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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN num: 9780312994839
ISBN number: 0312994834
Label: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 496
Printing Date: October 17, 2004
Publishing house: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Release Date: August 05, 2004
Sale Popularity Level: 437621
Studio: St. Martin's Paperbacks
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It was a winter morning in 1978, that the body of a young barmaid was discovered in the snow banks of a Scottish cemetery. The only suspects in her brutal murder were the four young men who found her: Alex Gilbey and his three best friends. With no evidence but her blood on their hands, no one was ever charged.Twenty five years later, the Cold Case file on Rosie Duff has been reopened. For Alex and his friends, the investigation has also opened old wounds, haunting memories-and new fears. For a stranger has emerged from the shadows with his own ideas about justice. And revenge.When two of Alex's friends die under suspicious circumstances, Alex knows that he and his innocent family are the subsequent targets. And there's only way to save them: return to the cold-blooded past and uncover the startling truth about the murder. For there lies the identity of an avenging killer...
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Rated by buyers -
This book is a testament to how freak incidents can change people's lives forever. One minute four college students are happily returning from a party. The subsequent minute, they stumble upon a recently murdered young lady. Their lives are torn apart almost immediately as they fall under suspicion. After weeks of turmoil, things more or less settle down, but in a decidedly different and less pleasant fashion. The echoes of the incident continue for years, gradually growing fainter until the cold case is revived. Then the nightmarish existence of decades earlier comes racing back, and they don't all survive it this time. Eventually resolution is reached, but for the survivors, the damage is permanent, even though we do see them at least adjust to the new situation by the end of the book.
I found this book did not fade quickly in my memory after I read it. The story kept echoing for much longer than novels usually do. I highly recommend this book. Val McDermid shows a talent for deeply penetrating psychological writing.
Rated by buyers 
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Four university pals stumble on an almost dead Rosie Duff in the midst of a blizzard in 1978 St. Andrews, Scotland. Before police help could arrive young Rosie has died from a stab wound inflicted after being raped. As the four young men - Gilly, Ziggy, Weird, and Mondo - relate their discovery to the police, it becomes apparent that they're being treated as prime suspects rather than witnesses. They're drunk, having partied all night, and explanations of why they were in that area at that time deemed wholly unsatisfactory. No concrete evidence can be found, and the foursome is never charged of the crime. They nonetheless suffer as they are attacked by Rosie's brothers and ostracized by the village and university mates. Two are beaten, one is tortured and another attempts suicide. Their close friendship begins to unravel as their lives become tainted by the ever-present suspicions.
The novel fast-forwards to 2003. Advances in DNA technologies have spurred a police review of cold cases, one of which is the Rosie Duff murder. Although the four, now middle-age and successful men, have moved on, the cloud of suspicion still hangs over their heads and peace is as elusive as it was twenty-five years ago. There's also a killer who's targeting the foursome, offing Ziggy, then Mondo, and surely the other two to follow. Convinced that these were revenge killings, Gilly and Weird aggressively pursue clues, hoping to unmask Rosie's murderer and prevent their own deaths.
What I particularly liked about this novel is its rich characterizations in the very first half. It's fairly common in traditional whodunits for the characters to be merely props in moving the plot forward. In the very first half of The Distant Echo, the reader gets to know the characters intimately. Ziggy is the savior of the group, Gilly is the level-headed one, Weird can be a loose cannon and Mondo is the most emotionally fragile. They're not paragons of virtue; neither are they evil. They're just ordinary youths whose immaturity sometimes lands them in more trouble than they bargained for. Rosie, the victim, is well-defined-a young woman who tries to be good and chaste, but can easily fall victim to a man's wiles. Her brothers, Colin and Brian, are bullies; petty career criminals who rationalize their violent actions against Ziggy and Weird as necessary justice to be meted out on behalf of a sister they genuinely loved. DI Barney Maclennan, frustrated by his failure to obtain evidence against the foursome nevertheless risks his own life to save one of them. These are three-dimensional characters, some more complex than others, but all believable. (Alas, this quality does not survive into the second half.)
