The Grave Digger's Boy

by R.R. Newman

ONE DARK SECRET. ONE ADOLESCENT OBSESSION.

As a boy, Ben was a witness in the disappearance and suspected murder of a beautiful young woman, Esther Garrett, which led to an intense adolescent obsession.

Twenty years later, the conviction of her murderer is overturned due to a police corruption scandal.  Ben’s obsession is reawakened when Esther’s sister asks for his help in investigating the crime.

As Ben is drawn deeper into the case, he will be forced to face the truth about his own life and soon finds himself questioning everything he ever believed.

Was Esther really murdered?

And if so, could the killer be closer to home than anyone ever imagined?

The Grave Digger's Boy is is a gripping crime mystery full of stunning twists and turns. The perfect read for fans of authors like Rachel Abbott, Cara Hunter and Patricia Gibney. 

264 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 13, 2019

About the author

Author also writes as Ray Newman

I grew up in Somerset and Devon, lived in London and Penzance, and am now based in Bristol. I'm fascinated by the dark side of West Country life – ditches, dark woods and declining towns where people go to disappear.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finding R. R. Newman’s debut novel cross my path was surely a sign. A mix of mystery and police procedural, I was pulled into the story from the beginning and held transfixed until the final page. At the age of eleven, Ben Hodge witnesses Esther Garrett being harassed on a transit bus. When Esther flees into the country woods, the harasser, one Aaron Greenslade, follows her. This is the last anyone saw of Esther, who is soon reported missing. While the police seek to find the teenage girl, Ben takes an inexplicable fascination in the news reports, amassing a scrapbook of articles. The authorities eventually change Greenslade with murder, though Esther’s body has yet to be found. Fast-forward twenty years and Ben is trying to make ends meet, reminded of the Esther Garrett case as news reports of a corrupt police detective make headlines. Many of the cases he led are now being re-examined, with the possibility of convictions built on false evidence being overturned. Ben’s obsession resurfaces and he soon encounters Esther’s sister, who remains vigilant that the truth is out there. As scraps of the case cross Ben’s path, he investigates for himself, even when counselled to leave well enough alone. Esther Garrett must be out there somewhere, even after all these years. Whether she is alive or dead is not quite clear, but Ben Hodge is sure he’s onto something, as vague as that might be. Newman builds a powerful story that culminates in a reveal many readers will likely enjoy. Recommended to those who love a good mystery, as well as readers who enjoy discovering new authors to add to their collection.

The power of Goodreads strikes again, as I found this piece while scanning the site a few weeks ago. The title alone pulled me in, but it was the story that sold me, even in the early chapters. Newman creates an interesting premise with young Ben Hodge as protagonist. A child of divorce, Ben is trying to process all of that as he stumbles upon the mystery of Esther Garrett’s disappearance. His obsession with the case forces him to mature quickly and he soon becomes captivated with what might have happened. The move to step ahead into Ben’s adult life is brilliant, as the case remained stuck in his craw over two decades. With little backstory outside what the reader learned and a slow character development moving ahead, the reader can connect to Ben at their own pace. Others offer great insight into the case and provide a few leads for the reader to consider. One can only wonder how Ben might have developed differently had some of the characters not crossed his path. The story was well developed, with a mix of narrative, press clippings, and evidence that Ben locates in his investigation. The reader can feel the momentum grow as the story gains speed and depth, with new leads developing as the chapters build on one another. A mix of short and long chapters keep the reader balanced and forces a commitment to learn what’s happening. With an ending that pulls everything together in a timely fashion, this is a debut well worth a look.

Kudos, Mr. Newman, for a fabulous venture into the genre. I cannot wait to see what else you have in store for fans.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 / 5 rounded up.

W H A T - The Grave Digger's Boy by R.R. Newman was such a quick, engrossing, and shocking book - and I loved it!!

What it's about: When Ben is eleven, he sees a young woman named Esther Garrett get off his father's bus right before she goes missing and is suspected to have been murdered. He develops an obsession (at 11!) that twenty years later will be reignited when Esther's little sister phones him asking him to help her find out what happened to Esther once and for all. As Ben begins diving into Esther's disappearance with a little civilian sleuthing, what he finds out may shock everyone, including himself.

