- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Minotaur Books (Mar 1 2011)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312672918
- ISBN-13: 978-0312672911
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 14.9 x 2.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 340 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #266,913 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
“Aird’s delicious concoctions are never less than elegant and mischievously sharp.”
—The Times (London)
DCI Sloan and Constable Crosby are on the case again. A young girl has been murdered, found dead in the river. But what connection does she have to the recently deceased Josephine Short? Following the twisting trail of evidence, Sloan works to uncover the truth behind the life of Josephine Short and uncover the murderer behind a young girl’s death.
About the Author
CATHERINE AIRD lives in England.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.7 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
British thriller, Mar 1 2011
By Mark P. Sadler "Reviewed by Mark P Sadler" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Past Tense: A Sloan and Crosby Mystery (Hardcover)
In the quiet, English countryside an old lady dies in her bed at the local nursing home. Janet Wakefield receives notification--her husband Bill, who is stationed in South America by his company, is the next of kin--which is a surprise because neither of them even knew Josephine Short existed.Sent to make the funeral arrangements, Janet discovers that all the particulars have been laid out by the decedent. The church, the hotel and "bun wrestle", as the reception is described, and the `no flowers' request are already in place. She shows up for the funeral service to find several of the local villagers: a friendly, old man who claims to have known Ms. Short, a beautiful, young lady with auburn hair and in the pew behind her, the nursing home matron as well as the attorney handling the estate. As the service starts, a tall, dark-haired, young man sits next to her on the pew reserved for family. Joe Short, the grandson.
Making the acquaintance of another family member previously unknown to them helps the Wakefields discover who Josephine Short is and where she fits into all their lives. The discovery that she is well off and has a large estate is even more confusing. When the auburn beauty's body is found in the river under suspicious circumstances, the heirs are forced to reveal their alibis, which brings down suspicion on both of them, as well as a local thug whose mother was working at the nursing home.
When using material that Aird senses her reader may not have a complete understanding about, such as subject matter, she will have her characters ask questions to show their ignorance of the subject, which in turn edifies both the character and reader at the same time.
Aird weaves the red herrings and suspicions throughout the story, making you look back into the past pages for clues missed, words uttered that might have been a clue, a hint of foreshadowing glossed over until the pieces all fall together, making perfect sense of the tale.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
superb English police procedural, Mar 5 2011
By Harriet Klausner - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Past Tense: A Sloan and Crosby Mystery (Hardcover)
In England when spinster Josephine Short dies, her next of kin is her estranged great-nephew Bill Wakefield. Since he is in South America on business, his wife Janet arranges the funeral.At Josephine's funeral, a stranger arrives late and insists he is Joe Short, the grandson of the deceased. Everyone who knew Josephine had no idea she had an offspring let alone a grandchild; she even listed Bill as her nearest relative. Soon after the burial, someone breaks into the Berebury Nursing Home where the deceased spent her last days before dying there. Nothing seems to have bee stolen, several items are broken. Not long afterward a homicide happens leaving Detective Chief Sloan and Detective Constable Crosby to investigate what secret the late elderly woman had that has led to a murder.
This is superb English police procedural with a powerful cast of characters. The story line is fast-paced from the moment Jan learns of the broken items at the home and never slows as the two cops work the case. Readers will enjoy the latest Sloan and Crosby investigation (see Parting Breath).
Harriet Klausner
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars
Such a good writer, such a poor tale, May 21 2011
By Constant Reader - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Past Tense: A Sloan and Crosby Mystery (Hardcover)
Unhappy to say, this is a real disappointment. There have been so many enjoyable books by Ms Aird over the years. This one however seems to have been written with little interest or effort, despite the obvious plotting and language skills of the author.The plot feels uncomfortably moved in time, from the 1930s to the 21st Century. And as soon as you realize that, it eliminates any mystery there may have been about whodunnit.
Also there is an uncomfortable lack, or avoidance, of technology, which even in Calleshire market towns, is far more deeply ingrained in today's life and police work than it is in this investigation. Too, the sense of timing is somehow so softened that it feels like a week, not two and a half days, for the story's unfolding. The writing, though light years from clunky, is repetitious, padded, and lacks Ms Aird's usual spriteliness. And unhappily, the characters are equally lacking.
Altogether, it feels like a pudding that hasn't set.
However, I must say a good word for the "bumbling" Detective Constable Crosby. He may be a social disaster, but he does notice things.
Not the experience or review I would have expected.
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