This is an oddly flaccid book. The author loves the passive voice, and also seems to love characters whose behavior veers strangely from the emphatic to the disinterested, who wait for things to happen to them, and who engage with others in rather oblivious and disaffected ways. The narrator, photographer Juan Camaron, assists the Glasgow police in helping identify a serial killer by taking photos of the area in which the crimes have occurred on a regular basis, then comparing the images. He's got a long backstory that doesn't add much to either the plot or the character's development, and Juan ends up being a very dull figure throughout. None of the other characters are particularly interesting or developed either, and their lack of agency makes for a very boring novel indeed.

Really enjoyed this book. Some early reviews made me question its prose, but I found the pacing really good as our narrator Juan Cameron is a photographer and the writing reminds me of how a photographer looks at things, picking up a lot of details we might miss. And that is basically the premise of this book. Juan and his father are sent to photographs architecture in Cuba right as the Spanish-American War began. Due to tragedy Juan ends up inheriting land in Cuba and Scotland where he returns. He helps police to solve a murder by the use of his camera which photographs shots of daily life at a regular interval and then can try and discern patterns that might help determine the identity of the killer.

From here he is sent to Glasgow to help their police solve a group of serial killings. He sets up his camera in two locations, with autotimer device, and from there can get an idea of who might be the killer. I know some have stopped reading the book, but I just found it an interesting use of photography and the plot gets better and better the further into the book. Who might be involved? A minister, policeman, hotel owner, store owner, etc. the list of possibly suspects is long and the ending is very well done. Having recently read Dickens and “I, Claudius” this book was a breeze for me. Very well done, I really enjoyed the plot, the characters, and the settings in Cuba and Scotland in the 1890’s. Thanks to NetGalley, as well as Allison & Busby for the free copy of this book in return for my honest review.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Allison & Busby for an advance copy of The Figure in The Photograph, a historical novel set in Glasgow in 1898.

Photographer Juan Camarón returns to his birth city of Glasgow from Cuba and accidentally solves a murder while experimenting with timer delayed photography. As a result he is asked to help in the hunt for a serial killer.

The Figure in The Photograph is an interesting read, chock full of historical detail on poverty in Glasgow and photography techniques. The novel has a good premise with the use of modern technology in a field that, at the time, relied on human interaction and experience. Unfortunately I am a crime fiction aficionado so the majority of the novel seemed tedious and superfluous to me, bogged down in detail that had nothing to do with the crime investigation. I did, however, enjoy the ending which the slog to get there did not herald. It was clever, quite exciting and more complex that I would have guessed. On that subject, guessing I also got the killer’s identity totally wrong.

I like the idea of placing an outsider at the heart of the novel as it lends a certain objectivity to any assessment of the conditions and milieu, although the first person narrative slightly dulls this. Juan Camarón was born In Glasgow, which explains his return for an inheritance, but spent most of his life in Spain. I can’t say that I saw anything particularly Spanish in his attitude or far that matter anything especially Victorian in his behaviour as he gads about Glasgow with a young, single woman.

The Figure in The Photograph is not really to my taste but it is well written and will appeal, I think, to readers of a more literary bent.

Juan and his father are wandering Cuba taking photographs of buildings when the war with Spain takes place and Juan's father is killed. Through a series photos that his father took at the time of his death Juan discovers it wasn't an accident. Juan heads back to Scotland where his mother's family lives. While there he realizes that serial photography can reveal interesting information. He and another man invent a timer for the camera but there are complications with their partnership.

Writing and editing books is an art form, and as many books as I have read, I know I don't have the knack to write one. There are serious issues with the flow of this book, it never draws you into the story, and you always know you are just reading a book. The premise was good, and I wanted to like the book, but it just didn't happen for me. I did read an uncorrected proof, so maybe in the editing it will improve. Thank you #NetGalley for the opportunity to read #TheFigureinthe Photograph, I'm sorry, I couldn't have given it a better review.

The Novel is very easy to read and beginning was pretty good, however going forward I did find it very un-engaging. None of the characters seem to have a definition, even the main character.. I wouldn't be able to tell you anything about him really, nevermind the rest of them. Story doesn't seem to keep you hooked or wandering what is going to happen next. You're just reading through it waiting for something exciting to happen, but it doesn't.. And this whole invention of timer for the camera helping to catch a serial killer just sounds more than absurd to me. Description was promising, but sadly the novel itself has disappointed me.