Helpful Score: 2
This novel was not quite what I was expecting but I really enjoyed it nonetheless. Inspector Fin Macleod is at a crossroads in his marriage and his life. He is a detective in Edinburgh and has lost his young eight-year-old son to a hit and run. This makes him question his life and marriage. Then he is called to return to his place of birth, the Isle of Lewis off the Northwest coast of Scotland, to investigate a murder that has similar traits to a recent murder that he is investigating in Glasgow. When Fin returns to Lewis, he is immersed in old memories and is surrounded by the people he grew up with on the island. He must learn to face his past even though it has been mostly erased from his mind for the past 18 years. The person who was murdered was an old school acquaintance of Fin's who was also a bully who tormented not only Fin but many of his school mates as well. So who killed him? Was it the same person who killed the man in Glasgow? If not, why are the circumstances of the murders so similar?
As I said, this novel was really not what I was expecting. I thought it would be a usual police procedural about a serial killer. But it was really more about Fin's life and his experiences on Lewis which affected him forever. The book alternates between the present and Fin's investigation and the past told from Fin's perspective as he lived it. This included the death of his parents, his love of a young girl during his boyhood and on into adulthood, the bullying of his peers, and his eventual departure from his life there. A big part of his story revolved around what happened when he went with the group to An Sgeir, a rocky island 50 miles north of Lewis where the annual hunt for young gannets or "guga" is held. The Lewis islanders make an annual pilgrimage there each year and kill about 2000 of the young birds which are considered a delicacy by the islanders. I really had never heard of this and I always like learning something new with each book I read. This one really fleshed out life on the Isle of Lewis and I would recommend it. This is also the first book in a trilogy by May. I have the other two books on my TBR shelves and hopefully will get to them sometime soon.
As I said, this novel was really not what I was expecting. I thought it would be a usual police procedural about a serial killer. But it was really more about Fin's life and his experiences on Lewis which affected him forever. The book alternates between the present and Fin's investigation and the past told from Fin's perspective as he lived it. This included the death of his parents, his love of a young girl during his boyhood and on into adulthood, the bullying of his peers, and his eventual departure from his life there. A big part of his story revolved around what happened when he went with the group to An Sgeir, a rocky island 50 miles north of Lewis where the annual hunt for young gannets or "guga" is held. The Lewis islanders make an annual pilgrimage there each year and kill about 2000 of the young birds which are considered a delicacy by the islanders. I really had never heard of this and I always like learning something new with each book I read. This one really fleshed out life on the Isle of Lewis and I would recommend it. This is also the first book in a trilogy by May. I have the other two books on my TBR shelves and hopefully will get to them sometime soon.
Helpful Score: 2
First Line: They are just kids.
Just one month ago, Detective Fin Macleod and his wife lost their only child in a hit-and-run. It has ruined their marriage. Forcing himself to return to work in Edinburgh, Fin finds himself assigned to a murder investigation on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland-- the place where he was born and lived until he went away to university. It will be his first time back in twenty years.
Arriving in Stornoway he finds that he's unwanted by a Detective Chief Inspector who's looking for the tiniest excuse to get him off the island. Although Fin intuitively knows that there's no real connection between the Lewis murder and the one he was investigating in Edinburgh, he realizes that he can be of real use because he went to school with the dead man and knows many of the names on the suspect list. What he doesn't know is how deeply into his own past his investigation will take him.
The first thing that struck me as I read this book was that the setting should be included in the cast of characters. When Fin Macleod speaks of his childhood on the Isle of Lewis being filled with rainbows, I remembered my first trip to the Isle of Skye when I was bedazzled and enchanted by an endless procession of waterfalls and rainbows. On another trip, I stood on a windswept cliff and looked out across The Minch to the Isle of Lewis and felt its siren song. The author brought this all back to me (and so much more), and I can see many other readers falling under the same spell.
There are two magnets in this book: its setting, and Fin Macleod. The unfolding of his character throughout the book by alternating the present day investigation with childhood flashbacks is brilliant. We see a happy little boy whose life is filled with rainbows change into a teenager who can't wait to leave the island forever, and finally into a quiet man who seems filled with regrets... and secrets. Macleod's return to Lewis turns out to be good both for the island and for himself.
I'm still a bit under the spell of this book, so I am very glad to know that there are two forthcoming volumes that will continue the story. I can't help but wonder if rainbows will make a reappearance in Fin's skies.
Just one month ago, Detective Fin Macleod and his wife lost their only child in a hit-and-run. It has ruined their marriage. Forcing himself to return to work in Edinburgh, Fin finds himself assigned to a murder investigation on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland-- the place where he was born and lived until he went away to university. It will be his first time back in twenty years.
