Ruth Galloway is an unlikely heroine, or in this case sleuth, which is why I think I like her so much. She's a forensic archaeologist and university lecturer who's quite content to live in a small cottage on the edge of a rather desolate marshland with only her two cats as companions. Pushing forty Ruth wouldn't mind being thinner but she's not obsessive about her flaws. And she's not at a loss for friends or former lovers either. All in all Elly Griffiths has created quite a refreshing character in her debut mystery, The Crossing Places. Oh, and did I mention she likes Inspector Rebus mysteries and doctor-nurse romances?
When the bones of a child are discovered out on the marsh Ruth is asked to lend her expertise and assist in their removal. It's hoped they are the remains of a child who went missing ten years earlier. This unsolved case has troubled DCI Harry Nelson from the very beginning, who wants closure for the girls' family. The bones, however, turn out to be from the Iron Age--some two thousand years old. Buried in the center of a henge that Ruth helped excavate some years earlier, she's not entirely sure for what purpose they were left there. As the henge is a sacred place the child may have been a ritual sacrifice, since half her head was shaved and she was bound with mistletoe and honeysuckle rope. A torque, or necklace, was found near the body.
The find may be exciting for Ruth, but DCI Nelson is unable to suppress his disappointment. Nelson is a transplanted Northerner, come to this "godforsaken place" on the Norfolk coast for his job. His wife Michelle, a stylish hairdresser, has ambitions for him, but he just wants to get on with his work. Nelson is no-nonsense. He likes neat lists on clean sheets of paper and attention paid to small details, so he appreciates Ruth's concentration and cautious manner when she's working on a dig. The two begin working together when Nelson asks her help in deciphering letters that have been sent from someone he assumes is the killer. The letters are filled with with religious, literary, mythological and even archaeological references to the missing girl, and worse, they heckle Nelson for his inability to find her body.
When another young girl goes missing the similarities between the two cases cause Nelson to believe the murderer is back and the race is on to try and find the girl who one minute was playing with her siblings and the next was gone. The cast of characters isn't overly large, but Griffiths introduces enough to keep you guessing who the culprit is for a little while at least (though to be honest I fingered someone else for the crime than who it turned out to be!). Most of the elements of the mystery are tied into the archaeological aspects of the story and the henge discovery with many of the same individuals still around from that first dig.
Ruth and Nelson make a great team, in some ways they are at complete odds with each other but also complementary in their working styles, and each has a respect and curiosity for the other, which makes for an interesting relationship. And this is a case where the setting almost becomes a character as well, as the marshes are so wonderfully atmospheric--the perfect setting for a mystery. Ruth's cottage is quite isolated with only one other permanent neighbor and a holiday home for mostly absent Londoners. Griffiths does an amazing job of making you feel like you can actually hear the rushing of waves that can come in like "galloping horses". The saltmarsh may be beautiful with its fragile ecosystem but equally inhospitable and maybe even a little dangerous if you're not careful. But for all its isolation I think I can see why Ruth loves living there.
Elly Griffiths is definitely an author I will be keeping an eye on, and it's taking every ounce of willpower to stop myself from ordering her second book, The Janus Stone (surely I can wait a little longer for the paperback?). The Crossing Places ends with a slight cliffhanger, so I'm itching to see what happens next. Make sure you take a look at Elly Griffiths' website as she shares lots of interesting information about archaeology and there are some lovely photos of a Norfolk beach to help visualize what Ruth sees out her window. This is definitely a mystery to look out for.