Talking to the Dead: A Novel

by Harry Bingham Narrated by Siriol Jenkins

Overview

"Norgren's book will appeal to readers seeking to imagine the lives and work of the earliest women in the legal profession. By portraying women lawyers as ambitious human beings with complicated personal lives and real economic needs, Norgren enables these women's histories to speak to some of our persisting questions about gender, work, family, and professionalism. The book will make a good gift for some aspiring lawyers, helping them see into the struggles of earlier generations and questioning some of their assumptions about the entry of women into the legal profession."

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Fans of Stieg Larsson’s Lisbeth Salander will cotton to the heroine of British author Bingham’s highly entertaining U.S. debut, Det. Constable Fiona Griffiths, whose social awkwardness and intensity make her unpopular among her fellow officers in Cardiff, Wales. Fiona’s current assignment, which makes use of her paper work expertise in tracking money stolen from a Catholic boys’ school fund, allows her to worm her way into the murder investigation of a woman with a history of drugs and prostitution. Fiona believes that the platinum credit card of a wealthy, recently deceased tycoon found at the scene of the crime hints at a deeper conspiracy, especially when another prostitute is murdered. Fiona’s habit of spending time with the corpses in the morgue may be bizarre, but Bingham makes this quirk a believable and thoughtful way for her to process clues. An insightful look at a damaged, unusual woman trying to fit in as well as a view of past and present Wales enhance the brisk, realistic plot. Agent: George Lucas, Inkwell Management. (Oct.)

From the Publisher

Gritty, compelling . . . a procedural unlike any other you are likely to read this year.”—USA Today
 
“With Detective Constable Fiona ‘Fi’ Griffiths, Harry Bingham . . . finds a sweet spot in crime fiction . . . think Stieg Larsson’s Lisbeth Salander . . . Denise Mina’s ‘Paddy’ Meehan [or] Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. . . . The writing is terrific.”—The Boston Globe
 
“The mystery-thriller genre is already so staffed with masterminds that it’s hard to make room for another. But along comes a book like Talking to the Dead, and suddenly an unadvertised opening is filled. . . . [This] has the feel of something fresh and compelling.”—New York Daily News
 
“A stunner with precision plotting, an unusual setting, and a deeply complex protagonist . . . We have the welcome promise of more books to come about Griffiths.”—The Seattle Times
 
“Recommended highly . . . [a] riveting procedural thriller.”—Library Journal (starred review)

Kirkus Reviews

Introducing Fiona "Fi" Griffiths, a young Welsh police detective with a difference. She's in recovery from a rare dissociative condition that, at its worse, makes her feel as dead as the prostitutes whose murders she is investigating. Five years ago, in her late teens, Fi had a prolonged breakdown. Now, she relates to people and experiences herself in strange ways. She's able to identify emotion, but not feel it. But that only enhances her go-getter investigative skills. Her willingness to break rules puts her at odds with her kindly superiors in Cardiff--until the truths she uncovers lead to breaks in the case. She quickly connects the murder of a prostitute and her six-year-old daughter to a sex-trade ring run by a British millionaire that brings in Russian prostitutes, hooks them on heroin, enslaves them and snuffs them when they have outlived their usefulness. The plot is a good one, the climax in a remote lighthouse better than good. But what sets the book apart is the first-person narration of Fi, one of the most intriguing female characters in recent fiction. Even Lisbeth Salander wouldn't spend the night in a morgue lying between dead bodies in an effort to get closer to their killers. After getting viciously slapped by a former cop gone bad, Fi is stricken with fear. Not only does she overcome it, she comes to appreciate her attacker's better qualities. A budding romance with a sensitive and caring fellow cop helps. The promising first installment in a new series, this book is so good it has you wondering who should play Fiona on the big screen. How about Keira Knightley?

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169088540
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/25/2012
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

"Norgrens stories show that the fight for womens equality can never be defined by a single, central goal, for while these womens lives were deeply entwined with the fight for suffrage, their efforts were fueled by and helped to spark reform in a wide range of social justice movements. These biographies, with all their intimate detail and individuality, also reminds us that, while feminist efforts are often characterized as a series of overarching waves, bounded by certain moments in time, the fight for equality is not propelled by some tidal force but by the resolve and practice of women and progressive men who are linked across history by their actions."

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