The Burial Place

A valuable hoard of treasure has been discovered near to an established dig. A strange vigilante is sending threatening notes to the archaelogists and then one of them is killed. All of this is happening close to Little Sky, Jake's idyllic retreat from the world but now he is being sucked in to another investigation. Jake's life is moving on, he and Livia are trying for a baby but will history repeat itself?
I love Abell's novels about retired police officer Jake and his life buried in the country. It is unrealistic but works so well. Here there are lots of undercurrents about colonialism and land rights which are put into contexts that address history and reparation. The characters are fleshing out over time and the landscape is such a show more vital part of the narrative. It manages to be both a satisfying police procedural and also something more, with a subtlety that hits a more literate tone. show less

Jake Jackson has left a crumbling marriage and a punishing job as a police detective in London to take up residence in an off-the-grid country property left to him by a deceased uncle. He’s leading a very different kind of life, now, a pastoral idyll of rural life, but crime has a way of finding him, even in the tiny community nearby. In this third book in the series, he’s curious about an expansive dig where layers of British history are being slowly unearthed by a collection of professionals, graduate students, and volunteers under the supervision of an archaeologist. A filmographer has been making a series of films about the dig and is thrilled when a valuable horde is discovered some distance from the site. It’s not clear who show more owns the land its on, and it could make some of the dig participants wealthy. But in the meantime, the group is troubled by a series of threatening letters that protest the very idea of digging up the land, purporting to be from someone anonymous who has taken the name of an Anglo-Saxon leader. Though they ask Jake for advice, no one is sure if the threat is serious – until one of them is killed, poisoned with a chemical they use to clean artifacts.

It’s just the first of a series of attacks on workers at the dig. It takes Jake’s skills as a detective, some friends from London, and a trip to examine land records in the city before he can uncover the culprit.

Mixed in with his investigation, we learn about his life in a rustic home that has no indoor shower but has an extensive library of crime fiction assembled by his uncle. We spend time with his friends, including a veterinarian with whom he has developed a close relationship as they consider having a child together, something Jake is torn about since an ongoing struggle with fertility was a key factor in the dissolution of his marriage. The setting, extensively and poetically described, is a halcyon picture of a world that has largely vanished, an alternative to contemporary life, lovingly depicted. The mystery itself is a bit of a throwback, too – a well-designed traditional puzzler.

Overall, the combination is a bit like a fusion of a BBC village mystery series with a lifestyle program focused on country life. Those who enjoy Martin Walker’s Bruno, Chief of Police series might find this series similarly engaging. Jake Jackson’s off-the-grid world is beautifully rendered and ambles in a leisurely way toward a solution. It’s quite a good journey, but you need to be willing to take the scenic route.

republished from Crime Fiction Review - https://crimefictionreview.com/the-burial-place-by-stig-abel/ show less

Stig Abell's Jake Jackson mysteries are for readers who enjoy a story that unfolds slowly and is steeped in the natural world. A bonus for me was the archaeological dig, since that's also an interest of mine.

Jake has made a place for himself in this remote countryside and has made friends in the local village. I enjoyed watching his relationships grow and deepen. More characters are added by the archaeologists, an interesting mix of personalities indeed.

The Burial Place, the third Jake Jackson mystery, is filled with things I love: fully fleshed characters, a vivid setting, archaeology... if there's one thing I didn't enjoy quite so much, it's the easily deduced whodunit. But still, this is a series that I highly recommend.

(Review copy show more courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley) show less

The Burial Place by Stig Abell is a recommended mystery and the third novel in the Jake Jackson series.

Jake Jackson is a former London detective who now lives a bucolic life in the country at Little Sky and is in a relationship with local vet, Livia. When a group of archaeologists at a nearby dig site uncover the remains of a Roman settlement, members of the team begin to receive threatening letters signed Wulfnoth. The early letters were ignored, but then they became increasingly threatening. After a team member is killed, Jake offers his assistance to the new Chief Inspector David McAllister to find the killer.

While the quality of the writing is very good, it is almost overly descriptive and focuses way too much on Jake's personal show more life rather than the mystery. This slows the plot to a crawl and it was a struggle to hold my interest. Personally, I'm reading for the mystery, so I ended up skimming through Jake's personal shenanigans to focus on following the mystery and figuring out whodunit. Admittedly, I have not read the previous two novels in the series so this is my first introduction to Jake. For those who enjoy classical music, Abell provides a glossary of selections he listened to while writing at the end of the novel.

The Burial Place will be most appreciated by those who have read the previous books in the series. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

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