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The Chemistry of Death (2006)

by Simon Beckett

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: David Hunter (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
1,848619,040 (3.98)34
Seeking refuge from a tragic past, a forensic pathologist must search for a devious killer in a rural English village in this crime thriller series debut. Three years ago, Dr. David Hunter left London for rural Norfolk to escape the tragic loss of his wife and daughter. Giving up his career in criminal forensics, he now works as a simple country doctor in the village of Manham. But when the corpse of a woman is found in the woods, a macabre sign from her killer decorating her body, David struggles to remain uninvolved. As a newcomer, David finds he must join the investigation in order to avoid suspicion. When another woman disappears, the case becomes personal. This time, she is someone David knows-someone who has managed to get past the barrier around his heart. With the killer's twisted methods screaming out to him and a brooding countryside beset with fear and distrust, David can feel the darkness gathering around him. As the clock ticks down on the young woman's life, David must follow a macabre trail of clues-all the way to its final, horrifying conclusion. "Brilliantly original . . . Simon's first crime novel The Chemistry of Death absolutely blew me away and he just gets better by the book!" -Peter James, UK No. 1 bestselling author… (more)
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» See also 34 mentions

English (39)  German (10)  Dutch (6)  Spanish (2)  Danish (2)  Russian (1)  All languages (60)
Showing 1-5 of 39 (next | show all)
Not as much forensics as I like in a procedural. held my interest. characters ok.plot ok
( )
  cspiwak | Mar 6, 2024 |
I really enjoyed this book. I don't often read books by British authors, and some of the vocabulary used threw me out of the story at first, but soon I found myself enjoying the small differences in the English language that kept popping up. I liked the main character quite a bit, and although the mystery was interesting enough, it was the forensic aspect that had me utterly fascinated. The book is quite descriptive when it comes to matters of decay and decomposition, so I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who doesn't have a strong stomach for that sort of thing. Personally, I love TV shows like CSI and Bones, and I often find myself completely engrossed in the scientific aspects of what happens after we die. Morbid, but there you have it. Beyond those compelling aspects, the book kept me guessing until the end. I thought the wrap-up was a bit too neat and tidy, but I didn't mind too much. I will be looking by more books by this author. ( )
  Elizabeth_Cooper | Oct 27, 2023 |
I liked this first book of the series a lot. The characters are interesting, as was the story. There was a little bit of a supernatural element having to do with dreams, that I could do without, but it wasn't a major part of the story.

I had a feeling about the main villain, but rejected it, so I was surprised at how things turned out. There was another character that I thought might be the one, but unfortunately I was wrong - unfortunately because I wanted him to be the one.

The small town where the action took place was not a very pleasant town. It seemed to have all the negatives of small towns without the positives. This is ignoring the fact that several murders took place there over the years. But I believe it's not a permanent part of the series, as it seems he leaves at the end, and is no longer there in the next book, which I already started.

( )
  MartyFried | Oct 9, 2022 |
Chemistry of Death of the first book in the Dr. David Hunter series. Hunter is a forensic expert who left his job in London after a tragedy forced him to make a change to his life. He's currently working in the small Norfolk village of Manham as a General Practitioner. While he can't stop dreaming of his dead family, he's as content as he can be under the circumstances. When the savagely mutilated body of Sally Palmer is found, Hunter knows he needs to help the police find the killer, despite his reluctance to return to his former profession. When another woman disappears, it becomes painfully clear that a serial killer is at work.

I found this book quite gripping. It had a great story and the setting and characters were very realistic. The horrific details of what occurs to a decomposing body may not be for the faint of heart, but if you are a fan of Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell you will really enjoy this book. I'm definitely planning to read the next in the series, Written in Bone. ( )
  Olivermagnus | Jul 2, 2020 |
Es hat eine Weile gedauert bis is zu diesem Buch gekommen bin.
Und was für ein Buch war das! Es hat mich gegriffen und nicht mehr losgelassen bis is die letzte Seite gelesen habe.
Nicht ein besonderes einzigartes Buch, Serienmörder, kleine Dörfer, unwillige Untersucher, alle sind schon mal vorbei gekommen. Aber in diesem Buch, das ich nun gelesen habe, hat alles geklappt.
Ich habe mich gefreut, es zu lesen. Schade dass es nicht mehr Seiten hat ;-) ( )
  BoekenTrol71 | Jan 12, 2019 |
Showing 1-5 of 39 (next | show all)
Ondanks een aantal clichés is De geur van sterfelijkheid niet het zoveelste boek over een seriemoordenaar. Het bevat een aantal originele elementen en beschikt over vaart, actie en zelfs een aanstekelijk soort humor. De verkoopcijfers van deze thriller zijn opvallend goed en dat komt bij een debuut niet zo vaak voor. De verklaring voor de populariteit kan voor een deel gevonden worden in de duidelijke interesse van mensen voor het forensische werk van de politie, hetgeen ook is terug te vinden in de televisieseries van CSI. Daarnaast zijn de vele liefhebbers van dit soort boeken al jaren op zoek naar de opvolger van Patricia Cornwell, die het juiste spoor al enkele jaren behoorlijk bijster is. Met De geur van sterfelijkheid bewijst Beckett dat hij een getalenteerde verteller is en dat hij de komende jaren kan uitgroeien tot een bestseller-auteur. Hij is zonder meer een grote belofte voor de toekomst.
 

» Add other authors (19 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Simon Beckettprimary authorall editionscalculated
Hesse, AndreeTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kraśko, JanTł.secondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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rororo (24197)
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A human body starts to decompose four minutes after death.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Seeking refuge from a tragic past, a forensic pathologist must search for a devious killer in a rural English village in this crime thriller series debut. Three years ago, Dr. David Hunter left London for rural Norfolk to escape the tragic loss of his wife and daughter. Giving up his career in criminal forensics, he now works as a simple country doctor in the village of Manham. But when the corpse of a woman is found in the woods, a macabre sign from her killer decorating her body, David struggles to remain uninvolved. As a newcomer, David finds he must join the investigation in order to avoid suspicion. When another woman disappears, the case becomes personal. This time, she is someone David knows-someone who has managed to get past the barrier around his heart. With the killer's twisted methods screaming out to him and a brooding countryside beset with fear and distrust, David can feel the darkness gathering around him. As the clock ticks down on the young woman's life, David must follow a macabre trail of clues-all the way to its final, horrifying conclusion. "Brilliantly original . . . Simon's first crime novel The Chemistry of Death absolutely blew me away and he just gets better by the book!" -Peter James, UK No. 1 bestselling author

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