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Cargando... The Dark Lake (2017)por Sarah Bailey
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Inscríbete en LibraryThing para averiguar si este libro te gustará. Actualmente no hay Conversaciones sobre este libro. Thank you to NetGalley and Allen & Unwin Publishers for the opportunity to read [a: Sarah Bailey|16454767|Sarah Bailey|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1487134292p2/16454767.jpg] in her debut novel [b: The Dark Lake: Gemma Woodstock, #1] If you love a fat book, well-written, with complex characters I recommend this for that 'hunker-down-cold weather-burrow and reading.' Author Sarah Bailey centers the story in New Wales, Australia. Protagonist Gemma is an imperfect but strong woman and detective who loves her son, but balks at marriage with her long-time live in lover. I had a phonebook of suspects through most of the novel and am still scratching my head at the artistic twists and changes that kept me off balance and the away from the trail of the killer. Wow. I look forward to more from Sarah Bailey. A lot of the action (or should that be inaction?) takes place in the head of the main character to the detriment of the novel. Hopefully now that we have got all Gemma's tortuous thoughts out in this one, the next in the series should pick up in pace and action. Certainly not in the league of Tana French as the publicists would have us think..... sin reseñas | añadir una reseña
Pertenece a las seriesGemma Woodstock (1) Aparece abreviada en
The lead homicide investigator in a rural town, Detective Sergeant Gemma Woodstock is deeply unnerved when a high school classmate is found strangled, her body floating in a lake. And not just any classmate, but Rosalind Ryan, whose beauty and inscrutability exerted a magnetic pull on Smithson High School, first during Rosalind's student years and then again when she returned to teach drama. As much as Rosalind's life was a mystery to Gemma when they were students together, her death presents even more of a puzzle. What made Rosalind quit her teaching job in Sydney and return to her hometown? Why did she live in a small, run-down apartment when her father was one of the town's richest men? And despite her many admirers, did anyone in the town truly know her? Rosalind's enigmas frustrate and obsess Gemma, who has her own dangerous secrets--an affair with her colleague and past tragedies that may not stay in the past. No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
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Google Books — Cargando... GénerosSistema Decimal Melvil (DDC)823.92Literature English English fiction Modern Period 2000-Clasificación de la Biblioteca del CongresoValoraciónPromedio:
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Like the victim, Gemma Woodstock is working in the town that she grew up in. She has some background knowledge of the victim and her family. In some ways that should be an advantage in a police investigation but Gemma underplays how close her relationship with Rosalind Ryan was. In fact she lies to her boss, and she probably should have stood herself down from the investigation.
Her boss "Jonesey" is so taken with what he sees as Gemma's brilliance that he is more than willing to accept her assurances at their face value. More than that he is prtty well a boss that doesn't rock the boat. However there are times when he should be much more asserive and observant.
One of the blurbs I have seen describes Gemma as troubled and brilliant. I would add damaged and unstable.
Rosalind Ryan has returned to the town of Smithson that she grew up in and has been teaching English to senior students there for four years. She has persuaded the principal to allow her to produce a version of Romeo and Juliet. The play is a great success with the students and Ms Ryan is very popular. The production occurs late in the last school term, after exams. It is opening night when Ms Ryan is killed, found face down in the lake the following morning.
THE DARK LAKE is tightly plotted and takes concentration from the reader. The plot has several twists. The investigation into Rosalind Ryan's murder takes nearly 3 weeks, approaching Christmas and New Year. Almost everyone in the town comes under intense scrutiny and there are few clues.
In addition a number of issues and relationships in Gemma's life cause complications, her young son is abducted, and Gemma herself is attacked.
The plot structure is interesting with narrative from "then" accompanied by daily accounts of what is happening in the investigation. Most of the latter are from Gemma's point of view. However these are supplemented with short third person accounts of incidents where Gemma is not a witness.
The Australian setting is very strong, and the weather plays a strong role too.
Secrets Gemma Woodstock is hiding
the extent of her connections with Rosalind Ryan and the role she played in past events
what happened to Jacob Morgan
her relationship with her Sergeant Felix McKinnon ( )