Lesa's Book Critiques: The Shining Skull by Kate Ellis

 Lesa's Book Critiques: The Shining Skull by Kate Ellis

A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: Award Winning GRANT ME THE MOON

A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: Award Winning GRANT ME THE MOON:   By Caroline Clemmons Several years ago, GRANT ME THE MOON won 1 st place in short romance for the International Digital Awards presented ...

FFB Review: The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Clearly, a book that was recently published does not really qualify for FFB. Yet, I have been doing this series as reviews for FFB since I started back in December of 2015. Therefore, I am doing it again this week with The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths. Make sure you check out the full list of reading suggestions over at Patti Abbott’s blog.

It is the middle of August as The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery begins and almost everyone in Dr. Ruth Galloway’s world is a bit out of sorts for various reasons. Watching Clough and Cassandra become Mr. and Mrs. Blackstock-Clough was part joyous and part sad as it reinforced her status with Nelson. There just isn’t a wedded future for them, as she knows, but that fact stings a bit more right now.  What she needs is a bit of a break before the term starts in September and that is when Professor Angelo Morelli calls from Italy.

The professor would like Dr. Ruth to come to Italy and examine some bones he has uncovered in the Liri Valley, not far from Rome. He offers her and her daughter, Kate, the use of an apartment in a remote hilltop village. It is Ruth’s chance to get away from Norfolk and the events of recent months. It will be her first foreign holiday in years as well as the first ever for her daughter Kate.

Before long she and Kate are on their way to Italy along with her friend, Shona, and her son, Louis. Shona could also use a break from boyfriend Phil (Ruth’s department chair) and the kids can play together and have a blast. Assuming the kids can get along and Louis does not resume his fondness for hitting the two years older Kate. Two weeks in Italy should be fun and it should not make much time out of the holiday to look at the bones.

But, things go sideways almost from their arrival in Italy when graffiti on their doorstep warns them to go away. What that has to do with the strong World War II resistance movement in the local area decades ago, a modern day murder, and more is at work at the heart of The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery.

As usual in this series, the personal lives of numerous secondary characters supply various additional subplots that are rich in complexity, details, and nuance, and play their roles to further support and enhance the main plot of this novel which is the tenth of the series. Set in late summer 2015, archeology remains a theme in this novel and is sued to provide historical details that further embellish the discussions of the past as well as the societal backdrop of today.

Once again Elly Griffiths has spun a large web of characters, events, and complexity to enthrall the reader from the first page. A series that should be read in order and that is certainly the case here in The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery as this is a turning point book. For several characters, things will never be the same and there will be repercussions of that. A very good read, as is the entire series, The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery is strongly recommended.

The books, in order, and my reviews:

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones (Reviewed 12/30/2016)

A Dying Fall (Reviewed 2/10/2017)

The Outcast Dead (Reviewed 4/21/17)

The Ghost Fields (Reviewed 7/14/17)

The Woman In Blue (Reviewed 9/29/17)

The Chalk Pit (Reviewed 4/6/2018)

The Dark Angel: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths

http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhco.com

May 15, 2018

ISBN# 978-0-544-75032-6

Hardback (currently available in eBook and audio formats as well)

357 Pages

$27.00

Material supplied by the good folks of the Dallas Public Library System.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2018

FFB Review: The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

Clearly, a book that was published last year does not really qualify for FFB. Yet, I have been doing this series as reviews for FFB since I started back in December of 2015. Therefore, I am doing it again this week with The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths. Make sure you check out the full list of reading suggestions over at Todd Mason's blog.

As The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery begins, Forensic Archeologist Ruth Galloway is beneath the surface of the ground and not happy about it. She is in one of the many tunnels that are passageways below Norwhich. She does not like small spaces as it is and being underground with the reality of all that soil above her pressing down is making it very hard to cope. The fact that she is down there with Ted is not any help at all even if he is a good guy she has known for years. What brought them underground was the recent discovery of bones in a dirt core sample from a boring machine. Plans for an underground restaurant below The Guildhall are on hold after the police and Ruth were notified of the bones.

