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nocto's review against another edition
5.0
Abso-bloody-lutely wonderful. The reviewer quoted on the back cover says something along the lines of "McDermid may write better books in the future, but I can't see how." I can only concur - I'm a fan and I was never going to hate it but this was stunning. My scale is in need of recalibration, six point five stars.
(this is a standalone book)
(this is a standalone book)
horrorqueen's review against another edition
4.0
An excellent, suspenseful and taut thriller. I loved that this book is told in 2 halves; a fascinating look at England in the 1960's to begin with (I particularly enjoyed the dive into what the police force of those years may have been like) and then a flash forward to the late 90's. It tells the story of George Bennett's investigation into a missing girl in a very rural village community. McDermid manages to realistically evoke the lives of this isolated community and at the same time, give a very real insight into the more middle-class lives of those investigating them.
I love Val McDermid books anyway, but for me, this has to be one of the best. It had great twists, characters that felt fully fleshed out and believable and a compelling central mystery.
I love Val McDermid books anyway, but for me, this has to be one of the best. It had great twists, characters that felt fully fleshed out and believable and a compelling central mystery.
pollyno9's review against another edition
4.0
Val McDermid is a superb author. I've read all of her Tony Hill novels, and watched and re-watched the Wire in the Blood TV show, but I was still unsure if I truly enjoyed her writing, or those specific characters. It's the writing, for sure.
When I started this one, I wasn't really in the right mood for a mystery, but the characters and well described setting really drew me in. The jacket was a bit misleading to me, I thought that the book was going to be a bit more half 60s mystery/half 90s conclusion, but the 90s conclusion is truly a conclusion, encomapssing only the last... oh, less than a quarter of the book.
Another concern I had (that the 60s portion would be boring and dry, maybe even a bit cheesy) was completely unfounded. Her characters read true, and if one handed them modern conveniences they'd fit in perfectly in any police procedural, modern or not.
When I started this one, I wasn't really in the right mood for a mystery, but the characters and well described setting really drew me in. The jacket was a bit misleading to me, I thought that the book was going to be a bit more half 60s mystery/half 90s conclusion, but the 90s conclusion is truly a conclusion, encomapssing only the last... oh, less than a quarter of the book.
Another concern I had (that the 60s portion would be boring and dry, maybe even a bit cheesy) was completely unfounded. Her characters read true, and if one handed them modern conveniences they'd fit in perfectly in any police procedural, modern or not.
megbriers's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
charonlrdraws's review against another edition
1.0
Only read two books by Val McDermid so far one was good this one sucked oh and there was meant to be a plot somewhere! Where the fuck was the plot! Because on the half way point everything else got thrown out of the window and there was this brief thing about a trial going on blah, blah, blah journal entries at the end with some random years on it why did I waste my time with this book!
The premise sounded good and well me being me wanting to read more crime books wanted to check this book out oh boy do I feel cheated on this book now! I will try out the current crime series by this author maybe that might make the bitter taste in my mouth that this book left a bit more tolerable...I have a love/hate with this author's books which is quite annoying and I've only read two! I am having a great start with Val McDermid aren't I!
A summery for A Place of Execution:
Winter 1963: two children have disappeared off the streets of Manchester; the murderous careers of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady have begun. On a freezlng day in December, another child goes missing: thirteen-year-old Alison Carter vanishes from her town, an insular community that distrusts the outside world. For the young George Bennett, a newly promoted inspector, it is the beginning of his most difficult and harrowing case: a murder with no body, an investigation with more dead ends and closed faces than he'd have found in the anonymity of the inner city, and an outcome which reverberates through the years.
Decades later he finally tells his story to journalist Catherine Heathcote, but just when the book is poised for publication, Bennett unaccountably tries to pull the plug. He has new information which he refuses to divulge, new information that threatens the very foundations of his existence. Catherine is forced to re-investigate the past, with results that turn the world upside down.
The premise sounded good and well me being me wanting to read more crime books wanted to check this book out oh boy do I feel cheated on this book now! I will try out the current crime series by this author maybe that might make the bitter taste in my mouth that this book left a bit more tolerable...I have a love/hate with this author's books which is quite annoying and I've only read two! I am having a great start with Val McDermid aren't I!
A summery for A Place of Execution:
Winter 1963: two children have disappeared off the streets of Manchester; the murderous careers of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady have begun. On a freezlng day in December, another child goes missing: thirteen-year-old Alison Carter vanishes from her town, an insular community that distrusts the outside world. For the young George Bennett, a newly promoted inspector, it is the beginning of his most difficult and harrowing case: a murder with no body, an investigation with more dead ends and closed faces than he'd have found in the anonymity of the inner city, and an outcome which reverberates through the years.
