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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Simon Brett's long and successful careers as thriller writer and humorist have come magnificently together in the Mrs Pargeter books, in which a charming middle-aged woman inherits a successful criminal empire from her dead husband, and proves more than equal to the task of using it more or less for good. In Mrs Pargeter's Point of Honour, she is hired by another widow, Veronica Chastaigne, to return all the art treasures that her late husband accumulated in a long career of larceny. Other greedier eyes are watching, though, and soon it is a question of stealing the pictures back again, so that they can be returned. All this is taking place under the watchful eyes of the incredibly dim Inspector Wilkinson and his worryingly less dim Sergeant--and even Wilkinson has his own designs on the widow of his old antagonist Pargeter. All British comedy is sooner or later about class--Brett is entertaining about Mrs Pargeter's sense of obligation to her late husband's tame fences, hackers and burglars. What makes this more than a snobbish romp is that Brett's creations have a certain gracefulness as they go about their enterprises--there is real elegance here. --Roz Kaveney
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
Mrs Pargeter is forced to find out more than she would wish about her husband's "business activities", when she recreates one of his most famous scams.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Although Mrs. Melita Pargeter never verbally stated so, she was well aware that her spouse headed up a huge criminal enterprise. She even has no problems using his employees when she needed some assistance. All of her husband's associates would stop what they were doing if Mrs. Pargeter needed them. Though rather well off, Mrs. Pargeter seems to get herself into situations that would be detrimental if brought if the police were brought into the gamut.
The late Bennie Logan "acquired" many luxurious items for his beloved wife Veronica. However, the widow wants the paintings returned to their rightful owner. Her son prefers allowing the police to deal with the stolen art, but that would besmirch the reputation of her beloved Bennie. Since Bennie worked for Mr. Pargeter, Veronica turns to Melita for help. Using the help of her underworld connections, Mrs. Pargeter begins the process of returning the art even as a police officer tries to intercede in order to obtain a reputation.
Simon Brett has another winner in the latest Mrs. Pargeter tale. Instead of a who-done-it, this story line concentrates more on how the deed is being accomplished. That leads to a large dose of black comedy. The returning characters provide this series with a sense of continuity and homecoming. MRS. PARGETER,S POINT OF HONOR is a marvelous misdirection that stars a saintly-looking elderly person who is anything but a saint.
Harriet Klausner
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio Cassette
Although Mrs. Melita Pargeter never verbally stated so, she was well aware that her spouse headed up a huge criminal enterprise. She even has no problems using his employees when she needed some assistance. All of her husband's associates would stop what they were doing if Mrs. Pargeter needed them. Though rather well off, Mrs. Pargeter seems to get herself into situations that would be detrimental if brought if the police were brought into the gamut.
The late Bennie Logan "acquired" many luxurious items for his beloved wife Veronica. However, the widow wants the paintings returned to their rightful owner. Her son prefers allowing the police to deal with the stolen art, but that would besmirch the reputation of her beloved Bennie. Since Bennie worked for Mr. Pargeter, Veronica turns to Melita for help. Using the help of her underworld connections, Mrs. Pargeter begins the process of returning the art even as a police officer tries to intercede in order to obtain a reputation.
Simon Brett has another winner in the latest Mrs. Pargeter tale. Instead of a who-done-it, this story line concentrates more on how the deed is being accomplished. That leads to a large dose of black comedy. The returning characters provide this series with a sense of continuity and homecoming. MRS. PARGETER'S POINT OF HONOR is a marvelous misdirection that stars a saintly-looking elderly person who is anything but a saint.
Harriet Klausner
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3 reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
From a series on Mrs. Pargeter
27 Sep 2002
Format:Paperback
This novel is really not a mystery as the facts of the case are fairly clear. The only mystery is a side issue of identifying an informer. It is a cops and robbers novel where the author takes the side of the robbers. Most of the characters are either reformed villains who somehow avoided prison, or police who have been trying to make a case against them.
It took some time for the story to develop while various characters were being introduced and relationships were established. The first portion of the novel was somewhat dull. Once the story was sufficiently developed, and the action picked up, it was harder to set the book aside.
The main plot concerns restitution, i.e., trying to return stolen paintings to the rightful owners. This is not as simple as it sounds. A police inspector wants to catch people with the goods and make a case for his own career advancement. A band of thieves wants to steal the paintings from the original thieves. There is also the problem of trying to transport the paintings through customs without getting caught.
This is an average length novel of 265 pages broken up into 48 short chapters. It is a good novel for commuters who want a book to read in installments. It is a fun book if you don't get offended by being on the side of the villains.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Mrs.Pargeter is absolutely delightful!
12 Oct 2000
Format:Hardcover
However, there is one character in the book that could have had his air time shortened. He was borrrrring... About 1/2 way through the book, the story really picks up and becomes very intriguing; like "Mission Impossible" with Mrs.Pargeter in charge of the gang. The author really kept me guessing until the end. So Mr.Brett, keep the CW character, but get him to the point, or give him less air time... Looking forward to the next...
0 of 3 people found the following review helpful
the mystery here is...
23 May 2010
Format:Paperback
... who would bother reading this book. If you've progressed beyond a 6th grade reading and/or emotional level, forget this book.
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