I don't really know with my expectations going into The Grave Digger's Boy were, but whatever they were this book completely exceeded them! It was fast-paced, interesting, and the end was fantastic and surprising - I never saw it coming! Ben was an interesting POV to read from, and we are in it when he is eleven when Esther goes missing, then again when he is 32 in a job he doesn't like and he's basically a loner. Helping figure out what happened to Esther gives him a purpose and he becomes very obsessed with figuring out what happened to her after the little sister gets in touch. His obsession was fascinating, and let’s face it, a bit weird.

While I did like reading from Ben's POV I'm still not entirely what I thought about him as a character (likable vs not). Even though I can't decide how I feel about him, that didn't affect how I felt about the book overall, and he wasn't particularly UNlikable, just weird. But hey, he would probably get along great with the My Favorite Murder ladies!

The chapters were all pretty short, and even the ones that weren't read super-fast. I tore through this book in one sitting, and highly recommend it for those of you that love a quick mystery read!

Song/s the book brought to mind: Creep in a T-Shirt by Portugal. The Man

Final Thoughts: I don't think I can recommend The Grave Digger's Boy enough. For some reason it just really struck a chord with me and I loved it. Surprise endings that I can't figure out are always my favorite and this book does not disappoint! I can't even tell it's a debut you guys, so everyone read it!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Ben was 11 years old, he was a witness in the disappearance of a teenage girl. She happened to be riding on the bus that his father drove ... she got off the bus and was never seen again. Another bus rider, a man just released from prison who got off at the same time was charged and convicted of her murder ...although her body was never found. He has always said he was innocent.

Twenty years later, he is still obsessed with her disappearance ... especially when her younger sister comes to him asking for help in discovering what really happened to her sister.

What the two of them discover will change everything Ben has thought. Was she even murdered? Did she run off with someone? If she is dead, who had reason to kill her? Why hasn't her body ever been found?

This is a suspenseful page turner with twists and turns that kept me glued to the pages. The characters are finely drawn and are quite credible. The mystery starts on the first page and doesn't let up until the final surprising ending.

Many thanks to the author / Bloodhound Books for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

[Alan Cotterell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Bloodhound Books and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The book starts with a young boy, Ben, who is riding along in his dad’s bus, when a teenage girl boards at the last minute and can only find a seat next to a scruffy guy who later hassles her on the journey. When she gets off the bus, and heads down a dark country lane, the guy quickly gets off too and follows her. The following day she is reported as missing and although her body is never found, there is a conviction.

20 years later, Ben is now living in London when two things happen which re-alight this case. Firstly the detective, who was in charge of it, is having all his cases looked into again and secondly the dead girl’s younger sister wants to discover what really happened to her sibling. And so Ben is caught up in the whole affair again.

Very well written with very descriptive language that made me feel I was there. Loved the references to the comic 2000AD Something I used to read, albeit 20 years before the start of this story! I am getting old! The pace of this book is incredible, a definite page turner that had me sneaking chapters or two or ten when I should have been doing something else.

These are all great characters whose lives are interwoven over two decades.
Who is lying?
Who is telling the truth?

The title of the book, is an enigma until right at the very end; it’s like the punchline you are waiting for; and when it comes it quite literally, hits you square in the face!

This was just the tonic I needed.

[8stitches 9lives · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Grave Digger's Boy is an intelligently written and well-plotted crime thriller and a solid debut novel from newcomer R. R. Newman, and whilst I enjoyed it and thought it was emotionally engaging and intriguing enough to continue with, I must admit to guessing the murderer quite early on. On the other hand, what I particularly loved, though, was that the narrative was very fluid and the story easy to immerse yourself in right from the opening pages.

It begins relatively slowly but for good reason, as it sets out all of the ins and outs of the tale but soon the twists and turns come at you thick and fast. The attention to detail with regards to the cast was superb; each of the characters literally leapt off the pages and came alive with their relatability and three-dimensionality. Overall, this was a compelling and entertaining way to spend a few afternoon hours.

