A Legacy of Bones

by Doug Burgess

Some legacies are best abandoned...

A well-placed stick of TNT ignites a full-blown investigation in A Legacy of Bones, a provocative murder mystery exploring the racial and cultural divide on a remote Hawaiian island between landed elite and villagers.

On Kaumaha Island (est 1850), the statue of Amyas Lathrop conceals a terrible secret—a legacy of massacres and madness that infects the island itself. Some will go to any lengths to keep it hidden, others to set it free. But which of them would kill?

Cultural expert Winnie Te Papa, our very own Ms. Marple, will sift through the pieces to track a ruthless murderer through a tangled maze of family alliances, greedy developers, scholars, protestors, and gangsters.

Told in dual timeline, Doug Burgess’s intricate puzzle box mystery traces the consequences of an island’s frenetic beginnings as they snowball through generations. Fans of HBO’s White Lotus will be intrigued by the ever hotly debated questions: what happens next and who get to decide?

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Adult

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 7, 2023

About the author

Doug Burgess grew up in a small town just across the bay from Little Compton, where his family has lived for over 350 years. He has authored numerous books on maritime history, including Engines of Empire: Steamships and the Victorian Imagination (Stanford University Press, 2016) and The Politics of Piracy(University Press of New England, 2015). He has also published short fiction in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and other periodicals. Burgess is a professor of history in Manhattan.

Reviews

[theliterateleprechaun · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic murder mystery and a spooky ghost tale with important cultural links!

I’ve heard of the Menehune before, but this was my first introduction to the Legend of the Night Marchers.

Author Doug Burgess explores the racial and cultural divide in Hawaii through the issues between the villagers on fictitious Misery Island and the haole elite, the Lathrop family. The villagers consisted of the natives, as well as the Japanese/Filipino immigrants, all of who were plantation workers, and the Lathrops who were the white plantation owners. Readers don’t get too far into the conflict before noticing some parallels in recent Hawaiian history concerning the sugarcane operations. The heart of the issue for both is the land-ownership divide. Burgess points us towards the Māhele and the toppling of the Hawaiian monarchy. He does it in such a way that readers can’t help but see parallels in similar situations on their own turf. If you didn’t know beforehand, you’ll come away with a better understanding of why the idea of owning the āina was such a difficult concept to grasp and also come away with a deeper appreciation for the Hawaiians and their attitude towards their land.

Some of the characters will remind you of Agatha Christie's novels. Mr. Po reminded me of the eccentric Hercule Poirot and Winnie Te Papa reminded me of Miss Marple. Regardless, the well-rounded characters are authentic and engaging. I enjoyed the references to the ‘walkers’ who patrol the Waipi’o Valley at night! The plot is well-paced with a great balance of intrigue and suspense and is obviously penned by an author who loves history.

This book would lend itself well to book clubs as it reminds us of the importance of building worker struggles across ethnic, racial and national divides while maintaining the true flavour of the islands.

This is a ‘meaty’ book and one read-through won’t do it justice! I’m packing it in my suitcase for our Hawaiian vacation next week.

I was gifted this copy by Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

[Laura (thenerdygnomelife) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A murder mystery, set deep in lush Hawaii and steeped in culture — what's not to love? That's what I was hoping for, at least, but I found the experience fell a bit short.

"A Legacy of Bones" is a dual-narrative plot, alternating between 1) a small community on the cusp of great change in our current era and 2) journal entries from an imperial missionary, Reverend Lathrop, written in the 1850s. In the current era, a descendant of the Lathrop family has sold their Hawaiian island to hotel developer David Tanaka ... or so he thinks. As it turns out, he only had the rights to sell their family home, and not the land that it sits on. So now there is a great debate among the family members: should the land be sold? And if so, what should happen to the commemorative statue that stands on the island? To help settle the dispute, a judge, a historian, and a cultural expert are all brought in to assist. Soon after meeting with these experts, there is an explosion and one of the Lathrop family is found dead. This is the beginning of yet more macabre discoveries on the island, and Mrs. Te Papa (the cultural expert) begins to act as an amateur sleuth looking to determine whether foul play was afoot.

Burgess is a professor of history and I felt like his experience in nonfiction writing comes through — in the quest to include a rich tapestry of facts, at times you get bogged down in the details. There are a good number of characters, and I found that if my attention slipped, I was quick to lose both interest and the finer details of the plot.

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting mystery with rich history and culture.

