The Savage Garden: Amazon.co.uk: Mark Mills: Books

Review

Acclaim for ‘The Savage Garden’:

‘An intriguing puzzle, elegantly written… a pleasure to read… the atmosphere of an Italian summer and of the mysterious garden are beautifully captured’ Sunday Telegraph

‘Mills writes beautifully; leading us gently and atmospherically through the Tuscan renaissance garden… an unusual, captivating novel that is a cut above the norm’ The Times

‘Unputdownable… hugely atmospheric’ Daily Mirror

‘Entertaining… Mills weaves together two murder mysteries in his elegantly contrived plot’ Times Literary Supplement

‘Mills has done his research… there are potent mysteries, a beautiful heroine and a charismatic old lady who knows a lot more than she’s saying, which is enough to keep the reader, like Adam, rearranging the puzzle pieces until they all slot into place’ London Lite

‘A fine sense of period and place, a well-managed narrative, crisp prose and fascinating information… Mills is one to watch’ Spectator

‘Mills juggles the mysteries of three periods, switching between centuries with a conjuror’s skill… the book is beautifully written, giving life to the figures in their Tuscan landscape’ Literary Review

‘A mesmerizing piece of writing… Mills is a skillful writer and combines all the disparate strands into a striking tapestry’ Independent

‘An intriguing historical thriller which confirms him as a first-class and unusual crime writer’ Daily Mail

‘A beautifully penned, high-brow crime thriller’ City AM

'To be savoured… Mills weaves together an intriguing mixture of love, loss and divided loyalties' Guardian

‘Very well-written with memorable characters’ Birmingham Post

‘A keen sense of loss and longing suffuses “The Savage Garden”… a romantic and gracefully executed literary puzzle. Mills creates an enchanting vision of wooded glades and grottoes, temples and reflecting pools… a tantalizing mystery’
New York Times

Praise for ‘The Whaleboat House’:

‘A master of the art of murderous storytelling.’ Sunday Times

‘This is an intriguing, atmospheric, literary crime novel. The uneasy juxtaposition of two communities is brilliantly evoked by Mark Mills.’ Daily Mail

‘Subtle and stylish…Mills is clever, unravelling the story from several angles.' Observer

‘The requisite qualities of a film script – atmospheric details, lucidity and a simple, spare style.' Sunday Telegraph

‘A very rich book – rich in detail and history and local color; rich in characters and conflict and mystery; and, most importantly, rich in wonderful writing.’ John Grisham

‘Complex and compelling…Mark Mills reveals himself to be a master storyteller.' Val McDermid

‘A striking and assured first thriller…worldly and impeccably researched.’ William Boyd

Review

Acclaim for 'The Savage Garden': 'An intriguing puzzle, elegantly written! a pleasure to read! the atmosphere of an Italian summer and of the mysterious garden are beautifully captured' Sunday Telegraph 'Mills writes beautifully; leading us gently and atmospherically through the Tuscan renaissance garden! an unusual, captivating novel that is a cut above the norm' The Times 'Unputdownable! hugely atmospheric' Daily Mirror 'Entertaining! Mills weaves together two murder mysteries in his elegantly contrived plot' Times Literary Supplement 'Mills has done his research! there are potent mysteries, a beautiful heroine and a charismatic old lady who knows a lot more than she's saying, which is enough to keep the reader, like Adam, rearranging the puzzle pieces until they all slot into place' London Lite 'A fine sense of period and place, a well-managed narrative, crisp prose and fascinating information! Mills is one to watch' Spectator 'Mills juggles the mysteries of three periods, switching between centuries with a conjuror's skill! the book is beautifully written, giving life to the figures in their Tuscan landscape' Literary Review 'A mesmerizing piece of writing! Mills is a skillful writer and combines all the disparate strands into a striking tapestry' Independent 'An intriguing historical thriller which confirms him as a first-class and unusual crime writer' Daily Mail 'A beautifully penned, high-brow crime thriller' City AM 'To be savoured! Mills weaves together an intriguing mixture of love, loss and divided loyalties' Guardian 'Very well-written with memorable characters' Birmingham Post 'A keen sense of loss and longing suffuses "The Savage Garden"! a romantic and gracefully executed literary puzzle. Mills creates an enchanting vision of wooded glades and grottoes, temples and reflecting pools! a tantalizing mystery' New York Times Praise for 'The Whaleboat House': 'A master of the art of murderous storytelling.' Sunday Times 'This is an intriguing, atmospheric, literary crime novel. The uneasy juxtaposition of two communities is brilliantly evoked by Mark Mills.' Daily Mail 'Subtle and stylish!Mills is clever, unravelling the story from several angles.' Observer 'The requisite qualities of a film script -- atmospheric details, lucidity and a simple, spare style.' Sunday Telegraph 'A very rich book -- rich in detail and history and local color; rich in characters and conflict and mystery; and, most importantly, rich in wonderful writing.' John Grisham 'Complex and compelling!Mark Mills reveals himself to be a master storyteller.' Val McDermid 'A striking and assured first thriller!worldly and impeccably researched.' William Boyd

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Customer Reviews

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

185 of 192 people found the following review helpful

A thoughtful and literary crime novel 16 July 2007

By MisterHobgoblin TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I discovered Mark Mills by accident - he spoke alongside Emer McCourt at Edinburgh Book Festival a couple of years back. His debut, Amagansett (renamed Whaleboat House) was a period murder mystery set in Long Island just after WWII. It was stylish, well written and dealt with the social issues as the local population were being displaced by wealthy NYC types.

