Saxton Reads! & Reviews

***comments CarolK

Sacrifice ~ S.J. Bolton

Beth could say "I told you so". She's the friend who recommended Sacrifice by S.J. Bolton to me some time ago. Who knows why I didn't pick it up immediately as Beth and I have like tastes in fiction; not just in thrillers but across the board. Beth told me I'd like this one and she was right!

Tora Hamilton is having a bad day. Her beloved horse Jamie has died and Tora plans to illegally bury him on her Shetland property. Her husband's away so she'll need to do this alone, no easy task for this inexperienced woman using a digger in muddy ground with heavy rain in the forecast. Just when Tora thinks she is making headway with the hole, the bucket catches. Getting out, Tora peers into the hole and sees some linen. Gingerly investigating further, which means dropping into a hole she may not be able to get out of she realizes the peat bog is concealing a dead body. After freeing herself from the grave, the police are called and Tora is questioned extensively, not only about the body, but harassed  about the illegal burial of her horse. To make matters worse, she is informed one of her patients has gone into labor and she is needed at the hospital. Tora is not Dr. Hamilton but Ms. Hamilton as she a consultant surgeon at the local hospital. If that’s not enough after delivering the baby, her patient is in jeopardy of hemorrhaging and decisions need to be made. All this in the first 25 pages. A bad day indeed!

Sacrifice hooked me immediately with this opening scenario and continued its fast pace throughout. Consider I read this in two sittings. Besides a good "grab you" opening, all characters, and there are many, are interesting in themselves, not all likeable, but people I want to know more about. I loved the character DS Tulloch, female investigator, who starts off as a real thorn in Tora's side and eventually evolves into a strong relationship. I liked Bolton's descriptive passages of her locale, The Shetland Islands, and her blend of legend, folklore, runes and Trows. What are Trows? You'll need to read to book to find out. Bolton did extensive research to conjure up this tale of good and evil and the writing is sound, the plot, good.

Sacrifice was Bolton's debut in 2008 and since she has written three others. I'm definitely adding her to my list of must read authors, becoming a GoodReads fan and checking out her blog.