The Buried Book

Written by D. M. Pulley

Narrated by Luke Daniels

When Althea Leary abandons her nine-year-old son, Jasper, he’s left on his uncle’s farm with nothing but a change of clothes and a Bible.

It’s 1952, and Jasper isn’t allowed to ask questions or make a fuss. He’s lucky to even have a home and must keep his mouth shut and his ears open to stay in his uncle’s good graces. No one knows where his mother went or whether she’s coming back. Desperate to see her again, he must take matters into his own hands. From the farm, he embarks on a treacherous search that will take him to the squalid hideaways of Detroit and back again, through tawdry taverns, peep shows, and gambling houses.

As he’s drawn deeper into an adult world of corruption, scandal, and murder, Jasper uncovers the shocking past still chasing his mother—and now it’s chasing him too.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Aug 23, 2016
• ISBN: 9781522639312

D. M. Pulley

D. M. Pulley lives just outside Cleveland, Ohio, with her husband, her two sons, and her dog. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked as a Professional Engineer, rehabbing historic structures and conducting forensic investigations of building failures. Pulley’s structural survey of a vacant building in Cleveland inspired her debut novel, The Dead Key, the winner of the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. She is also the author of The Buried Book.

Reviews for The Buried Book

[tess_w · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book was a real clunker. The story moved very slow and it was also very predictable. I read about 50% of this book and listened to the other 50% on my way to and from work. The reading on the audio was also terrible! This is the story of 9 year old Jasper who is left with his aunt and uncle by his mother who has gotten herself involved in organized crime. Jasper suffers some really brutal physical injuries from beatings and then when a tornado throws him for miles. The audio was narrated by Luke Daniels and the only 2 voices he had was a child's voice and a real deep forced yelling voice. Both book and audio--2 stars!

[tess_schoolmarm · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book was a real clunker. The story moved very slow and it was also very predictable. I read about 50% of this book and listened to the other 50% on my way to and from work. The reading on the audio was also terrible! This is the story of 9 year old Jasper who is left with his aunt and uncle by his mother who has gotten herself involved in organized crime. Jasper suffers some really brutal physical injuries from beatings and then when a tornado throws him for miles. The audio was narrated by Luke Daniels and the only 2 voices he had was a child's voice and a real deep forced yelling voice. Both book and audio--2 stars!

[Kim Saint · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a ride! Noir writing at its best with nitty, gritty farm life in the background. I wanted desperately for things to end well for Jasper and his family. Simultaneously rushed to the end but would pull back because wanting my ride to last a little longer. I have read or listened to every book penned by D.M. Pulley. Absolute talent! This is my first listen by this narrator, Luke Daniels, and I’m off to search for more. Character inflections were spot on! Female voices were understandably not as good but still he captured the emotions felt in the moment.

[judiex · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

When Jasper was 9 years old, his mother dropped him off at his grandparents’ farm with only a change of clothes and a Bible and left. While he liked his grandparents and the farm, he wanted to find his mother and learn her story. THE BURIED BOOK is the story of his search for her, his discovery of her story, and his search to find himself.Too much self-pity without enough help from the adults who were responsible for him. Too much time on his own to wander and lack guidance.

[erickas-3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Buried Book is told through the eyes of 9-year-old Jasper who has just been abandoned by his mother on his uncle’s farm outside Detroit. Jasper doesn’t understand why his mom has run off. Snippets of conversations he overhears in the barn or in town lead him to believe his mother might be dead. While adapting to farm life and trying to glean more hints about his mother’s disappearance, Jasper discovers his mother’s teenage diary in an abandoned house on his uncle’s property. This book only raises more questions than it answers, and Jasper is determined to find out what happened to his mother. He finds that his mom has gotten mixed up with some bad people (drug smugglers, gamblers, and bootleggers), and now the bad guys are after him, too.



