The Bone Keeper by Luca VesteMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Time taken to read - 2 days
Pages - 400
Publisher - Simon & Schuster
Source - Amazon
Blurb from Goodreads
What if the figure that haunted your nightmares as child, the myth of the man in the woods, was real?
He'll slice your flesh.
Your bones he'll keep.
Twenty years ago, four teenagers went exploring in the local woods, trying to find to the supposed home of The Bone Keeper. Only three returned.
Now, a woman is found wandering the streets of Liverpool, horrifically injured, claiming to have fled the Bone Keeper. Investigating officer DC Louise Henderson must convince sceptical colleagues that this urban myth might be flesh and blood. But when a body is unearthed in the woodland the woman has fled from, the case takes on a much darker tone.
The disappeared have been found. And their killer is watching every move the police make.
The brilliant new police procedural from Luca Veste, featuring series characters Murphy and Rossi - a guaranteed page-turner.
My Review
We open with some young kids spooking each other, taunting over the legend that is The Bone Keeper. A chilling rhyme the kids sing about a boogey man who skins your flesh and keeps your bones. At the beginning of the book her brother goes missing and we come to present day. Louise Henderson is a cop called out to a case. When the woman tells them she was attacked by the Bone Keeper Louse and her partner react differently. Louise very much believes the legends could be real and is trying to keep on top of her anxiety. As the case progresses they have to consider could the legend of the bogey man actually be real after all?
So this is one of those reads that if you had tales of a local bogey man growing up then this will grab you quickly. Police procedural with an attack on a female being investigated, the victim is claiming it was the bogey man so initially they don't think much of it. As they investigate things get a little big spooky and eerie. There are a few parts to the book, Before and Now, Now is present Day, Before goes back to the kids messing around and one going missing. The Bone Keeper Legend and then Louise being the main character and her personal issues whilst trying to keep on top of an active investigation.
The chapters are short which I love, it took me a wee bit to get into and I wasn't always sure where the story was heading. By the end things you read earlier start to click but for a wee bit I wasn't too sure. Veste tackles a few things in the book and brings together police procedure with horror and chilling moments. Good for a night with the lights off and a wee candle, I also think this would work really well as a movie, 3.5/5 for me this time.
Great review. The book sounds atmospheric and chilling. That seems unusual to combine with a police procedural. The Bone Keeper sounds like a well crafted scary character.
ReplyDeleteI like the spookiness of The Bone Keeper and that it has short chapters. Might have to give this one a try! :)
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