I liked the dual timelines but I did find the current situation a bit more interesting. I did this as an audio and I did chuckle at a few of the family quips and arguments. I didn't get completely wrapped up in the mystery as there were a few parts that were pretty dense with history but I did enjoy it.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

[Melissa B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book through GoodReads First Reads.

A truly unique storyline. The Hawaiian beliefs and traditions intermingle with a good murder (multiple) mystery. The timeline runs from 1847 to present day. Many diverse, interesting characters.

[Stacey Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little bit Agatha Christie, a little bit who-dunnit-clue, this murder mystery takes place on a Hawaiian island that is anything but the tropical paradise it seems to be.

Full of racial tension, family hostility, long held secrets and even the Yakuza’s involvement, this story dives into some deep issues while still managing to be engaging and even make you smile.

The characters were perfect. Winnie Te Papa, channelling Christie’s Ms. Marple, is the perfect sleuth, putting together the pieces and solving the mystery while coming across as everyone’s favorite Grandma. The rest of the characters come second to her but each has a unique and well crafted role.

I appreciated a book set in Hawaii and filled with Hawaiian culture - it felt fresh and rich - while the historical elements added another layer to the story that made it more than “just” a puzzle to be solved.

Thanks to net galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my e arc in exchange for my honest review.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own, and I am writing a voluntary review.

I went into this book expecting loads of Hawaiian histories, histories that I know are rich in culture but I know little about, and while this book DOES deliver on those histories, the surrounding events cloud those histories and bits of culture in a way that feels incongruous to the books plot/description and does a disservice to them as well.

A wealthy, legacy family fallen on what can only be described as hard times through.. mismanagement? of the island that is their legacy, seeks to sell their manor home and the island to a developer who will create a hotel/resort paradise, while also displacing those native to the island. Not all of the family are happy about the deal and part of sticking point to selling out to the developer is a statue to one of their ancestors, which is placed upon a site of supposed historical importance to the area.

If it sounds a bit confusing, it is and can be. Because the family cannot agree on anything, three of our characters are called to the island to act as arbitors, or at least give their pros and cons to the sale of the island based on their expertise. it is in these three characters that we truly meet our guide throughout the story, Mrs. Te Papa, and it is with her that I find the most fault.

Mrs. Te Papa, unless I'm grossly under representing her, is a cultural expert. She is native Hawaiian and the history and culture of the islands and its people are her calling. That alone excited me. But, as it turns out, she's also the most amazing amateur detective. I learned after reading, through an interview with the author, of his Agatha Christie and Miss Marple connections in the book. I have to say I dont get a strong sense of either, except perhaps with the Miss Marple aspect, but every action and "clue" and "connection" Mrs. Te Papa makes just feels convenient to the point of being farfetched.

The many layers of mystery--who did it, why, who did the other thing, why, etc--took me around in circles, and never close enough to the true history I wanted to understand. The closest you get is an old diary that two of the characters read, and that gives the best insight into what happened on the island. But the rest of it just feels contrived and convenient.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite simply put, A Legacy of Bones has good intentions but tries to do too much. This leaves it feeling kind of muddled. An ancestor of the Lathrop family purchased the island of Kaumaha generations ago and current patriarch Ogden has run it into the ground, leading him to sell out to businessman Tanaka to come in and build a new resort. Problems occur immediately, starting with the fact that his mother Eleanor owns the land itself, and his niece Lani has issues with the family’s impact on the community living on the island that she has been more a part of. The solution is to bring three arbitrators, a judge, an anthropologist familiar with the island and family, and Hawaiian cultural expert, Mrs. Te Papa. Soon one of the people attending the hearing is dead, and Mrs Te Papa is putting her sleuthing skills to the test to figure out if it was murder, and who would have a motive. Unfortunately this investigation ping pongs all over the place, instead of following a cleaner line of thought. It also takes the reader into tangents involving people on the island. These tie into whether or not Mrs. Te Papa’s comrades should be considered suspects or not, but complicate the story. Complicating it further is the journal flashbacks to the Lathrop ancestor that built on the island. Blech. Ultra religious white man who considers the community savages for not believing in Christianity. Once again, something that ties into the main story, but detracts from it at the same time and allows someone who took voices away to have a major voice in the story. While everything eventually plays out in a way that mostly makes sense, it was kind of hard for me to care by that point. I think a mystery set in Hawaii that focuses on local culture is a great idea, but this one just has too much going on for me. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Dawn Leitheuser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wonderfully written and beautifully executed, you can for sure picture yourself there. The story keeps you engrossed with the characters and the stories of each. Totally was not who I expected but definitely worth reading!

[K. Watkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imagine a lush Hawaiian island (or look up pictures if, like me, you haven't yet had the pleasure of visiting one): sandy shores, rugged hills and mountains, greener flora than seems possible. In A Legacy of Bones , this paradise is the backdrop for a history of loss and pain that will define not only the Lathrop family's legacy, but the fate of countless islanders. Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read an ARC.

It might seem counterintuitive to name such a beautiful locale Kaumaha Island (or Misery Island, est. 1850), but when readers delve into Doug Burgess's tale, the evidence stacks up, leaving little room for doubt. From blatant massacres to carefully devised, underhanded treachery, every resident—elitists and locals alike—shoulders a history stained by more than just the hardships caused by racial and cultural traditions and beliefs clashing on a limited playing field. However, when a stick of TNT literally blasts open a full-scale investigation, a chilling murder and even more corruption is unveiled and threatens the stability of the many already tenuous divides between the island's inhabitants.

One aspect of A Legacy of Bones that I found particularly compelling (and yet also potentially problematic) is that the story is laid out in two parts, told as a dual timeline that underscores the well-known adage that's just begging to be repeated when one considers the implications of the Lathrop family and its all-encompassing legacy: "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it." The past certainly informs the present in this case, and as the plot unfolds, readers will not only follow the investigation taking place in the present alongside cultural experts, developers, protesting citizens, and even a few local gangs, but will learn exactly what happened before to bring us all to this point. The resulting mesh can be difficult to follow, especially when someone might be unfamiliar with Hawaiian legends, the practices of Japanese and Filipino immigrants, the way white plantation owners operate, etc. In short, this long-term power play won't be the type of book that readers can idly enjoy. It will require them to use as much mental bandwidth as possible so they don't miss a beat. If they pay close enough attention, they may even be able to successfully predict whodunit.

The cast of characters is a colorful one, as we might expect when so many cultures need to be accounted for. In this regard, Burgess manages a unique balancing act that some might not always pick up on in the dual storyline. While so much of the plot centers on specific social and cultural perspectives, there is always another, perhaps more often marginalized voice quietly interjecting during the murder investigation, or coloring the lens through which we experience the past. Just as there is a lot of information to keep track of in order to fully grasp the nuances of the plot, this method of inclusion and cultural representation creates a mosaic of tones that all gather around Burgess's written voice and style. For this reader, that helped skirt around the trap that so many authors fall into: clinging to their own experience and injecting their storytelling methods with it, often at the expense of the finished manuscript.

Reminiscent of Agatha Christie works and hard-hitting dramas like Ozark, A Legacy of Bones is a hefty exploration of right and wrong, human instinct and morality, history and suspense, one's legacy and one's sympathy—all cocooned within the heady embrace of a gorgeous landscape so many associate with romance and relaxation without considering the grit of everyday life building beneath the surface, ready to explode at a moment's notice.

[Melanie | pagesandtealeavess]

The Lanthrop family has resided on the island of Kaumaha for generations. Initially driven to the island by their missionary ancestor, Amyas, the family has since gone into the hotel business unsuccessfully and act as landlords to the island's population. To settle a dispute between the family as to whether or not the sale to a rich investor can pass a council is formed to hear the matter. At first it appears someone was against the sale when a body turns up overnight. Then more bodies appear and secrets start to unravel.

A Legacy of Bones is a genre bending historical murder mystery. It’s a generational saga, sure, but it primarily tells a tale of colonialism, brutality and racism from a white colonizer’s perspective and the legacy it has left behind. A member of the Lanthrop family is a part of both worlds and feels she needs to advocate on behalf of the village residents. Yet, we don’t actually hear from the village residents. I think the book could only have benefited from the additional inclusion of perspectives of the island’s non-white residents, particularly because they had the most at stake with the least amount of control.

Characters often made questionable decisions and sometimes took actions that appeared out of character but, I’m not sure we ever really knew them well enough to know what was out of character. We were frequently alternating from different character’s perspectives. Because of this I think it allowed you to even like and root for a notorious gang member. It raises interesting questions of morality and ethics.

