When the Dead Come Calling

This book was fast paced. Hard to put down. It flowed well and it was very well written. It caught hold of me and had me hooked from the start . I was literally on the edge of my seat reading this book.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Oneworld Publications for an advance copy of When the Dead Come Calling, a crime novel set in a small seaside village somewhere in England, featuring DI Georgie Strachan.

When psychotherapist Alexis Cosse is found murdered in the local playground Georgie and her team swing into action but nothing is quite as it seems in Burrowhead.

I found When the Dead Come Calling strangely compelling despite it not being what I expected, a fact based police procedural, or that it contains many elements I normally don’t like. I should say upfront that I suspect that it will hold a fascination for some readers like me, but will repel an equal number with its ambiguity and nebulousness. I will also say that the novel bears close reading as these traits can easily lead to something being missed.

The novel opens with a character hiding in a cave and it sets the scene. There is no hint of why this person is there, except they are afraid, and no hint of their identity. Instead it concentrates on their reactions to and impressions of their surroundings. It then turns to Georgie and her reaction to the murder, a mad scramble out of bed and references to the unknown Simon. The reader is already lost trying to figure out what is going on. Personally I found my curiosity aroused and the way the novel is told almost hypnotic. It is difficult to describe because all the salient points are covered, investigation, suspects, diversions and solution but it is like no other crime novel I have read. It is more like a stream of consciousness narrative where the characters’ reactions are foremost, but like real life much of it is amorphous and difficult to pin down. The constantly changing point of view gives the reader a broader perspective and different reactions to events. Normally I find this distracting and annoying but it held me spellbound.

The novel is extremely atmospheric with constant mentions of the weather, surrounding and especially the clouds. I’m not particularly hot on metaphors but even I can see that the weather reflects a wider take on events. The bit of the novel I wasn’t so keen on was Georgie’s sense of unease about a deeper evil seeping out of the soil. It adds to the brooding atmosphere but don’t ask me to believe in ancient evil - the villagers are nasty enough without blaming otherworldly forces.

The village of Burrowhead doesn’t come out of the novel well, being portrayed as an isolated, prejudiced community with their own ways, straight out of an old horror movie. Are there places like that?

I was glad to have read this novel as I always like to try something a bit different and, as I said, I found it fascinating. It has novelty value for me and I would probably read a follow up but I wouldn’t want to read this kind of novel every day of the week as it’s quite taxing and I don’t quite know what to make of it.

Oh My Days! This was a bit of a slog initially! But, and it's a big but, once I got used to the author's really rather unique writing style, which didn't take too long - thankfully - I started to get fully immersed in what I was reading, all the way to its satisfying conclusion. If you are like me and struggling initially, it's worth sticking with if you can as it is worth it in the end. It's the first in series and I am definitely interesting in pursuing this series further now I know what I'll probably be getting.
Set in sleepy Burrowhead, a town that's so integral to the plot as to warrant being a character in its own right, we follow Georgie, the DI tasked with investigating the death of a local psychiatrist whose body is found in the town's playground. With a man down as one of her officers has a personal connection with the deceased and with a spate of other crimes which may or may not be connected, she really does have her work cut out for her as she tries to piece together what in the heck is going on in her adopted town.
In amongst all this, we also have Georgie's rather strange husband Fergus and his antics as he delves into the ancient history of Burrowhead, their paths crossing with some rather interesting domestic scenes throughout the book.
And through it all, an underlying feeling of dread and despair served up by the atmosphere surrounding the town in general. We also hear from another character whose part is unsure for the majority of the book. All very confusing as already mentioned.
I've already said that I struggled to make sense of all that was going on in this book initially. But I've been down that road before and it never got too confusing to give up. I'm nothing but determined! But, as I have also said, it did come together nicely at the end but I do admit that maybe others who aren't as determined may be tempted to sack it off way before that point. I didn't and am very glad I persisted.
Georgie is quite different to most of the MCs I have met in crime fiction books. I can't quite put my finger on why but, by the end of the book, I was quite warming to her and I am looking forward to what the author has in store for her next time.
There's definitely a lot going on both within and without the crime being investigated. Mostly due to the nature of the setting and the characters that inhabit the town of Burrowhead. But that's series books for you. They tend to be less one-dimensional than stand alones in this regard and, as with most series openers, there is a lot of introductions and back stories to be established. And in this regard the author has set the balance just on the right side.
If you want a quick and easy read, this may not be the book for you but, if you are prepared to invest in a book and be rewarded for your trouble, then I would definitely recommend this book. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Helen Sedgwick's first in The Burrowhead Mysteries series is an off kilter crime read where little becomes clear for quite some time, this makes it an unusual read and one that might put off some readers, although this approach feels fresh, and perhaps more authentic and realistic of true life police investigations. Set in a northern coastal village, Burrowhead, its local police station has managed to survive the sweeping budget cuts and station closures, although the police station is in a poor and dilapidated state. This echoes the rundown state of the area, a downturn and depression experienced by the villagers, there are few opportunities, breeding bitterness and resentment amongst the inhabitants, particularly the young. More worrying is the ominous, brooding atmosphere of the place, a village deeply embedded in fear, ghosts, layers of guilt, violence, racism and hate. Where the bodies are pushing their way out of the earth, just like the emergent secret historical horrors and evil buried in the ground.

