I loved this book. It was dark and twisted and yet full of humanity. Maybe my favorite new mystery series in the last few years and look forward to reading the next one. ( )

My Thoughts:

It felt like there were too many characters bombarding me from the start and it took a bit of concentration to keep my head afloat and not get too confused. It took effort to keep track of whose who and whats what.

This story mainly follows three threads of story lines. That of Dorothy. That of Jenny. And that of Hannah. Then the narration swaps from thread to thread from chapter to chapter. I am not very fond of this kind of story telling style. Sometimes I forgot what was going on with Jenny and I had to stop and think and try to remember before I could proceed. This brought the pace of the book down a notch or two. Not only that, it disrupts the flow of the story. It feels jarring. It jars you out of your zen and back into reality until you get yourself back into the flow again. It's like having three related books told in one go.

The story is slow burn. As in, we are already halfway through the book and Dorothy, Jenny, and Hannah are still pottering about. The story hasn't really picked up yet. The "dilemma" in the story is just starting to show. That is how "slow burning" the story is.

No, not a fast-paced read.

Then there are a few inconsistencies. Dorothy had supposedly given Jim's bone that she took after his funeral pyre to Thomas for DNA comparison with that of little Natalie Lawrence. Yet it is still with her when she entered the police station when Hannah was arrested for assault. I don't like inconsistent story lines. It's annoying!

We also have the "stupid" element in the story. Hannah would rather chase after the perpetrator than save her mother's life?!? What is that all about?? And that is not the only time she has been stupid!... The character development there went down by a notch or two.

This is my first Sarah Barron listen and I like the way she reads! Will buy audiobooks by her again.

Quantitative Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 3.5
Character development = 3
Story itself = 3
Writing Style = 3
Ending = 3.5
World building = 3.5
Cover art = 4
Pace = (10 hrs listening time)
Plot = 3.5
Narration = 4

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 ( )

Warning: This review contains spoilers.

****

The book begins with a funeral pyre. Jim Skelf, patriarch of the Skelf family and owner of the combination funeral home and private investigation business, is dead and being burned in the backyard, as he requested. His wife, Dorothy; his daughter, Jenny; and his granddaughter, Hannah deal with the fallout of his death and take over the family business. This book is told from the POV of each woman in turn, with chapters clearly indicating whose perspective is the limited 3rd person. It’s a philosophical book, grappling with mortality and the tiniest components of the universe; it’s life-affirming and funny and sad and heartfelt. I am not much of an ending-guesser, but toward the end I did get some Broadchurch vibes and those vibes were proven correct.

And speaking of TV, I got some Six Feet Under vibes from the premise, but the similarities are few. Johnstone actually spent time as a writer in residence at a funeral home and that was the inspiration for this book. I also liked that Johnstone incorporated his talent as a drummer into the story; Dorothy Skelf is a drummer too and teaches students periodically during the book.

I would love to read more in the series if I can get my hands on it! ( )

I’m a latecomer to the Skelf series; there are now four books following three generations of Skelf women living in Edinburgh. I’m glad to have made their acquaintance.

This first novel in the series begins with the death of Jim Skelf, the patriarch of the family. After his passing, his wife Dorothy, daughter Jenny, and granddaughter Hannah take over the family’s funeral home and private investigator businesses. Besides grieving, each of the three has a case to solve. Dorothy sets out to find out why Jim was paying an unknown woman a stipend every month for years. Jenny is hired by a woman to find proof that her husband is cheating on her. And when her roommate Mel goes missing, Hannah is determined to find her.

The novel has a great opening sentence: “Her dad took much longer to burn than she expected.” What a great way to grab the reader’s attention. There follow 64 short, snappy chapters alternating among the three Skelf women.

It is the three women who are the main attraction. Dorothy is 70, Jenny is in her mid-40s, and Hannah is 20 so they are of three different generations with different perspectives on life. Dorothy and Hannah are the most similar; Dorothy will stop at nothing to learn the truth and her granddaughter is tenacious in her search for Mel. Jenny seems the most fragile; she has lost her job and seems not to have recovered from her divorce though it’s been a decade, so she drinks too much and makes some questionable choices. What I liked is that all three women are flawed; they all make mistakes and jump to conclusions.

