Over time, my score could conceivably go a touch higher on this one, but for now, I think the three-star is fair.

This isn't a bad book. There's much to love, from the local patois dialogue, to the unflinching look at the various strata of society. There's a lot of tortured souls in this novel and each is well-defined.

However, for all of that, I found the first half dragged somewhat. Yes, there's a lot of set up to this story, and it's further complicated by setting up in two time periods. So, while you may be meeting the same characters in both, with nearly thirty years between them, they still need an introduction.

The second half definitely picks up speed and is much more enjoyable, as pieces slowly fall into place.

That being said, there were four things that grated on me by the end. The first two are fine, but the third and fourth enter spoiler country, so uncover and read at your own risk.

1 - While it was fun having each chapter named after an 80s song, it became a touch tedious having a reference or mention to some 80s band or song or album in every single chapter set in that time period. It's the 80s. We get it.

2 - There's far too many characters in this novel. I get that it's a mystery and you have to add a smoke layer so it's not obvious, but there was a point when they started to blend together and I really had to stop and figure out who was who. It didn't help that they all talked the same.

3 - It didn't become extremely apparent until the last few pages, but when it did, I sat back and wondered...Exactly how many characters in this novel assumed a different identity in this town? Answer: Far too many.

4 - At the end, when Noj grabs the book. Seriously? In a book that spent a great deal of time setting up the gritty realism of it all, you then have a character get a vision and then run into a house to grab a book that she shouldn't know is there? Nope. Weak.

But overall, it was a decent read. Not a great one, not a crappy one, but okay. ( )

https://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2018/09/201857-weirdo-cathi-unsworth.html ( )

Twisty story, and the twist in the tale is a good un.

Corinne Woodrow was convicted of murder of a schoolmate when she was 15, in 1984. She was an outsider in the community and now, 20 years later, there's evidence that she might not have been alone. Sean Ward, whose career as a detective was cut short by a young man with a gun and now the metal in his leg reminds him of this constantly, investigates and what he stirs up, with the help of a local journalist, will change things in this small town.

Messy local politics, kept me reading and wanting more. The people in it came quite alive for me you could see how things happened and the parallel stories made more sense of what was going on, I was genuinely surprised by the ending. ( )

I wish there was a category that just said, "I read it" or "I finished it but I'm not sure why." ( )

I wish there was a category that just said, "I read it" or "I finished it but I'm not sure why." ( )