I am delighted to take part in the #SkelfSummer celebrations showcasing all things Skelf in the run up to the publication of Book 6 in the series, Living is a Problem. Over the next few weeks I will be reminding you about the series by Doug Johnstone with a repost of Skelf novels. Book 4 in the series is called Black Hearts.
Death is just the beginning…
The
Skelf women live in the shadow of death every day, running the family
funeral directors and private investigator business in Edinburgh. But
now their own grief interwines with that of their clients, as they are
left reeling by shocking past events.
A fist-fight by an open
grave leads Dorothy to investigate the possibility of a faked death,
while a young woman’s obsession with Hannah threatens her relationship
with Indy and puts them both in mortal danger. An elderly man claims
he’s being abused by the ghost of his late wife, while ghosts of another
kind come back to haunt Jenny from the grave … pushing her to breaking
point.
As the Skelfs struggle with increasingly unnerving cases
and chilling danger lurks close to home, it becomes clear that grief, in
all its forms, can be deadly…
My Thoughts
Continuing
this story of the three generations of the Skelf family, you are
immediately back in their lives. Dealing with three generations, you are
assured of a complicated layering of stories through their interests as
Private Investigators and Funeral Directors. There are some moments of
black humour, through the reactions of the characters and the almost
slapstick events which sometimes happen. Dealing with the serious
business of death, you are nevertheless shown a vibrant and connected
family with vivid personalities.
The cases which are featured are quite a variety. Hannah fears she is
being stalked. There is a missing man, presumed dead, and another
elderly man who fears he is being assaulted by the spirit of his dead
wife. The fallout from Jenny's husband's death continues with a degree
of suffering for her. Personal traumas and mysteries to uncover means
that the tension is always there are growing. This is more than a series
of crime stories, woven together. Overlaying the stories is the
universe itself, with its black holes and background radiation. It leads
you to consider your place in the world, set against the greater
cosmos. The Skelfs deal in death, aware of the grimmer side of living.
It is their humanity which leavens their lives and breathes hope and
life into the story.
In short: thoughtful, rich storytelling
About the Author
Doug Johnstone is the author of twelve previous novels, most
recently The BigChill (2020). Several of his books have been bestsellers and
three, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), were
shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. He’s
taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions
over the last decade – including at a funeral parlour ahead of writing A Dark
Matter – and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a
songwriter and musician with five albums and three solo EPs released, and he
plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He’s
also player-manager of the Scotland Writers Football Club. He lives in
Edinburgh.
Thanks to Doug Johnstone, Karen Sullivan and Anne Cater of Orenda Books for a copy of the book.
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