Two Graves: A Kesle City Homicide Novel

Two Graves by DA Graystone

From the very first word, I was intrigued. I caught myself not blinking for fear of missing something. Two Graves is excellently written and keeps one on one's toes.
Throughout the novel the characters are developed in such a way that the reader can identify with each character, including the killer. The author includes enough detail to paint a vivid picture, but does not bombard his reader and the crime scenes are excellently described, as if the reader is there. This novel contains an intricate plot, with interwined characters, seemingly innocent coincidences and twists and turns where one least expects it, and it is exactly this that makes it such a good read. Two Graves is a fast-paced thriller, touching on show more many taboos in society, the cruelty of people and the effects thereof. It forces us to think the unthinkable, to face the nightmare, and we get to choose whose side we're on. Not for the feint hearted. show less

CAUTION: This review contains spoilers.

If you are looking for a more complex mystery/crime drama, this is your book.

From the very beginning, readers are swept into the action and yet not spared good writing: intense imagery, developed characters, and a gritty, reality-driven plot line.

Graystone's characterizations ring truer than the old detective noir novels I grew up loving, and his imagery was every bit as rich. I love a good mystery and this was it. I especially liked Mann and Dani. I am heartened to learn that Graystone is working on a sequel to this, called Too Many Graves, due out in 2012. I will definitely be reading that.

Having said that, I was slightly disappointed with the overall development of some of the antagonists in show more the novel. The primary "villian," Preston Peterson, starts out as a complex character but in the end becomes more of a device of his role, and his motivations never become more complex. He is developed as a realized character. Yet I would expect a realized character to take more care than to just kill lookalikes. The idea he was somehow cleansing the world was a bit overwrought in my mind with the original development of the character. The other antagonists, Flem and Angelino, were not as developed and yet the last 20% of the novel was spent resolving their connection and existence. Flem appears two or three times and only once is Angelino actually introduced as anything more than a reference.

Yet overall, I enjoyed this book. The plot was not guessable, the twists not predicted, and this is a necessity for a good mystery, in my opinion. Rather than have simplistic heroes and foils, Graystone spent time developing his characters and depicting their histories and personalities. Many lesser mysteries do not do the reader this justice.

Well done, Mr Graystone. show less

Two Graves begins as most crime novels do: a crime (in this case, murder) is committed and the reader is introduced to the murderer's violence, followed by meeting the police officers and detectives who are charged with hunting the criminal down. Unlike most crime novels, however, Graystone's story is good and keeps your attention throughout each changing perspective. The tale is not told from the point-of-view of one character or perspective, but from all sides; within a handful of chapters, you have gained insight into the murderer, the victims, and the lead detective, for example. I really enjoyed this book and found that the writing kept me focused on the story, even with the different sub-plots and perspectives. The story is told show more in an interesting and intelligent way, always keeping the reader thinking, always wondering what comes next and who is next on the killer's list. show less

I usually don't read crime/mystery/detective type books so this book was a surprise hit for me! I really, really liked this book. It was so interesting that I couldn't put it down. The author has a great writing style that really pulls you in from the first page. I could visualize the characters very well because of the author's descriptions and back story. I like stories about revenge and what happens when good guys get pushed to their limit. This book delivers and I can easily see this becoming a movie. I look forward to more works by this author!

So I'm a nut for historical fiction but another favorite genre of mine is thrillers, specifically serial killer ones! James Patterson has to be one of my favorite authors because he is a master at this genre. Plus he writes enough different types of books you just can't get tired of him. While reading this book I was reminded of Patterson's work, but not in the copying way. D.A. Graystone did a great job of hitting all the elements of a great thriller, including an incredibly creepy and screwed up bad guy, and the underdog policeman whose out to catch him.

I was hooked from the beginning and like only a great author can do he nailed me from the very first page. At first you feel bad for the serial killer and his sad pathetic life. You show more almost even cheer a little with the first murder when you realize he's finally standing up for himself. Then suddenly your empathy turns to disgust when the initial release turns into uncontrolled rage and psychosis. Then you really want the bastard dead and you yell at the police to work harder (you yell at books too, right? No? Just me? Okay, then). Of course in the end they do and the world is all the better for it. That's the typical storyline, but Graystone was good with throwing in the twists and added plot that tired in really nice. show less

Excellent mystery/crime novel. The characters are well developed and believable, the story lines are fast paced and scarily believeable. The author does an excellent job of weaving multiple intersecting storylines that come together nicely in the end. Furthermore each of the storylines are told from a different perspective. This was a book that once I started I found hard to put down. I throughly enjoyed it. One note, if you do not like blood and guts crime novels this might not be the book for you since the descriptions of the crime scenes are pretty graphic.

I enjoyed the story. A unique twist on the serial killer along with some great characters that I would love to read about again. Only one little itch kept me from giving this 5 stars. It seems that Kesle is a city where people don't use contractions. The dialogue comes across as stilted when people do not use contractions in their speech.