If you want to read a crime novel with a difference this is the one for you.It tells the story of Grace whose job it is to clean up houses after people have been found dead after a long time. It had so many twists and turns I didn't see coming. It has to be one of the saddest crime novels I've read . However it is intriguing and disturbing at the same time . I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes a different outlook on things.

What a different style of storyline. Very interesting approach to solving murders and didn't see the twist in the middle coming. Enjoyed it very much.

An unusual book with a quirky, complex main character. Grace is a forensic cleaner, who arrives after a person has died, particularly after they haven't been noticed for some time, and then cleans, decontaminates and clears the property. She eventually notices something appearing at a number of scenes, which she thinks might link them, so she goes on a journey to discover what exactly is going on.

I wanted to like the book. The premise is intriguing, for sure, but I just couldn't work out why Grace was so obsessed with all the info she goes looking for. Add to that, her father is so vile it's actually unpalatable, I just couldn't keep reading. It became tedious and boring and I eventually gave up at 50%. Looks like many others enjoyed, so this may just be me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance reader copy.

The main character in this original story is flawed and fragile but engaging. You want her to succeed. The plot unfolds nicely as you're fed more and more incrementally. And you're rewarded with a satisfying ending.

This is a very good read.

Really unusual book, at first I thought it was coming off the back of the darkly comic tv show ‘the cleaner’. I was very wrong, this is dark, twisted and very much not comedic. Very assured writing style, with well rounded characters and a terrific sense of loneliness all through. I think this will be a word of mouth hit within the crime reading community, then will become a big seller. I can see this could win awards as it crosses crime with intelligent modern fiction.

“Death can make hypocrites of us all.”

What a book to kick off my reading list for 2022! I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect with this, but whatever it was, I ended up pretty much blown away.

Grace McGill, a single and solitary woman in her 30s with a fairly tragic backstory, lives alone (save for her cat, George) and earns her living clearing up the homes of the undiscovered deceased. A fairly morbid job, yet, when you think about it, someone’s got to do it. Unfortunately.

During the course of her work, Grace comes across a mystery which she takes it upon herself to investigate. I won’t say much more as really, it would be far too easy to completely ruin the plot and honestly, I think this book should be read with as little fore-knowledge as possible.

Told from Grace’s POV, it becomes clear, early on, that she is not what you might expect from a typical main character. There is a feel of Elinor Oliphant in here, but without it feeing overtly similar. Simply, she is a unique and somewhat awkward character you can’t help feeling compelled to like. I was certainly hooked.

Issues of alcoholism, domestic abuse, isolation, loneliness and death are all tied up with themes of guilt and secrecy. Everything is handled exceptionally well, and at no point did I find any of it to be overwhelming or cloying.

Definitely a unique approach to a mystery-style read, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. The ending wasn’t what I expected, which is always a pleasant surprise.

This is a new author to me and I was impressed by this intriguing novel. This is not your typical crime novel as the titular character makes her living from clearing and cleaning the homes of dead people who have been undiscovered for quite some time. But there is more to Grace than is initially evident and when she detects a link between some of her lately-dead she is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. Fascinating!

The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill is billed as one of 2022's books to look out for, and it certainly did not disappoint. Grace is a cleaner with a difference, she cleans homes following the deaths of the residents, often dealing with disturbing scenes where bodies were left undiscovered for long periods of time. She likes her job, much to the consternation of many of the people she meets, considering it an important last gesture of kindness. She leads a very lonely life, living alone, and only reluctantly visiting her alcoholic and abusive father since the death of her mother. She is happy with her cat for company and her hobby of building detailed models of some of the most memorable scenes she has cleared.
When she goes to clean the home of an elderly man whose body was not discovered for five months, she notices an old photograph and a stack of newspapers that sends her off on a quest to solve a decades old mystery involving the disappearance of a young woman. The investigation won't be without danger however, as she starts to stir up a hornets nest that brings violence to her own doorstep, There is more to Grace than meets the eye however, and she will shock the reader as much as she shocks those who would try to harm her, but to say much more would spoil the story.
Grace is a really likeable character, funny and kind, and it is easy for the reader to get hooked into her story, and what a story it turns out to be!
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Going in and decontaminating a room where a death has gone undiscovered is certainly not a job for everyone but Grace seems to excel at it with her organisational skills and ability to distance herself from the horror and sadness in each place she is employed to clean.
She is a stand out character in her complete isolation from society and friendships and the way the story is so compelling told through her voice.
Loved the reveal, loved the premise and loved the character!

Grace McGill has an unusual job. When people die alone and undiscovered, it's her job to clean up what's left behind. She is a death cleaner. And she is so much more. Pretty to some, pretty average to others, and never happier than when wearing a mask.
When an old man lies undetected in his flat for months, it seems an unremarkable life and an unnoticed death. "We’re supposed to look after older people, not leave them to fend for themselves. And not just older people, we’re all meant to look after each other, but most people are too busy in their own lives to notice others are struggling."
She is certain that all the little mementoes she saves from the houses of the undiscovereds mean something.

Grace finds dried daisy in a undiscovered death person's apartment again, she knows that all deaths mean something more and tries to solve a mistery. A dangerous game of life and death begins.

And with an unexpected twist at the end.

Grace is such a vivid character. Loner with rich inner life and monologues. Narrative is quirky, dark and really intriguing.

Marvellous story and joy to read.

4,5/5

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for my free e-copy

This is the story of Grace who is a cleaner of sorts. She cleans up after someone has died and been left a long time. I liked the story being told from her point of view as we got to get up close and personal and hear all her thoughts the good and the bad. This character left me torn, I both liked and disliked her at the same time, which I think is really good and done excellently.

We become tangled up in a mysterious disappearance of a 17 year old girl on the Isle of Bute many years before during one summers night whilst she was on holiday at the fairground island, we get to travel back to see if Grace can work out the connections and find out what really happened to her.

I enjoyed reading this and was definitely a page turner. I will be recommending and looking for more books by this author.

A macabre storyline about a cleaner who enters the houses of people who have lain dead and undiscovered for a long time. Graphic in detail and not for the feint hearted . Grace thinks she finds a link to several of the deaths over a period of time.and sets out to prove her theory.

I really enjoyed this book, it was dark, slightly sinister, filled with brooding revenge and deaths.
Grace has an unusual job, she cleans properties where people have died. Sometimes they are not discovered for months, and that sets Grace and the reader wondering what sort of society we live in, where people can fall off the perch, and disappear from memory so quickly.
I have worked in Nursing Homes, where some residents don’t get any visitors or any communications at all, how lonely they must feel, and what a neglectful species we are. With a nursing background, I did rather feel at home when the process of body decomposition was discussed, it took me back to the lectures we were given by the hospital pathologist, all gooey , smelly and repulsive, but part of the natural process.
Grace not only cleans and disinfects the properties, but she makes a diorama of each death. Now, before I saw an episode of The Simpsons, a few years ago, I didn’t know that was the official name for these models, but they make a great teaching tool, as you recreate the room, you are remembering crucial details that help in the hunt for either a killer, or death by natural causes.
However, our Grace has another side to her careful attentions of the deceased body, and she does seem to experience far more unexplained deaths than the other cleaners. A photograph found in a flat, whilst she is cleaning it, arouses her curiosity, and she seeks out the truth that connects these five young men in the picture, with an unsolved murder mystery , on the Isle of Bute, many decades ago.
There are many surprising twists and turns to come, and we are looking for a serial killer, but the most staggering surprise came towards the end, when all of the pieces of the jigsaw come together with another death. No spoilers here!!
I found this a fascinating story.. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers Hodder and Stoughton, for my digital copy, in exchange for my honest and unsolicited review. I have given this a 5 star rating. I will post to Goodreads and other outlets later.

The story follows Grace McGill. She cleans up the rooms after people have died. A recent death, where he wasnt found for 5 months sparked an interest in finding out why he was left so long. She makes dioramas of the rooms where the bodies were found because the family often want to know more afterwards, when its too late. A lot of detail goes into each one. After discovering a link, a daisy, she becomes obsessed with it all.

Grace is quite a peculiar character and I quite liked the way she thought. It can be a bit of a slow burn read but its worth carrying on until the end just to get the link to the books title. Overall its a great murder/mystery read and I enjoyed it

Grace McGill has a job that not many people would want. It’s a job that police officers can’t stomach, it’s a job that nobody wants but somebody has to do, so it might as well be Grace.

In the depths of Glasgow Grace arrives at the house of Thomas Agnew. It’s been five months since he passed away but having had no family or friends his remains had only just been found. It’s Grace’s job to clean and disinfect the property, his home. So sad that a person not be discovered after such a long time. Grace removes all smells, bloodborne pathogens, potential biological hazards and any other substances that could be hiding in any flooring or grout, making it liveable once more. She takes some of his things, personal items that any long lost relatives may want, including a photo of him and some pals of his from years ago on some trip to Bute.

The thing with the dead is that their stories don’t always die with them, sometimes the ghosts of the past can come back to haunt the living and eventually reap their revenge!

I saw a friends review of this book and when @netgalley emailed me with it I knew I had to check it out. It’s quite a sad book, thinking about people that really do die alone and aren’t discovered for a long time. I really enjoyed the twist, not what I was expecting at all and the ending worked great with the storyline too.

Towards the end of last year, this book was recommended to me by Rachel Quin from Hodder & Stoughton, what a mind-blowing read! This book grabbed hold of me with both hands and kept me captivated right up to the very last page. This is a unique, dark read you won’t want to put down. I raced from page to page eager to learn more about Grace’s undiscovered deaths. The author focuses the story on old people who have been forgotten. People who are suffering through lonely days after they lost their partners and friends. People who have truly been forgotten. This adds a heart-breaking reality to this curious tale.
As an introduction to C.S. Robertson, I can say that The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill has converted me into an instant fan. This story is told from Grace McGill’s perspective. This shy, insecure woman quickly crawls into your heart and as more and more of her troubled character is revealed you are left in awe. This character is a genius creation. The author draws you deep into Grace’s sad life and when your heart is just about to shatter, he delivers a twist so subtly that you are left doubting what you are reading. This is a fabulous work of fiction that has left me eager to read more from this author. (There goes my TBR for 2022.)
Grace McGill lives a simple life. She is happy not to be noticed as she is uncomfortable around people and making conversation is torturous. Grace is a cleaner. She makes a living cleaning crime scenes where bodies have been found long after someone has died. The worst possible scenes are her speciality. She takes pride in her work and tries to treat these homes with respect. When she is called to clean a house where Mr Thomas Agnew laid dead and undiscovered for months, she finds a pile of newspapers, all dated the 23rd of July for various years. Intrigued, Grace starts digging into the old man’s life, eager to discover the relevance of this date. Meeting two of his old friends at his funeral, Grace realises that they are hiding something and fuels her curiosity. Determined to find the truth Grace finds herself drawn into a mystery and soon finds herself being followed and threatened. What will Grace do with the truth, and how will it change her life?
Starting this book the day I attended the funeral of an 84-year old man, left me open to the sadness hidden in the pages of this book. It shows how easily society manages to forget about the old people who are alone. This was a heartbreaking element to the story which I felt the author highlighted beautifully. I loved this book and Grace McGill stole my heart. She might have overstepped, but she cared. (You will need to read to the book to understand what I mean by that.)
Grace McGill is an unusual character. You will either love her or hate her. She is shy and battles to make conversation, yet she cares about the people she cleans up after. She treats their memories with respect and tries to help the surviving relatives to understand the deceased’s final moments.
This strange woman, who prefers to wander around unnoticed shares her story piece by piece and leaves your head reeling when you see the full picture. This character reminded me never to trust a book by its cover. There is so much more to this woman. She is a brilliantly creative creation. I loved her, flaws and all!
This is a five-star read! I loved it. You really should add this one to your TBR for 2022, you do not want to miss out. Mystery and thriller fans can expect the unexpected when they reach for this title, there is a remarkable twist that is guaranteed to leave you amazed!
Just in case I have not been clear, I highly recommend this book. Please, please, please get yourself a copy. You will not be left disappointed; this is a marvellous read!

What can I say, I didn’t enjoy this one as much as much as my friends. It started really well. Grace is a death cleaner, I imagine we can work out what that is. She finds it especially sad when people lie dead for weeks or even months before being discovered. It’s dirty smelly work but it her job and takes it seriously. So far so good.

Grace also seems a bit odd, a little OCD and she’s certainly anti social. I don’t suppose talking about her job is going to help her meet boyfriend material though.

She appears to notice a little clue left at a couple of death scenes, a small daisy left near the body, and starts to wonder if the deaths are somehow connected. She does take this info to the police but they don’t seem interested. Anyway, for some reason she gets obsessed about one of her ‘deaths’ - Tommy Agnew who had lain dead for 5 months before being found. And this where it lost me. I kept wondering why? Why was she so fixated on a photo of 5 young men? Why was she so interested in the newspapers Tommy had collected?

She goes on a bit of a quest and sees possible links to the disappearance of 17 year old Valerie Moodie in 1964. By this point I could not understand why Grace was so obsessed with all this old info and why she did what she did and why she kept doing it. So in the end the story didn’t make any sense to me. 3 stars for the writing. Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

Grace McGill is a death cleaner by occupation, or as she explains, the proper term is “bioremediation.” Her specialty is cleaning up the remains of someone who’s been dead and undiscovered for several months. While not a typical fictional character description, I must admit I learned a lot about what causes the smell of rotting flesh. Interested so far?

Grace is a quirky and wonderfully fascinating character. She treats the households of her “clients” with the greatest of respect, as she angrily obsesses over the sad fact that there were no friends or relatives that cared enough to miss the person. She creates dioramas in memory of the deceased. She collects household photos and items for sending to surviving relatives even as she hates them for not caring enough.

The plot develops into a mystery when, in her latest clean-up, Grace discovers some oddly coincidental newspaper clippings, along with a photograph of five young men. She becomes obsessed with the possibility of their connection to a long ago report of a missing young woman. The story evolves from there, and as it does, we learn that there’s definitely more hidden layers to Grace than we could have ever imagined.

I enjoyed this book very much and thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill is a thoroughly entertaining, twisted novel following Grace, a cleaner. She’s not just your ‘average’ cleaner though – Grace cleans up after people who have died and not been discovered for a while. Grace lives alone with her cat, and that’s the way she likes it.

Grace finds herself intrigued by a house she cleans of an old man who was not discovered for a long time. She starts to delve into his history and finds herself drawn into a bit of a mystery… but this isn’t all there is to it! Oh no – Grace herself is far deeper than you might think.

I think Grace is a brilliant character. She’s a strong, willfull person and brings enough humour to keep this novel from becoming too grim (though it is still pretty dark and twisted!). I like her no-bullsh*t approach and she feels like a very different character to the type we usually read about.

The plot is gripping – lots of twists to keep you guessing and a surprise you (probably) won’t see coming! This is definitely one to read if you fancy a refreshing, absorbing read that stands apart from other books in this genre.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

sorry to say even though the synopsis sounded intriguing this one wasnt for me at all...

i gave it a good go but i just couldnt get into it

sorry