A review by silverliningsandpages
Progetto di sangue by Graeme Macrae Burnet

5.0

“What is at issue here are not the bare facts of the case, but the contents of a man’s mind.”
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This is such a clever novel which is based on fictional “found documents” and set out as true crime. I’m still thinking about it a few weeks after finishing reading! It’s not a whodunnit, but rather it focuses on whether young Roddy McCrae was insane when he committed a triple murder in a remote Scottish Highlands village.
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The year is 1869 and 17 year old Roddy is awaiting trial for murder. At his lawyer’s encouragement, he writes a memoir - by his own admission he is guilty of the brutal murders, but we are constantly deliberating on what drove him to commit such violence. Roddy is articulate, and his account portrays him in a very sympathetic light - he’s a bright and lonely boy who is protecting his family’s interests. And then the narrative switches to medical reports and journalistic articles reporting on the trial, which led me to doubt every single thing I’d previously read and thought! I love the device of an unreliable/inadequate narrator, and this worked so well here. I’m still scratching my head about this “case” and now have absolutely no idea as to Roddy’s state of mind!
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I also love that the author has built up such a strong sense of place. The poverty-stricken villagers are oppressed by the local laird and church, and they frequently face bureaucracy, classism and sexual manipulation. The relentless, mournful weather and infertile land in this bleak area evokes the lingering mood of melancholy and inevitable tragedy.
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Call me soft, but while I’m unsure of Roddy’s mental capacity, I can’t help remaining sympathetic to him and his hardships. I highly recommend this novel and would love to discuss it further!
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