Who doesn't like a good mystery? I'm particularly drawn to
psychological mysteries, so when a book has both a murder and a
psychological twist, so much the better. Peter Mays' book The Black House takes place on the Isle of Lewis, the northern most island in the Hebrides, off Scotland. Fin MacLeod grew up there, but moved to the mainland after high school, to attend college and escape. He became a police officer, so when someone on the island is murdered, and the m.o. is similar to a murder that he is investigating, he is naturally sent to help the investigation. As it turns out, he knew the victim, having grown up with him. The book is told in the third person when describing current events, but in Fin's voice when he is remembering the past. We get glimpses into his childhood and the reasons behind his desire to leave the island. His knowledge of the people in some ways helps him narrow the search for the killer down, but in some ways leads him astray. The Isle of Lewis is so well described it is a character in its own right. I enjoyed this book very much. The twists and turns were very satisfying, and learning about such a foreign landscape was very interesting. There are two more books in the series, The Lewis Man and The Chessmen (which has not yet been published in the US.) |
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The Blackhouse
May, Peter 2013-02 - Thorndike Press 9781410455635 Check Our Catalog From acclaimed author and television dramatist Peter May comes the first book in the Lewis Trilogy--a riveting mystery series set on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides, a formidable and forbidding world where tradition rules and people adhere to ancient ways of life. …More |
Other books by the same author.
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Lewis Man
May, Peter 2012-01 - Quercus 9780857382207 Check Our Catalog …More |
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Raven Black
Cleeves, Ann 2008-06 - Thomas Dunne Books 9780312359676 Check Our Catalog Outstanding Praise for "Raven Black" " " "A fine and sinister psychological novel in the Barbara Vine style. Cleeves is part of a new generation of superior British writers." ---"The Globe and Mail" (Canada) "A riveting read." ---Val McDermid, author of "A Place"" of Execution" "Beautifully constructed . . . brings alive the tensions in a place where everyone knows everyone else and nothing can be forgotten. Raven Black is lively and surprising." ---"Times Literary Supplement" (UK) "Ann's characterization is worthy of the best writers in the field. . . . Rarely has the sense of place been so evocatively conveyed in a crime novel." ---"Daily Express" (UK) "With a cast of well-drawn and convincing characters and an unexpected conclusion, "Raven Black" is the perfect novel to while away the long winter evenings by the fire." ---"The Tribune" (UK) ""Raven Black" shows what a fine writer [Cleeves] is . . . accomplished and thoughtful." ---"The Sunday Telegraph" (UK) "Cleeves is a very good writer---strong on atmosphere, plot andpeople." "---The Times" (UK) …More |
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The Wrong Kind of Blood: An Irish Novel of Betrayal
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