This novel was a bit too clever for its own good, with so much random banter and wordplay that it was very slowgoing and didn not often make much sense. The underlying story came through anyway, and was good, though a bit too preachy for my taste. The animal rights and environmental threads in this story could have been woven in a bit more artfully and effectively if they were not cast in such a moralizing tone. I did enjoy some of the bits of old English lore, despite their awkward integration with the story, and I liked the complex timeline and metafiction aspects to this book. ( )

This book has left me in two minds. I loved the way that folklore, sayings and poems were woven into the story, and I liked the twisting and continually surprising plot. Put very simply, the investigation of a murder leads the main characters into a web of deceit, cover-ups and complex relationships. The countryside of Loamshire turns out to be the real victim.

The detail and complexity of the names and characters made me read on - this book certainly excercised the mind! But at times the plot became so convoluted and confusing towards the end of the book, that I was nearly at the end of my tether. Perhaps that was the point. ( )