The Skeleton’s Knee

The Joe Gunther Mysteries, Book 4

By: Archer Mayor

Narrated by: Tom Taylorson

Length: 11 hrs

Publisher's Summary

When a reclusive market gardener's death proves to stem from a 20-year-old bullet wound, Lieutenant Joe Gunther is presented with a very cold homicide to solve. But who was the victim exactly?

A deeply private man eking out an ascetic existence from a hardscrabble mountain field, Abraham Fuller was virtually unknown to his neighbors, in the manner of someone pursuing more than mere solitude. The discovery of a bag full of unmarked bills and a body buried in the garden patch suggests that Fuller had motives beyond misanthropy. With someone willing to kill to ensure that old secrets remain buried, the case may not be so cold after all.

©2012 Archer Mayor (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

I'll listen again.

Didn't want to stop listening, so I didn't sleep until it was finished playing.

Keeps you guessing

This novel has good sense of place. I have never traveled to Vermont but this story does an excellent job of making it seem real.

Plus I didn't know who did it until the end - which I liked!

One of Archer Mayor's better novels

Archer Mayor has been writing mostly mediocre detective novels in the Joe Gunther Mysteries for more than 25 years. The Skeleton's Knee, released in 1992, is one of his rare excursions above mediocrity. This is actually an excellent and fascinating story about attempts to identity the person and cause of death of a skeleton based on the history of its artificial metal knee.

I don't write reviews.

But in this case I'm afraid I'm going to have to make an exception. for a long time I've been looking for a procedural crime series that will keep me as happy as Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series did. I've listened to a lot and haven't found anything that I really connected with until now.

The Joe Gunther Mysteries are outstanding. the stories are carefully crafted and incredibly well researched. And the narrator is truly an outstanding artist. He is easy to listen to and the voices of his different characters are so incredibly good.

I think I've only just finished the third book in the series, but I am so much looking forward to getting through all of them this summer.

He keeps getting better

What a unique mystery/thriller this was. Great story with interesting characters and a well developed plot. I’m really enjoying this series.

"Indeed", it was a good book

Great story, I've quickly fallen in love with this series. If there was any critique, it would be that you will indeed grow tired of the author's use of the word "indeed". Difficult to say why I might feel it was overused, however upon inspection it was indeed used 3 times in just 4 pages. Indeed, I was not shocked to find this was the case.

4th book in the series as much fun as the other

I am thoroughly enjoying this series, the plot, protagonist, characters and the narrator's voice - it is melodious, and because I listen to audiobooks before I fall asleep I find it a perfect bedtime pleasure. I look forward to listening to all the other books. Thank you, Audible!

Love jJoe

A must read from the beginning of the series. A fantastic story and full of tremendous characters.

Too involved!

There were a few too many characters in it to follow.
Some were interesting but a couple that were superfluous, although ended up dead.
Chicago was a good change of venue because Vermont can seem too rural and closed in.

Fun Cop Story

I love these cop stories & riding along to solve a mystery & catch a killer. The main character is Joe Gunter. I enjoyed him very much. The narrator did a great job with him & actually all the male characters. Joe’s love interest is Gail. The narrator made Gail sound like a 70 year old nun! Her voice was grating & I almost gave up on this book after hearing her recurring terrible voice. The story was slow at first but really picked up speed quickly. It spanned several cities & states but most of the story took place in my own hometown - Chicago! That’s what drew me to this book. I do recommend it if you are interested in these type of stories. It’s a good book. Just turn the volume down anytime Gail speaks! Lol!

Good series so far.

I’ve been a little dismissive, unintentionally, of these books in my previous reviews, my feeling being that the narrator was carrying a reasonable story. I think in the best audiobooks you shouldn’t notice one over the other if that makes sense and that’s a mark of the author, narrators and director (if that’s what you call the person who puts it all together) skills. This is the first one where I “heard” the whole book as one ( because I wasn’t multitasking at the time! You can see by this review that I’m not an author!). Two things I’m not keen on, the author’s notes at the beginning, I don’t listen, I want to enjoy a book without explanation so would prefer any notes at the end. The end, they’re abrupt, not unfinished per se just, the end.
There are many books in this series, the middle ones are a different narrator so I hope they will be as enjoyable but FYI if you search Joe Gunther series some say not available on Audible, they are, search for those by title.