Buried Memories by Simon R. Green

Buried Memories (An Ishmael Jones Mystery)

by Simon R. Green

Returning to the small town where he crash-landed in 1963, Ishmael Jones is in search of answers. But his investigation is de-railed by a brutal murder.

"I think something very bad and very dangerous has come to your little town, Inspector . . ."

As long-buried memories from his hidden past begin to resurface, Ishmael Jones and his partner Penny feel compelled to return to the small country town where Ishmael crash-landed in 1963; the place where his memories began.

Norton Hedley is no ordinary town. Apparitions, sudden disappearances, sightings of unusual beasts: for centuries, the place has been plagued by a series of inexplicable events. Ishmael's first task is to track down local author Vincent Smith, the one man he believes may have some answers.

Ishmael and Penny aren't the only ones seeking the mysterious Mr Smith. When their search unearths a newly-dead body in the local mortuary - a body that's definitely not supposed to be there - Ishmael becomes the prime suspect in the ensuing murder investigation. His only hope of discovering the truth about his origins lies in exposing a ruthless killer.

Reviewed by annieb123 on

4 of 5 stars

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Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Buried Memories is the 10th book in the Ishmael Jones SF mystery series by Simon Green. Released 5th Oct 2021 by Severn House, it's 192 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a humorous and well written mystery with a strong SF element (the titular protagonist is an alien in more or less human form). His sidekick and partner is a human espionage agent and despite the occasional necessary badassery and alien tech (and weapons), they drink tea, eat scones, and reprimand baddies with the best traditional classical sleuths. If readers can stretch to imagining a mashup where Agatha Christie's Tommy & Tuppence are set down in Stross' world of the Laundry Files by a cinematographer from the X-Files, they'd come remarkably close.

I've been impressed with Green's masterful control of the tension arc in his other books and this one is no exception. He has a wonderful way of making the most mundane occurrences seriously *creepy*. I devoured this installment in one sitting. All of the books work well as standalones (there's an intro back-story to get readers up to speed). Some of the main plot points in this book are dependent on back history from previous books, so there will be some pretty major spoilers if read out of order, but readers won't be lost or have trouble following along if they choose to read them that way.

The dialogue is often sarcastic and slyly humorous. The book is populated by weird and bizarre characters (and some of them are even human). I found myself grinning often and chuckling out loud a few times. The denouement and resolution were exciting and satisfying and I am really really looking forward to What Comes Next.

Four stars. SF mystery weirdness at its creepy best.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 5 October, 2021: Finished reading
  • 5 October, 2021: Reviewed