As they work in the tunnel that was probably part an old chalk mine, it is clear the bones left behind by the removal of the dirt core are also human and may or may not come from the same skeleton. The tunnel bones are leg bones, an arm bone, and what are probably rib bones. Missing is the skull and any pelvic bones among others which means that identifying the gender is going to be very difficult. The bones also are very clean and have a dull shine to them. While Ted thinks they are medieval, Ruth is not sure.

At the same time as Ruth and Ted are beneath the surface of the ground, DCI Nelson is very much above ground and rather annoyed over various issues. Part of the problem is that he is forced to deal with a new and micromanaging boss who would prefer him chained to a desk and doing paperwork while he would much rather be out working cases. Cases such as the current issue with missing homeless people. Various homeless women are disappearing and there are rumors that they have gone underground.

Did they go underground on their own or have they been abducted in some way and forced underground? No one seems to know. What is clear is that it seems that a number of homeless people, shunned by those on the surface, may have taken refuge underground in the numerous tunnels and shafts under the area. If so, the question is where did they go?

And are the recent murders of other homeless people connected in some way?

These two storylines as well as some secondary ongoing plot lines drive several mysteries in The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery. A series that continues to push the characters in new directions and circumstances. That ongoing character evolution is one of the enjoyable aspects of this series. That angle is present here along with plenty of informative history and social commentary.

The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery is another very good read in the series that began with The Crossing Places.

For another opinion on the book, make sure you read Jeanne’s review at the Bookblog of the Bristol Library.

The books, in order, and my reviews:

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones (Reviewed 12/30/2016)

A Dying Fall (Reviewed 2/10/2017)

The Outcast Dead (Reviewed 4/21/17)

The Ghost Fields (Reviewed  7/14/17)

The Woman In Blue (Reviewed 9/29/17)

The Chalk Pit: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths

http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhco.com

May 2017

ISBN# 978-0-544-75031-9

Hardback (currently available in eBook and audio formats as well)

368 Pages

$27.00

Material supplied by the good folks of the Dallas Public Library System.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2018

FFB Review: The Ghost Fields: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

It has been awhile since I have had an FFB review here. Thanks to the ongoing move to the house I grew up in as well as everything else going on here, it could be awhile before I have another FFB review. Today I review The Ghost Fields: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths. Todd Mason has all the other reviews and their links over at his Sweet Freedom blog for today. Enjoy your Friday and stay hydrated, my friends.

It is July 2013 as The Ghost Fields: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths begins. For Barry West, who drives a digger (backhoe), it is a hot day in Norfolk, England and much like any other day. The fact that the land on which he rips asunder has been the site of many battles and the spillage of blood by the injured and dying means nothing to him. All that matters is clearing the land as developer Edward Spens wants it done as fast as possible. There is going to be a bit of a delay as Barry West is about to find a vintage WW II plane with the pilot still inside buried in one of the craters on the land.

That finding will bring the police and that includes DCI Nelson. It also means he will call Dr. Ruth Galloway and interrupt her day. Not with a concerned call about their daughter, Kate, but as a colleague seeking her expert opinion. She will have to leave the nearby dig where her and her student team has recently a found a body that possibly dates back to the Bronze Age. A body that was there two thousand years before the Romans lived, fought, and died on the very soil she and her students dig through as they work to unearth history. Since she assists the North Norfolk Serious Crimes Unit as a forensic archeologist, the discovery of a body in a WWII plane is going to have to take priority over her research work.

