Los huesos dormidos

Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James #5

by Deborah Crombie

Victoria McClellan, profesora de Filología del All Saints´ College de Cambridge, está escribiendo una biografía de la poetisa Lydia Brooke, cuya trágica muerte por suicidio ha tenido lugar cinco años antes. A partir del estudio de sus obras y papeles, Victoria comienza a sospechar que la escritora no se quitó la vida, sino que fue asesinada. Ante la gravedad del caso, recurre a su exmarido, el superintendente de Scotland Yard Duncan Kincaid. Esto da inicio a la investigación que este llevará a cabo junto con su ayudante, la sargento Gemma James. Ambos deberán moverse en el ambiente intelectual y sofisticado del profesorado, y poco a poco irán dilucidando las relaciones aparentemente amistosas, pero tensas en algunos casos, entre los protagonistas de la historia, atrapados en un pacto de silencio que envenena sus vidas desde hace muchos años. Deborah Crombie nació en Texas, en donde se licenció en biología. Tras vivir en Inglaterra y Escocia, escribió su primera novela, A Share in Death (Vacaciones trágicas, en la versión castellana), que iniciaría la prolífica serie protagonizada por Duncan Kincaid y Gemma James. Deborah Crombie ha sido nominada para los prestigiosos premios Edgar, Agatha y Macavity de misterio y en 1998 ganó el Macavity a la mejor obra por Dreaming of the Bones (Los huesos dormidos), considerada el Libro del Año por The New York Times. Sus novelas se han publicado en Alemania, Francia, Italia, Japón, Noruega, Países Bajos, República Checa y Reino Unido. Viaja regularmente a Inglaterra y es profesora invitada habitual del St. Hilda´s College de Oxford. Vive con su marido en una pequeña población del norte de Texas.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Crime, Mystery Thriller, British Literature, Procedural

Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Deborah Crombie is the author of 17 novels featuring Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and Detective Inspector Gemma James. The 18th Kincaid/James novel, A BITTER FEAST, will be released by William Morrow in October, 2019.

Crombie lives in McKinney, Texas with her husband, two German Shepherd Dogs, and two cats. She travels to Britain frequently to research her books.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dreaming of the Bones by Deborah Crombie is a 2007 Avon publication. ( Originally published in 1997)

This fifth installment in the 'Kincaid & James' series begins with the shocking phone call from Kincaid’s ex-wife, Vic, who had walked out on their marriage years ago. Vic is writing a biography of the poet Lydia Brooke, which has led her to the belief that the famed poet did not commit suicide, but was murdered instead.

Vic calls upon Duncan, asking him to do her a big favor, hoping he can help her discover the truth. Her call, which comes as a complete surprise, throws Kincaid into a tailspin, as he tries to assess his feelings for Vic, while Gemma quietly fumes with jealousy.

The investigation into Lydia’s death stirs longs buried feelings and emotions among those who knew her, but one of them has become so unnerved it leads to them to commit murder. This stunning death, turns a possible cold case into a full- fledged murder investigation, and will impact Gemma and Duncan’s lives forever.

I love how Crombie takes the case the detectives are working on and creates parallels between their professional lives and their personal lives. At times the symbolism appears lost on them, but at other times they seem more than aware of how the case mirrors their own predicament, which leads to some personal epiphanies along the way.

Once again, this is a well-crafted murder mystery, very absorbing, and thought provoking. I felt as though this one was a bit more profound and maybe darker than previous installments. As I move deeper into this series, I am more and more impressed with Crombie and continue to admire her skills as an author.

I am determined to get caught up on this series during the coming year, and I find myself feeling more and more excited about all the future installment awaiting me.

[Mar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alright so, this one took me quite less to finish. Thank you so much New Year’s Eve and thank you so much holidays for allowing me to do so.

Moving on to a little summary and then sharing my opinions about the book.

Victoria McClellan is on the duty of writing down a biography of the poet Lydia Brooke, who was found dead a few years ago, and who was presumed to have taken her own life. However, Victoria thinks that this doesn’t seem quite convincing, and therefore contacts her ex-husband, Duncan Kincaid to try to figure out what really happened back then.

