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kmac2022's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
lisaa's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
fhackland's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
doobyus's review against another edition
3.0
It was an interesting story, with a number of quirky twists, but it wasn’t great.
portybelle's review against another edition
4.0
A Dark Matter is the latest novel from Doug Johnstone and was partly inspired by his time as writer in residence at a funeral directors in Edinburgh. It begins with three generations of the Skelf family attending the cremation of Jim Skelf, in a rather unorthodox send-off. As well as owning and running the Skelf family funeral directors, Jim had a sideline in private detective work. With Jim gone, the women of the family soon find themselves getting involved in various investigations. In days gone by, funeral directors often were joiners or cabinet makers too so it could be said that the Skelf family are keeping up tradition by having a second line of business.
Is 'skelf' a Scottish word? I have a feeling that it might be. So just in case you aren't familiar with the word, let me explain that it's a word for a small splinter of wood, something that gets stuck under your skin and can be painful and irritating. Now I definitely didn't find the book irritating but the characters and plots definitely got under my skin.
I loved the Edinburgh setting and Doug Johnstone's mentions of so many places familiar to me really brought the city to life for me. Ironic perhaps given the undertakers theme! This is a distinctly Scottish book from its setting, to the characters and to the way they spoke. I had a smile when reading that the Meadows were hoaching one warm evening. Does everyone know what hoaching means? The language used and the places mentioned were just spot on. I admit to being a little unnerved though at what was going on one dark night at the cemetery just up the road from where I live...
I thought writing about three generations of women and having the chapters narrated from each one's point of view worked really well. Dorothy was the grandmother and Jim's widow and perhaps rather surprisingly an excellent drummer! Jenny was her daughter, somewhat down on her luck and finding that getting involved with the family business was just what she needed at that point in time. Hannah was Jenny's daughter, a student at Edinburgh university with a close connection to one of the investigations. There was something of interest about each of these strong women and I found the cases they were working on really intriguing. The Skelfs really were a fascinating family.
What I like about Doug Johnstone's books is that they are all quite different. This book isn't just a crime book, isn't just a straightforward murder mystery, isn't just about running a funeral director business, isn't just a family drama but includes elements of each (and dare I suggest the tiniest hint of romance?) and the different parts all complement each other really well. I am pleased that A Dark Matter is the first in a series to feature the Skelf women and I'm looking forward to finding out where their next investigations lead.
Is 'skelf' a Scottish word? I have a feeling that it might be. So just in case you aren't familiar with the word, let me explain that it's a word for a small splinter of wood, something that gets stuck under your skin and can be painful and irritating. Now I definitely didn't find the book irritating but the characters and plots definitely got under my skin.
I loved the Edinburgh setting and Doug Johnstone's mentions of so many places familiar to me really brought the city to life for me. Ironic perhaps given the undertakers theme! This is a distinctly Scottish book from its setting, to the characters and to the way they spoke. I had a smile when reading that the Meadows were hoaching one warm evening. Does everyone know what hoaching means? The language used and the places mentioned were just spot on. I admit to being a little unnerved though at what was going on one dark night at the cemetery just up the road from where I live...
I thought writing about three generations of women and having the chapters narrated from each one's point of view worked really well. Dorothy was the grandmother and Jim's widow and perhaps rather surprisingly an excellent drummer! Jenny was her daughter, somewhat down on her luck and finding that getting involved with the family business was just what she needed at that point in time. Hannah was Jenny's daughter, a student at Edinburgh university with a close connection to one of the investigations. There was something of interest about each of these strong women and I found the cases they were working on really intriguing. The Skelfs really were a fascinating family.
What I like about Doug Johnstone's books is that they are all quite different. This book isn't just a crime book, isn't just a straightforward murder mystery, isn't just about running a funeral director business, isn't just a family drama but includes elements of each (and dare I suggest the tiniest hint of romance?) and the different parts all complement each other really well. I am pleased that A Dark Matter is the first in a series to feature the Skelf women and I'm looking forward to finding out where their next investigations lead.
pipeo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
the_coycaterpillar_reads's review against another edition
5.0
The dark sense of Scottish humour has never been utilised to its full potential. Until now. A Dark Matter is a multi-layered double entendre that is pushing itself to the surface. It capitulates the dreich weather, the wounds that get hidden by alcohol but it’s all held up by the innate will of three immensely strong female characters. They are determined. They are strong and above all…no-one should try to fuck them over! Orenda Books is my go-to publisher for crime fiction and when you find an author that drips in his skill for getting the average scots character down, you know you’re onto a winner.
We have a trio of incredibly strong women. At the top of the matriarchy is, Dorothy. A spunky 70-year-old Californian. She should be commended on her ease for settling in Scotland so well. It really can’t be easy coming from those sun kissed beaches and being faced with dreich and dour weather. She married the love of her life and they were there for each right until the end. Dorothy is a widower, a mother, a grandmother and nothing stands in her way. She put everything into her life with Jim. Their funeral director business, their marriage but did Jim feel the same way? What changed?
Jenny, Dorothy and Jim’s daughter. I loved her. She’s fallen on hard times. She’s been made redundant, she is struggling with the payments on her flat, she seems to have lost her direction in life. Her daughter is grown up, flourishing at university but Jenny seems to be going from situation to situation. Craig her ex treated her appallingly, cheated on her and left her to pick up the pieces. She doesn’t suffer fools gladly but her moral compass is still intact, despite the circumstances. She is now living back with her mum after her father’s passing and is aiding in the funeral directors and the private investigation business. Can she finally find what’s missing and move forward?
