What do you think?
Rate this book
Inspector Thanet #14
Once Too Often
Just a week away from his only daughter's wedding, Inspector Luke Thanet gets a phone call that saves him from writing his speech for the reception, but presents him with an even more challenging problem. Jessica Dander, a journalist for the regional newspaper, has been found dead with a broken neck at the foot of her own staircase.
Was it simply an accident, or, as evidence suggests, was she pushed? And investigation just yields more questions. Who left Jessica's front door open and why? Who called the police and disappeared before the authorities arrived? Why is her high-heeled shoe in an odd position on the third step from the top? Who was the mysterious prowler Jessica reported to the police? And who didn't have reason to hate Jessica, an angry, irascible woman who may have let loose her fury on those around her just once too often?
Was it simply an accident, or, as evidence suggests, was she pushed? And investigation just yields more questions. Who left Jessica's front door open and why? Who called the police and disappeared before the authorities arrived? Why is her high-heeled shoe in an odd position on the third step from the top? Who was the mysterious prowler Jessica reported to the police? And who didn't have reason to hate Jessica, an angry, irascible woman who may have let loose her fury on those around her just once too often?
226 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1998
96 people are currently reading
170 people want to read
About the author
Dorothy Simpson
36 books118 followersDorothy Preece Simpson writes...
"I was born and brought up in South Wales, went to Bridgend Grammar School and then on to Bristol University, where I read modern languages before moving to Kent, the background of the Thanet novels, to teach French at Dartford and Erith Grammar Schools.
Moving to the Maidstone area on my marriage, I then spent several years devoting myself to bringing up my three children. During that time I trained as a marriage guidance counsellor and subsequently worked as one for thirteen years.
You may think that marriage guidance counsellor to crime writer is rather a peculiar career move, but although I didn’t realise it at the time, of course, the training I received was the best possible preparation for writing detective novels. Murder mysteries are all about relationships which go disastrously wrong and the insights I gained into what makes people tick, into their interaction and motivations, have been absolutely invaluable to DI Thanet, my series character, as have the interviewing skills I acquired during my years of counselling.
I began to write after a long illness in 1975. The success of my first book, a suspense novel called HARBINGERS OF FEAR, gave me sufficient impetus to carry me through the two rejections which followed - very disheartening at the time, but invaluable in retrospect.
It was during this period that I realised that the crime novel is of such diversity that it offers enormous scope to the writer and decided to attempt to lay the foundation for a series of detective novels in my next book. This was the THE NIGHT SHE DIED." This was the first in a 15 book series starring Detective Inspector Luke Thanet. Severe repetitive stress injury caused her to stop writing in 2000.
She is an award winning author, receiving a Silver Dagger Award from the Crime Writers' Association of Great Britain.
"I was born and brought up in South Wales, went to Bridgend Grammar School and then on to Bristol University, where I read modern languages before moving to Kent, the background of the Thanet novels, to teach French at Dartford and Erith Grammar Schools.
Moving to the Maidstone area on my marriage, I then spent several years devoting myself to bringing up my three children. During that time I trained as a marriage guidance counsellor and subsequently worked as one for thirteen years.
You may think that marriage guidance counsellor to crime writer is rather a peculiar career move, but although I didn’t realise it at the time, of course, the training I received was the best possible preparation for writing detective novels. Murder mysteries are all about relationships which go disastrously wrong and the insights I gained into what makes people tick, into their interaction and motivations, have been absolutely invaluable to DI Thanet, my series character, as have the interviewing skills I acquired during my years of counselling.
I began to write after a long illness in 1975. The success of my first book, a suspense novel called HARBINGERS OF FEAR, gave me sufficient impetus to carry me through the two rejections which followed - very disheartening at the time, but invaluable in retrospect.
It was during this period that I realised that the crime novel is of such diversity that it offers enormous scope to the writer and decided to attempt to lay the foundation for a series of detective novels in my next book. This was the THE NIGHT SHE DIED." This was the first in a 15 book series starring Detective Inspector Luke Thanet. Severe repetitive stress injury caused her to stop writing in 2000.
She is an award winning author, receiving a Silver Dagger Award from the Crime Writers' Association of Great Britain.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
October 3, 2022
DNF at Page 240. I've read it in Scribd.
