The Body Beneath the Willows

DCI Craig Gillard, Book 9

By: Nick Louth

Narrated by: Marston York

Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

It’s not only secrets that are buried by the water.... A gripping crime thriller from best seller master Nick Louth.

On the tree-lined banks of Surrey’s River Wey, a decaying corpse is dug up by workmen in the middle of an Anglo-Saxon burial site. His modern dental fillings show that this is no Dark Age corpse....

DCI Craig Gillard is called in, but the body’s condition makes identification difficult. One man, however, seems to fit the bill: Ozzy Blanchard, a contractor employed by the same water firm doing the digging who disappeared six months ago, his crashed company car found nearby.

But then an X-ray of the corpse throws the investigation into turmoil. A shard of metal lodged in his neck turns out to be part of an Anglo-Saxon dagger unknown to archaeologists. Who wielded this mystery weapon and why? Does the answer lie in a murderous feud between two local families?

The deeper Gillard digs, the more shocking truths he will uncover.

A totally original crime mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end, The Body Beneath the Willows is an absolute thrill-ride, perfect for fans of Michael Connelly, Ann Cleeves and Mark Billingham.

©2022 Nick Louth (P)2022 W F Howes

Back to his best !

Nick Louth, having abandoned the idea of making Craig Gillard a secondary character, has written what could be his best detective novel so far.
The Body beneath the Willows is a terrific script, well planned and meticulously developed along its double route.
It's an excellent example of Louth's ability to convey the everyday drudgery of police work while making it really interesting.
By far my favourite of the nine novels: here's hoping he doesn't stray from the familiar Craig Gillard route again, for it's a most enjoyable way to go.
:)

Mildly Entertaining

The storyline was predictable and not particularly interesting. The covid tie ins were useful to the plot. The subplot with his aunt is becoming tiresome and that may have turned me off early on, even though she does not play a large role in this book. The need to introduce another complication by promoting what could be an enemy boss has also turned me off. I am tired of the let's make the lead characters life difficult formula.

Intriguing

I really I
Enjoyed the mystery of this story. So we’ll written as are all his books.

Good Listen

Pace and plot suffer in comparison with other books in this series. Still, intriguing and diverting. I recommend that Audible check the recording quality. Marston York, a great voice actor, sounds garbled occasionally in this work, and the expression and tone of some of his female voices are at odds with the content of their conversations.

good as always!!

always a great story! this story may have been a bit more "dry" than usual, but still fantastic! the narration
is flawless.. i definitely have a voice crush! lol! I LOVED the ending .. it gives me hope for another installment!!! PLEASE!

This series is under-rated. It shouldn't be.

These kind of fly under the radar - not sure why. I've really like Craig Gillard from the Get-Go. These are classic 'ensemble' police procedurals. There must be literally millions of them - and they are Not all created equal. These are well-written, and believable with an engaging central character, good supporting characters, and strong narration. Also - they tend NOT to be about savage, crazed, gruesome, sexually deviant serial killers. Nor is Craig an alcoholic harboring a Dark Past. (I've got very sick of all of that - very predictable.) Instead, he's a pretty normal smart guy and good policeman who gets interesting cases and approaches them intelligently. Not every one of the series is absolutely fantastic. But this is one of the good ones.

Narrator

I have read all the books in the DCE Graig Gillard series. I enjoy the character and the plots so much that I was willing to endure the narrator. That is, until this last one, The Body Beneath the Willows. The nasal tone which York uses to go from some characters to others is unbearable. I was relieved to see that I had not used a credit for The Body Beneath the Willows and will not get any more of Louth's titles unless there is a new narrator.

Gillard just isn’t interesting

The story was fine and performance good but, Gillard just isn’t an interesting character in any way.

Guess not everyone can be a DC Smith

Excellent

I love this author and reader. Perfect combination .
Timing and rhythm of story is so well developed.

So clever

You will not see the ending coming! So many twists and turns and Anglo-Saxons to boot!

As always Marston York's voice is as smooth as butter.