Arriving in Stornoway he finds that he's unwanted by a Detective Chief Inspector who's looking for the tiniest excuse to get him off the island. Although Fin intuitively knows that there's no real connection between the Lewis murder and the one he was investigating in Edinburgh, he realizes that he can be of real use because he went to school with the dead man and knows many of the names on the suspect list. What he doesn't know is how deeply into his own past his investigation will take him.
The first thing that struck me as I read this book was that the setting should be included in the cast of characters. When Fin Macleod speaks of his childhood on the Isle of Lewis being filled with rainbows, I remembered my first trip to the Isle of Skye when I was bedazzled and enchanted by an endless procession of waterfalls and rainbows. On another trip, I stood on a windswept cliff and looked out across The Minch to the Isle of Lewis and felt its siren song. The author brought this all back to me (and so much more), and I can see many other readers falling under the same spell.
There are two magnets in this book: its setting, and Fin Macleod. The unfolding of his character throughout the book by alternating the present day investigation with childhood flashbacks is brilliant. We see a happy little boy whose life is filled with rainbows change into a teenager who can't wait to leave the island forever, and finally into a quiet man who seems filled with regrets... and secrets. Macleod's return to Lewis turns out to be good both for the island and for himself.
I'm still a bit under the spell of this book, so I am very glad to know that there are two forthcoming volumes that will continue the story. I can't help but wonder if rainbows will make a reappearance in Fin's skies.
Richard C. (Richard-luvs-Reading) -
Helpful Score: 1
A Quality Book with well-developed characters, strong imagery, and a realistic story.
Although, some of the flashbacks were a little too detailed being that they happened almost 20 years prior, but it did add to the Mystery and built a great Setting.
Lastly, with the length of the Book, I thought it actually dragged a little towards the beginning, but the last few hundred pages zoomed by, and so a little patience is recommended.
Although, some of the flashbacks were a little too detailed being that they happened almost 20 years prior, but it did add to the Mystery and built a great Setting.
Lastly, with the length of the Book, I thought it actually dragged a little towards the beginning, but the last few hundred pages zoomed by, and so a little patience is recommended.
I enjoyed this beautifully written book very much. It was an interesting view of an isolated island and its habitants.The characters were memorable and the story was a definite page-turner. The ending was not expected and a complete surprise. I look forward to reading the other books in the trilogy.
There were aspects of "The Black House" that annoyed me (structure and psychology), but I think May got the balance of plot and setting just about right: scenery, language, geography, weather, wildlife. All, in their way, part of the plot -- the murder that brings police inspector Fin Macleod back to the island of his birth) and the history (personal and community) that drove him away, and makes it so hard for him to return, are all interwoven with the things that make the Hebrides unique.
A fabulous read, both an original mystery and a captivating portrait of life on an isolated island in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland. Several interesting plot twists kept me gasping and wanted to get to the ending. For me this was reminiscent of Chris Ould's trilogy set on the Faroe Islands: Someone born on the island but living on the mainland goes back to solve a crime and gets caught up in his mixed-up past. Highly recommended.
I enjoyed this beautifully written book very much. It was an interesting view of an isolated island and its habitants.The characters were memorable and the story was a definite page-turner. The ending was not expected and a complete surprise. I look forward to reading the other books in the trilogy.
I am rereading this book as the new book 4 will be out in September and I have found it very refreshing. Having read it 10 years ago, I have found out that I have forgotten most of the book. I will reread book 2 snd 3 also as I think I will find the same results. I will then be ready to read book 4 in September when the book is published.
I am rereading this book as the new book 4 will be out in September and I have found it very refreshing. Having read it 10 years ago, I have found out that I have forgotten most of the book. I will reread book 2 snd 3 also as I think I will find the same results. I will then be ready to read book 4 in September when the book is published.
I loved this book, and look forward to reading the other two in the trilogy. First time I've read May, and will do so again!
Detective Fin MacLeod has been sent to Northern Scotland to look into a murder that shares similarities to a murder he is investigating. Fin grew up on the Isle of Lewis, and knows the murder victim as a bully during his high school days. As Fin talks to his former friends and neighbors about the murder, he recalls his childhood on the island.
This book was recommended to me by several friends. I found the writing style interesting. Part of the story is told in third person. The flashbacks to Fin's past are told in first person. The mystery is secondary to the characters in this story. All of the characters are unique and feel like real people. Overall, I liked the story, but didn't care for the slow pace. I also had a hard time with the ending. My rating: 3.5 Stars.
This book was recommended to me by several friends. I found the writing style interesting. Part of the story is told in third person. The flashbacks to Fin's past are told in first person. The mystery is secondary to the characters in this story. All of the characters are unique and feel like real people. Overall, I liked the story, but didn't care for the slow pace. I also had a hard time with the ending. My rating: 3.5 Stars.
