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The Oxford Investigations #1
Down Cemetery Road
From the author of Slow Horses and soon to be an Original Series from Apple TV+ starring Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson.
CWA Gold Dagger winner Mick Herron's debut novel introduces Sarah Tucker, whose search for a missing child unravels a murderous conspiracy.
When a house explodes in a quiet Oxford suburb and a girl disappears in the aftermath, Sarah Tucker—a young married woman, bored and unhappy with domestic life—becomes obsessed with finding her. Accustomed to dull chores in a childless household and hosting her husband’s wearisome business clients for dinner, Sarah suddenly finds herself questioning everything she thought she knew as her investigation reveals that people long believed dead are still among the living, while the living are fast joining the dead. What begins in a peaceful neighborhood reaches its climax on a remote, unwelcoming Scottish island as the search puts Sarah in league with a man being hunted down by murderous official forces.
CWA Gold Dagger winner Mick Herron's debut novel introduces Sarah Tucker, whose search for a missing child unravels a murderous conspiracy.
When a house explodes in a quiet Oxford suburb and a girl disappears in the aftermath, Sarah Tucker—a young married woman, bored and unhappy with domestic life—becomes obsessed with finding her. Accustomed to dull chores in a childless household and hosting her husband’s wearisome business clients for dinner, Sarah suddenly finds herself questioning everything she thought she knew as her investigation reveals that people long believed dead are still among the living, while the living are fast joining the dead. What begins in a peaceful neighborhood reaches its climax on a remote, unwelcoming Scottish island as the search puts Sarah in league with a man being hunted down by murderous official forces.
368 pages, Paperback
First published August 28, 2003
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About the author
Mick Herron
54 books5,369 followersMick Herron was born in Newcastle and has a degree in English from Balliol College, Oxford. He is the author of six books in the Slough House series as well as a mystery series set in Oxford featuring Sarah Tucker and/or P.I. Zoë Boehm. He now lives in Oxford and works in London.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 791 reviews
May 1, 2018
Having read all the available books in the brilliant Slough House series I had to check out Mick Herron's other books and apparently Down Cemetery Road is his debut novel. It is also the first in the Oxford Investigations series.
It is not as incredibly good as any of the Slough House books but it is still good and very entertaining. Herron's style is there, the slightly outrageous characters, the black humour, the way apparently important characters are suddenly killed off. As far as this author is concerned everyone and anyone is disposable. No complacency allowed for readers here!
I liked the main character of Sarah Tucker. She certainly showed hidden depths. Zoe Boehm also has great promise for future books in the series. Many people died in many varied ways throughout the book and it was action packed.
Overall I enjoyed it very much and felt that it was a book where Herron was finding his feet in preparation for the best to come.
It is not as incredibly good as any of the Slough House books but it is still good and very entertaining. Herron's style is there, the slightly outrageous characters, the black humour, the way apparently important characters are suddenly killed off. As far as this author is concerned everyone and anyone is disposable. No complacency allowed for readers here!
I liked the main character of Sarah Tucker. She certainly showed hidden depths. Zoe Boehm also has great promise for future books in the series. Many people died in many varied ways throughout the book and it was action packed.
Overall I enjoyed it very much and felt that it was a book where Herron was finding his feet in preparation for the best to come.
January 4, 2018
Oh, how I struggled with this one. After thoroughly enjoying Mick Herron's Slough House series, I am continuing with his books and picked up this, his debut book. It's not an entirely awful book because there are glimpses of how good Herron will eventually be. I especially liked the characterization of Joe, the private investigator, but In places, there was great dialog. Overall, there were too many meandering thoughts and too much sidetracking. I doubt I’ll read any more of Herron's earlier Oxford Investigations books.
March 6, 2022
This is Mick Herron's debut novel. It's very good and I could see how he was honing his craft. Instead of inventing a better mousetrap, he was learning how to structure a better espionage novel. I like his Slough House series better, mostly I think because the spies have become the main characters. In this novel, our main set of eyes is a bored housewife. When an explosion happens just down the street, she becomes fixated on the four year old survivor. Her mission becomes finding this child, dragging her into the sights of the spooks, who are disinclined to be gentle.
Although I don't know how realistic Sarah's sense of mission is. But perhaps because her life is in danger of coming apart at the seams, she has nothing left to lose. Nothing that she does seems too hard for a regular woman, but to keep on going in the face of obvious danger—I think I would have chickened out much earlier. However that wouldn't have made for a good story.
I felt like Herron wrote Sarah really well. He depicts her as a real person, realizing that her marriage is strained to the breaking point, that it has constrained her as a person, and that she has no idea where things are going. But she felt real to me, having emotions that I can relate to.
I decided some time ago that I wanted to read all of Herron's novels, and now I have made a good start.
Although I don't know how realistic Sarah's sense of mission is. But perhaps because her life is in danger of coming apart at the seams, she has nothing left to lose. Nothing that she does seems too hard for a regular woman, but to keep on going in the face of obvious danger—I think I would have chickened out much earlier. However that wouldn't have made for a good story.
I felt like Herron wrote Sarah really well. He depicts her as a real person, realizing that her marriage is strained to the breaking point, that it has constrained her as a person, and that she has no idea where things are going. But she felt real to me, having emotions that I can relate to.
I decided some time ago that I wanted to read all of Herron's novels, and now I have made a good start.
September 1, 2025
I really enjoy the series “Slough Horses” so when I saw that this earlier book by Mick Herron was being released in an upcoming series, I decided I needed to listen to it.
This was his debut novel, published in 2003. It was perfectly performed on audio by ALIX DUNMORE. Right from the beginning, I was engaged by the storyline. It is billed as a Zoe Boehm mystery, but that is definitely an inaccurate classification. Zoe appears briefly at the beginning and reappears at the end for the final climax.
Our main protagonist is Sarah Tucker, who is without a job and feeling bored being a housewife and entertaining her husband’s clients. On the night we meet her, she is having a dinner party, when there is an explosion down their street. Two people are dead and a child is missing. She barely knows them but takes it upon herself to find the child, Dinah.
There is political intrigue; there are some great twists and turns; there are past secrets. I totally enjoyed listening to this book- in fact, I had so much trouble putting it down, it got me back on my bike:)
Published: 2003; audiobook - 2025.
Thanks to Netgalley and RB media for an advanced copy of the audiobook.
This was his debut novel, published in 2003. It was perfectly performed on audio by ALIX DUNMORE. Right from the beginning, I was engaged by the storyline. It is billed as a Zoe Boehm mystery, but that is definitely an inaccurate classification. Zoe appears briefly at the beginning and reappears at the end for the final climax.
Our main protagonist is Sarah Tucker, who is without a job and feeling bored being a housewife and entertaining her husband’s clients. On the night we meet her, she is having a dinner party, when there is an explosion down their street. Two people are dead and a child is missing. She barely knows them but takes it upon herself to find the child, Dinah.
There is political intrigue; there are some great twists and turns; there are past secrets. I totally enjoyed listening to this book- in fact, I had so much trouble putting it down, it got me back on my bike:)
Published: 2003; audiobook - 2025.
Thanks to Netgalley and RB media for an advanced copy of the audiobook.
August 28, 2025
EXCERPT: On discovering a fire, the instructions began, shout Fire and try to put it out. It was useful, heart-of-the-matter advice, and could be extended almost indefinitely in any direction. On discovering your husband's guests are arseholes, shut Arseholes and try to put them out. This was a good starting point. Sarah was one glass of wine away from putting it in motion.
But the instructions had been pinned to the wall in her office when she'd had a job, and did not apply in the kitchen. Here, Mark would expect that all emergencies be met with predetermined orderliness - crisis management was his Latest Big Thing - and graded instantly by size, type ad career-damaging potential: earthquake, conflagrations, shortage of pasta. His guests would not figure on the chart, since they came under Acts of God, and were to be borne as such. Of course they're arseholes, Sare, he'd say, when they were gone and he could afford to be ironic. He's rich and she's dumb: what did you expect, they'd be nice? But if Sarah asked when rich got important, he'd lose a little of the irony. Since rich got on my client list, he'd say. Since rich started buying lunch. Self-promotion was his other Latest Big Thing. He had these in pairs now, so as to be sure of not missing anything.
And now he came into the kitchen, to make sure she missed nothing either.
ABOUT 'DOWN CEMETERY ROAD': It's an evening like any other when an explosion rips through the leafy Oxford suburb Sarah Tucker calls home. In the aftermath, a house now stands devastated, with two adults dead and a young girl missing.
With the police more interested in keeping the neighbors from rubbernecking than in searching for the missing child, Sarah becomes obsessed with finding her, and enlists the help of Oxford private investigator Zoë Boehm. But Sarah's and Zoë's search reveals more secrets than answers. As Zoë and Sarah draw closer to the truth, they are caught in a web of conspiracy and come up against government forces, cold-blooded mercenaries and vengeful loners.
MY THOUGHTS: If I am to say one thing about Mick Herron, it is that he writes realistically and with a unique style. I love his snark!
I fell in love with his Slough House series, and now I am enamored with Sarah Tucker and Zoë Boehm. As always with Herron, there are almost as many bodies as there are pages, felled by increasingly inventive methods. Although be aware that not all the bodies stay dead and that some were supposedly dead years ago . . .
Sarah Tucker shows great promise as a character - she certainly has far more backbone and grit than I initially gave her credit for. Zoë Boehm definitely played second fiddle to Sarah here, and as this is the first book in The Oxford Investigations series alternatively titled 'A Zoë Boehm Thriller' I guess this won't always be the case.
I loved this teaser - Sarah Tucker is a dissatisfied housewife in a remote Oxford suburb; Zoë Boehm is an Oxford private investigator with a violent, troubled past and a remarkable phobia of death. Death, however, will bring them together in ways neither could have anticipated. That it does, and in ways I never anticipated either. Down Cemetery Road is a hold onto your hat thriller.
And, yes please, I want more of this series and sooner rather than later.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#DownCemeteryRoad #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHOR: MICK HERRON was born in Newcastle and has a degree in English from Balliol College, Oxford. He is the author of seven books in the Slough House series as well as a mystery series set in Oxford featuring Sarah Tucker and/or P.I. Zoë Boehm. He now lives in Oxford and works in London.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to RB Media via NetGalley for providing the audiobook of Down Cemetery Road written by Mick Herron and superbly narrated by Alix Dunmore for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
But the instructions had been pinned to the wall in her office when she'd had a job, and did not apply in the kitchen. Here, Mark would expect that all emergencies be met with predetermined orderliness - crisis management was his Latest Big Thing - and graded instantly by size, type ad career-damaging potential: earthquake, conflagrations, shortage of pasta. His guests would not figure on the chart, since they came under Acts of God, and were to be borne as such. Of course they're arseholes, Sare, he'd say, when they were gone and he could afford to be ironic. He's rich and she's dumb: what did you expect, they'd be nice? But if Sarah asked when rich got important, he'd lose a little of the irony. Since rich got on my client list, he'd say. Since rich started buying lunch. Self-promotion was his other Latest Big Thing. He had these in pairs now, so as to be sure of not missing anything.
And now he came into the kitchen, to make sure she missed nothing either.
ABOUT 'DOWN CEMETERY ROAD': It's an evening like any other when an explosion rips through the leafy Oxford suburb Sarah Tucker calls home. In the aftermath, a house now stands devastated, with two adults dead and a young girl missing.
With the police more interested in keeping the neighbors from rubbernecking than in searching for the missing child, Sarah becomes obsessed with finding her, and enlists the help of Oxford private investigator Zoë Boehm. But Sarah's and Zoë's search reveals more secrets than answers. As Zoë and Sarah draw closer to the truth, they are caught in a web of conspiracy and come up against government forces, cold-blooded mercenaries and vengeful loners.
MY THOUGHTS: If I am to say one thing about Mick Herron, it is that he writes realistically and with a unique style. I love his snark!
I fell in love with his Slough House series, and now I am enamored with Sarah Tucker and Zoë Boehm. As always with Herron, there are almost as many bodies as there are pages, felled by increasingly inventive methods. Although be aware that not all the bodies stay dead and that some were supposedly dead years ago . . .
Sarah Tucker shows great promise as a character - she certainly has far more backbone and grit than I initially gave her credit for. Zoë Boehm definitely played second fiddle to Sarah here, and as this is the first book in The Oxford Investigations series alternatively titled 'A Zoë Boehm Thriller' I guess this won't always be the case.
I loved this teaser - Sarah Tucker is a dissatisfied housewife in a remote Oxford suburb; Zoë Boehm is an Oxford private investigator with a violent, troubled past and a remarkable phobia of death. Death, however, will bring them together in ways neither could have anticipated. That it does, and in ways I never anticipated either. Down Cemetery Road is a hold onto your hat thriller.
And, yes please, I want more of this series and sooner rather than later.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#DownCemeteryRoad #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHOR: MICK HERRON was born in Newcastle and has a degree in English from Balliol College, Oxford. He is the author of seven books in the Slough House series as well as a mystery series set in Oxford featuring Sarah Tucker and/or P.I. Zoë Boehm. He now lives in Oxford and works in London.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to RB Media via NetGalley for providing the audiobook of Down Cemetery Road written by Mick Herron and superbly narrated by Alix Dunmore for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
August 11, 2025
So back to the start with Mick Herron's debut novel and it isn't until you read the early stuff that you realise what a great writer Mick Herron has become.
I'm not saying it's bad but its so far removed from the brilliance of Slough House.
This is the first outing for Zoe Boehm and she keeps her involvement to a minimum I'm sorry to say. I think Sarah ends up being her partner (but I could be wrong) but I sincerely hope she toughens up a lot. Her indecision drove me bonkers.
The story is as convoluted as a Slough House but where in later novels the strands are drawn together nearing the end, in this book the progression is much more linear.
Sarah Trafford is an unhappily married housewife. She and her husband hold a dinner party for a potential client and include a couple of barmy friends - Wigwam (?) and Rufus. However halfway through the night a nearby house explodes.
What follows is a twisty tale of spies, soldiers, betrayal and a little girl called Dinah. It certainly takes us all over the place and into some dark corners.
You can see the nascent signs of Slough House there. It's just the characters that let it down. Still, as a debut novel it's got enough about it to want to read the next one.
I'm not saying it's bad but its so far removed from the brilliance of Slough House.
This is the first outing for Zoe Boehm and she keeps her involvement to a minimum I'm sorry to say. I think Sarah ends up being her partner (but I could be wrong) but I sincerely hope she toughens up a lot. Her indecision drove me bonkers.
The story is as convoluted as a Slough House but where in later novels the strands are drawn together nearing the end, in this book the progression is much more linear.
Sarah Trafford is an unhappily married housewife. She and her husband hold a dinner party for a potential client and include a couple of barmy friends - Wigwam (?) and Rufus. However halfway through the night a nearby house explodes.
What follows is a twisty tale of spies, soldiers, betrayal and a little girl called Dinah. It certainly takes us all over the place and into some dark corners.
You can see the nascent signs of Slough House there. It's just the characters that let it down. Still, as a debut novel it's got enough about it to want to read the next one.
August 10, 2023
Down Cemetery Road is the first book in the Oxford Investigations series by British author, Mick Herron. Her career stalled, Sarah Tucker is an unenthusiastic housewife when, during a painful dinner party with someone her husband is trying to impress, a bomb blows up the house down the street. Young widow Maddie Singleton and an unknown male die in the explosion, but four-year-old Dinah miraculously survives.
Sarah is unsure why she wants to know the child’s fate, but she goes looking, and keeps hitting brick walls: at the hospital and at the police station. She ends up talking to Joe Silvermann at Oxford Investigations. Joe can’t find Dinah Singleton, but he does learn some other intriguing facts. These facts, and some educated hunches set them on a path they may regret. Joe’s partner, Zoe Boehm eventually has no choice but to get involved.
Herron gives the reader an excellent tale in this, his debut, novel. If it seems like it starts a bit slowly, that’s probably just Herron’s way of setting up the story, the characters and the general atmosphere. The plot is easily believable, with quite a few twists and red herrings before a very exciting climax. There are plenty of bodies, not all of them dead, as well as guns, razors, helicopters, boats, pills, soldiers, lovers and dental floss.
Joe seems to be a bit of a bumbling detective whose manner belies his abilities; Sarah takes hold of the wrong end of the stick and is reluctant to relinquish it; Zoe proves to be a capable investigator, so it is no surprise that she features in the next three books of the series. Readers familiar with his Slough House series will already be aware that Herron does not hesitate to kill off a character when the plot requires it, so perhaps don’t get to attached to any of the characters too soon. Fans will be eager to read the second instalment, The Last Voice You Hear.
Sarah is unsure why she wants to know the child’s fate, but she goes looking, and keeps hitting brick walls: at the hospital and at the police station. She ends up talking to Joe Silvermann at Oxford Investigations. Joe can’t find Dinah Singleton, but he does learn some other intriguing facts. These facts, and some educated hunches set them on a path they may regret. Joe’s partner, Zoe Boehm eventually has no choice but to get involved.
Herron gives the reader an excellent tale in this, his debut, novel. If it seems like it starts a bit slowly, that’s probably just Herron’s way of setting up the story, the characters and the general atmosphere. The plot is easily believable, with quite a few twists and red herrings before a very exciting climax. There are plenty of bodies, not all of them dead, as well as guns, razors, helicopters, boats, pills, soldiers, lovers and dental floss.
Joe seems to be a bit of a bumbling detective whose manner belies his abilities; Sarah takes hold of the wrong end of the stick and is reluctant to relinquish it; Zoe proves to be a capable investigator, so it is no surprise that she features in the next three books of the series. Readers familiar with his Slough House series will already be aware that Herron does not hesitate to kill off a character when the plot requires it, so perhaps don’t get to attached to any of the characters too soon. Fans will be eager to read the second instalment, The Last Voice You Hear.
June 27, 2022
OK - it's not Jackson Lamb and Slough House. I didn't realise it but I think this is Mick Herron's first book. Given that I think it pretty damn good. A house explodes in Oxford and a man and a woman die in the blast. A little girl survives. Sarah is a near neighbour but did not know the family. However she becomes increasingly determined to find the little girl... That takes her on one hell of a journey.
I really liked Sarah as a character - indeed I don't think there was a bad character in this. It is at times extremely funny - the first paragraph had me laughing aloud. However it is also very dark - I'd say often darker than some Slough House stuff. Yes the security services are involved in this and there is real violence however for me this felt like a well balanced read. I will certainly read more of this series as time goes by and Herron really did know how to write even at this early stage. Maybe not 5 star but a very clear 4 star for me.
I really liked Sarah as a character - indeed I don't think there was a bad character in this. It is at times extremely funny - the first paragraph had me laughing aloud. However it is also very dark - I'd say often darker than some Slough House stuff. Yes the security services are involved in this and there is real violence however for me this felt like a well balanced read. I will certainly read more of this series as time goes by and Herron really did know how to write even at this early stage. Maybe not 5 star but a very clear 4 star for me.
August 7, 2015
Mick Herron tells his story in an unexpected way, draws the reader in and keeps him/her guessing. The excerpt from Nobody Walks piqued my interest, and I am already seeking out the next volume in the Oxford series, as well as the Slough House series. It is a great day when I find a new author that has a plethora of books to add to my towering "to-be-read" pile, it is money in my book bank. I heartily recommend this author.
November 3, 2025
Although I didn’t enjoy this as much as Book 2 of the Slow Horses series, it’s still a really good read. Gritty well connected story with a believable premise at its heart. I like the two main characters too. Will continue the series as and when.
September 30, 2025
September 30, 2025 Update Official trailer is up for AppleTV+s TV-series adaptation of Down Cemetery Road starring Emma Thompson as private investigator Zoë Boehm, streaming as of October 29, 2025. See the trailer on YouTube here
A Dark Horse but not Slow
Review of the Soho Crime eBook edition (April 1, 2009) of the original Constable hardcover (August 28, 2003).
If you've exhausted Mick Herron's Slough House (2010-ongoing) series, perhaps like me, you will eventually turn to his earlier Oxford Investigations (2003-2009) or his standalones. After reading this first outing I was not disappointed and could see aspects of the future Herron even in this very first novel.
This is actually more of an espionage related novel than the crime/mystery genre which the "Investigations" sub-title would suggest. Sarah Trafford (née Tucker) is plunged into a dark world when she recklessly takes it upon herself to discover the fate of the surviving 4-year-old daughter of nearby neighbours, whose home is blown up in the middle of the night, an event passed off as being due to a gas leak.
It is gradually revealed that the explosion and resultant coverup are part of an even more diabolical plot which involves the security services trying to contain a possible scandal. There are some ruthless fixers charged with the task who are not at all concerned with collateral damage. Sarah's naïve enquiries lead her to involve the private detectives of Oxford Investigations led by the marriage-strained couple of Joe Silvermann and Zoë Boehm.
Herron's sardonic humour is not at the fore here, but there are definite hints of it in the verbal jousting between Sarah and her husband's possible financial client Gerard Inchon (whose physical build hints at the future Jackson Lamb of Slough House). Self-justified sociopathic behaviour on behalf of the Secret Intelligence Services is regularly on display. The sudden deaths of seemingly major characters is another future Slough House characteristic. Major plot twists abound, some of which are especially satisfying.
Get on it now, before the future TV fans get there ahead of you!
Trivia and Link
Publicity photos of Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson who will play Zoë Boehm and Sarah Tucker in the future (2025?) AppleTV+ series adaptation. Image sourced from Variety.
A Dark Horse but not Slow
Review of the Soho Crime eBook edition (April 1, 2009) of the original Constable hardcover (August 28, 2003).
Give me your arm old toad,
Help me down Cemetery Road. - excerpt from the poem "Toads Revisited" by Philip Larkin
If you've exhausted Mick Herron's Slough House (2010-ongoing) series, perhaps like me, you will eventually turn to his earlier Oxford Investigations (2003-2009) or his standalones. After reading this first outing I was not disappointed and could see aspects of the future Herron even in this very first novel.
This is actually more of an espionage related novel than the crime/mystery genre which the "Investigations" sub-title would suggest. Sarah Trafford (née Tucker) is plunged into a dark world when she recklessly takes it upon herself to discover the fate of the surviving 4-year-old daughter of nearby neighbours, whose home is blown up in the middle of the night, an event passed off as being due to a gas leak.
It is gradually revealed that the explosion and resultant coverup are part of an even more diabolical plot which involves the security services trying to contain a possible scandal. There are some ruthless fixers charged with the task who are not at all concerned with collateral damage. Sarah's naïve enquiries lead her to involve the private detectives of Oxford Investigations led by the marriage-strained couple of Joe Silvermann and Zoë Boehm.
Herron's sardonic humour is not at the fore here, but there are definite hints of it in the verbal jousting between Sarah and her husband's possible financial client Gerard Inchon (whose physical build hints at the future Jackson Lamb of Slough House). Self-justified sociopathic behaviour on behalf of the Secret Intelligence Services is regularly on display. The sudden deaths of seemingly major characters is another future Slough House characteristic. Major plot twists abound, some of which are especially satisfying.
Get on it now, before the future TV fans get there ahead of you!
Trivia and Link
Publicity photos of Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson who will play Zoë Boehm and Sarah Tucker in the future (2025?) AppleTV+ series adaptation. Image sourced from Variety.
June 20, 2023
Down Cemetery Road is a slow burn of a read. The pace intensifies gradually until it becomes a good page turner. However, the main character, Sarah didn’t quite sit right with me. The various plot twists and reveals were interesting but left me wondering if a thirty something suffering from BHS (Bored Housewife Syndrome) would really be driven to follow up a lead as intensely as she did.
In the end, I’d much rather read another of the Slough House series than another in this series.
In the end, I’d much rather read another of the Slough House series than another in this series.
November 25, 2025
Well, God bless our library system and it's "Suggest a Title" feature, because we now have all four of Mick Herron's "Oxford Mysteries" available to us local fans!
The first two-thirds of Herron's debut novel are a solid 5 stars, with some great characters and dialogue (don't you wish everyone talked like that?), as well as some truly shocking surprise twists. But then the rest is seriously over-plotted and much too action-thriller-y rather than mystery-y, with a few too many misdirections and "oh, he just did that seemingly throwaway thing — I bet it will matter later" moments.
Still, those are more than compensated for by moments of literary brilliance. I already read the series’ third book, Why We Die, out of sequence, but will read the rest in order (and perhaps at least reskim Die again when it comes around), and am looking forward now to the Apple+ take on this series, (and Emma Thompson looks to be nearly as delightful a casting choice as Gary Oldman in "Slow Horses"). There are also four “Oxford” short stories in Herron’s Dolphin Junction, three of which take place before this book and the fourth…I’m guessing after the whole series concluded? Will have to read on to find out!
This was written in 2003, which frankly to me doesn't seem that long ago...but then it was interesting to note the little things that DID date it: the very beginning of the Iraq War, of course; but also no smartphones, no GPS, no real mention of the internet (although I was then surprised how easily our big bad could hack into hotel reservation systems, rail ticketing systems, etc.). Those technologies seems like such a major dividing line these days, basically defining the first quarter of the 21st Century; I wonder if future books (and the world itself) will be similarly divided into “before” and “after” AI took over everything…
The first two-thirds of Herron's debut novel are a solid 5 stars, with some great characters and dialogue (don't you wish everyone talked like that?), as well as some truly shocking surprise twists. But then the rest is seriously over-plotted and much too action-thriller-y rather than mystery-y, with a few too many misdirections and "oh, he just did that seemingly throwaway thing — I bet it will matter later" moments.
Still, those are more than compensated for by moments of literary brilliance. I already read the series’ third book, Why We Die, out of sequence, but will read the rest in order (and perhaps at least reskim Die again when it comes around), and am looking forward now to the Apple+ take on this series, (and Emma Thompson looks to be nearly as delightful a casting choice as Gary Oldman in "Slow Horses"). There are also four “Oxford” short stories in Herron’s Dolphin Junction, three of which take place before this book and the fourth…I’m guessing after the whole series concluded? Will have to read on to find out!
This was written in 2003, which frankly to me doesn't seem that long ago...but then it was interesting to note the little things that DID date it: the very beginning of the Iraq War, of course; but also no smartphones, no GPS, no real mention of the internet (although I was then surprised how easily our big bad could hack into hotel reservation systems, rail ticketing systems, etc.). Those technologies seems like such a major dividing line these days, basically defining the first quarter of the 21st Century; I wonder if future books (and the world itself) will be similarly divided into “before” and “after” AI took over everything…
September 15, 2025
New audiobook of this is out, timed for the upcoming tv adaptation. Solid crime novel, blending a more traditional mystery format with the spy intrigue Herron is best known for in his Slow Horses series. This follows the everyday-person-gets-embroiled-in-conspiracy plot, but I appreciated how well Herron justifies Sarah's continuing steps further and further down the rabbit hole, often a weakness in that type of story. Definitely from another time, more embroiled in the Iraq war than our current global conflicts, but the broad strokes have aged relatively well.
Audio works quite well. I had a tough go with Slow Horses on audio, too much shifting perspective, and didn't love the reader. But this has a good reader and the perspective shifts are quite simple to track.
Audio works quite well. I had a tough go with Slow Horses on audio, too much shifting perspective, and didn't love the reader. But this has a good reader and the perspective shifts are quite simple to track.
January 1, 2014
A really well written conspiracy type thriller that had just the right mix of suspense, paranoia, and plot twists along with some truly memorable characters.
April 25, 2011
Oxford housewife Sarah is in the terminal stages of the dinner party from hell, forced upon her by her would-be financial whizkid Mark, when the house down the road explodes, killing the two adults therein; their small daughter, however, escapes unscathed . . . only shortly thereafter to disappear off the face of the earth as if she'd never existed. Sarah, diagnosed by one of her husband's obnoxious dinner guests that evening as suffering from Bored Housewife Syndrome, takes it upon herself to try to track down the child, little realize that she's taking on one of the UK's nastiest covert divisions, a group largely manned by sociopaths that's charged with clearing up the messes made by the security services by "disappearing" people and the truth alike. Doggedly persistent, Sarah dodges death through a combination of naivety, luck and simple goodheartedness even as the bodies pile up around her. In so doing she gradually unravels the horrific crimes the UK government is committing supposedly in the name of that country's citizens.
This was a book slow to start, and the tedium was barely helped by the author's frequent habit of using cheap narrative tricks to pull the wool over the reader's eyes -- as example, we're made to believe at first it was Sarah's house that exploded and then, gasp, a few pages later it's revealed with a sort of arch cackle that, no, the text was ambiguous and really it was the nearby house that went bang. That's cheating, in my opinion. (I've committed this crime myself on occasion, but I educated myself out of it years ago.) This sort of smartassery continues all through the book; late on, there's an example of it that's supposed to offer a fiendishly cunning twist whose stupidity is revealed when you ask yourself: How would you film this? You couldn't, of course, because the twist wouldn't work if you could actually see what was going on. Even so, after its sluggish start the narrative really does pick up a compelling head of steam; the pages started turning at a blurring speed. I'm still not certain if this adequately compensated for the irritation I felt over the artificiality of those "cheats".
This was a book slow to start, and the tedium was barely helped by the author's frequent habit of using cheap narrative tricks to pull the wool over the reader's eyes -- as example, we're made to believe at first it was Sarah's house that exploded and then, gasp, a few pages later it's revealed with a sort of arch cackle that, no, the text was ambiguous and really it was the nearby house that went bang. That's cheating, in my opinion. (I've committed this crime myself on occasion, but I educated myself out of it years ago.) This sort of smartassery continues all through the book; late on, there's an example of it that's supposed to offer a fiendishly cunning twist whose stupidity is revealed when you ask yourself: How would you film this? You couldn't, of course, because the twist wouldn't work if you could actually see what was going on. Even so, after its sluggish start the narrative really does pick up a compelling head of steam; the pages started turning at a blurring speed. I'm still not certain if this adequately compensated for the irritation I felt over the artificiality of those "cheats".
August 8, 2024
‘Back in 2016 this was the then debut from Mick Herron so was interested to read this as have loved his ‘Slow Horses’ books and TV series read/seen ( and also a couple of stand alone’s )
Well it was frantic that’s for sure, story, atmosphere and writing wise and weirdly although Book 1 of the series the main character is in it for only a small part although am guessing a lot more in the next books
The descriptive prowess is there and used a lot, almost over used maybe and the plot at times fickle but this was a master in his art’s debut, seeing what worked and readying folk for what was to come…so thats fine 🤗
Look forward to Book 2,3 and 4
Well it was frantic that’s for sure, story, atmosphere and writing wise and weirdly although Book 1 of the series the main character is in it for only a small part although am guessing a lot more in the next books
The descriptive prowess is there and used a lot, almost over used maybe and the plot at times fickle but this was a master in his art’s debut, seeing what worked and readying folk for what was to come…so thats fine 🤗
Look forward to Book 2,3 and 4
November 26, 2017
Dialogue to die for.
Rising banker Mark has invited a potentially lucrative new client to dinner - much to his wife Sarah’s annoyance. Even more irritating is the man’s arrogance, peering down his nose at their other guests. A huge explosion demolishes a house at the end of the road and abruptly puts an end to the dinner party. The assumption is that this was caused by a gas leak. So why does the obnoxious Gerard Inchon refer to it as a bomb? It later emerges that two people have died in the blast and a little girl has gone missing. Sarah becomes curious…dangerously so.
The dialogue positively crackles with smart one-liners and witty put-downs. It doesn’t sound remotely believable, of course – who in real life talks as though they’re in a Billy Wilder movie? But who cares? It’s fun to read. However, when the storyline develops into black ops and high-level cover-ups, the plot takes precedence over the interplay of the characters and one’s interest wanes. Sarah’s voluntary involvement is just too silly for words and the denouement is eked out for far too long. But the writing is a notch above the usual crime fare and if you enjoy Herron’s Slough House series, then you might find this book from his back catalogue worth catching up on.
Rising banker Mark has invited a potentially lucrative new client to dinner - much to his wife Sarah’s annoyance. Even more irritating is the man’s arrogance, peering down his nose at their other guests. A huge explosion demolishes a house at the end of the road and abruptly puts an end to the dinner party. The assumption is that this was caused by a gas leak. So why does the obnoxious Gerard Inchon refer to it as a bomb? It later emerges that two people have died in the blast and a little girl has gone missing. Sarah becomes curious…dangerously so.
The dialogue positively crackles with smart one-liners and witty put-downs. It doesn’t sound remotely believable, of course – who in real life talks as though they’re in a Billy Wilder movie? But who cares? It’s fun to read. However, when the storyline develops into black ops and high-level cover-ups, the plot takes precedence over the interplay of the characters and one’s interest wanes. Sarah’s voluntary involvement is just too silly for words and the denouement is eked out for far too long. But the writing is a notch above the usual crime fare and if you enjoy Herron’s Slough House series, then you might find this book from his back catalogue worth catching up on.
August 10, 2025
Down Cemetery Road is the first book in the Oxford Investigations series by British author, Mick Herron. The audio version is narrated by Alix Dunmore. Her career stalled, Sarah Tucker is an unenthusiastic housewife when, during a painful dinner party with someone her husband is trying to impress, a bomb blows up the house down the street. Young widow Maddie Singleton and an unknown male die in the explosion, but four-year-old Dinah miraculously survives.
Sarah is unsure why she wants to know the child’s fate, but she goes looking, and keeps hitting brick walls: at the hospital and at the police station. She ends up talking to Joe Silvermann at Oxford Investigations. Joe can’t find Dinah Singleton, but he does learn some other intriguing facts. These facts, and some educated hunches set them on a path they may regret. Joe’s partner, Zoe Boehm eventually has no choice but to get involved.
Herron gives the reader an excellent tale in this, his debut, novel. If it seems like it starts a bit slowly, that’s probably just Herron’s way of setting up the story, the characters and the general atmosphere. The plot is easily believable, with quite a few twists and red herrings before a very exciting climax. There are plenty of bodies, not all of them dead, as well as guns, razors, helicopters, boats, pills, soldiers, lovers and dental floss.
Joe seems to be a bit of a bumbling detective whose manner belies his abilities; Sarah takes hold of the wrong end of the stick and is reluctant to relinquish it; Zoe proves to be a capable investigator, so it is no surprise that she features in the next three books of the series. Readers familiar with his Slough House series will already be aware that Herron does not hesitate to kill off a character when the plot requires it, so perhaps don’t get to attached to any of the characters too soon. Fans will be eager to read the second instalment, The Last Voice You Hear.
This unbiased review is from an audio copy provided by NetGalley and RB Media
Sarah is unsure why she wants to know the child’s fate, but she goes looking, and keeps hitting brick walls: at the hospital and at the police station. She ends up talking to Joe Silvermann at Oxford Investigations. Joe can’t find Dinah Singleton, but he does learn some other intriguing facts. These facts, and some educated hunches set them on a path they may regret. Joe’s partner, Zoe Boehm eventually has no choice but to get involved.
Herron gives the reader an excellent tale in this, his debut, novel. If it seems like it starts a bit slowly, that’s probably just Herron’s way of setting up the story, the characters and the general atmosphere. The plot is easily believable, with quite a few twists and red herrings before a very exciting climax. There are plenty of bodies, not all of them dead, as well as guns, razors, helicopters, boats, pills, soldiers, lovers and dental floss.
Joe seems to be a bit of a bumbling detective whose manner belies his abilities; Sarah takes hold of the wrong end of the stick and is reluctant to relinquish it; Zoe proves to be a capable investigator, so it is no surprise that she features in the next three books of the series. Readers familiar with his Slough House series will already be aware that Herron does not hesitate to kill off a character when the plot requires it, so perhaps don’t get to attached to any of the characters too soon. Fans will be eager to read the second instalment, The Last Voice You Hear.
This unbiased review is from an audio copy provided by NetGalley and RB Media
October 31, 2025
The tv series is on Apple, I couldn’t bear to begin watching it until I’d read the book, so I’ve been blitzing it over the last few days. It’s been a great distraction from real life. Sometimes when I’m feeling mediocre about the real world and events in my own life, I enjoy reading nasty crime with plenty of bodies piling up and Mick Herron is just the guy you need. This is a very early book. The first of The Oxford Series. I now feel compelled to read the rest.
A house blows up just down the street from Sarah Tucker lives with her largely absent and unpleasant husband. A little girl who lived in the house has disappeared. Sarah becomes driven to find her. She comes to understand that there are some very bad people involved in this disappearance and that spurs her on further. When the private detective she’s hired is murdered, instead of backing off she doubles down. She meets Zoe who decides to help out and this is the beginning of a great partnership. Danger and men with very big guns lurk and despite her life being threatened constantly, Sarah is determined to find the little girl.
Great pace, lots of wry humour with word play as you’d expect and a cracking good story. Every character you meet is excellent. Good reading!
A house blows up just down the street from Sarah Tucker lives with her largely absent and unpleasant husband. A little girl who lived in the house has disappeared. Sarah becomes driven to find her. She comes to understand that there are some very bad people involved in this disappearance and that spurs her on further. When the private detective she’s hired is murdered, instead of backing off she doubles down. She meets Zoe who decides to help out and this is the beginning of a great partnership. Danger and men with very big guns lurk and despite her life being threatened constantly, Sarah is determined to find the little girl.
Great pace, lots of wry humour with word play as you’d expect and a cracking good story. Every character you meet is excellent. Good reading!
July 12, 2020
I'm a great fan of the author's Slough House series, which I've read and will probably reread the first few now that I know the characters - it's that good. My favorite character in that series is Jackson Lamb, a thoroughly unlikable hero who insults people all the time with comments like "Are you still here?"
So, I was happy to come across a similar character in this book, although even less likeable than Jackson Lamb. His name was "C". He seemed to be in charge of a spook department that cleaned up after operations that needed to not have happened, or people that needed to be erased. As you can imagine, he had some pretty bad people working for him, people that enjoyed the job.
When he was getting a status update from an underling, we are treated to this exchange:
Or, after summarizing a botched-up job that was particularly messy, he says:
If you read any of the Slough House series, I'm sure you'd recognize that style immediately.
The story itself was a bit darker than Slough House, perhaps. I believe it was written before Slough House. But it was a good story, with good characters, and some unlikely heroes, who happened to be women. My only complaint was that it was too short. I felt there was more that I wanted to know, but it didn't really leave any loose ends, but it could have wrapped things up a little more.
I'm hoping the rest of the series is as good or better than this one. I plan to find out soon.
So, I was happy to come across a similar character in this book, although even less likeable than Jackson Lamb. His name was "C". He seemed to be in charge of a spook department that cleaned up after operations that needed to not have happened, or people that needed to be erased. As you can imagine, he had some pretty bad people working for him, people that enjoyed the job.
When he was getting a status update from an underling, we are treated to this exchange:
‘Fuck off. Now, what happened to Mr Trafford? He been secured?’
‘I think so.’
‘How excellent. If I were interested in what you think, Howard, I’d be saving up for your memoirs. Has he been secured or not?’
Or, after summarizing a botched-up job that was particularly messy, he says:
'Did I miss anything important?’
Howard shook his head.
‘Good. Now, here’s the really interesting question. If only one part of that was to appear in the papers, which part would you like it to be?’
‘The bit about Downey killing Axel,’ Howard said.
C closed his eyes briefy. ‘Have you any idea how fucking rhetorical that was?’
This time, Howard didn’t reply.
If you read any of the Slough House series, I'm sure you'd recognize that style immediately.
The story itself was a bit darker than Slough House, perhaps. I believe it was written before Slough House. But it was a good story, with good characters, and some unlikely heroes, who happened to be women. My only complaint was that it was too short. I felt there was more that I wanted to know, but it didn't really leave any loose ends, but it could have wrapped things up a little more.
I'm hoping the rest of the series is as good or better than this one. I plan to find out soon.
November 13, 2022
Before he hit publishing gold with the Slough House books, Mick Herron wrote a series featuring the Oxford private detective Zoe Boehm. Down Cemetery Road (the title will be familiar to any readers of Philip Larkin) is the first in the four book (to date) series and reveals a thriller writer already in full possession of the qualities that would take him on to greater success a decade or so later. Already a master of tense, edge of the seat storytelling and of a remarkable ability to blindside the reader repeatedly in the course of any given narrative (his short story collection Dolphin Junction - which led me to the Oxford Investigations novels - should have given me ample warning that nothing can ever be taken for granted in a Mick Herron story, but he is so skilled, and obviously takes so much delight, in wrong footing the reader at every possible opportunity that I found it happening again and again throughout Down Cemetery Road), Herron has become a must-read author for me. I can’t recommend this highly enough and look forward immensely to the second book in the series, ‘The Last Voice You Hear’.
October 29, 2025
Sarah Trafford/Tucker ist als Nur-Hausfrau für Bewirtung und Wohlergehen potentieller Geschäftspartner ihres Mannes Mark zuständig. Da Mark seine bessere Hälfte stets herablassend behandelt, provoziert Sarah offenbar ausgerechnet mit der Einladung ihrer exzentrischen Freundin Wigwam samt Ehemann, der den grün eingestellten Proletarier mimt, als Gegenpart zum wichtigen Investor Gerard und seiner Ehefrau, deren Name Sarah dauernd entfällt. Gäste und Gastgeber haben an diesem Abend Logenplätze, als in Sichtweite der Tucker-Wohnung ein Haus durch eine Gasexplosion zerlegt wird. Obwohl dort nur die alleinlebende Maddie Singleton mit ihrer kleinen Tochter Dinah lebte, werden zwei erwachsene Tote aus dem Haus getragen. Sarah, die von Mark u. a. Männern penetrant ermahnt wird, dass sie nicht arbeitet und keine Kinder hat, entwickelt eine Obsession für das verschwundene Mädchen, dass ja irgendjemand in seiner Obhut haben muss. In der Folge nimmt Sarah auf der Suche nach Dinah Kontakt zur Detektei Joe Silverman & Zoë Böhm auf und gerät in eine groteske Verschwörung des britischen Geheimdiensts.
Zoë Böhm ermittelt in diesem Einstiegsband kaum, sie und Sarah treffen zusammen und erleben ein gemeinsames Abenteuer, das Versager und ihre Fails in den „Diensten“ bloßstellt. Ein kurzer Prolog führt in ein Kriegsszenario in einem Wüstenstaat, in dem offenbar Kindersoldaten eingesetzt werden. Die Szene könnte darauf vorbereiten, dass Frauen wie Sarah (die als simples Gemüt dargestellt wird) sich aus dem Dunstkreis der britischen „Dienste“ besser heraushalten sollten. Auf gefühlt hunderten von Seiten wird Sarahs Hausfrauenrolle ausgewalzt, indem von Mark im Jahr 2003 Einstellungen vertreten werden, die in den 1980ern schon als veraltet galten. Wenn die „Dienste“ auf diesem Niveau operieren sollten, dann Gutenacht. Interessanter hätte ich die Frage gefunden, welche Berufstätigkeit Sarah anstrebt und ob ihre Einstellung zu eigenen Kindern endgültig feststeht. Insgesamt fand ich die Rollen von Sarah und Zoë schwach und hoffe, dass Mick Herron inzwischen auch Frauenfiguren beherrscht. Dass Anfang des Jahrtausends Fahrkarten noch am Schalter gekauft und Bahnangestellte dazu als Zeugen vernommen werden können, wirkt ebenso charmant antiquiert wie das Entfalten einer großen Landkarte aus Papier. Der (Original-)Titel „Down Cemetery Road“ bezieht sich auf das Schlusskapitel.
Fazit
Die Sara Tucker-Serie erschien ab 2003, sodass man sie als Schärfen der schriftstellerischen Schreibfeder für die folgende Serie „Slow Horses“ einordnen könnte. Nach einem belanglosen Einstieg und einem personenreichen Mittelteil nimmt zum Ende der zynische Humor zu, mit dem Herron den britischen Geheimdienst aufs Korn nimmt. Die Vermarktung mit „Zoë Böhm ermittelt“ finde ich irreführend, davon erwarte ich eine weibliche Ermittlerin in der Hauptrolle.
3 1/2 Sterne
Zoë Böhm ermittelt in diesem Einstiegsband kaum, sie und Sarah treffen zusammen und erleben ein gemeinsames Abenteuer, das Versager und ihre Fails in den „Diensten“ bloßstellt. Ein kurzer Prolog führt in ein Kriegsszenario in einem Wüstenstaat, in dem offenbar Kindersoldaten eingesetzt werden. Die Szene könnte darauf vorbereiten, dass Frauen wie Sarah (die als simples Gemüt dargestellt wird) sich aus dem Dunstkreis der britischen „Dienste“ besser heraushalten sollten. Auf gefühlt hunderten von Seiten wird Sarahs Hausfrauenrolle ausgewalzt, indem von Mark im Jahr 2003 Einstellungen vertreten werden, die in den 1980ern schon als veraltet galten. Wenn die „Dienste“ auf diesem Niveau operieren sollten, dann Gutenacht. Interessanter hätte ich die Frage gefunden, welche Berufstätigkeit Sarah anstrebt und ob ihre Einstellung zu eigenen Kindern endgültig feststeht. Insgesamt fand ich die Rollen von Sarah und Zoë schwach und hoffe, dass Mick Herron inzwischen auch Frauenfiguren beherrscht. Dass Anfang des Jahrtausends Fahrkarten noch am Schalter gekauft und Bahnangestellte dazu als Zeugen vernommen werden können, wirkt ebenso charmant antiquiert wie das Entfalten einer großen Landkarte aus Papier. Der (Original-)Titel „Down Cemetery Road“ bezieht sich auf das Schlusskapitel.
Fazit
Die Sara Tucker-Serie erschien ab 2003, sodass man sie als Schärfen der schriftstellerischen Schreibfeder für die folgende Serie „Slow Horses“ einordnen könnte. Nach einem belanglosen Einstieg und einem personenreichen Mittelteil nimmt zum Ende der zynische Humor zu, mit dem Herron den britischen Geheimdienst aufs Korn nimmt. Die Vermarktung mit „Zoë Böhm ermittelt“ finde ich irreführend, davon erwarte ich eine weibliche Ermittlerin in der Hauptrolle.
3 1/2 Sterne
March 11, 2019
This was a real disappointment after reading the Slough House books. I would not have picked them up if I had read this first. The beginning of the book was very slow with the main character, Sarah, spending most of it feeling sorry for herself. It was also difficult to believe her obsession with finding the missing child.
January 28, 2023
I basically finished this book in a hurry because I just wanted it to end. To me, it's much too gory and violent. There's no ray of hope in it anywhere and the ending just leaves you hanging. The plot is convoluted and full of government conspiracies and the whole narrative is just dated. I do not recommend.
November 20, 2025
Mick Herron ist dem Genreleser – und darüber hinaus – seit einigen Jahren natürlich ein Begriff. Mit seiner Reihe um die „Slow Horses“, einer Gruppe abgehalfteter und vom britischen Geheimdienst aufs Abstellgleis geschobener Agenten um den kauzigen Chef Jackson Lamb, die allerdings doch nicht so ineffektiv sind und dem MI5 „pain in the ass“ sind, erreichte Herron einen großen Erfolg bei Lesern und Kritikern gleichermaßen. Die Popularität der Serie stieg noch einmal an, seitdem Apple TV die Serie mit Gary Oldman in der Hauptrolle fürs Streaming adaptierte. Eine Serienverfilmung ist nun auch der Grund, warum Herrons Debütroman „Down Cemetery Road“ nach über 20 Jahren ins Deutsche übersetzt wurde. Wiederum war es Apple TV, die diesen Roman als Serie verfilmt und im Oktober veröffentlicht hat, mit Emma Thompson in der Hauptrolle als Privatdetektivin Zoë Boehm. Der Diogenes Verlag hat das Buch auch mit dem Untertitel „Zoë Boehm ermittelt in Oxford“ versehen, um damit zu unterstreichen, dass es sich hier um eine Serie mit vier Bänden handelt, die Herron bis 2009 vor seiner Slow Horses-Reihe verfasst hat. Allerdings Zoë Boehm als Hauptfigur in diesem ersten Band zu bezeichnen, wäre ein wenig übertrieben, denn eigentlich greift die Detektivin nach zwei Kurzauftritten erst im letzten Viertel des Romans so richtig in die Handlung ein. Doch der Reihe nach.
Sarah Trafford ist auf der Suche: Nach abgeschlossenem Studium lebt sie nun in einem Haus in einer guten – aber nicht sehr guten – Gegend von Oxford, ihr Mann Mark macht irgendwas im Bereich Finanzen, bringt gutes Geld nach Hause, während sie noch nicht so recht den nächsten Schritt ins Berufsleben geschafft hat. Es gibt keine Kinder, sie will auch (noch) gar keine. Sie vertreibt sich irgendwie die Zeit, mit Hausputz oder so. Im Studium hingegen war Sarah Tucker wild und ungestüm – bis zu einem schweren Unfall unter Drogeneinfluss. „BHS – Boring Housewife Syndrom“, so bringt es in der Eingangsszene Gerard Inchon, ein unangenehmer Geschäftspartner ihres Mannes, dann doch irgendwie auf den Punkt. Zu Beginn hat Mark Inchon samt Partnerin zum Essen nach Hause eingeladen, um die Geschäftsbeziehung möglichst zu vertiefen. Sarah darf auch jemanden dazuladen, ihre Wahl fällt auf ihre eher linksalternative Freundin Wigwam und ihren ähnlich schluffigen neuen Freund Rufus. Ein gefundenes Fressen für den konservativ-zynischen Inchon – und der Leser darf sich an einem höchst vergnüglichen Anfangskapitel ergötzen. Doch noch etwas anderes passiert während des Dinners: In der Nachbarschaft gibt es eine Explosion mit zwei Toten, ein kleines Mädchen hat es überlebt.
Sarah ist sofort fasziniert und interessiert. Sie meint sich an das Mädchen Dinah zu erinnern. Ihr kommt die Explosion seltsam vor, sie findet, dass das allgemeine Interesse an der Sache schnell heruntergespielt wird. Am Unglücksort glaubt sie einen verdächtigen Mann gesehen zu haben. Bei der Polizei wird ihr nichts über den Verbleib von Dinah verraten und so reift in ihr der Entschluss, Dinah unbedingt finden zu müssen. Der Leser fragt sich schon irgendwie warum, aber da geht es der Hauptfigur nicht anders. Dennoch bleibt sie dran und engagiert sogar einen Privatdetektiv – Joe Silvermann, Partner von Zoë Boehm. Und selbstverständlich steckt hinter der Explosion sehr viel mehr, und ohne groß spoilern zu wollen, schlittert Sarah in eine Geheimdienstoperation, in der manche ungelegene Beweise und Zeugen im Zusammenhang mit dem Irakkrieg beseitigt werden sollen.
Die Detektei war zwischen einem Pub und einem Zeitungskiosk eingezwängt, und obwohl die Anzeige in den Gelben Seiten „Hightech“ versprochen hatte, hielt dieses Versprechen nicht mal bis zur Türklingel. (Auszug E-Book Pos. 866)
Obwohl Mick Herron hier im Jahr 2002 eine Reihe mit einer Oxforder Privatdetektivin einführt, wirkt der Roman schon als kleine Blaupause für den später folgenden „Slow Horses“-Kosmos. Auch hier gibt es schmutzige Geheimdienstaktionen und es werden einige sehr seltsame Figuren aus dem Geheimdienstmilieu eingeführt. Allerdings bleibt der Autor eng bei seiner Hauptfigur Sarah, die völlig konfus sich in eine Sache einmischt, die ein paar Nummern zu groß für sie ist, aber – und das nötigt dem Leser dann doch Respekt ab – sie zieht es durch (wenn auch irgendwann dann doch Zoë Boehm so richtig in die Geschichte einsteigt). Irgendwann wird Sarah selbst zur Gejagten, eine wilde Flucht mit einem unerwarteten Begleiter beginnt und dennoch bleibt die Suche nach dem verschwundenen Kind immer präsent.
„Down Cemetery Road“ ist auch in der heutigen Betrachtung nach Kenntnis der „Slow Horses“-Romane ein bemerkenswerter Debütroman. Mick Herron entwickelt aus der gediegenen Oxford- und Hausfrauen-Atmosphäre einen temporeichen und intelligenten Geheimdiensthriller. Dabei ist auch hier schon der hervorragende literarische Stil Herrons durchsetzt mit typisch britischem Humor zu beobachten. Insofern ein echter Gewinn, dass es dieser Roman nach 23 Jahre zu einer gelungenen deutschen Übersetzung durch Stefanie Schäfer geschafft hat. Und vielleicht taucht Zoë Boehm in den weiteren Bänden dann auch etwas häufiger auf.
Sarah Trafford ist auf der Suche: Nach abgeschlossenem Studium lebt sie nun in einem Haus in einer guten – aber nicht sehr guten – Gegend von Oxford, ihr Mann Mark macht irgendwas im Bereich Finanzen, bringt gutes Geld nach Hause, während sie noch nicht so recht den nächsten Schritt ins Berufsleben geschafft hat. Es gibt keine Kinder, sie will auch (noch) gar keine. Sie vertreibt sich irgendwie die Zeit, mit Hausputz oder so. Im Studium hingegen war Sarah Tucker wild und ungestüm – bis zu einem schweren Unfall unter Drogeneinfluss. „BHS – Boring Housewife Syndrom“, so bringt es in der Eingangsszene Gerard Inchon, ein unangenehmer Geschäftspartner ihres Mannes, dann doch irgendwie auf den Punkt. Zu Beginn hat Mark Inchon samt Partnerin zum Essen nach Hause eingeladen, um die Geschäftsbeziehung möglichst zu vertiefen. Sarah darf auch jemanden dazuladen, ihre Wahl fällt auf ihre eher linksalternative Freundin Wigwam und ihren ähnlich schluffigen neuen Freund Rufus. Ein gefundenes Fressen für den konservativ-zynischen Inchon – und der Leser darf sich an einem höchst vergnüglichen Anfangskapitel ergötzen. Doch noch etwas anderes passiert während des Dinners: In der Nachbarschaft gibt es eine Explosion mit zwei Toten, ein kleines Mädchen hat es überlebt.
Sarah ist sofort fasziniert und interessiert. Sie meint sich an das Mädchen Dinah zu erinnern. Ihr kommt die Explosion seltsam vor, sie findet, dass das allgemeine Interesse an der Sache schnell heruntergespielt wird. Am Unglücksort glaubt sie einen verdächtigen Mann gesehen zu haben. Bei der Polizei wird ihr nichts über den Verbleib von Dinah verraten und so reift in ihr der Entschluss, Dinah unbedingt finden zu müssen. Der Leser fragt sich schon irgendwie warum, aber da geht es der Hauptfigur nicht anders. Dennoch bleibt sie dran und engagiert sogar einen Privatdetektiv – Joe Silvermann, Partner von Zoë Boehm. Und selbstverständlich steckt hinter der Explosion sehr viel mehr, und ohne groß spoilern zu wollen, schlittert Sarah in eine Geheimdienstoperation, in der manche ungelegene Beweise und Zeugen im Zusammenhang mit dem Irakkrieg beseitigt werden sollen.
Die Detektei war zwischen einem Pub und einem Zeitungskiosk eingezwängt, und obwohl die Anzeige in den Gelben Seiten „Hightech“ versprochen hatte, hielt dieses Versprechen nicht mal bis zur Türklingel. (Auszug E-Book Pos. 866)
Obwohl Mick Herron hier im Jahr 2002 eine Reihe mit einer Oxforder Privatdetektivin einführt, wirkt der Roman schon als kleine Blaupause für den später folgenden „Slow Horses“-Kosmos. Auch hier gibt es schmutzige Geheimdienstaktionen und es werden einige sehr seltsame Figuren aus dem Geheimdienstmilieu eingeführt. Allerdings bleibt der Autor eng bei seiner Hauptfigur Sarah, die völlig konfus sich in eine Sache einmischt, die ein paar Nummern zu groß für sie ist, aber – und das nötigt dem Leser dann doch Respekt ab – sie zieht es durch (wenn auch irgendwann dann doch Zoë Boehm so richtig in die Geschichte einsteigt). Irgendwann wird Sarah selbst zur Gejagten, eine wilde Flucht mit einem unerwarteten Begleiter beginnt und dennoch bleibt die Suche nach dem verschwundenen Kind immer präsent.
„Down Cemetery Road“ ist auch in der heutigen Betrachtung nach Kenntnis der „Slow Horses“-Romane ein bemerkenswerter Debütroman. Mick Herron entwickelt aus der gediegenen Oxford- und Hausfrauen-Atmosphäre einen temporeichen und intelligenten Geheimdiensthriller. Dabei ist auch hier schon der hervorragende literarische Stil Herrons durchsetzt mit typisch britischem Humor zu beobachten. Insofern ein echter Gewinn, dass es dieser Roman nach 23 Jahre zu einer gelungenen deutschen Übersetzung durch Stefanie Schäfer geschafft hat. Und vielleicht taucht Zoë Boehm in den weiteren Bänden dann auch etwas häufiger auf.
August 22, 2025
The body count was pretty high in this thriller that includes the bombing of a house in an Oxford suburb, an unusual pairing of a bored housewife and an ex-soldier on the run from murderous authorities while in search of a four-year-old girl, and private detective Zoë Boehm makes her debut. The wit and sly humor we've come to love from Mick Herron's Slough House series is all there. Excellent narration provided by Alix Dunmore.
Favorite quotes:
"He had never really lost his youth, he just kept it in a small room off the landing."
"She could as easily had nightmares about the car she'd seen, a black demon chewing the darkness with its twin electric swords."
"There was a degree of comfort in this, Sara decided, that divinely ordained or accidentally slam-dunked into being the arrangement of the universe was not without humor, which in itself you could take as a sign that prayer was not without purpose."
"The dark heart that beats in the chest of government."
"What made democracy a fair and just system was that this dark heart was kept hidden rather than used to promote terror and obedience."
Favorite quotes:
"He had never really lost his youth, he just kept it in a small room off the landing."
"She could as easily had nightmares about the car she'd seen, a black demon chewing the darkness with its twin electric swords."
"There was a degree of comfort in this, Sara decided, that divinely ordained or accidentally slam-dunked into being the arrangement of the universe was not without humor, which in itself you could take as a sign that prayer was not without purpose."
"The dark heart that beats in the chest of government."
"What made democracy a fair and just system was that this dark heart was kept hidden rather than used to promote terror and obedience."
December 23, 2022
This is the first novel by Mick Herron, who is the author of the delightful "Slough House" series. In that series, the British espionage establishment engage in humorous and deadly machinations to one-up each other, with the slovenly Jackson Lamb always emerging victorious. These books are well thought out, slyly funny and either well-researched or strikingly realistic despite not being very real. "Down Cemetery Road", unfortunately only shows occasional glimpses of the writer that Mick Herron would eventually become.
Much of the novel strains credulity or is unnecessary to the plot. The basic premise is that an unemployed housewife finds her way into a major government conspiracy. That alone is much too ambitious to back up with a strong plot. She stumbles around the novel, hitting paydirt wherever she goes, like Angela Lansbury stumbling into murders in "Murder She Wrote". Yes, it's fiction. But fiction needs to have some believability to be engaging.
The opening chapters that set the novel up are done well. Sarah employs a detective to look for a little girl and suddenly she is involved in the conspiracy. Unfortunately, from there the book turns into a Robert Ludlum novel, with a lot of traveling around from location to location. It is a lot of motion and action, but at no point does the novel really engage the reader. Yes, it's an unfulfilled woman looking to rescue a young girl, but Herron doesn't really get us to care that much about either one. It ends up being a simple thriller without much depth to it. The good news (Spoiler Alert): Mick Herron gets much, much better in his future novels.
Much of the novel strains credulity or is unnecessary to the plot. The basic premise is that an unemployed housewife finds her way into a major government conspiracy. That alone is much too ambitious to back up with a strong plot. She stumbles around the novel, hitting paydirt wherever she goes, like Angela Lansbury stumbling into murders in "Murder She Wrote". Yes, it's fiction. But fiction needs to have some believability to be engaging.
The opening chapters that set the novel up are done well. Sarah employs a detective to look for a little girl and suddenly she is involved in the conspiracy. Unfortunately, from there the book turns into a Robert Ludlum novel, with a lot of traveling around from location to location. It is a lot of motion and action, but at no point does the novel really engage the reader. Yes, it's an unfulfilled woman looking to rescue a young girl, but Herron doesn't really get us to care that much about either one. It ends up being a simple thriller without much depth to it. The good news (Spoiler Alert): Mick Herron gets much, much better in his future novels.
November 20, 2022
Bored housewife hires private detective to find a missing girl and crosses the path of British Government sanctioned contract killers who blew up her neighbour's house. Having read Mick Herron's "Slow Horses" series - which I thoroughly enjoyed - I decided to give his earlier books a try. This one was first published in 2003 and has a slow build up which fans of the aforementioned spy series may find difficult to stay with. While I think "Down Cemetery Road" would have benefited from judicious editing, I found it a decent thriller.
January 22, 2022
Mick Herron writes absorbing, funny thrillers. Down cemetery road is no exception and very much the fix for people like me who have read all the Slough House entries. Sarah Tucker starts to care about a disappeared child for no good reason then allowing for a host of finely drawn characters to spill out in murderous battle.
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