Book 123: Burial by Neil Cross, 2009.
Book 123: Burial
Author: Neil Cross. 2009.
Genre: Psychological Thriller.
Other Details: Proof copy. 293 pages.
I read this book in late September but have deferred the review closer to its January 2009 UK publication date. I am not sure when it might be available in the USA aside as an import. Mine was a proof copy supplied by Simon & Schuster UK (simon-saysuk).
The protagonist of Burial is Nathan Redmond, who some eleven years previous to its present day opening, had attended a drug fuelled Christmas party hosted by his boss, a late night radio chat show host. At the party he ran into Bob, a paranormal investigator that Nathan had met briefly a few years earlier when Bob had interviewed his flatmate for a study on ghost sightings. Although at the party with his girlfriend, Sara, Nathan soon hooks up with Elsie Fox, the 19-year old daughter of a close friend of his boss. He and Elsie indulge in a fair amount of cocaine in one of the bedrooms. When Bob advises Nathan that Sara is looking for him and is 'on the warpath', they slip away from the party with Bob's help. They all drive to a reputed haunted lover's lane in the woods and Elsie has sex with them both. However, when she suddenly and shockingly dies Bob convinces Nathan that they need to bury her corpse in the woods rather than report the death. Bob's justification for this is that the drugs in her system would lead the police to prosecuting Nathan as he'd supplied her with the cocaine. Nathan is in a blind panic and agrees to this plan. They bury her and agree never to see one another again.
When Elsie is reported by her family as missing, naturally there is an investigation. Nathan is interviewed by the police but manges to remain clear of any suspicion though his boss isn't so lucky as the tabloid press has a field day over the disappearance. The body is never discovered though guilt prays on Nathan as the years pass and he constantly feels Elsie's presence. Without giving away too much of the plot some of his responses are quite creepy. Then comes the day when Bob shows up on his doorstep with the news that the woods where they buried Elsie are about to be developed for new housing. It is one of those situations which becomes increasingly more and more nightmarish as events unfold.
Neil Cross is a highly successful screenwriter and head writer for the BBC's excellent spy thriller Spooks (known as MI5 in the USA). He certainly knows how to build up tension and the story carries the reader along. I read the book in a single sitting and found aspects of the outcome not only shocking but was quite impressed with twists in the tale that put quite a different spin on earlier events. Aside from a compelling suspense novel with a touch of the paranormal, I found Cross' portrayal of Nathan's deteriorating psychological state masterful. His minor characters too were very memorable. It is one of those books that stays with you long after you read the final page.