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Fethering #4
Murder in the Museum
Bracketts, an Elizabethan house near town of Fethering, is about to be turned into a museum. Once the home of celebrated poet Esmond Cloudleigh, it has been decided that it should now become a shrine to his life and poetry.
But the transition from house to museum is running far from smoothly, and Carole Seddon soon begins to regret her decision to be on the Board as the witnesses bitter antagonism and rivalry amongst the members.
Then a shocking discovery is made: Buried in the kitchen garden is a human skeleton. And before too long, there is a second body, not yet cold.
But the transition from house to museum is running far from smoothly, and Carole Seddon soon begins to regret her decision to be on the Board as the witnesses bitter antagonism and rivalry amongst the members.
Then a shocking discovery is made: Buried in the kitchen garden is a human skeleton. And before too long, there is a second body, not yet cold.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
216 people are currently reading
467 people want to read
About the author
Simon Brett
329 books532 followersSimon Brett is a prolific British writer of whodunnits.
He is the son of a Chartered Surveyor and was educated at Dulwich College and Wadham College, Oxford, where he got a first class honours degree in English.
He then joined the BBC as a trainee and worked for BBC Radio and London Weekend Television, where his work included 'Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy' and 'Frank Muir Goes Into ...'.
After his spells with the media he began devoting most of his time to writing from the late 1970s and is well known for his various series of crime novels.
He is married with three children and lives in Burpham, near Arundel, West Sussex, England. He is the current president of the Detection Club.
He is the son of a Chartered Surveyor and was educated at Dulwich College and Wadham College, Oxford, where he got a first class honours degree in English.
He then joined the BBC as a trainee and worked for BBC Radio and London Weekend Television, where his work included 'Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy' and 'Frank Muir Goes Into ...'.
After his spells with the media he began devoting most of his time to writing from the late 1970s and is well known for his various series of crime novels.
He is married with three children and lives in Burpham, near Arundel, West Sussex, England. He is the current president of the Detection Club.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 163 reviews
May 31, 2021
Im Brackett-Haus in der englischen Küstenstadt Fethering hat einst der Heimatdichter Esmond Chadley gewohnt. Jetzt wird geplant, das Haus zu einem Museum zu machen. Bei den Aufräumarbeiten wird im Küchengarten ein Skelett ausgegraben. Es stellt sich bald heraus, dass der Tote bereits vor ca. 90 Jahren gestorben sein muss. Was ist damals geschehen? Der Totenschädel weißt ein Loch auf. Mord oder Unfall?
Einige Tage nach der Entdeckung des Skeletts wird die Vorsitzende der Museumsstiftung erschossen. Haben die beiden Fälle miteinander zu tun?
Die beiden Freundinnen Jude und Carole nehmen wieder die Ermittlungen auf.
**
Wie zuvor schon "Ein Toter kommt selten allein" hat mir auch dieser Krimi von Simon Brett wieder sehr gut gefallen! Es ist einfach ein für mich typisch englischer Krimi - von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite. Wer Spannung und Nervenkitzel möchte, sollte diesen Roman eher nicht lesen.
Zwar ist "Mord im Museum" auch durchaus sehr spannend, aber auf andere, feinere Art und Weise. Einfach typisch englisch (im positiven Sinne natürlich)!
Die Charaktere sind sehr schön herausgearbeitet. Die eigensinnigen Freundinnen Carole und Jude muss man einfach mögen.
Und das Ende hat mich auch überrascht - es war nicht vorhersehbar.
Für mich also ein richtig gutes Buch!
Einige Tage nach der Entdeckung des Skeletts wird die Vorsitzende der Museumsstiftung erschossen. Haben die beiden Fälle miteinander zu tun?
Die beiden Freundinnen Jude und Carole nehmen wieder die Ermittlungen auf.
**
Wie zuvor schon "Ein Toter kommt selten allein" hat mir auch dieser Krimi von Simon Brett wieder sehr gut gefallen! Es ist einfach ein für mich typisch englischer Krimi - von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite. Wer Spannung und Nervenkitzel möchte, sollte diesen Roman eher nicht lesen.
