Rating: 
Summary: A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.
Review: Those words were first spoken in a radio broadcast by Winston Churchill about the Soviet Union in October 1939. They also neatly summarize the structure of Palliser's The Unburied. The novel is set in the town of Thurchester in Victorian England. To be precise, the action involves events in and around Thurchester's Cathedral at the end of the 19th Century, during the reign of King Alfred, and during England's civil war. Each of these three layers contains a 'mystery' involving death, martyrdom, or murder in and around the cathedral grounds. The stories unfold in an entertaining and very well written fashion. Palliser does a masterful job creating characters and atmosphere. Palliser does not draw you into this novel in an abrupt fashion. Rather, you are absorbed into the story over time. The novel kept me interested from cover to cover. It is more than a little ironic perhaps that one of Palliser's strengths, the ability to create realistic characters - warts and all - caused my only discomfort with the novel. Neither of Unburied's two protagonists, Courtine and Fickling, were in anyway appealing to me. It was not simply that there were both seriously flawed people. Neither one of them seemed to have any character traits that would cause the reader (me in this instance) to feel any affinity for the situation of that character. This is not a problem with Palliser's writing. I thought it was clear that he did not intend for the characters to be particularly sympathetic. I grew up in a milieu reminiscent of the book's (a choir school background and a British education) and found the characters to be quite authentic. I have seen more than my share of both Courtines and Ficklings in my time. My problem is my need to feel some kind of emotive tie to one or more of the characters of a novel for it to really grab a hold of me. The reader who does not share this compunction need not be concerned. This book is a very well written glimpse into three different eras in the history of a town and its people. The structure and presentation were excellent and interesting. It is a book worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting book!
Review: When I reviewed the title and people who had read it I prepared myself for the worst. Instead I found a very nice book. It was not boring, there are many subplots, and the main one is very easy to solve. The question is WHY! And he delivers. It seemed more like the author was trying to self-examine thru the main character.
Everything is kind of introvertive, every story.
Because of his reasoning, some people will find it amusing, some other boring.
The environment is well developed, and every detail counts. Also the stories continually interrelate with each other, and that is why some people thought it complicated to understand.I personally liked it, and left me thinking... of course is me. To give you an idea, I enjoy Arturo Perez-Reverte, good history books, and the REAL Sherlock among others.
Rating: 
Summary: Just confirm it already!
Review: While intially an engaging tale, I eventually found myself further ahead in solving the mystery than the characters. At times the writing was wordy, and the characters began to tangle with each other (afterall, I was introduced to nearly every individual in the Cathedral at SOME point or another, whether or not they were relevent to the story).
I had started out with high hopes, and by the time I closed the book was forced that admit that I had, once again, been disappointed.
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