Decades later he finally tells his story to journalist Catherine Heathcote, but just when the book is poised for publication, Bennett unaccountably tries to pull the plug. He has new information which he refuses to divulge, new information that threatens the very foundations of his existence. Catherine is forced to re-investigate the past, with results that turn the world upside down.
sireno8's review against another edition
5.0
Val McDermid continues to amaze me. I've read 4 of her books now and they're all different and they're all excellent. What amazed me in this one was her ability to construct suspense from different areas of the story line--the detective element, the court/legal element, the personal element--so it doesn't let up until the very last page. This, of course, comes from her ability to build characters you believe in and care about and creating an atmosphere that continually draws you in. Once I hit the halfway point with this one, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. And, though I have to admit, I suspected the overall what, I had no idea what the whys were and the twist near the end was brilliant. In lesser hands, it wouldn't have been credible. In McDermid's, it was thrilling. Hmmm, maybe that's why they call them thrillers.
lawyergobblesbooks's review against another edition
5.0
This should be widely in print. One of the best thrillers I’ve ever read.
fat_girl_fiction's review against another edition
4.0
A Place of Execution by Val McDermid
I'm a big fan of Val McDermid, her writing is always impeccable and as soon as one chapter ends you want to start another immediately! I look forward to reading more of her work.
I'm a big fan of Val McDermid, her writing is always impeccable and as soon as one chapter ends you want to start another immediately! I look forward to reading more of her work.
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
For years, I held out on reading Val McDermid until I could find this book. I can’t remember where it was first recommended to me but it was often billed as the best of her illustrious career. It probably sat on my primary Amazon list for close to two years. Trips to bookstores proved fruitless. Until one day, I stumbled on it for sale at my local library’s book sale. Yay for libraries and their book sales!
Even after I got it, it’s probably been on my shelf for over a year. There were other things. But with the pandemic keeping us all at home, I figured what the heck. It’s time. And oh, was it time. This book rocks.
Well, it is still depressing. It has a heavy dosage of child abuse so if that’s a trigger for you, sit it out. But otherwise, it shows that McDermid belongs up there with the great contemporary British mystery writers.
This one came out in 1999 before the post Gillian Flynn explosion of the female-written mystery/thriller. I have to imagine if it came out now, it would be hyped as such. But like the work of Tana French, there’s nothing cheap or thriller-like about it. It’s a slow burn, building its cold, wet world in a remote English village and taking time with characterization. The mystery gathers steam into the 60s, leading to a conclusion that, while somewhat predictable, is gripping all the same because McDermid is great at setting the pins up and knocking them over for a payoff.
The book suffers a little in its final 4th. I’m not sure it needed it or perhaps the execution could have been different. There was also an added twist to the twist that I didn’t care for. But it touched on the major themes that the first 75% of the story had laid out so I wasn’t too disappointed. I may not have been as gripped as I was when it was set in the 60s but I was still eager to see how it ended.
I’ll definitely be getting to Val McDermid more in the future. I just hope she has more stuff like this.
Even after I got it, it’s probably been on my shelf for over a year. There were other things. But with the pandemic keeping us all at home, I figured what the heck. It’s time. And oh, was it time. This book rocks.
Well, it is still depressing. It has a heavy dosage of child abuse so if that’s a trigger for you, sit it out. But otherwise, it shows that McDermid belongs up there with the great contemporary British mystery writers.
This one came out in 1999 before the post Gillian Flynn explosion of the female-written mystery/thriller. I have to imagine if it came out now, it would be hyped as such. But like the work of Tana French, there’s nothing cheap or thriller-like about it. It’s a slow burn, building its cold, wet world in a remote English village and taking time with characterization. The mystery gathers steam into the 60s, leading to a conclusion that, while somewhat predictable, is gripping all the same because McDermid is great at setting the pins up and knocking them over for a payoff.
The book suffers a little in its final 4th. I’m not sure it needed it or perhaps the execution could have been different. There was also an added twist to the twist that I didn’t care for. But it touched on the major themes that the first 75% of the story had laid out so I wasn’t too disappointed. I may not have been as gripped as I was when it was set in the 60s but I was still eager to see how it ended.
I’ll definitely be getting to Val McDermid more in the future. I just hope she has more stuff like this.