The Distant Echo

Rating:
Summary: Great stuff; McDermid really knows how to tell a tale
Review:
This is a great book. McDermid really knows how to create characters you're interested in (I was really disappointed when the first of the four students dies; he was such a compelling character), and she really knows how to create a setting.

I don't agree with the reader who said the book was too long and too wordy. This was more than a fast-read mystery; it was a novel with a mystery in it. Good stuff.

Don't know if this is a complaint or not, but for some reason, I knew who the killer was before it was revealed. Nonetheless, I still stayed up late finishing the book, so that says something about the writer and the story.

Worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Superb Thriller
Review: Award winning British author Val McDermid chronicles a murder at St. Andrews, Scotland in 1978 and the long-lasting effects twenty-five years later. Returning home from a late night party in St. Andrews, college students Tom, Alex, David, and Sigmund, stumbled over the snow and onto the blood-soaked body of Rosie Duff, a barmaid at a local pub. Though medical student, Sigmund "Ziggy" tried to staunch the flow of blood, Rosie was dead by the time Alex returned with help.

While the narrative may seem lengthy, every bit of it shows how the discovery of Rosie's body caused the lives of these four men to spiral out of control, never to be the same again. Ziggy's homosexuality is revealed, causing a rift with his friends David and Tom. Tom finds salvation and later becomes a minister. Alex seeks solace with David's younger sister, Lynn, whom he later marries. David later marries a much younger Helene and distances himself from his family. And at the crux of this fractured friendship is the thought that each man believes that one of the others may have been responsible for murdering Rosie.

Fast-forward twenty-five years, when two of the four friends are killed under suspicious circumstances. Though Alex suspects that someone is taking revenge for Rosie's murder, he cannot convince the former officer assigned to the case, Jimmy Lawson, that his family's lives are in danger. Racing against the clock to find the true identity of Rosie's killer before any more murders are committed, he encounters many obstacles, the least of which is the fact that evidence relating to Rosie's murder has mysteriously disappeared.

The ever present suspense constantly leaves the reader guessing and wondering as to the identity of Rosie's killer. And while the revenge killings twenty-five years later seem very cut and dry, nothing is truly as its seems. Ms. McDermid has spun a very twisted tale, the culmination of which will leave the reader stunned in this expertly crafted thriller.

Rating:
Summary: HIGHLY LISTENABLE ENTERTAINMENT
Review: Following on the heels of her acclaimed mystery "A Place of Execution" British writer Val McDermid offers an equally compelling story based on a 25-year-old unsolved murder. Talented voice performer Gerard Doyle gives an outstanding reading of this tale, spicing it with proper amounts of chill and suspense.

A quarter of a century ago four male students, much the worse for drink, staggered toward home through snowy Scotland. They are friends and all enrolled at St. Andrews School. Their nocturnal journey is interrupted by the discovery of a young woman's body - Rosie Duff has been raped, stabbed and left for dead. Of course, the prime suspects are the four young men.

Rosie's family is convinced of their guilt, still no one is charged for her murder. Seque ahead to the present day when the use of DNA evidence enables law enforcement officials to solve decades old crimes.

However, there's more than crime solving going on here as one of the original foursome dies in a house fire. Soon, a second loses his life in what looks like a botched burglary. The remaining pair know they must solve the cold-case before they are also killed.

For mystery fans "The Distant Echo" is highly listenable entertainment.

- Gail Cooke

Rating:
Summary: Thoughtful
Review: I couldn't disagree more with the preceding review. I found this to be a terrific book, with a fascinating plot and well wrought characters. It is not fast paced but I don't see that as a requirement for a good mystery. Its thoughfulness, excellent plot and long-term perspective on the characters and events make this engrossing read.

Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment!
Review: I read The Place of Execution which was absolutely terrific, a must read. Immediately followed up with this one; what a huge disappointment! The book was extremely dull and I couldn't wait to finish. I continued reading only because I had put so much time into it (400+ pages) and thought it had to get better.

Rating:
Summary: One of Val McDermid's best work
Review: In probably her best work since the modern classic, A PLACE OF EXECUTION, Val McDermid has written a mutifaceted tale that spans decades in terrifying bookends related to a single murder.
Four best friends come across the dead body of a local barmaid and their lives would never be the same. In 1978, Alex Gilbey and three of his friends are crossing a park at night while staggering home after a local party when they discover the body of a young woman. They report the discovery to the local police and are immediately considered suspects due to their reckless youth. The dead girl, Rosie Duff, was found raped and stabbed multiple times. Rosie's two brothers, enraged by the senseless death begin taking out their anger on the four youths. Another death results just prior to the time change to the present where the youths, now grown find themselves at the hands of a possible serial killer.
The senseless murder forms the hub around which the spokes of the story, complex relationships and interactions of the multiple characters revolve. The reader is kept in suspense and is truly never given the solution until the very end. The depth and richness of the characters, quite remniscent of Val Mcdermid's best work, give the book its incredible strength and potent emotional impact. The juxtiposition of time halfway through the story adds a layer of depth and, in essence, begins a completely new story. A brilliant work.

Rating:
Summary: Slow & Wordy - Not Worth the Time
Review: This book is way too wordy - passages that could take one or two sentences to set up are given a longer paragraph. The storyline is predictable, and the characters not deep. The storyline takes too long to develop - I was tempted to toss the book about 1/3 of the way through, but buy the time I got half way the book finally got my interest. As an American reading the book, I found several English words/phrases that I didn't understand. I picked this book up in an airport bookstore thinking that anything that they would carry would have to be good, but I was wrong.

Rating:
Summary: Old crimes are never forgotten.
Review: Val McDermid's "The Distant Echo" is about four boyhood chums from Scotland who call themselves Ziggy, Weird, Mondo, and Gilly. They are university students at St. Andrews in 1978. The young men love carousing, drinking, and getting high. One night, after a late party, the four literally stumble upon the body of Rosie Duff, a young woman who had been brutally assaulted, stabbed, and left to die. The police consider the four lads to be suspects. However, since there is no solid evidence connecting them to the crime, they are not charged. However, the shadow of Rosie's death hangs over them for the rest of their lives. Twenty-five years go by. The four young men move on with their lives, but Rosie's death has not been forgotten. After so much time has passed, the men become the targets of a determined killer.

When she is in top form, Val McDermid is truly splendid, as she proved in her wonderful novel, "A Place of Execution." However, "The Distant Echo" is a paint-by-numbers thriller. The plot is recycled from innumerable books with the theme that old murders and long-buried secrets never die. In addition, at over four hundred pages, the novel is much too long and repetitious. Most unfortunate of all, the ending is so clearly telegraphed that there is absolutely no suspense in the final pages.

The only positive statement that I can make about "The Distant Echo" is that the four protagonists are an interesting and varied lot whose personalities change over time. I cared about these characters and I was interested to see what would become of them. However, it took a great deal of patience to finish this book, and only the most determined McDermid fans will want to pick up "The Distant Echo."