Reviews

His Favourite Graves by Paul Cleave

Only show reviews with written explanations

celtic67's review

4.0

This is my second read by Paul. The first being The Pain Tourist and it was a great read and this latest novel from Paul is just as good. Paul in his writing loves pushing the boundaries and his readers have no option but to follow him and enjoy the ride!

This novel is told in three points of view, Sheriff Cohen is struggling to look after his father, who has dementia in amongst the debris of his marriage. Also his son is a bully. When a local teenager is kidnapped by a peadophile and is rescued by Sheriff Cohen who sees a his way out of financial problems by claiming the reward. But nothing is as easy as it seems.

Small town as Acacia Pines is, it has a dark side to it. An underbelly that finds those who are sworn to uphold the law are stepping into the dark side.

I love how this book is told from POV's of the Sheriff, Lucas and the peadophile. As this book progresses it gets more and more darker. You will wonder where it is going and nothing is as it seems.

Paul has written a dark, twisted and evil tale. Superb writing that keeps the reader hooked and congratulations again to both Paul and OrendaBooks for another great tale.

nikki_in_niagara's review

Go to review page

4.0

A high school boy is kidnapped and found in the act of being strangled then the offender escapes and it is later found he is a serial killer. For the want of the reward money, the sheriff takes the law into his own hands. Both the sheriff and the victim see this as a chance to get their lives together in a positive manner yet things don't go the way they had planned.

Paul Cleave is an automatic read for me and he never disappoints. Raw, brutal, and real this book is a fast page-turner. None of the characters are likable but I felt the need to know how this high-energy book turned out. A great read; not my favourite but still a four star for me.

j_h_'s review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I normally enjoy reading anything from Paul Cleave having been a fan from his very first book publication. However, this one was not that enjoyable. I personally found the storyline confusing and all over the place. I gave up once and then tried again several weeks later, thinking that maybe I'd just not been in the right space to enjoy it.

nictans_001's review

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

judygold's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Kept me gripped and didn't see the first reveal coming - good crime novel if a little dark (and unlikely....). All the main characters were men, women felt like a minor supporting crew

ajane13's review

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

judefire33's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I've read all of Paul Cleave's previous novels, and I was excited to get into His Favourite Graves.

We start off with the abduction of a schoolboy, Lucas Connor, in what appears to be an opportunistic event however what transpires from this is a thrilling page-turner that will leave you feeling uncomfortable at the actions of the main characters.

Sherrif Cohen's life is in freefall and this leads him to act in a way that is totally out of character for a Sheriff.... or is it? I really felt that His Favourite Graces is Paul Cleaves's most trippy and twisty novel to date, I did not see the plot coming and the twists and turns make for shocking and quite uncomfortable reading. How far would you go to be able to put your life back on track?

Paul writes with the ease of father and son relationships, the power of bullying in children and in adults, the despair of losing a parent to dementia and how a normal man can become so ostracised by his own emotions that he will act in a desperate and totally out of character way.

Another fabulous novel from Paul Cleave, if you've liked all his other novels you will love Huis Favourite Graces, I think this may be his best yet.

A huge 5-star read from me.