FAINTLEY SPEAKING

by Gladys Mitchell ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 19, 1986

Another of the late author's stories in a first US publication--one that ranks no more than midway in the uneven gamut of her work. Colorless schoolteacher Lily Faintley is found stabbed to death in the English resort town of Cromlech by Laura Menzies, secretary to psychiatrist-sleuth Beatrice Lestrange Bradley. They're intrigued, and with police approval set out to solve some of the mysteries that surround the killing. Why did Faintley regularly pick up packages at the railroad station near her school and deliver them to a shady back-street storekeeper? What is the significance of the ferns that keep cropping up as the plot thickens? Where do fellow teachers Bannister and Trench and the Lascaux Caves in France fit into the picture? The chase moves Bradley and her Watson from France to the Kindleford School, back to Cromlech and on to the Isle of Wight as the questions get their unconvincing answers. The rambling, elaborate plot gets help from a few interesting characters along the way, but it's not enough to satisfy. This one is strictly for Mitchell fans.

Pub Date: May 19, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1986

Categories: FICTION