The Life We Bury

By: Allen Eskens

Narrated by: Zach Villa

College student Joe Talbert has the modest goal of completing a writing assignment for an English class. His task is to interview a stranger and write a brief biography of the person. With deadlines looming, Joe heads to a nearby nursing home to find a willing subject. There he meets Carl Iverson, and soon nothing in Joe's life is ever the same. Carl is a dying Vietnam veteran-and a convicted murderer. With only a few months to live, he has been medically paroled to a nursing home after spending thirty years in prison for the crimes of rape and murder.

As Joe writes about Carl's life, especially Carl's valor in Vietnam, he cannot reconcile the heroism of the soldier with the despicable acts of the convict. Aided by his skeptical neighbor, Lila, Joe throws himself into uncovering the truth. Thread by thread, he begins to unravel the tapestry of Carl's conviction. But as he and Lila dig deeper into the circumstances of the crime, the stakes grow higher. Will Joe discover the truth before it's too late to escape the fallout?

©2014 Allen Eskens (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"More complications ensue, until the novel's satisfying resolution." ( Publishers Weekly Starred Review)

Great Listen!

This book was captivating and hooked me right from the beginning. I loved the narrator. He played the characters so well.

So satisfying!

Great little mystery. Great character development, with enough side stories to make you care about our heroes. And very good writing. Some might find "the good guys" too good, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and was hooked from beginning to end. My only fault: too short. And the narration!!! Absolutely excellent. I will search what else Mr. Villa has narrated as soon as I hit "submit" on this review.

1st class writing. Decent story

I have encountered few stories written in a style I enjoyed more than The Life We Bury. The character development, the prose, the way various stories were woven into the narrative... just perfect. Eskens has a gift.

However...

The plot itself is kind of sophomoric. I kept thinking of contrived Hardy Boys. I didn't mind the setup. It was good. An old guy dying of cancer being interviewed by a college student for a biography raises questions regarding a murder from 1980. Its just what happens next that is kind of lackluster. The writing carries the day though.

This is a worthwhile read if you like well written genre stories. Too many holes to make it perfect. Too many coincidences to make it a gem. But still worth picking up.

MUST READ

If you could sum up The Life We Bury in three words, what would they be?

On the edge

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes, starting out I was completely surprised by where the book lead... total twist

Have you listened to any of Zach Villa’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not not, but Zach did amazing!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!

What a treat!

This is a great human interest, who-done-it, action, feel good all in one. Even got a little of how the justice system is not so fair. Narrator sounds "age appropriate" which is a plus and does a great job. I really can't think of a thing i didn't like. Thought i had it figured out quickly and was disappointed at the ease of it. Nope, I was wrong. Listen and enjoy!

Almost a page turner.

Any additional comments?

The main character is a young man who has undergone some rough home life and childhood traumas that continue to plague him as he attempts to get himself through college and on track for a better future. His path is filled with challenges that test his courage, wits, loyalty and love. I found it well worth the time.

Excellent story

I don't say this much, but I LOVED (capital letters) this book. I loved the characters, I loved how they were "fleshed out" as the story progressed. So much of it is sad, in terms of the condition of the main character's life, but there is a vein of humor throughout, especially as his relationships with some of the characters developed. He is a young man who has worked for everything he has, with a good heart, but has endured a lot of pain in his life. There's his worthless, gambling, alcoholic mother and her abusive lout of a boyfriend; there's a sweet autistic brother; and there's an accused murderer and rapist who is dying of cancer which the main character meets because of an assignment in one of his college classes. There's a smart strong woman who has suffered her own knocks in life, a great cop ... Well, I could go on and on. But this book is a GREAT read (listen)!

Great mystery !

I had been looking for something new and got this to listen to before listening to the follow up book and so glad I did. Excellent plot, character development and the narration is wonderful. I highly recommend this book!

Great Listen!

Wasn't what I thought it would be when I bought it. I loved it just the same! The narration was very good. Very enjoyable and have recommended it a few times in the last week. A couple of friends got the e-book and are enjoying it as well!

Didn't want to put it down.

The reader was excellent--perfect for the character.
Good story--kept my attention throughout.
The character development was well done. You really started to be involved in the characters and their outcome.
I look forward to more by the author and narrator.