syren1532's review
2.0
Cal Nyx is a park ranger in the Australian outback. While out in the bush she comes across a decomposing body. When the police identify the victim Cal realises that she knew him and decides to carry out her own investigation.
Struggled with this one to be honest. Good enough story but didn’t feel it flowed well when I was reading it. At times it felt like I was reading the second book in the series (it might be) as events in the main character’s past are mentioned but no further information given.
Thanks to Bloodhound Books and Kim Hunter fie the ARC in return for an honest review.
Struggled with this one to be honest. Good enough story but didn’t feel it flowed well when I was reading it. At times it felt like I was reading the second book in the series (it might be) as events in the main character’s past are mentioned but no further information given.
Thanks to Bloodhound Books and Kim Hunter fie the ARC in return for an honest review.
kchisholm's review against another edition
3.0
Another book from the Ngaio Marsh list of 2021 that feels like the start of a series. This one is set north-west of Sydney, Australia, featuring park ranger Cal Nyx, who finds a badly decomposed body in the bush. Identification shows the body to be that of somebody she once knew, and Cal becomes a suspect in the death as a result. The whole thing gets even more complicated when it turns out the victim was wanted for murder in their own right.
Nyx is living with plenty of family complications and skeletons in closets, which takes a probe of her personal life as part of the police investigation into murky territory indeed. There's a lot going on in THE BEAUTIFUL DEAD, perhaps too much, particularly early on as there is a lot of heavy lifting in the scene setting and introducing a cast of lots of characters. A complex plot at its heart, THE BEAUTIFUL DEAD also relies a bit on coincidences and connections to get lots of suspects, and a lot of motives lined up. It works in creating a lot of possible contenders, and a hefty dose of confusion, which was successful at some points, veering towards overcrowded at others.
None of which is all that terribly surprising in a debut novel, with a complicated, complex character at its heart. Certainly less surprising if we're heading into series territory here, for which there is plenty of potential, particularly with such a strong sense of place as well as an interesting central protagonist.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/beautiful-dead-kim-hunt
Nyx is living with plenty of family complications and skeletons in closets, which takes a probe of her personal life as part of the police investigation into murky territory indeed. There's a lot going on in THE BEAUTIFUL DEAD, perhaps too much, particularly early on as there is a lot of heavy lifting in the scene setting and introducing a cast of lots of characters. A complex plot at its heart, THE BEAUTIFUL DEAD also relies a bit on coincidences and connections to get lots of suspects, and a lot of motives lined up. It works in creating a lot of possible contenders, and a hefty dose of confusion, which was successful at some points, veering towards overcrowded at others.
None of which is all that terribly surprising in a debut novel, with a complicated, complex character at its heart. Certainly less surprising if we're heading into series territory here, for which there is plenty of potential, particularly with such a strong sense of place as well as an interesting central protagonist.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/beautiful-dead-kim-hunt
bwagner's review
4.0
I enjoyed this book. It is my first book by this author and I will be looking for more. It is a suspenseful-mystery that kept me turning pages fast. The twists and turns had me sitting on the edge of my seat. This is a creative well written story with characters that bring the story to life. Cal finds a dead body but problem is he knows who it is and has become a suspect. I highly recommend reading this book to find out what happens next. I dont regret picking this book up and neither will you.
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