Now it is up to him & his lover, Gemma, to truly find out what even happened…

That is, if nothing happens to them first.

I’m so sorry but… I found this plot painfully slow, I just couldn’t really connect with the plot at all and there wasn’t any exciting stuff or moment that I went through. I simply didn’t get a bit of hype while reading it, it was just.. “meh”, for me.

So yeah, it wasn’t great for me. I didn’t connect with the plot itself as I previously mentioned, however I do gotta give the author some credit because I was sorta intrigued at the same time, mainly because I literally had no clue on what was going on, or what was going to happen, and.. man, I didn’t even know on who to suspect at all at first, but then.. things became a little obvious to me and quite rushed out of nowhere.

Like, I wish I was joking but the theories of “whodunit” were literally explained in 2 pages, dialogue after dialogue, and it was just too much information. So that too, an excess of information in some pages that I wasn’t fully able to comprehend, and now adding the fact that they would sometimes use poetry to narrate the book or with some of the character’s dialogues was just a… no for me.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the characters but I didn’t dislike them at all either. They were just… there. Existing. And I just accepted their existence LOL.

I’d say this was a… half complex half confusing case? There were just so many references to poetry and stuff that I couldn’t analyze at all, so… yeah. And.. I feel like the culprit was kinda predictable and it.. made not much sense to me on how everything resulted to this “murder.”

I do gotta say that there were at least some tiny points that I liked, which are basically the main characters and their interactions with everyone, the way they’re really clever and of course a new character who I’ll never forget, Kit.

I guess I recommend it if you really want to put your brain to work, either that or I’m just dumb. But hey, if I somehow managed to understand regardless of being absolutely clueless for more than half of the plot, I guess everyone can.

[Alex is The Romance Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to get into the 5th book in the series, Dreaming of the Bones.

Victoria McClellan, Duncan's ex-wife, has remarried and has a son. Now living in Cambridge, she's writing a biography of Lydia Brooke, a Cambridge poet whose death five years earlier was ruled as suicide. But reading her poetry and letters, Victoria believes that she didn't kill herself but may have been murdered.

She asks Duncan Kincaid to look into the poet's death. At first he's not convinced about the allegations and also Gemma, his partner both professionally and personally is not too happy about his involvement with his ex-wife, who had treated him rather shabbily 12 years ago.

But Victoria's findings seem to have some cause for him to look into the case. And when Victoria is murdered in her home, he's not only devastated but determined to bringing her killer to justice.

The investigation leads to the Cambridge literary world of the 60's and Lydia's circle of friends then. These were the characters I just couldn't engage with. They were so fickle and vacant, so self-absorbed. I couldn't find anything about them that could redeem them. In fact, they could have all been bumped off and I wouldn't give a toss...

I just wanted to get to the end to find out who the killer/s were and turn the last page.

The only redeeming factor in this story as seeing the growing relationship between Kincaid and Gemma and her son Toby. I am also keen to discovering more about Victoria's son, Kit.

[Mary Ronan Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hate to say this. I know authors hate it when people say this about their books. But it’s true: This is a crossover novel. It’s a mystery and the author perceives it as a mystery, which it is. But it’s so much more.

Deborah Crombie is the best of the contemporary writers of the police procedural. Her plots are complex without being convoluted, her writing style is clean and occasionally lyrical, and her characters are realistic and face their problems in a realistic way.

Here is Publisher’s Weekly’s review of this fifth book in the series:

Crombie's English procedural series featuring Scotland Yard's Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James (Mourn Not Your Dead, 1996, etc.) takes a giant leap forward with this haunting mystery set among Cambridge literary types. Vic McClellan, Duncan's ex-wife and a member of the English faculty at Cambridge, is writing a biography of Lydia Brooke, a Cambridge poet whose death five years earlier was attributed to suicide. Convinced that Lydia didn't kill herself, Vic asks Duncan to look into the poet's death. Estranged from Vic since she left him 12 years ago, Duncan is at first unwilling to help. But Vic's literary evidence and a brief look at the local police records soon convince him and Gemma, who's his lover as well as his partner, that there's something fishy about Lydia's demise. Having reconciled with Vic and been charmed by her son, Kit, Duncan is devastated when she is murdered. Assisted by Gemma, he sets out on a personal crusade to find the killer. Their investigation leads to Lydia's circle of Cambridge friends in the 1960s: Nathan, now on the botany faculty; Darcy, a colleague of Vic's on the English faculty; Daphne, headmistress of a girls' school; and Adam, an Anglican priest. It's Gemma, through close reading of a long-lost poem by Lydia, who uncovers the crucial secret. As Crombie continues to explore Duncan and Gemma's complicated relationship, she adds a deeper resonance in the form of Duncan's feelings for Vic and Kit. This is the best book in an already accomplished series. Crombie excels at investing her mysteries with rich characterization and a sophisticated wash of illuminating feminism.

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite this having the highest rating of the first five books in the series, and despite the starred review at Publishers Weekly, I struggled with this one.

I was about 80 pages in and it just wasn't doing it for me, so I decided to give it to 100 and make a decision then, because I do like this author and I'm interested in the two main characters. I was quite thankful to find that, like the others, I finally felt that settled in feeling I had had with the previous books. Unfortunately, that feeling evaporated through the middle of the book and I found myself powering through the final 100 pages.
I didn't care one whit about the mystery, one whit for any of the supporting characters/suspects, and I couldn't be less interested in poetry or poets.

I did care about Kincaid and Gemma, and where their story was going, but this was just enough to keep me curious to see it through, and I was intending to read the sixth book no matter what.
I must say, though, I'm a bit worried about the same thing happening here as it did to me with Louise Penny's novels, which was driving me nuts: in Three Pines, the accommodating nature of a couple of the residents got to be so over the top that it became cloying. I am finding the same thing now with Hazel, Gemma's landlord.
Her constant offering of feeding Toby and Gemma, bathing, babysitting Toby around the clock, and any other kids and creatures Gemma happens to have in tow, is really beginning to make my eyes roll. This isn't enough (yet) to be a deal breaker, but it doesn't help.

Back to the characters: In Mourn Not Your Dead, what I loved was Crombie's development of her whole cast. I don't know what happened here, but I didn't feel like I knew or understood most of the characters in this one. For me, this made the story dull as dishwater.

So, I'm in the same spot I was after book 2: I'm wondering whether to continue. Perhaps the series does ebb and flow...it seems it does from some reviews.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though I’ve come to enjoy this series a lot, this book brings Crombie forward with a new level of talent and craft. I need to start the next one right away.

[Terri Lynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just couldn't make myself like it though I tried hard. I have liked the previous books in this series very much but had to drag myself through this one forcibly. It felt like a punishment.

I like Gemma James a lot more than I like Duncan Kincaid and I found myself wishing she would dump him as a lover during this book and just be work partners the way they had been with no romance.

As this book begins, Gemma has become more comfortable with Duncan being both her boss at Scotland Yard and her lover after hours. Her preschooler Toby likes him a lot too and they have settled into a cozy semi-family.

Then Duncan gets a call. Keep in mind that Gemma's ex-husband had run out on her when she had Toby and disappeared to avoid paying child support. Twelve years earlier, Duncan's wife Victoria had done the same thing to him- ran off. She was pregnant by Duncan but didn't bother to tell him as they waited for many months for their divorce to be final. As soon as the ink was dry on the divorce, she married Ian, an academic who can't keep his pants zipped when sexy graduate students are around. Victoria also has a Phd and teaches college. She is doing research on a female poet who supposedly died of a heart attack after years of trying to kill herself.

Victoria gets Duncan involved in investigating whether or not Lydia's death years earlier was what it was said to be or murder. Never mind that this is not his jurisdiction. She also does not bother to tell him that her 12 year old son Kit is his.

Gemma is furious and it is easy to understand why. Duncan has shown himself prone to behaving ridiculously and he just has no concern for Gemma's feelings on the matter at all. I mean, hey, the woman who ran out and left him without so much as a note 12 years ago and had a preteen son that is his but still doesn't bother to tell him calls and oh baby, he's going to run and ask how high she wants him to jump.