Zwar ist "Mord im Museum" auch durchaus sehr spannend, aber auf andere, feinere Art und Weise. Einfach typisch englisch (im positiven Sinne natürlich)!
Die Charaktere sind sehr schön herausgearbeitet. Die eigensinnigen Freundinnen Carole und Jude muss man einfach mögen.
Und das Ende hat mich auch überrascht - es war nicht vorhersehbar.
Für mich also ein richtig gutes Buch!
October 12, 2019
I have to stop reading these, it's getting ridiculous. Five in row. But they are so fricking calming. However, I would like to tell the main characters to stop walking into places where they will obviously be trapped. I think I shall call this series, "Nancy Drew for the Adult Soul."
October 22, 2009
I always enjoyed the Charles Paris stories and thought I'd try this from the Fethering series. I will probably read more of these, simply because they're easy and I only yelled at the book once: when the heroine finds the secret priest hole and ventures down it without a "lifeline" (someone who knows where she is, a weapon, a functioning cell phone, enough food for a week - that sort of thing) and then, when not just one but two suspects show up, are annoyed to find her, and have with them someone else they really don't like and send her down into the hole and then ask the heroine to toss up her car keys so they "can move her car" which is in the way AND SHE DOES. Okay, maybe that was just one big looooong yell.
Here's what would happen if I were going looking for a secret priest hole: I'd take a disinterested party with me, when I found the hole, I'd look at it from a distance and then I would leave and report my findings to the local constabulary. Before going down into such a space, I would have: a flashlight with fresh batteries, stout shoes, a quick alternate escape plan (featuring the disinterested party, I'm sure), and my head examined.
The characters were realistic (they can get cartoony in the Cozies) and I suppose the victim was not totally over-the-top as pushy, overbearing, with a touch of sadism. But the nicest part about that was that she was not even the intended victim. Oh, that was good! You prime everyone to have a motive to kill her and then she wasn't even the target! Nicely done.
I do have a quibble with the annoying American woman. I don't mind her being annoying and pushy, we are pretty annoying and pushy - that's fair comment. But the concession to an accent was that she said "Gard" all the time. As in, "Oh, Gard!" I'm sure the Brits roll on the floor when we try to do various Blighty accents, but where do they get this impression that we say things like "Gard" and "Americur"? Get it right, it's only in words like "Warshington" and "warter" and even then it's a minority accent. We say, "Oh, gawwwd!"
I'm afraid the dread secret of the Chadleigh's wasn't much of a secret. You only have to mention WWI, a son/brother dead and the body unrecovered to think: ahhh, a deserter - but it was fun getting there.
Here's what would happen if I were going looking for a secret priest hole: I'd take a disinterested party with me, when I found the hole, I'd look at it from a distance and then I would leave and report my findings to the local constabulary. Before going down into such a space, I would have: a flashlight with fresh batteries, stout shoes, a quick alternate escape plan (featuring the disinterested party, I'm sure), and my head examined.
The characters were realistic (they can get cartoony in the Cozies) and I suppose the victim was not totally over-the-top as pushy, overbearing, with a touch of sadism. But the nicest part about that was that she was not even the intended victim. Oh, that was good! You prime everyone to have a motive to kill her and then she wasn't even the target! Nicely done.
I do have a quibble with the annoying American woman. I don't mind her being annoying and pushy, we are pretty annoying and pushy - that's fair comment. But the concession to an accent was that she said "Gard" all the time. As in, "Oh, Gard!" I'm sure the Brits roll on the floor when we try to do various Blighty accents, but where do they get this impression that we say things like "Gard" and "Americur"? Get it right, it's only in words like "Warshington" and "warter" and even then it's a minority accent. We say, "Oh, gawwwd!"
