The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill: The must-read, incredible voice-driven mystery thriller

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When the novel opens Grace is on the way to clean up the death of Thomas Agnew, an old man that lay dead in his flat undiscovered for five months or more. Grace doesn’t know of any people that took the time to remember Thomas but as she studies the photographs in his bedroom where he died, ‘Snapshots of a long life that ended in solitude,’ she is determined to honour his memory in death. As it so often the case with mystery stories using a first-person narrator, Grace actually knew more about Tommy Agnew than we find out till much later in the book, which explained something I found puzzling, why Grace keeps lying about her identity, first pretending to be a relative of Agnew’s and later to being a journalist investigating a cold case. (If it were me, I’d simply have claimed to be a free-lance true crime writer – no problem with awkward questions about what paper I worked for. Though I was delighted to discover there actually was a paper called The Bute-Man in the old days.). The title, The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill, turns out to signify more than it might appear on the surface, what in grammar are called the subjective and objective genitive. The title fits the book well, but it didn’t do anything to make me want to read it. Nor does the cover. Dark and quirky – there’s just something readers are going to love about meeting Grace McGill’ SCOTTISH SUN 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.

When an old man lies undetected in his flat for months, it seems an unremarkable life and an unnoticed death. But Grace knows that everyone has a story and that all deaths mean something more. I don't think of those characters will stay with me longer than Grace McGill....she is an amazingly, complex character. This story is told from the narrative of Grace, and the reader really gets into her mindset, we live her obsessions and compulsions, even though we know she is in danger. I’m still dwelling on the ending. I don’t know if I liked it or not. It’s certainly a book that will stay with me for some time.When people die alone and undiscovered, it’s her job to clean up what’s left behind – whether it’s clutter, bodily remains or dark secrets. When an old man lies undetected in his flat for months, it seems an unremarkable life and an unnoticed death. But one death in particular causes her to sense a connection to the mysterious disappearance of a young girl decades ago on the Isle of Bute. She attends the deceased’s funeral, notes who is there —as seen in a group photograph in the house—and starts to stalk them with intent to search for answers. Incidentally, I spent quite a lot of time dwelling on the amount of research the author had to undertake to learn a) how they go about cleaning up and b) all the science about decomposition. Then I got to pondering ‘why’ would you think of researching that, then I got to thinking ‘ what a surprising subject to come up with as a plot. There is a real depth, with lots of introspection and reflection on loneliness and social isolation. Robertson’s central character is lonely, dedicated, sometimes a little obsessive about creating perfection in her work. Bleach is her friend. In her life there is only George, her cat and a father who is both abusive and needy and to whom she attends with the penance of a dutiful daughter who resents each and every task she undertakes for this poor excuse of a man. Grace leads a solitary life, alone and a little damaged, we feel, but with a real sense of purpose in her life as she makes the lost found again – she sees them and that comforts her.

A premise that, gratifyingly, delivers the goods in spades and does so with a superbly well drawn cast of characters and a rather unique, well written, often dark narrative. Compelling and wholly engaging reading. Top notch’ Grace McGill is an insular, friendless woman, living in Glasgow in her 30s. She has her beloved cat, and she has her own business – deep cleaning the houses of Undiscovereds. People who die alone and stay that way until they are found weeks, sometimes months, later. Needless to say the content of this story can be and may be upsetting for some readers. I don’t often include warnings when putting together a review but this time I feel it important to highlight that C.S. Robertson does not shy away from the work Grace McGill undertakes and the steps she may need to take to clean a home. It’s not detail which is included for shits and giggles, it forms an important part of understanding Grace and is dealt with factually and then the story proceeds. I don’t want to give away too much as there are fantastic twists in this novel that literally took my breath away! I just didn’t see them coming, but they brilliantly enhance the tension throughout the story. All the way through I couldn’t work out where this novel was going to go and I loved that! I really don’t want to spoil any of the twists for you. I really enjoyed this book, it was dark, slightly sinister, filled with brooding revenge and deaths.

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Grace is a cleaner – she is employed to go into homes where somebody had died and remained undiscovered for weeks and she is employed to sanitise the house and remove all harmful toxins, or what have you. The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill is a fantastic and highly accomplished novel. Grace is a truly original narrator, and as she reveals more of herself and her story you realise that the book is taking a very different turn and everything you have read needs to be reconsidered. It certainly fits into the category of thrillers but there is so much more to the book than that. You really come to care about Grace, and the historic crime that she uncovers throws up many more uncomfortable questions. The descriptions of Glasgow and the Isle of Bute are evocative and give the book a real sense of place. That was two days ago. The cops have gone, what was left of Thomas Agnew has gone too, and only the smell remains. I’m suited up and wearing a respirator mask but there’s still no missing the odour. I got used to it ages ago, I’ve had to, but that doesn’t mean I’m unaware of it. Grace McGill cleans up after the dead. Sometimes old or lonely people die at home but are not found for some time. After police and SOCOs are done, and the body has gone, there is always residual organic material contaminating surfaces, furniture, carpets and other fomites, seeping into floorboards and corners, carrying with it all manner of toxic, poisonous and pathogenic materials. Grace is a one woman business employed to decontaminate, deep clean and return the premises to a habitable state. Her latest job is the flat in which Thomas Agnew died in his bed – 5 months ago! After the major cleaning operation, she also has to tidy the place, removing items that might be of value to any family members that can be traced. She is intrigued by a collection of newspapers from the same date but different years and an old photograph with a smashed glass frame, wrapped in a similar newspaper and hidden in a drawer, and takes them for own, private, collection of memorabilia from her jobs. She also notices and bags a single, dead, daisy. She has found a flower like this at previous scenes! Is there a serial killer on the loose, noticed by her but missed by the professionals? Intrigued by Tommy’s paper collection and the photograph, she embarks on an investigation which leads her to a possible murder and the likelihood that she will meet a similar fate.

Because Grace McGill is a specialist cleaner who scours homes after a resident has moved on or a deceased occupant’s body has been removed. One unifying theme in her work is how often those of a certain age especially die alone, unnoticed, unmissed. Grace acts compassionately, wanting to honour their memory. It’s taken a global pandemic to make death a more frequent, if not always acceptable, topic of conversation we’ve become more accustomed to talking about. But what if death wasn’t just a scary, inconvenient truth we’d rather ignore but a major factor of your chosen career?

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It was a water leak that brought people to the door. A student in number six noticed a small sag forming in his ceiling and called his landlord. Three visits to Mr Agnew’s flat brought no response so they’d little choice but to call the police, who put the door in and found the old man lying dead in bed. Grace is the narrator, I really like that Grace is chatting to the reader. The writing style runs with the chatty natural feel. Grace is the narrator, I really like Grace chatting to the reader. The writing style lends itself well to the chatty natural feel. I really enjoyed this novel, set in Glasgow and containing great, realistic descriptions of the city. I will, of course, not spoil of anything however the journey of Grace and her character will live with you for a long time. I absolutely loved this character. So well-drawn, with such a distinctive voice, Grace is unlike any other character I have met. Robertson’s story is a dark, psychological thriller that drops surprise bombs all the way through the narrative. The characters are down to earth and richly drawn and the plot line absolutely riveting.

I only discovered after reading that this is from the same author as Random and Murderabilia, I wasn't surprised by this, as the quality is obvious, and I love this foray into a more psychological mystery. 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. In times past, everybody knew each other and be able to go to each other’s doors but that’s not the case any more, partly because we are more guarded about letting people into our space, and partly because we’re not as sociable. In these tenements, residents will come and go rather than stay there for generations, so people don’t know their neighbours as well as they used to.” Grace works as a cleaner, however she is no ordinary cleaner.....she attends the scenes of those who have died and lain undiscovered for a number of weeks and months. Whilst this is not a job many of us could stomach, Grace takes great pride in her job and feels she is doing a great public service. This was a strange book for me and one that I actually enjoyed despite all the blood and guts and gore all spelled out in minute detail by Grace. It's a bit of a slow burner as there is quite a lot to set up. More than you realise once we get over the brow of the hill and it all starts to come together.She decides to visit the island of Bute to get a feel for the missing girl. But someone is watching her every move! It is the story of the unique, unforgettable Grace McGill. Narrated in the first person, Grace is a 30 something cleaner. But she is not just any old cleaner, oh no. Grace cleans up the remains of death. When people die alone and undiscovered for weeks or even months, it is her job to clean everything that is left behind. That may be cleaning up the clutter. It always means cleaning up the bodily remains. I don’t know how many people have taken the time to remember him, but the bed has. The bed holds his memory, his length, his width, his final outline. It holds hairs on the pillow and his depth in its contours. It also holds a dark soup of bodily fluids. Mopping them up is my next job. Hodder & Stoughton has won an auction for athriller about a woman who cleans the homes of undiscoveredcorpses by C R Robertson.