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Flinder's Field

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In November 1974, a young woman called Sylvia Tredwin goes missing. Nobody has the faintest idea where she’s gone. She was wearing only a light skirt and T-shirt, didn’t take anything with her, no suitcase, nothing. Simply went out one dark evening and never returned.

Some say she went off with another man, because there’d already been talk in the small Somerset village of Petheram that she’s that type of woman – attractive, flirty with it, dressed too provocatively. But her husband, Bruce Tredwin, doesn’t believe a word of the callous whisperings of the locals as they gossip about his outsider wife. So he never gives up searching for her. A fortnight later on a stormy winter’s night he finds her. She’s naked in a place called Flinder’s Field, wandering aimlessly, badly bruised and in total shock. But what she says to him will astound everyone.

She says she’s been abducted by aliens, and she was never to be the same again, with tragic consequences…

Forty years later and George Lee is coming back to Petheram, the village of his birth. His estranged father has died and there are things his mother would like him to sort out. George hates the village, couldn’t wait to get out and make a life for himself as a writer of cheap and gory thrillers. He notices that Adam Tredwin, Sylvia Tredwin’s son, has also returned to Petheram. As children, the two used to be friends, briefly, before Adam’s father was killed in the 1980s by a hit-and-run driver and Sylvia took him away from the village.

But it’s when George begins to tidy out his father’s loft and slowly begins to learn more details about Sylvia Tredwin’s disappearance that he starts to uncover dark secrets and hidden truths – discoveries that will peel back the decades to reveal a labyrinthine world of madness, jealousies, deceit, lies and murder. He little knows his idle quest to find out the truth behind Sylvia Tredwin’s abduction will have profound and dangerous consequences for all concerned.

234 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

82 people are currently reading
563 people want to read

About the author

D.M. Mitchell

23 books52 followers
D. M. Mitchell has been compared to Ruth Rendell, Martina Cole, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Linwood Barclay, Dickens and even the Bronte sisters! This wide array of writing styles is appropriate - though Mitchell is known for his psychological thrillers, he is determined that each of them will be different, so they might be set in different eras, may be straightforward thrillers or have a supernatural or horror twist, and he avoids like the plague the standard and unimaginative serial killer format! You'll find he uses different styles of writing to suit different types of books - it also keeps him from getting bored...

D. M. Mitchell was born into a small mining community in Yorkshire, England. His career advisor said he had two options - go down the mines or become a policeman. Being scared of the dark and never having much meat on his bones, he declined both and in his early years bounced like a pinball from job to job - warehouses, cinema projectionist, market trader, salesman - you get the picture. He sort of made a success of himself and now lives in a money-pit of a cottage in a tiny village in the cream tea heart of the South West of England.

His first remembered attempt at pushing the boundaries of creative writing was during a school lesson at the age of nine. Titled simply 'Rain' his proud masterpiece began with 'It started to rain' then there followed eight pages of nothing but the words 'pitter-patter', concluding with 'and then it stopped'. It was handed over and duly reviewed by his brick wall of a teacher, whose eyebrows flickered up and down ominously, his cheeks flushing bright red, before declaring it total rubbish. He tore it up into ribbons, showered him with his first, and no doubt only tickertape ceremony, and gave him a meaty slap around the head (they could do that sort of thing in 1967). He made him write 'I will not write stupid things for eight pages' for eight pages. Thus he learnt a number of valuable early lessons - the meaning of irony, writing is very subjective, everyone's a critic, and no-one likes a smart-arse.

He persevered, his first novel appearing in 1986 and disappearing into the attic the same year. It's still up there. Many manuscripts later he used to save the piles of rejection slips to paper his bare walls. So the adage is, keep at it, in these times of economic depression you'll soon have the house fully redecorated. Nowadays, writing is the one thing he feels totally comfortable with, except perhaps for a cup of Horlicks on a cold winter's night when the rain goes pitter-patter against the window panes (there it is again...).

Characterisation is an important and noticeable aspect of all Mitchell's novels. It allows him to be whoever he wants to be when he gets fed up of being himself, which is quite often. So too is a sense of mystery and the exploration of the darker side to humanity. There are always strong elements of a complex puzzle to be solved in a D M Mitchell novel, many disparate parts ultimately coming together, tragedy and comedy sitting side by side. As in life, nothing is as it first seems. He takes a keen interest in history, a thread which runs through his writing, whether it's the 1960s or 1970s, as in 'Max' and 'Pressure Cooker', or the Victorian 1880s, as in 'The House of the Wicked'.

