Mood Indigo

by Charlotte Vale Allen

Honoria Barlow reluctantly agrees to investigate the death of her friend DeeDee Carlson, at the request of DeeDee's boyfriend Chip, and she discovers that her friend had many dangerous secrets

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Historical Fiction

284 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1998

About the author

Charlotte Vale-Allen was born in Toronto and lived in England from 1961 to 1964 where she worked as a television actress and singer. She returned to Toronto briefly, performing as a singer and in cabaret revues until she emigrated to the United States in 1966.

Shortly after her marriage to Walter Allen in 1970 she began writing and sold her first novel Love Life in 1974. Prior to this book's publication she contracted to do a series of paperback originals for Warner Books, with the result that in 1976 three of her books appeared in print.

Her autobiography, the acclaimed Daddy's Girl, was actually the first book she wrote but in 1971 it was deemed too controversial by the editors who read it. It wasn't until 1980, after she'd gained success as a novelist, that the groundbreaking book was finally published.

One of Canada's most successful novelists, with over seven million copies sold of her 30+ novels, Ms. Allen's books have been published in all English-speaking countries, in Braille, and have been translated into more than 20 languages.

In her writing she tries to deal with issues confronting women, being informative while at the same time offering a measure of optimism. "My strongest ability as a writer is to make women real, to take you inside their heads and let you know how they feel, and to make you care about them."

A film buff and an amateur photographer, Allen enjoys foreign travel. She finds cooking and needlework therapeutic, and is a compulsive player of computer Solitaire. The mother of an adult daughter, since 1970 she has made her home in Connecticut.

Reviews

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really different type of book than what I usually read. I liked the overall story very much, but I had difficulty with parts of the tale. I really enjoyed the setting of New York, 1934 and I thought the author's device of having the main character reading the newspaper and telling other characters what was going on was a good way of emphasizing the setting. I love old movies and many are mentioned here. However, I didn't understand the boy friend pretending to be Russian. That just seemed like a dumb thing to do. I didn't think the main character's back story (losing her husband and daughter to a vindictive mother) fit the character's personality. Overall recommended, but there are some problems.

[Linnja (Lynn) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 I just found myself a new author! This was my author "A" book. (something my sister and I are doing - reading by authors alphabetically). This book is a mystery, a historical drama, and most importantly to me, NOT a romance novel. Oh, there is romance in it, but it's REAL and not ridiculous! Loved it!

[Moira Sr. Fogarty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book - kept me turning pages. The author has a wonderful descriptive ability to take the reader to the time period she is writing about. Well worth reading and I'm eager to try more of her books.

[Heather Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

Compelling period piece, set in depression-era NYC. Part mystery, part romance. A quick and fulfilling summer read. Reminded me somewhat of the Maisie Dobbs books.

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlotte Vale Allen, the author, is quite the mystery character herself. After suffering sexual abuse at the hands of her father (detailed in her book Daddy's Girl) she reinvented herself, taking the name of a Bette Davis character. She has never revealed her true identity. She passed away this year (2013) at the age of 81. By my count she has written 41 books.

Mood Indigo, published in 1997, is a very engaging historical mystery that takes place in New York around 1934. It is a mystery, drama, and love story all in one. The author has the descriptive ability to take you into her characters and into the wonderful world of rich people during the depression (not kidding, a really wanted to move into her world).

It is not a very deep story but a delightful quick summer (or winter) read!

[Nightwitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Atmospheric mystery set in 1934 New York, although Honoria, the book's sleuth/main character, is perhaps a little too perfect. Reading in close proximity to another book of Allen's, this has many of the same themes - found family, and nightmare daughters who seek their mothers' destruction but instead manage only their own, which makes the authors' note that Allen is "the mother of an adult daughter" rather alarming. Easy read, although not particularly memorable.

[Kathy Crow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was delightedly surprised by this book. She captures the era so thoroughly I had to keep checking the publication date. The characters are beautifully drawn. The plot ticks along at a steady pace. I'm going to check out what else Charlotte Allen has written.

[Kathy Maher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book and towards the end it was hard to put down. The difficulty I had with the book - did not relate to my rating - was the size of the print...it was so small that it made it harder to read the book.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book years ago. Wonderful!!

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first half of the book, when it was mainly about Honoria and her assistant Maybelle. The dynamic between them was sweet and unique, and I was interested in reading about their pursuits whether they be dramaturging or sleuthing. But then I started losing interest... Especially when the storyline was mainly about Honoria and her husband who was a puppy-esque foreigner for most of the book until GASP we found out actually he was faking and he's a totally normal hunk. Um, what just happened here? Also he's technically not her husband, but anyway...

[Ruth E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay for a light read. The mystery was fair and there were a couple of other story lines (Mick not being Russian and Honoria's past) that were interesting. I liked the ending with Honoria having to be rushed to the hospital for the hematoma. However, the fact that there was no police involvement made it a little unbelievable. Karen killed her daughter, albeit accidentally, but it appeared it was "oh well". It was also pretty easy to figure out "who done it". It was an okay book, but definitely not one I would read again.

[Bernie Maddalena · Rating 5 out of 5]

pretty good

[Jackie Simons]

Read 7/97

[Lovebooks · Rating 1 out of 5]

No matter how hard I tried to read past the first chapter, I simply couldn't. The style is dry and not very compelling or intelligent...

[Nina Draganova · Rating 5 out of 5]

За пореден път не ме разочарова тази авторка.Книгите и са завладяващи,интересни и неочаквани.

[Saleh MoonWalker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Onvan : Mood Indigo - Nevisande : Charlotte Vale Allen - ISBN : 965743713 - ISBN13 : 9780965743716 - Dar 284 Safhe - Saal e Chap : 1998