[Philomena Callan Cheekypee · Rating 5 out of 5]

One dark secret. One adolescent obsession.

This is the story of Ben who as a young boy was a witness to a disappearance and suspected murder of a young woman.

Ben as a young boy is obsessed with the disappearance. As he grows older and moves away he still can’t forget the young girl.

When the missing girls sister reaches out for Ben to help her he can’t resist.

This is a well written story that I thoroughly enjoyed. I’m hoping this author is busy writing more stories like this for us.

[Donna Morfett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The grave diggers boy

A young boy sees a woman on a bus as a child who is quite beautiful and catches his eye, as does a young man, who gets angry when he tries to touch her and she rejects his advances.

This young woman then goes missing. Ben, the young boy on the bus, the son of the bus driver, becomes obsessed with the case. He collects clippings from the paper and is desperate for updates, hoping beyond hope she's found alive.

He grows up, moves away, gets lost in the world of adulthood, but is never ultimately able to rest and when the sister of the missing woman comes asking for help, he drops everything.

If you can believe such a young boy having such a strange obsession, and dropping everything to satisfy a teenage obsession then you will enjoy this. It's cleverly written and the language is very descriptive, making you feel more like you are standing within the pages.

I had a gut feeling about who the baddie was early on, and was right, but that's unusual, and I don't think it's immediately obvious.

All in all a great read, I enjoyed it.

[Sharon Rimmelzwaan · Rating 5 out of 5]

new author for me here. When Ben was a boy he was the last person to see Esther a beautiful young woman alive. He became obsessed with her. 20 years later, the case is reopened and her sister gets Ben involved. This leads to Ben seeing things through fresh eyes...bringing about revelations he rather not uncover.

I really enjoyed this book and found it interesting and deep enough to want to find out the full story in a few days.
Massive thanks to Bloodhound books and R.R Newman for allowing me to receive an Advance Readers Copy, in exchange for a honest review.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

As he often did, eleven year old Ben was travelling on the local bus with his dad Peter who was the driver.

But this day, this journey, was going to change his life forever after he witnesses something going on between a pretty young girl and a rough looking lad.

Something that would go onto to affect him right through to adulthood, in fact for the rest of his life. .

When the young Esther disappears without trace Ben becomes totally obsessed with the case, and with his friend Chelsea he thinks he can solve what happened and find her.

Fast forward and Ben is now working in London getting on with the life he is creating for himself until one day it all begins to resurface re-igniting his obsession with Esther Garret.

Ben returns home, even more determined than ever, knowing that whatever it is that he has to do, he must find out what happened to the pretty girl on the bus.

But nothing could ever have prepared him for the final outcome.

This is definitely a book that you will want to have a whole day free so as you can read it from cover to cover; a total page turner.

Great characters whose lives are intertwined over two decades.
Who is lying?
Who is telling the truth?

You won’t understand the title of the book until right at the very end; it’s like the punchline you are waiting for; and when it comes it quite literally, hits you square in the face! BRILLIANT!

[Alyson Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story begins in Devon, with 11 year old Ben Hodge who sits in the seat behind his bus driver Dad Peter's cab and travels with him while he works his shift. On one such journey a pretty young girl called Esther Garrett boards the bus and has no choice but to take the last remaining seat next to an aggressive looking young man. He tries to chat her up and gets angry when she rejects him, and then rushes to leave the bus at the same stop when she gets off. She heads off down a dark path and the bus moves on. The following day Ben and Peter are contacted by the police, since the girl has been reported missing and they may be two of the last people to see her. Esther is never found, dead or alive, and the young Ben becomes obsessed with her, watching the news and collecting newspaper reports. Very quickly the police find the young man who followed her and despite his protestations and lack of a body he is convicted of her murder. Twenty years later and living free of his family and background, Ben hears that the detective responsible for Esther's case and many others is now being investigated for corruption and rigging false evidence. Ben has once more to relive his evidence. At the same time he is contacted by Esther's younger sister and asked for his help in investigating her disappearance. Disillusioned by his job and his life in general, Ben jumps at the chance to go home and immerse himself once again in his unhealthy obsession. The book slowly draws in the reader, handing out little bits of new evidence and clues along the way. Ben is a bit of an oddball character and some his behaviour is therefore difficult to understand at times, but as we learn more about his background his actions do start to make sense, and he gets to be more likeable as the story progresses. It is purely his loneliness and a need to latch onto a friend that makes him turn out to be such a dogged investigator but ultimately the question is whether he is doing a good or a bad thing and whether he will like what he finds. It is a great plot, slowly enticing and unravelling to keep those pages turning, with great misdirection by the author to an ending that I truly did not see coming!! 4*

[Alex Sarll]

The debut novel from a man now better known as half of booze's Boak & Bailey. But I've known him since before he really drank, and even then he was into genre fiction, so in that sense this very British crime story feels like a homecoming. The initial set-up is archetypal, with a young woman dead, the press and police keen to paint her as an innocent girl, and a suitable local weirdo duly sent down. But decades later, the lead detective turns out to have been finessing the evidence, and the child witness whose altered statement played a part in the trial remains haunted by what happened. Generally, if I read a crime book it's either Golden Age stuff or US ones by people who worked on The Wire, so I don't have the hinterland to say how well this works within the modern thriller genre. But as a portrait of a constricted life, an existence put on hold early on and never quite unpaused, it's unsettlingly plausible. And the eye for detail displayed in the beer books is here too; there are some very telling examples of the British pub in several of its less lovely forms, but also a wider way with capturing that air of faint municipal shiteness which defines Britain every bit as much as our pomp and circumstance.

[Ruth Matheson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book opens with a young boy, Ben,  riding along in his dad’s bus, when a teenage girl boards at the last minute and can only find a seat next to a scruffy guy who hassles her on the journey.  When she disembarks the bus heading along a dark country lane, the guy suddenly gets off too and follows her. Next morning she is reported as missing and although her body is never found, there is a conviction.
 
Fast forward 20 years and Ben is now living in London however two things happen which re-alight this case. Firstly the detective, who was in charge of it, is having all his cases looked into again and secondly the dead girl’s younger sister wants to discover what really happened to her sibling.  And so Ben is caught up in the whole affair again.
 
Well written and good paced story which had me turning the pages to see what happened next. Bottom line is  -  who was the killer and what happened to the body?  Did the police get it right originally or was it someone else?  I didn’t get it right although all the clues were there so that makes it 5*!!
 
Thanks to Bloodhound Books for the ARC to review.

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Grave Digger's Boy is about a young boy who is a witness to a missing young girl after she departs his father's bus. There was a rowdy, unsavory man followed the girl into the woods from the bus, and that is all that Ben and his father saw. The police investigation tries the young man for murder even though a body was never found. Ben became totally obsessed with the missing girl. Twenty years later the young man is released due to the investigating police officer is now accused of
inventing witnesses and other corruptions. Ester's sister asks Ben for help in finding her sister's body. Or is there a body? What really happened? Ben gets involved in things he wishes he had not. I thought the beginning moved rather slowly, it did pick up the pace some in Part Two and ongoing from there. I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book from Bloodhound Books.

[Matt Friend · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel from R. R. Newman. The writing, setting and protagonist are fascinatingly original. In Ben, R. R. Newman has created a non-traditional crime-solver (not a 'hard-bitten detective', or a private investigator driven by a mistake from their past) who is highly believable, and someone we can empathise with and understand - whilst not, perhaps, being entirely sympathetic towards him. The evocation of the West Country as deep, dark and rich - and not at all touristy - makes the novel all the more realistic. And the various twists and turns, along with the skilful writing, kept me turning the pages all the way through. I look forward to the next one!

[Vina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked “The Grave Digger’s Boy” by R.R.Newman, an author I am likely to follow. It is an unusual story, which is a plus for us voracious crime fiction readers. A small boy, riding along in a bus driven by his father sees a pretty and charming young girl being harassed by a loutish young man. When news arrives that she has disappeared, maybe even been killed, he is shocked. Her whereabouts become an obsession for him, and he determines to find her. And so the story continues.
What I really liked was the cryptic title of the book, which remains a mystery all through.

4 Stars.

[jane.stejsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

It would have been 5 stars because I loved the story & the characters. I didn’t guess the ending & it took me by a surprise however the ending felt cut off…. bam final scenes & big reveal and…. nothing END. I needed one more chapter, I needed a closure. I got the closure about the girl but I needed more.

[Carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 🌟
Boring plot, predictable twist, unlikable characters but somehow managed to keep me somewhat engaged…

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love to discover new authors and R. R. Newman is definitely a new author for me. I read the synopsis for 'The Grave Digger's Boy' and it certainly sounded like just my kind of read. A dark, psychological thriller that messes with your mind a bit. 'The Grave Digger's Boy' certainly fits that criteria. I totally and utterly loved it but more about that in a bit.
I wasn't sure what to make of Ben. We first meet him as young boy and his childhood hasn't been great. His parents are no longer together. He lives with his mother, who has major problems although he sees his father on a frequent basis. Ben often accompanies his father on the bus that his father drives and it is during one of these trips that he comes into contact (well sort of) with the girl, Esther, who goes missing. Ben fixates on her in a major way. I did wonder if perhaps she was his first crush. Ben keeps a scrapbook about the case and he keeps it in a safe place. Somebody is arrested, charged and prosecuted for her murder. Fast forward another twenty years and things have changed significantly. The conviction has been overturned due to police corruption and Esther's sister asks Ben to investigate the case in the hope of finding the real killer. Secrets and lies come tumbling out of the closet and Ben has to revisit painful childhood memories. Soon Ben has to question everything that he had previously believed. I can't say that I warmed to Ben because there was something about him that set off little alarm bells for me. That could be more to do with me suspecting everyone and believing nobody. That said, I did feel for Ben because at the beginning of the story he is a very unhappy little boy. His childhood hasn't been great, he has been passed from parent to parent and neither of them seem to take much interest in Ben nor do they try to engage him in activities. He is left with a book or a comic in the corner and expected not to make any sort of noise. Both of his parents have their own problems and to a degree they seem rather selfish because for them, their priorities seem to be themselves first and Ben second whereas it should be the other way round. I was just itching to make a referral to Childrens Social Services. I used to work within Children's Social Services and I could recognise the signs of neglect in Ben's home life. Ben turns his life around and as an adult, he has created a new life and a new home for himself.
Oh my word, 'The Grave Digger's Boy' is one hell of a read and then some. For me, the story does start slowly but much like a snowball rolling down a hill, the pace of the story gathers momentum and leads to a tense and dramatic conclusion. The author certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and he keeps that attention throughout the book by keeping the characters interesting, the storylines plausible and by introducing several twists and turns that you are not expecting. The author writes so realistically and descriptively that I really did feel as though I was part of the story myself.
It did take me a little while to get into this book but that was because I was tired when I began to read the book. After having read a couple of chapters, I soon wakened up and I became addicted to reading this book. I just had to keep reading to see how the story panned out, to learn how developments in the story affected Ben and to see if Esther was really murdered or had something else happened to her. I also wanted to find out if the lead police officer was dealt with appropriately. There was something about him that made me think 'uh oh' and I was almost on the verge of calling in AC-12 (think 'Line Of Duty'). Yes I know that this book is fictional as is the programme before anybody reminds me. The pages turned increasingly quickly as my desperation to find out how the story concluded steadily increased. It didn't take me long to get through the latter half of the book and all of a sudden, I reached the end of the story which I was disappointed about. I don't mean that I was disappointed with how the story ended but I was enjoying the author's writing style, the characters and the storylines so much that I just wanted the book to continue.
In short, 'The Grave Digger's Boy' is most definitely an extremely good book and I would definitely recommend this author and his books to other readers. I look forward to reading more from R. R. Newman. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

[Karolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book got me hooked from the start and I really enjoyed the storyline, never read anything like this before, really gripping. The writing is very descriptive and easy to read. I liked the style as well, always a good sign.

When Ben was eleven years old, he used to ride around on the buses with his dad when he was on shift sometimes. On this particular day, Esther got on the bus, she smiled at Ben and took the only seat available. This was next to a young man who took up most of the seat, not leaving her much room. When there weren’t many passengers left, Ben could see that a conversation was taking place between the girl and young man, he had his hand covering his mouth and leaning in. He placed the other hand on her thigh. She stood up and moved towards the front of the bus, Ben’s dad asked if she was alright, she nodded. Not long after was her stop and she got off, she headed off in the direction of the path into the woods, lost from sight within seconds. Before the bus could pull away, the young man got up and demanded that the doors be opened, that it was his stop. The driver hesitated, a passenger shouted to ‘let him off’, so the driver opened the doors. Ben’s dad seemed to think they had given the girl a head start, like she needed it. Next morning, the police were at the door asking questions, it seemed that the girl had gone missing and didn’t make it home the night before. Ben became obsessed with all the news stories of Esther Garrett and started a scrapbook to keep them all in.

Some twenty years later, the murderer is released after the police officer that led the original investigation was involved in a huge police scandal. This brought it all back to Ben, who was originally obsessed with the hunt for Esther Garrett. He hears from Esther’s sister, Lucy. She wants to speak to him as she wants to hear what he remembers and to investigate on her own more about her sister’s disappearance and murder. The body had never been found. Ben had to think seriously about this, it would be opening old wounds. He now lived in London, had a job and a different life. After the call, he started reading all he could in the papers about the case on Esther Garrett. He decided he had to do something this time and agreed to help Lucy.

I really enjoyed this book, and I found it hard to put down, I wanted to know how it ended! Very well written with lots of suspense and the added bit of police corruption, two stories in one, very well researched for this. Definitely worth a read. I have rated this a 5 star read.

[J Fearnley · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4*

The book is written from the point of view of the main character – Ben. He’s quite an admirable, if somewhat awkward, young fellow. Esther, a teenage girl, goes missing. Ben becomes somewhat obsessed with what is happening. He was after all a witness, one of the last to see her. The connection he made in that brief moment on the bus with Esther has had a profound effect.

Twenty years later when an officer is being investigated a number of convictions are being overturned one of them is Esthers case. Ben, 31 and now living in London, is contacted by her sister, Lucy, she wants answers. Ben is back to being that obsessed young lad. He returns back home and starts to investigate with Lucy. He wants to do right by Esther, he wanted to when he was eleven, and finds he still does now he is an adult. Lucy is somewhat contrary in her attitude towards Ben. She has asked for his help but then gets a bit tetchy when he gets, perhaps, too involved.

This is a book which is written from the interesting slant of Ben when he is eleven and then as a 31 year old. We find out about what apparently happened to Esther through the young Ben. It is the older Ben that has the ability to make sense of things his younger self could not. Yet he is still driven by his obsession, his sense of right – for Esther.

As Ben continues to look into what happens, considering possible options to the man who was convicted – rightly or wrongly – it seems that someone is not happy with his snooping. The Police certainly aren’t.

When Ben is confronted with a piece of information from back when he was eleven he realises what may have happened. He must be sure. The tension racks up from this moment. Has Ben found the real killer? What can he do? What proof does he actually have?

The suspect may not be a total surprise to the reader by now but what happens in the closing chapters of the book surely are.

The Grave Digger’s Boy is an enjoyable and engaging read, well written with sufficient pace, good characterisation and an excellent, tension-filled and, yes, shocking finale.

BlogTour

With many thanks to Heather at Bloodhound Books for the eBook and invite to The Grave Digger’s Boy BlogBlitz.

[Kerry https://likeherdingcatsblog.wordpress.com Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

We’ve all seen cases on the news that may have struck a deeper cord than others or have murders and disappearances that we remember as children and occasionally resurface in our thoughts.

For Ben, it goes beyond this. As a child, Ben was one of the last people to see Esther alive and her disappearance becomes an obsession. Years later, Esther’s sister asks him for help, her accused killer may go free due to police corruption and Ben can’t focus on anything else. Can he solve the crime and finally give himself peace?

The Grave Digger’s boy is a slow burn of a thriller that really gets under your skin. Everything about it is gritty. There is no glamour or glitz about this novel. It’s real; realistic characters that are deeply affected by events, real world settings that are not picturesque or pretty at times but that are places we live in or close to.

The plot unravels slowly giving time and attention to the characters as much as the storytelling. This means the reader really becomes invested and immersed in the narrative as it twists and turns.

A very intense thriller with great character development. Recommended for crime or thriller lovers.

[Nerys Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Ben Hodge was 11 he was one of the last people to see Esther Garrett alive. She was on the bus his dad was driving and was followed off the bus by a young man who’d just been released from prison. The young man was convicted of Esther’s murder even though her body was never found. Twenty years later Esther’s sister, Lucy, has contacted Ben for his help with her sister’s case. The detective who led the original case has been found to be corrupt and all his cases are being re-examined. Ben agrees to help and is soon obsessed with the case just as he was when a schoolboy. It forces him to re-evaluate his life and leads him to uncover the truth about the case - the murderer was closer to him than he could ever have believed.

Thoroughly enjoyable read. Thanks to Bloodhound Books and R R Newman for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

[Bookish · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Grave Digger's Boy by R. R. Newman is a slow burn kind of book - all dark, twisty and utterly surprising.

Ben, having been a witness to the disappearance of a young girl from her father's bus, returns home many years later with a re-kindled obsession to the case that haunted his youth. We're handed two timelines as Ben relives his 11-year-old viewpoint, and the present, where he tries to unravel the secrets, lies, and half-truths to get to the bottom of what happened.

The result is a fantastic cast of characters, wonderful pacing with awesome tension-building, and even if you figure out who our culprit is, you won't be prepared for what goes down when that reveal finally arrives!

R. R. Newman is definitely on my list of must-read authors!

[Holly Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found that The Grave Digger's Boy was one of those novels that eases you into the story, rather than throwing you in right on the first page.

We were consistently learning new snippets of information throughout the novel, and this kept me guessing who the murderer was, right up to the reveal. What a surprise that turned out to be!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was well-written, and I felt a connection to the main characters as they were portrayed in detail, and with a backstory.

Highly recommended!

[Chris Nolan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another new writer to me and a very enjoyable read courtesy of the estimable Bloodhound Books. An event from Ben's childhood has become an obsession throughout his life and he cannot find peace or happiness unless he can get to the heart of what happened. While travelling on a bus being driven by his father, he encountered a young woman and a newly released convict who is subsequently charged with her murder. Unhappy with this course of events, Ben is prepared to go to great lengths to uncover lies and deceit. The results are surprising and the end shocking.

[Bobbi Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first book by this author, I enjoyed it from beginning to end. I enjoyed how I was pulled into the story from the start. It is a creative story that has some sitting on the edge of your seat moments as well as really? moments. The characters brought the story to life for me and kept me reading until the end. Ben was a young boy when he witnessed a disappearance of a young girl but she seems to haunt him into his adult life where he is approached to help find another missing girl. i loved watching him grow throughout the story. I highly recommend this book.

[Reba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing

The story of Ben, who, as a boy, was the last person to see a beautiful young girl before she disappears. Twenty years later, and twenty years after the boy accused of killing the girl has been convicted, he is approached by the victim's sister asking him to help her look into Esther's disappearance. Unhappy in his life, and still obsessed, he begins investigating on his own. Through many twists and turns, he finally figures out who the killer is. But who is the grave digger's boy? That's the question I kept asking myself.

[Angie George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had the privilege of receiving an ARC copy of this and I wasnt disappointed.
Secrets, half truths, dogged determination and emotional. These are some of the highlights of this book.
A fabulous read, starting with the disappearance of a young girl in the 80s after getting the bus home from work. Fast forward to now and things arise that bring the case to the forefront not only of the police but family, acquaintances and witnesses.
Definately a page turner.

[Randee · Rating 2 out of 5]

First of all , I’m extremely shocked to see all of the positive reviews. I’m an avid crime thriller reader and this book was not good at all. Predictable and very anticlimactic. There were none of the promised twists and turns. Extremely slow paced and boring. If you are looking for a crime thriller, this is not one to waste your time picking up.

[Genevieve Aylott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

Well written and kept me gripped throughout. I enjoyed the character development, but felt let down by the ending which seemed clumsy compared to the buildup, and quite abrupt.