Oxford Shadows

Kate Ivory #8

by Veronica Stallwood

Oxfordshire appeared to be a haven of safety for many children sent away from the bombs falling on London in 1944, but for 10-year-old Chris Barnes, the result was death. Over 50 years later, novelist Kate Ivory, searching for material for her latest historical romance, uncovers Chris's tragic tale. Amongst piles of old papers in the attic of the house she shares with her partner, George, she finds the child's diary and a haunting photograph of a face she cannot forget. Kate determines to uncover the mystery surrounding Chris's death, but George's family appear to be implicated - and Kate is faced with an impossible choice...

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Veronica Stallwood was born in London, educated abroad and now lives near Oxford. In the past she has worked at the Bodleian Library and more recently in Lincoln College library.

Reviews

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This tale follows a cold case, only nobody saw it as a case at the time, so it's just a sad tale of the death of an evacuee child during WW2. The protagonist in our day is a writer of romantic fiction. She was attacked and harmed in the previous book, and spends much of this book set in Oxford coming to terms with going outside and meeting people again after her ordeal.

Now, I hadn't read any of the series, so if I had I would probably find this theme a nice counterpoint and appreciate that the active heroine has to readjust. In other words someone who has read the earlier books may genuinely give this one better marks. But it makes the tale slow. I do agree that the aftermath of violence is not shown nearly often enough, and it can have long lasting personal effects, so that gets a star by itself. The heroine comes across as less dynamic than I would like because of this, pushed into choices by her mother or agent, worried about what others think of her and unable to get to grips with writing. She also knows rather less about wartime life than we'd expect of someone British. Hasn't she read books or seen TV?

The conclusion shows that the heroine has to make a decision about the family which owns the house in which she lives with a gentleman friend. They are not suspected of being lawbreakers, but the need to decide gives a personal tie to the cold case. This is a nice touch. I also like the accounts from the past and women 'who like wearing uniform' or 'not the marrying kind' as they were then referred to, if referred to at all.

The story that Hitler did not bomb Oxford because he wanted to keep it for himself is twice mentioned; I have read in Stephen Hawking's autobiography (he was raised there) that Britain and Germany did a deal not to bomb each other's university cities, like Heidelberg.

This is an unbiased review.

[Bob · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just a so so read. A writer going through a dry spell after been attacked and wounded is trying to get back into writhing and gets drawn in to an event involving evacuees from the bombings of London during WWII. It turns out that two children were billeted in the house she now shares with a friend that belonged to the relative who took them in. She belonged to upper class family and lived alone except for some servants. Our writer is intrigued with the story of the two children and embarks on an investigation that unearths some unsettling information that threatens her current relationship. Lots of switching back an forth between the past and present throughout the story.

[Doreen Link · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sehr ergreifendes Thema

[Liz Polding · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very quick read, but satisfying. The book relates to a single house, but moves between wartime Oxford and modern Oxford. The tragic death of an evacuee during the last year of the Second World War has more to it than is immediately apparent, and the plot gradually unfolds, little by little, to explain what really happened and how it relates to Kate Ivory’s life in 2000. I’ve read a few if these now (a neighbour was giving away a box of books; I couldn’t refuse a box of books!) and they fill an evening nicely. This has been the best one so far, though.

[Karo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Schriftstellerin Kate Ivory entdeckt beim Aufräumen des Dachbodens ihres Freundes ein altes Familiengeheimnis, das sie lieber hätte ruhen lassen sollen...

Ein seichter Kriminalroman, dessen Dialogen es an einigen Stellen an der nötigen Tiefe fehlt. Dennoch fesselt einen das Geheimnis des kleinen Christophers, der während des zweiten Weltkrieges aus London in das sichere Oxford evakuiert wird. Doch während er hier vor den Bombenangriffen sicher ist, warten hier Gefahren anderer Art auf ihn.

[Kirsty Darbyshire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kate Ivory definitely didn't get on my nerves like she's done in previous books, in fact I'd forgotten that she did until I read what I'd written down about her before. This book has her researching into the history of her boyfriend's house and finding out about the death of an evacuee to Oxford during the second world war. Good stuff.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well-written mystery that puts me in the mind of Josephine Tey's classic The Daughter of Time.

[Dorothy]

I've just started this book. It seems a bit heavier going than the last book I read. Hopefully as I get further along in it, things will pick up.

[Pers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kate Ivory is no Harriet Vane. On the other hand, Veronica Stallwood isn't Dorothy L Sayers...

[Carole]

Very good actually!

[Colchique]

Oh, schon der achte Band der Serie!