Perhaps the most egregious yet of the recent spate of alleged mysteries that bury detection in a morass of domestic detail.
Literary agent Jane Stuart (Hanging Hannah, 2000, etc.) has just been getting her life back together after the traffic-accident death of her husband Kenneth. Now her omnicompetent housekeeper Florence has her household running like a top, providing tasty meals with a Trinidad twist and keeping young Master Nicholas on the mark in school and at home. Her business is flourishing, with editors tripping over each other to bid on incipient bestsellers like The Blue Palindrome. Her new beau, police detective Stanley Greenberg, and her cat Winky provide all the companionship she craves. So when Kenneth's obnoxious cousin Stephanie Townsend decides to leave Boston and relocate to Shady Hills, lured by a job her Wellesley chum Faith Carson's new publishing house, Jane is anything but pleased—especially since she's broken down and booked a well-deserved vacation. For Kenneth's sake, she takes Stephanie in, listening to her narcissistic tirades and giving her moral support when Carson & Hart turns out to be little more than a vanity press. But when Stephanie sees Faith steal a necklace from wealthy matron Lillian Strohman, and then finds Lillian's maid Una stabbed to death, Jane suspects a weak publication list is the least of Carson & Hart's problems. Worse yet, the day of Jane's departure for Antigua, inconsiderate Stephanie finally gets herself stabbed to death and shoved in a dumpster, imperiling Jane's long-awaited Caribbean adventure. Luckily—and thanks in part to the adorable Winky—a confession is mere hours away.
Perhaps the most egregious yet of the recent spate of alleged mysteries that bury detection in a morass of domestic detail.Pub Date: May 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-57566-657-X
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2001
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
This ran in the S.E.P. and resulted in more demands for the story in book form than ever recorded. Well, here it is and it is a honey. Imagine ten people, not knowing each other, not knowing why they were invited on a certain island house-party, not knowing their hosts. Then imagine them dead, one by one, until none remained alive, nor any clue to the murderer. Grand suspense, a unique trick, expertly handled.
Pub Date: Feb. 21, 1939
ISBN: 0062073478
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Dodd, Mead
Review Posted Online: Sept. 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1939
SEEN & HEARD
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