The Various Haunts of Men (Simon Serrailler Series #1)

by Susan Hill

Overview

Written with intelligence, compassion, and a knowing eye—in the tradition of the fabulous mysteries of Ruth Rendell and P.D. James—award-winning author Susan Hill’s The Various Haunts of Men is an enthralling journey into the heart of a wonderfully developed town, and into the very mind of a killer.

As the story begins, a lonely woman vanishes while out on her morning run. Then a 22-year-old girl never returns from a walk. An old man disappears too. When fresh-faced policewoman Freya Graffham is assigned to the case, she runs the risk of getting too invested—too involved—in the action. Alongside the enigmatic detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler, she must unravel the mystery before events turn too gruesome.

“I loved this book . . . Not all great novelists can write crime fiction, but when one like Susan Hill does it, the result is stunning.” —Ruth Rendell

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781590208090
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	04/01/2008
Series:	Simon Serrailler Series , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	75,246
File size:	999 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Susan Hill’s Simon Serrailler series has sold more than one million copies worldwide. Her novels and short stories have won the Whitbread Book, Somerset Maugham, and John Llewellyn Rhys awards, the Yorkshire Post Book of the Year, and have been shortlisted for the Booker Prize. The play adapted from her famous ghost novel, The Woman in Black, has been running in the West End since 1989. The titles in the Simon Serrailler series are all available from The Overlook Press.

Reading Group Guide

1. Would you describe The Various Haunts of Men as a thriller, a mystery, a literary novel or some other genre? In what ways does this book use or confound the expectations of the crime genre?

2. How does the author build up a sense of the community and setting of Lafferton? How does this sense of place affect the crime plot? What are the roles of the other characters in the novel?

3. Discuss the character of Cat in detail. What do you think she contributes to the novel?

4. Consider the role of morality in The Various Haunts of Men. Look in particular at the religious and ethical beliefs of the different characters. Discuss the theme of belief in the novel.

5. Who is the hero of The Various Haunts of Men?

6. Discuss how the value of life is explored in the book.

7. Consider the structure of the novel. Look at how the author moves the focus of the story across the various characters — what do you think this achieves? Look particularly at how the passages narrated by the murderer are differentiated from the rest of the book. Which characters do you feel you know best by the end of the book?

Foreword

1. Would you describe The Various Haunts of Men as a thriller, a mystery, a literary novel or some other genre? In what ways does this book use or confound the expectations of the crime genre?

2. How does the author build up a sense of the community and setting of Lafferton? How does this sense of place affect the crime plot? What are the roles of the other characters in the novel?

3. Discuss the character of Cat in detail. What do you think she contributes to the novel?

4. Consider the role of morality in The Various Haunts of Men. Look in particular at the religious and ethical beliefs of the different characters. Discuss the theme of belief in the novel.

5. Who is the hero of The Various Haunts of Men?

6. Discuss how the value of life is explored in the book.

7. Consider the structure of the novel. Look at how the author moves the focus of the story across the various characters — what do you think this achieves? Look particularly at how the passages narrated by the murderer are differentiated from the rest of the book. Which characters do you feel you know best by the end of the book?

Editorial Reviews

Weaving together a variety of subtly interrelated narratives, British author Hill (Air and Angels) embeds a thoughtful reflection on alternative medicine into a taut and suspenseful mystery, the first of a new crime series featuring Chief Insp. Simon Serrailler. Having transferred to the small cathedral town of Lafferton from London's "Met," police detective Freya Graffham explores her new community and becomes fascinated by Serrailler, her enigmatic superior. Though she fits well within the local police force, she finds herself unable to let go what seems like a routine missing persons report on a middle-aged spinster. When yet more townspeople turn up missing, her hunch is verified and a serious police search begins, bringing her into closer proximity with Serrailler at the same time it exposes her to danger. A dark but entirely convincing ending may startle some readers, but Hill's fine writing and nuanced insight into human nature should appeal to fans of such masters of the psychological thriller as P.D. James, Elizabeth George and Ruth Rendell, who provides a blurb. (Apr.)

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Publishers Weekly

Lafferton, an idyllic village just far enough from the madness of London, is a paragon of tranquility and peace, with a lovely cathedral and a stand of ancient stones on "the Hill." But then a woman goes missing from there, and then another, and another. Young policewoman Freya Graffham is assigned to investigate the suspected serial killings. Recently transferred from London, she is young, bright, inquisitive, dedicated, and smitten with Detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler, although her new friends warn her that he's enigmatic, withdrawn, and withholding of both affection and commitment. As their relationship and the investigation unfold, the killer is revealed in a series of eerie first-person passages. He is close to both Simon and Freya—and getting closer. This is the first of Whitbread Award the winner Hill's three Simon Serrailler mysteries (following Pure in Heartand Risk of Darkness) to be published in the United States after receiving high praise in Britain. Hill is a master storyteller with real talent for building atmosphere and suspense. Readers will be instantly drawn to her likable characters and beautiful landscape and will be carried along by the plot, right up to the shocking final twist. Fans of British mysteries will love this new series and Simon Serrailler as well. Highly recommended.
—Susan Clifford Braun

Library Journal

Whatever you do, don't go clumping up the Hill. At first, nobody thought much about Angela Randall's disappearance, though it was odd that this prim, conscientious, middle-aged job-holder would simply leave without a word. But Sgt. Freya Graffham, new to the Lafferton CID, has a bad feeling and decides to investigate the case with some help from DC Nathan Coates. They make few inroads until a pudgy young girl goes missing, too. The vanished don't seem to have much in common except for outings on the Hill and hints of depression that had driven them to alternate-therapy practitioners. Another woman, trying to deal with a life-threatening cancer, has also turned to the fringe element to deal with her problem. Freya and Nathan, now under auspices of the enigmatic but dishy Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler, must separate do-gooders from charlatans ranging from an acupuncturist to a spiritualist to a psychic surgeon (don't ask). The suspense builds, climaxing with another death, then plummeting with the denouement, which is nowhere near as gripping as the road leading to it. Freya's love obsession is a bit over the top, Simon is in need of serious fleshing-out, and surely it's old-hat to deride New Agers, incense, herbs and vegans. All in all, an inauspicious series beginning from an author (The Risk of Darkness, 2006, etc.) once short-listed for the Booker Prize. Agent: Anne Borchardt/Georges Borchardt Inc.

Kirkus Reviews