Obviously when a child goes missing, our protective instincts are instantly aroused – whatever the circumstances, a child is never anything other than an innocent victim. And another potential bear pit she manages to deftly sidestep is the fact that her victim is a child. It’s a trickier balance to achieve than Griffiths makes it look. Do we know exactly who did it halfway through the story, or does it all come as a complete surprise? I’m not noted for my skill in spotting the culprit, but I thoroughly enjoyed Griffiths’ ability to provide plenty of twists and turns, without completely losing the day to day realism that a contemporary crime thriller needs. Of course, while a sympathetic protagonist is obviously important – this is a whodunit, so what really matters is how Griffiths handles the plot. Griffiths evidently knows and loves this landscape and has it bouncing off the page as a character in its own right, particularly during the climactic scenes where the dangerous surroundings heighten the drama and tension during the denouement in a classic showdown that manages to provide plenty of surprises. The other powerful factor in this book is the stunning backdrop – the salt marshes. I am looking forward to seeing how this all plays out during the series. Nelson is clearly a complicated personality and – unlike Ruth and many other detectives in other series – he is a family man with two daughters and an attractive wife. So did I also feel an affinity with the other main character? Yes. This series is evidently going to be something of a partnership between Ruth and Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson.
Her concerns about her weight and her single status struck a chord with me – and I suspect many other female crime fans. I found her character immediately appealing and realistic. Ruth Galloway is a forty-something archaeologist who lives on her own at the edge of Saltmarsh in an isolated cottage with a couple of cats.
Ruth is soon drawn into the Lucy Downey case and into the mind of the letter writer, who seems to have both archaeological knowledge and eerie psychic powers.
Since her disappearance he has been receiving bizarre letters about her, letters with references to witchcraft, ritual and sacrifice. Nelson thinks he has found the remains of Lucy Downey, a little girl who went missing ten years ago. When a child’s bones are found on a desolate Norfolk beach, Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson calls in forensic archaeologist Dr Ruth Galloway.
This series was recommended by Himself and my mother, so it was with some anticipation that I started reading the ebook.
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