Marston effectively textures the main mystery with colorful backstories. Meantime, his character portraits deepen with every...
Brother Nicholas has been missing from Gloucester Abbey for two days, much longer than it usually takes him to collect the rents from the 17 local tenants. So tensions between brothers and novices in the abbey run high. Disciplinarian Brother Paul wields his birch rod with even more fervor than usual, and harmless Brother Frewine (a.k.a. Brother Owl) threatens corporal punishment for the first time ever. Despite a recent scolding, mischievous novices Elaf and Kenelm sneak into the pantry in the middle of the night to quell their growling stomachs, only to discover the corpse of Brother Nicholas. Sounds like a job for Domesday Commissioners Ralph Delchard and Gervase Bret (The Foxes of Warwick, 2002, etc.). Another murder seems just the tonic for Ralph, suffering a bout of ennui at the prospect of mediating yet another petty property dispute far from what passes in 1086 for the comforts of home. True, his wry wife Golde is along for comfort, but she’s a bit distracted at the prospect of an imminent reunion with Alegar, her long-estranged sister. Ralph and Gervase face resistance from Durand, the local sheriff—whether from guilt or suspicion of outsiders remains to be determined. In addition, everyone at the abbey hated Brother Nicholas, though most at first claim otherwise. Keeping them all on pins and needles is the news that King William the Conqueror himself plans to visit Gloucester.
Marston effectively textures the main mystery with colorful backstories. Meantime, his character portraits deepen with every installment, yielding extra rewards for series fans.Pub Date: April 7, 2003
ISBN: 0-312-28542-6
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Minotaur
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An anodyne visit with Tricia and her friends and enemies hung on a thin mystery.
Too much free time leads a New Hampshire bookseller into yet another case of murder.
Now that Tricia Miles has Pixie Poe and Mr. Everett practically running her bookstore, Haven’t Got a Clue, she finds herself at loose ends. Her wealthy sister, Angelica, who in the guise of Nigela Ricita has invested heavily in making Stoneham a bookish tourist attraction, is entering the amateur competition for the Great Booktown Bake-Off. So Tricia, who’s recently taken up baking as a hobby, decides to join her and spends a lot of time looking for the perfect cupcake recipe. A visit to another bookstore leaves Tricia witnessing a nasty argument between owner Joyce Widman and next-door neighbor Vera Olson over the trimming of tree branches that hang over Joyce’s yard—also overheard by new town police officer Cindy Pearson. After Tricia accepts Joyce’s offer of some produce from her garden, they find Vera skewered by a pitchfork, and when Police Chief Grant Baker arrives, Joyce is his obvious suspect. Ever since Tricia moved to Stoneham, the homicide rate has skyrocketed (Poisoned Pages, 2018, etc.), and her history with Baker is fraught. She’s also become suspicious about the activities at Pets-A-Plenty, the animal shelter where Vera was a dedicated volunteer. Tricia’s offered her expertise to the board, but president Toby Kingston has been less than welcoming. With nothing but baking on her calendar, Tricia has plenty of time to investigate both the murder and her vague suspicions about the shelter. Plenty of small-town friendships and rivalries emerge in her quest for the truth.
An anodyne visit with Tricia and her friends and enemies hung on a thin mystery.Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-0272-9
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
A murder is committed in a stalled transcontinental train in the Balkans, and every passenger has a watertight alibi. But Hercule Poirot finds a way.
**Note: This classic Agatha Christie mystery was originally published in England as Murder on the Orient Express, but in the United States as Murder in the Calais Coach. Kirkus reviewed the book in 1934 under the original US title, but we changed the title in our database to the now recognizable title Murder on the Orient Express. This is the only name now known for the book. The reason the US publisher, Dodd Mead, did not use the UK title in 1934 was to avoid confusion with the 1932 Graham Greene novel, Orient Express.
Pub Date: Feb. 28, 1934
ISBN: 978-0062073495
Page Count: -
Publisher: Dodd, Mead
Review Posted Online: Sept. 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1934
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