You know when you are used to e-book ARCs and then you get a print copy of an ARC? For me that’s kind of like a tiara – I feel VERY special. I was so thrilled to get this book in my hands one beautiful Saturday afternoon that I just couldn’t resist sitting down with it that very night to get started! And although I didn’t quite gobble it up (I finished it Tuesday night) I did sail through it for someone who’s just been a little slower than usual with her reading this year. So what are we waiting for!?
Honor the Dead is the third installment in the Dominion Archives Mystery series and it really did not disappoint. You might have read my reviews of The Foulest Thing and Speak for the Dead (or even of the Honeybee Emeralds by the same author, but a stand alone!), and if anything in those books or the reviews I wrote speak to you, then put this forthcoming spring release on your list of books to pick up for some fun reading!
Honor the Dead will deliver a lot of the same twisty surprises and fun archival humour (for those who like that sort of thing) against a beautiful Canadian backdrop – this time around Tector sets the story in Quebec’s Eastern Townships as fall is settling in. We’re also reunited with Cate Spencer, coroner and (unofficial) detective. As much as Cate has grown and changed (just a little bit) since her turbulent Ottawa summer, she’s still the intrepid, wine drinking sleuth we met in Speak for the Dead.
The mystery, a murder mystery to be specific, gets off to a grisly yet (again) Louise Penny style beginning and takes us through the small town’s local institutions and through its magnificent fall outdoor beauty. The cast of characters that Spencer interacts with is superb and no interaction is without meaning, something we only truly realize as the puzzle comes closer and closer to completion, finally resulting in a (spoiler free!) satisfying ending.
And for lovers of archivist Jess Novak from The Foulest Things we do get to experience (but not technically meet) Jess circa the present (The Foulest Things having been set in abouts 2010). I’ve got my fingers crossed for a Jess cameo (or more!) in a fourth installment. PLEASE!
I feel like we really get to see Cate come into her own, in lots of different ways, in this novel. She isn’t the most likable character (in my humble opinion) for a few reasons in Speak for the Dead. I tried really hard to like her but didn’t quite get there. And for me it’s important to identify with or at least ‘like’ the main character. I like this reformed, stronger but also more aware of herself Cate. I don’t agree with all the choices she made (especially when she confronts a super suspicious suspect one night after dark – and a few drinks!) but on the whole I feel like her character arc over the course of these two novels has really endeared me to her.
She’s a woman going through a lot of change, grieving the loss of her brother (which by the way we learn A LOT more about), the end of her marriage, this shift in her life as her career hangs in the balance and her newfound appreciation for a stray dog. No one lives through these kinds of changes perfectly. We don’t usually get to practice for the hardest moments of our lives, and to be frank, Cate is really human, and seems to mostly do her best. At the end of the day she’s a believably raw and emotional human. And as much as it’s fun to like our main characters from the get-go, it’s also something special to learn to like them as you follow their journey. And she’s one smart cookie who gets to play the quiet hero once again!
Honour the Dead will be out in April 2024 – pre-order now or get on the hold list at your local library!
RebeccaReads 