A NICE CLASS OF CORPSE

by Simon Brett ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 21, 1986

Brett, author of the charming Charles Paris show-biz/mystery series, introduces a new sleuth here--classy yet earthy Mrs. Pargeter, well-preserved widow of a gentleman-crook--in a crisp little mystery-comedy of the drily delightful English sort. Mrs. P., 67, is the new arrival at the wee Devereux, a seaside residential hotel for ""active,"" well-off senior citizens, run by the painfully genteel Miss Naismith (whose pre-dinner ""Perriers"" are actually straight gin). The stuffy atmosphere is soon shattered, however--first by Mrs. P.'s unflappable brio, then by the ""accidental"" death of old Mrs. Selsby, who just happens to have left her sizeable estate to be shared by her half-dozen Devereux housemates. So: which of the oldsters pushed Mrs. Selsby down the stairs? Or was it the Devereux butler, who'd been secretly stealing the dead woman's jewelry? And why is senile Mrs. Mendlingham the next to die (via smothering)?; was it something she saw during her dead-of-night rambles? The answers to these questions are less than clever or stunning. But Brett keeps things playfully taut, with false clues galore and teasing excerpts from the murderer's giddy diary. More important, without excess archness or the slightest whiff of camp, he amusingly reanimates an old-fashioned Agatha Christie set-up--thanks to sardonic, updated details (Miss Naismith secretly views Soft-porn videos), streamlined narration, and the highly engaging Mrs. Pargeter.

Pub Date: Jan. 21, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Scribners

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1986

Categories: FICTION