October 8, 2013
1998, #14 Inspector Thanet, Sturrenden, Kent; cosy police procedural - four stars.
Less than a week before his only daughter’s wedding, Thanet is given a case that he’d like to clear up quickly. It looks like murder, but might be accident - a reporter has fallen down her stairs and died of a broken neck, but there are some interestingly odd things about this apparent “simple fall”. Practically no-one liked her, for starters, and just who called the emergency personnel but didn’t stay around to help?
This quietly tough procedural series percolates on with another solid story, nice characters, and a strong plot with just enough darkness to make it seem real. What a very satisfying series this is, for those of us who enjoy puzzle plots and interesting “takes” on modern village life.
Less than a week before his only daughter’s wedding, Thanet is given a case that he’d like to clear up quickly. It looks like murder, but might be accident - a reporter has fallen down her stairs and died of a broken neck, but there are some interestingly odd things about this apparent “simple fall”. Practically no-one liked her, for starters, and just who called the emergency personnel but didn’t stay around to help?
This quietly tough procedural series percolates on with another solid story, nice characters, and a strong plot with just enough darkness to make it seem real. What a very satisfying series this is, for those of us who enjoy puzzle plots and interesting “takes” on modern village life.
November 28, 2016
This Luke Thanet series is so enjoyable and this book with his daughters wedding as the back story to the mystery was great!
March 24, 2025
A police proceedural that is eay reading while holding your interest. Inspector Luke Thanet is struggling to come to terms with his daughter marrying Alexander. While he anguisshes, he still has to write his speech, he is called to a suspected suspicious death when a woman is found dead at the foot of the stairs at her home. Al manner of relationship and family issues arise along with a possible stalker. Well written in Dorothy's usual fast paced style. Luke and Sergeant Lineham make a good team. Only one further story to go. They will be missed.
3 good stars.
3 good stars.
September 2, 2019
As the series winds toward the last book, I find myself less interested in the case and more drawn to the personal lives of the main characters, Thanet and Lineham. This series balances perfectly the case work of solving crimes in England with the personal lives of the police who protect and serve. The dialogue between Thanet and his family is genuine. I enjoy the relationship between Lineham and Thanet as well. I will be sad when this one ends.
August 9, 2020
I have enjoyed this whole series!
April 3, 2024
This has been a tremendous series, and I'll miss it when I've finished it. I think I have one more book as nearly as I can tell. Again, this isn't where you turn if you want heart-pounding thriller filled with hopeless scenes that some protagonist must turn around. But if you enjoy cerebral well-written British police procedural stuff, this is your book and series.
Jessica Manifest will never again write a news story. The erstwhile reporter lies broken and dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs as the book opens.
Oh, there are plenty of suspects here. The husband is always up for suspect grabs, but that's a bit too obvious. There's a young man in town who has a bit of an obsession with Jessica. She may be his real mom. There are others, and while the end is a bit tropey, you won't likely guess it early--at least, I didn't.
Luke Thanet and his wife, Joan, are putting the final touches on their daughter's wedding. Poor Luke is filled with all those fatherly emotions that are bigger than any book can hold, and he must come up with some kind of speech he can offer at the wedding that won't ruin it for this well-beloved daughter. He has real misgivings about the wealthy kid she's about to marry, but nobody would be good enough for her in his mind, so he has to lie those aside.
If you're eligible to borrow books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, please note that this is yet another instance where NLS, in its infinite wisdom, has chosen not to include this book as part of its series. All the others in the series are there except this one. The copy I downloaded from Bookshare is error free, and you should be able to enjoy it that way NLS's incompleteness notwithstanding.
Jessica Manifest will never again write a news story. The erstwhile reporter lies broken and dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs as the book opens.
Oh, there are plenty of suspects here. The husband is always up for suspect grabs, but that's a bit too obvious. There's a young man in town who has a bit of an obsession with Jessica. She may be his real mom. There are others, and while the end is a bit tropey, you won't likely guess it early--at least, I didn't.
Luke Thanet and his wife, Joan, are putting the final touches on their daughter's wedding. Poor Luke is filled with all those fatherly emotions that are bigger than any book can hold, and he must come up with some kind of speech he can offer at the wedding that won't ruin it for this well-beloved daughter. He has real misgivings about the wealthy kid she's about to marry, but nobody would be good enough for her in his mind, so he has to lie those aside.