As usual there is a cast of weirdos, creeps and assorted nuts and fruits. There is lying, cheating, and murder. Normally I would love that but this one just seemed so boring that I wanted to get a broom and drive all of the characters (except Gemma and Toby) away. I found myself someone would bump them all off (though Duncan would just have sex with his killer before hand no doubt).

[LJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Sentence: The post slid through the letter box, cascading onto the tile floor of the entry hall with a sound like the wind rustling through bamboo.

Twelve years ago, Duncan Kincaid’s wife walked away from their marriage. Receiving a call, asking for his help was not something he expected. Victoria Kincaid McClellan, mother of Kit, and abandoned by her current husband, has a position with the English Faculty and is writing a biography on 20th Century poet Lydia Ashby who had, supposedly, died by suicide.

In doing her research, Vic begins to wonder whether the suicide from overdose of heart medication, might have been murder and asks Duncan’s help in talking with the local police. When Victoria dies by the same means, Duncan, with Gemma’s help, is committed to finding the answers.

After a compelling, evocative opening, I flew through this book in one sitting.

The personalities of all the characters, living and dead are so vivid and interesting. Duncan and Gemma have a relationship that is slowly developing and the reappearance of Duncan’s ex-wife and her son add a new dimension. With the events of this story, their lives and relationship are forever changed, thus providing a greater sense of reality to the characters.

Crombie’s writing has such a wonderful style. It is emotional, intelligent and thought provoking. I felt the inclusion of Lydia’s letters, as well as the excerpts from Rupert Brooke, added dimension and pathos to the story. At the same time it is a well-plotted mystery with exceptionally good twists.

It seems strange to say, but I am always more impressed by Ms. Crombie’s books then I expect to be. I am delighted I still have many books of hers yet to read.

DREAMING OF THE BONES (Pol Proc-Super. Duncan Kincaid/Sgt. Gemma James-England-Cont) – Ex
Crombie, Deborah – 4th in series
Avon Mystery, Copyright 1997, US Paperback – ISBN: 9780061150401

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dreaming of the Bones is the fifth book in the Kincaid/James series. I have mixed thoughts about this addition to the series. The reason for that is the book is divided into part one and part two. Part one takes up a little over a third of the book. Part one was slow moving for me and somewhat confusing at times. The confusion came from the introductions and storyline about Lydia Brooke's friends and Vic McClellan's work mates. The storyline would be about a character and I would wonder who that person was and how did it relate to the story. The author was setting the background and it did all come together later as the story progressed. By the book's end, I found I did not care much for Lydia. Vic was writing her biography five years after Lydia's death. Lydia was not alive at the beginning of the book and the reader was given Lydia's letters to her mother to read.

Now Part Two was different. The scene was set. A murder occurred and Duncan and Gemma become involved even though it is out of Duncan's territory. The solution to the mystery involved unfolding secrets. The reader might have an idea who committed the crimes but would not have guessed the full story or the why of the recent crimes. Duncan and Gemma lives are going to change in the future due to some new information that Duncan found out about. This is a good police procedural series and I look forward to the next book. I should also add that it was very well written.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is the breakout book in this series. The earlier ones are good; this one is great, more complex of plot, and deeper in characterization, especially of the non-series characters.

[Paraphrodite · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I was expecting to meet Duncan's ex-wife at some time during this series, but the twist was totally unexpected. Not a fan of the hedonistic lives of the Cambridge mob (past or present) though.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just finished Deborah Crombie's Dreaming of the Bones. I am very surprised at how long this took me to finish. It is an absolutely beautiful and lyrical mystery novel...seamlessly written. Perhaps I was taking my time because I didn't want the experience to be over? I found it amazing that Crombie adapted her writing style to the subject matter...the re-opening of a poet's death. The entire book read like a very long prose poem and the poetry she constructed to weave into the story of Lydia was perfect. Added to that, we fed my academic mystery obsession making for a near-perfect reading experience. My only quibble....I knew WAY early "whodunnit" and she didn't really provide enough clues to know why until the wrap-up. But then, she's a police procedural kind of author...not a writer following the rules of the Golden Age...so I guess I'll cut her some slack.

