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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
krysa's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated
3.5
paul314's review against another edition
2.0
Largely a soap opera with wishy-washy protagonists, set against a very interesting backdrop. The actual detection plays a very small part compared to endless scenes of people being mean to each other. DNF on this one.
doreeny's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first of the Edie Kiglatuk mysteries set in Canada’s high Arctic. Everything begins when an American hunter is killed while on a hunting expedition guided by Edie, a half-white, half-Inuit woman. Her community of Autisaq on Ellesmere Island wants to dismiss the death as an accident, but Edie is left uneasy, and when more deaths occur, she decides to investigate.
I liked the character of Edie. She is a strong-willed, intelligent woman, though she certainly has her flaws. She struggles with alcoholism, by her mid-twenties, having “already drunk away her hunting career and . . . [being] well on the way to drinking away her life”. The other character who is well-developed is Derek Palliser, a police officer upon whom Edie occasionally relies for help. Derek is unmotivated except by his interest in lemmings and so has to be pushed to do anything. Unfortunately, many of the other characters are mere caricatures of corrupt officials, unscrupulous whites, and greedy businessmen. The “bad guys” are extreme in their behaviour.
The book begins slowly, though the pace increases once Edie starts her investigation. Then the mysteries pile up becoming very convoluted with several villains; it is sometimes difficult to remember who did what to whom. At times the plot becomes rather farfetched. What also becomes frustrating is Edie’s frequent stumbling upon clues that inevitably take her closer to solving the several mysteries.
What impressed me most about the book is its rich detail about Inuit life and culture. I was amazed to learn that the author is British. She certainly has an understanding and appreciation for the Inuit. She details the realities of life north of the Arctic Circle: a harsh environment, poverty, alcoholism, fossil fuel exploration, and the effects of climate change. The latter is emphasized with several references to the impact of global warming on the lives of both the people and the wildlife. What will be remembered by many readers is the food: Edie eats seal-blood soup, caribou tongue, fried blubber, and fermented walrus gut. What I remember is a comment about gratitude: “Gratitude is a qalunaat [white] custom . . . Inuit were entitled to help from each other. Gratitude didn’t come into it.”
I learned not only about how to conduct an Inuit search but about another dark chapter in Canada’s history: Canada’s forced relocation, in 1953, of Inuit from their traditional home on the eastern coast of Hudson Bay to Ellesmere Island, the most northerly landmass on the planet. The author of this novel wrote a non-fiction book about this relocation. I will certainly be checking out this book entitled The Long Exile: A Tale of Inuit Betrayal and Survival in the High Arctic.
Two other books in this series have been published: The Boy in the Snow and The Bone Seeker. Though the first book has flaws, I found it of sufficient quality that I will read at least the second in the series.
Please check out my reader's blog (http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).
I liked the character of Edie. She is a strong-willed, intelligent woman, though she certainly has her flaws. She struggles with alcoholism, by her mid-twenties, having “already drunk away her hunting career and . . . [being] well on the way to drinking away her life”. The other character who is well-developed is Derek Palliser, a police officer upon whom Edie occasionally relies for help. Derek is unmotivated except by his interest in lemmings and so has to be pushed to do anything. Unfortunately, many of the other characters are mere caricatures of corrupt officials, unscrupulous whites, and greedy businessmen. The “bad guys” are extreme in their behaviour.
The book begins slowly, though the pace increases once Edie starts her investigation. Then the mysteries pile up becoming very convoluted with several villains; it is sometimes difficult to remember who did what to whom. At times the plot becomes rather farfetched. What also becomes frustrating is Edie’s frequent stumbling upon clues that inevitably take her closer to solving the several mysteries.
What impressed me most about the book is its rich detail about Inuit life and culture. I was amazed to learn that the author is British. She certainly has an understanding and appreciation for the Inuit. She details the realities of life north of the Arctic Circle: a harsh environment, poverty, alcoholism, fossil fuel exploration, and the effects of climate change. The latter is emphasized with several references to the impact of global warming on the lives of both the people and the wildlife. What will be remembered by many readers is the food: Edie eats seal-blood soup, caribou tongue, fried blubber, and fermented walrus gut. What I remember is a comment about gratitude: “Gratitude is a qalunaat [white] custom . . . Inuit were entitled to help from each other. Gratitude didn’t come into it.”
I learned not only about how to conduct an Inuit search but about another dark chapter in Canada’s history: Canada’s forced relocation, in 1953, of Inuit from their traditional home on the eastern coast of Hudson Bay to Ellesmere Island, the most northerly landmass on the planet. The author of this novel wrote a non-fiction book about this relocation. I will certainly be checking out this book entitled The Long Exile: A Tale of Inuit Betrayal and Survival in the High Arctic.
Two other books in this series have been published: The Boy in the Snow and The Bone Seeker. Though the first book has flaws, I found it of sufficient quality that I will read at least the second in the series.