I'm afraid the dread secret of the Chadleigh's wasn't much of a secret. You only have to mention WWI, a son/brother dead and the body unrecovered to think: ahhh, a deserter - but it was fun getting there.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 22, 2010
The downside of this book was all the typical BORING boardroom meeting rhetoric (disagreements / powerplay among members, fundraising, sponsors, etc.) that the main storyline revolves around. How can any of these dynamics create an enjoyable page-turner? There were also major editing oversights in the book. A board of trustees manages Bracketts, the Elizabethan house of a celebrated writer, Esmond Chadleigh. Throughout the book, Felix is Esmond's father, except in Chapter 13 where Gerard is Esmond's father. Throughout the book, Belinda is Esmond's daughter, except in Chapter 34 where Belinda is Esmond's sister. On the positive side of this book, the author Simon Brett did a great job portraying the characterization differences between the strait-laced Carole and her laid-back, serene next-door neighbor, Jude.
June 20, 2020
Another good story but not my favourite. I took one star off for storyline and another for the appalling way he portrayed the character Jonny who had Downs Syndrome.
March 23, 2024
Murder in the Museum is the 4th book in the Fethering mystery series by English author Simon Brett. It's been awhile since I visited the southeast coast of England and saw what crime-solving friends Carrie and Jude are up to.
In this story, Carrie has just been asked to sit on the Board of the house of English poet Esmund Chadleigh. The Director of the Brackett's trust, Gina Locke, had asked her to fill the vacant position, because of Carrie's past experience as a civil servant. Gina hopes to change the home, Bracketts, into a museum. She hopes by adding Carrie to the board that she might have a supporting voice in her efforts.
It's a fractious board, all with their own ideas. And into the mix is the ex-Director and also ex-Board member, one Sheila Cartwright, who still wants to exert her powerful influence on the Board's agenda. As well, creeping into the mix is a biographer, American Marla Teischbaum who wants to write a biography of Esmund. This is upsetting to Esmund's nephew who has been struggling to write his own biography of his uncle.
So there you go... Oh wait, this is a murder mystery after all. A body is found on the grounds by one of the volunteer workers, on the sight of the spot where they are preparing the groundwork for the new museum. Sheila tries to control the narrative of this event, basically taking over from Gina. Keep the press out of it!
In the meantime, Carole's neighbour and best friend, Jude, is helping out at the local detention center, teaching her alternative therapies to the prisoners. (It's a low security facility) One of the prisoners, Mervyn, was one of the volunteers who discovered the body as he works at Brackett's on a work-release program. Mervyn is suspected of the murder of the body and confesses, although it turns out the body has been in place about 50 years.
A final twist is that an old beau of Jude, Laurence Hauker, who happens to study English literature, shows up to rekindle the old flame. He's a hard drinking / smoking man, whose health is suspect. He will help with the investigation, adding his insights into the history and career of Chadleigh.
So there is the gist. Carole and Jude will work together and also conduct their own individual investigations into the mysterious body and the secrets of Bracketts and the Chadleigh family. Carole is somewhat jealous of Jude's distraction as she likes to feed off of Jude's ideas, use her as a sounding board. There turn out to be many secrets in the Chadleigh family. There will be other death(s).
It's a lovely, meandering, interesting story with lots of suspects. The interactions between Carole and Jude are the highlight of course but their relationships with the other characters enrich the plot. Friction abounds. Strong personalities rub each other the wrong way. A nice cozy mystery and it's been too long since I last was at Fethering. Lovely place. 😁 (3.5 stars)
In this story, Carrie has just been asked to sit on the Board of the house of English poet Esmund Chadleigh. The Director of the Brackett's trust, Gina Locke, had asked her to fill the vacant position, because of Carrie's past experience as a civil servant. Gina hopes to change the home, Bracketts, into a museum. She hopes by adding Carrie to the board that she might have a supporting voice in her efforts.
It's a fractious board, all with their own ideas. And into the mix is the ex-Director and also ex-Board member, one Sheila Cartwright, who still wants to exert her powerful influence on the Board's agenda. As well, creeping into the mix is a biographer, American Marla Teischbaum who wants to write a biography of Esmund. This is upsetting to Esmund's nephew who has been struggling to write his own biography of his uncle.
So there you go... Oh wait, this is a murder mystery after all. A body is found on the grounds by one of the volunteer workers, on the sight of the spot where they are preparing the groundwork for the new museum. Sheila tries to control the narrative of this event, basically taking over from Gina. Keep the press out of it!
