Berkley, August 2003, 22.95, 352 pp.
ISBN 0425190437
After a successful career in the Home Office, Carole Seddon retires to the seashore resort town of Fethering in West Sussex where she becomes friends with Jude, her next door neighbor. They partner up solving several local homicides. Carole has recently taken a volunteer position of trustee at Bracketts House, the home where the famous Catholic writer Esmond Chadleigh once lives. The property was turned into a heritage house and is in need of outside funding to keep on operating.
In the kitchen garden, a skeleton is found that dates back over seventy years. The find horrifies many of the trustees who don't want the author's named sullied. When Carole and Sheila Cartwright, the unofficial head of Bracketts House, are walking toward their cars after a trustee meeting, a shot rings out killing Sheila instantly. Carole believes there is a connection between the bodies found in the kitchen garden and Sheila's death and she is determined to find the common link knowing she may already be in danger.
Although Jude isn't working the investigation as much as usual because she is nursing a very sick friend, Carole picks up the slack and for once is not overshadowed by her best friend. She proves she can investigate a murder on her own and is able to subtly put the pieces together to figure out why the homicide occurred in the first place. Carole ferrets out the secrets and scandals of Bracketts house, which makes the heritage home more appealing to visitors and readers.
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases - 10% Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30% How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 70%
Kind of investigator
- amateur citizen investigator
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- life in small town
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- retiree
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- unemployed
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 2
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
