Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Had been looking forward to reading this book. Sadly it wasn’t for me. It just lacked a good plot to get you excited and wanting more. It was very slow paced and never picked up

A thriller promising both mathematics and international adventure sounded too good to pass up, so I grabbed this one. This is the fourth book in a series. I had not read any of the others but had no problem reading it as a standalone, thanks to the author’s skillful re-introduction of relevant information from the earlier stories. The subtitle “a mathematical mystery” turns out to be a fairly extreme overstatement; math is relevant only in the sense that the MacGuffin everyone is scrambling to find is a bunch of mathematical papers. Substitute “precious gizmo” or “Maltese falcon” and it would make little difference. Protagonist Tom Winscombe is not a mathematician—he’s just a guy who gets into one scrape after another, while making a lot of flippant observations. I was sort of expecting someone to use math to solve a crime. 82% of the way through the book (thanks, Kindle!), another character refers to the Fibonacci series, but that’s about the extent of the math. That’s not that big a deal. The bigger problem is that the main character doesn’t actually have a plan or conduct any sort of investigation; he just spends the whole book buffeted by circumstance, lurching from one crisis to the next, and occasionally calling others for help. Cleverly surmounting the immediate obstacles and evading the bad guys is a major part of thrillers, but usually the hero is a little more proactive about solving the bigger problem. When Tom shows initiative, it usually pertains to immediate concerns like finding lunch. Basically, we watch an unlikely sequence of extremely bad things befall a hapless guy who won’t stop chattering, and the effect is unremittingly silly. Fun if you like a light story with a regular-guy, victim-of-circumstance hero. Probably not your thing if you are looking for suspense, investigative skill, or anything to do with math.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital advance review copy.

Tom Winscombe is having a very bad series of days, although the title refers only to one. Perhaps it refers only to the first day,when a planned heist go terribly wrong.

This is book four in the Mathematical Mystery series, and although I have not read the first three books, it can work as a standalone on some rather shaky legs. I'd highly recommend reading the books in order, if only to become acquainted with Winscombe's team and the relationships between them. While there are shot talks given that reference the first three, I believe reading those would have lent far more depth to the characters I was meeting for the first time.

That said, this book is of the madcap, how can things possibly get worse genre. Winscombe seems to be a bad luck magnet,first kidnapped in the above referenced heist, then sent into Belarus,then kidnapped by Belarus mafia types, and then standing on the top floor of a building that's on fire,with a firefight of the gun variety going on below as well.

It was quite funny in places, and not as serious as I think it should have been in others, but that's simply my preference in books in the mystery/thriller genre, and I can't ding it for that reason, as the writing tells me this is just the nature of this particular beast, and the story knows what it's doing.

Beyond saying that the first three books would be of immense help to read before this, I'm still giving it three out of five stars.

Thanks to Duckworth Books/Farrago Books and NetGalley for the reading copy.

I would not recommend picking this up without having read any of the previous books. The crazy antics here make more sense when coupled with the equally crazy events of the last few times we met Tom Winscombe and the people associated with him (I do not take the chance to call them all friends). The complicated affiliations and the mania towards the need to know what possibly could be hidden in the long lost Vavasor papers also would make no sense if one encounters it for the first time here. Especially since it begins at just that point.
This time around, the trip takes our unlikely hero on a probable one-way trip to Minsk. He is taken by surprise every step of the way but still manages to come out alive. The very effort he takes to get back on his feet makes the story go on.
You have different gangs with their own personal reasons to be out for blood, and deeper controversies continue to be revealed during the course of the chases, attacks and numerous other violent incidents.
I really enjoyed the random characters wound up providing critical assistance, and there were many of them- quite a variety. Given how this one ended, I suspect another book is in the works, although I am not sure where it will pick up from.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley, the review is entirely based on my own reading experience of this book and the previous ones in the series.

Good stuff. With humor and clever plotting, Pinnock does a nice job of keeping readers in suspense and entertained with clever writing. For those that have read his other books. getting this will be an easy decision.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

I requested this book, while not knowing that it is number 4 in the series.. However, I don’t think that this impacted my ability to enjoy the story, as the author did a really nice job inserting snippets from the previous stories for the background information needed.