If you're eligible to borrow books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, please note that this is yet another instance where NLS, in its infinite wisdom, has chosen not to include this book as part of its series. All the others in the series are there except this one. The copy I downloaded from Bookshare is error free, and you should be able to enjoy it that way NLS's incompleteness notwithstanding.
October 27, 2018
I enjoyed this one about as much as most of the Inspector Thanet series, although I'm glad there's only one more book to go. This story seemed to lose focus on the investigation and spent more time than usual on domestic crises for Thanet and Lineham. There was also a lot more of things being explained multiple times to different people, which I'd noticed getting worse in the previous few books. This one is the worst yet, with Thanet unnecessarily going back over information we already know so that he can tell Joan all about it, or getting Mike up to date on new information. Once information has been given to the reader, it's okay to use just a few words to skip over telling it a second (or third) time. The best thing about this story was the way the murder victim starts out as completely unlikable and becomes someone to sympathize with by the end. If you've read the other books in the series, you should definitely read this one too. And then get the final story so you can at least say that you may it through the entire series.
April 14, 2024
I think the author started to run out of ideas....
After the story has been concluded, it is retold again, pretty much step by step, as if we didn't get it the first time. The previous books normally did some sort of recap, where Thanet explained to his wife, but this one is really, really bad, like the author just tried to get to a certain number of pages.
There are also some holes. The obvious one is the one regarding Covin. They suspected him, meaning they thought that he had to be at Jessica's house, but they never considered how it could be.
There was a red herring involving which at the end gave them the solution to the mystery. What I don't get is that when other people were suspected, they were looking at the death as a .
Another note:
After the story has been concluded, it is retold again, pretty much step by step, as if we didn't get it the first time. The previous books normally did some sort of recap, where Thanet explained to his wife, but this one is really, really bad, like the author just tried to get to a certain number of pages.
There are also some holes. The obvious one is the one regarding Covin. They suspected him, meaning they thought that he had to be at Jessica's house, but they never considered how it could be.
There was a red herring involving which at the end gave them the solution to the mystery. What I don't get is that when other people were suspected, they were looking at the death as a .
Another note:
March 3, 2023
Not my favorite
I’ve read all previous Luke Thanet mysteries and while they are old-fashioned, in a somewhat comforting way, Luke’s paternalism stood out in a number of annoying ways, especially the brush-off given to the statutory rape of the murdered woman by her brother-in-law when she was 15 or 16! The writing in general veered towards redundancy, with each story line being belabored through several sets of people — I skipped forward alot in this book. I was disappointed in the unraveling of the crime. So many suspects seemed inauthentic, not believable as real people. I just can’t recommend this one — go back to the early ones for a more satisfying read.
I’ve read all previous Luke Thanet mysteries and while they are old-fashioned, in a somewhat comforting way, Luke’s paternalism stood out in a number of annoying ways, especially the brush-off given to the statutory rape of the murdered woman by her brother-in-law when she was 15 or 16! The writing in general veered towards redundancy, with each story line being belabored through several sets of people — I skipped forward alot in this book. I was disappointed in the unraveling of the crime. So many suspects seemed inauthentic, not believable as real people. I just can’t recommend this one — go back to the early ones for a more satisfying read.
September 21, 2019
This is number 14 in the Inspector Thanet series. Only one to go (sob). I've enjoyed them.
Once again, Simpson drops enough clues throughout the story that the solution to "Who Done It?" isn't that surprising. That's a compliment! I don't like mysteries in which the resolution comes out of left field.
The deceased was a reporter for a local newspaper.Her body is found crumpled at the bottom of the staircase in her home. Did she fall down the stairs by accident...or did someone murder her?
Once again, Simpson drops enough clues throughout the story that the solution to "Who Done It?" isn't that surprising. That's a compliment! I don't like mysteries in which the resolution comes out of left field.
The deceased was a reporter for a local newspaper.Her body is found crumpled at the bottom of the staircase in her home. Did she fall down the stairs by accident...or did someone murder her?
May 3, 2018
Inspector Thanet follows leads to a house where the killer happens by and confesses, confirming his guess. More time seems spent on his daughter's upcoming nuptials and Sgt Lineham's dilemma placing his ailing mother, the latter also solved by coincidence. The trail kept me entangled, through interviews, confronting suspects after their lies. Best for readers who enjoy the social details. I could read more such tales, but likely not.
