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Ruth Galloway #1-3
Ruth Galloway: The Early Cases
The first three cases in Elly Griffiths' hugely popular series featuring forensic archaeologist Dr Ruth Galloway.
THE CROSSING PLACES.
Ruth Galloway is called upon to investigate human remains found in the Norfolk marshes, thought to be that of a missing girl about whom the police having been receiving some very strange letters.
THE JANUS STONE.
Bones are unearthed on the site of an old children's home. Two children had gone missing from the home forty years previously... but the evidence points to a different crime altogether.
THE HOUSE AT SEA'S END.
Ruth Galloway and DCI Nelson find themselves investigating a hideous crime that has been concealed for decades. And it soon becomes clear that someone wants the truth to stay buried, and they will go to any lengths to keep it that way.
THE CROSSING PLACES.
Ruth Galloway is called upon to investigate human remains found in the Norfolk marshes, thought to be that of a missing girl about whom the police having been receiving some very strange letters.
THE JANUS STONE.
Bones are unearthed on the site of an old children's home. Two children had gone missing from the home forty years previously... but the evidence points to a different crime altogether.
THE HOUSE AT SEA'S END.
Ruth Galloway and DCI Nelson find themselves investigating a hideous crime that has been concealed for decades. And it soon becomes clear that someone wants the truth to stay buried, and they will go to any lengths to keep it that way.
767 pages, ebook
First published March 20, 2014
739 people are currently reading
1480 people want to read
About the author
Elly Griffiths
75 books9,519 followersElly Griffiths' Ruth Galloway novels take for their inspiration Elly's husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt who lives on the Norfolk coast and who filled her niece's head with the myths and legends of that area. Elly has two children and lives near Brighton. Though not her first novel, The Crossing Places is her first crime novel.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
December 20, 2017
Another winner in the Ruth Galloway series
These books get better and better. Serious subjects with a light touch of humor every once in a while. The characters are well developed and so compelling that reading about them is a pleasure.
These books get better and better. Serious subjects with a light touch of humor every once in a while. The characters are well developed and so compelling that reading about them is a pleasure.
June 10, 2022
Pleasant enough to listen to while sewing.
June 12, 2020
The steady deterioration of Ruth's character over the course of the three books kind of ruined these mysteries for me; mysteries that are definitely too dark to be considered cozies. I don't like many of the other characters involved, either. I know that all people contain both good and bad personality traits but most people in these stories are just so stinking immoral and really don't care who gets hurt. Yuck! (This author definitely has a fixation on cheating husbands . . . Erik, Phil, Harry, etc.)
First book in the series, The Crossing Places, was the best out of the three, imo. The rest went downhill from there, at least for me.
First book in the series, The Crossing Places, was the best out of the three, imo. The rest went downhill from there, at least for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 16, 2019
Interesting protagonist...
in an interesting predicament makes for fun reading in this series which stretches to ten books at this writing. Lots to satisfy the history buff. Some sciency stuff as well. Fun and engaging with a through line that keeps you coming back for more. Forensic anthropologist Ruth Galloway assists DCI Harry Nelson in solving mysteries aided by Druid Cathbad and a host of other colorful characters. Their professional relationships will have e unintended consequences for everyone involved.
in an interesting predicament makes for fun reading in this series which stretches to ten books at this writing. Lots to satisfy the history buff. Some sciency stuff as well. Fun and engaging with a through line that keeps you coming back for more. Forensic anthropologist Ruth Galloway assists DCI Harry Nelson in solving mysteries aided by Druid Cathbad and a host of other colorful characters. Their professional relationships will have e unintended consequences for everyone involved.
June 4, 2020
A Cozy Mystery
The perfect mystery when you want to settle in for a Cozy read. The characters are interesting and become a part of the family. The the history and plot twists are hard to put down. I read the first 3 books in 2 days! Elly Griffiths was recommended by a friend and that's high praise for me.
The perfect mystery when you want to settle in for a Cozy read. The characters are interesting and become a part of the family. The the history and plot twists are hard to put down. I read the first 3 books in 2 days! Elly Griffiths was recommended by a friend and that's high praise for me.
September 15, 2017
A good read for autumn evenings
I enjoyed the location, the development of the characters and the intricacies of the story. Would have preferred the past, rather than present, tense
I enjoyed the location, the development of the characters and the intricacies of the story. Would have preferred the past, rather than present, tense
February 27, 2019
Am enjoying this recently discovered writer. I've read the first three books in 30 hours. Thank goodness for retirement!
August 30, 2022
Re-read of books 1-3. After recently catching up on this series from where I left off (book 10), I decided to re-read some of the early books. The books are well written with engaging story lines & good characters. I was reminded more clearly of the things that bugged me a little about these books. I like Ruth but she is definitely a bit self-centered and when her life takes a turn and she becomes a mother, her reaction and feelings about how it came about just don’t seem completely realistic (again, she is a bit self-centered about it). And I forgot the degree to which she is constantly putting herself and her daughter into mortal danger in these books. Her reckless choices make for very exciting sections of these books but also make you wonder what she was thinking. A snowstorm has started & Ruth has left her daughter with a complete stranger at Ruth’s very remote cottage- no reason to hurry home, she’ll just wait & be surprised when roads are impassable!! The enjoyment I get from these books far outweighs these annoyances though and I’ll probably keep re-reading the series since I’m looking for quick, enjoyable reads right now.
