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Past Shadows
Every summer Annabel Kendal joins her extended family on a holiday at her grandmother’s house in Devon.
Yet a dark shadow casts its presence over each trip – 28 years ago Annabel’s Aunt Hilary was brutally murdered on a similar holiday when Annabel was just a toddler.
With no one found guilty, the subject has been hushed away and is now taboo on their trips.
When an over-zealous journalist starts digging around the murder, the suspicion and guilt in Annabel’s family comes back to the surface.
Annabel starts researching into the truth, and the discovery of her much-maligned French mother Monique’s diary reveals some alarming details.
With the added pressure of her marriage struggling and a series of anonymous phone calls, Annabel is drawn into the middle of a dark family secret.
‘Past Shadows’ is another absorbing murder mystery from crime thriller author Anthea Fraser.
Praise for Anthea
“A superbly crafted, riveting, page-turner of a read" - Booklist
“Ms Fraser is her dependable elegant, guileful self withholding the killer's identity till a dying fall" - Sunday Times
“A well-mannered, well-plotted and well-told story” - Birmingham Post
“Sympathetic, well-executed book, in which full attention is paid to human feelings and failings” - Yorkshire Post
“Anthea Fraser is a worthy follower of the traditional whodunit system...The plot is sustained throughout, and her artistic detective who literally "draws conclusions" is an original character.” - Sunderland Echo
Anthea Fraser has written all her life but did not begin to take it seriously until after marriage, when she found herself at home with two small daughters and embarked on a correspondence course with the London School of Journalism. She wrote short stories before turning to novels of the supernatural, and then to crime. Her novels include ‘The Seven Stars’, ‘The Ten Commandments’, ‘Death Speaks Softly’ and ‘Pretty Maids All in a Row’.
Yet a dark shadow casts its presence over each trip – 28 years ago Annabel’s Aunt Hilary was brutally murdered on a similar holiday when Annabel was just a toddler.
With no one found guilty, the subject has been hushed away and is now taboo on their trips.
When an over-zealous journalist starts digging around the murder, the suspicion and guilt in Annabel’s family comes back to the surface.
Annabel starts researching into the truth, and the discovery of her much-maligned French mother Monique’s diary reveals some alarming details.
With the added pressure of her marriage struggling and a series of anonymous phone calls, Annabel is drawn into the middle of a dark family secret.
‘Past Shadows’ is another absorbing murder mystery from crime thriller author Anthea Fraser.
Praise for Anthea
“A superbly crafted, riveting, page-turner of a read" - Booklist
“Ms Fraser is her dependable elegant, guileful self withholding the killer's identity till a dying fall" - Sunday Times
“A well-mannered, well-plotted and well-told story” - Birmingham Post
“Sympathetic, well-executed book, in which full attention is paid to human feelings and failings” - Yorkshire Post
“Anthea Fraser is a worthy follower of the traditional whodunit system...The plot is sustained throughout, and her artistic detective who literally "draws conclusions" is an original character.” - Sunderland Echo
Anthea Fraser has written all her life but did not begin to take it seriously until after marriage, when she found herself at home with two small daughters and embarked on a correspondence course with the London School of Journalism. She wrote short stories before turning to novels of the supernatural, and then to crime. Her novels include ‘The Seven Stars’, ‘The Ten Commandments’, ‘Death Speaks Softly’ and ‘Pretty Maids All in a Row’.
- GenresMystery
216 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2001
47 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 29, 2020
I bought this kindle version because the cover used by Amazon had on it "A Detective Inspector David Webb thriller". Because Webb is a DCI in other books I thought this might have been an early story. Wrong! David Webb is not mentioned in the book. Had I known I would not have bought it. That disappointment is no doubt reflected in my rating of it. It is an okay read and I won't be asking Amazon to refund my money but at this stage I cannot recommend it.
December 27, 2018
Anabel and her family get together every year to celebrate her grandmother's birthday. But it's marred by tragedy from the past when her Aunt Hilary was murdered. After being contacted by a news reporter, Anabel begins to search into what happened.
A fairly quick read. Not too complicated, but some surprises.
A fairly quick read. Not too complicated, but some surprises.
May 5, 2013
While I will continue to work through Anthea Fraser's books, this one was a disappointment. The story plodded along--a rather familiar storyline about a long unsolved family murder and the reluctant "detective." Just as I thought it might get interesting, the book suddenly came to a conclusion, leaving loads of loose ends. The murderer came from almost nowhere and was not in the least menacing. The book left me wondering what happened to the rest of the characters and the moral dilemmas they were facing. I feel the author wasted an opportunity to create a more rounded, satisfying book. As I enjoyed her last book I will try another.
August 18, 2015
Another good mystery perhaps written to a format but none the less very enjoyable.
August 27, 2009
Continuing to enjoy this newly discovered author.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews