earthly remains by peter hernon is an archeological thriller, set in the late 40s in israel. the book is strongest in the middle, with an ending that is largely unsatisfying, and a beginning that is fascinating but simply goes on way too long. (at least compared to the center section of the story, which in hindsight has the most potential for some real ideas and action, but just doesn’t get the coverage it deserves.)

when i went to get the book from the library, it turned out to not be out on the shelves (despite there being three or four copies in the library), but in whatever place it is that they’ve stored the half of the fiction collection that is not on display. it seems odd for the library to have books that aren’t on display, although i’m sure there are reasonable reasons for it.