Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
HarperCollins (2003), Paperback, "Best Reads - Thrillers" series
Description
They'd moved everyone out of Dendale that long hot summer fifteen years ago. They needed a new reservoir and an old community seemed a cheap price to pay. They even dug up the dead and moved them too.But four inhabitants of the valley they couldn't move, for nobody knew where they were. Three little girls had gone missing, and the prime suspect in their disappearance, Benny Lightfoot. This was Andy Dalziel's worst case and now fifteen years on he looks set to relive it.It's another long hot summer. A child goes missing in the next valley, and old fears arise as someone sprays the deadly message on the wall of Danby: BENNY'S BACK!Music and myth mingle as the Mid-Yorkshire team delve into their pasts and into their own reserves of experience and endurance in search of answers which threaten to bring more pain than they resolve.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member JulesJones
One of the more disturbing books in the Dalziel and Pascoe series, in part because of the theme of serial child killing, but also because it shows that there are no easy answers. It's a complex and thought-provoking story, and one that easily supports re-reading. There is the mystery, yes, but
Ideally the series should be read in order, and I think regular readers already familiar with the characters will get more out of this book, but it can be read as a standalone. For those familiar with the series, Hill continues to develop the story of his ongoing characters, deftly weaving it into the main plot of the book. Note that there are references to events in the previous book (The Wood Beyond) which are slight spoilers for that book.
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there is also the psychological study of a village traumatised both by a series of unsolved child murders and by its forced relocation after its valley was drowned by a new water reservoir. It's also beautifully written by a master of prose. Hill brings his characters to full and vivid life, and they will linger with you for days.Ideally the series should be read in order, and I think regular readers already familiar with the characters will get more out of this book, but it can be read as a standalone. For those familiar with the series, Hill continues to develop the story of his ongoing characters, deftly weaving it into the main plot of the book. Note that there are references to events in the previous book (The Wood Beyond) which are slight spoilers for that book.
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LibraryThing member the.ken.petersen
Phew! This was a bit sober for the maestro. Yes, I did laugh out loud a few times, but equally, this book has moments to make a jester suicidal. The subject of child abduction and murder was never going to be light, but I was fascinated that his characters swear more in this book than in the rest
This is a cracking book and one that I would recommend anyone to read, but only at a time that life is being kind to you.
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put together. I wonder if this was skilful writing: our heroes showing their frustration and depression, or a sign of the author's feelings. Rosie's illness was a useful tool allowing Pascoe to empathize with the parents and Mr Hill's genius was that he managed to keep the whole opus on the right side of outright maudlin.This is a cracking book and one that I would recommend anyone to read, but only at a time that life is being kind to you.
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LibraryThing member devenish
This shows Hill at his very best. I don't think he can possible beat this tale of the wilds of Dendale.
LibraryThing member edwardsgt
One of the Dalziel and Pascoe series, with a theme of serial child killing in a village forced to relocate after its valley was drowned by a new water reservoir. A strong psychological theme runs through it with a dark side.
LibraryThing member picardyrose
I haven't read all his books -- I'm working on it. But this is a favorite.
LibraryThing member majorbabs
My favorite of the Dalziel and Pascoe mysteries.
LibraryThing member Amsa1959
This is my favorite Daziel & Pascoe novel.
LibraryThing member Yogamom67
"On Beulah Height" is the first book I've read by Reginald Hill. I came across it almost by accident - through a swap on PaperBackSwap.com. Another member wanted to do a trade and I couldn't find anything on her shelf that I recognized, so I decided to take a chance on this book, based on its
Wow! I am so glad I did. Hill's work epitomizes everything that is good about British mysteries: a small village, eccentric characters, wry humor, flawed, but brilliant detectives, suspenseful, but with little or no graphic descriptions of violence. British mystery writers seem to be able to describe a crime with as much as they don't say as with what they do.
I didn't see the resolution of the mystery coming, even though it was there in front if me all of the time. And in my opinion, this is a good thing! I find it irritating when a writer resolves a mystery by introducing information at the end of the story that we weren't privy to at least somewhere before in the story. However, when a writer resolves a story in such a way that you say to yourself, "how could I have missed that?" And you want to read the book all over again, just so you can fully appreciate the clues that you misinterpreted or completely missed before - well, that is an excellent mystery in my book!
Hill's work is reminiscent of that of other British mystery writers I've enjoyed, such as Robert Barnard and Michael Gilbert. "On Beulah Height" reminds me once again why it's so important to take a risk with an author I'm not familiar with. Before this book, I'd been somewhat stuck in my reading, I'd read several books that were good, but not remarkable, and I wondered when I was going to come across that next really good book. "On Beulah Heights" was it and I'm so thankful that there are another 23 books in the Dalziel and Pascoe series I now can look forward to reading!
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synopsis.Wow! I am so glad I did. Hill's work epitomizes everything that is good about British mysteries: a small village, eccentric characters, wry humor, flawed, but brilliant detectives, suspenseful, but with little or no graphic descriptions of violence. British mystery writers seem to be able to describe a crime with as much as they don't say as with what they do.
I didn't see the resolution of the mystery coming, even though it was there in front if me all of the time. And in my opinion, this is a good thing! I find it irritating when a writer resolves a mystery by introducing information at the end of the story that we weren't privy to at least somewhere before in the story. However, when a writer resolves a story in such a way that you say to yourself, "how could I have missed that?" And you want to read the book all over again, just so you can fully appreciate the clues that you misinterpreted or completely missed before - well, that is an excellent mystery in my book!
Hill's work is reminiscent of that of other British mystery writers I've enjoyed, such as Robert Barnard and Michael Gilbert. "On Beulah Height" reminds me once again why it's so important to take a risk with an author I'm not familiar with. Before this book, I'd been somewhat stuck in my reading, I'd read several books that were good, but not remarkable, and I wondered when I was going to come across that next really good book. "On Beulah Heights" was it and I'm so thankful that there are another 23 books in the Dalziel and Pascoe series I now can look forward to reading!
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LibraryThing member ehines
Similar concept to Peter Robinson's In a Dry Season, handled very differently, though. Hill is really terrific at mixing high and low, comedic and the wrenchingly sad, and the ambiguous. His scope is . . . well, Shakespearean. Not the grand Shakespeare--more the Shakespeare of Henry IV. It is a
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tribute to Hill that carries that scope so lightly and naturally. Show Less
LibraryThing member gbelik
When a child goes missing, it reminds Dalziel of a similar case many years ago in the same locale. It's an interesting setting: a town has been evacuated and destroyed at the time of the old case to make way for a new dam. The residents were moved to a nearby village and though many still remain
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from the former case, the main suspect has disappeared long ago. Has he returned to commit another crime or is this new disappearance unrelated? Show Less
Subjects
Awards
Anthony Award (Nominee — Novel — 1999)
Crime Writers' Association Awards (Shortlist — 1998)
Barry Award (Winner — Novel — 1999)
Language
Original publication date
1998
Physical description
7.09 inches
ISBN
0007716745 / 9780007716746
Local notes
Fifteen years ago, Dalziel worked a case where three little girls went missing and the prime suspect was Benny Lightfoot. Now, a child goes missing in the next village and someone sprays on the walls the message 'Benny's Back'.