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3.5 Banville is another versatile author who writes in many different genres. In Snow, the atmosphere is front and center. It is cold, the ground covered in the white stuff which often hinders the investigation. It permeates the air, permeates everything and makes it very difficult for Inspector Strafford. It is 1954 in Ireland, County Wexford, and the Catholic Church rules with an iron fist. Strafford, a Protestant, is called to the manor house of Colonel Osborne, to investigate the murder of a Catholic Priest, found stabbed and multilated in the house library.

The body has been tidied up, making his investigation more difficult. The members of the family each seem to be acting a part, a part that seems to change daily. Nothing is quite as it seems.

A more predictable outing for Banville, but despite this his prose, his characterizations and the atmosphere are all outstanding. There are secrets, hidden pasts and a continuing drama. There are limited suspects in the house and on the grounds, so who did the actual deed? An intricate police procedural follows and as predictable as I found the book, I thought the ending fitting and well done. Maybe not one of his best, but Banville for me is always worth reading.

Warning: sexual situations.

ARC from Edelweiss.