The mystery itself is slow to unravel and the direction of the book doesn’t become clear until 20% through and oddly enough by 75% the mystery is pretty much wrapped up. The actual mystery was well plotted despite its short duration and it did keep me engaged. Although the epilogue felt unnecessary, I believe it was an attempt by the author to add some sunshine to a book that otherwise had some heavy content.
It wasn’t perfect but it was still a good read that I have found myself still thinking about long after I finished.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an advanced reading copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Dea Farrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you, Doug Burgess, Sourcebooks, and Goodreads for the gifted ARC.

A member of the Lathrop family has recently sold their small Hawaiin island of Kaumaha to David Tanaka. Mr. Tanaka wants to use the island to develop a hotel. All of the Lanthrop family is in agreement to sell to Mr. Tanaka, except for one. There's also a statue that is on the island. Should the statue stay or go when the hotel is built? The family can't come to an agreement on selling or the statue. The family finally agrees to meet with Tanaka, a judge, and two historians to discuss the sale of the island and what to do with the statue. The morning after the meeting, a member of the Lathrop family is found dead. This leads to the discovery of something even more macabre. It's up to Mrs. Te Papa, one of the historians, to help unravel the mystery of what happened on Kaumaha Island. Was it foul play or an accident?

A Legacy of Bones is a novel told in past and present. There's a murder on the island of Kaumaha and Mrs. Te Papa, who is very similar to Miss Marple, is putting together clues to solve it. Also included in the story are excerpts from the journal of Reverand Amyas Lathrop. These entries date back to the 1850s when the island was established. At first, it is confusing as to why these entries are included, but as the story progresses, it begins to make sense. You have to pay very close attention while reading this novel because the clues to solving this murder mystery are interspersed throughout and not very easy to spot. It's a good story, but for me, something was just off about it. I feel like the author just tried to do too much, and it made the story too muddled. There was just too much going on at once.

Favorite Quote: "...diversity means you may love whomever you want, and tolerance means everyone will accept that love."

[Lorin (paperbackbish) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you love Miss Marple? Have you ever envisioned her as a Hawaiian woman solving an ancient murder mystery that involves human sacrifice and haunted islands? Look no further, this is the book for you!!

Winnie Te Papa is invited to the small island of Kaumaha as part of a committee to discuss and decide on the matter of its sale to a local hotel mogul. Everything goes smoothly and the decisions are made in seemingly record time, but of course something goes horribly awry in the night. Mrs. Te Papa awakens to find a member of the Lathrop family dead, and a controversial historical site blown to bits. But who did it? She intends to find out, and she'll have to sift through quite a tangled web of family feuds, vengeful spirits, mobsters, blackmail, and secrets to do so.

I really enjoyed this one! The setting is a fictitious small island off the coast of Big Island, settled by a Massachusetts missionary and his family in the 1850s. There is still contention between that family and the Hawaiian natives that live on the island, and this is really the premise for the whole book. I didn't foresee the Lathrop family secret (yikes!), and there were several other little twists and turns throughout the story that were very satisfying.

Overall, this was a really fun little mystery with great characters and a unique setting. It's a very fast-paced read, and the last scene (truthfully the whole concept of "the other side of the leaf") will stay with me for a long time to come. Loved it!

Thank you to Doug Burgess, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!

[The Sassy Bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐

A Legacy of Bones by Doug Burgess is a captivating murder mystery that explores the cultural and racial divide on a remote Hawaiian island between the landed elite and the villagers. A well-placed stick of TNT ignites a full-blown investigation, leading to the discovery of a terrible secret hidden behind the statue of Amyas Lathrop.

Cultural expert Winnie Te Papa takes on the task of tracking down the ruthless murderer through a maze of family alliances, greedy developers, scholars, protestors, and gangsters. The story is told in a dual timeline: present day and journal entries from the 1850s, which worked seamlessly to trace the consequences of an island’s frenetic beginnings as they snowball through generations.

I enjoyed this book a lot; it was well-paced and had great writing. The mystery itself was well-crafted and kept me engaged throughout. I loved how well-developed and intriguing all the characters were. The inclusion of legend, history and ghosts added extra depth and intrigue to the story that made it even more interesting.

One thing worth mentioning is that this book has a beautiful cover!

Overall, A Legacy of Bones is a thought-provoking murder mystery with richly developed characters and intricate plot twists that will keep you guessing until its satisfying conclusion.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

[Kylie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a tricky one for me. The story has an extremely diverse cast of characters, with so many different cultures and ethnicities represented, including Māori, from the country I am from. I found the representation of the Māori characters to not sit well for me, in many aspects, and because that seemed inaccurate, it made me wonder if this was the case for other cultures represented as well. I would love to know why the author felt like he had to even include this culture, as it would have taken nothing away from the story to not have it in there. And in fact, again, that would probably have been the case with others as well. And I couldn't get past the name choice of Te Papa for the lead character, it just isn't a name in New Zealand, not a family name. It is the name of our capital city's museum. A lot of the characterisation seemed to revert to sterotype across many of the characters.

So this cluttered the story up big time for me. I also find it odd that so many people are linking the lead to Agatha Christie, I so didn't get a Miss Marple feel at all (and I have read every Christie story and book). I did feel that she was more like Mme Ramotswe of the No. 1 Detective Agency than Miss Marple.

Overall, these things worked together to detract from any enjoyment I could have taken from the story. A shame, as I think there was potential there.

[whatnolareads · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the moment I cracked open the book, I was transported to the mesmerizing world of Kaumaha Island, a remote paradise with a dark and mysterious past.

Following Winnie Te Papa, through the twists and turns of the investigation, I found myself completely immersed in the story. Winnie's determination to uncover the truth, coupled with her sharp intellect and unwavering courage, made her a captivating character to root for.

The author painted a vivid description of the island's landscape from the towering cliffs to the hidden caves and pristine beaches. I could almost feel the warm breeze on my skin and hear the gentle lapping of the waves against the shore as I turned the pages.

This book is filled with unexpected twists and turns that kept me guessing until the very end. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, Burgess threw in another curveball that left me on the edge of my seat.

But it wasn't just the mystery that kept me hooked; Burgess's exploration of Hawaiian culture and folklore added an extra layer of depth to the story. Learning about the island's ancient legends and traditions added an immersive element to the narrative that I found utterly captivating.

If you're a fan of mystery novels with richly drawn characters and immersive settings, then I highly recommend giving this book a read. You won't be disappointed.

[Kelsie Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What happens when history, family, and culture meet an Agatha Christie style murder mystery? This amazing book. Set in the islands of Hawaii and drawing on its cultural and colonial history to weave in a beautiful story of family legacy.

We follow Mrs. Winnie Te Papa, an expert in Hawaiian culture and people, as she is called to join a tribunal deciding the future of a statue and an island, Kaumaha. This island has a history of missionaries and traditional culture clashing, both then and now, as the family who owns the island butts heads with the villagers brought to work and settle the island. Once someone ends up dead (and the contrary statue conveniently blown up) history explodes forward with its secrets.

I loved this book. It was a beautiful weaving of cultural stories, mythology, and history of Hawaii and it’s people. I admit to also being tickled that an Anthropologist was the bad guy. So many times in books like this the Anthropologist is the savior… I don’t think that’s true a lot of the time especially in the history of anthropology’s dealings with colonialism. This felt like a comeuppance for the field as we fight today to decolonize and explode truth forward.

If you want to learn, be dazzled by paradise, and be thrilled by a mystery- this book is it!

[Judith von Kirchbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book - it’s been a while since I have given a mystery the full five stars but this one was just that good. This is one I’ll be giving to friends who love Agatha Christie or Dorothy L Sayers and one that I feel is definitely underrepresented here on Instagram. It is just that good !
It truly captures the spirit of a British Golden Age detective novel in that it is not just about solving the crime or finding the perpetrator but truly about a poetic kind of justice and the questions the quest for true justice brings up.
The cast of characters is magnificent. With a cultural expert and a professor of ethnology among the cast I definitely learned a lot. A second timeline was cleverly introduces through diary entries from the 1850s. The plot was clever and well thought out, the web connecting the characters was very well constructed to have plenty of potential suspects without leaving the realm of plausibility. The setting made a modern day Christie novel plausible - a small Hawaiian island and the descriptions of landscape and flora just made this the best kind of travel by book !
This is a book I’ll be pushing on people !

[Wendy Lewis · Rating 1 out of 5]

A dud. This book isn't poorly written, but it was flat. I read it all the way through because I wanted to see where it was going, but I skimmed the last few chapters.
For one thing, there were stereotypical characters - greedy drunkard, rebellious child, gangster with a conscience, inept detective - and odd characters - Hawaiian cultural expert with a background in teaching who apparently is also a part-time forensic scientist, and another person who communes with the spiritual world, but I couldn't find it in me to care about any of them. They were cardboard cut-outs, and their emotions seemed contrived.
For another, there were dozens of paragraphs that could have been excised. They added little to the story except to show how smart and empathetic the cultural expert was, or to show off the author's historical research.
Lastly, I was really bothered by the fact that one of the family ancestors turns out to be a HORRIBLE person and yet somehow there wasn't enough shame and/or upset by anyone once the ancestor's awful deeds were discovered. Everyone seemed to be "oh, that's just awful, I feel bad" but there wasn't any real sense that they did FEEL bad.

[kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ogden Lathrop wants to sell the piece of property that his family has owned since King Kamehameha got rid of this land by selling it to the Lathrop family. Ogden is so excited by this deal, but the women of his family feel the exact opposite. Lani, one of the Lathrop women, has Hawaiian ancestry and Lathrop ancestry. She feels very conflicted, but decides she will protect the land and the people who live on this island.

There is a statue where Ogden wants to sell the property, and Lani goes over there one day. She dies from an explosion, but it also looks very suspicious. Was she murdered or did she accidently die? Detectives investigate and find out that the statue and its surrounding area was a burial sight for many years. Since this seems to be a sacred spot, can this property even be sold or it is protected?

I absolutely love Hawaiian history and culture, so I was very excited to read this book, but this book did fall short for me. I enjoyed reading the historical side of this book, but this book really lacked character development and any sort of emotions.

[Thrillerswineandchill · Rating 3 out of 5]

👋 LAST READ of January MINI REVIEW 📖

I managed to fit in one more read before the month ended and it was an intriguing one! “A Legacy of Bones” is a Hawaiian murder mystery that is focused on local culture and tradition and the divide that has occurred on Kaumaha Island.

This haunted island has many sinister secrets and is the home to many awful murders/sacrifices that have occurred since the 1850s. Some villagers want to keep the past a secret, while others want to set the past free … 👀 🔪

This book is a mash up of Agatha Christie meets White Lotus. Although I found it very intriguing, I felt like I had to reread a lot of it to truly understand what was fully going on. However, If you are interested in Hawaiian culture and history then you will truly enjoy this book 🏝️

BOOK RATING: 🖤🖤🖤/5

Thank you kindly to Doug Burgess, @netgalley @bookmarked @poisonedpenpress for my advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review! This book releases on February 7, 2023!

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me. Marble rides again! This struck me as a cozy mystery, with so much more at stake. Burgess has written a delightfully complex tale of generational trauma, genteel poverty, the struggle to find what happens next and who gets to decide that. Hawaiian native culture wars with Christianity, American colonialism, and fanaticism in the past on this paradise island. The ripple effects are felt in the present and ultimately lead to murder. Despite the murder mystery element, there never seems to be any doubt that one of our beloved characters is truly in danger. Instead, culture, identity, legacy and what we owe to each other are what’s at stake and the answers Burgess provides surprised and intrigued me. The twists were unforeseen, imaginative and ultimately left me feeling content with the solutions presented.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dual time line mystery set on the scenic Hawaiian island of Kaumaha. The Lathrops, who owned most of the land and treated the local population so horribly throughout history, have sold to a developer - except for a statue. And then one of the family is killed. Winnie Te Papa investigates and takes the reader through years of intertwining relationships, myth, and legend as well as abuse of the land and people. It's a lot for a novel that's got a Miss Marple style heroine but there are some gems in here and I learned a bit. Thanks to the publisher for the arc. A good read.

[Kassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Legacy of Bones is a murder mystery set in a lush Hawaiian landscape that explores the tensions that arise as the result of colonial exploitation. Doug Burgess blends elements of classic detective fiction--Agatha Christie in particular--and figures of Hawaiian legend. The novels feels like a prequel to season 1 of HBO's White Lotus; readers who enjoyed that show will find a lot to like here.

[Polly Krize · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Not having known much about the history of Hawaii, this murder mystery introduced me to the legends of the islands and the strife between whites (haoles) and the original inhabitants. Well written, if a little long winded, just my opinion...recommended for the history aspects.

[Chelsey Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good and unique book. A Hawaiian murder mystery. I would recommend reading it and not getting it as an audiobook. The author introduces 15+ main characters right at the beginning with no main character. It was crazy confusing to follow along. But overall good.

[Tambo64 Geasley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!!!

[Doreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

1/30/2023 Genuinely surprised this isn't part of a series, and am rather wishing it was. Full review tk at CriminalElement.com.

[Jill Springate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept me guessing until the end, good character development and description of the area

[Laura Geisel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written murder mystery. Learned about Hawaii history, culture and language.