Restless Dead (DCI Harry Grimm, #5)

by David J. Gatward

RESTLESS DEAD

I don’t often write reviews, that’s what I I figure Kindle notes & Goodreads are perfect for, feel something right in the moment and post it, otherwise you’ll forget it come the end. I call my rather unique mental scaffolding ‘the spidey web’, it, along with a Olympic sized swimming pool full of ‘little red fishies’ (red herrings) & of course myself, The Ego, spend the entirety of any book being read battling over a plethora of plot twists, guesstimating, maybes & hopefully semi hilarious puns & diatribe, although, be warned before you read, that sometimes I even scare myself. So without further ado…

restaurant, a wonderful little bistro called The Joshua Tree, was

‘You don’t need to worry about him,’ he said. ‘That’s dealt with. It’s done. Trust me.’

It’s hard when the way you should be able to feel & relate to a close family member feels wrong, that you can’t say or do what you really want to & are always worried about their reaction to issues, as well as just how they will come at you for things out of the blue. It’s like being in a never ending war with someone you love with no end in sight & bullets coming at you when you least expect them to.

Harry watched Jim look down at his dog, Fly, and pat it on the head.

Harry watched Jim look down at his dog, Fly, and pat IT on the head. Don’t you mean Harry watched Jim look down at his dog, Fly, and pat HIM on the head.??

‘We eat them,’ Jim said. ‘Well, not only us, as in my mum and dad and me scoffing our way through the flock, but the general public. What did you think lamb was, then?’ ‘Can’t say I’ve ever given it much thought, if I’m honest,’ Harry said. ‘Like most people, I’m sure. Anyway,

I can remember the time when I was explained about where the lamb Sunday roast came from. I’d always thought as a kid it was just called lamb, but it was the older sheep that were eaten, not the babies. I don’t think ice knowingly touched lamb since.

‘and usually takes a broom with him and a bag, to sweep up a bit, pick up any rubbish that blows off the roads and the fells. You’ll be amazed at the crap we find out and about.

Oh I wouldn’t, I take a walk to my home (devastated in the floods) to feed the birds & the amount of crap i find is jaw dropping & this is just a 20 minute walk there & back, the halfway point is a bridge over the river, the river that caused the flood, & the idea of plastic crap getting into it repulses me, as it’s a tidal river, which is why the flood was so bad. I know a good portion of it is school kids. So I’ve started picking it up, I didn’t mean for it to become a ‘thing’ it just did, I’d look at a soft drink can & think of a whale swallowing it, a lolly bag & a dolphin, & before I knew it, it was a thing. I don’t really care what people think, I know I’m doing a good thing, that’s enough, one day it was a 1/2 sized shopping brown bag full of it! Our species disgusts me at times! Oh yeah, today I found a condom! I did NOT pick it up, sorry fishies but I have my limits!

I mean, you think your parents’ll live forever, don’t you? Then something like this happens, and suddenly there they are, all old and vulnerable and you’re in the position of carer.’

Oh yeah, it’s hard to see them vulnerable it makes the fact that we all age, we all die, come at you, punch you in the nose & ask you if it hurt!

Black Hill Moss

My surname is Moss I believe we have Irish in our gene pool, I was quite devastated as I feel a leaning towards Scotland, don’t ask me why

I’m going to do anything stupid, I promise. You know that, don’t you?’ Ruth forced a smile. ‘Promise me that you won’t.’ ‘I promise,’ James said. ‘Really, I do.’ Ruth heard the words but wasn’t sure that she could see enough conviction in her father’s eyes. She would have to keep an eye on him,

It took me a long time to understand suicide is a passive aggressive way out from whatever your feeling & it shows no thought to those that love you, it’s an awful me me me action showing disdain & greed for yourself over others. I’m not just talking out of my you know what (A$$) I tried to kill myself when I was 22 & in my 30’s I was very unwell & I thought about it over & over, the only thing that stopped me was my cat, he was my baby & I knew if I died so would he, so he saved my life, & I understood the above.

a mean place of cold, where she was free of his demands, even though they really weren’t that onerous, and like a stab from a jagged spear, the harshest of thoughts tore through her mind, that this would be easier to deal with if it had been Dad, not Mum. Pushing the terrible thoughts down as deep as she dared,

I hate myself for saying this, but I understand that emotion, although mines the opposite, and I mean I REALLY hate myself for such a despicable thought!