In the meantime, Carole's neighbour and best friend, Jude, is helping out at the local detention center, teaching her alternative therapies to the prisoners. (It's a low security facility) One of the prisoners, Mervyn, was one of the volunteers who discovered the body as he works at Brackett's on a work-release program. Mervyn is suspected of the murder of the body and confesses, although it turns out the body has been in place about 50 years.
A final twist is that an old beau of Jude, Laurence Hauker, who happens to study English literature, shows up to rekindle the old flame. He's a hard drinking / smoking man, whose health is suspect. He will help with the investigation, adding his insights into the history and career of Chadleigh.
So there is the gist. Carole and Jude will work together and also conduct their own individual investigations into the mysterious body and the secrets of Bracketts and the Chadleigh family. Carole is somewhat jealous of Jude's distraction as she likes to feed off of Jude's ideas, use her as a sounding board. There turn out to be many secrets in the Chadleigh family. There will be other death(s).
It's a lovely, meandering, interesting story with lots of suspects. The interactions between Carole and Jude are the highlight of course but their relationships with the other characters enrich the plot. Friction abounds. Strong personalities rub each other the wrong way. A nice cozy mystery and it's been too long since I last was at Fethering. Lovely place. 😁 (3.5 stars)
April 8, 2022
Bracketts, an Elizabethan house, is to be turned into a museum celebrating the life and work of a local poet, Esmond Chadleigh. But there is tension on the Board of Trustees that Carole Seddon, an amateur sleuth, joins as it plans the way forward.
Then a skeleton is discovered in the kitchen garden and Carole enlists the help of friend, and also amateur sleuth, Jude Nicol, to try to discover what has happened.
Before they get very far into their investigation one of the former members of the Board, who still had a big say in what was happening, is murdered. And, as is often the case, there are a number of suspects, all with good reasons for committing the crime.
Why has it happened? And are the two incidents connected? Or is there some hidden secret about the house and the family? Carole and Jude carry out their intrepid investigations and eventually uncover surprising facts about the Chadleigh family ... but not before they have gone through plenty of trauma and Carole very nearly becomes a victim herself.
The usual exciting Fethering magic, but, a word of warning, keep away from the place!
Then a skeleton is discovered in the kitchen garden and Carole enlists the help of friend, and also amateur sleuth, Jude Nicol, to try to discover what has happened.
Before they get very far into their investigation one of the former members of the Board, who still had a big say in what was happening, is murdered. And, as is often the case, there are a number of suspects, all with good reasons for committing the crime.
Why has it happened? And are the two incidents connected? Or is there some hidden secret about the house and the family? Carole and Jude carry out their intrepid investigations and eventually uncover surprising facts about the Chadleigh family ... but not before they have gone through plenty of trauma and Carole very nearly becomes a victim herself.
The usual exciting Fethering magic, but, a word of warning, keep away from the place!
October 28, 2009
Boring, boring, boring. I wouldn't have even attempted to finish this book if I hadn't enjoyed the previous ones in the series. But I doubt I will read anymore of them.
July 18, 2017
Simon Brett's whodunnits can be underrated: they are full of wry humour and knowledge of the characters and motivations of a wide range of recognisable types. Be ready to recognise yourself in someone in this book!
Sleuths Carole, the retired civil servant, and Jude, the healing practitioner, return in the fourth Fethering mystery.
Carole is a new trustee on the board looking after the house, gardens, and literary heritage of a much-loved poet. She soon becomes entangled in the cross-fire between warring factions. Should the poet's biography be written by the lazy son of the poet, or by a self-seeking American professor ready to ditch the dirt?
When a human skeleton is unearthed in the grounds, and another death follows, Carole, as a trustee, and Jude, as the lover of an interested academic, flirt with danger in investigating ...
Sleuths Carole, the retired civil servant, and Jude, the healing practitioner, return in the fourth Fethering mystery.
Carole is a new trustee on the board looking after the house, gardens, and literary heritage of a much-loved poet. She soon becomes entangled in the cross-fire between warring factions. Should the poet's biography be written by the lazy son of the poet, or by a self-seeking American professor ready to ditch the dirt?
When a human skeleton is unearthed in the grounds, and another death follows, Carole, as a trustee, and Jude, as the lover of an interested academic, flirt with danger in investigating ...
January 16, 2021
Murder in the Museum (Fethering, #4) by Simon Brett.
Secrets, secrets, and more secrets. This entry in the Fethering series has it all. Secrets hidden from the public of a long ago death in the family. A secret room concealed to all but found by the least notable. And then there's the friend who drops by for a non-committal stay.
I loved every page turning minute of this mystery. Carole more than pulled her own weight in sleuthing.
Highly recommended.
Secrets, secrets, and more secrets. This entry in the Fethering series has it all. Secrets hidden from the public of a long ago death in the family. A secret room concealed to all but found by the least notable. And then there's the friend who drops by for a non-committal stay.
I loved every page turning minute of this mystery. Carole more than pulled her own weight in sleuthing.
Highly recommended.
June 11, 2022
The novels on this series are fairly formulaic but entertaining enough with competent storytelling and interesting elements. I enjoyed this one more than earlier ones.
November 21, 2023
A skeleton unearthed in the museum gardens brings to light a new look at a World War 1 tragedy. How does Carole always seem to be in the vicinity of dead bodies? Just luck I guess.
I found this installment rather boring. WW I hold no interest for me. This dragged along with old letters written in italics, which I hate. It did have a good ending in spite of taking too long to get there.
Way too many characters, two with the same first name. Hard to keep all the relationships straight. They were all pretty dull.
This was a palate cleanser after the gory book I’d previously read. Where will the next body turn up??
I found this installment rather boring. WW I hold no interest for me. This dragged along with old letters written in italics, which I hate. It did have a good ending in spite of taking too long to get there.
Way too many characters, two with the same first name. Hard to keep all the relationships straight. They were all pretty dull.
This was a palate cleanser after the gory book I’d previously read. Where will the next body turn up??
May 24, 2014
#4 in Simon Brett's Feathering series. Here, Jude takes in a former lover and Carol is a trustee on a board for a museum. The board meetings are eye-opening. Having never been on a board I've no idea if they are all run rough-shod over by one dominant personality or another.
This is a museum dedicated to the memory of a great poet, or maybe not so great.
And a body (more like a skeleton) appears with a hole in the head. There is an American academic working on a biography of the poet, which they are sure is going to be a hatchet job. Then one of the domineering folks gets shot. And Carol finds the priest-hole fascinating.
It was an interesting story with a few semi-surprises.
This is a museum dedicated to the memory of a great poet, or maybe not so great.
And a body (more like a skeleton) appears with a hole in the head. There is an American academic working on a biography of the poet, which they are sure is going to be a hatchet job. Then one of the domineering folks gets shot. And Carol finds the priest-hole fascinating.
It was an interesting story with a few semi-surprises.
January 23, 2018
Ho-hum. No murder (unless you count the unearthing of a decades old skeleton,) until three-quarters of the way through the book. While waiting for something dramatic to happen, the reader can always speculate who the murder victim will be. There are several choices, as the story relies heavily on stock mystery characters, straight out of central casting. And, I must say, that when the murderer is finally revealed, although it is indeed a surprise, it is neither believable nor satisfying. Given the author's preoccupation with illness and imminent death, perhaps there was something tragic going on in his own life during the time he wrote this. The natural death was far more poignant and real compared to the contrived fictional one.
I usually prefer the "Fethering" series over some of Simon Brett's other series because they usually have more substance. However, this time around, both protagonists, Carole and Jude, are at odds with each other and with the reader. The witticisms are strained and thin, the plot is barely there and the landscape is filled with too many potentially thought-provoking and very serious situations to be comfortable, which is the whole point of a "cozy" mystery!
I usually prefer the "Fethering" series over some of Simon Brett's other series because they usually have more substance. However, this time around, both protagonists, Carole and Jude, are at odds with each other and with the reader. The witticisms are strained and thin, the plot is barely there and the landscape is filled with too many potentially thought-provoking and very serious situations to be comfortable, which is the whole point of a "cozy" mystery!
