Norfolk is flat. Anyone who has ever driven through East Anglia knows the sky feels bigger there, pressing down on the salt marshes like a heavy, grey blanket. It’s a landscape that feels inherently old, a place where the tide doesn’t just come in—it sneaks.
In 2009, a writer named Domenica De Rosa, writing under the pen name Elly Griffiths, released a book that turned these marshes into a crime scene. That book was The Crossing Places. It didn't just launch a series; it basically created its own sub-genre of "archaeological noir."
The Hook in the Mud
The story kicks off when a child’s bones are discovered at the edge of the Titchwell Marsh. DCI Harry Nelson, a blunt, no-nonsense Northerner who hates the Norfolk damp, thinks he’s finally found Lucy Downey. Lucy is the girl who vanished ten years ago, a cold case that’s been chewing at his conscience ever since.
Enter Dr. Ruth Galloway.
Ruth isn't your typical thriller protagonist. She’s a forensic archaeologist in her late thirties, she’s "self-consciously" overweight, she lives alone with two cats, and she’s arguably more comfortable with the dead than the living. When she dates the bones, she delivers a blow to Nelson’s investigation: the remains aren't Lucy’s. They’re 2,000 years old.
They belong to an Iron Age girl, buried in what was once a "crossing place"—a liminal space between land and sea, life and death.
What Makes Elly Griffiths The Crossing Places Different?
Most crime novels are about the who. While the mystery in The Crossing Places is solid, the book is really about the where. Griffiths treats the Norfolk landscape as a living, breathing character. It’s treacherous. One minute you’re walking on solid ground, the next you’re calf-deep in sucking mud.
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Honestly, the atmosphere is what sticks with you. You’ve got these "anonymous letters" being sent to Nelson, filled with ritualistic references and quotes from the Bible and Shakespeare. It feels eerie. It’s not just a kidnapping; it feels like something ancient is waking up.
Then a second girl goes missing.
The pressure mounts, and the circle of suspects starts to feel uncomfortably small. Is it Erik, Ruth’s former mentor and a man she clearly still has feelings for? Is it Cathbad, the modern-day Druid who lives in a caravan and seems to know more than he should?
The Realism of Ruth Galloway
One reason The Crossing Places ranks so high for fans is Ruth herself. She’s refreshing. She isn't a "super-sleuth" with a tragic back-story involving a murdered family. She’s a woman who likes her cats, her solitude, and her saltmarsh cottage.
Griffiths based the archaeology on real-life inspirations. Her husband actually gave up a city career to become an archaeologist, and he’s the one who pointed out that prehistoric people saw marshes as sacred bridges to the afterlife. That "crossing places" concept isn't just a metaphor; it’s a historical reality.
The chemistry between Ruth and Nelson is another highlight. It’s not a "love at first sight" situation. It’s awkward. It’s messy. They’re opposites—the academic and the copper—but they share an obsessive streak that binds them together.
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Why the Setting Matters So Much
The North Norfolk coast is a place of "immense skies" and "remote beauty." If you’ve never been, Griffiths’ descriptions make you feel the dampness in your bones. She captures the isolation of the "Seahenge" era—referencing the real-life Bronze Age timber circle found at Holme-next-the-Sea in 1998.
In the book, the marshes represent a boundary. For the Iron Age people, the marsh was neither land nor sea. It was a place for sacrifice. When another child disappears in the present day, the parallels between ancient rituals and modern-day evil become terrifyingly clear.
A Breakdown of the Plot's Moving Parts
- The First Discovery: Ancient bones found near an Iron Age henge.
- The Cold Case: The disappearance of Lucy Downey ten years prior.
- The Letters: Cryptic, taunting notes sent to DCI Nelson.
- The Second Disappearance: A four-year-old girl vanishes from her garden, mirroring Lucy's case.
- The Investigation: Ruth and Nelson's partnership begins, blending carbon dating with traditional police work.
Misconceptions About the Series
People often assume that because it’s a "mystery series" set in a rural area, it’s a "cozy mystery."
It’s not.
While it lacks the over-the-top gore of some Scandinavian thrillers, The Crossing Places deals with some pretty dark themes—child abduction, ritual murder, and the psychological toll of isolation. It’s "gritty" in a quiet way. It’s the kind of book that makes you want to lock your back door even if you live in the middle of a city.
How to Get the Most Out of Reading It
If you're jumping into the Ruth Galloway world for the first time, here is the best way to approach it.
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Don't skip the archaeology bits. It’s tempting to skim the descriptions of soil layers and bone fragments to get back to the "action." Don't. Those details are the clues. Griffiths weaves the history into the solution of the mystery. If you ignore the past, you won't understand the present-day killer’s motive.
Pay attention to the minor characters. Cathbad, the Druid, might seem like comic relief or a "whacky" side character at first. He becomes incredibly important to the series’ DNA.
Read them in order. While the mystery in The Crossing Places is resolved by the final page, the character development—especially the complicated relationship between Ruth and Nelson—is a long-game. You’ll miss the nuance if you jump in halfway through the series.
Essential Reading Steps
- Check the Map: Look up a map of the North Norfolk coast, specifically around King's Lynn and Titchwell. Seeing the "liminal" nature of the coast helps the "crossing places" theme click.
- Research Seahenge: Briefly look at the 1998 discovery of the Holme-next-the-Sea timber circle. It provides the perfect historical context for the henge described in the novel.
- Note the Literary References: The letters Nelson receives aren't just gibberish. They often point to the mindset of someone who views themselves as part of a grand, historical tradition.
- Listen to the Atmosphere: If you can, try the audiobook. The narration often captures the bleak, rhythmic quality of the Norfolk winds that Griffiths describes so well.
The Crossing Places isn't just a "whodunnit." It’s a "where-dunnit" and a "why-dunnit" that explores how the ground beneath our feet holds onto the secrets of the people who walked there thousands of years ago. It’s the perfect starting point for anyone who likes their crime fiction with a side of history and a very large dose of atmosphere.
Take a trip to the saltmarshes. Just watch where you step. The tide is coming in.