January 4, 2019
This is the 14th in the series (next is the last one) and it took FOURTEEN books for Thanet to: 1) have to get a search warrant, 2) take a suspect into police custody/the station for questioning, and 3) . Quite impressive, really! How mustardy of Thanet!
Little Sprig gets married in this one, which really makes you step back at the years gone. A good series... almost dreading the end.
Little Sprig gets married in this one, which really makes you step back at the years gone. A good series... almost dreading the end.
May 8, 2019
It looks like an accident when Jessica falls down the stairs of her own house, except that a man calls Emergency and disappears. A surprising number of people with motives seem to have been hanging around. Inspector Thanet keeps finding more people and more angry encounters... The advantage to him is that they allow him to escape from the preparations for his daughter's wedding. Dorothy Simpson allows us to resolve the experience with all her usual compassion.
Read 2 times
Read 2 times
December 28, 2022
Another great inspector Thanet mystery! Despite the fact that I’ve now read 14 of these, I can still never quite guess the outcome of his cases. It’s bittersweet to be reaching the end of this series, with the perfect mix of mystery & little glimpses into his own personal life, I’ve come to know and love many characters. I will always be a sucker for cozy mysteries, and I’ve taken my sweet time getting through these because I know I’ll be sad when it’s over.
October 2, 2024
A woman is found at the bottom of the stairs in her home, dead of a fractured neck. A simple accident? But then who was the mysterious person calling the emergency services? Inspector Thanet investigates the victim's present and past, including her henpecked husband, morose brother-in-law and hair stylist! In the meantime, he has to prepare for his daughter's upcoming wedding, including writing a wedding speech and getting a haircut!
April 10, 2021
I just didn't find this "Thanet" book as interesting as most of the others. I had already figured out most what was going on by the middle of the book. Thanet's sergeant, Lineham is as out spoken and as opinionated as ever. I did like the fact that he finally put his mother in her place. We'll see what happens in the 15th and final book.
February 25, 2025
I have only read three of the 14 books in this series and could go for more at some point but not immediately. I get a bit impatient with the drawn out dithering at times, but the book is well conceived and written. Loads of family stuff (Thanet side) to deal with in this iteration.
Currently just $1.99 from Amazon for the kindle.
Currently just $1.99 from Amazon for the kindle.
August 21, 2022
I have to admit that this mystery was a little too pat to solve and to believe. I was able to guess the major plot line before it happened and found the police's acceptance that Jessica Dander's death was indeed an accident after all the false leads and incriminating evidence tossed about.
November 26, 2022
one of my favorite authors.
And a favorite in the series. I love following the personal life of the detective and his second. My kind of mystery. If you want violence and suspense this is not your cup of British tea.
And a favorite in the series. I love following the personal life of the detective and his second. My kind of mystery. If you want violence and suspense this is not your cup of British tea.
August 22, 2024
a comfort read
The description of the Ives Luke Thant and his wife as well as the byplay with is partner cause the reader to feel they are part of a warm, cozy family. The mystery is not easy to solve and no hidden tricks are played on the reader. This is an enjoyable read
The description of the Ives Luke Thant and his wife as well as the byplay with is partner cause the reader to feel they are part of a warm, cozy family. The mystery is not easy to solve and no hidden tricks are played on the reader. This is an enjoyable read
November 1, 2017
A delightful series.
September 12, 2020
Ending was a bit slow with this one but still a good read.
August 29, 2021
The writing is elegant and I enjoy a glimpse into 'modern' village life these books offer. This is another smooth installment in this consistently good series.
April 27, 2025
3.5 - I had guessed several of the twists.
April 27, 2012
Dorothy Simpson's Inspector Thanet novels are built around the contrast between Thanet's beloved family and the generally idyllic Kent background, and the violent murders which often have unpleasant origins (such as incest). Thanet is a policeman in the tradition of Marsh's Alleyn rather than Dexter's Morse, though all three characters share a devotion to justice as a concept.
From the family side of things, the main event is the rapidly approaching marriage of Thanet's daughter Bridget to the unsatisfactory (as Thanet sees it) Alexander, who has jilted her in the past - because, he says now, of a fear of commitment.
