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I've long been a fan of Elly Griffith's fine series featuring Dr. Ruth Galloway, a Norfolk-based archeologist and her rather eclectic band of friends. Since 2009 Griffiths has spun out a captivating series of often bizarre tales involving her druid friend Cathbad, along with her occasional lover (and father of her son), DCI Harry Nelson, and an ever-changing retinue of academics and colourful local figures. In this, her fifteenth such outing, Elly brings the series to a conclusion, which I've no doubt will leave her many readers clamouring for more.
While taking down a brick wall of a tea room in King's Lynn, a workman uncovers some skeletonised remains. Archeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway is called in to view the scene, and confirms that they are modern, not ancient. They have a homicide on their hands.
Complicating matters, the university has just announced that it's closing down the Department of Archeology. There is sure to be a protest, but if that happens Ruth realises that her relationship with Harry Nelson (always a bit tenuous) will be affected as well.
Before long the identity of the skeleton is determined. The remains belong to Emily Pickering, a young Cambridge student who had disappeared in 2002. Cathbad was within the circle of her friends at the time, which perhaps explains why, on learning of the body in the tea shop, he promptly fainted. Did he already know who the victim was?
Cathbad's relationship with the victim makes him a person of interest, and the case takes an ominous turn when Cathbad himself disappears, leaving only a recently-written copy of his will. Ruth and Nelson mount separate searches for the man, but every new development seems to strengthen the case against him.
I must admit that I was somewhat dismayed to see that this is a final book in the Ruth Galloway series. Griffith's books are always a leisurely read that is nonetheless satisfying. We have come to know and appreciate the unique characters that have, over the years, carried us along a journey of discovery that is as revealing of the North Norfolk landscape as it is of the cloistered lives of its residents. I look forward to seeing what her inventive mind has in store for her many fans, and I am sure it will not disappoint.
§ In addition to being a reviewer with over six hundred reviews and interviews to his credit, Jim Napier is the acclaimed author of Legacy and Ridley's War, in the British-based Inspector Colin McDermott mystery series.
Reviewed by Jim Napier, May 2023
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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