Solemn Graves

Youve heard of the little man who wasnt there? What about an entire 1100-man US Army tank unit that seems to be just over the horizon one minute, then gone the next? Or like the little man was it ever there at all? Thats just part of the conundrum facing Billy Boyle in his newest wartime adventure, Solemn Graves. After 12 exciting Billy Boyle entries, one might think that author James R. Benn would be running out of ideas but fear not, installment #13 is perhaps his most riveting mystery yet!

Billy and his band of brothers are assigned to solve the murder of a US Army major a man associated in some way with a Top Secret military unit that only a few people know exists! Billy needs to solve the murder without spilling the beans about what would eventually be called The Ghost Army. Along the way, he observes first hand the infighting that occurs in an occupied country, as French Resistance fighters exact justice on fellow Frenchmen (and women!) thought to be Nazi collaborators.

Author Benns special gift is his ability to tell an intimate human story set against a huge panoramic background in this instance, the countryside of war-torn France. He never lets the spectacle of the war outweigh the importance of the individuals involved. His word choice reminds us that this is July 1944 and his first person storytelling puts us right in the thick of things! We identify closely with what is going on, and we experience Billys thoughts and reactions every step of the way. We see how the war and the mounting stress of solving a time-sensitive murder case can fray nerves and cause fits of temperament even among the closest of friends.

Like all Billy Boyle mysteries, Solemn Graves is not just a whodunit, but also a why-dunit, with Billy grappling to understand the possible motivation that led to the majors demise. Was he simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, or was something more sinister involved? Billys team members Kaz and Big Mike, his commanding officer Colonel Sam Harding, and his girlfriend Diana Seaton are all on hand to offer perspectives.

We readers, of course, get to play along, too but I must confess that every time I thought I had the murder figured out, Jim Benn threw me another curve, and I had to examine the clues all over again Cover to cover, I found it a spellbinding story and the last 100 pages flew by like a rollercoaster ride!

PS: New readers need not be put off by the fact that Solemn Graves is Billy #13. Benn is a master at filling in all the important back-story details you need to know. But beware! Billy Boyle books are highly addictive you may not be able to read just one

Earlier installments of this series include:

Billy Boyle
The First Wave
Blood Alone
Evil for Evil
Rag and Bone
A Mortal Terror
Deaths Door
A Blind Goddess
The Rest is Silence
The White Ghost
Blue Madonna
The Devouring

This has generally been a great series and I’d really looked forward to this book. But it’s just rough. Needs a lot of editing. What kind of stemware, for example, has the bulb of the glass below the stem?! Lots of poor transitions. Just rambling. I’m about a third of the way in and have had several thoughts about putting the book down and leaving it be…

Added 1/19/19. Every few pages I keep finding stuff that an editor should have caught. I dont want to nitpick, but its bloody annoying!

Added 1/22/19. I forced myself to finish it. Id hoped to upgrade my review from two to three stars but instead Im downgrading it to one. Sad. The worst of the series and a downpayment on even worse to come. James R. Benn drove out of his lane trying to be literary? and crashed. I particularly disliked his superficial descriptions of actual combat!

I have always been a history buff, so when this series started, I was eagerly on board. Each book in the series has illustrated a different aspect of WWII which I knew in general but not to this level of detail. I’ve heard it said that WWII was a good war because we knew what we were fighting for, unlike some of the conflicts since. Mr. Benn creates a much more complex picture. Perhaps we never really know what we are fighting for and need to remember that all sides in a conflict think they are right.

I have read all the great boos in the series and this is just as good if not better as all the others. I would recommend if you like historical fiction this is your book. I would also recommend that you start with the first book and follow in the perfect wartime adventures.

Well researched, bezutifully written. The characters feel like people you have come to know personally, and I look forward to their adventures in every book! The realism of the battles and the minute details have led me to research the men who fought, and resulted in a very emotional discussion with my great uncle. He had always refused to discuss his service in World War II, but the things I learned from Billy Boyle (like how hard the ground was as they tried to dig in) helped him open up about his actions and the devastating injury he received at Anzio. I will be forever grateful for that.

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