White Bones: Kate Maguire Book 1 (Unabridged)

I've been an avid reader of mysteries for 3 decades, of course I've heard of Graham Masterson, but this is the first book of his that I've read. It was a shocking experience. Well written, as expected of master Masterson, vivid characters, good plotting and extremely gruesome crimes. I don't think of myself as a particularly squeamish person, but the torture and killing method of this villain disturbed me. Even so, I enjoyed this compelling book, and I'll gladly read more from this series.

This novel was originally released under another title, but it still does not detract from the quality of the writing, the great characters and the fabulous story. I Originally bought this story in a paperback version called A TERRIBLE BEAUTY. There is not a radical difference between the paperback I bought and the hardback I purchased from the UK. For some reason I could not purchase the hardback in the US, but that may be a contractual thing like the audio CD version seems to be only available in the UK, but the audio download as well as the Kindle download is not only available, but it has sold enormously Well. Anyway, like any Masterton masterwork, the action starts straightaway; and the subplots deliver some of the most amazing Uber horror in this genre. About the only structural difference, and this is more from a subjective viewpoint as well as my expectations of the novel, is that the picture of Katie MaGuire is more in the vein of the crime story, which is not something I totally focused on the first time I read this story. Possibly because of the change in publishing house (head of Zeus) which I think may do more crime novels, the feel/tone may have changed. If I understand correctly, the author made some changes for the UK market, but this seems to have translated very well in terms of sales, and as Masterton fan, I'm immensely happy that he has received more exposure, and hopefully more sales in his other works which are more explicitly horror tales. Anyway, the depth and breadth of the story is still asfulfilling as it was on a first and second reading, and I was very happy to get the hardback since it is in a very good quality binding. Also the audiobook is read by a voice talent who presents an excellent tone and feel for Katie's POV. Since the book was re-presented as the start of a series, it is well worth reading with the twists and turns that Masterton does so artfully well. Whether you approach it as a crime novel, horror novel, or some hybrid, this is an excellent read and a great introduction to Katie and the life she leads in Cork, which was where Graham Masterton was for a while. Definitely a pleasure to read and reread, and I always enjoy the several series of other characters that Masterton writes and presents so well. A highly recommended read.

I've read a lot of Masterton's books in the past and I've always been impressed by his talent and writing skill—very impressed with that. I found his writing talent inspirational and instructive. White Bones is the first of his books I've read in quite a while. It is a gripping, harrowing, sometimes horrifying novel of suspense with a touch of the supernatural thrown in. The novel holds your interest—sometimes by force. It is a detective novel and that was what I was expecting. It turned out to be something more. It has a strong dose of horror thrown in that surprised me, and he turned the horror on strong. And the horror, for me, was a little hard to take; in fact, a bit overpowering, repulsive even, for my taste. But I shouldn't have been surprised. I'm familiar with several of his past novels and remember how he really notched up the horror in them. This novel shows he can still get the job done.Walter Eugene Lane. Author of  Curse Of The Vampyr

WHITE BONES(A Katie Maguire thriller) Book 1Graham MastertonOn the outskirts of a small hamlet in Ireland called Cork sits a Meagher farm. On a cold, wet morning while working to keep the farm pliable, John Meagher unearths the unimaginable. 11 skeletons are unearthed and that sets in motions on the finest detective series this reader has ever encountered.Called to the scene is Detective Garda Katie Maguire, battered emotionally from the recent death of her son and the constant illegal plagues brought about by her husband Paul. As Katie begins her investigation the reader is dropped into the middle of a maelstrom of not only testing everything she believes in but more importantly the unimaginable fact that what this case is involving is beyond normal comprehension.As the identities of the skeletons are revealed (all women or young girls), Katie and her team of forensic investigators come to a startling conclusion, at the turn of the century 11 women disappeared in or around the area quietly and then it seemed to end in 1915.Intrigued? Cut to a young American girl Fiona Kelly hitchhiking across Ireland with hopes of kissing the Blarney stone. With slight hesitation she accepts a ride from a seemingly nice gentleman, after a few minutes of uncomfortable banter Fiona realizes she has made a very bad mistake.I must stop here and warn those with squeamish constitutions that this well written, intense thriller has it’s moments of sheer, mind bending torture. To stay true to the atmosphere and the overall reality of the situations Mr. Masterston delivers a thriller charged to the hilt with descriptive verbiage.What ties the past and the present together is unsettling but well worth the turning every page. I have been a HUGE fan of Mr. Masterton’s for many years. My first venture into his talented mind was with THE MANITOU. The supernatural thriller was eventually turned into a major motion picture starring Tony Curtis. Hit the stores or the internet and find a copy and enjoy!As for WHITE BONES, I am hooked…..There are three other Katie Maguire detective thrillers. All of them can be found on Amazon Books.Book 2 BROKEN ANGELSBook 3 RED LIGHTSBook 4 TAKEN FOR DEAD

First in a crime series. In Cork, several male police noses are put out of joint when Katie Maguire is made Detective Superintendant. Now she must prove the promotion justified, it no help at all with husband Paul such a liability.A grim discovery presents a real challenge for her and her team. Eleven disjointed skeletons unearthed under a farm barn. Soon realized is that they have been there decades. Remnants of the Troubles? If so, why the curious little effigies attached?So far, fair enough - circumstances intriguing. But from now on events seem to have strayed in from a different work altogether, that a horror story with no holds barred. Henceforth? Rumours of witchcraft. Pages devoted to accounts of detailed sadism. A killer with motives that defy belief. A climax so over the top it surely tips over into parody.Many perhaps welcome a telling so full of shocks, they never knowing what to expect. Others may feel the attempt to blend two literary genres simply does not work - initial convincing setting and plausible characters suffering from contrivances ever more fanciful.

