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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Four college roommates, returning from a party, stumble onto the body of a local barmaid, stabbed and left for dead. They overcome their shock and try to hep, with one calling the cops, while the others trying to keep her alive. However, she succumbs to the cold and her wounds and dies. There was no-one else around at the time, making these 4 the prime suspects in the case. Despite there being no evidence to point to them as the perpetrators, the town and their classmates are convinced that they were responsible, and this suspicion changes their lives forever. The case remains unsolved.
25 years later, a cold case review brings this event back to the forefront of their lives, and worse, one by one, the four seem to be targeted by someone for death. The race against time is on, and this time, they have to prove their innocence before they are murdered in retribution.
Val McDermid has a knack for setting up chilling, character driven murder mysteries in idyllic locations, and this one is no exception. We're drawn in from the beginning, following the four characters and sympathising with them and their plight. The end reveal and twist were, I must admit, not something I expected, but should have seen right from the start.
The only thing I don't understand is why it is called the Karen Pirie series, as she's not really heavily featured here, and in fact, doesn't even have much to do with the solve. I guess she stars more in the other two books in the series, and this is just her launchpad.
All that aside, this was a great read and I definitely am going to read the rest of the series.
25 years later, a cold case review brings this event back to the forefront of their lives, and worse, one by one, the four seem to be targeted by someone for death. The race against time is on, and this time, they have to prove their innocence before they are murdered in retribution.
Val McDermid has a knack for setting up chilling, character driven murder mysteries in idyllic locations, and this one is no exception. We're drawn in from the beginning, following the four characters and sympathising with them and their plight. The end reveal and twist were, I must admit, not something I expected, but should have seen right from the start.
The only thing I don't understand is why it is called the Karen Pirie series, as she's not really heavily featured here, and in fact, doesn't even have much to do with the solve. I guess she stars more in the other two books in the series, and this is just her launchpad.
All that aside, this was a great read and I definitely am going to read the rest of the series.
Good read, but identified killer halfway thru, but it was still a good read with some unexpected conclusions and why fors
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
What a difference a murder mystery written by a woman makes! No lingering breast descriptions, no looking women up and down as if it's the correct way of operating, actual thought put into having women police officers present, but hardly any lionization of the police in general. Not everything holds up (this came out in 2003), and some character choices are a bit abrupt, but overall, a good, solid book. I kinda saw the ending coming, but hey, I DO watch a lot of this stuff on TV.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Murder
for a crime writer from my home town it was maybe expected, but this book was set in pretty much all the places i have ever been. the main guy lived on my street, the major crime scene was set on the hill i sat with my friends last week, they were walking to my first year accommodation and they drove down the exact roads and paths i cycled this afternoon. plus one of the characters studied pure maths. it was just coincidence after coincidence. so all in all quite an interesting experience of a read! but a great one and glad i got round to reading a val mcdermid !
This book was really slow. I also definitely felt the lack of female characters - it's not something that happens much in the books I choose to read.
AMAZING. Read in under 48 hours, couldn't put it down. Surprising and addictive. Val Mcdermid is one of my new fave authors!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Kindle
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Val's dark and disturbing and I love her. I read it in one sitting. :-)
I still think that McDermid’s A Place of Execution is one of the best mysteries I have ever read. I keep reading her other books hoping that lightening will strike twice. The first half of this book came close, but at least three quarters of the way through, I had solved the mystery…which it not something that usually happens. But until that point, the author did a good job of keeping me guessing and making everyone look like a potential suspect.