The Path of the Dead

By Caroline Benton

A middle of the night call to a burnt out house is pretty much routine for Devon Fire Brigade photographer Gus Tavender. But finding a charred body locked in a secret room is not, and from that moment, very little in Gus's life can be considered routine. The following day she meets with an old college friend who has come to Dartmoor to learn the truth about her aunt's death. The old lady fell into a quarry when out walking on Dartmoor -- a tragic accident say the police, but Judith has good reason to think otherwise. She enlists Gus's help and as the two women uncover more information, Gus begins to suspect a connection between her friend's aunt and the body in the burnt house.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0786717335
• ISBN13: 9780786717330
• Release Date: March 2006
• Publisher: Carroll & Graf
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.06 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 1.0" x 5.8"

Customer Reviews

A very good debut!

Gus Tavender is a photographer for the Devon Fire Brigade. In the aftermath of a house fire, Gus finds something the Brigade has missed; a charred body that had been locked in a closet. A few days later, Gus run into an acquaintance from her collage days and is surprised when she later receives an invitation to visit. Judith is the heir to her late aunt who apparently died in a walking accident on the Moors. But Judith believes her aunt was murdered and wants Gus to investigate. Gus is a wonderful character, strong, caring, and determined, but also smart enough to know when to seek help, even though she may drive on and hopes help arrives. I particularly liked her relationship with her father. I'll admit there were a few British-isms with which I was unfamiliar, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story. The story unfolds to the reader as it does to the protagonist, which I enjoyed. There were some very good twists in a solid plot that built to an exciting scene and realistic conclusion. With wonderful descriptions of the Moors, Ms. Benton has created a very good, suspenseful first book and I am looking forward to her second.

A real page turner!

I have just finished this first novel by Caroline Benton. Set on and around the wonderful, brooding Dartmoor landscape,this first novel is a very enjoyable read. It grabs your attention early on and then takes you on a roller coaster ride over the moor!! An interesting twist is that the narrator works for the Fire Service, which makes a pleasant change from pathologists and detectives!! Knowing the area personally made the book even more interesting for me, though the descriptions are great and the reader would quickly get the feel of the area. This a good first novel and I'm sure readers will await the next one with keen anticipation.