Book Review: The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

The Crossing Places
Author: Elly Griffiths
Series: Ruth Galloway (Book 1)
Publication: Mariner Books; First edition (January 5, 2010)

Description: The first entry in the acclaimed Ruth Galloway series follows the "captivating" archaeologist as she investigates a child's bones found on a nearby beach, thought to be the remains of a little girl who went missing ten years before.

Forensic archeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway is in her late thirties. She lives happily alone with her two cats in a bleak, remote area near Norfolk, land that was sacred to its Iron Age inhabitants—not quite earth, not quite sea. But her routine days of digging up bones and other ancient objects are harshly upended when a child’s bones are found on a desolate beach. Detective Chief Inspector Nelson calls Galloway for help, believing they are the remains of Lucy Downey, a little girl who went missing a decade ago and whose abductor continues to taunt him with bizarre letters containing references to ritual sacrifice, Shakespeare, and the Bible. Then a second girl goes missing and Nelson receives a new letter—exactly like the ones about Lucy.

Is it the same killer? Or a copycat murderer, linked in some way to the site near Ruth’s remote home?

My Thoughts: The first Ruth Galloway introduces the 39-year-old forensic archaeologist when she is called in by Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson to look at some bones found in a marsh. Nelson has been consumed by the kidnapping of young Lucy Downey for the long ten years since she disappeared and hopes to finally bring the case to a close.

Ruth is a lecturer at a local university who lives alone with her two cats in an isolated location. She likes the peace and quiet and the incredible scenery. It is near a dig where she worked ten years earlier. The bones are found near her home and near that dig site. Unfortunately for Harry, the bones are a couple thousand years old and not the ones he's hoping to find.

Harry asks Ruth to look at letters he'd been receiving since Lucy's disappearance, she discovers a mishmash of biblical, mythological, archaeological, and literary references that don't seem to provide any clear picture of what happened to Lucy. 

But then another little girl is kidnapped...

Ruth and Harry work together to try to find her. Meanwhile, people from Ruth's past - her former mentor and fellow archaeologist Erik and her ex-lover Peter - show up in her life again and are somehow connected to both disappearances. 

This was an entertaining story with an intriguing main character. I loved the very descriptive albeit fictional setting. I also loved the information about archaeology. Ruth's condition at the end of the story makes me really want to read on in this 15-book series. 

Favorite Quote:

'You must be wondering why I asked you to come in.'

'Yes,' says Ruth simply, taking a sip of coffee. It is even worse than it looks.

Nelson pushes a file towards her. 'There's been another child gone missing,' he says. 'You'll have read about it in the press.'

Ruth stays silent; she doesn't read the papers.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.