Pulley has done her research. Set in the rural 1950s, many stories of farm life are interspersed into Jasper’s adventures. This made for an extremely entertaining but tense story, as everywhere Jasper turned he was running into trouble. This book is not just a linear mystery tale - this is a family saga, a story of fugitives, a story of the mistreatment of Native Americans at the hand of shady law enforcement, and the tale of a little boy trying to understand the world of adults. I appreciated how deftly Pulley was able to use historical fact in her story without being pedantic or heavy-handed. There are so many elements at work, and yet, Pulley weaves them into a cohesive narrative that left me flipping the pages to find out what happened next. The chapter titles are written as police investigator interrogatives, which hints at what’s to come.


This story was engrossing with just enough breaks in the story to allow the reader to catch a breath. Recommended.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing this advance copy.

[dabofdarkness · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Set in and around Detroit in 1952, 9 year old Jasper has just been left at his uncle Leo’s farm. No one knows where his mother Althea has gotten off to and his dad visits when he can. Jasper has many questions and several of those can be answered by secrets kept on the farm. The rest he must hunt out, puzzling them together.Part mystery, part literary fiction, part coming of age, this tale wasn’t what I was expecting but it sure was gripping. Most of the book is told through Jasper’s eyes, though there are flashbacks sprinkled throughout the book to show us Althea’s life as a girl long before she had Jasper. While some parts of the book were a bit slow, there was always something pulling me back into it.Althea grew up in the Prohibition Era and as a teen she is faced with some interesting employment choices. She doesn’t want to be a farmer her whole life yet she doesn’t see many choices in front of her either. Jumping forward a generation, young Jasper is dumped on the farm’s doorstep. Eventually he starts exploring things a bit and finds the old farmhouse that was gutted by fire. The structure is still standing and he makes a very interesting discovery inside, one that gives him many clues as to his mom’s history. These clues lead him to seek out people his mom once knew and who might be able to help him locate her today.I wasn’t expecting some of the twists and turns this book took, which I really liked about the story. Since he’s only 9, most of the adults in the tale don’t want to tell him what they know, usually in an attempt to protect him. Jasper is tired of being protected from the truth and indeed, the web of lies and evasions really start to weigh on the guy. Talk about emotional and mental strain!The farm scenes were good but often intense. After all, it’s a working farm complete with livestock, tractors, and plenty of chores. Jasper has his older cousin to help him navigate the dos and dont’s of the farm. There are scenes of butchering but I didn’t feel they were gratuitously gory though we do get Jasper’s view on these scenes. Initially, he’s a bit horrified but as he spends more time on the farm, he starts to understand and except how things are done.The ending wrapped up the big questions and I believe Jasper comes out the stronger for the experience. I did feel some minor mysteries were left hanging a bit. While such is often so with real life, I did want just a little more from this book. Still, it was a good listen and I did get attached to Jasper and his cousin.I listened to this audiobook through Kindle Unlimited.The Narration: Luke Daniels was great for this book. I am once again impressed with his vocal range. He was great as 9 year old Jasper including the myriad of emotions he experiences throughout this story. I especially loved his voice for uncle Leo who was often hard yet caring at the same time. Daniels’s female voices were good and his regional accents were well done.

[creighley_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's 1952 and Jasper has been "dumped" at his uncle's farm after his mother has left. No one will answer his questions, so the nine year old sets out to Detroit to find some answers four himself. As he gets closer to answers, his life is endangered.

[nhalliwell-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read Ms. Pulley's first book, The Dead Key, about 18 months ago and loved it. The Buried Book, her latest, did an excellent job of placing the reader in the time and location of the story. There is a rich atmosphere created around the rural setting and families living hand to mouth. I enjoyed that aspect of the book very much.

I did not connect with the characters as much in this book. The main character is a young man. He is surrounded by adults who never tell him the truth. They seem to believe that he should be protected from it. All the trouble he gets into could have been avoided if the adults had answered his questions truthfully. The one character I really did want to get to know, his mother, was inaccessible. Her story is told through her diary and in grudging tidbits from her family. She really intrigued me and I wish she had had a voice. Her presence is strong throughout the book but her voice is absent.

The mysteries, yes plural, in the story span decades. Much like The Dead Key, the main character is in the middle of a mystery that is linked to one from the past. Both must be unraveled. I enjoyed The Buried Book and would recommend it.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for honest review.