Mark Mills has now followed this up with a novel set in Tuscany in the 1950s. A young English student is tasked with uncovering the mysteries of a 400 year old memorial garden at a castle owned by a friend of his Cambridge tutor. As the mystery is uncovered - details matching with various classical texts - our student hero Adam discovers that the present day family have their own secrets. He starts to unravel those secrets, discovering what really happened when the castle was occupied by the Germans in the war.

The writing is well researched and very intelligent. Mills creates an air of menace that gets stronger as the novel progresses. But his forte is in creating believable characters with shades of light and dark. As the finger of suspicion is pointed, the suspects don't panic and wave guns around, they don't seek confrontation. Arguments are avoided, issues skirted. This lack of action then adds to the suspense and intrigue.

Moreover, the scene setting works well. Mills is a master of painting a scene with vivid, clear language. In this case, the mountains, the castle and the villages create a very claustrophobic atmosphere - the perfect environment for feuds to simmer and vengeance to be taken. And within each confined space, yet more confined spaces are created. Tuscany - the village - the castle - the garden - the grotto... The pacing, too, works very well. The details are covered effectively but painlessly in the opening third of the novel. The pace then quickens as the plot thickens. This really is a page turner.

And the denouement, when it arrives, is well thought through, completely lucid despite being really quite complex. It is a far cry indeed from Agatha Christie's unveiling of the culprit in front of the assembled guests and constables.

This is a thoughtful, literary version of the crime novel - and all the better for that. I think Mark Mills will go on to become a very well known name; deservedly so.

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79 of 82 people found the following review helpful

Never has gardening been so dangerous 3 Aug 2007

By Brida TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE

This is the first novel by Mills that I have read. I admit, I came to it via the Richard & Judy summer read bookclub. Having been disappointed with previous selections for this year, I have to say I wasn't holding out much hope at the beginning of me enjoying this. Happily, I was found to be wrong.

The book is about Adam, a university student who is encouraged to travel to Italy to the Villa Docci, home of the Docci family, by his lecturer. Adam is told that there is an interesting 400 year old memorial garden there, which could be a good subject for his thesis. As he sets out, he does not realise just how enchanting this garden shall be. Made up from hidden groves, grottos, statues depicting Greek gods and goddesses, this garden is more than first appearances would suggest. Rather than being a mere memorial garden, it holds a secret hidden in the imagery and symbolism it contains.
As Adam emerses himself more into the secrets of the garden, he also begins to suspect that the living members of the Docci family also have their secrets to hide, secrets that seem to echo history.

Mills does a fantastic job at creating mystery throughout this book. At first, I was unsure that the premise of the book would be enough to carry it. However, the way that Mills explains the symbolism of the garden, you completely get carried away with the unfolding mystery. I loved how the garden was linked to a piece of literature - as a lover of English throughout my whole life, Adam's pouring over literary texts to unlock secrets of the past was an absolute delight.

The characters are also superbly written. Having finished the book, I could see the progression that took place in Adam, for example. Just how he says at the end, he is unrecognisable as the young man who appears at the beginning. His brother, Harry, is also a fabulous character - almost the complete opposite to Adam, although at first he seemed rather cliche and crass, he in fact added humour and another element to the book, something that Adam's character was unable to provide.

As a summer read, this novel ticks all the right boxes. It is intelligent, cleverly written, encorporating many interesting themes. Highly recommended.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

Twists and Turns 1 Sep 2007

By Joanne D'Arcy TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I started this book with some trepidation, thrillers, murders and mysteries are not my norm when it comes to books. I have since changed my mind! The murders have already been committed, by the time we see Adam make his journey to Italy and we are taken on a journey as he uncovers what happened in these murders and also how they are being hidden from those left around them. In fact the clues are all around and I learnt just as much about Dante's Inferno, (though confess to having to go and find some additional information about it) as Adam did and how this knowledge helps him solve clues but also create more along the way.

There are some quite 'wordy' passages, and this book requires an element of concentration to keep with the plot, but once it has you hooked then you are in the garden with Adam and those he meets along the journey to solving the mystery. It is billed in some places as somewhat of a thriller, it isn't it is a mystery though and if you are happy with a fairly loose mystery and no overly descriptive passages about how the murders were committed then you will enjoy it.