I went back and forth on this novel as I was reading it because of how slim it is in parts, but then how solid it becomes in others. A body in found with some clothes in tatters in a shallow grave. It becomes clear that the body is 70+ years old so the investigation into the death takes a slight backseat to the necessary archaeological concerns. While the body is slowly being exhumed, our lead inspector begins the arduous process of tracking down 75 year old leads. In the midst of the investigation, the novel gives us the story of a family with an abusive father emotionally and physically terrorizing his wife and children. This past story, clearly the answer to the question of who has died and how, also presents its own mystery by way not giving several possible answers as we get closer and closer to the death.
The novel began both in confusing and obscuring ways, meaning that I was struggling to follow the different threads. It might have been a matter of the style of writing (spare, but also translated), or it might have been partly because the novel is in the middle of the series, so there was context I might have not had here. It ended up being more interesting and richer as it got going, but I did start off very slowly.
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