July 16, 2022
Fourth in the series, I continue to enjoy the development of the two characters, Carole Seddon and Jude (her surname is only mentioned once whereas Carol is invariably referred to as Carole Seddon. A third character is introduced in this book, Laurence, an ex (but not really ex) boyfriend of Jude’s. Laurence is an academic which comes in handy as a lot of the book revolves around a long-dead poet, a member of a wealthy Sussex family who owned a stately home called Bracketts, and whose legacy is kept alive by a kind of trust that operates the house and is trying to publish the poet’s biography.
Actually I found the book dragged in parts. As I said I enjoy Carole and Jude but this storyline is one that has been done quite a bit in other series, such as Midsomer Murders. Midsomer has actually had the storyline a few times, keeping the plot of a long-dead artist, author or
musician whose legacy comes under scrutiny whilst of course changing weapons and murderers in a couple of episodes. Brett does an “okay” job with this but it wasn’t a page turner. Still as I had also read a very much grittier thriller this week, Brett provided a bit of a breather.
Actually I found the book dragged in parts. As I said I enjoy Carole and Jude but this storyline is one that has been done quite a bit in other series, such as Midsomer Murders. Midsomer has actually had the storyline a few times, keeping the plot of a long-dead artist, author or
musician whose legacy comes under scrutiny whilst of course changing weapons and murderers in a couple of episodes. Brett does an “okay” job with this but it wasn’t a page turner. Still as I had also read a very much grittier thriller this week, Brett provided a bit of a breather.
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December 9, 2012Somewhat of a present-day cozy. My attitude toward it zigzagged a bit. At times it seemed intelligent, with some clever dialog, but for the most part it was rather slow-moving and implausible (particularly as regards motivation for murder). I think what I liked best was the fact that the two protagonists were single women in their fifties and both represented as still attractive in an everyday, believable way; and I also liked the sensitive treatment of Jude taking in her dying lover of past years, whose propensity to have numerous girlfriends no longer bothers her.
November 24, 2014
It is very important to know that, with the exception of the stereo-type, self-destructive intellectual, the good people in this story drink WHITE wine. It's important to know that is not red wine, not beer, and not whiskey. It's not important to know what kind of WHITE wine, just that it's not red. In the same vein, there are a few gratuitous digs at Margret Thatcher and anti-political correctness.
The reader of this audio book was pretty good.
The reader of this audio book was pretty good.
August 17, 2018
There's kind of a lot of really gross misogyny in this one, not least of which is the idea that There's so much there I'm not even going to try to unpack it.
I'm going to read the next one in the series because I already have it from the library. Let's hope that the last two haven't been indicative of a downward trend.
I'm going to read the next one in the series because I already have it from the library. Let's hope that the last two haven't been indicative of a downward trend.
January 4, 2012
A slow-moving and very boring book, but with quite a good story buried within it. The writing style is not very good, and the characters very sketchily drawn. The story concerns a family secret, and if you skip through and identify these bits of the plot it's not a bad read.
September 3, 2013
Not totally terrible....but very slow moving. I enjoyed a couple of her other books in this series much more.
October 5, 2020
Another very enjoyable read in the "Fethering" series! I'm looking forward to reading #5.
April 16, 2023
Ehh. Carole ruins this at times with her judgments. Overall not a bad mystery just long and convoluted at times.
August 24, 2024
I got this at a local library book sale several years ago and finally got around to reading it. In some ways a typical "cozy" British mystery, and somewhat predictable (I wasn't surprised by who the killer was, or other plotlines). I'd pick up another mystery by this author if I saw it at the library sale again, but I wouldn't run out and pay full price. One note: there is a bedroom scene in this story, minimally graphic, but enough that I wouldn't let my kids read it, or let a friend borrow it without warning. And what gets me is...it was totally unnecessary to the story.
July 13, 2024
I just love these prickly little cozies. And, of course, hearing Ralph Cosham.
April 22, 2024
If you like Agatha Raisin this series is a good alternative. Carole and Jude are a bit of an odd couple living in a small English town who seem to uncover crime and mischief without really trying. Secrets large and small and a large cast of amusing characters / suspects provide a reasonable mystery. An enjoyable series as a break from more meaty fare.
