Kindle British Mystery Book Club discussion

I'm about half way through this book and, on the whole, it's quite enjoyable. Some interesting characters, but also a lot of annoying well-off types. Think I've guessed one of the main themes, but will see if I'm right.

I agree with you Shell about the posh exterior of the characters as well as their fabulous home environment but I have also noticed that there are various layers to the individuals that aren't so "pretty". A very good book club choice.

I enjoyed the book the more it went on and, as you say Jan, all the characters have a lot running under the surface. I did think that Ginny was going to turn out to be Caterin's Mother and I also thought, at one time, that the new baby was going to end up being the young girl's and not her brother at all. I'm still not exactly clear why the gardener had to go off and hide like that. Surely he had the upper hand knowing who Ginny was. Bill and the French woman were the worst characters in it and I doubt that Caterin would ever have him back again. I imagined the ladies and Hugo all living there happily ever after looking out for each other. On the whole, I enjoyed the story and didn't guess a lot of the plot at the end. Sorry for miss spelling of character names, I read this on audio book this time.

"But that all changes when an idyllic street party takes a dark turn, and popular resident Bill Adams is found dead at the foot of his neighbour's stairs"

That was from the blurb, which doesn't fit the story, where the apparent victim is Katrin. As Ashdown admits in the Afterward, this novel underwent some major changes in the course of composition, and left some scars from the surgery. Most evident is the change from Barney's being a schoolboy to a schoolmaster. Frida lost her friends because she withdrew her original story of the relationship, but has Barney been one of the sixth-form teachers to accusations would have been much more serious and surely have been mentioned by her friends as well as being investigated by the school.

Hi Bill. I too thought it very odd that Barney, being a teacher, wasn't mentioned earlier. Now that you say that some things were altered later in the story, this makes perfect sense. I am sure that if other earlier girls had made such allegations at the school, that he would, at least, have been quietly removed. There were a few things during the story that I just couldn't understand.

This was an interesting read but wasn’t enough of a mystery for me. I prefer thé “who did it” books I gave it 3 stars