Please check out my reader's blog (http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).
translator_monkey's review against another edition
4.0
the wonderful "White Heat," by MJ McGrath. I learned a ton about Inuit culture and language just through the afterword alone. I have to admit, reading this took a little longer than I had anticipated because I found it dragging a bit in the middle, and would set it aside every now and then. Glad I pushed through, though, because it is a pretty good read. The ending? I thought it would be more convoluted than it was, because when you have a turnstile of potential bad guys being introduced every chapter, you're never sure which one is going to have done the deed, so to speak.
The author was amazing at dropping red herrings in and around the plot. Not the red herrings themselves, but the subtlety with which they were left behind. These breadcrumbs should have put me on the track to the killer, because even the Agatha Christies can't help but make the TUE red herrings stand out like a sore thumb. McGrath was masterful at leaving me full of doubt until the final two chapters. A fun read; it's the first in a series that I will revisit, but not immediately. Don't want to overdo my Inuit culture absorption.
The author was amazing at dropping red herrings in and around the plot. Not the red herrings themselves, but the subtlety with which they were left behind. These breadcrumbs should have put me on the track to the killer, because even the Agatha Christies can't help but make the TUE red herrings stand out like a sore thumb. McGrath was masterful at leaving me full of doubt until the final two chapters. A fun read; it's the first in a series that I will revisit, but not immediately. Don't want to overdo my Inuit culture absorption.
ronronia's review against another edition
4.0
Las novelas de detectives tienen el atractivo, cuando están ambientadas en sitios «exóticos», de dejarte echar una ojeada a la cotidianidad de otra gente. En este caso, comunidad Inuit en la zona ártica canadiense. Y también a la historia de cómo a esa gente la llevó allí el gobierno con mentiras y los dejaron abandonados en un terreno mucho más duro de lo que les vendieron y sin la prometida posibilidad de volver.
authorlisaard's review against another edition
5.0
Edie Kiglatuk is the best guide on Ellesmore Island. Half Inuit and a woman, she gets grudging respect from the elders in her small Arctic town. When a hunter is shot on her watch, the push to call it an accident and save the tourism industry, rubs Edie the wrong way. When more deaths transpire, Edie cannot look away. Oil companies, politicians, Russians, space station personnel all show some connection to the mysterious travelers, who find their way to this remote enclave and lose their lives upon arrival.
I enjoyed the way author MJ McGrath wove the cultural and environmental situation of the Inuit into the heart of the story. For example, every outing requires preparation to survive. Their diet choices are nothing like ours 'down south'. The differences between this ancient culture and the intervening outsiders helps readers subtly learn of the people, land, and way of life, as well as the changes inflicted by the outsiders on a native people. Yet McGrath also shows just enough of the dark sides of her characters to make them realistic, while never enough to lose the reader's interest or care.
This mystery thriller will delight with its unusual setting and its twists and turns.
I enjoyed the way author MJ McGrath wove the cultural and environmental situation of the Inuit into the heart of the story. For example, every outing requires preparation to survive. Their diet choices are nothing like ours 'down south'. The differences between this ancient culture and the intervening outsiders helps readers subtly learn of the people, land, and way of life, as well as the changes inflicted by the outsiders on a native people. Yet McGrath also shows just enough of the dark sides of her characters to make them realistic, while never enough to lose the reader's interest or care.
This mystery thriller will delight with its unusual setting and its twists and turns.
vanessasarah's review against another edition
4.0
wonderfully atmospheric mysteries starring a woman who lives in the Arctic. It was a little weird at first reading all about how eats a lot of blood soup and walrus flipper and such but also fascinating. The atmosphere is definitely the biggest draw here though the mystery is quite compelling in both novels (the second of which is set in Alaska). Also a bit of a critique on the vanishing Arctic.
kimberlymcdermott's review against another edition
3.0
Closer to a 3.5.
I'm not entirely sure how to describe this book. It's not a fast-paced mystery but it's also not exactly slow. It's kind of like an enjoyable hike -- there are times you stop to enjoy the view but there's a destination you're moving toward. I rather liked that about the story. There's an overall mystery and I also got a glimpse into Inuit village living. I'd give another Edie Kiglatuk mystery a try.
I'm not entirely sure how to describe this book. It's not a fast-paced mystery but it's also not exactly slow. It's kind of like an enjoyable hike -- there are times you stop to enjoy the view but there's a destination you're moving toward. I rather liked that about the story. There's an overall mystery and I also got a glimpse into Inuit village living. I'd give another Edie Kiglatuk mystery a try.
sdramsey's review against another edition
4.0
This was a nicely complex mystery, set in unique and intriguing surroundings. I also really liked the characters--they came across as real people with complex emotions and motivations. The main character was feisty and strong, yet she had her weaknesses, as well. It was an addictive read (listen) and kept my interest right to the end. A great read!
pearl35's review against another edition
3.0
This is a good procedural, embedded in the Inuit culture of Ellesmere Island in the Canadian High Arctic and Greenland, hinging on the discovery of a meteorite by a 19th century British explorer (and his far more competent guide), rival oil exploration by Americans and Russians, and a central character whose personality and culture won't let her take easy answers.