The frantic preparations for the wedding form the background to a classic murder mystery. When an ambulance responds to a normal 999 call, Jessica Dander's dead body is found at the bottom of the stairs of her home, neck broken, with her husband mourning over it. What raises suspicions that all is not what it seems - an accidental fall - is that the call was made by someone (a man) at a time when the husband said he was out of the house.
It turns out that Jessica really dominated her husband (to the point of beating him), and that the reason he had left the house was to avoid meeting her lover. (She didn't force him to leave, but she tended to flaunt the other man in front of him, so that he preferred to be elsewhere.) She had also had a child twenty years earlier, put up for adoption, and Thanet thinks it may be possible that the child has been trying to meet Jessica. This provides several possibilities for the reader's mind to work on.
All in all, Once Too Often is a typical Inspector Thanet novel: a classic detective story with a strong central character and believable supporting cast, both among the regular series characters and those who only appear in the one book.
October 31, 2016
Well, nothing is life is perfect and eventually there'd have to be an Inspector Thanet novel I didn't like...at least it's 14/15 in the series. The plot was THIN and I guessed the killer and the motive as soon as Covin was interviewed. It seems that most of the emphasis of the book was put into Bridget's wedding. As I've never liked Alexander, the sudden reappearance of him as the groom felt really incongruent. It was a big leap between novels 13 and 14; also don't understand how Ben ended up at the University of Reading instead of Bristol.
Most of the time I like Simpson's writing for its bit of old-fashioned British sleuth and descriptions of Kent, but why the big deal about the murder victim using her maiden name professionally? It seemed unnecessary and critical to keep mentioning it. Covin's rape of Jessica was also glossed over; Karen's acceptance of the situation felt slimy and unseemly. (The fact that Ms. Simpson was a marriage counselor makes me shutter when she writes about topics like rape and incest in almost blaisé terms- like in "Close Her Eyes".)
If you read the series, you'll simply read this one anyway, but plot was thin and trite and I didn't like what happened to Bridget's character.
Most of the time I like Simpson's writing for its bit of old-fashioned British sleuth and descriptions of Kent, but why the big deal about the murder victim using her maiden name professionally? It seemed unnecessary and critical to keep mentioning it. Covin's rape of Jessica was also glossed over; Karen's acceptance of the situation felt slimy and unseemly. (The fact that Ms. Simpson was a marriage counselor makes me shutter when she writes about topics like rape and incest in almost blaisé terms- like in "Close Her Eyes".)
If you read the series, you'll simply read this one anyway, but plot was thin and trite and I didn't like what happened to Bridget's character.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 30, 2016
Jessica Dander, a well known local journalist, is found dead at the foot of the stairs at the home she shares with her husband. Was it her husband, her lover or a young man who has been seen prowling in the area? Whoever it turns out to be, DI Luke Thanet is glad of the interruption to his attempts to write a speech for his daughter Bridget's wedding.
It soon becomes clear as Thanet and DS Mike Lineham interview witnesses that Jessica wasn't an especially likeable character and plenty of people could have lost their temper with her. This is an interesting mystery and I didn't work out what had happened and why until just before all was revealed.
This is the fourteenth book in this excellent series and all of them have been equally well written and interesting novels. Sometimes a long running series can flag but this one hasn't. Plots are equally good and characters are equally interesting as they were at the start of the series.
It soon becomes clear as Thanet and DS Mike Lineham interview witnesses that Jessica wasn't an especially likeable character and plenty of people could have lost their temper with her. This is an interesting mystery and I didn't work out what had happened and why until just before all was revealed.
This is the fourteenth book in this excellent series and all of them have been equally well written and interesting novels. Sometimes a long running series can flag but this one hasn't. Plots are equally good and characters are equally interesting as they were at the start of the series.
August 31, 2016
Pleasant read. I would have given it 4 stars, but at the end, for some unknown reason, the author decided to have Thanet recount the entire story to his wife. This was really useless and kind of soured the book for me. The police officers were likeable. The procedural aspects sounded true. I might give the author another chance.
September 13, 2016
Still have hardcover copies on my keeper shelf. As always I find Titles In Dorothy Simpson's Inspector Luke Thanet's British police procedural series to be first-rate. So sad that illness forced her to stop writing altogether. A mystery reader's loss but of course wish her continued improved health.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews