1. The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths

#6 Ruth Galloway (Forensic Anthropologist)

listened on Audible

2014
374 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery/Series
Finished 1/1/2022
Goodreads rating: 4.13
My rating: 4
Setting: Contemporary Norfolk, England

My comments: I continue to enjoy Ruth Galloway, a feisty, believable archeological anthropologist who lives in Norfolk, England. In this episode, two major plots intertwine to tell the story, much of it set in Norwich (where I visited for a day, on foot, and have many pleasant memories, so I could picture it a bit...). Notorious Jemima Green's 150 year-old bones have been excavated, and an American TV company has come to film it. Ruth unwillingly becomes involved -she doesn't like any limelight - because she's the expert on the case. At the same time, the police are pursuing the possibility that a mother has killed her babies ... and then there are two kidnappings of one-year-olds nearby. This keeps the familiar police team of Nelson, Clough, Judy and Tim harried and busy. Good storytelling, fun going back and forth between points of view. Great narration with enough of a British accent to keep it very British, but not so much that you cannot understand it.

Goodreads synopsis:  Ruth Galloway uncovers the bones of what might be a notorious Victorian child murderess and a baby snatcher known as "The Childminder" threatens modern-day Norfolk in the latest irresistible mystery from Elly Griffiths.

Forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway uncovers the bones of a Victorian murderess while a baby snatcher threatens modern-day Norfolk in this exciting new entry in a beloved series.
Every year a ceremony is held in Norwich for the bodies in the paupers' graves: the Service for the Outcast Dead. Ruth has a particular interest in this year's proceedings. Her recent dig at Norwich Castle turned up the body of the notorious Mother Hook, who was hanged in 1867 for the murder of five children. Now Ruth is the reluctant star of the TV series Women Who Kill, working alongside the program's alluring history expert, Professor Frank Barker.

DCI Harry Nelson is immersed in the case of three children found dead in their home. He is sure that the mother is responsible. Then another child is abducted and a kidnapper dubbed the Childminder claims responsibility. Are there two murderers afoot, or is the Childminder behind all the deaths? The team must race to find out-and the stakes couldn't be any higher when another child goes missing.