Title: Hear the Dead Cry
Author: Charlie Price
Release Date: 5th August 2010
Publisher: Corgi Children’s Books
(Originally published in the USA under the title Dead Connection, 2006)
When Murray hears a terrified new voice pleading for help at the cemetery, he is convinced, it’s Nikki, a popular young cheerleader who went missing over a month ago – but who will believe him? And where is the body? Together with Pearl, the daughter of the cemetery groundskeeper, Murray must struggle to uncover the truth in a town full of secrets.
Murray is a boy who spends most of his time in the graveyard (although he insists it is called a cemetery) to escape from his mother’s troubles at home. Whilst there he speaks to the people buried in the graveyard and when a young girl goes missing he finds he can use this unusual skill to his advantage. The daughter of the graveyard groundskeeper, Pearl is annoyingly there to assist, although the two become friends as the novel progresses. While this goes on, Deputy Gates, Mister Robert Barry Compton and Public Affair’s Officer Billup are all tied in with the hunt for the missing girl. With a surprising but really gripping ending, the novel turns out to be a really good read but I felt it took a really long time to get off the ground. Couple this with the Americanisms (although this can’t really be classed as a valid criticism because the author is American and the book was originally released in America) I really struggled to be drawn into the book.
It was the cover art that originally drew me to pick up this novel as it is really haunting and beautiful. The beginning of the novel reminded me of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (which is a brilliant book with a similar supernatural theme). But the similarities were limited to the first couple of chapters and from then on I felt I was wading through the plot. The novel is written in third person but switches focus from different characters with each chapter. I really liked this aspect of the book as it created character depth but at times it made it really hard to follow. The ending definitely brings everything back and by the finale, I was desperate to know what had happened to the missing girl, Nikki.
The development of characters was definitely the best aspect of the novel. Nikki is introduced in the first chapter in a really eerie way and we don’t come across insights into her character again which makes it stand out even more. Robert is suffering from mental illness and it is interesting to see how other characters perceive him and how he interacts with them. Gates is desperate to solve Nikki’s disappearance while battling his own demons and Billup’s life is spiralling out of control through alcohol. Murray and Pearl find themselves thrown together in friendship, determined to locate Nikki’s body.
The novel is a young adult crime story and contains all the good elements a crime story should. However, I felt it was lacking a bit in continuation and the climax was rapid and explosive whereas the rest of the novel is slow to get off the ground. I would recommend this novel for those of you who like a bit of a mystery but it wasn’t really my cup of tea.
3/5 Brilliant characters but at times hard to follow
No comments:
Post a Comment