Review: "The Skeleton Box: A Starvation Lake Mystery" by Bryan Gruley

The Skeleton Box: A Starvation Lake Mystery is the third book in the series and opens in March 2000 with somebody breaking into houses in Starvation Lake on bingo nights. Despite the break-ins, the victims report that nothing has been taken. The motive as well as the identity or identities of those involved remain a mystery. Pine County Sheriff Dingus has no suspects and the town is on edge.

Then, apparently in the course of a break-in, a murder happens and for Gus his life will change forever.  The murder happened at his mother’s house and the victim was Phyllis Bontrager. Childhood best friend of his mother and a woman who was almost as much a mother to Gus growing up as his own. In the course of the investigation into the murder Gus learns things he just might have been better off never knowing.

This third novel from award winning author Bryan Gruley throws shock after shock at the reader all the way to the end. The author has referred to the three books as an “accidental trilogy” which reinforces the sense of a three book story arc being concluded here along with a possible finality to the series. One hopes not as the character of Gus has become a cherished friend to many readers.

Against a back drop of Gus being a reporter and editor of a small local paper and the decline of the newspaper business, across three powerful books Gus has had to deal with issues of an aging parent, pain and regret over the past and various actions, and having had to come back home to where it all began. Then there have been the crimes and mysteries that Gus has helped investigate in his role as reporter and editor of the local paper. None of that has really prepared him, or the reader for that matter, for the events in this book.

This is a very difficult book to sum up and explain the raw emotional power here in this work of fiction without giving up possible plot point spoilers. While it could be read as a stand-alone novel, the power of this book is more evident if you take the time to read the preceding novels, Starvation Lake: A Mystery and The Hanging Tree: A Starvation Lake Mystery. Clearly author Bryan Gruley has crafted another award winning novel and quite possibly his best book so far.

The Skeleton Box: A Starvation Lake Mystery

Bryan Gruley

http://www.bryangruley.com

Touchstone Books (Simon & Schuster)

http://imprints.simonandschuster.biz/touchstone

June 2012

ISBN# 978-1-4165-6366-2

Hardback

336 Pages

$25.00

I received an ARC of this novel as a very much appreciated gift from a fellow reader.

Kevin R. Tipple © 2012

Review: "The Hanging Tree" by Bryan Gruley

Gus Carpenter is not the only one who left Starvation Lake for bigger pastures in Detroit only to return home like a whipped dog. His second cousin, Gracie McBride, did the same thing. Gus never did get along well with Gracie despite the fact she was at his house when they were growing up almost as much as he was. Maybe it was because she was there so much and his own Mom seemed more interested in her at times as she was the daughter she never had. Or, maybe it was something else that had them at odds as kids and had kept them that way as adults. As this novel opens in February 1999, Gus will never know and won't ever be able to fix anything.

Gracie is dead.

“They found her hanging in the shoe tree at the edge of town” (page 7)

Despite the outward appearances of a classic suicide, Gus and a couple of others don't buy the easy answer of suicide. Proving that it wasn't a suicide isn't going to be easy for a variety of reasons beyond the fact that Gracie wasn't the easiest to get to know. Too many people are way too close to the situation which adds a difficulty to the investigation. That is part of the peril of life in a small town such as Starvation Lake where everyone knows everything you ever did and has an opinion on all of it.

Gus has numerous other problems beyond the death of Gracie and the impact it has had on his elderly mother. A media conglomerate has taken over his newspaper, making him and his small paper a microscopic cog in a much larger media machine. Both he and his work are being babysat by the nephew of the chief Executive of the new ownership known as Media North.

Penny pinching, not news gathering, is now the rule of the day as well as not annoying those that matter a bit more than regular folks. Pointing out issues regarding a proposed new hockey ink in town certainly have not endeared Gus to the new ownership crowd or the locals who can't get dollar signs out of their eyes long enough to look at the facts.

Gracie's death has also hit his girlfriend, Darlene pretty hard. Darlene does not believe it was a suicide either but in her position as Pine County Sheriff's Deputy can't do much about it. Her boss, Sheriff Dingus, does not seem interested in really digging into the matter and has no love for Gus. Further complicating matters is the fact that Darlene's estranged husband is back and intends to get her back one way or another.

The result is a worthy sequel to the very good debut novel “Starvation Lake.”

Nominated for an Edgar Award for Best First Novel, it will be no surprise when this novel is also nominated for an Edgar Award. Filled with tension and descriptive nuance, the novel provides complex story lines operating on multiple levels along with a powerfully good mystery.

Those who have a writerly bent will also be interested ion how often and seamlessly the author uses flashbacks to enhance the story going forward. All too often flashbacks serve as story stoppers but not in this case where they are used to provide backstory and considerable depth to the characters as well as advancing current story elements forward.

If you have not read Mr. Bryan Gruley before, now is an excellent time to start.

The Hanging Tree: A Starvation Lake Mystery

Bryan Gruley

http://www.BryanGruley.com

Touchstone (Simon & Schuster)

http://SimonandSchuster.com

August 2010

ISBN# 978-1-4165-6364-8

Large Trade Paperback

$15.00

325 Pages (includes reading group guide and interview)

Material supplied by the author in exchange for my objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple © 2010