One of Mayor's earlier stories. Very good murder mystery set primarily in Brattleboro, Vermont, a town in S.E. Vermont on the Connecticut River. Joe Gunther, veteran policeman, is called in to investigate the curious death of a recluse living off a back road in W. Brattleboro. During the course of the search of the recluse's property, a body is found buried with one significant clue, an artificial knee. So begins an investigation into a 20 year old murder set back to the "hippie" days (which in Brattleboro I believe is still going on!). The knee and skeleton it is attached to draws Gunther's investigation to Chicago and the victim's ties to the Black Panther's, Chicago Seven, and Chicago mafia, then back to Vermont to tie up the clues and solve the mystery in a climatic gunfire exchange in the Northeast Kingdom. Mayor's description of the town of Brattleboro brings me home, being familiar with the town having lived a short distance north of there for half of my life. And when Gunther, the small town policeman, lands in Chicago, his investigation brings the right mix of awe for the size of the city and it's PD, naive confidence, veteran cop experience and cynicism, and blind luck that makes the story line honest and believable.I enjoyed all the twists and turns of the story,and am impressed with the excitement brought into these mysteries -- I do not remember the Vermont I grew up in being so exciting. A good mystery and a fun read!
1993, #4 Lt. Joe Gunther, Brattleboro VT, Chicago; police procedural.A reclusive man is found dead from a wound inflicted 25 years earlier, a body found buried in his yard has a wound from the same date, a half-million in old bills also surfaces, and somebody steals a piece of evidence from the crime scene. Many “old hippies” have moved to Vermont seeking a gentler life, and this is the story of several of them who had “a past” - a very dangerous past, that seems to have finally caught up to them. An enormously complex look at self-preservation at the cost of truth, mixed into a large cast of interesting characters and a very busy side trip to Chicago for Joe, all of this woven into a superb police procedural, as he tries to find out just who the two dead bodies really are, and who it is that wants the past to remain buried. Almost *too* complex at times, but the over-all result is wonderful - superb pacing, plotting, and Joe. Can’t go wrong with that.It is a bit confusing in spots, but still rates the five-star designation, as it leaves echos with you once the book is closed. There's a sad (but true-to-life) ending, and while I hated (view spoiler)[ the involvement of Mafia, (hide spoiler)]
What do You think about The Skeleton's Knee (2013)?
Top NotchThis is an early and very strong entry into the series of police procedurals featuring Joe Gunther. The story begins with Gunther receiving a call from the medical examiner informing him that the ultimate cause of death of a recently deceased man was a bullet wound received many years before. The mysteries proliferate. The victim, who lived like a hermit, had first resisted treatment by emergency personnel, but then had let himself be taken to a hospital where he paid for his treatment in cash before dying. What begins as an intriguing cold case, heats up in the course of an interesting, complex investigation. Later, there is a unfortunate bit of the more or less mandatory criminal as superman, but otherwise this is fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable mystery.
—george burns
PROTAGONIST: Lieut. Joe GuntherSETTING: Chicago and Brattleboro, Vermont SERIES: #4 of 21RATING: 3.75WHY: When a hermit dies as a result of a gunshot wound from many years earlier, the police investigate his cabin and grounds. They find a skeleton with a metal knee replacement. The clues on the unknown dead body lead to Chicago. Pairing with a Chicago cop, Joe finds himself in a convoluted, twisted mystery. The plot was overly complicated. Mayor does as good a job with the Chicago setting as he does with Vermont. Solid entry in a solid series.
—Maddy
THE SKELETON'S KNEE - VGMayor, Archer - 4th in seriesVermont hermit Abraham Fuller kept mum on his gunshot wound. When it finally causes a fatal aneurysm some twenty years later, Detective Joe Gunther decides to investigate—and, for the first time, must leave his rustic Brattleboro beat.The trouble starts in Fuller's garden where Gunther's crew digs up an artificial knee joint... attached to a very real human skeleton. Worse yet, the victim had been murdered. When a sniper machine-guns the hearse bringing the skeleton to the morgue, Gunther's first step is clear: find the manufacturer of the steel knee. It will mean trading Vermont for Chicago, where big city cops snub small-town gumshoes, too many people are hiding dark pasts,.and a deadly trail could lead to a fresh new corpse—Gunther'sI really like Mayor's writing. This was exciting and, for me, the best so far of the series.
—LJ