Hannah, Jenny’s daughter can be a wee bit obsessive. She focusses on the end goal and never loses sight of it. She is one smart cookie. She is neutralised and held up by her partner, Indy. What a team they make. They are each the others Ying and Yang. Hannah is rocked by the disappearance of her flatmate, Mel. She knows something isn’t right, and my Jove, she’ll get to the bottom of it.
Never doubt how strong a woman a can be, nor how dangerous. Hand this book to those who doubt and wait for their reactions – there are three Skelf women in this story and they are definitely a force to reckoned with. Each one is struggling with their grief. Dorothy finds out her husband has been making strange payments from their business account to an unknown woman. Jenny needs to navigate her new life and her case involving a cheating man. Hannah needs to focus on finding her friend otherwise where will her thoughts take her?
Events lead to a crescendo of shocks and emotion. Will the Skelf women be swallowed up cold hard facts? Are they dabbling in things that they have no right dabbling in? It’s all very bleak – love and death are two sides of the same coin.
I’m very pleased this is going to be a series, I can’t wait to see what the author has the Skelf women getting up to next. The author hasn’t only created a bubble of death and mystery but real deep-thinking points also. He has addressed the #metoo issue and carved away the fog that often surrounds it. Women are so often brought up around by everyday misogyny that sometimes it can be difficult to picture it a different way. Would it be viewed differently if women were treating men in the same way. Even when they do, it seems to be more of a non-issue. The metoo movement needs to be tackled from both angles and Doug Johnstone does that eloquently.
Dark Matter was like quicksand. When you opened the books pages it sucked you in, further and further, until you were all in…nothing was going to pull you out. Doug steers you in each direction, a myriad of compulsive, addictive stories. He’s the crazy driver but you got in his car willingly. You’re in for the long haul, there is no getting out. It really is a book of self-discovery of three immovable women. They discover a lot about themselves. The backdrop was spot on, a true portrayal of Edinburgh. From the weather to the culture, each woman sees their city differently. Their experiences aren’t the same. It really breathes a dark and foreboding element into its pages…fear lurking within.
A Dark Matter is hypnotically readable. It was intense and surreal with a sense of creeping dread pouring from its spines. Doug Johnstone is a master craftsman that will continue to get better and better. This book had me gasping for breath at its sheer brilliance.
We have a trio of incredibly strong women. At the top of the matriarchy is, Dorothy. A spunky 70-year-old Californian. She should be commended on her ease for settling in Scotland so well. It really can’t be easy coming from those sun kissed beaches and being faced with dreich and dour weather. She married the love of her life and they were there for each right until the end. Dorothy is a widower, a mother, a grandmother and nothing stands in her way. She put everything into her life with Jim. Their funeral director business, their marriage but did Jim feel the same way? What changed?
Jenny, Dorothy and Jim’s daughter. I loved her. She’s fallen on hard times. She’s been made redundant, she is struggling with the payments on her flat, she seems to have lost her direction in life. Her daughter is grown up, flourishing at university but Jenny seems to be going from situation to situation. Craig her ex treated her appallingly, cheated on her and left her to pick up the pieces. She doesn’t suffer fools gladly but her moral compass is still intact, despite the circumstances. She is now living back with her mum after her father’s passing and is aiding in the funeral directors and the private investigation business. Can she finally find what’s missing and move forward?
Hannah, Jenny’s daughter can be a wee bit obsessive. She focusses on the end goal and never loses sight of it. She is one smart cookie. She is neutralised and held up by her partner, Indy. What a team they make. They are each the others Ying and Yang. Hannah is rocked by the disappearance of her flatmate, Mel. She knows something isn’t right, and my Jove, she’ll get to the bottom of it.
Never doubt how strong a woman a can be, nor how dangerous. Hand this book to those who doubt and wait for their reactions – there are three Skelf women in this story and they are definitely a force to reckoned with. Each one is struggling with their grief. Dorothy finds out her husband has been making strange payments from their business account to an unknown woman. Jenny needs to navigate her new life and her case involving a cheating man. Hannah needs to focus on finding her friend otherwise where will her thoughts take her?
Events lead to a crescendo of shocks and emotion. Will the Skelf women be swallowed up cold hard facts? Are they dabbling in things that they have no right dabbling in? It’s all very bleak – love and death are two sides of the same coin.
I’m very pleased this is going to be a series, I can’t wait to see what the author has the Skelf women getting up to next. The author hasn’t only created a bubble of death and mystery but real deep-thinking points also. He has addressed the #metoo issue and carved away the fog that often surrounds it. Women are so often brought up around by everyday misogyny that sometimes it can be difficult to picture it a different way. Would it be viewed differently if women were treating men in the same way. Even when they do, it seems to be more of a non-issue. The metoo movement needs to be tackled from both angles and Doug Johnstone does that eloquently.
Dark Matter was like quicksand. When you opened the books pages it sucked you in, further and further, until you were all in…nothing was going to pull you out. Doug steers you in each direction, a myriad of compulsive, addictive stories. He’s the crazy driver but you got in his car willingly. You’re in for the long haul, there is no getting out. It really is a book of self-discovery of three immovable women. They discover a lot about themselves. The backdrop was spot on, a true portrayal of Edinburgh. From the weather to the culture, each woman sees their city differently. Their experiences aren’t the same. It really breathes a dark and foreboding element into its pages…fear lurking within.
A Dark Matter is hypnotically readable. It was intense and surreal with a sense of creeping dread pouring from its spines. Doug Johnstone is a master craftsman that will continue to get better and better. This book had me gasping for breath at its sheer brilliance.
fionadinw's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
mpr2000's review against another edition
5.0
Brilliant! Really, this is the only thing you need to know before you start reading this book, you’ll enjoy every page, I am sure!