The Chemistry of Death
by Simon Beckett
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Book Summary Information
Author: Simon BeckettEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-07-31
ISBN: 0440335957
Number of pages: 400
Publisher: Dell
Book Reviews of The Chemistry of Death
Book Review: A Good Beginning for a Series
Summary: 3 Stars
I usually avoid British novels because I am unfamiliar with many of the words and phrases used in the text. These include words and phrases that are not always translatable to American English. However this first novel by Beckett was easy to follow. I understood fens and broads with just a few hints from the surrounding text and was able to follow along the storyline.
It starts as an old story line, woman found murdered by two children, more murders surely to follow, twists and turns in tracking down the killer.
But this story has a unique hero. Dr. David Hunter has come as far from London as he can get to mourn the loss of his wife and daughter. After three years in Manham, he is still considered an outsider, even though he is active in the General Practice with the respected and wheel chair bound Dr. Henry Maitland.
But the residents of the area are clannish and suspicious of everyone when the murders start to accumulate. It is with great reluctance that Dr. Hunter is pulled back into his specialty, which is forensic anthropology, specifically the time-since-death study of cadavers to help solve the cases.
The local constabulary is in desperate need of assistance and they call on Dr. Hunter to help stop the killings. Of course he becomes a suspect and the villagers are quick to start rumors and stories in order to ward off their fear.
This book has a few twists and turns that make one wonder who the real criminal is. The ending is quite a shocker, unless you are astute enough or have read enough who-done-its to figure it out for yourself.
Beckett leaves us plenty of clues along the way, we just have to have a mindset that puts the pieces together. The ending leaves room for a second book that I hope will be just as entertaining and easy to read as this one.
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