Unholy Ghosts

Theodora Braithwaite #2

by D.M. Greenwood

Please note this is a completely revised edition with corrected formatting.
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Deaconess Theodora Braithwaite is house-sitting for her friends in Norfolk. Ten days of blissful solitude. A chance to recharge.

She’s busy picking fruit in the August sunshine when a voice breaks her reverie. It’s the Archdeacon, and he comes bearing bad news.

Hereward Marr, the local vicar, has been found dead in his church. His neck broken in what appears to be a tragic accident.

But Hereward’s wife, Amy, is missing. Her abandoned car is discovered submerged in the Broads.

Everyone in the village knows Amy was unhappy in her marriage. Has she left of her own accord? Or has something more sinister happened to her?

Theodora knows there’s more to this story than meets the eye — and it’s up to her to prove it.

Genres: Mystery

237 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 5, 1991

About the author

Dr D(iane) M Greenwood described herself as "a low level ecclesiastical civil servant". Coming originally from Norfolk in England, she took a first degree in classics at Oxford, then, as a mature student, a second degree in theology at London University. She taught at various schools before working for the diocese of Rochester. She was described by an ex-pupil as "a classics teacher of terrifying erudition and eccentricity". She retired as diocesan director of education for the diocese of Rochester in 2004. She published nine Theodora Braithwaite novels between 1991 and 1999. She was last heard of living in Greenwich with her lurcher bitch.

Reviews

[Damaskcat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deaconess Theodora Braithwaite is taking a much needed break from her hectic job as a curate in one of London's poorer parishes. She is house sitting in Norfolk but when Hereward Marr, a local clergyman, is found dead she is unwillingly manipulated into helping with the investigation because she knows his wife slightly and it seems Amy has disappeared.

I liked the plot of this interesting clerical mystery and I thought the portrait of a small Norfolk village was very well done. Norfolk is, or was when this was written, very much like it is portrayed here. I lived in Norfolk for more than twenty years and I felt the author made it come alive. Feuds and allegiances are carried on very much based on class with everyone knowing their place in the hierarchy.

I loved the picture the author paints of the Church of England's activities too. Theodora is a likeable character and I could feel her irritation as her holiday was interrupted and then watched that irritation gradually disappear as her curiosity was aroused. I thought the character of Inspector Spruce was well done and I liked the way he does his best to understand the goings on in the Church.

If you like cosy mysteries with a village setting and a small cast of characters then you may enjoy this series. They can be read in any order and this is number two in the series.

[GeraniumCat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clerical mystery

Deaconess Theodora Braithwaite is house-sitting in Norfolk when she is asked by the Bishop and the Archdeacon to look into the circumstances surrounding the death of the parish priest.
It helps if you know the ramifications and hierarchy of the Church of England, I think - in a way, this whole series is a kind of very English in-joke, gently satirical and occasionally acerbic about the niceties of High and Low. There are some exquisite overheard conversations, for instance, but also some musings on the spiritual life.
The series is firmly cast in the Golden Age detective story mould, with more than a touch of Barbara Pym. Pure pleasure for me, but I can imagine that some may find that the setting is too arcane. I am delighted that they have been lovingly reissued, without the typos that beset the earlier versions on Kindle.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I still like the character of Theodora Braithwaite and the moral seriousness with which people and their lives are treated, but this book is a little too deferential towards old county family ways even while it depicts their awfulness in great detail. For the second time, too many key characters are introduced too late in the story, and we only see the murder victim in retrospect through other people’s eyes.

[Ellen L. King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unholy Ghosts was a hit!

Thought this book started rather slowly but the rhythm set in and I was hooked. I'm an Episcopalian myself so that was my initial interest. And as always it is the characters that keep my interest. I must also say the plot twists were very good. I'll be reading the next in the series.

[Cynthia Grove · Rating 3 out of 5]

I greatly enjoy this series which I have only recently rediscovered through kindle. For readers who are themselves part of a church community there are moments of laughter at how well the Anglican Church has been portrayed, all showing some elements of truth.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Good mystery and a Good Lesson

The best way to judge a man is to walk a mile in his moccasins.
Theodore does just that instead of enjoying her vacation. She follows the trail of a troubled client through an area fraught with un-laid ghosts.

[Voirrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really rather like deaconess Theodora Braithwaite, and I am old enough to recognise the period the books are set in, and the discussions about the role of women in the Church of England, which is not a major part of this story but simply helps place the period.

[Nrr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Theodora very much but I thought there was some shocking copy-editing, detail in the wrong place - the author very much let down by the publisher.

[Rita Rukashaza · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too obscure churchy.

[Terence Blowfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

I again liked this ecclesiastical whodunit. A murder mystery.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story was not as enjoyable as Greenwood's debut CLERICAL ERRORS. The characters were not as deep and it is hard to get a handle on Theodora Braithwaite the main protagonist. But the back story of the mechanics of how the people become part of the clergy, that is, it is more like a job than a calling in some instances. Clerics are given their livings or parishes in a relatively haphazard fashion and it appears that to get rid of some of the worst the only way is by murdering them.

In this particular case the minister was a sot, a slob, and a sour individual who never did a thing to endear himself to any one, Most of his congregation applauded the idea of his death if not the way it was accomplished. Although there a were those that though his end was appropriate . I hope in the next book maybe I will find that Braithwaite has some deep feeling about something other than her job.

[JackieB · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting crime novel. The victim was a priest and the book had a background of organised religion. It was not about faith, or a Christian book in the sense of trying to convince the reader of the value or otherwise of belief (whether in Christianity or other religions). It was rather about systems of privilege and resistance to change. As such, it was not a particularly plot driven story, although the plot was well worked out and progressed at a reasonable pace. It was an "old fashioned" crme book - the detectives relied on questioning suspects and working out motives rather than using scientific methods to solve the crime. I thoroughly enjoyed this and want to read the other 8 (I think) books by this author.

[Linda Karchmar (Cameron) · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little hard to get through