The Threshing Circle by Neil Grimmett

Genre:  Adult, Mystery, Suspense

Source: I received a copy to help facilitate my review.  The opinions expressed here are my own.

Warning:  There is some profanity and sexual violence mentioned in this book.

I wasn't really sure what to think about this book.  It sounded interesting from the beginning.  I was completely surprised by what I read.  It starts off in 1942 in a small village in Crete.  A young English woman is married to a Cretan soldier.  What she doesn't know is that he is married to another Cretan woman. She thinks the people of the village have accepted her when they give her a gift.  She shows it to her husband when he slips away from his patrol to see her.  Little does he know that the person who gave it to her has branded her in many ways and the Germans will use these gifts against her.  They take her from her house, leaving her young infant crying and they hang her.  Until she takes her last breath she believes she is dying for the cause of her village.  I could not believe how angry I felt at the villagers and how evil I felt some of them were.

The story then moves to present time and we meet a Scottish girl who is living in a Cretan village.  She keeps getting proposals from a Cretan named Barba Yorba.  They both see a young couple enter their village.  Barba Yorba is spooked by this for reasons you learn later.  Kristy welcomes Patneck and Eleni to the village.  She helps them find a jeep to tour the place.  Several strange events happen and then the couple disappear.  Kristy tries to find out about them and finds herself a target for reasons she doesn't understand.  She decides to seek the help of Barba Yorba.  At first he is reluctant.  The reason?  He holds secrets the villages and families want kept hidden.

This becomes a quick read because once you get started the action of it keeps you going.  You don't want to stop for any reason.  Definitely one you want to read.