Another feature I liked is Ms. McDermid's skill in engaging the reader by eliciting emotional responses to her characters. It pained me greatly to read of the beatings, torture, desolation, grief and helplessness the foursome went through. I felt Rosie's mother's anguish when told of her daughter's death. When more deaths followed I, too, became frustrated with the police who, even after twenty-five years, had not made inroads in the investigation.
The third element I admire is Ms. McDermid's craftiness with the whodunit. Some readers have said that the answer was apparent to them even from the early chapters. I, on the other hand, was totally hoodwinked. Of course, in retrospect the solution made perfect sense. I'd forgotten that sometimes the most obvious answer is what's staring me in the face.
As engaged as I was, there are some things that disappointed me. One of them is the stereotyping that became more pronounced in the second half. Weird becomes a born-again Christian (a "fundamentalist bigot" at that!) and later a TV evangelist whose hallelujahs, bible-thumping and homophobia turn him into a caricature. There's also a lesbian character who's got a chip on her shoulder and believes every Scottish male was born to deride her. Another character is a computer programmer, a loner (of course) whose adoptive parents were indifferent to him. His bitterness at not having known his real mother turns into an obsession with deadly results. (What?! I guess that's what happens when you write code day in day out.) There's also Mondo's French wife, a pompous and arrogant (of course...she's French, isn't she?) fan of French philosophy and couture. This style of characterization robs a good story of its credibility.
The other thing that bothered me is the made-for-TV ending, complete with guns a-blazing, a teary confession and a fill-in-the blanks end scene just like A Murder She Wrote episode. I don't profess to be an expert on contemporary fiction, but I'm pretty sure I can spot a Hollywood ending when I see it. It's things like this that can downgrade literature to mere pulp. I just know that Ms. McDermid can do far better than this.
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Rated by buyers 
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I got "hooked" on Val McDermid after watching "Wire in the Blood," a detective series on BBC about a psychologist who profiles for the British police. McDermid has written an excellent series of books about the two characters, Dr. Tony Hill and Chief Inspector Carol Jordan. However, The Distant Echo is one of McDermid's finest novels, in my opinion, and does not involve these characters. The story is about four teenagers who are accused of raping and murdering a young girl. They are never convicted of the crime, but its horror insinuates itself into each of their lives in insidious and unique ways. The characterizations are incredibly well done; the writing is phenomenal; and the plot kept me completely engrossed, night after night. I didn't want it to end.
Rated by buyers -
Basically this is a standalone whodunit covering 561 pages, and I spotted who did it within less than 20. Normally I'm not that good at guessing such things so this has to be a weak element to the story. It removed most of the suspense for me, because I had to read over 500 more pages knowing the ending. And I was never in any doubt.
A young girl is murdered back in 1978, and at the time the killer is not found although there are several key suspects, in particular the four students who discovered the body. Then we jump forwards to 2003 and the case is re-opened, with the occasional new twist here and there.
What spoilt things for me was the absence of a strong, key central character. Previously I read The Torment of Others by the same author which included two of her most popular heroes Carol Jordan and Tony Hill. I think novels are made or broken by the depth of their central characters, and it's disappointing in this case because I already knew that McDermid is more than capable of creating them. The Distant Echo is compromised by the absence of any truly interesting characters and by its excessive length. Having said that I have confidence in the writer, I have read at least a dozen other novels of hers and I can assure you that I have had very positive things to say about most if not all of them. Val McDermid is one of Britain's leading literary ladies and I can only suggest that The Distant Echo is a mild blip and normal service will soon be resumed. It's not bad, but as one-off McDermid thrillers go it pails into insignificance beside such brilliant novels as A Place of Execution.
Rated by buyers -
I listened to this book on tape. I highly recommend the unabridged recording. The narrator has the perfect Scottish accent, easy to follow and greatly adding to the novel's atmosphere. I was totally engrossed by the end of side one of the very first tape. Four Scottish college students, on their way home from a party, find a dying girl. They are the only suspects and remain targets of police investigation and revengeful relatives for years. Twenty-five years after the murder it becomes apparent that someone is after the original suspects with deadly intent. The novel kept me guessing well into the second half. Even when I figured it out, there was still plenty of suspense to keep me listening with rapt attention until the very satisfying conclusion.
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