Name: Denaiir's review of The Blackhouse by Peter May
Item: The Blackhouse
Rating: 3
Author: Denaiir

Peter May

The Isle of Lewis is the most remote, harshly beautiful place in Scotland, where the difficulty of existence seems outweighed only by people's fear of God. But older, pagan values lurk beneath the veneer of faith, the primal yearning for blood and revenge. When a brutal murder on the island bears the hallmarks of a similar slaying in Edinburgh, police detective Fin Macleod is dispatched north to investigate. But since he himself was raised on Lewis, the investigation also represents a journey home and into his past. Each year the island's men perform the hunting of the gugas, a savage custom no longer necessary for survival, but which they cling to even more fiercely in the face of the demands of modern morality. For Fin the hunt recalls a horrific tragedy, which after all this time may have begun to demand another sacrifice. The Blackhouse is a crime novel of rare power and vision. Peter May has crafted a page-turning murder mystery that explores the darkness in our souls, and just how difficult it is to escape the past.

The Blackhouse

Davina Treet

Denaiir

I was quite disappointed in this one, probably had too high expectations but the backstory was dragging a lot, and as opposed to many reviewers I didn't find the descriptions very vivid nor atmospheric. Maybe book 2 will be more my cup of tea since we've now been introduced to the characters, so it might be less focused on the main character's teenage years

The first book in an enthralling mystery series from award-winning author Peter May. "A WRITER I WOULD FOLLOW TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH." --Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review "SHINES WITH INTRIGUE AND SUPERB PLOTTING." --USA Today Every step toward solving the case brings Scottish detective Fin Macleod closer to a dangerous confrontation with the dark events of the past that shaped--and nearly destroyed--his life. When a grisly murder occurs on the Isle of Lewis that bears similarities to a brutal killing on mainland Scotland, Edinburgh detective and native of the Isle of Lewis Fin Macleod is dispatched to the Outer Hebrides to investigate, embarking at the same time on a voyage into his own troubled past. As Fin reconnects with the people and places of his tortured childhood, the desolate but beautiful island and its ancient customs assert their grip on his psyche.

The Lewis Trilogy

Janice Hopper

I picked this book on sale from Amazon, largely because I'm curious and interested in Scotland and its islands. The story takes place on the Isle of Lewis. It's a very different world from mine, and I found the life there interesting to read about.

There's a mystery here, or rather, a couple of mysteries. One concerns a murder. The other concerns things that happened in the past. The viewpoint shifts back and forth from present day to past rememberings.

I thought the writing was good. I got a bit annoyed about the main character, and I thought some of the angsty-bits went on a mite too long. But as a view of a different culture: +1.

Mostly liked it. Not sure I liked it well enough to read another book with the same characters, though. I'll let some time pass and see how I feel.

Pavonini

Crime isn't really my thing. This didn't grab me at the beginning, but because of three very insistent recommendations I kept going. It eventually got its claws into me.

Reading about islander culture is pretty fascinating. Not something I'm familiar with. Same country, but a different world. That, and the general reflection on regrets/escaping the past, was interesting to me. Wasn't too interested in the murder.

I'll be reading the other two, so it was a decent enough read to keep going. I'm not trying to warn people off - it's just my aversion to crime that makes me reluctant.

A brutal killing takes place on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland: a land of harsh beauty and inhabitants of deep-rooted faith. A MURDER. Detective Inspector Fin Macleod is sent from Edinburgh to investigate. For Lewis-born Macleod, the case represents a journey both home and into his past. A SECRET. Something lurks within the close-knit island community. Something sinister. A TRAP. As Fin investigates, old skeletons begin to surface, and soon he, the hunter, becomes the hunted.

Sian Wadey

** spoiler alert **
           This was recommended to me by my Mum who had read it and loved it. She absolutely adores Scotland and that's why she loved this book so much. I went in with an open mind, I (mostly) trust her judgement. There were parts of this book that I loved. The murder mystery itself was brilliant, victim that you love and hate and a lead character with a great deal of history. 
Learning all about Fin McLeod and his childhood is really interesting and is definitely different to your regular murder mystery. Very rarely do you know so much about a main character and his relationship to the victim. In fact, Fin's life story is probably more interesting than the murder mystery. 
I did think there were some parts of the story that were a bit bogged down. At one stage Peter May did describe a whole sequence to repairing a computer which was completely unnecessary! 
But really, it's the island that Fin is from that gives this book character and intrigue and the soap fan in me loves a scandal. I read until the end partly to find out who the murderer was and partly to find out who was the father of young Fin!

Julie Viravaux

Actually very good in terms of plot (the mystery, the murder and what really happened in the main character's childhood were really well told), but I'm not a fan of how women are portrayed in this. 
I loved the plot, the characters, the atmosphere was amazing but women either only have a role of a burden (Artair's mother after her heart attack), a seductress (Marsaili, all of Fin's girlfriends, Donna) or a one dimensional mother figure (Fin's  mother who was barely mentioned or his aunt who was just described as "eccentric and cold").
The men on the other hand were really well written  which makes me think this isn't just how the author writes characters, it's just how he writes women. (I'm hoping the rest of the trilogy isn't as male-based). 
Other than this, I loved everything except the ending which felt flat and easy compared to the rest of the plot.

Davina Treet &
The Blackhouse by Peter May

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Davina Treet &The Blackhouse by Peter May

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Davina Treet &
The Blackhouse by Peter May