Disturbing the Dark is a dangerous book: I almost died of collateral cholesterol. The menu of the Normandy coast countryside is so lushly and deliciously detailed, I had to finish each chapter with a burp. One of this mystery's best features is the immersion in modern rural France with its family ties, its cheese wars, and its painful past.
Maggie MacGowan, the heroine of author Wendy Hornsby's series, is making a documentary set in her family's ancestral farm ruled over by her willful grandmother, a place where everyone is either her cousin or the cousin of a cousin.
 |
| A bucolic cover for a mystery |
The title "Disturbing the Dark" can be thought of as a metaphor for a film shown in a darkened theater or for uncovering a gloomy history. Local construction digs up a mass grave: Nazi soldiers who were slaughtered by the townspeople during World War II. As Maggie shifts the focus of her documentary to the sensational findings, this discovery leads to the unearthing of family secrets–and soon a murder.
Normandy has been the site of waves of invasions including the occupation by the Nazis, the blitz of the Allies subsequent to D-Day, and more recently, marauding tourists. Within the story appears further intruders: those lured by the lurid exhumations, creepy Nazi souvenir hunters, and those who are convinced the occupiers had buried a stash of stolen gold.
Hornsby has crafted a meticulous thriller, romance, travel guide and diet-destroyer. You can not help but want to escape among its pages.
Author's website.
--------------
Martin Hill Ortiz is the author of Never Kill A Friend, Ransom Note Press.
 |
| Never Kill A Friend, Ransom Note Press |
Never Kill A Friend is available for purchase in hard cover format and as an ebook.
The story follows Shelley Krieg, an African-American detective for the Washington DC Metro PD as she tries to undo a wrong which sent an innocent teenager to prison.
Hard cover: Amazon US
Kindle: Amazon US
Hard cover: Amazon UK
Kindle: Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble
No comments:
Post a Comment