A Place of Execution

"A Place of Execution" is a chilling tale set in rural Derbyshire, and woven around the disappearance of Alison Carter, a teenage girl. The year is 1963, and the place is the (fictional) backwater village of Scardale; secluded from modern life, populated by only a few families who have been inbreeding for generations; and ruled, like in medieval days, by a squire who owns everybody and everything in the village. And it is none other than the stepdaughter of much-hated new squire Phillip Hawkin, a newcomer to Scardale's tight-knit society, who has disappeared. Following the investigation led by newly minted D.I. and Jimmy-Stewart-look-alike George Bennett and his more experienced partner, Sergeant Tommy Clough, we as readers slowly become familiar with Scardale and its inhabitants, who are reluctant to open up to outsiders - even if they don't hate them as much as Hawkin - and in that reluctance, provide less than the much-needed help in discovering Alison. In fact, when ultimately a suspect is arrested, on the strength of evidence tying him to both Alison's disappearance and another horrific crime, Alison is still missing. And she remains missing throughout the suspect's trial. It will take all of 35 years and a new investigation by journalist Catherine Heathcoate, who befriends Bennett after having met his son Paul, and who is able to procure Paul's help in convincing Bennett to revisit those long-past events which never ceased to trouble him, to reveal a truth which by then seemed all but buried for good ... and like the story's protagonists, many a reader may be left wondering whether this is not the way it should have stayed. "A Place of Execution" is a well-plotted thriller which ambitiously tackles issues from depravity, vice and vengeance to sin, deceit, guilt and justice; and all of these, on multiple levels. It purposely leaves the questions it asks unanswered, forcing its readers to come to their own terms with each of these issues. And by changing its narrative perspective from George Bennett in 1963 to Catherine Heathcoate in 1998, it offers the reader two different angles from which to see the events and the questions they pose. Unfortunately, for me, the change of the narrator's viewpoint brought with it a certain loss of depth and perspective. Whereas the social setting of Scardale village and the characters introduced in the book's first part are compellingly drawn down to their last unique feature and down to the last one of the supporting characters, those introduced in the second part are in many respects only superficially sketched pastiches that failed to engage me. And whereas in the book's first part nothing is left to coincidence and random, the second part is riddled with coincidences; each of which individually might have been within the realm of possibilities, but which taken as a whole were just a tad too much for me to accept. I couldn't shake the impression that for the sake of the coveted change of narrating pers

I bought this after I read an newspaper article where Ruth Rendell said this was the best detective novel she'd read in years. I thought she probably knew what she was talking about, and I wasn't disappointed. A Place of Execution is a haunting experience that sticks in the mind long after the book itself is closed. It deals with important themes such as loss and redemption, the nature of justice versus the law, and does so against a backdrop of dramatic landscape and a close-knit community that doesn't seem to be equipped to deal with outsiders. The writing is taut and suspenseful, and the twist at the end left me open-mouthed in admiration. This is a must-read.

This is the book I'm buying and giving to friends, relatives, and anyone else I can think of that enjoys beautiful writing, enthralling plot, and unforgettable locales and characters. Beyond just a murder mystery, A Place of Execution is a truly outstanding work of fiction. I find myself jealous of those who haven't read and enjoyed it yet. Truly wonderful.

This is by far the best novel I've read all year! Not only does itpossess an intriguing and tightly paced plot, but it also boasts of aprose style and language that will be appreciated by readerseverywhere.The mystery takes place in the early 1960s in the smallclose-knit northern village of Scardale-- a community that appears tobe cut off from the modern world. A young 13 year old girl, AlisonCarter, has gone missing. The back drop to this is the disappearanceof two other children from other northern towns. Tensions mount asthe police try to figure out if there is some kind of link between thethree cases, and if there is a mad man at work; or if Alison'sdisappearance is a one off and the work of someone closer to home andequally sinister. DCI George Bennett, who heads thesearch/investigation for the missing girl, realises that he's not onlyfacing a time constraint to finding her alive but also the insulardistrusting attitude of the villagers, who may because of theirsuspicious natures be hindering the investigation.The book isdivided into two parts. The first section deals with the policeinvestigation of Alison's disappearance; and later as they begin todoubt ever finding her alive, the search for her killer. We also get alook at how the police put their case together for the Crown, and thetrial. The second part of the book takes place in the late 1990s when,a reporter, Catherine Heathcote, decides to write a book aboutAlison.I was totally engrossed with this book. Cooking and eatingdinner took a definite backseat as I delved into the twists and turnsof the novel. And there was a plot twist unlike anything I've everread before. I really enjoyed this book immensely and recommend ithighly to anyone to enjoys mysteries. Sadly, novels of this caliber donot come often enough. This is a definite gem, and worthy of the fivestar rating.

In modern British fiction writing much of the interesting work (engaging with social issues, politics, and class) is found with genre writers. As some novelists retreat into an insular examination of the lives and loves of writers (and other creative types), genre writers - in dealing with the underside of humanity - can examine the big questions. At the vanguard of modern British crime writing are the likes of Ruth Rendell, Denise Mina, John Harvey, Michael Dibdin, and the writer of the book under review, Val McDermid. McDermid is an interesting writer. Her previous books have included a PI series, and pyschological thrillers that geuninely shock (such as The Mermaids Singing). This book, A Place of Execution, is something of a departure.It falls readily into two principal parts. The first section comprises a police procedural. It is set at the time of the notorious Moors Murders in 1963 (what is it with British writers and 1963? John Lawton's A Little White Death and Reginald Hill's Recalled to Life, also use the year as a starting point). The Moors Murders were child killings that horrified British society and still have an effect today. As the novel opens a child goes missing in a small isolated village. The child is the step daughter of the local squire. A new police inspector is involved, and this first section follows his investigation. It is written in the third person, but the chief protagonist is the inspector and we follow his attempts to win the trust of the small community, and the police politics that is played out in the background. One does not wish to give too much away about the investigation, as there are a number of twists throughout this section. But the section concludes with a trial at which the inspector's own character and motivation is questioned.McDermid excels at the portrayal of the effect of the loss of a child on a family and on a community. Also convincing are the relationships McDermid draws. The developing friendship between the investigating police sergeant, and the recently graduated inspector; the close relationship between the inspector and his wife (a peripheral character in the novel, but a convincing anchor of stability in his personal life); and the manner in which he wins the trust of local people. There are some grotesque local characters created; but coming from a small locality myself these characters are not out of place, and are only symptomatic of a general approach to non-locals. The class distinction between the squire and the villagers is also acutely observed.If the novel were to stop at the conclusion of the trial there would be a highly satisfying genre procedural.However, it is with an audacious second half that McDermid excels. It transpires that the first half is a memoir written by a journalist. The inspector then tries to block publication. In this section we follow the professional writer researching, gathering information, an