Wednesday, March 13, 2013

The Book Of Killowen-Erin Hart

The Book Of Killowen


Erin Hart

Scribner, Mar 5 2013, $26.00

ISBN: 9781451634846



Detectives Stella Cusack and Fergal Malloy lead the investigation into how a Gold Mercedes containing in its trunk the remains of a centuries-old corpse ended up in County Tipperary’s Killowen Bog. Keeper of Conservation, National Museum of Ireland brings in two experts, Irish archeologist Cormac Maguire and American pathologist Nora Gavin to extract the victim. As the pair works on the removal of the well preserved but murdered Killowen Man, they find another corpse wearing modern garb.



Cormac and Nora are interested in the top deceased who turns out to be a ninth century monk murdered allegedly for heretic scripting. Stella and Fergal are interested in the bottom deceased who turns out to be TV host Benedict Kavanagh, known for destroying his guests with his sharp wit. Both investigations intertwine; forcing the four investigators to cooperate; especially since the nearby landowners and an artist colony prefer to hide the motives of the two homicides more than millennia apart.



The latest Maguire-Gavin archeological mystery (see False Mermaid) is a great whodunit that hooks the audience from the moment the car is found in the bog. Fast-paced from the onset with its dual homicides, The Book Of Killowen will be shortlisted as one of the best mysteries of the year as Erin Hart provides a deep look at various motives to maintain secrets.



Harriet Klausner



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