His favourite novelists include Barry Unsworth, Thomas Hardy, John Steinbeck and Graham Swift. Top two favourite historical books: Culloden, by John Prebble and The Face of Battle by John Keegan. He also collects first edition novels and takes a keen interest in anything old, tatty and in need of love and restoration. His wife says he needs to get out more.

He has three grown children and also enjoys photography, painting and walking the Blackdown Hills with his wife and an overly excitable Border Terrier - or is that an overly-excitable wife and a Border Terrier... One of the two.

He'd like to thank his growing legion of fans for allowing him to practice being

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5 stars
149 (32%)
4 stars
157 (34%)
3 stars
108 (23%)
2 stars
30 (6%)
1 star
14 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
39 reviews
May 20, 2014
I read this book on my Kindle because I love psychological thrillers, and this had gotten a lot of five-star reviews.

While not badly written, I had two glaring problems with this book:

1) It took SO long to get going. It was well into the book before anything really started happening.

2) And this one is a biggie: I COULDN'T STAND THE CHARACTERS, especially the main character, George Lee!

George was quite frankly a jerk, with no endearing qualities or anything that drew me to him. Quite honestly, I didn't care if he lived or died.

None of the other characters were much better.

I stuck it out only because other readers had raved about the huge twist at the end, but even the twist failed to wow me.

The author has been touted as England's answer to Dean Koonce and Stephen King, but judging by this book, I'm not seeing it.















Profile Image for Lynda Kelly.
2,206 reviews106 followers
February 11, 2014
This is my first story by this author though I have others downloaded. This one appealed to me the most of them all. It was a fascinating and interesting tale and I really enjoyed it. I've only penalised it a star because there were a few too many mistakes I'd not expect to see.....a real shame.
The story tells the story of Sylvia who believed she was abducted by aliens in the 1970s. She was certainly never the same afterwards. Her son Adam had a pal called George (an odd choice of name for our generation, I thought-I struggled with that all the way through)and he's returning to their Somerset village for the funeral of his father.....
It was very good how the whole story was put together and interesting learning all about small village life and how they treat strangers, sometimes. They can certainly be very insular. I recently relocated to such a village and it's quite staggering how many like some in this story have never left the village and how they're all related to each other. You daren't speak about anyone !!
As I say, it WAS marred by mistakes....three times born was used instead of borne, the obligatory e-book apostrophe mistakes along with dropped speechmarks here, there and everywhere. Then a "right-off" was mentioned twice then annoyingly spelt properly further in. Through was spelt as trough, them was replaced by the, doughnuts over here aren't spelt donuts and then cheer was replaced by cheep (ouch)!! Also,at one point an interviewee was speaking to Mr Slade but then changed his address to the writer to Mr Lee for no reason.
They're all slapdash little mistakes that should have been spotted and if the author polished these up it would definitely merit 5 stars !!
Profile Image for Carol Bosselman.
Author 8 books17 followers
December 20, 2014
Wonderful psych thriller that constantly keeps you guessing. Love the small village English feel of it, the twists and turns. Only complaint is that early on, George is not particularly likeable. There is no understanding of what drives him to investigate, I would like a little more in the way of motive, but as we move along that is easily forgotten; it becomes so gripping you cease to care.
Profile Image for Beth.
205 reviews7 followers
Want to read
March 11, 2014
FREE ON AMAZON 11/03/14
3 reviews
September 12, 2017
British Thriller of madness and murder

This thrilling British mystery examines madness within individuals and groups. Set in a dark and forgotten English Village the main character of the story has few redeeming qualities and the supporting characters appear to have even fewer. Yet following the obsession of the central character to discover what really happened in Flinder's Field will take you through a maze of madness and keep you guessing until the very end. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a story that mixes the genres of psychological thriller and noir mystery into a new and even more exciting kind of novel.
1,146 reviews7 followers
January 25, 2019
a beauitiful young woman goes missing in a small English town.. When she is located naked and bruised she insists she was abducted by aliens. Decades later the mystery of what really happened intrigues a struggling writer who returns home for the funeral of his father. Beset by family tension and dealing with his own mental health issues, he begins to investigate. but ugly secrets are worth killing to protect.

Overall I liked this book. The characters are not especially likable and it starts slowly. However interest builds as the investigation progresses. It is dark and what actually happened was fairly predictable. Still it does engage and is worth a read.
37 reviews
December 28, 2018
Really good. Psych thriller with twists.kept me enthralled
Profile Image for MoDonasChridhe.
334 reviews4 followers
January 28, 2019
I really liked this!

Avery intriguing mystery where a family's dark secrets spill into the light. Everyone faces demons and the truth comes out.
12 reviews1 follower
September 5, 2019
Decent read

Slow start...did not engage me until near the end, but took some turns I didn’t expect! Overall good storyline and interesting characters.
Profile Image for Patricia Ibarra.
848 reviews13 followers
March 14, 2017
One day Sylvia Tredwin went missing. Her husband never loses hope and looks incessantly for her until one day she finds her naked and shocked. She claims that she was abducted by aliens. There is a lot of talk in the small village. Some say she fled with another man, others that she has gone crazy, and some even consider that she may have been abducted. George Lee returns to the village forty years later for his father's funeral. He hates it there and he is estranged from his family. He remembers Sylvia and his interest is aroused because nobody speaks about her and he really wants to find out what happened to her. A story full of twists and turns.
Profile Image for Melinda.
602 reviews9 followers
March 18, 2014
Riveting and Intricately Detailed

D. M. Mitchell why haven't I read your incredible novels before? It is always wonderful to find a new author, but I feel like you should be on the tip of every critic's tongue with high praise for your characterization, your plotting, your pacing, the perfect dialogue.

This story not only showed the dysfunctional part of families, but the dysfunctional parts of small towns and did it in such a creepy, chilling, almost resolute way, that there was no stopping the wrongdoing.

The characters are classic. The family dynamics were more true to life than most of the fluffy tripe peddled today. Parents treating grown children as youngsters. Siblings battling over parental attention. Relatives nosing in and screwing things up. Just like real life. Secrets buried for decades and blamed on the blameless. And in small towns, everyone has an opinion, some may have more than one.

I had a lot of sympathy for our hero. He has no clue that he is far different from the family that he was born into. Going back home for his father's funeral, he will find out all kinds of things, not only about Sylvia Tredwyn, but about his family as well. It just keeps piling higher and deeper around him. The way Mitchell layers each plot twist is so intricately detailed that there is no wiggle room for our hero. Every layer of new information that the reader receives turns the situation on its head.

Aliens, Men in Black, Murder, Arson, Mugging, Kidnapping, Drowning, Burning, LSD, Hit and Run, and so much more...

I cannot recommend this book highly enough! Thank you for writing such an excellent novel. I am thrilled you have so many more I can read.
Profile Image for Eileen Patterson.
170 reviews22 followers
June 22, 2014
So this book kind of grabbed me by the throat and wouldn't let me go until I had finished. I've always been interested in stories of alien abduction, so when I saw from the description that this story concerned a woman who disappeared in the 1970s for a week, only to turn up alive but bloody and naked in a field, claiming to have been abducted by aliens, I wanted to read it right away. Then the story seemed to take a sharp right turn into unknown territory as it became the story of a man named George, returning to his hometown after his father's death, only to stumble into a mystery that changes everything he thought he knew about his family. And I LIKED George, that's the annoying part, so seeing him struggle while everyone in his family condescended to him or directly attacked and insulted him frustrated me. I wanted George to solve the mystery and maybe even find some peace with himself and with the past. It's rare that I connect so deeply with a character like this, and it made the book more intriguing by far. I couldn't put it down, and the twist at the end left me totally flabbergasted. It's set up so perfectly that I wanted to scream and pull my hair out and throw my Kindle across the room, even as I wanted to buy and read every other book this author wrote. I definitely think this book is worth your time. It's a bit graphic, and you can probably guess some of the twists, but if you're like me, others will still surprise you and keep you reading until you're finished.
Profile Image for Mary.
156 reviews2 followers
July 30, 2014
This e-book got my curiosity when I read the description that a woman Sylvia claims to have been abducted by aliens in the 1970's. After missing for a week she shows up naked in a field bruised and in shock. Forty years go by when George Lee comes back to the village for the funeral of his estranged father. The story takes a turn at this point and George is starts to investigate what is the true story. I like George. I also feel sorry for how his father treated him when he was a child. D.M. Mitchell has some other interesting characters like his estranged sister and even as an adult just wanted to argue with George and not listen to his theory of what happened . His friend Adam was someone I tried to figure out but then through the author's story I find out he is creepy. I thought the author explained the characters in great detail it made me feel like I knew them and helped with the story line.

There are twists and turns in this book. Just when I thought I knew where the story was headed boy was I wrong . I recommend this book.

9 reviews1 follower
Read
December 29, 2013
Good read

while the start of this book takes a while to pull you in, persistence will be rewarded. the characters became more defined in emotional impact than physical. twists and turns leave you guessing even as some characters mental illnesses are exposed others are waiting to be revealed. the climax overtakes you, and sudden turn on the main character shocks you. I would have preferred a more complete end. with so many turns throughout the story you are left to wonder if anyone will do the right thing thing.
585 reviews
June 11, 2014
Not what I was expecting. Much better!

Not what I was expecting. Much better!

I saw alien abduction I thought well something to occupy my night. Finder's Field is so much more. This story has a huge psychological slant to it. It's mysterious, dark and thrilling. While you keep wondering what exactly has been going on as the story evolves the cast of characters keeps getting larger. The ending surely can't be missed!! I am going to look up every one of D. M. Mitchell's books and find more of his creativity. Don't miss this.
41 reviews2 followers
July 12, 2015
Thought provoking and well written.

This is my second D. M. Mitchell book and I loved them both. In fact, I just downloaded two more to enjoy at the beach. He has an intelligent writing style that is much appreciated. This book kept me intrigued enough to finish in one day when I really should have been working. It's amazing how he delves into family secrets and reminds us that we all have them. Of course these are a bit extreme, but the dysfunctional family is quite normal.
Profile Image for Aline.
Author 3 books1 follower
July 31, 2014
I like this book quite a bit. I stuck with it which is a good sign. It sometimes takes me a while to get through a book, but this one was good enough to keep me interested. Intriguing premise and the end provided a satisfying resolution. All loose ends tied up. The writing was very good and some lines were downright awesome which I noted. Clever, believable. Good characterizations. The development was slow but that seemed to increase the mystery.
17 reviews2 followers
June 27, 2014
A great story...

I am leaving this review because I really enjoyed this book. very well written, no poor grammar or punctuation, only a very inventive story. I have read other reviews about this writer that complained of "too much descriptive language," but I did not see this as a problem in this story. There was a wife who was too, jealous, another wife who was too pretty, husbands and children who suffered the consequences. Thanks D. M. Mitchell.
Profile Image for Pat Gerber-Relf.
270 reviews3 followers
August 9, 2014
Thanks to a recommendation on Facebook from an online colleague I have discovered the writer D.M.Mitchell. OK, many may know him but I did not. I downloaded a free book and am very satisfied with the choice. He is compared to Steven King, Dean Koontz and a few others in that direction and that is my direction. Mystery, suspense and a wonky look on psychology, the characters mostly being a bit on the strange and criminal side. My first D.M.Mitchell book but not my last.
7 reviews
March 24, 2014
Started with the book mouse for free.

then bought finder's field thank you love a book with twists and turns thinking you know the plot and then it changes. also leaving the ending a bit open so you can draw your own conclusion depending on how your mind works great read keeps you wanting more.
Profile Image for Books 'n' All  Promotions.
844 reviews40 followers
June 14, 2014
I can honestly say this is probably the strangest book I have read. The ending is totally unexpected. I am a bit unsure whether I actually liked it but it certainly had something that made me keep turning page after page. I think the characters and plot are probably unrealistic but was still an enjoyable read.
Profile Image for Lynn.
8 reviews
September 22, 2014
Definitely a thrill to read

when I started reading FLINDER'S FIELD I was just looking for something different then what I usually read. I was not able to put this book down. each page just kept me intrigued where this was heading. what a twist that is not seen till the very end. excellent
Profile Image for Lili.
1,103 reviews19 followers
March 22, 2014
An interesting change from the usual thriller with an unusual plot. The story is well worked containing some twists that keep the reader fascinated. In George Lee, the author has created a very believable character. Enjoyable read.
2 reviews
March 16, 2014
You can't choose your family

When the line between reality & imagination blurs, it's hard to know who to trust, your family or your own mind. Part "Psycho" part "Shutter Island" sure to keep you entertained.
Profile Image for Mattie Frascella.
1 review
August 6, 2017
Finder's Field

A gripping read. Great psychological thriller. Holds you rapt until the end. Twists and turns so unexpected the author has to leave a trail of bread crumbs to help you find your way through this unexpectedly delightful thriller.
55 reviews3 followers
April 29, 2014
I really like this book.

I really enjoyed reading this book. it was w well written book, very interesting story line. Can't wait to read more by the writer. I wish the book kept going so I could find out what happened to george
364 reviews4 followers
June 13, 2014
Slow start, with a tricky main character - not very likeable, but warmed up and got much better as it went along. I didn´t know where it was going - good for a mystery. Could have been fairies, aliens or something else lurking behind the mysterious happenings in Somerset - nicely put together.
Profile Image for Norma Wise.
6 reviews1 follower
June 14, 2014
THUD

A bit drawn out at the beginning, but you realize it was necessary to the story. There's so many twists and turns, it's almost dizzying. I'm happy I don't suffer from inner ear problems. Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys true crime, suspense and/or thrillers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews

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