I haven’t previously enjoyed a book that combined mystery and mathematics in this manner, and as a bit of a numbers junkie myself, really enjoyed the way this was presented. Curious to dig into the previous 3 books to see how they compare.

Thanks for the laughs and entertainment, which we need now more than ever.

I think the title should be "Bad Days in Minsk", because Tom has nothing but 'bad days' wherever he goes and whatever he does. There's always room to make things worse, no matter his good intentions.
Although this was the first book in the series that I've read and I missed all the background information, I found it funny enough and witty enough to keep reading.

This is the fourth installment in Jonathan Pinnock's Mathematical Mystery series, and I have to say this was my favorite, by a narrow margin. I have enjoyed the series very much, and although I am entertained by the mathematics in the first three books, this one was heavier on the mystery and lighter on the math. What I liked best about this is that it jumped right in, and in this book, our hero Tom was on his own much of the time. worry not, Dorothy and others certainly make an appearance, but as only he can, Tom finds himself alone in Belarus facing certain death and a worldwide economic collapse. Even though events seem to carry him along, Tom is able to put himself in a position to come out on top, with a little help.
If you're a fan of this series, you'll love it. If you're new to the series, jump right in. Pinnock is masterful at filling in the background without wasting chapters retelling old stories.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Farrago Books for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A bit of background first. Former PR executive Tom Winscombe and his software developer girlfriend Dorothy Chan, who runs Dot Chan with partner Ali, got reacquainted in book 1. Arkady was Tom’s then girlfriend Lucy’s Belarusian Zumba teacher who she left Tom for. Tom accidentally found himself caught in the battle for the famous Vavasor mathematical papers, written by twins Archimedes and Pythagoras. All the hilarious details are in books 1 to 3, involving death by magimix, the sinking of an artificial island and a murdering monk. And now, once again, it all goes back to the Vavasor papers which are still missing. Sergei, a friend of Arkady, helped retrieve the missing papers and took the opportunity to take revenge on the Belarusian mafia Gretzky gang for the death of his brother Maxim. Sergei managed to hang onto the papers but has recently told Arkady he was being followed by someone at the Institute for Progress and Development. Then Sergei disappears and so do the papers so the obvious conclusion is that the Institute has stolen them. Of course the natural thing to do is break in and steal them back, especially having the added skills of their two interns, Katya (Arkady’s niece) and Balwinder. Things don’t go quite according to plan and Tom finds himself in the hands of Helen Matheson, an intelligence operative of some sort. Her past is murky, although she has claimed to have been involved in the UK secret services. However, her unit was privatized and she now works for anyone who will pay her. Tom doesn’t want to go to Belarus, never mind being forced to impersonate a chaos theory expert engaged by the Petrov family mafia and find what has happened to Matheson’s man over there. He certainly doesn’t want to become a Deniable Asset (Grade 2), even now he knows the identity of who was embedded in the Petrov family. And off we trot in another madcap caper of assorted kidnap, murders, villains, familiar faces and sharpshooter little old ladies. No wonder Tom didn’t want to go to Belarus.
As with the previous three books, this is brimming full of wonderful eccentric characters and humour to chuckle at on virtually every page. The story is beautifully told and the pages fair skip along as it’s so easy to become immersed in this strange and crazy world that poor Tom found himself in one day and never quite seems to escape from. Wickedly clever and highly recommended. 5*

I started reading this not realising that it is number 4 in the series.. However once I started I didn't want to stop.
Tom is a pretty ordinary guy who has gotten involved with some not so normal people. Some of them are nice, in the loosest sense of the word, and some not very nice at all.
In a tale that takes him to the exclusion zone around Chernobyl and to Minsk, there are plenty of thrills and spills and a lot of ouch.
Very entertaining.

We've all had bad days, haven't we? But rest assured they've never been quite as bad as the one Tom Winscombe's having - kidnapped after a failed break in at the offices of a secretive think tank, sent under-cover into Belarus, kidnapped again (by Belarusan mafia this time), escaping, getting caught in a fire-fight between various gangs while the building burns beneath him ... It's the stuff of nightmares, but since he became involved in the affairs of deceased mathematical geniuses the Vavasor brothers it's become all too frequent an occurrence for Tom.

Bad Day in Minsk is the fourth in the Mathematical Mystery series by Jonathan Pinnock, and as much, if not more, fun than the earlier stories. Always inclined to stumble into the sort of trouble that ends up with armed men threatening him, Tom finds himself coerced into posing as an expert on chaos theory and sent to Minsk. He's on his own this time, without girlfriend Dorothy who usually saves the day but with luck on his side, and help from some new acquaintances, Tom manages to not only escape with his life but come out of it all looking quite heroic (if only Dorothy would see that!)



Full of thrills, tension and laughs in equal amounts, it's a fun read, which, despite the danger that Tom frequently finds himself in and the high body count among his adversaries, doesn't take itself too seriously. For me, it's the kind of escapism I need right now. It is possible to jump into the series at this point, as Tom makes great efforts to explain the back-story of his highly improbably adventures as he goes along, but I think it's best to start at the beginning with book one - The Truth About Archie and Pye .

i think I could copy a review of the other books because I always have a lot of fun in reading this books.
They are funny, well written and highly entertaining.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Absolutely mind-blowing, wacky and entertaining addition to the series! WOW! Jonathan Pinnock has done it again! I don't think I have ever read a book that is as wacky, quirky and hilarious (in a weird way) as this one. In fact, I have loved all the books in this series so I would say, super-fun series - especially if you are a math-nerd!

Highly recommended!

We follow Tom Winscombe in his fourth adventure doomed to go wrong.
I read part three last year as an ARC and was delighted by book 1&2, before reading three.
I do recommend btw to read part 1-3 first. While Jonathan does little summaries of what happens the previous three books are well worth the read and I finished all four in two weeks.
Because I just read 1-3, there was a little more summary than I liked, then again this makes it possible to read it as a standalone book.
The things Tom gets into are very over-the-top, but intriguing and fun. A British kind of Carl Hiaasen story, where you never really know who the good guys and the bad guys are.
Love the strong female leads (that pass the Bechdel test).
If you want to read a silly, nerve wrecking, exciting adventure this is the book for you.

Welcome to the mad, mad world of Jonathan Pinnock! I never suspected that mathematics and Belarus could have kept me in stiches for a few hours.....Once again we have a date with the best Deniable Asset on Earth, Tom Winscombe as he once again (and against his will) gets involved in an uproariously funny romp through the idiotic world of the Belarusian Mafia and its very colourful and violent idiosyncrasies. Or to quote one of the numerous dorks that will cross his path, "a wasted journey to a Godforsaken shithole at the edge of nowhere" An action packed and highly entertaining plot set in "Absurdistan" where heroes and villains are breathlessly crisscrossing the rather surreal Belarusian landscapes in order to get hold of highly important and dangerous mathematical papers through a series of hysterical events that follow one another through a crazy and hilarious menu full of kidnappings, murders, paranoia, homemade vodka, potatoe stews, corrupt cops....and so forth. A bad day in Minsk is a worthy addition to Mr. Pinnock's Mathematical Mystery Series. An unputdownable and very very funny madcap novel that deserves to be enjoyed without moderation!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Duckworth/Farrago for this terrific ARC.

3.5 Stars

Tom Winscombe finds himself in the tricky situation of being kidnapped and his luck doesn't get much better after that. I read the book as it sounded intriguing but I didn't expect the plot to be so funny; the mathematical elements give the story another layer but the humour and characters made this an engaging and addictive read. Tom as the inept protagonist was hilarious and now I will have to read the other books in the series.

Although I hadn't read any of the previous series I saw the synopsis and had to read it immediately as it sounded so intriguing, It does work as a stand alone if you haven't read from the beginning of the series but I do recommend doing so.

For those who find nonsense to be funny or interesting, this is a well written book. It's not for me.