James nodded, sipped his tea. ‘What’s the point indeed,’ he said.

All of the above, a few months ago I would of said, that we don’t like to think we just end, like that’s it, but we’re a biological species & we do,in fact, just end Then I had signs from a very dear & a very departed friend, now I do think there’s something, not a god etc, I hate organized religion, but a spiritual link to something…

‘I’ve tried to talk to her,’ James continued, his voice quieter now, Ruth noticed, almost conspiratorial. ‘Just to ask if she’s okay, if she’s in pain, or if everything’s okay. And I’ve told her that I love her as well.’

With my friend, yes, with my Dad, no, I’m not really sure why

‘Well, you know what Pat’s like,’ Ruth said. ‘She’s not one for taking no for an answer once she’s decided to do something.’

My Mums bane is Pat, she’s a Taurus, like the bull, similar temperament

it had just struck him as a little disrespectful.

Well there’s a red herring or 10K if I ever saw them!

‘I’d be armed,’ Jadyn said.

See it’s funny, places like the US, I’d expect that, I’m a Kiwi so that didn’t even enter my head, I thought drugged, I guess that shows either where this is becoming a deciding factor or guns are just so much easier sourced

‘Well, what’s there to say, really?’ Patricia replied.

Good god! I read this thinking it should read ‘Well, there’s naught to say, really?’ Patricia replied. I’m reading way too many books set over in the UK!

this, Patricia’s eyes widened and she snapped round to stare at Dan. ‘Hard exterior?’ she said. ‘I’m not a cold-hearted bitch, you know!' ‘I know that,’ said Dan, holding up a hand as though to fend Patricia off, ‘but you do have that tough protective layer that you wear so well. And at times like this, you need to take it off.

OMG I mentioned this was my Mums name, well that’s her characteristic too, hard, sometimes way too far, I’ve rarely seen anything else

Oh, and it’s okay to cry, in case you were wondering.’

Someone’s taking the piss. After my Dad died, that’s EXACTLY what my mother said to me “your Dads just died, it’s ok to cry you know” word for bloody word!

Harry shrugged. ‘Sounds good to me. So long as you promise that there’ll be none of that grated cheese nonsense on top.’ ‘Still don’t like it, then?’ Harry paused at this, because here was another way that the dales had changed him. He hadn’t exactly fallen in love with cheese,

I don’t like smelly cheese or fruit or soft etc, but I do love mozzarella, tasty etc, the ‘normal’ cheeses I guess you’d say. I usually do a mix of grated moz & tasty when I use cheese on anything, or block tasty on CRACKERS, not cake! Just so we’re clear on that! ;)

Harry glanced over at Matt, a quizzical look on his face. ‘Isn’t that going a bit further than what the police are supposed to do?’ he asked. ‘My view,’ Matt said, ‘is that there’s quite the difference between what we’re supposed to do and what we should do. Don’t think there’s ever anything wrong in us going that little bit further now and again.’ ‘Neither do I,’ Harry agreed

I totally agree too

You have other things to be dealing with, not the hallucinations of a grieving old man who’s probably had rather too much to drink.’

God, it really IS my Mother! The first go to of hers when anything whatsoever comes up with me is to blame drinking! I don’t know if I should show her all of this as a joke, or keep myself from harm & never mention a thing! Probably option 2!

‘She means well,’ said James, leading Harry deeper into the house. ‘But she can be a little spiky, if you know what I mean.’

Oh, I do, I know exactly what you mean. This is just funny as heck

‘My youngest daughter and her son,’ James explained.

Maybe they want out & thought scaring him might make him look a little senile, pop him in a home sell the house, leave….

the man was adamant he had seen a figure in the garden,

Maybe looking for things to pinch? I hope his brother doesn’t start getting blamed by his boss, he wasn’t too keen on him being there, then he does arrive then things start to happen Swift would love to point the blame

‘That looks to me like it used to be attached, to the main house, I mean.’ ‘It was,’ James said. ‘The sunken garden was a bit of the old cellar I think. Runs the length of the larger house, still.’ ‘Strange thing to do then, knock down the bit in the middle.’ ‘It was a long time ago,’ James said.

