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Calling a Dead Man
When John, an explosives expert, dies in an accident in Russia, his sister Hayley and his friend Annie go there to mourn. Before long they begin to suspect that there is more to John's death than meets the eye, and that certain people are desperately trying to keep them away from the truth. They say that John had been drinking and made a mistake with the explosives. But Annie doesn't believe that, and she is determined to find out what really happened. Their search for the truth takes them deep into the country, following the signal of John's satellite phone. What they eventually find raises as many questions as it answers, and there are no easy solutions for any them.
252 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
12 people are currently reading
151 people want to read
About the author
Gillian Cross
149 books87 followersGillian Cross was born Gillian Arnold in 1945. She was educated at North London Collegiate School, Somerville College, Oxford and the University of Sussex. Although now a full-time writer who often travels and gives talks in connection with her work, she has had a number of informal jobs including being an assistant to a Member of Parliament. For eight years she also sat on the committee which advises ministers about public libraries.
She is married to Martin Cross and they have four grown-up children, two sons and two daughters.
She is married to Martin Cross and they have four grown-up children, two sons and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
November 27, 2024
Hayley's older brother, John, a demolition expert, has been working as a project consultant in Russia, out in Siberia in fact. Then news comes to the family that John has died, accidentally blown up in one of his own explosions. The family is grief-stricken, but John's fiancee Annie refuses to believe it was an accident and convinces Hayley to accompany her out to Russia to find the truth.
It's not the YA world meets James Bond. There are no spies involved. This is Russia after the supposed fall of communism. That period of confusion when old KGB officers and their trained goons began to behave like the Mafia, started to settle old scores, eliminate the small time crooks and take over, build little empires of their own, squabble and fight among themselves, make fortunes and political power bases. John had tipped his toes into a cesspool of corruption and murder. But had he paid the price or not?
Unfortunately the author gives the answer in chapter two, and instead of being a spine-chilling mystery the story turns into a rather tame documentary. The adventures of a fifteen-year-old girl and her disabled, wheelchair-bound friend in an unfriendly and sometimes hostile landscape, mixed with the adventures of - well, we know who he is - as he struggles against amnesia and ruthless pursuers. Being a YA book the violence has to be somewhat muted, which makes the villains a great deal less villainous. The character of Yuri, the fifteen-year-old son of one of those villains, is far too pacific and nice; he is basically one of the good guys, despite being comfortable wearing the latest Western teenage fashion when the kids around him live in families struggling to buy potatoes and cabbage.
The two chief mafiosi brothers, Viktor and Leonid, look suspiciously like caricatures of Vladimir Putin and Boris Yeltsin but the author doesn't deal in satire. The book is deadpan all the way through with only the feisty Annie to liven things up and the child-like Frosya to add some pathos. Even James Bond has some humour in him; Hayley and John were well meaning but couldn't raise a smile if they tried. Overall a very well written story - as always from Gillian Cross. However, for a crime drama involving ruthless and violent criminals it was lacking in excitement and tension.
It's not the YA world meets James Bond. There are no spies involved. This is Russia after the supposed fall of communism. That period of confusion when old KGB officers and their trained goons began to behave like the Mafia, started to settle old scores, eliminate the small time crooks and take over, build little empires of their own, squabble and fight among themselves, make fortunes and political power bases. John had tipped his toes into a cesspool of corruption and murder. But had he paid the price or not?
Unfortunately the author gives the answer in chapter two, and instead of being a spine-chilling mystery the story turns into a rather tame documentary. The adventures of a fifteen-year-old girl and her disabled, wheelchair-bound friend in an unfriendly and sometimes hostile landscape, mixed with the adventures of - well, we know who he is - as he struggles against amnesia and ruthless pursuers. Being a YA book the violence has to be somewhat muted, which makes the villains a great deal less villainous. The character of Yuri, the fifteen-year-old son of one of those villains, is far too pacific and nice; he is basically one of the good guys, despite being comfortable wearing the latest Western teenage fashion when the kids around him live in families struggling to buy potatoes and cabbage.
The two chief mafiosi brothers, Viktor and Leonid, look suspiciously like caricatures of Vladimir Putin and Boris Yeltsin but the author doesn't deal in satire. The book is deadpan all the way through with only the feisty Annie to liven things up and the child-like Frosya to add some pathos. Even James Bond has some humour in him; Hayley and John were well meaning but couldn't raise a smile if they tried. Overall a very well written story - as always from Gillian Cross. However, for a crime drama involving ruthless and violent criminals it was lacking in excitement and tension.
June 21, 2015
Marked as: partially read, tapping out at page 124, the start of chapter 15.
Why? Honestly, for no good reason. I wish I could say this book is awful and I just couldn't bear to actually finish it. In reality, I thought the characters were annoying and I couldn't read more than 40 pages at a time without falling asleep and that gets old, fast. The book isn't bad. The plot doesn't have anything wrong with it. The characters, eh. But I'm picky about the characters I do/don't like, in general.
It is what it is, I guess.
Why? Honestly, for no good reason. I wish I could say this book is awful and I just couldn't bear to actually finish it. In reality, I thought the characters were annoying and I couldn't read more than 40 pages at a time without falling asleep and that gets old, fast. The book isn't bad. The plot doesn't have anything wrong with it. The characters, eh. But I'm picky about the characters I do/don't like, in general.
It is what it is, I guess.
January 7, 2011
This book is awesome! I really like how the ending is all happily ever after, sort of. I mean, yes. The past can still haunt people, but people can forget, most of them. Still, I'm kinda glad that John is found and that he is ALIVE and pretty much in GOOD HEALTH. ☺
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2025
Calling a Dead man by Gillian Cross is an amazing book to read
I really enjoyed this book, even though I don't usually like reading.
I was able to concentrate well and found it interesting to read on. I like watching exciting series in which murders take place, and this was also the case in the book. The book builds and maintains the suspense, which makes it fun to read on. In the story, John Cox, an explosives expert, dies in an explosion, but this is soon followed by a plot twist that is discovered by his sister , Hayley, and his girlfriend, Annie. These unexpected twists keep the book fun and exciting.
The various events in the book and the different places where everything takes place are also clearly and well described. I find the genres in this book interesting, and I'm glad I now know what I like to read.
I really enjoyed this book, even though I don't usually like reading.
I was able to concentrate well and found it interesting to read on. I like watching exciting series in which murders take place, and this was also the case in the book. The book builds and maintains the suspense, which makes it fun to read on. In the story, John Cox, an explosives expert, dies in an explosion, but this is soon followed by a plot twist that is discovered by his sister , Hayley, and his girlfriend, Annie. These unexpected twists keep the book fun and exciting.
The various events in the book and the different places where everything takes place are also clearly and well described. I find the genres in this book interesting, and I'm glad I now know what I like to read.
May 22, 2020
The author has captured the (not infrequent) innocent ignorance of the Westerner through youthful Hayley, as well as illustrating the unpredictable, worst/best of humanity exhibited in post Soviet Russia with its stark economic inequalities and extreme living conditions.
The wheelchair bound Annie adds another layer of interest, inspiration and challenge.
I am an adult reader: Perhaps its listing as 'young adult fiction' would unfortunately deter other adults?
A good story.
Very atmospheric: Took me right back...
The wheelchair bound Annie adds another layer of interest, inspiration and challenge.
I am an adult reader: Perhaps its listing as 'young adult fiction' would unfortunately deter other adults?
A good story.
Very atmospheric: Took me right back...
January 18, 2026
The beginning of this book started off strong. The meaning kind of got lost in the middle even though there was some likeable charecters like frosya. And Annie however the ending was sweet and wrapped up the story in a way that made sense. Unfortunately wasn’t a new fave read.
March 12, 2009
Oddly enough, I read this book as Phoning a Dead Man.
Hayley's brother John is dead, killed in Russia on one of his demolition jobs. Her mother has burned all his things and his friend Annie keeps calling. When Annie reveals that she is John's fiancee and decides to go to Russia to see where John died, Hayley decides to go too, to see the place and help Annie with her wheelchair. But odd things keep happening, like Hayley seeing John's face everywhere and the vodka in his boss's photos...and soon Hayley is swept up in an adventure, because Annie does not believe John is dead. But it will take more than just two women to bring John home.
I liked the book, but Hayley seemed very flat. You couldn't even see that she loved her brother. Annie was much more characterized, and I could feel for her so much more, but if she had been the main character I don't think I would have liked her so much because she was bossy and didn't seem to pay attention to what Hayley thought.
But it felt a lot like this was told to the author and he decided to give John a little sister and make Annie a secondary character. I think Annie could have been the main character if Cross had shown inside her head, her worry that John isn't coming home, her need to hope, her panic, and cut Hayley out, or if Hayley had been given more worries and feeling. All we know about Hayley by the end of the book is that she resents Annie's bossiness.
Hayley's brother John is dead, killed in Russia on one of his demolition jobs. Her mother has burned all his things and his friend Annie keeps calling. When Annie reveals that she is John's fiancee and decides to go to Russia to see where John died, Hayley decides to go too, to see the place and help Annie with her wheelchair. But odd things keep happening, like Hayley seeing John's face everywhere and the vodka in his boss's photos...and soon Hayley is swept up in an adventure, because Annie does not believe John is dead. But it will take more than just two women to bring John home.
I liked the book, but Hayley seemed very flat. You couldn't even see that she loved her brother. Annie was much more characterized, and I could feel for her so much more, but if she had been the main character I don't think I would have liked her so much because she was bossy and didn't seem to pay attention to what Hayley thought.
But it felt a lot like this was told to the author and he decided to give John a little sister and make Annie a secondary character. I think Annie could have been the main character if Cross had shown inside her head, her worry that John isn't coming home, her need to hope, her panic, and cut Hayley out, or if Hayley had been given more worries and feeling. All we know about Hayley by the end of the book is that she resents Annie's bossiness.
June 12, 2010
When I picked up this book and began to read it, I regretted it big time. But not because it was bad. Because it was so good, so thrilling, that I actually could not put it down! I carried it with me around the house like a mad man. Mum asked me to do something, the book went with me. I had to feed the cats, the book went with me. I read this in one sitting, although a lot of walking was involved as well, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I even read late in to the night, a habit I had once broken.
Hayley and Annie are distraught when they find out that John, their brother and fiancée respectively, has been killed in Russia. But the more they delve into trying to find out what happened, the further they delve into danger and corruption.
Gillian Cross, best known for her Demon Headmaster series, adapted into a BBC series that I myself loved as a kid, has produced an absolute corker with Calling A Dead Man. The writing is top notch. The plot is intricate and it wasn't until near the very end that everything slots together. More tension and suspense than you can shake a stick at. Simply brilliant.
I can see why it was awarded the Carnegie Medal!
And the cover art is amazing. Definitely stands out! Thank you to the amazing Michelle Harrison over at OUP for sending me the copy! :D
Hayley and Annie are distraught when they find out that John, their brother and fiancée respectively, has been killed in Russia. But the more they delve into trying to find out what happened, the further they delve into danger and corruption.
Gillian Cross, best known for her Demon Headmaster series, adapted into a BBC series that I myself loved as a kid, has produced an absolute corker with Calling A Dead Man. The writing is top notch. The plot is intricate and it wasn't until near the very end that everything slots together. More tension and suspense than you can shake a stick at. Simply brilliant.
I can see why it was awarded the Carnegie Medal!
And the cover art is amazing. Definitely stands out! Thank you to the amazing Michelle Harrison over at OUP for sending me the copy! :D
April 7, 2010
"Usually it is better not to speak of suffering, even to oneself. But if you never speak - if you never trust anyone - then you die."
An interesting twist on the Mafiya taint, and though a decidedly average read it killed an hour or two. the kindness of the Russian citizens, the homage not to generalise, was well handled, and the night in the Church with Hayley and Frosya was quite poignant. Annie seemed rather useless throughout: I'm not averse to disability being shown as it is, but even so. There's almost something missing around the whole thing, as though we should have a book before or after. Who knows, I could be missing three quarters of a series. All that aside, as I say, a nice read to pass the time.
An interesting twist on the Mafiya taint, and though a decidedly average read it killed an hour or two. the kindness of the Russian citizens, the homage not to generalise, was well handled, and the night in the Church with Hayley and Frosya was quite poignant. Annie seemed rather useless throughout: I'm not averse to disability being shown as it is, but even so. There's almost something missing around the whole thing, as though we should have a book before or after. Who knows, I could be missing three quarters of a series. All that aside, as I say, a nice read to pass the time.
August 1, 2013
I didn't like this as well as other Gillian Cross books I've read in the past but it was still interesting. I think the mafia angle didn't grab me and the country it is set in wasn't familiar. I didn't feel any more knowledgeable when the book was over--some things just didn't tie together.
Both Hayley and Frosya were likeable main characters. Annie was almost so unlikeable that it took away some of my enjoyment. I wanted Hayley to take off and leave Annie at certain points. I could never figure out why Hayley's brother John wanted to marry her.
The story in many ways was about the kindness of strangers that had very little themselves but were willing to help out another human being caught in a bad situation.
Both Hayley and Frosya were likeable main characters. Annie was almost so unlikeable that it took away some of my enjoyment. I wanted Hayley to take off and leave Annie at certain points. I could never figure out why Hayley's brother John wanted to marry her.
The story in many ways was about the kindness of strangers that had very little themselves but were willing to help out another human being caught in a bad situation.
September 12, 2019
Funny story: once upon a time, I had this idea I wanted to write but didn't know quite how to develop it in words. A few weeks later, to my very great joy, I found a ready-made book with all the basic details I was looking for: namely the "amnesiac Englishman lost without papers in a somewhat corrupt European country" bit. And as I was only writing for my own amusement, not planning to share it with anybody, the fact that I was able to read this instead was fantastic. Oh, and of note: it's years later, and I'm still thinking about the climax/ending. It was rather vivid.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2016
This is quite the work. As you read this, you feel like a bridge builder. Every page has something important. Every character is significant. And every clue gets you one step closer to the truth. It's infuriating, and the writing style is as addictive as the storyline. In the end, they are all simple people caught in the middle of a family feud for power. And in the end, no one remains the same. It'll leave you fulfilled, satisfied yet with this ache in your heart, like there should've been more. Not because there was little, but because you are left wanting more.
July 24, 2009
Although my book was titled Phoning a Dead Man (????) I thought it was definitely an interesting read. It had a bit of mystery to it, though it lacked a sense of surprise. I did like how certain elements of the story linked together at the very end. I would reccomend it if you want something to pass the time by with.
November 19, 2011
This book took me a LONG time to read. I'm not sure if it was the pacing, or just because I was reading books in between, but it took me over a month to get through. I liked the book, I thought the story was a little bit more on the unusual side, which is good. I think it's better suited as an adult book, but I found it in the YA section in my library.
October 12, 2011
I though this book phoning a dead man by Gillan Cross was confusing and boring. This book was confusing because it wansn't well written and it switched back and forth to different places and scenes. This book was also boring because it was kind of slow and didn't have any action or any adventure. i would not recommend this book.
January 11, 2016
As a teenager I loved this. It was intriguing and detailed without getting bogged down. It told a charming tale of a sad, dark world full of characters with hope.
Re-reading as an adult on a wintery afternoon it still kept my attention.
Re-reading as an adult on a wintery afternoon it still kept my attention.
September 25, 2008
good
somtimes scary
page turner
somtimes scary
page turner
March 3, 2010
well... many things I have learn about it...
I would not tell you what things happened, I thought it is better if you discover reading it. :)
xis_
I would not tell you what things happened, I thought it is better if you discover reading it. :)
xis_
January 20, 2011
it was a confusing story.if interested this is thereview.so bascically hay can't believe that her brother,john,would have made a mistake ad blown himself up in a demolition jobs.
January 10, 2012
A book filled with excitement, fear and adveture. I recommend this to young adults.
June 11, 2012
Interesting, a bit confusing at the end but also a nice idea and storyline.
November 4, 2012
hey, i really like the book. but since I need to do a homework on it, what happened in chapter 6? (i need to do a storyboard about it!!)
please help me!!
thanks
please help me!!
thanks
September 22, 2022
#143
Borrowed from library.
FS:
LS:
Borrowed from library.
FS:
LS:
Read
October 16, 2018I thought that this book was ok. The plot of the book was that the main character Hayley's brother was exploded in a factory. He was trying to diffuse the bomb when Haley's family got a call about what happened. The book was not the most interesting to read, but it was also not awful. The book was boring a some points and easy to just not want to read. The book got exciting towards the end, but only about 25 percent of the book was good to read.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews