A Necessary End

David Webb #2

by Anthea Fraser

There’s an uneasy tension in the air at the Pendricks’ New Year’s Eve party.

For months, Nancy and Oliver Pendrick have been fighting about her London-based catering business. Oliver resents her independence. But, wary of repeating the tragic mistakes of his first wife, Nancy refuses to vegetate in the sleepy village of Frecklemarsh.

When the guests arrive, the couple are in the throes of another blazing row, and Oliver storms off into the crowd.

To add fuel to the fire, several old flames have resurfaced for the festivities. And Oliver’s daughter Rose – an eerie replica of her mother – is stirring up ghosts from the past.

So when Nancy’s body turns up several days later, strangled to death and dumped on the side of a secluded country lane, the rumours are set to fly.

Regarding all the party guests as potential suspects, Detective David Webb has his work cut out trying to identify the killer. It seems the Pendricks aren’t the only Frecklemarsh residents with skeletons in the closet, and nobody can be trusted.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

159 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

aka Vanessa Graham

Reviews

[Damaskcat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nancy Pendrick divides her time between London, where she owns a successful cookery school and Frecklemarsh where her husband Oliver has a successful hotel and restaurant. Their semi-detached marriage seems to be showing some cracks when a own develops before a New Year's Eve party.

Everyone is shocked when her body is discovered a few days later in woods a few miles away.DCI David Webb has to find out what who the murderer is and in the process he discovers a few things that various members of the family would rather have kept secret.

This is the second book in this well written and enjoyable crime series. I usually have several books on the go at once but I found I didn't want to put this one down and kept reading until I found out exactly what had happened. I didn't work out who the murderer was until the last chapter - though the clues are there if you look for them. I can thoroughly recommend this book and this series to anyone who likes well written crime novels with interesting plots and characters.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A Necessary End" is a competent little village cozy featuring the perspicacious DCI Webb solving the murder of Nancy Pendrick, the second wife of a man who lost his first wife under odd circumstances, and who step-family seems more interested in her independent wealth than her. There's also the matter of her own elusive ex-husband, who worked unknown in the Pendrick family hotel, until he was sacked just before her death, and has now taken off for parts unknown, after being the last person to see her alive. Then there are various friends and colleagues, none of whom shed a tear at her demise. As Webb works his way through all the witnesses and suspects, he collects enough red herrings to stock a fish store, and every one of his informants seems a candidate for president of the Liars Club. Much of the pleasure I derived from this novel was in watching Webb navigate the swirling currents of perfidy and prevarication in a dogged search for Nancy Pendrick's murder, but I am very much a fan of the classic British mystery, and this book is fully ensconced in that genre. While the ending was a bit rushed and too tangential to the main line of the investigation (the reason I've given four stars rather than five) it is still a very entertaining and satisfying read.

[Noemi Proietti · Rating 4 out of 5]

DCI Webb has to investigate the murder of a woman whose body was found in the woods of the small village of Shillingham after New Year’s Eve. DCI Webb finds out that the victim is the second wife of a hotel owner whose first wife died in mysterious circumstances. To find the killer, he has to interview family, friends, and witnesses and often finds himself travelling to London to do so. In the end, he finds out how a series of unfortunate events brought the victim to her death.


I enjoyed reading this book. The plot and the characters are described in a clear and suspenseful way and there are romantic stories and twists that make the plot more interesting and intriguing. A very good thriller!

[Tab · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars.
There were way too many characters. It was hard to keep track of who was who. Also, there was a lot of "head-hopping" (being able to read the thoughts of various characters, even within the same page). There was no reason for us to be in the head of Webb's partner, Jackson.

There were really good starts to characters: an independent aunt, a Chief Inspector that paints to help him solve cases, old loves, dead wives, etc. But, none of these ideas were ever expanded. The book needed to be much longer (it was only 175 pages), or half of the characters needed to be cut. Because none of the characters were fully fleshed out, the ending came out of nowhere. I now see that this is part of a series. I would be willing to try a later book in the series, if the character development is better. As I said, I really like what the characters could have been.

Conclusion: A bloated cast makes this a confusing read. Read in one sitting so that you don't forget who is who. This would make a great Masterpiece mini series with a more fleshed out story.

[Doug Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver Pendrick is the proprietor of a country inn at rural Frecklemarsh, while his wife Nancy runs a catering service in London. After New Year's Nancy insists that she is needed in London, but then the following weeky she is found dead not far from Frecklemarsh. It is the job of DCI David Webb and Sergeant Ken Jackson to work out the series of events that led to her return to the country and subsequent murder. Despite the book's title, neither the murder nor the success of the investigation seem inevitable.

[R.L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

What Chief Inspector Webb finds as he investigates the death of a woman in a small village when no one knew why she had even gone there. There are witnesses, he just needs to find them and convince them they witnessed what happened. It is a tangled web we weave when at first we set out to deceive. Good story.

[Ellen White · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nancy the second wife, independent, and wealthy
More of a week end wife, which now annoys her husband
Cracks are showing, his step children, with one owing
a big debt, they weren’t waiting any longer
She says no, ask your father, he already said no
Is murder then the answer, clues are given.
Well written to enjoy

[Richard Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The plotting is plausible with a very well written surprise. It’s well written and interesting with believable characters, some of whom are pretty nasty. The leading detective is an able officer who eventually comes to the conclusion. The book is a pretty good example of the genre.

[Doreen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great police procedural!

DCI. Webb and his team solve another complicated murder. Thorough police procedures and perseverance lead to a successful solution, despite too many suspects, conflicting clues, and too little evidence! Great mystery!

[Cynthia Grove · Rating 4 out of 5]

A hotchpotch of relationships create an interesting background with a number of possible motives for murder. Webb and Jackson, with Hannah offering her own perspective , work through the lies and evasions to reach satisfying end.

[Robert M. Galbraith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable book with good characters and well written dialog. The mystery is a good one that isn't revealed until the end although there are hints along the way and I should have figured it out.

[Eirlys · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read

This is the second book featuring DCI Webb. A body is found and Webb is charged with firstly identifying her, and then find her killer.
The characters were well constructed, with their interactions creating an enthralling storyline.

[barryid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relaxing

I can count on MS Fraser to serve up a re!axing read. The only thing I wish is for real place names. That aside, Chief Inspector loop in Webb's life is fun to follow and when we come to the end, it is decidedly the end.

[Lynda Kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. The characters were interesting and well-developed. The only problem for me was the opening two chapters with a plethora of characters. Their names and relationships confused me.

[P.F. Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first DCI Webb Nobel and thoroughly enjoyed it

A great bunch of suspects in this police procedural with DCI Webb’s line of questioning and private thoughts well balanced.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

DCI David Webb and his team investigate when a body of a female is discovered in Chedbury Woods, strangled. But what could be the possible motive.
An entertaining crime story.

[Shirley]

DCI Webb 2

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A big party and not long after, the hostess is found dead. As DCI Webb and his team unravel the mystery, there are a lot of rocks to look under. They disentangle the dysfunctional relationships and connections to arrive a surprising conclusion.

Great writing and great mystery.

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good thriller with interesting people.