Book #10 of 2012...

The Crossing Places by Ellie Griffiths

From Goodreads.com:

When she’s not digging up bones or other ancient objects, quirky, tart-tongued archaeologist Ruth Galloway lives happily alone in a remote area called Saltmarsh near Norfolk, land that was sacred to its Iron Age inhabitants - not quite earth, not quite sea.

When a child’s bones are found on a desolate beach nearby, Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson calls Galloway for help. Nelson thinks he has found the remains of Lucy Downey, a little girl who went missing ten years ago. Since her disappearance he has been receiving bizarre letters about her, letters with references to ritual and sacrifice.

The bones actually turn out to be two thousand years old, but Ruth is soon drawn into the Lucy Downey case and into the mind of the letter writer, who seems to have both archaeological knowledge and eerie psychic powers. Then another child goes missing and the hunt is on to find her.

As the letter writer moves closer and the windswept Norfolk landscape exerts its power, Ruth finds herself in completely new territory – and in serious danger.

THE CROSSING PLACES marks the beginning of a captivating new crime series featuring an irresistible heroine.

My take:

4 out of 5 stars. I don't normally read mysteries but this one was offered on Amazon for free for Kindle a while back so I snatched it. I figured even if I didn't like it, at least I could try something new for free. If you have a Kindle, you should check out the discussions area. Every day there is a thread with lists of Kindle Books they are offering for free for a short period of time. Because of this my reading list is out of control.

Anyway, back to the Crossing. Great mystery. I loved it. It was complicated enough to keep it interesting for me but not so complicated that I couldn't follow it (not that I'm dumb). I did guess who done it before the end of the book but I really loved finding out I was right. The main character, Ruth is warm and believable. I really enjoyed this book and would consider purchasing the next book in the series.