I didn't enjoy this episode in the Ruth Galloway series as much as the earlier ones. Perhaps because there were many disparate threads running through it to fully engage me but maybe because there wasn't an archaeological mystery at the heart of it. Ruth is asked to attend the opening of a recently discovered Bishop's coffin. When she gets to the museum holding the event, however, she finds the curator dead by the coffin. Although on the face of it his death is by natural causes, Nelson and Ruth have their suspicions. The first thing I have to say about this book is that is soooo boring and so do yourselves a favour and just DON'T read it especially if you are fan of crime/mystery novels! Ruth and Detective Inspector Nelson are forced to cross paths once again when he's called in to investigate the murder, and their past tensions are reignited.

I absolutely love the characters in this series. The mysteries are wonderful and I never manage to work out the solution, but it is really the characters that are the icing on the cake.Coincidentally (or not) Ruth discovers she has a new neighbour, a native Australian, Bob Woonunga who is seeking to repatriate the bones, and then of course Cathbad her druid friend seems to be at the centre of it all. As DI Harry Nelson and his team descend to investigate the death of museum curator Neil Topham, Ruth finds herself in the unenviable position of being the person who found the body (this is starting to become a habit!). The investigation leads Sergeants Judy Johnson and Dave Clough to the nearby racing stables owned by Lord Danforth Smith, whose aristocratic ancestor is celebrated by the museum in which the body was found. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Waitomo District Library for the loan of A Room Full of Bonesby Elly Griffiths for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. A Room Full of Bones is probably the strongest in the series thus far when it comes to the mystery plot. It introduces quite a lot of interesting crime/mystery aspects, all seemingly unrelated until Griffiths quite cleverly weaves them together. As always, the Norfolk setting is seamlessly integrated into the plot and used by author Elly Griffiths to add to the tension as the narrative nears conclusion.

EXCERPT: At the end of the gallery she steps from tile to carpet and, to her surprise, finds herself in a red-walled Victorian study. A stag's head looms over a painted fireplace and a man sits at a desk, frowning fiercely as he dips his quill into an inkwell. the perfect instalment to a gripping series that is seriously becoming 'a must-read'' Crimesquad. * Crimesquad.com * Rich in atmosphere and history and blessed by [Griffith's] continuing development of brilliant, feisty, independent Ruth...A Room Full of Bones, like its predecessors, works its magic on the reader's imagination." -- Richmond Times-Dispatch As her convictions are tested, she and Nelson must discover how Aboriginal skulls, drug smuggling and the Aboriginal ritual of The Dreaming may hold the answer to these deaths - and be the key to their own survival.You do NOT establish the sex of a skeleton based on a single characteristic, and you definitely don't do it with one look. You're not good at suspense anyway, you might as well have written that Ruth spent hours squinting at the skeleton like serious professionals do and then came up with the answer. This book had so many different scenarios and plot lines going on that I marveled that Griffiths was able to tie them up so seamlessly at the end. She has a gift for that. The audiobooks have all been one narrator so far. I believe it changes for the next two though. But the narration has been really good. There are some really fine red herrings in this book, including some mixed-up identities, and I found that entertaining. The story is deftly told.

It is Halloween in King's Lynn, and forensic archaeologist Dr Ruth Galloway is attending a strange event at the local history museum - the opening of a coffin containing the bones of a medieval bishop. But then Ruth finds the body of the museum's curator lying beside the coffin. This said, I did enjoy the books as much as the others to date in this series. In this Ruth becomes involved in a literal 'room full of bones', that is a room in the basement of a museum owned by Lord Smith, whose grandfather collected aboriginal bones in Australia and took them home for his private collection. Griffiths] effectively conveys the hurt and complex feelings that can result from unthinking indiscretions and somehow these become integral to the narrative. ( CrimePieces) But the true strength of Elly Griffith's writing is her focus on characterisation and the relationships that interweave between groups of people. She effectively conveys the hurt and complex feelings that can result from unthinking indiscretions and somehow these become integral to the narrative." - CrimepiecesBritish countryside near the sea. This is where the main character lives. It's creepy and dark at night. Bonus. What's not to like about the British countryside?

A Room Full of Bones is a pleasing read, perhaps tending more to the 'cosy' style of crime fiction than earlier instalments in the series, but is certainly exciting and with a more satisfying crime and detection element this time round as the plot is more clever and more robust." - Maxine Clarke, Euro CrimeIt is Halloween night in King's Lynn, and Dr Ruth Galloway is attending a strange event at the local history museum - the opening of a coffin containing the bones of a medieval bishop. But what Ruth finds is the body of the museum's curator lying beside the coffin. The deaths almost seem to be investigated as sub plots but they remain an important part of every chapter. The local museum in King's Lynn is preparing for Halloween night with the opening of a coffin containing the bones of a medieval bishop. Ruth Galloway is one of the supervisors and turns up early to find the museum's curator lying dead beside the coffin. Another case for DI Nelson and it is not long before the dead body of the museum's owner lies dead in his stables too. Although the two deaths look like natural causes it is not thought likely and when threatening letters turn up the case gets even more sinister. When Ruth Galloway arrives to supervise the opening of a coffin containing the bones of a medieval bishop, she finds the museum's curator lying dead on the floor. Soon the museum's wealthy owner lies dead in his stables, too.