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No Stone Tells Where I Lie by Madeline Kalvis

 

Title: No Stone Tells Where I Lie

Author: Madeline Kalvis

Genre: Psychological Mystery

 Length: Novella- 165 pages

Thank you to the author for providing a copy for an honest review.

What It's About: Emma Cambourne is a police officer who is sent to be the new constable on a small island in the Indian Ocean with her ailing husband. A few mysterious deaths and disappearances along with residents that seem to have something to hide lead to a case that is a lot to handle. 

My Thoughts: The main strength of this story was the setting. The descriptions of the island, South Alderney, created a very vivid picture perfect for a melancholy story like this. The beautiful descriptions were a, sometimes unpleasant, feast for all five senses.

The story was very mysterious and somber.  It was written in a way to keep the reader feeling a little uncomfortable and thinking that things are not quite right. It is obvious right away that something strange is happening on the island. It could have used a bit more clarity on the resolution of what was happening on the island. There were some revelations to some questions that were really satisfying. Then was left wanting just a tiny bit more light shed on the situation. 

Emma's emotional state as she deals with the health issue of her husband while trying to figure out such an important case was really well developed. Her unease and slow loss of control was felt through the page. Ultimately, that is the main takeaway from the story is the effect that a place and circumstances can have on a person.

I would recommend this story to those who love a good character study with mysterious setting and circumstances. If you like lovely descriptive language and don't mind a bit of an open-ended ending than this book is for you.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

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