THE FACE OF DEATH

by Lesley Grant-Adamson ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 1986

In this second outing, much better than the author's first (Death on Widow's Walk), we have the overlong story of quiet, cold, hot-tempered Peter Dutton, who has accidentally killed his scornful, extravagant wife Carol, then, in a panic, buried her in the garden of their brand-new development house. Months later, widespread publicity given to an amnesia victim in Leamington hospital who bears a fleeting resemblance to Carol inspires Dutton to claim her as his wife, hoping for an end to his nightmares and aching conscience. It doesn't work, of course; all it does is wildly compound his problems and present the amnesiac with a husband and environment totally alien and, as time goes by, threatening as well. Suspense and tension build nicely but begin to sag well before the anticlimatic final chapters. A tighter, shortened narrative would have been a plus, but the reader will still hang in, wanting to know the fate in store for the hapless pseudo-Carol.

Pub Date: July 1, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Scribners

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1986

Categories: FICTION