This was not the A35 expected so I couldn’t settle to read it although I like the sound of the plot.

Begins well but fades and petrers out. Got ski is of a type - tired, floundering, separates from his wife and with the expected daughter. Captures the mood of a noir novel but the story has too many coincidences to take seriously. Good writing though......,

If you like crime fiction (or is it?*), this book is a little deeper and more thought-provoking than most of this genre’s well-known authors, It has such an aura about it, you could be back for a second reading simply to appreciate it even more than the first time.
The book is clever on so many levels but clever in a way you don’t feel inferior. At times the author seems to be letting you in on a little joke or prank. It is reminiscent of the writing of Georges Simenon and also reminded me of some of the French set books I read in my schooldays.
The asterisk (*) above relates to the foreword and afterword of this book – a tale about an author who committed suicide and the discovery of his manuscript, purportedly this book, years after his death. I felt that gimmicky and unnecessary, but it was intriguing.
The writing itself is a wonder to behold. Mr. Macrae certainly appears to have his pen finger on the pulse of small-town France. It was easy to imagine the settings of many of the book’s locations.
It’s the characters in the book that make it such a delightful read. They range from Detective Gorski, through to the widow of the deceased solicitor, Lucette, and her son Raymond. This book is as much Raymond’s story as it is Gorski’s. The author captures the angst of teenage years, marital infidelity and problems, dementia in old age and the sheer humdrum lifestyles of so many minor characters in the book.
The plot was pedestrian but that was okay by me, as I was wallowing in the delightful prose of the author. The storytelling by the characters held me spellbound. If you like the endings of your crime novels all tied up with a neat bow, then this may not be the book for you. If, on the other hand, you wish to read a ‘good old-fashioned’ novel without a real hero and guns banging away every few chapters, I suggest you read it. You won’t be disappointed.
I would like to thank the publisher Skyhorse Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I was under no obligation to review it and all opinions expressed are my own.

Macrae Burnet writes a literary mystery, paying homage to Sartre and Georges Simenon in this distinctly French style novel, set primarily in the non descript and insipid small town of Saint-Louis. An author commits suicide, paving the path to the publication of a novel deemed to be autobiographical, although how much is truth or false is up for debate, but it does feels real. George Gorski, Chief of Police in the town is, by his own estimation, a provincial plodder, separated from his wife, Celine, and missing his daughter. He wanders around the town's bars, cafes and restaurants, drinking whilst trying to avoid being perceived as a drinker. A fatal car accident on the A35 kills respectable lawyer, Bernard Barthelme, a man not much mourned by those close to him or those who knew him. Lucette, the widow, asks him to look into the death because her husband by all rights should not have been on that road. Feeling drawn to Lucette, and with nothing better to do, Gorski begins to look into the mystery. This is a slow building character driven story, not a plot driven crime story with tension and suspense.

17 year old Raymond Barthelme feels an overwhelming sense of a burden lifted with the death of his father, much like his mother. Bernard had instituted a rigid and austere set of routines that inhibited mother and son, a house of silence where putting the heating on was heavily frowned upon. Slowly these rituals are challenged under the disapproving eye of the housekeeper, Therese. Raymond embarks on a fit of rebellion and out of character behaviour, and upon finding a scrap of paper with an address in a nearby small town in his father's desk, he is intrigued. His curiosity leads him to spend substantial amounts of time there, attracted to a waitress, going to a club called Johnny's, looking into the inhabitants at that address and observing them. Gorski contacts Strasbourg police over the slim possibility of a connection with an accident and a murder investigation.

Macrae paints a masterly picture of small town life, the disappointments, bar brawls, angst, humiliations, teenage sexual forays, social class, disintegrating marriages, secrets and petty behaviours that typify the everyday in Saint Louis for the main characters. This novel is for those who enjoy character driven psychological studies and a interested in small town French society and its workings. The central mystery of why Bernard Barthelme packs its own punch but it is not the central focus of the story. A book I thoroughly enjoyed reading and recommend highly. Many thanks to Skyhorse Publishing for an ARC.

This staid yet engrossing thriller begins with a tragic automobile accident. A dark green Mercedes salon departs the southbound carriageway on the A35 – a trunk road running between Strasbourg and Saint-Louis – careens down a slope and makes fatal contact with a tree standing on the edge of a copse. The driver of the car, a Bertrand Barthelme, of 14 Rue des Bois, Saint-Louis is killed on the spot. The officer assigned to investigate the case is Georges Gorski of the Saint-Louis police force. A preliminary fact checks reveals that Bertrand Barthelme is a genteel, well-heeled partner in the law firm of Barthelme & Corbeil and one of the most respectable personas of the non-decrepit province of Saint-Louis. What otherwise seemed like an unfortunate but perfectly run-of-the-mill car collision takes a murky turn when Lucette Bathelme reveals to Gorski the fact that her husband had no business driving down the A35 on a Tuesday night since Tuesdays were reserved for dinner with his business associates forming part of an elite ‘club’. Discrete enquiries with the so-called business partners reveals that neither was there any club nor were the sociable dinners. Add to the confounding mix the weird behavior of Barthelme’s only son Raymond and an arguable crime of passion that snuffs out the life of a lady harbouring a ‘shady’ reputation, Gorski has more than just a headache to nurse.

