naoe1988

On the barren, bracken moors of Exmoor, outside of the rural town of Shipcott, serial killer and pedophile Arnold Avery has disposed of children's bodies. He has been serving a life sentence for his heinous crimes, but the discovery of his victims' remains are not complete. One child, eleven year-old Billy Peters, has been missing for nineteen years; the location of his grave remains a mystery. Billy's mother still peers stonily out of the window of her house, as if waiting for him to return. Billy's sister, Lettie, suffers from the fallout of her mother's remoteness and lack off affection. Her life has been hollowed out since Billy's disappearance. Now with two young sons of her own, Lettie has been through handfuls of failed relationships with men. She behaves with a bitter resentment towards her oldest son, twelve year-old Steven. The future appears gloomy and doomed to the past. This story is about Steven's attempt to heal his broken family. He is a precocious and sensitive boy with particularly astute critical thinking skills. Lonely and frequently bullied by the neighborhood kids, he has one friend, and even that alliance is not too promising. He ventures with his spade and his sense of purpose off to the moors to dig. He digs daily and ferociously, determined to find his uncle's grave and bury the past sorrows. He wants his Nan to stop waiting for the impossible and for his Mum to quit grieving. When no evidence turns up, he writes a letter to Avery in prison to ask where his uncle is buried. Avery admires the pluck of this painfully brief letter and writes a cryptic letter back, even though he doesn't know whom the missive is from--man, woman, or child. The tension of the story progresses with the letters, and a tender, taut tale unfolds with remarkable restraint and depth. This is not your typical serial killer story. Gratuitous violence is supplanted by a quiet desperation, which is more effective in revealing the insidious horror and rippling ramifications of Avery's atrocities. The narrative is largely advanced through psychologically interior scenes and internal reflection, and the details are exhumed through Steven's crusade for redemption. This pacing is unhurried. The action is gradual, and at times is too slow and plodding. Additionally, I thought that Steven's acuity of thought and cleverness a bit too sophisticated and believable for his age and experience. However, these were minor blemishes in an otherwise original and atmospheric story.

2022-10-29 03:26