White Bones

Kate Maguire, Book 1

By: Graham Masterton

Narrated by: Caroline Lennon

On an isolated farm in southern Ireland, a decades-old grave houses the dismembered bones of 11 women. Detective Superintendent Katie Maguire of the Irish Gardai is used to bloodshed, but these white bones speak of unimaginable butchery.

Not far away, a young American tourist is at the mercy of a sadistic killer. His tools are a boning knife, twine, and a doll fashioned from rags, nails, and fish-hooks. The murder of his victims is secondary only to his pleasure at their pain.

As more and more victims are ritualistically murdered, Katie Maguire finds that she must solve an ancient Irish mystery to catch a terrifying present-day killer.

©2013 Graham Masterton (P)2013 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

Intolerable torture scenes

I had to return this novel after about an hour's listen. The detailed scenes of torture are lengthy and intolerable. The narrator's rendition of what she thinks is the voice of a young American woman is also torturous (otherwise the narrator is fine).

Gruesome but great

What did you love best about White Bones?

I loved the character of Katie Maguire, and the story was a real page turner

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I have a fairly strong stomach, but the descriptions of torture were quite harrowing. But don't let this deter you from listening to this book. It's a ripper.

Which character – as performed by Caroline Lennon – was your favorite?

None in particular. Caroline Lennon is a talented performer and all characters were well differentiated.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There is a great deal of "Irishness" in this book, and I found it thoroughly entertaining. I loved the dialogue, the turns of phrase, and throughout, there was a real sense of being right there in the thick of it.

Any additional comments?

When you start on a series, and enjoy it, it's lovely to know there are more in the series. However, knowing this also takes away some of the suspense when the main character is in real peril. I mean, there are three more books, so how can she possibly die? But I guess it's a small price to pay when you also know there are at least three more adventures for our heroine to (and us) to enjoy.

Masterton is as good at thrillers as he is at horror.

This book bridges a well written cop thriller in the same vain as HBO’s True Detective or BBC’s Luther with a good mix of what Masterton is more well known for, Horror.

Reduced the rating by 1 star on all accounts, as I figured out the ending before I got there. I just wish that had been disguised a little better or some more red herrings thrown around so that when I did get to the end it was different to what I thought - that’s what would have made it the full 5 star rating for me.

The performance is very good also, I had a little trouble at first getting used to the Irish accent, although it fits the story and character perfectly, so this is more my own issue rather than the reader. After an hour or so I slid right into it and didn’t notice any longer.

Overall a great book that is one I’d recommend to anyone who enjoys a cop thriller and doesn’t mind a bit of gore and lore involved.

Looking forward to listening to the rest of this series, I have always been a lover of GM’s full blooded horror but as I have seem to grown out of that, so to has Masterton matured with me with this healthy twist of the genre.

Interesting start poor ending

I like listening to books read with an Irish accent so this caught my eye. Despite reviews of the goriness I did not find it that offensive. The story started out with an interesting concept but about 90% through galloped to a disappointing end. I give it a “meh”.

"I want more"

What made the experience of listening to White Bones the most enjoyable?

Mr. Masterton's imagination is full of darkness and he is not afraid to show it. Love it!

What other book might you compare White Bones to and why?

No comparison at all.

Which character – as performed by Caroline Lennon – was your favorite?

Kate Maguire