July 17, 2021
I know there are more books in this series so I spent most of the first half of this book shouting: Tell me less! I love a slow reveal. I knew who would get together and who done it long before the wrap. Having said that the author does manage a fairly significant bit of misdirection.
I liked that the main character is just about as suspicious as I am. She trusts no one by the end except perhaps herself.
For a book filled with in your face references to Christianity there isn’t a single character who does things from a moral conviction. Everyone in this universe is deeply flawed.
Will I read the next book in the series - probably not.
I liked that the main character is just about as suspicious as I am. She trusts no one by the end except perhaps herself.
For a book filled with in your face references to Christianity there isn’t a single character who does things from a moral conviction. Everyone in this universe is deeply flawed.
Will I read the next book in the series - probably not.
March 4, 2023
I liked the three books volume…
The first three books included in this volume set the stage for Ruth Galloway as the female lead and DCI Nelson as the detective. I found that I didn’t have much patience for Ruth and Nelson’s relationship. Otherwise I liked all three stories. Personally, I feel Ruth needs to get a life. Her friendship with Shona is one sided and opportunistic.the other characters appear only to provide a reason for Ruth’s lack of social skills.
I will continue to reads this series, but wish she would take a reality check when she follows archeology instead of her maternal love for Kate.
The first three books included in this volume set the stage for Ruth Galloway as the female lead and DCI Nelson as the detective. I found that I didn’t have much patience for Ruth and Nelson’s relationship. Otherwise I liked all three stories. Personally, I feel Ruth needs to get a life. Her friendship with Shona is one sided and opportunistic.the other characters appear only to provide a reason for Ruth’s lack of social skills.
I will continue to reads this series, but wish she would take a reality check when she follows archeology instead of her maternal love for Kate.
July 24, 2021
Enjoyed the Early Years tremendously!
I am rather late in picking up this series on Dr Ruth Galloway but throughly enjoyed these first 3 e-books,no regrets! There’s mystery, red-herrings and thrills enough to keep me in suspense through each book. I have been switching to the kindle library more and more these days as my physical library bookshelves are running out of space; nonetheless, Elly Griffiths is now very much part of my selected “crime thriller” authors together with David Baldacci, John Grisham and Louise Penny.
I am rather late in picking up this series on Dr Ruth Galloway but throughly enjoyed these first 3 e-books,no regrets! There’s mystery, red-herrings and thrills enough to keep me in suspense through each book. I have been switching to the kindle library more and more these days as my physical library bookshelves are running out of space; nonetheless, Elly Griffiths is now very much part of my selected “crime thriller” authors together with David Baldacci, John Grisham and Louise Penny.
October 12, 2021
Archaeology and Murder
Elly Griffiths' talent as a writer takes me to various locates in England that I was not familiar. Her descriptions and developments of characters come very much alive giving me the urge to know these people whether I like them or not. The prose moves along smoothly and quickly. Nothing boring or stilted with her writing.
Elly Griffiths' talent as a writer takes me to various locates in England that I was not familiar. Her descriptions and developments of characters come very much alive giving me the urge to know these people whether I like them or not. The prose moves along smoothly and quickly. Nothing boring or stilted with her writing.
January 22, 2023
Ruth is an archaeologist and is helping chief inspector Nelson solve the age of a child's bones! Discovering they were thousands years old, Ruth helps solve the murder. That's only the first crime! Second and third involves Ruth helping inspector Nelson solve crimes. While we learn more about Ruth, Nelson, Coulte, and others lifes
October 15, 2023
Three books, all related. A great series of an archeologist, who specializes in the analysis of ancient bones. Ruth’s life is chaotic. She often finds herself at the edge of death, being rescued at the last minute, trying to be a responsible parent and participate in police inquiries.
March 22, 2025
I did like the murder part of the novel, hit the author clearly has a things against Christian’s. They are mocked, and barely tolerated with a huge dose of derision. It was difficult to get through those passages.
December 12, 2018
All brilliant reads
June 23, 2019
I love these books. The characters are well developed and it's easy for the reader to be drawn in by them. The information on archaeology is fascinating.
May 13, 2020
Easy to read and to become engaged in the life of Ruth, who is smart and her humorous comments make for some fun. I will certainly pick up more in this series.
Read
June 2, 2020 I liked the book. It was not one of my favorites. I thought that the characters were developed pretty well and the story was good.
August 30, 2021
A very enjoyable easy read.
October 23, 2021
These are fun, quick reads for mystery fans who don’t mind overlooking the unrealistic but entertaining plot developments.
November 15, 2021
Easy, fun read
Read
September 19, 2023The start of what appears to be a very good series set in UK with an archeologist and a police inspector as the main characters.
March 6, 2025
Book One: 3.5
First book by the author. Very well written. More gruesome than my usual cozy mysteries but still intriguing enough for me to read regardless.
Started second book and it seems like an exact continuation of book one... I don't have the energy to read about more archeologists and dead children right now. Maybe another time.
First book by the author. Very well written. More gruesome than my usual cozy mysteries but still intriguing enough for me to read regardless.
Started second book and it seems like an exact continuation of book one... I don't have the energy to read about more archeologists and dead children right now. Maybe another time.
November 10, 2025
A new addiction!
July 2, 2015
Great mystery writer from England. Main Character is an archaeologist that helps police detectives investigate murders/crimes. Some romance, humor too.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews