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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Death of parent
Minor: Bullying, Cancer
Even though I read a lot of crime fiction I’ve never read anything like The Distant Dead. Initially I didn’t see the connection between the tale of the young boy from thousands of years ago and modern day but it does appear later in the novel when you see the passion that Sal, Nora and her father had for local history.
The drama starts almost immediately when the burned body of the school’s Maths teacher Adam is found by Sal one of his pupils. Most of the narrative fluctuates between Nora and Sal and shows how they felt about Adam’s death. I found it quite sad that both of them seemed to be his only friends. That sadness increased when it was revealed why he had settled there and what happened to him in the past.
But Adam wasn’t the only one who’d experienced tragedy, both Nora and Sal had suffered life changing events. I felt a lot of sympathy for all of them. All three of them coped in different ways and Nora and Sal’s life touched me in equal measures. The relationships that they both had with their surviving family felt real, Nora’s bitterness but loyalty and Sal’s neediness combined with fear. I didn’t connect to Adam the same way, the barrier he put in place also had an effect on me.
Most of the investigation seemed to be done by Nora, despite her not being a member of the police. She was a teacher, a friend to Adam and was willing to be there for Sal. She seemed to be the only one who wanted to know what had led to Adam’s death. I found myself fascinated by her character, her love for her father despite what he did and the way she gave up on her dreams and stayed in her home town.
Sal was a character I adored. The loss of his Mum, the fear of his uncles and his attempts to understand the passion that Adam felt for maths. I also had a lot of appreciation for his desire to be accepted by the popular children in his class and for his stories that showed him the way to be in real life.
The ending was completely unexpected but worked well, I really had no idea who was responsible for Adam’s death. I just felt a slight sense of relief which is impossible to explain.
I found this to be a crime novel that was also about loss, acceptance and friendship.
The drama starts almost immediately when the burned body of the school’s Maths teacher Adam is found by Sal one of his pupils. Most of the narrative fluctuates between Nora and Sal and shows how they felt about Adam’s death. I found it quite sad that both of them seemed to be his only friends. That sadness increased when it was revealed why he had settled there and what happened to him in the past.
But Adam wasn’t the only one who’d experienced tragedy, both Nora and Sal had suffered life changing events. I felt a lot of sympathy for all of them. All three of them coped in different ways and Nora and Sal’s life touched me in equal measures. The relationships that they both had with their surviving family felt real, Nora’s bitterness but loyalty and Sal’s neediness combined with fear. I didn’t connect to Adam the same way, the barrier he put in place also had an effect on me.
Most of the investigation seemed to be done by Nora, despite her not being a member of the police. She was a teacher, a friend to Adam and was willing to be there for Sal. She seemed to be the only one who wanted to know what had led to Adam’s death. I found myself fascinated by her character, her love for her father despite what he did and the way she gave up on her dreams and stayed in her home town.
Sal was a character I adored. The loss of his Mum, the fear of his uncles and his attempts to understand the passion that Adam felt for maths. I also had a lot of appreciation for his desire to be accepted by the popular children in his class and for his stories that showed him the way to be in real life.
The ending was completely unexpected but worked well, I really had no idea who was responsible for Adam’s death. I just felt a slight sense of relief which is impossible to explain.
I found this to be a crime novel that was also about loss, acceptance and friendship.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed the mystery of this book as well as the archeology/history components. It was a little slow at times, but ramped up to an interesting drama between boy and teacher. It's essentially a small town murder mystery, but I like the added depth of each character and their backstories.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
predictable plotline but was written well and smart so it keeps you on your toes