DI Georgie Strachan makes her way early in the morning to the playground where the gruesomely murdered body of Dr Alexis Cosse, a psychotherapist, has been found. His gay partner, PC Simon Hunter, is griefstricken, plagued by thoughts that Alexis was seeing someone else, Simon's personal connection disqualifies him from the police investigation. People are being sent threatening racist notes, and the owner of the local Spar, Pamali, is under attack and experiencing vandalism, and homophobia is common. Georgie finds herself with few leads, relying on the local knowledge of PC Trish Mackie, who is supporting a local lad being bullied, Andy, now doing work experience at the station. With her marriage to Fergus under pressure, Georgie has to deal with a second murder, that of a cabbie, and just who is harbouring hidden in the cave?

This is not your usual crime read, but it is one that I become completely engrossed in. I would not wish to read many books like this one, but on a occasional basis, it is an excellent crime read with its strong hints of the supernatural, its Menhir that so obsesses Fergus, intent on setting up a local archaeological group. Burrowhead has an unpalatable historical past, and in the present, few of the villagers are likeable. Sedgewick adroitly portrays a village infected by the political poison that infects Britain with its divisive issue of Brexit, and the picture is despairingly ugly. This is a compulsive read, dark, bleak but so gripping. I am interested to see where Sedgewick moves the series next. Many thanks to Oneworld Publications for an ARC.

When the Dead Come Calling is an intriguing read, like no crime novel I’ve read before, and I’m grateful to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication in March 2020.
Set in the northern coastal town of Burrowhead, we get to see a dark underbelly to a seemingly rural idyll. Secrets abound, and there’s a small-town mentality to the characters in this that is both understandable but also scary.
The style is unusual for a crime novel, and may not be to everyone’s tastes.
At the start of the novel we learn of the discovery of a body in the local playground. It is that of a local doctor. His body is discovered by a local police officer, who also happens to be his boyfriend. A note is discovered near his body suggesting that racism could be a factor in this crime.
As I imagine to be common in a police case, details are not immediately forthcoming. We spend what seems like a lot of time trying to work out what is going on, and when another body is discovered to try and establish the links.
What struck me most while reading was that everyone seemed to be harbouring some kind of secret. I don’t want to give away details that affect the reading, but this is definitely a read that becomes more engaging as we learn more about those involved.
Throughout the story I was struck by the references to the past of the village, and the beliefs that seemed to shape the attitudes of those currently living there. I am still unclear as to how some of the references to the Others are linked, but I understand this is the first in a series so we may get answers further in the future.
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If you are in the mood for a darkly atmospheric, creepy read, When the Dead Come Calling might be just what you are after. The first book in the Burrowhead Mysteries series, it is filled with ancient Celtic menace along side normal, run of the mill racism, bullying and murder. It, oddly, blends the two smoothly and makes this story of a struggling town and underfunded three-person police force one worth tucking into. 

I admit I wasn't clear where we were heading with all the otherworldly elements but that fed into the tangible chill this book encouraged to run down my spine. It was fresh, very different from your average police investigative murder mystery and stuck with me more than I would have expected. 

I enjoyed Georgie and her wayward Scottish husband, Fergus. Georgie leads our gaggle of police in a straightforward, well executed way. Fergus, on the other hand, is rather fragmented and off with the fairies being an unemployed engineer. A mismatched couple? Yeah, but you haven't seen the half of it!

The other two police feature heavily as Simon was in a relationship with Alexis, our murder victim. Trish is a force of nature being an off the rails sort. She is impulsive and reactionary but also thoughtful and insightful too. The mix of the three fits well as they balance each other out. I won't speak of the murder or the darker elements of the book as that is part of the fun and needs no spoilers. Suffice it to say this is far better than I would have expected and I will be keeping an eye out for the follow-on.

Burrowhead is a village steeped in history, secrets and mystery. Where everyone knows everyone and newcomers are not welcomed with open arms. You aren’t local unless your family have lived there for generations. 

DI Georgie Strahan is the most senior officer in Burrowhead’s police station. A claptrap building with barely working facilities and four officers who the rest of the force seem to have forgotten. Until the local psychotherapist is found murdered. He’s the close friend of DC Simon Hunter but there are whispers of impropriety and there’s a note accompanying the body pointing to a possible racial motive. 

And then another body is found, that of a a local man and his sister is missing. Is she a murderer or a victim? The DI and her colleagues look beneath the layers of their small, insular community at the secrets people hold close. Do they know each other at all? As in real life, it takes some time for details to filter from community to investigator, with talk, suspicion and subterfuge. 

Ever present is Burrowhead’s history casting a dark shadow over it’s residents. How much does this darkness contribute to the happenings of the day? Is it the town and it’s history that permits evil to flourish? 

This is the first instalment into the Burrowhead mysteries by Helen Sedgewick. It’s a book rich in detail about the history of the area as opposed to an overt police procedural which was what I had expected I would be reading. It’s eerie, dark and mythical and there’s a sense of the fantastic about times past. Mythical creatures, sacrifice, secret caves and the sea. The characters are varied with a couple of eccentrics and whilst overall they initially seem small town, they continue to evolve and develop throughout the book and form the basis for the stories of Burrowhead yet to come. 

This was the final book of 2019 for me. A little slow to start and some time for me to get into the groove of it, but in all a compelling and solid start to this series. Thank you to Netgalley and Oneworld Publications for an eARC of this book. 

Pub date is 9 January 2020.

Burrowhead is not a comfortable place to live if you are a minority. Racism, homophobia and mysogyny are ingrained into the village's history, brought to the surface when Alexis Cosse, a psychotherapist, is brutally murdered.

The prose in this novel is beautiful. The stories of the villagers, as they react and deal with the crimes taking place, and the stories of the village's history, are entwined into an enchanting and yet disturbing narrative. It is very atmospheric, at times even claustrophobic, as a small village can often be. 

This is not a typical crime novel if you're looking for a simple 'whodunnit' and a puzzle to solve. But it is a very, very good read. It is emotional, sometimes painfully so, and it will stick with me for a long time.

My thanks to Oneworld Publications/Point Blank for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘When the Dead Come Calling’ by Helen Sedgwick in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first in her Burrowhead Mystery series set in the sleepy northern village of Burrowhead close to the coast. 

When the body of psychotherapist Alexis Cosse is found in the Burrowhead playground, the case is investigated by DI Georgie Strachan and her small local team. It quickly becomes clear that there is an undercurrent of racism, misogyny and homophobia lurking beneath the surface of the village. Then another body is found and this becomes an increasingly complex case with links to the village’s history.

This was a layered narrative very much like the landscape around Burrowhead itself. Georgie’s husband, Fergus, is fascinated by archeology and the history of the land and becomes quite distracted by this research. 

Georgie and Fergus had moved to Burrowhead some years previously and have “become familiar fixtures of the village but are not quite from the village either”. Yet Georgie’s background and even her accent remains a mystery to the villagers. We are told: “She’s not from here though, that much they know. Brown-skinned. Tight dark curls. But originally? Well, where Georgie became Georgie is a mystery no one has been able to solve.” This gives her very much an Outsider status that becomes more evident when the darker aspects of the crimes emerge.

The following paragraph summed up Georgie’s response well for me. “If it was all racism she’d know how to fight back, if it was all misogyny, if it was all from one person, even a group, but this–violence used against a local girl, a gay man, threats and vandalism, racism, murder–is it every kind of otherness they hate? And it’s not just now, is it, it hasn’t just started, it’s historic, it’s endemic.”

With its emphasis upon characterisation, social issues (including Brexit), local history, and the role of the landscape brought to mind Susan Hill’s Simon Serrailler series. So it’s very much what I would class as a literary crime novel rather than a more straightforward whodunnit or police procedural. 

Its macabre title highlights another aspect that I found very compelling as elements of folk horror were woven throughout the narrative. While remaining ambiguous and understated, they provided another layer and some quite creepy moments. Tales of haunted churches, coffins rising through the graveyard soil, rituals, whispers of sacrifice and the ‘Others’, who were known to the ancestors, all add to this.

Overall, an atmospheric work of crime fiction and I am very much looking forward to reading the next in the series and learning more about Burrowhead and its mysteries.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.