I have a couple of other novels by French in the Dublin Murder series that I haven't read yet but hope to get to soon. This novel, The Witch Elm, is a stand alone story that I decided to read before I get into the Dublin Murder books. Anyway, I thought this was a very good thriller that kept me interested throughout. The novel was actually based on a true case that happened in 1943. A discovery was made of the skeletonised remains of a woman by four children inside a wych elm in Hagley Wood, Hagley (located in the estate of Hagley Hall), in Worcestershire, England. The victimâwhose murder is approximated to have occurred in 1941âremains unidentified.
The protagonist of French's novel is Toby Hennessy, an outwardly appearing charming young man who works as a publicist for an art dealer. Early in the novel, he is attacked and beaten in his apartment and suffers severe bodily harm. As he is recovering, he decides to go to the family estate called the "Ivy House" to take care of his Uncle Hugo who is dying from a brain tumor. This is where he and his two cousins, Leon and Susanna, spent a lot of time during their youths especially in the summer. It is still the meeting place for the family and Hugo's three brothers and family have Sunday dinners there. At one of these outings, a skull is discovered in the old wych elm in the garden. The police are brought in and it turns out the body of an old school mate of the cousins is contained in the tree. So how did he get there, was it a murder, and if so who could have killed him? So is Toby a suspect in this...apparently the police think so.
I enjoyed this novel for the most part. The plot had a lot of twists and turns and kept me guessing but in the end I was not too happy about the fate of Toby. I will be looking forward to reading more of French. I know her Dublin Murders is now a series on STARZ so I will probably be watching that as well.
The protagonist of French's novel is Toby Hennessy, an outwardly appearing charming young man who works as a publicist for an art dealer. Early in the novel, he is attacked and beaten in his apartment and suffers severe bodily harm. As he is recovering, he decides to go to the family estate called the "Ivy House" to take care of his Uncle Hugo who is dying from a brain tumor. This is where he and his two cousins, Leon and Susanna, spent a lot of time during their youths especially in the summer. It is still the meeting place for the family and Hugo's three brothers and family have Sunday dinners there. At one of these outings, a skull is discovered in the old wych elm in the garden. The police are brought in and it turns out the body of an old school mate of the cousins is contained in the tree. So how did he get there, was it a murder, and if so who could have killed him? So is Toby a suspect in this...apparently the police think so.
I enjoyed this novel for the most part. The plot had a lot of twists and turns and kept me guessing but in the end I was not too happy about the fate of Toby. I will be looking forward to reading more of French. I know her Dublin Murders is now a series on STARZ so I will probably be watching that as well.
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