Dorothy is my favourite, perhaps because I’m closest to her in age. She does not behave like a stereotypical septuagenarian. Though she practices yoga, she also plays the drums. As expected, she spends time reflecting on her life and how she, an American from California, came to be in Scotland. I enjoyed her musings about life.

Men do not fare well in terms of characterization. Many are portrayed as sexist. Jenny confronts a man suspected in Mel’s disappearance and she thinks, “He had no experience of this, hadn’t ever had to fend off a sexual advance, an unwanted hand, an accidental squeeze of your breast that wasn’t accidental at all.” One male who is portrayed positively is Thomas Olsson, Dorothy’s policeman friend. Unfortunately, he does not come across as credible: he seems to be at the Skelf family’s beck and call, running DNA tests, stepping in to assist in their cases, and freely sharing information on on-going investigations.

Another weakness is the improbable illegal events; there’s a backyard cremation, two nighttime disinterments, a break-in, and two assaults. Yet the Skelfs must be coated in Teflon because they never suffer any consequences. Certainly the weapon Dorothy uses to defend herself in an attack should have inspired Thomas to ask some questions.

Though the book could be classified as a crime drama, it also has qualities of literary fiction. It emphasizes that it is impossible to really know anyone. We all have secrets and different sides to our personalities. Certainly, all three Skelf women learn that those very close to them have secrets. The novel also emphasizes inter-connectedness: “the tendrils of life spread out like a single organism, each reliant on being part of the greater whole for its continued existence.” And one thing that connects all of us is the inevitability of death. The book reminded me of Six Feet Under, a television series I loved. Both focus on human mortality, the death industry, and the lives of those who deal with it on a daily basis.

I am sufficiently intrigued with the Skelf women to want to find out what happens next.

Note: Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski). ( )

Das Familienoberhaupt der Skelfs und Chef eines Bestattungsinstituts mit angeschlossener Privatdetektei ist verstorben. Den Hinterbliebenen, das sind seine Frau Dorothy, Tochter Jenny und Enkelin Hannah, bleibt kaum Zeit für die Trauer, denn das Leben geht weiter und es passieren Dinge, die einer Klärung bedürfen. Jim Skelf scheint nicht der Mann gewesen zu sein, für den ihn alle gehalten haben, denn in den Unterlagen tauchen regelmäßige mysteriöse Zahlungen an eine Frau auf. Dann verschwindet auch noch Hannahs Freundin spurlos, was die Polizei nicht sonderlich interessiert. Also müssen die Frauen den Dingen selbst auf den Grund gehen.
Dieses Buch ist ein ganz besonderer Krimi, gleichzeitig düster und humorvoll. Es geht schon damit los, dass die Leiche des lieben Verstorbenen im Garten eingeäschert wird, während die Frauen darum herumstehen und zusehen. Es scheint ihnen nicht einmal so ungewöhnlich. Vielleicht geht man anders mit dem Tod um, wenn tagaus, tagein mit dem Tod zu tun hat. Trotzdem trauern sie, jede auf ihre spezielle Weise.
Dorothy will die Geheimnisse ihres Mannes herausfinden, der ihr plötzlich wie ein Fremder vorkommt. Jenny wollte eigentlich immer nur leben und nichts mit dem Tod zu tun haben, doch die Umstände bringen sie wieder zurück dorthin, von wo sie geflohen ist. Sie trägt einige Probleme mit sich herum. Bei einer Totenwache übernimmt sie einen Fall, bei dem alles anders ist als es scheint. Hannah muss feststellen, dass sie ihre beste Freundin überhaupt nicht kannte.
Während die Frauen sich um die Geschäfte kümmern, ist tief in ihnen Trauer und Schmerz.
Da alle drei Frauen zu Wort kommen, ist man nahe an ihnen dran und kann ihre Gefühle nachempfinden. Sie machen sich alle mit viel Engagement und mit wenig Professionalität an ihre Ermittlungen und verlieren dabei manchmal die notwendige Distanz. Wie schon bemerkt, konnte ich ihre Gefühle nachempfingen, ihre Handlungen nachvollziehen konnte ich eher nicht.
Es ist eine skurrile Geschichte, die so dahinplätschert und nicht unbedingt spannend ist, dafür aber immer mal wieder mit Überraschungen aufwartet. Hat mich nicht ganz überzeugt. ( )