Haunted Ground
A Novel
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4.0 • 36 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
The dazzling, award-winning debut in a series that delivers mystery, romance, suspense, and fascinating forensic detail.
When farmers cutting turf in an Irish peat bog make a grisly discovery—the perfectly preserved head of a young woman with long red hair—Irish archaeologist Cormac Maguire and American pathologist Nora Gavin must use cutting-edge techniques to preserve ancient evidence. Because the bog’s watery, acidic environment prevents decay, it’s difficult to tell how long the red-haired girl has been buried—two years, two centuries, or even much longer.
Who is she? The extraordinary find leads to even more disturbing puzzles. The red-haired girl is not the only enigma in this remote corner of Galway. Two years earlier, Mina Osborne, the wife of a local landowner, went for a walk with her young son and vanished without a trace. Could they, too, be hidden in the bog’s treacherous depths, only to be discovered centuries from now? Or did Hugh Osborne murder his family, as some villagers suspect? Bracklyn House, Osborne’s stately home, holds many secrets, and Nora and Cormac's inquiries threaten to expose them all.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Cutting turf in the peat bogs of his Ireland farm, Brendan McGann occasionally finds old oak beams, oxcarts or tubs of butter and cheese buried ages ago and forgotten. But he's hardly prepared for the gruesome discovery he makes one pleasant April morning: the perfectly preserved head of a woman. So begins Hart's debut thriller, which follows archeologist Cormac Maguire, maverick local detective Garret Devaney, and Nora Gavin, an American anatomist lecturing at Trinity College Medical School, as they investigate the farmer's grisly finding, which could date back quite far, given that peat bogs can preserve bodies for centuries. Cormac and Nora stay in the house of Hugh Osborne, the owner of a decaying manor who also happens to be the prime suspect in the unsolved disappearance of his wife and infant son two years ago. The accommodations are not quite the Ritz. Osborne's dour cousin, Lucy Osborne, is the housekeeper, and her son, 17-year-old Jeremy, who drinks too much, also lurks around the estate. Nora finds a filthy, dead crow on her bed, as well as broken glass littering her bathroom floor. What's going on in this malevolent household? In addition to a complex, multilayered plot that involves both contemporary and historical crimes, Hart's novel is rich in local color: evenings at the pub, the petty feuds and jealousies of the townspeople and the traditional music and folk culture of Ireland are evocatively rendered.
Customer Reviews
Right up my alley
I love mysteries, and this book had parallel mysteries. I felt like I was visiting Ireland. This book is well-researched, I love the historical aspect and it has plenty of twists and turns. I also enjoyed how the author really got into the psychological aspect of some of her characters. The characters grew on you with all their quirks and personalities. What kept this from being a 5-star for me? The book was a bit slow and there were times I was tempted to "speed read" to keep going. Also writing a love story within a mystery is tricky and most authors don't do it well. I found the love story just a bit predicable. Still, this was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I'll definitely read more of this author.
Swing and a miss
I was reading away, enjoying this book as someone who worked on an archaeological dig in Ireland while a university student about 30 years ago, when the author suddenly inserted the claim that Cromwell’s government had sold people into slavery in the colonies. Indentured servitude is not the same thing as slavery and I was so disappointed to see the vile falsehood that they are equivalent being inserted in a fictional story. Speaking as someone who just gave a presentation on the origins and spreading of this awful myth a couple of months ago, that’s the end of my reading this series.
Intriguing Irish Adventure
I purchased this novel because it was a mystery set in Ireland. It is both but much more. The mystery of two women set centuries apart is woven through the tapestry of the country and its history with a deft hand and clues arrive at satisfying intervals, keeping my interest even when not reading. I look forward to reading the other three in this series and hopefully more to come.