A review by deeclancy
Burial of Ghosts by Ann Cleeves
3.0
I didn't enjoy this standalone novel as much as the other Ann Cleeves books I've read that are part of different detective series. This is the first time I have listened to Ann Cleeves in audiobook form and I am unsure if this is also a factor in my level of enjoyment. I prefer to read her in print.
However, it does tell a decent story and provides a lot of interesting insights around the different types of characters that crop up in the English countryside and small-town England. There is a theme of lost identity throughout the book. The main protagonist, Lizze Bartholomew, is a foundling who never knew her parents, as well as a former social worker, and the young man whose murder she seeks to solve grew up with his biological father's identity being concealed from him by his mother.
By the end of the book, we know the characters and their (often dirty) secrets a lot better, and have more insight into the societal attitudes that have driven their life decisions. But the plot was a little meandering at times (again, I'm unsure if this is also an effect of listening rather than reading in print).
However, it does tell a decent story and provides a lot of interesting insights around the different types of characters that crop up in the English countryside and small-town England. There is a theme of lost identity throughout the book. The main protagonist, Lizze Bartholomew, is a foundling who never knew her parents, as well as a former social worker, and the young man whose murder she seeks to solve grew up with his biological father's identity being concealed from him by his mother.
By the end of the book, we know the characters and their (often dirty) secrets a lot better, and have more insight into the societal attitudes that have driven their life decisions. But the plot was a little meandering at times (again, I'm unsure if this is also an effect of listening rather than reading in print).