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Deep in the heart of Paris, its oldest cemetery is, by 1785, overflowing, tainting the very breath of those who live nearby. Into their midst comes Jean-Baptiste Baratte, a young, provincial engineer charged by the king with demolishing it.
At first Baratte sees this as a chance to clear the burden of history, a fitting task for a modern man of reason. But before long, he begins to suspect that the destruction of the cemetery might be a prelude to his own.
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I am in love with Andrew Miller's writing. I could not stop listening (Audible). It is a lesson for me in how to write a character-driven novel and steep the reader in the world itself.
This book promised a lot but failed to deliver. I enjoyed it, but felt there was so much more it could have given in terms of plot and character development, a Guardian book review puts it well: “It is disappointing, given the vitality of the novel's setting and set-up, that Miller fails to achieve corresponding dynamism in the development of plot and character”.
Disappointing overall, although the descriptions of place in both smell and sight were very good.
