The Unburied [Paperback]

In Victorian England, Dr. Courtine is invited to spend the days before Christmas with Austin, a friend from his youth, in the Cathedral Close of Thurchester. Courtine hopes to research an unsolved mystery at the cathedral library, but when Austin captivates him with the story of the town ghost -- a macabre tale of murder and deception dating back two centuries -- Courtine finds himself drawn instead into a haunting world of avarice, skullduggery, and exceptional evil.
Daring, unpredictable, atmospheric,The Unburiedis a dazzling entry in the canon of classic Victorian masterpieces of suspense.Charles Palliseris the author ofThe Unburied, The Quincunx,andBetrayals.He has taught modern literature and creative writing at universities in Glasgow, London, and the United States. Since 1990 he has been a full-time writer. He lives in London.The Washington Post Book WorldProbably generates as much plot per page as is humanly possible to.Entertainment WeeklyAs the layers of dirty deeds are unearthed, [the novel] feels like an archaeological dig -- mesmerizing, meticulous.The Wall Street JournalThe Christmas ghost was a staple of Victorian holiday fiction, andThe Unburiedis an elegant update of the tradition that is both modern in its concerns and wholly convincing as an artifact of another age.The New York ObserverEnormously enjoyable.The New YorkerAll the murders are puzzles, and Palliser constructs his plot like a maze and lures readers into it. The books ruthless consistency of style and the somewhat bleak view of humankind set it apart from the usual thriller.Palo Alto Daily NewsThere is little doubt thatThe Unburiedconfirms to all, British or American, that Palliser is one of the world's most imaginative historical novelists.The Washington Post Book WorldA fine literary diversion for a winter's night or two....The novel's prose moves swiftly but pauses from time to time for lenglƒ=