Could if been used for all sorts back in the day, if it was in the US I’d think things like slave running, to help them I mean, the Underground Railroad, gun running, bootleg booze etc etc being England my mind goes to priest holes & similar, but the gun running, would still work, but knowing this author over 4 books this far, well, who knows!?!

Ruth was staring at an empty room. Anthony was gone. Again.

Hmm suspect #1? As it’s apparently not her

but unless we find the vehicles, it’s sod all use to anyone.’

So why don’t you do a backwards vehicle check, look at where they may be most likely to of gone, used, and look for trucks that could be suitable, and run them on a backwards trajectory, if they don’t seem to have a valid one, well…?

and the thought of all those years of work just ending up in some dodgy Friday night kebabs was more than a little hard to take.

But what if they weren’t taken for that? What if they were taken because of their pedigree?…

‘No way!’ Jadyn said, eyes wide. ‘That’s amazing!’

He’s pulling your legs, yes plural, as it’s obvious you’ll believe anything & still stay standing! ;)

century?’ ‘I do know when the eighteen hundreds was,’ Harry said. ‘And no, not because that’s how old I am,’ he added, having guessed that the look in Jadyn’s eye was enough evidence that such a suggestion was very close to tripping off his tongue.

Heh heh heh

‘See what?’ Jadyn said. ‘What will I see?’

That he’s now resorting to pulling your arms (no way was a saying 3rd leg!) whoopsie! Heh

Golden Rule in Ambleside,

Had to have a sneaky peak, ever since I realized I could do it, aka reading my first few kindles, I’ve loved to look up places mentioned & it’s so easy to do. My fave though us restaurants, pubs etc & looking at the places & especially the menus, god knows why, I’ll never be eating at any of them, it’s still fun though. This one’s beautiful looking with all those flowers & so well cared for, you can tell the owners take a lot of pride in it. Drinks menu basic however & no food menu! Very disappointed! ;)

‘It’s just one of those places you know about because you’ve driven past it so often. And there’s nowhere else looks quite like it, is there?’

We have a house like that very near to where I live, called The Castle, because to be perfectly blunt, it looks like a miniature castle, no idea how old it is, older than me, but not that old either. It’s even got it’s own little 1 or maybe 2 mini turrets & a flagpole & the exterior looks like the old grey bricks you’d see in old castles. It’s a strange place, purely because it’s an oddity, no scary rumors about it, afaik anyways Just google castle & Takapuna & you’ll find it right away, as well as other castles in NZ

It’s not really my thing, but I don’t tell him that.’

How kind

And they couldn’t just keep coming out to check things over based on James seeing things that weren’t there.

I’m still swirling around in my COFFEE cup, that this is a way to sell the house, put him in a home & then enjoy the proceeds. It may not be necessarily being done as nasty, if it’s the daughter with the son, it could be either or, wanting to move away but feeling tied down & just wanting to break free, but if so it’s an awful way to go about it, trust me, I’ve been on the receiving end if something similar & it’s awful, it may just be the son, wanting to be a big star…

holding his head in his hands, and sobbing.

It always seems so heartbreaking when a man cries, I guess because we’re not used to it, making it all the harder to bare

‘Death, and if we exist beyond it.

Yes we do, I lost a dear friend & she has pummeled me with so many signs I’m surprised I’m not unconscious, I was always on the fence, but verging more to, no, we die, that’s it. Then this friend has done so SO much to get my attention, it’s almost unbelievable, I don’t think I’d believe me if I wasn’t seeing it day after day after day, it’s brought me just about my knees feeling such love and knowing there’s absolutely no other way to see all these signs as.

but she didn’t like driving at night,

Nor does my Mum, same reason

Darkness isn’t a feeling, is it?’ Well, it was, James thought, very much so, in fact.

I agree, we say people can be ‘bright & cheerful’ or ‘dark & stormy’

James cast a look around the small gathering, unable to fully grasp the reality of it, that he was there, that any of them were, and Helen wasn’t.

I know that feeling, my fathers funeral, it didn’t feel real, like I was there, but not, I scrunched myself inwards & as soon as the actual service was over I left, came home, got very very drunk & cried my heart out while being so angry at him, at mum, at myself, at life! It’s been 8yrs & not much has changed.

