The Various Haunts of Men (Simon Serrailler Mystery)
by Susan Hill. “This is the first in the Simon Serrailler detective series. Interestingly, he is hardly in this book at all which I thought was a clever idea. Instead, Hill gives us Freya Graffham - a new young policewoman in town who has a crush on Simon and sees him as an almost mythical figure. We learn a lot about him through her eyes but he always stays a little removed, intriguing, and seductive - the desire to know more means the second book in the series is already in my TBR pile ready to go. Hill isn't writing your usual mystery. She focuses mostly on character, developing even the minor players with personalities, motivations, and back stories. Everyone has a little something going on - some of it is linked to the plot and but some of it just adds richness to the people we are starting to care about. The mystery is here but it feels secondary and doesn't kick in for quite some time. That was ok with me but I could understand if a reader was frustrated with the pace. I actually thought the mystery is the weakest part of the book with an interesting premise but an underdeveloped conclusion. Even so, this was a book that I raced through and really enjoyed.”