D.S. Katie Maguire of the gardai, Anglesea Street station, Cork. It is a little like reading the local paper crime section as all the names of locales in the area come and go throughout the book, and it`s not bad for that.This first book, like those of James Oswald`s Inspector McLean books, has a tiny whiff of the occult about it, but is not spoiled by this.On a miserable November morning, a field in North Cork turns up the bones of eleven dismembered women. They have been expertly cleaned to the bone by a killer with the skills of a master butcher, and they may have been kept alive while the flesh was flayed from their arms and legs. However, they all date back to around 1915.Then a young woman who had gone missing turns up, in the same field, on the same farm, in the same state. The bones have been arranged in an arcane pattern, suggesting ritual dismemberment. Now with the crimes of the past echoing through to her present, Katie must try to tie it all up, and take care of the deep trouble her husband has got himself into.Oh !, and if you have a notion to learn some Cork slang, there is a fine little glossary after the 384 pages of fine twisty, turny tale, with some of the most horribly graphic crime passages I`ve ever read.When I first read reviews of this book I was not sure that I wanted to read it at all, having been singed by that particular fire myself. The reviews were universally buoyant, so I reckoned I should at least take a look. I have just finished reading it in one sitting.Paul Kalanithi, 36 years old, a neurosurgeon / neuroscientist at the tail end of over a decade of training, just about to reap all the benefits concomittant with his position, and that is when he gets the diagnosis of terminal lung cancer. Those few fateful words turned him from a doctor treating the dying into a patient doing his best to keep living.The outcome of the book is easy to guess, but it is not a book about dying, it is a testament to leading a fulfilling , meaningful life, in Kalanithi`s case by becoming a neurosurgeon and integrating patient and new father into that life.What do you do when life is catastrophically interrupted, how do you make life worth living when staring into your oncoming death ? There are no answers here, but a great many suggestions.His writing style is poetic, even when slipping in terms such as glioblastoma and hypothalamus, and is a pleasure to read. There are also a great number of poetic quotes. 225 pages

My heart sank on the first page when I read "plowing". The book is completely Americanised throughout with spelling and word use (e.g. cellphone, sidewalk, pocketbook, trunk, hood etc.) and phraseology (e.g. " it was a quarter of 2). In what is obviously supposed to be a deeply Irish novel this is jarring and distracting. As many other reviewers have said, the extreme violence is horrifying and sickening. The people are one dimensional and don't act logically. The police are completely inept. I didn't care about any of them, even the ones supposedly affected by tragedy. When characters act as no real person would do it's just a turn off. The premise of the story was just laughable really and so implausible. Definitely horror rather than police procedural, which is what I thought I was buying. I bought all 8 books in the series on a Kindle deal, but after reading this one I have returned the other 7 for refund. Just terrible.

A book that has been sitting on my Kindle for a while and recently brought to my attention again, I thought it was high time I went in.Bones are discovered on Meagher's Farm. These though are dismembered bones of eleven women in total. A high number for one discovery in a land where folklore and mythical legend is rife and stories of old carry though for hundreds of years. The discovery is a gruesome one and is put into the hands of Detective Superintendent Kate Maguire. Focusing on violent and gory rituals from the past the story then shifts to a young girl who is kidnapped and tortured in the extreme. It's at this point that I realised Masterton is a horror writer of old and it really shows in these scenes. Unremittingly violent and gruesome it reminded me of slasher movies that aren't really my thing. In fact, I almost got the feeling that Masterton enjoyed writing those scenes such is the detail present. I'm not easily shocked but at times the book felt more like a horror book than crime and I'm not convinced it really worked here.The folklore angle is interesting enough with Ireland giving plenty of material to dip into but the storyline did feel a tad unrealistic at times with Maguire being thrown into one endless scenario after another. I mean how much can one woman take?!! Seriously?! Without a bit of a meltdown ensuing?!!The story is pacy and definitely keeps interest levels high but it does veer slightly into 'wow, that supernatural ending actually happened' territory. I've definitely got mixed feelings about this book. There's some good storytelling no doubt. I really enjoyed the Cork, Irish setting. I found that really interesting and the mythical legend stuff stayed on the right side of fantasy for my tastes! But I wasn't blown away by it and may leave it a while before I move onto book two. It certainly gives fodder for book group discussion.... I'll say that much!!

Literate and started well, but downhill steadily after that, degenerating into rubbish. Interesting basic story but..... Main protagonist's sad backstory and relationships do not relate to the plot at all - providing no more than padding, and there are silly discrepancies- who is the author anyway - has he any idea of Irish geography? It is not the USA! He has the pathologist flying into Cork from Dublin and complaining about 20 minute flight delays! - NOBODY flies from Dublin to Cork - it is quicker by car and there are no direct flights anyway. Just google it and you will see He manages to imagine the sickest and most unbelievably gruesome ways of hurting and killing people, yet describes them in such gratuitous detail as to remove all sense of horror - the author needs to learn that 'less is more' to be really scary, and none of the characters come at all to life. There are so many clumsy misdirections, and irrelevant sub-plot which only adds to the unreality of it all, 'deus ex machina' plot devices and an entire cast of totally one-dimensional characters that despite struggling to engage with the story I gave up before the end. At least it was cheap so the wasted cost is less important than the wasted time!