H for Hall

For this week´s ABC-meme I have decided to revisit M.R. Hall, The Coroner (2009).

When Jenny was eleven, she saw her first dead body.

“The first dead body Jenny ever saw was her grandfather´s. She had watched her grandmother, sobbing into a folded handkerchief, draw the lids down over his empty eyes and then, as her mother reached out to comfort her, sharply push the proffered hand away. It was a reaction she could never forget: accusatory, vicious and utterly instinctive.”

It is not her last, however, because many years later she is appointed coroner. An important step forward for a woman who has just gone through a divorce and a breakdown, and who is still dependent on tranquillizers.

Are you curious? And would you like to know why I gave this British debut five stars in March? Then visit my first post about The Coroner.

See Maxine´s review (which made me so curious I couldn´t wait to read the book).

M.R. Hall´s second novel about Jenny Cooper, The Disappeared, is well on its way and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.

The Coroner and the Flu

[Denne fantastiske bog er desværre ikke oversat til dansk - men det bliver den forhåbentlig]

Caught up in bed, sweating, croaking and dizzy, I have at least had fantastic company. I have caught up with the second half of a marvelous book, 200 page-turning pages without dozing off once.

M.R. Hall, The Coroner (2009)
This legal thriller is one of the best I have read for a long time. A book which deserves a coherent, enthusiastic, well-written review - and here we are, me and my flue!

The book certainly deserves five stars:
One for the fantastic plot: the new coroner who will not just close her eyes.
One for the engaging and credible characters, especially 42-year-old Jenny Cooper who thought her new position as a coroner would be peaceful and give her time to get on with her life after a divorce and a mental break-down.
One for the environment: the legal setting is good and convincing, Jenny´s new home near Tintern Abbey is even better.
One for the ending: no spoilers, go and read the book!
One for keeping me awake for four hours.

And now you will probably want to read a proper review - go to Maxine, reviewing the book on Euro Crime, the very kind friend who sent me this wonderful book.