It was certainly healthier than Patricia’s approach, he thought. As she had done with everything throughout her whole life, she’d simply buried whatever she was feeling good and deep, and that was where it would stay. James often wondered if at some point his eldest daughter would suffer a nervous breakdown, on account of everything she had bottled up over the years, like a bottle of fizzy pop, shaken up so much that it finally just explodes.

Oh the irony of this characters name & how she’s portrayed, it’s my Mum all over, I don’t mean that in a bad or nasty way, at all, it’s just the characteristics can’t be ignored. I’m an empath all the way, I’ll instantly hone in on others emotions & feel them as if it were my own. But I’m terrible at dealing with things, due to Mum I very much have a ‘run & hide’ mentality & I’ll say “sorry” over & over & cringe without realizing it due to, shall we say ‘her anger’ during my childhood.

‘That’s a great photo of Nana,’ Anthony said.

Off the suspect list. However his mother… in the middle of a seesaw

James’ mind wasn’t empty, it was full. Bursting with memories of Helen. He could see her and feel her, and there, yes right there, wasn’t that her perfume? And oh, that laugh! It was music, wasn’t it? God, he missed her. How could he ever be expected to live without her? It was impossible! But these memories, they were so rich, so wonderful, that he didn’t want them to stop,

The books intent on making me cry. I’ve been getting messages from a friend who died, it’s way past explaining, I know it’s actually her & really happening, it’s mind blowing & scraping away at my beliefs on what happens after we die, I thought, the cynic rational side of me, anyway, that we die that’s it. But I also have a very spiritual side, not organized religion, more like pagan or just that we become energy, but energy with purpose, with memories. Anywhos it’s thrown me for a loop, in a very good way, but my heads all “WTF!” One very quick explanation ⬇️ I believe she is sending me love & messages of it, through either very large seabirds, between seagulls/albatrosses. Every day as I watch the sunset she sends these past my window at perfect timing of my thoughts &/or songs. Today she sent a lot at different times, but one time there was around 20 of them, no I’m not exaggerating & they came so close to coming through my window I thought they were going to! It was around 33 birds today! Cannot explain it, just can’t.

‘Bright light . . . the bright light . . .’

I don’t trust her, this is way past silly, I’ve watched a TON of paranormal shows & this is so fake & anyway bright light may mean headlights

‘It was a bright light, yes,’ Beverly said, interrupting. ‘But that’s not all it was.’ ‘Then what was it?’ Anthony asked. ‘What was it you saw? What were you talking about?’ Beverly stared at him then and Anthony couldn’t help but shiver a little under her gaze.

Maybe both characters should pop back a few chapters where it says how the headLIGHTS blinded her, it’s hardly a hidden thing

If the light she’d apparently seen hadn’t been Heaven, then what?

Duh They all must know that

Ruth and her son Anthony looked all out of tears,

Not sure about her, tied down looking after them, wanted out… it’s feasible, but let’s face it the author can lead us readers into a maze of red herrings & we’d never escape, until I brought both my little fishes & spidey web into play, my lovely red ones will distract the authors, and Spidey webs brilliant with mazes, unsurprisingly seeing that’s what she does, she’s a maze pro! Not sure WTF I’m talking about? Read my very first highlight/note

Jim’s mate, Neil, he’d been particularly enthusiastic about the whole thing, clearly feeling guilty about having kept Jim away from the farm when the theft had happened.

Hmmm … I wonder

human contents blackened husks inside.

I just love to enlighten any poor people who may ever stumble upon my notes, as I have this saved so I can C&P it, as it’s frequently shared, in consideration of others nasal afflictions…. What most people don’t know, and I wish I was one of them, is part of how we smell via our noses, we all know that much, right? Well for that to happen, little itty bitty particles of whatever it is, goes in & up and gets all snuggly cuddly onto all the fine hairs we have in there, and thus we smell… Whatever it is, good or bad Sounds great on the yummy Sunday roast your Mum made, maybe not so much on the Uber ride home, and you don’t get a choice whether to smell whatever garlicky concoction the driver ate last…

‘Well, I’ve been in touch with the fire investigators,’ Rebecca said. ‘I needed to have a good understanding of what had happened,

Not peeking downwards…. It’s the psychics body in the shed! Let’s see my moment of grandeur torn to shreds, shall we?…