The writing of Graeme Macrae Burnet has unmistakable traces of his idol Georges Simenon. In fact, Inspector Gorski is an eclectic mix of Simenon’s Inspector Jules Maigret and Ian Rankin’s John Rebus. A tumultuous marriage, an inveterate devotion to the lure of alcohol and a wall of resistance from peers who are oblivious to his achievements and obstinate to requests. What makes “The Accident” an outlier is the absolute lack of frenzy. Although a thriller in genre, it is thriller by genre alone! The pace is leisurely, the plot laid back and the convergence to the climax, languid. A veritable anathema to either a Robert Ludlum or a Tom Clancy, but no less enthralling, “The Accident” is testimony to the literary prowess of its creator. The narrative is smooth, easy, pleasing on the eye and refreshingly devoid of verbiage, bombast and complexity. The tug and pull of contradicting human emotions is captured in a fashion that is not only natural, but clinical. Gorski is impervious to reproach and revile, unaffected by acclaim and appreciation, and neutral to pleasure and pain. Going about his work with neither expectation not enthusiasm, Gorsky is self-deprecating, cautious and conservative in both approach and outlook.

The character of Gorski is immaculately captured by Burnet in this riveting passage: “Gorski relaxed a little. He would, in truth have been more comfortable in Le Pot, where he could order as many beers as he liked without Yves raising an eyebrow, and where he was not obliged to sit at the window in plain sight of passers-by.” Le Pot is the run down drinking establishment of Saint-Louis and Yves, its loyal bartender. Gorski prefers to remain anonymous, inconspicuous and even to a certain extent, invisible. Even while conducting investigations he prefers an approach that is bereft of rambunctiousness, ruckus and reverberations. Low profile to the extent of being docile, Gorski relies on a combination of logic and intellect to hone down on his conclusions.

“The Accident on A35” however will, and should not remain muted in the reception it receives from avid bibliophiles. So shouldn’t Inspector Gorski!

This mystery just didn’t work for me. Billed as a noir, I didn’t find this to be hard-boiled enough to be in that category. In fact, the tone and pace felt more like a cozy. However, it didn’t have the lightness or humor of that genre. Ultimately, the slow-pace and excessive detail bogged down for me wag at was otherwise a well-plotted mystery with dual narratives.

* I would like to thank the Author, Skyhorse Publishing and Netgalley for generously providing me with ARC in exchange for an honest review.*
The Accident on the A35 is not the first novel by Graeme Macrae Burnet that I have read and another that proves the Author to be one of the best Scotland's writers.
The novel is set in a French provincial town in Alsace where life is lived slowly and with pecularities typical of such places. The police chief, Georges Gorski is informed of a tragic accident on a motorway and decides to investigate this apparently ordinary circumstance. Also, there is a sub-plot regarding the teenage son of the deceased lawyer and a murder which was committed in another town. Gorski probes all possible alternatives and learns more about what lies under the veneer.
All plots are intelligently interwoven like in the best style of a slow-paced Georges Simenon's novels. Is the first name of Monsieur Gorski just a coincidence? I believe it is a homage paid to the French novelist. The novel is not a page-turner but it is not supposed to be one. A reader is to savour every sentence and every paragraph. There is no redundancy and every word matters.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes to take their time with reading and enjoys a good noir. I wil follow Graeme Macrae Burnet!

I found this to be a slow and gentle read, not your typical whodunit, but I enjoyed it!
I've not read Burnet before, and will now look out for other titles

I was introduced to Scottish author, Graeme Macrae Burnet, with His Blood Project, shortlisted for the Booker prize in 2016. A brilliant novel and one worth every 5 stars I gave it. Given the opportunity to read his Accident on the A35, I jumped at it.

Accident on the A35 is a literary mystery. Not like other crime mysteries that are plot-driven with many twists and turns. It’s important to step into this novel realizing you are about to read an easy flowing mystery that is character-driven.

The setting of this novel is in small town Saint-Louis, France. This backwater town plays an important role in the book. The plodding Chief of Police, Inspector Georges Gorski, looks into the fatal car accident of solicitor Bertrand Barthelme only at the behest of his pretty widow. The book is more focused on the lives of the characters rather than the solving of a crime. Marital discord, teenage struggles with conformity, cafe life, and class are delved into with such an excellent quality of writing that the novel is best read slowly. Such brilliant character development. Most enjoyably read is the angst of Bertrand’s 17 year old son, Raymond.

This is a subtle book about a man living a hidden life and what transpires after his death. The reader must not mind that a crime isn’t solved or is it that there was no crime at all?

Accident on the A35 is the 2nd in a series, but can definitely be read as a stand-alone. I haven’t read The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau yet and look forward to doing so.

4 out of 5 stars

Thanks to #SkyhorsePublishing, NetGalley, and the terrific Graeme Macrae Burnet for the opportunity to read the ARC.

Originally published in October, 2017.
To be republished on October 16, 2018 by #SkyhorsePublishing

I cannot speak more highly about this book! It’s almost impossible to review because it’s almost impossible to categorize. This is less a whodunit and much more of a whydunit. I don’t know much about this author but it’s my understanding that this book or some of it may be biographical. It reads that way. It feels very authentic. And very noir in a way. This is not a quick read and it does move slowly at times but considering I was sad to see it end (and by the way, it doesn’t really end....it just sort of stops) I was glad for that. This book is really brilliant and I will be going back to read His Bloody Project by the same author. Read this. You’ll thank me.

I really don't know what to make of this book. I'm not sure that I really enjoyed it. It's difficult as the story sort of ends rather than comes to any conclusions. After reading the afterword in the book I feel that I understand the story a little more, and it, although slow paced, kept me interested through the book. Is it autobiographical - I can't say that I knew anything about the author before reading this book - I don't know, but it does explain the reasoning behind the book

I can see why this mystery was on a number of best book lists for 2017 as well as being longlisted. Burnet does a masterful job at plot and character development.