- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Collins Crime; First Edition First Impression / Signed by Author edition (19 Sep 1996)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0002326167
- ISBN-13: 978-0002326162
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 524,444 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Review
Another absorbing journey to Lavenstock, the town in England where low-keyed Detective Superintendent Gil Mayo and his team (A Death of Distinction, p. 303, etc.) are trying to identify the bludgeoned body of a man found in Ellington Close, a small, tight-knit community of old and newer houses. Dermot Voss, a recent widower in the film and video business, has just bought Edwina Lodge, a large place that combines living quarters with apartments for three tenants. Sarah, his late wife Lisa's sister, has come to help Dermot and his two young daughters settle in. Morning newspapers are delivered to Edwina Lodge by teenager Patti Ryman, who also services nearby Simla, home of the Kendricks - teacher Hope, her twin brother Francis, a writer, and their visiting sister Imogen Loxley. An abandoned car found in the village finally identifies the dead man as Philip Ensor, a sales rep supposedly away on business, who lived in Solihull with wife Judith but once lived in the same town as the Vosses. As Mayo tries to make sense of Ensor's presence in the Close, little Patti Ryman is found dead, killed by a blow to the head. Is there a connection to the unsolved murders of two young girls in neighboring Hurstfield Division, or had Patti seen Ensor's killer? It takes a while, but Mayo finally uncovers the crucial links that reveal the truth. The author's subtle development of a wide range of characters and the relationships among them produce the tensions and suspense that propel the story - one most readers will find fascinating to the finish. (Kirkus Reviews)
Product Description
A man lies face down in the mud of a Lavenstock allotment. He has no identification and DI Moon, investigating the death, finds himself getting nowhere. Another murder shocks the community and Superintendent Mayo gets personally involved. Can there really be two murderers loose in Lavenstock?
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Hardcover
A body is found face down in a puddle on an allotment in the village of Lavenstock. The circumstances of the death are such that the police have to treat it as a possible murder. There is nothing to identify the man: just some car keys and Belgian Francs in his pocket. (The novel was published in 1998, before the Euro came in.)
Detective Inspector Abigail Moon carries out an initial investigation, but there is a frustrating lack of evidence, and none of the nearby residents can provide any useful information.
Then the community is traumatised by a second death, and Superintendent Gil Mayo is brought in. Could one of the villagers be responsible for two brutal murders? Or could there by two murderers at large in this quiet village?
A better than average detective story.
Detective Inspector Abigail Moon carries out an initial investigation, but there is a frustrating lack of evidence, and none of the nearby residents can provide any useful information.
Then the community is traumatised by a second death, and Superintendent Gil Mayo is brought in. Could one of the villagers be responsible for two brutal murders? Or could there by two murderers at large in this quiet village?
A better than average detective story.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
You ought to try the Gil Mayo series
28 Dec 2011
Format:Paperback
I recommend this book as a very good installment in the Gil Mayo series. The plot about two local deaths that initially seem unrelated but really are connected sounds mundane but is actually rather absorbing. The story-specific characters are well drawn, which is part of what makes the ordinariness of this plot acceptable. The protagonists (Detective Superintendant Mayo, Detective Inspector Moon, Detective Sergeant Kite, et al) could be a little more developed as characters, but it seems to be Eccles desire not to make them bigger than her stories. Mayo, a strong and assured man, remains the best character, with Abigail Moon still seeming to be a token woman added to the series. It would be interesting to see her do something really significant to justify all the talk about how she is on the fast track. Sergeant Kite adds a dose of blue collar to the story, which is a realistic touch.
I like this series. It isn't anything dramatic or creepy or exotic, but Eccles does a nice job of making murder and its investigation in one British city engrossing. While one might find this book enjoyable on its own, I recommend reading this series in order, so as to get to know the main characters from the beginning.
I like this series. It isn't anything dramatic or creepy or exotic, but Eccles does a nice job of making murder and its investigation in one British city engrossing. While one might find this book enjoyable on its own, I recommend reading this series in order, so as to get to know the main characters from the beginning.
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