Upon arrival at the scene, it does not take Dr. Galloway long before she thinks something very strange is going on. Not only is the American war plane in far better shape than one would think if it crashed, the soil around the aircraft is loose. Even accounting for the heavy equipment digging around the aircraft before it was discovered, the soil is far looser than one would expect. The body also is in far better shape than one would expect for being submerged in chalky soil. Not to mention the fact the body is sitting in the seat with hands on the flight stick. Clearly, the body was moved and posed for some reason. The fact that there is a bullet hole smack in the middle of his forehead further proves Dr. Galloway’s point that is not an crash related to the nearby American airbase that was last active during the war.

Who did and why are just two of the many mysteries at work in The Ghost Fields:  A Ruth Galloway Mystery. Seventh in the series that began with The Crossing Places, this read is full of mystery and history regarding the role of Americans based in England during the war. As one expects in the series there is continuing and evolving character development that continues to move the series forward.

The characters in the series are not static pieces that never change as years pass. Ruth is 45 and and her daughter Kate is approaching her fifth birthday while things continue to change. They have their turning points in the book, as do nearly all the secondary characters. A lot is in play here relationship wise. Then there are the mysteries with multiple ones present beyond the ones explained above. 

In short, another good read in a very good series despite a couple of clichéd points that many readers will see coming long before they happen. One can’t really explain what without creating a spoiler or two, but one situation is so classic it may generate a laugh out loud moment as it did for this reader. Despite that fact, the book is a good one. A series that one simply has to read in order, The Ghost Fields: A Ruth Galloway Mystery is a highly entertaining read that blends history and mystery together in a very satisfactory way. 

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones (Reviewed 12/30/2016)

A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery (Reviewed 2/10/2017)

The Outcast Dead: A Ruth Galloway Mystery (Reviewed 4/21/17)

The Ghost Fields: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths 

http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhbooks.com

May 2015

ISBN# 978-0-544-33014-6

Hardback (also available in paperback, audio, and eBook formats)

384 Pages

$25.00

Material obtained via the Plano Public Library System to read and review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2017

My Review At Plano Reads: A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

My Review At Plano Reads: A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

My review at Plano Reads: A Room Full of Bones: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

My review at Plano Reads: A Room Full of Bones: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

FFB Review: The Outcast Dead: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

After you read the review, go check out the list of reading suggestions over at Patti Abbott’s blog for the rest of the suggestions for today.  


42-year-old Dr. Ruth Galloway is acutely aware of the history, the blood, that has been spilled over the centuries. While resurrection is not possible, she believes in treating the dead with respect. As The Outcast Dead begins, it is early June and she is on the grounds of Norwich Castle. The vicar is leading the prayers for the outcast dead so that those who died forgotten, penniless, in unmarked graves, etc. are remembered. It is an annual event and one that Ruth feels is very important. 

It seems more important than ever to honor those who have passed as recently some bodies were discovered at the castle. The deceased were most likely prisoners considering how the bodies appeared when uncovered. Included among the bodies may be the legendary Jemima Green, aka Mother Hook. A child caregiver during Victorian times known for her hook instead of a hand and her lower arm, she was executed after being convicted for murdering one of the children in her care. At the time of her execution, it was thought she might have killed at least 20 more.

The find has drawn the interest of producers of a television show well known for sensualizing such cases. The head of department, Phil Trent, is thrilled with the interest, but Ruth wants no part of that. If she had her way, she would get off the dig as well, but Phil is never going to let her do that. Knowing Phil, it is likely she is going to have to play a role in the television show as well as the dig.

Thoughts about the Mother Hook case make Ruth more protective of Kate than ever before. After everything that has happened in recent years before and after Kate’s birth, she has good reason to wonder if it is time to move from the Saltmarsh she loves to be closer to civilization in some form. Isolation is wonderful, but with a small child in the home, it can also be a dangerous risk.

DCI Harry Nelson is also pondering risk though in a different form. He is the lead investigator on the case of 37-year-old Liv Donaldson. Her child has just passed. What might have been treated as a tragic natural death in the home gets a lot more scrutiny when it is the third child in the family to die. Nelson’s team thinks the whole deal is a horrible tragedy. Nelson isn’t so sure. He has a feeling she did something to cause the death, but other than his intuition, there isn’t any evidence to indicate foul play. Like Phil Trent, Nelson’s boss, Gerry Whitcliffe, loves the publicity and is thrilled to have the media coverage. Like Ruth, Nelson hates the media interest and wants no part of the coverage.

The two story times gradually come together while someone might be copying history thanks to the media attention. Child abduction and the death of children are certainly not easy topics to write about, but Elly Griffiths, makes them part of a far larger tale of mystery, greed, and obsession. The sixth book of the series that began with The Crossing Places is another top-notch mystery.

What really makes this series work, as noted before, are the relationships. Complicated and well-drawn characters that interact and evolve over time as they go about their daily lives drive the reads. Unlike many series where the characters never learn from the past or change in any way despite the experiences they have had, both and a lot more are present in the Ruth Galloway Mystery Series. These characters are about as real as it gets on the printed page.

History, archeology, mystery, and more make this book and series well worth reading. The Outcast Dead, like the others before it, is very good and highly recommended. 

The books, in order, and my reviews:

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones (Reviewed 12/30/2016)

A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery (Reviewed 2/10/2017)

The Outcast Dead: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths 

http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhbooks.com

March 2014

ISBN# 978-0-547-79277-4

Hardback (also available in paperback, audio, and eBook formats)

384 Pages

$27.00

Material obtained via the Plano Public Library System to read and review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2017

A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: GRANT ME THE MOON IS NOW A SINGLE TITLE!

A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: GRANT ME THE MOON IS NOW A SINGLE TITLE!: A word of caution . I wouldn't want you to buy GRANT ME THE MOON twice. If you read the contemporary western romance box set COME LOVE...

FFB Review: A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

Due to recent events, my reviews are very erratic these days. It isn't something that is going to change anytime soon. I am having a very hard time dealing with things and having any focus at all to read and review. The only reason this one is up today is because a rough draft was already written the weekend before I found my Mom. Make sure you check out the full list of reading suggestions at Patti Abbott’s blog.

Fifth in the Ruth Galloway series opens with eighteen-month-old Kate answering the phone in that special way familiar to many parents. After that brief moment of levity, the mood turns somber, as Caz has called. Ruth and Carol, who always went by “Caz” back in their university days and still does, haven’t spoken in years.

A friend of theirs and seemly invincible with a great future, Dan Golding, has died in a fire. He was working at Pendle University, which happens to be one of the new startup universities that seem to be everywhere these days. Pendle University would be far removed from Cambridge and Harvard, which is what they all expected. Caz does not know that much, but is able to tell her that Dan Golding died in a house fire that may have been caused by bad electrical wiring.

The shock of his death is soon compounded by the arrival of a letter from Dan. Already upset, his written request to call him about his discovery of bones that could be of the legendary “Raven King” shakes her to the core. What he was afraid of, as he says in the letter, she does not know. Is it possible that that fear played a role in his death?

Within days, she is contacted by the Department Chair at Pendleton University, Clayton Henry, and is invited up to Lancashire to examine the bones. Not only can Ruth and Kate have a summer holiday of sorts in Lancashire, she can examine the bones and see where DCI Harry Nelson grew up. Her friend, Cathbad is not only great with Kate, but is eager to go with them and is very willing to entertain and take care of Kate while Ruth does her job. By late July, Ruth, Kate, and Cathbad are off on what, overall, should be a fun trip. Instead, it becomes highly stressful and downright harrowing summer holiday.

A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery is an intense and gripping read. While the main storyline briefly explained above is far more complicated there are several complicated secondary storylines are also present in the work. Characters continue to evolve, as do relationships and situations, and provide much of the secondary storylines in this read. They do not take away the increasingly dangerous mystery at work in the primary storyline and instead work to enhance it. The result is another very good read in a series that is highly recommended. 

