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The Fortieth Birthday Body: A Suburban Mystery
  

The Fortieth Birthday Body: A Suburban Mystery (Hardcover)

by Valerie Wolzien (Author)
2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Susan Henshaw, the affable but somewhat inept housewife introduced in Wolzien's first novel, Murder at the PTA Luncheon , returns in this mild, low-key mystery set in affluent Hancock, Conn. Also reappearing is Henshaw's good friend Kathleen Gordon, a shrewd, unflappable former state police detective who calls on all her wiles and experience to work with the antagonistic local police in solving the murder of Dawn Elliot, a former resident of Hancock whose body, shot through the head, turns up in Susan's birthday present--a new car--at her 40th birthday party. Most of the male guests present quickly become suspects, since many, including Susan's seemingly agreeable husband Jed, reluctantly admit to having had affairs with promiscuous, enigmatic Dawn. Kathleen penetrates the town's seething gossip network to ferret out motives, but it is Susan's precocious 10-year-old son Chad, a sports-car buff, who inadvertently provides a vital clue. A townful of listless characters and a thin, drawn-out story line stall this pallid mystery.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Product Description

Down-to-earth housewife Susan Henshaw is turning forty -- and feeling ancient. Adding insult to injury is the return of gorgeous local hussy Dawn Elliott, rumored to have slept with half the married men of quiet Hancock, Connecticut. To lift her sagging spirits, Susan's loving husband throws her a surprise party. But one guest gets the surprise of her life -- or death. Dawn Elliott is found murdered. And Susan herself is the prime suspect . . . --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews
5 star:    (0)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
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1 star:
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Average Customer Review
2.4 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3.0 out of 5 stars Unlikely ending, Aug 26 2002
By Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Susan Henshaw is back with her friend Kathleen, who was a police investigator in the first book of the series and is now a friend and neighbor, married to a widower named Jerry. Kathleen lets it slip that Susan's husband Jed is preparing for a surprise party for Susan's 40th. birthday. Susan is already depressed by her approaching middle age and the fact that a woman named Dawn, who has had affairs with most of the men in the neighborhood, is back in town. The party becomes really depressing when a dead body shows up and Susan and Jed become murder suspects. There are no end of other people with motives, but the final conclusion is a weak one and the motive is pretty questionable. There are some nice touches, such as Susan's son Chad becoming a hero because of his knowledge of cars, but basically the book falls a bit flat at the end.
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2.0 out of 5 stars The real cheat is the ending, Aug 6 2001
By Shelley Mckibbon (Halifax, NS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I wouldn't put this author in my top ten favourite mystery authors, but I enjoyed a couple of her other books. Her prose isn't sparkling, but they're pretty good in-the-tub reading. However, when I reached the conclusion of this one, I nearly dropped it in the bubble bath: the piece of information used to solve the crime is something that the author SPECIFICALLY tells us nobody knew. Because, if anyone had known this piece of information, the story would have ended right there. I re-read the crucial passage three times and every time it was there in black and white: the person who claims at the end to have spotted something is someone who specifically DID NOT.

This is otherwise not a bad mystery, and I like the way the author makes you get to like the victim a little, but it's very hard to get past that impossible solution.

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3.0 out of 5 stars A fun read, Jul 24 2001
By Moe811 (New York USA) - See all my reviews
Susan Henshaw's fortieth birthday rapidly approaches and Jed plans a "surprise" party for her with a new car as a gift. Unfortunately the local tramp is found dead in the front seat. Everyone who had an affair with her in the town of Hancock is a suspect including Jed. Susan and Kathleen have to do their best to clear him.

Ms. Wolzien has alot to live up to in her novels and this is not up to her usual standards. Her attempted red herrings just turn out to be loose ends. Susan and Jed never once discuss the affair--why--it almost gets him arrested and everyone else in town has told the police and Kathleen about it. This novel seems just sort of tossed together. It is however enjoyable for all that and I am slowly working my way through all her novels.

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Most recent customer reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Nope. . .too depressing.. .
I was in my mid-30s when I read this one the first time. I thought then that maybe since I hadn't turned 40 myself, that I didn't understand why Susan was crying in the tub or... Read more
Published on Sep 28 2000 by Melissa P. Cooper

4.0 out of 5 stars Loved It!
I enjoyed every bit of this book and had a hard time putting it down. I can't wait to get out and pick up the rest of the books in this series.
Published on Mar 4 2000

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
The second in a series, I found this book, and its predecessor, to be extremely disappointing.

I'm not sure why these books are called the "Susan Henshaw mysteries",... Read more

Published on Nov 27 1999

3.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing but unsatisfying
Dawn, the "town tramp" of Hancock, manages to ruin Susan Henshaw's 40th birthday bash by showing up uninvited behind the wheel of Susan's new Volvo. Read more
Published on Jan 21 1997

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