Kindle British Mystery Book Club discussion
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The Snowdonia Killings
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Spoiler Discussion (Jul 2020) Value Read - The Snowdonia Killings, by Simon McCleave
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Just finished. Won't mind reading the next one - or the free prequel via the author's website. A lot of local description delivered without much passion - it helps to place the action but feels rather impersonal as if copied from a tourist guide. He's no Stephen Booth...
I enjoyed this first book very much. It is set close to where I live, so it was nice to hear familiar names. I wasn't very inspired by Nick's character, the typical alcoholic grumpy local, but I liked Ruth and the storyline of the disappearance of Sarah leaves something to look forward to in future episodes. I like that we were left the cliff-hanger of the text that she received at the end. The crime story was interesting and, with so many people with motives it was hard to work out who had committed the murders. An awful lot of suicides in this book? Unfortunately, as AngryGreyCat pointed out, there were a lot of edditing issues in the book, words and sentences missing etc. I always imagined that when a book is ready to be published, that someone would be given the job of reading the book through to pick up on these errors, but obviously no one did that with this one. I would give the book 3.5 out of 5 and might read another in the series, just to find out what happened to Sarah.
The characters in this first of the series were well-developed in the leads, Nick and Ruth, and secondaries were sketched well enough so I could easily call them to mind as I read from day to day. Though I didn't expect to like Nick any more than he expected to like Ruth, he was a type I'm quite familiar with as I have close friends in AA and have even attended a few meetings with them. I had sympathy for him when he chose to get clean but understood him while drinking in his disease. I was glad that these two odd ducks found respect and then liking for each other. Can't say that I saw the resolution to the murders before the ending and was sorry when it was revealed. I felt for Ruth when Drake was brought in and had to be shown he was a nice guy. This was another aspect of the plot that went against what I expected, which I liked throughout the book. The author put in a great deal of information about the area and its legends, something that enriches books for me. This background could have been inserted more smoothly at times. I gained a bit of knowledge about the personalities of the people who live in Wales and hope to know more through the following series books. I've already begun the second one and will tempt you to do the same by saying that Drake and Sarah continue to have roles in that story. I'm giving this book a four for its complexity, character development, and insight into their psychology. I might have given it more and expect to give the author five stars by the third book in the series.
Pat, you are tempting me to read the next in the series. I did like Nick's efforts to cut down his drinking by trying to allow himself so many units a day and his thoughts on the AA meeting were informative. I wonder if he will kick the problem further along in the series.
Shell, I hope you do continue with this series; I'm into the second book with real interest. As for Nick's disease, I will only tell you that of the people who go into the AA program, about 25% are able to make it work for them to live normal lives. I have huge respect for those who can stay sober for many years, through tough efforts every day, every hour they live. Maybe someday science will correct the DNA that produces the disease.
Yes, it will be interesting to see how Simon McCleave handles the alcohol situation over the series. It sounded as though he knew something about it, or had done some good research.
Shell wrote: "Yes, it will be interesting to see how Simon McCleave handles the alcohol situation over the series. It sounded as though he knew something about it, or had done some good research."I agree, Shell. If he isn't writing from personal experience, he has a family member or very close friend who has given him real insight not only into the feelings of an alcoholic, but also the personality traits that most often develop along with the disease. He used the details quite realistically.
A good first of series which I really enjoyed. Both leading characters were developed well, liked them and their back stories from the start. Snowdonia is an absolutely fabulous setting, think more could be made of it , perhaps in future episodes.
It would be nice to have some more descriptions of the area. Snowdonia is such a beautiful place.
The Good:
the characters Ruth and Nick were well fleshed out and intriguing characters. Even Arabella, the victim was well done, she was barely in the book but we know a lot about her form the brief interactions. Drake is only in the last few chapters and yet his introduction is well done.
the sense of place. The community and the landmarks are well developed especially through Nick's eyes as he thinks about them and describes what he sees.
The Bad:
the flow of the writing itself (or perhaps it is the editing?) There are some really choppy places in the text. Almost where it seems like there should have been another sentence or a transition of some kind. A few times, I swiped and then swiped back because I thought I accidentally turned too many pages because there seemed to be such a disconnect.
I would give this 3.5 stars because I really enjoy a good sense of place and well developed characters. I would probably read another in the series, to see if the writing evens out. Also I really want to know what happened to Ruth's partner :)