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Thursday, February 12, 2015

The Pure In Heart by Susan Hill



"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

I listened to this second book in Susan Hill's Simon Serrailler series and enjoyed it almost as much as the first one.  The Pure In Heart is also narrated by the wonderful voice of Steven Pacey.  It's very soothing.  And for that I was glad.

This book begins with Simon on a holiday in Venice.  It's been a year since the traumatic events that occurred in The Various Haunts of Men.  DCI Serrailler is still recovering, as are other members of his family and team at home.  Simon receives a call from his father asking him to come home.  His younger sister, Martha, is gravely ill and may not recover from a severe bout of pneumonia.  Martha is the youngest Serrailler child.  She lives in a specialized care center for individuals that are profoundly disabled.  After returning, Simon gets caught up in a case of child abduction.  A 9-year-old boy has been taken by persons unknown while waiting for his carpool ride to school.  The family is frantic with worry and DCI Serrailler and his CID cohorts move into action, searching everywhere for the missing child.

The Pure In Heart is an apt name for this book, for there are several individuals who are indeed innocents and whose plights, be it victims of crime or disease, touch the reader deeply.  As in the first book, discussions of philosophical topics are a part of the narrative.  Quality of life versus quantity, especially in persons who seem unable to comprehend or communicate, like Martha Serrailler.  The tender scenes with Simon at Martha's bedside are quite touching.  And the little child who has been taken, the grief that his family experiences as the days go on is heartbreaking.  The parents of that boy, David, go almost mad with sorrow, essentially forgetting that they have another child who needs them too.

And on the happy side of things, Simon's sister, Dr. Cat Deerbon, is pregnant and nearing her due date.  The child she delivers is another innocent, pure of heart, born into a family that is filled with love.  All of this and more are included in this involved crime novel.  There's a stalker and a car theft ring.  Also a young man who has been released from prison and seems to have no options.  The Pure In Heart is a well written book that makes the reader want to pick up the third in the series very soon.  By the way, that book is entitled The Risk of Darkness and I'll likely be listening to it as soon as I can.

I'm so pleased that I finally took time to read this marvelous series.  It's one I can recommend if you like well written character studies that also include some crime solving.

23 comments:

  1. I am so enjoying The Various Haunts of Men! There's a lot going on, but I'm keeping it all straight, more or less. I checked my library's website and The Pure in Heart is not available on audio (darn!), but they do have the print copy, so I guess I'll have to go that route. I will make a strong suggestion to the library that they get all the books in this series on audio. Thanks again for the wonderful recommendation, Kay!

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    1. Glad you are enjoying it, Les. Let me know what you think. :-)

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    2. Just finished The Various Haunts of Men. I'm going to have to email you and let you know what I thought, since I don't want to post any spoilers. However, I have to say this is one of the best mysteries I've listened to in a long time! Thank you so much for guiding me back to this author. I can't wait to read #2!

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    3. Yay! Glad you enjoyed it. Look forward to hearing what you thought.

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  2. I do need to start at the beginning of the series as I enjoyed Soul of Discretion which I read recently. Great review!

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    1. I can tell already that, like most series, the characters have a lot of things going on from book to book. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next.

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  3. I need to start at the beginning of this series. I liked The Risk of Darkness, the third one, I think.

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    1. I can see that several have read other books in the series and had good experiences. Sounds like I'm going to be happy with it for quite a while.

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  4. I am glad you are enjoying this series, Kay. It sounds like this second book is just as strong as the first.

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    1. I like it almost as well. Maybe not quite as much, but there are definitely touching moments. I'm loving the characters.

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  5. I definitely need to read this one. I think I might do it in audio, as it sounds like the audio version worked very well for you.

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    1. So far, both books I've read have been on audio, with the same narrator. They have worked very well.

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  6. I'm glad you're enjoying this series! Sounds like this is another series I shouldn't miss.

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    1. It might be one to try when you get a chance, Melody.

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  7. I'm also reading SH just now - rereading Howards End on the Landing. I don't think I could bear the sadness about kids in this, but I do watch some horrid things on British tv. Go figure!

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    1. I saw that your were doing a reread of HOWARDS END ON THE LANDING. I've never read it. I probably should.

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    2. It is very English centered - and older writers for the most part. I hope to write about it as I feel a bit differently from the first time I read it. Any of the books about books are very individual.

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    3. I just went back and read my post about Howards End is on the Landing, and you left this comment!:
      "By the way, have you read Susan Hill's mystery series? I think I started the first one at one point and then somehow it just didn't work for me. I always meant to try it again. Also, have you read THE WOMAN IN BLACK (think that's the title) that she also wrote. They are filming it and Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) stars in it."

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    4. You know, Les told me to go back and read a comment on her post about another book by Susan Hill and I said very much the same thing - how I started it and it didn't work for me. And meant to try again. Just goes to show, the right book at the right time. Sometimes it's just the right book but the wrong time. Thanks for friends like you two to remind me of what I said in times past. :-)

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  8. Any book that visits Venice goes directly on my wishlist. I'll have to see if the first one is already on there!

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    1. Have you read Donna Leon's series that is set in Venice?

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  9. Ok, your posts on this series are making me re-think it. I look forward to what you think of the third book and I may just have to give this series another go!

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    1. I'll get to the third book in a couple of week, I think. I kind of decided to take a break because I was afraid that I might do too many in a row and not like it because of that. :-)

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Thanks for stopping by! I am so happy to hear your thoughts and will respond as soon as I can. Happy Reading!