I quite enjoyed this mystery; I liked the characters and the setting, as well as the central problem. A few of the secondary characters were a bit one-dimensional, but it didn't spoil the intrigue of the book. I figured a few things out, but I don't mind when that happens--I like to feel smart occasionally. ;) Recommended for all mystery-lovers! ( )

My first book by this author, enjoyed it and will read more in this series. Reminds me of Ann Cleeves' similar series, also featuring a female detective (Vera Stanhope). Cold in the Earth, however, is set in Scotland rather than northern England. I found the characters very interesting as well as the plot. Very atmospheric and authentic feel to the book although some of the local Scottish words and phrases were quite foreign to me - not sure they were necessary to convey real authenticity. The local people were struck with a deadly foot-and-mouth outbreak which wasn't really essential to the plot but certainly contributed to the gloomy atmosphere. The story revolved around the death of a young woman and a local dysfunctional family that was obsessed with bulls - raising them and bull fighting in Spain. The author inserted a theory about one or more of the male family members falling into some sort of psychotic state where they actually thought they were bulls. This was interesting but I'm not sure it was necessary for the overall suspense in the book. Sometimes the first novel in a series is not as streamlined as it could be. I found this also with the first in the Vera Stanhope series. ( )

Heerlijk spannend, verdwenen zus, in Schotland ( )

This is the first of six DI Fleming thrillers to be issued as e-books by Witness/Impulse Imprint of HarperCollins.

In the prologue we read about a woman awakening because she's cold. She realizes her pajamas are torn and she is bloody. Not only that, she's outside in a maze. She has been sleepwalking. Then she sees a figure running toward her. It looks like a man with horns, one of which stabs her in the heart.

The story is set in Scotland during an epidemic of foot and mouth disease among animals there and the resultant mass killing of suspect herds. You feel so badly for the farmers who are losing everything they've worked for. Many fall into depression or try in vain to prevent the authorities from entering their land. Detective Inspector Majory Fleming's beloved chickens and sheep are in danger from the disease.

Then we meet Laura Harvey, a London psychotherapist whose mother has just died. Laura is divorced, her sister had disappeared years ago, and suddenly she is homesick, not so much for her mom's home but for family and the countryside. She had written a letter to her sister, an open letter that is published in a London newspaper. She gets a response from someone who knew her sister.

There is another mysterious woman, unnamed, who owns a dress shop in London. Now what do you suppose she has to do with the story?

Laura ends up going to the Kirkluce area to research an assigned story for the newspaper about the human effects of the epidemic among their animals, and because she has learned her sister had been there for a time before she disappeared.

We meet a family of some of the strangest people you can imagine. And you thought your weird Uncle Frank was something! All of these characters of course have a part in the mystery. The plotline is excellent, even though for a change I figured out whodunnit and the weapon involved way before the end. It was how DI Fleming and her department discovered it that was interesting,

You'll love the characters in this book, especially Fleming and her husband. It's nice to see a crime solver with a happy marriage. The characters and their relationships as well as the scenery are what really make this novel.

Recommended
Source: publisher ( )

This story takes place in a small town in Scotland. One of six books in the series of Detective Inspector Marjory Fleming. Along with being an Inspector, Marjory and her husband live and work a farm are among the farmers involved in the foot and mouth disease that is going around all the farms. This puts DI Fleming in a precarious position as she knows that if the animals have to be put down, it will devastate her husband.
In a different but equally important story is one of a woman, Laura, who decides to travel to Galloway to find out what happened to her sister. While there she becomes involved with two men who know what happened but are not talking. On her journey to find out the truth, her life is in danger. A body is found in a field that had been buried for some time and it is her sister so now it is a race to find out who killed her and why.
This is the first book that I have read in this series and it won't be the last. I loved the fast paced, at times creepy, story-line, written by an author who knows her stuff. Two women who want to see justice done and will do whatever it takes to achieve this. I always enjoy a good mystery and this one was no exception. I highly recommend this book!! ( )