosing which wires bit, it’s so Doyle and so them that Doyle would do the opposite of what Bodie suggests!

But aside from what I've nitpicked, I really did enjoy this chapter (especially Bodie's hands tangled in Doyle's hair) for the tension, action, Bodie being Bodie and I welcomed the return of Gabriel, not just because it gave more point to the Prologue, but because I'm looking forward to Bodie's response!