And, come to think of it, there's an oddity...I never expected to describe a police procedural as lyrical. Three and 1/2 stars.

This review was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dark and disturbing mystery and an excellent addition to this terrific series. Gemma James and Duncan Kincaid, crime fighting partners and now lovers are fascinating protagonists. In this installment, Kincaid is contacted by his ex wife (who he hasn’t seen for 12 years) to provide some policing help. Still early in their relationship, this reconnection with his ex wife does not sit well with Gemma. Vic is an English professor at Cambridge and writing a biography of an English poet who died by suicide a few years back. Vic suspects Lydia’s death is more suspicious than it sounded and soon convinced Duncan of the same. What follows is an intricate story, tangled and foreboding, that unearths a horrible crime crime the past and elicits yet another murder. An engaging read from start to finish.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Victoria (Vic) McClelland is writing a biography of poet, Lydia Brooke, who committed suicide five years ago. Vic's research has led her to believe that conclusion might be false. Who better to call than your ex-husband, Superintendent Duncan Kincaid, despite years of silence? Duncan runs off to see Vic rather eagerly, much to the chagrin of his love, Gemma. He determines there are a few inconsistencies and gaps in the investigation of Lydia's death, but nothing conclusive. When another death occurs, bearing some similarities to Lydia's demise, Duncan is determined to find the connection.

Dreaming of the Bones is such a well-done mystery. Deborah Crombie's plotting is stealthy enough to keep us on the fringes of discovery. I began this series reading the books out of order which means a significant backstory has now been explained. This is a perfect read for mystery lovers who enjoy a puzzle from the past.

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally back to reading more books in this excellent series. Recommended if you enjoy English crime novels.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

To begin with I thought this was going to be another murder that appeared to be suicide like in one of the previous books and thought, "You can't do this again". It actually went in a completely different direction though and was a thoroughly good read.

[Matt Schiariti · Rating 4 out of 5]

during the first third of this book I found myself not liking it as much as the previous novels in the series. Why? Well there just wasn't that much Kinkaid/James in this Kinkaid/James mystery! I'm glad I stuck with it though because it ended up being very good and quite frankly one of Crombie's darker books.

Things are going as normal for Duncan and Gemma..they're both comfortable with their relationship, doing their normal workday routines as coppers in Scotland Yard when Duncan gets a call from the last person he ever suspected, his ex wife, Victoria.

Vic is a professor of literature at the University and has been working on a biography of a local poet from the 60s, the problem with that is that she's become rather obsessed. Lydia was a local moderate success in the 60s and had a history of attempted suicides until finally, it was a successful attempt. As Vic does more research she finds herself more and more uneasy with the case being deemed a suicide. Vic thinks Lydia was murdered and she asks for Duncan's help.

Much to Gemma's consternation, Duncan decides to help in what limited way he can by calling in some favors and soon he finds himself more and more intrigued by the case. What's more, Vic doesn't seem to be the cold viper that Duncan remembers walking out on him without a word years ago, much to Gemma's chagrin.

As I said at the beginning, the first third of the novel is primarily about Vic. Vic doing research for the book which leads her into the circle of old friends Lydia kept from University until she died. The mystery was set up nicely but I found myself missing the abundance of Duncan and Gemma that Crombie usually gives us in these novels. Not that the beginning of the book is bad, I just wanted more D and K. Crombie throws a gear into the works though that entrenches Duncan and Gemma even further into a case neither of them had any interest in (for obvious reasons) and exposes a history of darkness, secrets and seemingly unattainable redemption.

As usual, Crombie evolves the relationship with Duncan and Gemma at a nice pace with some very interesting developments that are sure to keep the series fresh and new. Well, new to me anyway being that I'm late to the party ;)

So, if you find yourself feeling the beginning is a little slow or not as engrossing as the rest of the novels because of the seeming lack of Kinkaid and James, you'd do well to stick with it! As the mystery reveals itself the book only gets better and better.

[Lynn Spencer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've enjoyed this series in the past, but I just could not get into this installment. I honestly don't feel up to writing a terribly detailed review so I'll sum it up as "boredom with the occasional microaggression."

What do I mean about this? Well, much of the book centers on Duncan and Gemma finding their way in their still new romantic relationship while also dealing with the reappearance of Duncan's ex-wife, who basically ran out on him years ago. This part of the story kept my interest, but the mystery itself was somewhat blah. I just did not feel nearly as intrigued as the characters seemed to be.

And the microaggressions? Well, there are vaguely sexist, cliched remarks thrown in throughout the book. If I had read this book back in the 90s when first published, I think my high school/college self would have zoomed right past most of them, but they stuck this time around. They range from the fairly subtle to a friend of Duncan's more blatant dismissal of a female police colleague with, "She's been through every man in the department once, and now she's starting on the second round."(p.46)

I have book 6 in the series, so I may give that one a try. This installment just got under my skin, though, and not in a good way.

[Wanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fifth entry in the Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James series weaves the poetry of England’s WWI soldier-poet Rupert Brooke into a case tied to Kincaid’s former wife and the biography she's writing about another English poet. And as unlikely as it sounds, poetry in a murder mystery, it works. It breaks out of the conventional mystery format of the earlier books by focusing on the tangled emotions and conflicts between Gemma, Duncan, his ex-wife, and her Oxford University co-workers. One development in particular made picking up the next book a sure thing for me.

[Julie Durnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was not the typical Duncan/Gemma cozy mystery, but a more in depth literary kind of mystery. I was very taken with the story right up until the end. (I would deduct a half star for this if I could.) Came away almost dissatisfied, it just didn't set well with me. Duncan and Gemma's relationship is progressing very well and I shall go on to number 6!

[Kaitlyn Dunnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good one. I like this series best when it's less police procedural and more focused on the involvement of Gemma and/or Duncan in the murder of someone with whom they have a personal connection.

[AJ Ridley]

DNF. Shockingly bad compared to the other books in this series. Extremely boring and meandering. Was a third of the way through and literally nothing had happened. Going to skip on to the next one and hope this doesn't become a pattern...

[Emmalynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ex wife comes back into the picture, of course she’s bringing trouble. However when she ends up dead, Duncan is hell bent on not only solving her murder but that of the poet whose biography she was working on. Gemma has to deal.

[Annalisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In italiano "Voci segrete". Prestato e mai più rivisto. Lo rimpiango.

[Kirsty Darbyshire]

these are excerpts from my responses to a mailing list discussion of this book and as such they include spoilers.

[On Lydia's letters and Vic's inklings of suicide]

I didn't like Lydia much and I really wanted to see her mother's side of all those letters! The letters all came from a period early on in Lydia's life and not the time close to her death. Vic's convictions seemed to be the biggest sign that Lydia was really murdered but I had mixed feelings about those.

It seemed reasonable that if she was setting a scene to die she'd have gone the whole hog and worn something 'appropriate' too, but then I didn't feel she had particularly planned her earlier suicide attempts. She caused Nathan a lot of distress in dying but I think she caused Adam a lot of distress when he found her with her wrists slit too. I don't think she left notes in the two earlier cases so why would she at the third attempt? Also since she made the second attempt with the car crash look like an accident I didn't see why she might not leave an incongruous scene at her third attempt to make that look like an accident too. The fact that she didn't seem to be in a depressed phase at the time she dies seemed to be the biggest pointer to me that something was amiss.

[On the English village setting and comparisons to Christie and Sayers]

I thought this book bore more relationship to an academic mystery rather than a village one. The setting didn't seem especially important to the plot and I only felt a sense of place in when Vic's office and Lydia's rooms were mentioned.

I've never read Sayers and I didn't really see much resemblence to Christie. The book didn't strike me as especially English. Although the University of Cambridge plays its part I feel that the book could've equally been set around any fairly prestigious college anywhere.

[On the murder coming late in the book]

I wasn't expecting Vic's murder at all. I was intrigued by what happened to Lydia and looking forward to Vic finding out what happened and I was a bit shocked by the change of pace. I quite like the non murder mystery and I like books that depart from the formula so I was disappointed as much by the fact that anyone was murdered as I was by the fact that it was Vic.

I'm reading this as a standalone so I don't know anything of Duncan and Gemma but I presume this is their series. I wasn't surprised by them investigating, partly because this was obviously the central story of the book, but also because I think the author set the situation up well. I thought Gemma's reactions to the situation with Vic were particularly well done and quite realistic.

If I was expecting there to be another body apart from Lydia, which I wasn't really, I think I would have expected it to have been one of the people who knew Lydia, probably Adam or Nathan, but perhaps Darcy or Morgan too.

I think I preferred the book before Vic died. I've only read the beginning of Part Two but I definitely feel the emphasis has changed. I suspect that if I was reading this as a series I would have found Part One an annoying break from the norm and would breathe a sigh of relief with the beginning of Part Two where a 'proper' investigation is underway. However I found Vic a more interesting person than either Duncan or Gemma and I rather wanted the book to go in a different direction.

[On whodunnit ideas at the halway point]

I've no idea who murdered either of them and haven't really seen anything to suggest beyond doubt that they were both murdered by the same hand. If I had to pin the tail on the donkey and guess at this point I'd say that Daphne seems a bit suspicious to me, we haven't seen much of her in Part One and she was mentioned quite a lot in Lydia's letters. I feel she's got something to hide though I don't know if it's murder. I'm also not convinced that Nathan has been entirely truthful in his description of finding Lydia dead but I don't have anything to show that he murdered her either.

[On the cast being haunted by Lydia's death]

I don't think Lydia's death did haunt all of these characters that much. I think only Morgan was really haunted by her death and felt that in some way he was responsible for her committing suicide because of the violence in his relationship with her.

Nathan, Adam and Daphne were all upset by her death but I don't think any of them felt responsibility for it the way that Morgan did. I suspect that they all felt that they should have been more use to Lydia as friends and that it was some failing on their part that led her to commit suicide but I think they all knew that it wasn't their fault.

And Darcy, who seemed the least troubled by Lydia's death, was unlikely to be haunted by it both because he was responsible for it and because, in spite of his pretentious airs, I thought he was the most straightforward character emotionally. He didn't seem to feel any remorse for any of the killings and killed Lydia and Vic just to cover up the earlier death.

I felt a bit cheated that Verity's disappearance wasn't alluded to earlier in the book. Although I can see the discontinuity in Lydia's letters that signifies 'something major happened here' when she moves from dedicated student to dropping out to get married in the course of a few months I don't think there was anything to point to what that pivotal event was.

[On Vic not telling Duncan about Kit]

I think it's difficult to judge Vic on the facts we have but on the whole I think she made a decent decision. She was in a very difficult situation. For one reason or another she'd left Duncan and was seeing Ian. Ian says near the end of the book that she didn't know originally which of the men was the father of her baby. Ian was aware of that and he and Vic must have had a loving relationship at that time. Ian was happy at that point to bring up Kit as his son. I can't say I blame Vic for deciding that staying with Ian and simplifying a complicated situation by not telling Duncan what was going on was the best thing to do, especially as I suspect she needed to make the decision before the point where she was certain of Kit's paternity.

At the point where the book begins Vic and Ian's relationship has broken down and it appears irretrievable, Vic finds another reason to contact Duncan again in his professional capacity. I think that if Vic had lived she would have told Duncan the truth before he had it pointed out to him. I think she'd realised that Ian was never going to be a good father to Kit and whilst one can't just swap in another dad I think she wanted Duncan to have the opportunity to play a role in Kit's life if he wanted to.

I think Duncan's actions at the end of the book show that he wants to form a relationship with Kit. I also think that this will cement his relationship with Gemma rather than strain it as he realises more about what Toby means to Gemma and what families are all about. But then I haven't read the rest of the series so I only know Duncan and Gemma through what I've seen in this book.

[On whether the ending was fair]

I don't think Crombie played particularly fair. I'm not sure ifVerity's disappearance was mentioned more than a couple of chaptersahead of where it was explained. If it was I missed it entirely. Thiswas the big letdown in the book for me. I wasn't bothered that the poemwas uninterpretable, but I was bothered that I hadn't been given anyidea that a young girl's murder was involved in the explanation ofLydia's death. I think the book would have been better if things hadbeen more obvious and we all had 'ah ha!' moments when we saw the poemnear the end of the book.

Darcy was one of only a handful of dislikable characters in the book andtherefore I was slightly surprised that he was the murderer since I'vecome to expect the device of one of the more sympathetic charactersbeing the real bad guy.

[Final Thoughts]

Well this is the only book in the series that I've read and I'd give itfour stars. I liked it but it hasn't left me desperate to read all theother episodes. I thought it stood well as a stand alone, I don't feelthat I need to know about the books on either side of it. I'd be morelikely to read another Crombie if it was a standalone I think. Whilst Iliked the central characters I liked the peripheral characters more andI'd rather read about a whole different set.

[Eadie Burke · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is the call Scotland Yard Superintendent Duncan Kincaid never expected—and one he certainly doesn't want. Victoria, his ex-wife, who walked out without an explanation more than a decade ago, asks him to look into the suicide of local poet, Lydia Brooke—a case that's been officially closed for five years. The troubled young writer's death, Victoria claims, might well have been murder.
No one is more surprised than Kincaid himself when he agrees to investigate—not even his partner and lover, Sergeant Gemma James. But it's a second death that raises the stakes and plunges Kincaid and James into a labyrinth of dark lies and lethal secrets that stretches all the way back through the twentieth century—a death that most assuredly is murder, one that has altered Duncan Kincaid's world forever.
I enjoyed book 5 very much and another visit to another small English village. Cambridgeshire this time. I also liked the excepts from Rupert Brookes' poetry at the start of each chapter. Once again, great writing from Deborah Crombie, unique characters that were well-drawn and another super plot. I look forward to the next installment and I would highly recommend this series to those who love mystery in small English villages.

[MargaretDH · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am going to give this 3 stars, but I'm not going to be picking up the next book in the series. For the second time in a row, the murderer was clear to me from well before the halfway point, even if I didn't have the whole motive or method worked out. And I'm not the kind of person who tries to figure things out; I like the surprise at the end of the book. I suspect this is just a mismatch between Crombie and I. Something about her writing just telegraphs for me, but perhaps not for others. And like last time, there were a few deductions (and lack thereof) that just didn't seem plausible to me.

I do appreciate her care and attention to character building, though, hence the three stars. Duncan and Gemma have grown and changed over the course of the series, and Crombie has a good eye for how to portray shifting relationships, both in her consistent characters and in the pool of suspects. So I wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading this series, but I wouldn't particularly recommend it.

[GUS · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually finished this book about a week ago if not longer.

I really enjoyed it as a secret was finally revealed although the character it revolves around doesn’t know yet.

The story itself was good as well though as per usual I didn’t get the murderer correct but I think I was more interested in the secret.

I don’t know if it will come out in the next book but I have a feeling it will. Of course having read a few books out of order I know the eventual ending will be a happy one. It’s like rewatching a tv show and you know the outcome but still can’t wait for it to happen.

Will start the next book in the series this coming weekend. Finishing up on a project for my nephew and his bride to be. Nuptials are slated for Nov 7th!

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one had all the ingredients that should have appealed to me: set in Grantchester (there really is such a town near Cambridge), with many references to the poet Rupert Brooke, a poet named Lydia Brooke who sometimes fancies that they were related, a complicated relationship between Inspector Kincaid and his ex-wife, beautiful descriptions of the countryside and the river Cam. But somehow, the suspects, who all knew each other all their lives, all seemed faintly neurotic in spite of their kinder qualities. And the feeling of being trapped with these people made the last half feel very claustrophobic to me. I couldn't wait for it to be over; and when the big finish finally came, it was worthy of a grade B police drama on BBC. Still I will continue with this series because over all Crombie is so good.

[Tonya Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Best book of the series so far. A lot of complex, intricate plot lines going on with Duncan and Gemma, which was the best look we've had at them individually and as a couple.

The murder mystery was also SUPER intricate and I definitely did not see all the twists and turns coming