August 29, 2024
This book is better than 4 stars being much better than usual mysteries. Brett’s humorous characterizations are a delight.
August 28, 2023
Very enjoyable murder puzzle set in Sussex
October 27, 2012
Carol Seddon is a new trustee for Brackets, former home of somewhat second-string 20th century author Esmond Chadleigh, most famous for the lament he wrote about his brother's death in WWI and his own happy family life. Then a body at least 50 years buried shows up in the former kitchen gardens, touching off a series of incidents all connected to the truth about the Chadleighs, and those who depend on the Chadleighs' reputation.
I liked the setup of this mystery (well, it's a British country house, so of course I liked it), and I liked the connection between past and present, and the role that research plays in solving it (I am a librarian, after all). However, I knew whose the body was pretty much as soon as it was discovered, and I figured out the mystery of the death pretty early on, too. I also knew exactly what would happen when Carol discovered a certain part of the house, and I was right. I like a bit more surprise in my mysteries. I also don't really like the author's overt cynicism about people, institutions, government, etc. Some of it is fine and well-deserved, but I want to like at least some of the characters, or why bother reading the book? Carol is prickly and irritating a lot of the time, and I don't really enjoy spending time with her.
I liked the setup of this mystery (well, it's a British country house, so of course I liked it), and I liked the connection between past and present, and the role that research plays in solving it (I am a librarian, after all). However, I knew whose the body was pretty much as soon as it was discovered, and I figured out the mystery of the death pretty early on, too. I also knew exactly what would happen when Carol discovered a certain part of the house, and I was right. I like a bit more surprise in my mysteries. I also don't really like the author's overt cynicism about people, institutions, government, etc. Some of it is fine and well-deserved, but I want to like at least some of the characters, or why bother reading the book? Carol is prickly and irritating a lot of the time, and I don't really enjoy spending time with her.
August 13, 2020
An enjoyable re-read, more probably worth 3.5 stars. It's amazing, or perhaps not, how many books improve on re-reading. All of the Fethering mysteries are good reading.
The characters of Jude and Carole are a fascinating juxtaposition; most of us share parts of each in our personality. Carole's blindness to Laurence's condition can best be explained by her prejudices but this is a smart woman who had at least a moderately successful career in the Home Office. Simon Brett has done a wonderful job in exploring the psyche of each of these women.
There were a couple of exceptional passages; notably those with Miss Hidebourne but also others. I could feel the academic fervour in the second half of the book.
Some amusing passages too.
This book does warrant several re-reads as there is much to be found in the text once one knows the story.
The characters of Jude and Carole are a fascinating juxtaposition; most of us share parts of each in our personality. Carole's blindness to Laurence's condition can best be explained by her prejudices but this is a smart woman who had at least a moderately successful career in the Home Office. Simon Brett has done a wonderful job in exploring the psyche of each of these women.
There were a couple of exceptional passages; notably those with Miss Hidebourne but also others. I could feel the academic fervour in the second half of the book.
Some amusing passages too.
This book does warrant several re-reads as there is much to be found in the text once one knows the story.
April 3, 2018
3.5 stars.
It’s not a spoiler to say that I really enjoyed the cold case + modern murder. It was creatively done and it worked for the story. I also enjoyed learning more about Jude. However, the ongoing ridiculousness of Jude or Carole being kidnapped at the end of every book before the murderer is revealed is just too much. I’ve come to expect it as formulaic and it isn’t a formula that works for me. I’m not saying that these novels need to me 100% realistic, but come on! Still, going on to book #5 to see if any improvement and change can be had.
It’s not a spoiler to say that I really enjoyed the cold case + modern murder. It was creatively done and it worked for the story. I also enjoyed learning more about Jude. However, the ongoing ridiculousness of Jude or Carole being kidnapped at the end of every book before the murderer is revealed is just too much. I’ve come to expect it as formulaic and it isn’t a formula that works for me. I’m not saying that these novels need to me 100% realistic, but come on! Still, going on to book #5 to see if any improvement and change can be had.
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