Scan barcode
dnemec's review against another edition
1.0
This was goes on the DNF pile. It's not that it's terrible, I just could not get into it. And I've already read 280 pages. That's enough!
majkia's review
4.0
I really enjoy this series. Lots of attention to the surroundings, the 'feel' of the place, the people and the culture. Good mysteries too.
nocto's review against another edition
5.0
As expected this was another excellent episode in what's rapidly become one of my favourite series.
It doesn't hurt that I live almost where the book is set; I know the roads and the villages and the scenery and I can pull out my local OS map to find out which bits Booth is inventing and which bits are for real. I'm pretty certain that there is no Withins village though the setting of Withins Moor is definitely there. Now I have to go and find out how much of the history is for real and how much is fictional. But I'll enjoy crawling round the local library sussing that out.
As well as reading this book in the right place I also read it at the right time. The book is set in April/May and features a group of morris dancers very like the ones I've seen performing in Holmfirth this weekend. It's not often that books collide so closely with reality as this! Whilst I love reading books set in places and cultures that are miles away in both time and space there is definitely something to be said for reading close to home too. Well there is when the writer gets everything as bang on as Booth does.
If forced to choose I'd still say Blood on the Tongue was my favourite of the series so far but this is still an excellent book. I love the way the two main characters are devloping and I like the way that their stories stay open ended and we don't get to learn too much about either of them in a single book.
More please.
It doesn't hurt that I live almost where the book is set; I know the roads and the villages and the scenery and I can pull out my local OS map to find out which bits Booth is inventing and which bits are for real. I'm pretty certain that there is no Withins village though the setting of Withins Moor is definitely there. Now I have to go and find out how much of the history is for real and how much is fictional. But I'll enjoy crawling round the local library sussing that out.
As well as reading this book in the right place I also read it at the right time. The book is set in April/May and features a group of morris dancers very like the ones I've seen performing in Holmfirth this weekend. It's not often that books collide so closely with reality as this! Whilst I love reading books set in places and cultures that are miles away in both time and space there is definitely something to be said for reading close to home too. Well there is when the writer gets everything as bang on as Booth does.
If forced to choose I'd still say Blood on the Tongue was my favourite of the series so far but this is still an excellent book. I love the way the two main characters are devloping and I like the way that their stories stay open ended and we don't get to learn too much about either of them in a single book.
More please.
jonathanrobert's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bucherca49's review against another edition
2.0
I had a hard time getting through this book. It seemed very disjointed. The plotline about the disappearance of Emma was clear, but I kept getting the other characters confused with one another and with the murdered man. And then there was the plotline involving Diane's sister, who shows up at Ben's door. And who is the owner of the fancy car he spots her driving?
amothersmusings1's review
4.0
I really enjoyed the plot in this book and have given 4 stars for the story. The characters are believable and the stories that come together are interesting and intriguing. It's a great detective novel the way they should be written, The scenery descriptions are wonderful and there is a lot of attention to detail here. I will be reading more by Stephen and would recommend this book to anyone.
escapeebee's review
4.0
I've rated this book 4 stars because of the story, I really enjoyed the plot, the different stories within the book all had be interested throughout and I liked the mixture of characters. The way the scenery was decribed definitely aided the escapism, and the mystey element kept me hooked as any good detective novel should. My only problem with this book was the writing style, which could just be down to the fact I'm not used to this author and his particular style of writing. There were some parts that I found a bit jarring, for example the way the characters are constantly referring to each other by their first names even when the conversation is just between the two of them. Which is probably a very nitpicky thing but something I noticed. It definitely wouldn't put me off reading more of this author's work though, I shall definitely be trying more of this series.
graculus's review
3.0
This is the fourth book in Booth's series of crime novels featuring DC Ben Cooper and DS Diane Fry, though unfortunately they don't spend very much time together in this one.
Two storylines, each pursued by one of Booth's main characters, turn out to be inextricably linked as a missing person and a body found in a graveyard are part of the same story. The main virtue of these books is the characterisation, not just of the people involved but also of the place, in this case an almost claustrophobic village not far from Manchester but apparently also in the middle of nowhere.
If there's one downside to these books, however, it's the ambivalent relationship between Cooper and Fry. Fraught with misunderstandings, it's difficult to see how anyone further up the police hierarchy would continue to insist they work together and at times their very lack of understanding of each other is quite jarring.
Given the length of the series to date, I'm hoping the author finds some way to resolve this - I'm not asking for them to be bestest friends but it would be nice for these two folks to find some common ground. The next book in the series (11 volumes at the time of writing) is [b:One Last Breath|145528|One Last Breath|Stephen Booth|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172173830s/145528.jpg|1170731].
Two storylines, each pursued by one of Booth's main characters, turn out to be inextricably linked as a missing person and a body found in a graveyard are part of the same story. The main virtue of these books is the characterisation, not just of the people involved but also of the place, in this case an almost claustrophobic village not far from Manchester but apparently also in the middle of nowhere.
If there's one downside to these books, however, it's the ambivalent relationship between Cooper and Fry. Fraught with misunderstandings, it's difficult to see how anyone further up the police hierarchy would continue to insist they work together and at times their very lack of understanding of each other is quite jarring.
Given the length of the series to date, I'm hoping the author finds some way to resolve this - I'm not asking for them to be bestest friends but it would be nice for these two folks to find some common ground. The next book in the series (11 volumes at the time of writing) is [b:One Last Breath|145528|One Last Breath|Stephen Booth|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172173830s/145528.jpg|1170731].
More...