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones  (Reviewed 12/30/2016)

A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery (you are here)

A Dying Fall: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths 

http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhbooks.com

March 2013

ISBN# 978-0-547-79816-5

Hardback (also available in paperback, audio, and eBook formats)

400 Pages

$26.00

Material obtained via the Plano Public Library System to read and review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2016

FFB Review: A Room Full of Bones: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths

For my last FFB review of 2016, I offer my review of the fourth book in the Ruth Galloway Mystery Series. Make sure you check out the full list of reading suggestions at Patti Abbott’s blog.

 

Kate is going to be a year old as of November1, 2009 and her mother, Doctor Ruth Galloway, is keenly aware that in all likelihood she is failing at motherhood across the board. It is one thing to be head of Forensic Archelogy at the University of North Norfolk. It is quite another thing to raise a child as a single parent. In addition to everything else the overwhelmed mother is doing, she was talked into having a birthday party for Kate. That means she is desperately racing though the market trying to find the right stuff for adults and kids in attendance before heading to another appointment.

Dr. Galloway is glad the child escaped being born on Halloween. Bad enough she has Pagan godfather, but at least she was born on All Saints Day. Dr. Galloway needs to get the shopping done quickly as she has to get over to the local museum for a media event. With the department chair out of town, Dr. Galloway has to stand in to represent the University at the Smith Museum for the opening of the coffin believed to belong to Bishop Augustine Smith.

Discovered at a site that was once a church destroyed by bombing during WW2 the industrial land had kept several secrets until now. As the site was being cleared and worked for a new building, the foundations of a medieval church were discovered. Also found was most likely the high alter for the ancient church. Underneath that, a coffin was discovered that dates back to the fourteenth century. The inscriptions on the coffin and other clues indicate that it holds the remains of Bishop Augustine Smith. If that is true, it would mean that Bishop Augustine Smith was entombed at a fairly minor parish church in King’s Lynn and not at Norwich Cathedral as historians have long believed.

With descendants of Bishop Smith alive and well connected, somebody made a decision to open the coffin in front of the media. The bones have to be examined and carbon dated, but first there has to be media coverage despite the fact that Lord Danforth Smith would prefer otherwise. The Smith Museum and its contents are part of a family legacy tied to the Bishop and numerous other parties so opening the coffin at the museum is going to be a media event. This is history and the opening of the coffin must be recorded and presented for all to see.

That is until Ruth goes deep into the Smith Museum and finds the curator, Neil Topham, dead on the floor next to the coffin. She calls for help and before long DCI Henry Nelson and his team are involved in the case. It is not long after that when a second body is discovered. History, legends, and the past are all present, but clearly, there is a very modern day murderer at work in A Room Full of Bones.

 

The fourth book in the series that began with The Crossing Places is another good one. Though it could have been better as a plot point used for one character is used again here for another one. By doing so, it comes across as a soap opera contrivance and a cliché and not character development as intended. It also creates a moment of incredulity for the reader and is jarring due to the stupidity of it all.

Still the history and the mystery are strong storytelling elements in A Room Full of Bones as is the ongoing personal relationship between individuals as well as the investigative team as a whole. This series is as much about the mystery and the past as it is about how these characters live their lives away from the job. Even the minor characters are not superfluous or shallow. These series features books of depth and complexity and are very much worth your time. They must be read in order.

The Crossing Places (Reviewed 12/26/15)

The Janus Stone (Reviewed 11/18/2016)

The House at Sea’s End (Reviewed 12/2/2016)

A Room Full of Bones –this review

A Room Full of Bones: A Ruth Galloway Mystery

Elly Griffiths 
http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/ 
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

http://www.hmhbooks.com

July 2012

ISBN# 978-0-547-27120-0

Hardback (also available in paperback and eBook formats)

352 Pages

$26.00

Material obtained via the Plano Public Library System to read and review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2016