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A review by alba_marie
The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"She thinks of the lights on the salt marsh at night, of the time when Cathbad claimed to have visited the underworld in a dream, of the saints and the spirits, of the many times her foolish heart has overruled her scientific head. The best that she can say now is that she isn't sure. About anything."
I love this series. I love enjoy Ruth Galloway's adventures, and appreciate Elly Griffiths ability to combine archeology and modern mystery. This book was probably the most loosely linked between the historic case – that of Jemima Green or Mother Hook, a woman accused of being a baby farmer and killing her charges back in Victorian times – and the modern cases of Liz Donaldson whose baby has just died or the later case of the missing child Poppy.
Perhaps not the best book to read while pregnant (oops...), there are a lot of missing and sadly dead children in this book. It's not exactly uplifting reading. And there isn't one overall plot arc throughout the novel other than the dead/missing children. But despite that, The Outcast Dead is a well written and gripping tale. It's dark, it's tense, and it successfully links the past to the present – showing, in fact, that not much has changed in terms of societal views towards motherhood, childcare, and the choice to hire helping childrearing. Not much has changed in terms of what happens when all goes wrong, either... the blame falls to the women involved. Never the men, despite the truth. It's always the women.
DCI Harry Nelson reminds us of that (in case we forget) every time he (unfairly) grumbles that Ruth should be home with Kate instead of [work, socialising, catching killers, dating, insert activity here]. He recognises that his reaction is unfair – though he doesn't go so far as to self-accuse of sexism – but nevertheless, the idea is repeated throughout.
Judy "should have been more emotional" about her missing child. Poppy's parents "shouldn't have hired a childminder," the childminder "should have been more prudent". Jemima Green is delegated a terrifying Victorian monster simply because she looked the part – after all, she had a hook – and she was willing to take in unmarried mother's babies. God forbid any of these undernourished, poor and unwanted offspring died before reaching adoption by "respectable" families. (Who in turn would likely hire a childminder to care for the child! Surely all would be fine... until something bad happened. Then, somehow, no matter what, it'd be the woman's fault.)
Most of the male characters, aside from my beloved Cathbad, are incredibly boring. They work and then they go to the gym, go to the pub, and watch football. And that is the sum total of their lives. So SO boring. I suppose in a way they act as foils to Ruth and Cathbad, who have chosen less conventional lives.
As always, the setting in Norfolk works well to set the scene. Though you can probably pick these books up in any order, I am enjoying reading them in the order they were written.
I love this series. I love enjoy Ruth Galloway's adventures, and appreciate Elly Griffiths ability to combine archeology and modern mystery. This book was probably the most loosely linked between the historic case – that of Jemima Green or Mother Hook, a woman accused of being a baby farmer and killing her charges back in Victorian times – and the modern cases of Liz Donaldson whose baby has just died or the later case of the missing child Poppy.
Perhaps not the best book to read while pregnant (oops...), there are a lot of missing and sadly dead children in this book. It's not exactly uplifting reading. And there isn't one overall plot arc throughout the novel other than the dead/missing children. But despite that, The Outcast Dead is a well written and gripping tale. It's dark, it's tense, and it successfully links the past to the present – showing, in fact, that not much has changed in terms of societal views towards motherhood, childcare, and the choice to hire helping childrearing. Not much has changed in terms of what happens when all goes wrong, either... the blame falls to the women involved. Never the men, despite the truth. It's always the women.
DCI Harry Nelson reminds us of that (in case we forget) every time he (unfairly) grumbles that Ruth should be home with Kate instead of [work, socialising, catching killers, dating, insert activity here]. He recognises that his reaction is unfair – though he doesn't go so far as to self-accuse of sexism – but nevertheless, the idea is repeated throughout.
Judy "should have been more emotional" about her missing child. Poppy's parents "shouldn't have hired a childminder," the childminder "should have been more prudent". Jemima Green is delegated a terrifying Victorian monster simply because she looked the part – after all, she had a hook – and she was willing to take in unmarried mother's babies. God forbid any of these undernourished, poor and unwanted offspring died before reaching adoption by "respectable" families. (Who in turn would likely hire a childminder to care for the child! Surely all would be fine... until something bad happened. Then, somehow, no matter what, it'd be the woman's fault.)
Most of the male characters, aside from my beloved Cathbad, are incredibly boring. They work and then they go to the gym, go to the pub, and watch football. And that is the sum total of their lives. So SO boring. I suppose in a way they act as foils to Ruth and Cathbad, who have chosen less conventional lives.
As always, the setting in Norfolk works well to set the scene. Though you can probably pick these books up in any order, I am enjoying reading them in the order they were written.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Sexism, and Kidnapping
Minor: Fatphobia