The House at Sea's End

Note: Spoilers for Books One and Two of this series.

The third book in the Ruth Galloway Mystery Series begins ten months after the end of the second book, The Janus Stone. In the first two books, we met Ruth Galloway, an almost 40-year old overweight forensic archeologist at the (fictional) University of North Norfolk, and Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson of the Norfolk Police. The two teamed up to solve several crimes since Ruth is an expert on bones, and now Ruth is seconded to the Serious Crime Unit, which is headed by Nelson.

As this book begins, Ruth has given birth to Kate, the daughter she had after a “one off” with Harry Nelson, and Kate is now four months old. Ruth doesn’t want anything from Nelson - she knows he is show more happily married to his beautiful wife Michelle, and also would never want to jeopardize his relationship with his two teenaged daughters, Laura, 19, and Rebecca, 17. So Ruth has gone back to work, but struggles like all single mothers with juggling work commitments and child care. No matter what she does, she feels guilt over it.

In this book, Ruth is called in to help after the bones of six bodies are found at (fictional) Broughton Sea’s End, during an archeological survey of cliff erosion. She quickly determines that the bones are between fifty and seventy years old, and belonged to young men of German origin. Moreover, the bodies were bound, back to back, and four of the six were shot “execution style” in the back of the neck.

At the same time, a German military historian comes to see Ruth. He has been contacted by a former member of the Broughton Sea’s End WWII Home Guard, Hugh Anselm. Mr. Anselm wanted to talk to him about something, but now Anselm is dead. Other former members of the Home Guard have also been dropping off.

Clearly someone is trying to protect the secret of what happened there, but what exactly did take place, and who would want to keep it hidden?

As Ruth and the Serious Crimes Unit get closer to the answer, Ruth’s life becomes endangered. But there is something more threatening on the horizon: the secret of Kate’s paternity might also be exposed.

Discussion: Ruth is a lovely character, all the more likable, to my mind, for being so far from the stereotypical thin, gorgeous protagonist. She continues to show her trademark self-deprecating humor about her weight. For example, she muses how she has gotten her figure back now after having the baby, and thinks it’s a shame: “she was rather hoping to get someone else’s.”

Ruth lives on the North Norfolk coast in an isolated cottage facing a saltmarsh. She loves it there, with the wide expanse of sky and the sound of the sea, but it is isolated, and most think it too desolate. In fact, after a night out with friends, when one cab driver tells her he would be frightened of ghosts living out there, she thinks about what really scares her, and it is not the saltmarsh:

“She isn’t scared of ghosts. She is scared of nightclubs, of having to enjoy herself, of something happening to Kate, of waking up one morning and realising that she is in love with Nelson.”

Evaluation: This is a very appealing series, with well-drawn fascinating characters. I also love that one comes away from the book learning something besides how to commit a murder. show less

After reading the second book in this series, I questioned whether I wanted to go on to this one since I had a number of "issues" with [b:The Janus Stone|6268632|The Janus Stone (Ruth Galloway, #2)|Elly Griffiths|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348686372l/6268632._SY75_.jpg|7371626].

Thankfully, those problems didn't show up in this book. Ruth does not repeatedly and illogically put herself in harm's way, and the overall tone is more consistent. And the plot, involving skeletons dating back to WWII, is well conceived and nestled nicely into the backdrop of the effects of coastal erosion in Norfolk.

But I'm afraid I'm the type of crime novel reader for whom the mystery is more important than the lives show more of the characters, and for me, the Ruth/Nelson romance takes up too much space. I actually liked Ruth much more in this book than the last - her maternal insecurities ring very true - but I find myself wishing Nelson would move back up north.

Overall, 3.5 stars. I liked it well enough, but not enough to bump it up to a 4. show less

The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths is the third mystery featuring Ruth Galloway, a forensic archaeologist who works at a fictional university along the bleak coast of Norfolk, and I've devoured them all in the space of only about six weeks, leaving me waiting anxiously for #4 -- for another year?? Horrors... This mystery looks fairly straightforward -- six dead bodies are found buried in the shifting sands, and the forensic evidence appears to tie them to a mysterious incident during WW2. Then there are some modern deaths -- but who is the link? I find the character of Ruth -- smart, awkward and gawky, a new mother -- particularly appealing and well-crafted, as is her strained relationship with the (married) detective who is her show more daughter's father. There are few perfect characters in this series, but also few false notes in the writing or characterization. Highly recommended series, 4.2 stars. show less

Forensic archaeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway has just returned from maternity leave and is discovering how very difficult it is to juggle a newborn baby and the career that she loves. She is called in when a team surveying the effects of erosion on the Norfolk coast finds the bones of six people where there had been a rock fall at Broughton Sea's End. These bones aren’t as ancient as those Ruth usually investigates and date back to about fifty or sixty years earlier. Chemical tests indicate they are of German origin and there are local stories about strange happenings concerning the Home Guard during the war. The captain of the Home Guard was Buster Hastings, the father of the current owner of Sea's End House, Jack Hastings. When show more Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson and his men begin asking questions, a Home Guard veteran reveals the existence of a secret that he and some other old soldiers have vowed to keep "to the death."

The author uses the setting of the crumbling cliffs and shoreline of Norfolk, England, as well as the ages of those who are hiding secrets to add tension to the book. The murders are integral to the plot, but the real pleasure comes from the larger challenges of Ruth, who continues to be drawn to these lonely coastal landscapes with their miles of sand, sea, and salt marshes. Nelson also struggles as he begins to use Ruth’s motherhood as a vehicle for his own brand of self-help, his sense of infallibility, and his overwhelming Catholic guilt.

While not my most favorite of the three books I've read in this series, I loved the atmospheric, faintly Gothic story and most of all, the very interesting secondary characters that are regulars. I'm definitely planning to read the entire series as soon as I get the opportunity. show less

Both the characters and the mystery are very well developed in this book (the latter was not the case in the previous two books of the series). Ruth Galloway is an amazing, interesting person. Her thoughts on motherhood and what it means to be a woman are balanced and well considered. There are no easy answers here.

Another thing I loved, which stands in contrast to the previous two books, is the nature of the archaeological work that Ruth and her colleagues do. Rather than uncovering information about prehistoric religious and cultural rituals (sort of interesting, but not relevant in my life), here the archaeologists work on recent war crimes. I was fascinated to learn about the important role that archaeologists play in show more humanitarianism/social justice. show less

"The House At Sea's End" is the third mystery involving Ruth Galloway, a forensic archaeologist, living on the salt marsh coast of Norfolk. It carries on with the same ensemble cast of characters that we met in "The Crossing Places" and "The Janus Stone".

This time, Ruth, now a single mother courtesy of a threat-induced one night stand with the (married with two daughters) Detective Inspector Nelson, is called in to assess multiple bodies discovered after part of the coastline crumbles. The plot unfolds around a World War II mystery and modern murders that appear to be linked. The action is spiced up by the visit of an old friend of Kate's from when she was working on mass graves in Bosnia, thus triggering a series of flashbacks that show more draw us away from the rather static Norfolk setting and the slow moving plot.

Ruth, of course, finds herself at considerable personal risk before the denouement is reached and Nelson feels a strong need to come her rescue and to protect his unacknowledged third daughter, the baby Kate.

It seems to me that, in this book, the series tipped over from crime mysteries into an ongoing story of the lives of the main characters, with the mysteries being used to provide a frame to continue ot bring them together.

I felt much greater tension and suspense about what would happen with Ruth and Nelson than I did around who had killed whom in this latest series of murders.

I know that the series has already reached nine books and remains very popular but this will be my last one in the series. How many deaths requiring the skills of a forensic archaeologist can there be in a small coastal town in Norfolk? I'm not sufficiently interested in the fate of the characters to continue to read books that must become increasingly implausible. show less

First Line: The tide is out.

Forensic archaeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway has just returned from maternity leave and is discovering how very difficult it is to juggle a newborn baby and the career that she loves. She is called in when a team surveying the effects of erosion on the Norfolk coast find bones in a ravine along the shoreline.

The bones date to World War II, and when Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson and his men begin asking questions, a Home Guard veteran reveals the existence of a secret that he and some other old soldiers have vowed to keep "to the death." It would appear that someone doesn't trust the old man because he is killed... and then a German journalist shows up and begins asking his own questions. Someone is show more insisting that these secrets be kept. With Ruth's help, Harry intends to find that person before anyone else can die.

Although this third book in the series stands on its own well, I would suggest beginning at the beginning because the relationships between the characters grow and develop throughout the books. In some ways this series bears a superficial resemblance to Julia Spencer-Fleming's which features the Reverend Clare Fergusson and Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne, and Griffiths' series is every bit as strong.

Griffiths uses the setting of the crumbling cliffs and shoreline of Norfolk, England, as well as the ages of those who are hiding secrets to add tension and a sense of urgency to the book. In fact, I was so focused on the secretive old men that I completely forgot about trying to deduce the identity of the person who wanted the secrets kept the most.

Although the plot line involving World War II is absorbing, the ever-evolving relationship between Ruth and Harry is just as important. I really enjoyed watching Ruth trying to adapt to being a mother and Harry becoming more and more focused on a fascinating woman whom, not so very long ago, he never would've looked at twice.

Emotions will be coming to a boil. Lines will be drawn. Sides will be taken. And DCI Harry Nelson will continue to need Dr. Ruth Galloway's expertise with bones. This series just keeps on getting better. I've barely finished this book, and I'm already craving the next! show less