Dig Two Graves

The Detective Solomon Gray Series 1

By: Keith Nixon

Narrated by: Ben Onwukwe

Length: 6 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

Was it suicide… or murder? When teenager Nick Buckingham tumbles from the fifth floor of an apartment block, Detective Sergeant Solomon Gray answers the call with a sick feeling in his stomach. The victim was just a kid, sixteen years old. And the exact age the detective's son, Tom, would've been, had he not gone missing at a funfair ten years ago. Each case involving children haunts Gray with the reminder that his son may still be out there - or worse, dead. The seemingly open and shut case of suicide twists into a darker discovery. Buckingham and Gray have never met, so why is Gray's number on the dead teenager's mobile phone?

With his boss, Detective Inspector Yvonne Hamson, Gray begins to unravel a murky world of abuse, lies, and corruption. An investigator from the Met is called in to assist, setting the local police on edge. And when the body of Reverend David Hill is found shot to death in the vestry of Gray's old church, Gray wonders how far the depravity stretches and who might be next.

Nothing seems connected, and yet there is one common thread: Detective Sergeant Solomon Gray, himself. As the bodies pile up, Gray must face his own demons. Crippled by loss but determined to find the truth, Gray takes the first step on the long road of redemption.

Set in the once grand town of Margate in the south of England, the now broken and depressed seaside resort becomes its own character in this dark detective thriller. "Dig Two Graves" is the first book in a series featuring Detective Sergeant Solomon Gray. The crime series is perfect for fans of Ian Rankin, Stuart MacBride, and Peter James.

About the Author:
Keith Nixon is a British born writer of crime and historical fiction novels. Originally, he trained as a chemist, but Keith is now in a senior sales role for a high-tech business. Keith currently lives with his family in the North West of England.

©2017 Bastei Lübbe (Lübbe Audio) (P)2017 Lübbe Audio

Critic reviews

...deeply emotional, a dark rollercoaster ride.
-- Ed James, author of bestselling "DI Fenchurch series"

The book is just fantastic. Rare to rarest to find wonderful heart kickin' compassion in a crime novel. Solomon is a true keeper.
-- Ken Bruen, author of the "Jack Taylor series"

A compelling murder mystery with a multilayered and engaging new hero. Great read.
-- Mason Cross, author of the "Carter Blake thriller series"

Leaves you looking for the next one

Full of surprises and easy to listen to. Now I want to read more by this author.

Promising but not delivered yet

This good writer gets better I hear as this series develops. I think the narration style made the story and writing seem weaker than they would be if I read the book instead.
I noticed that there are no audiobooks so I have to read the next ones. I will for curiosity at least.

Sad curmudgeon's cases neatly tidied up

This is a story of Solomon (aka Sol or Gray) Gray's investigation of 4 deaths. He is an emotionally messed up British D.S. all of, an unlikeable person. He is also a dedicated & insightful detective who uses his job to escape work on improving himself. The ploy used to make Sol a sympathetic character is the same one used in another modern detective series. That fact also detracted from this tale; a bit of been-there-done-that. The story bounced around between the present, 10 yrs ago when a major life event happened & 5 yrs in between. The timing of the bouncing lacked flow & apparent reason.
The story focused on 4 deaths, in total (they happened throughout the tale) along with a major event in Gray's past. Most of the story centers on Gray's investigation of the 4 deaths. There were some interesting work dynamics that intermittently created a bit of temporary interest just as the relationship between Sol & Tanya, the owner of his local cafe. They didn't engage until the story was more than half over, & engaged to a limited degree even then. But none of the other side characters added much to the story. Interestingly most of the characters were not described physically or, if so, minimally. I found that refreshing at least.
The guilty were hidden well. But it all wrapped up a bit too neatly except for Sol's reason for his private misery. That continues in the 2nd book in the series. Finally, the narrator was fine and made a mediocre tale more bearable.