Skeleton Plot, the

When a skeleton is found at the edge of a twenty year old development, DS Lambert and DS Hook are called in to try to help identify the victim and find those responsible. Of course, twenty years is a long time and people can change – outwardly anyway. It turns out that there are plenty of people who might be responsible for the murder, but some of them are now prominent government and business leaders. These are people who have a lot to lose and they are not about to let a past indiscretion come between them and their current success. Hooks and Lambert won’t have an easy job solving this case full of twists and turns

Skeleton Plot, the newest Lambert and Hook novel, is a gripping police procedural that keeps readers guessing whodunit to the very end.

When a 20 year-old human skeleton is found buried on the edge of a housing development, it is up to Detective Chief Superintendent Lambert and Detective Sergeant Hook to discover the identity of the victim and the circumstances of her death.

Those closest to the victim have moved on in their lives, becoming prominent members of the community. Each has much to lose if the truth about the summer of 1995 comes out. But which is capable of murder?

Gregson is a masterful story-teller. Much of the investigation is shown through the perspective of witnesses and suspects. Each struggles with how much of the truth to share, and how to present themselves in the best light knowing they are suspects. At the same time, they do not know how much the police have already discovered. Lambert and Hook are systematic in their questioning. They know they are being lied to and must find ways to gather information about the past. Together this imbues the investigation with realism.

I highly recommend Skeleton Plot to anyone who enjoys stimulating and realistic British police procedurals.

I received a copy of Skeleton Plot from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

Skeleton Plot is available for pre-order and will be released September 1, 2015.

--Crittermom

When 16 year old Damon helps his granddad to dig over a piece of ground to plant vegetables, to his horror he finds a human skull in the earth.
Detective Chief Superintendent Lambert and DS Hook find themselves investigating a 20 year old cold case. They get a lucky break early on as to the identification of the victim and the investigations unravel through the difficult task of interviewing people they have identified as being around at that time.
Although there are plenty of suspects, the reader doesn’t get many clues as to who the murderer is as the detectives are reliant on the information given – or not given! It is the sheer determination of Lambert and Hook which eventually unmasks the killer. This is an enjoyable mystery enhanced by the author’s connection with human behaviours and his ability to portray this in his writing.
This is easily read as a stand alone novel and I found that the pages were flying past. It has interesting police information, references to social issues and vivid characterisation.