From Publishers Weekly
Fans will not be disappointed in the reappearance of the irascible yet loveable Inspector Morse, the Oxford policeman who investigates the underside of his beautiful city. This time Dexter employs his lucid prose to describe a century-old murder on the meandering Oxford canal, a case chanced upon by Morse in his reading while hospitalized for an ulcer. Inevitably, there will be comparisons with Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time , in which her sleuth simultaneously convalesces and cogitates upon Richard III, accused of the murder of his two nephews. Dexter's tale is the better of the two. The interior narrative, that of a fetching young woman who meets death during a night-shrouded canal voyage, is placed in a contemporary story in which Morse engages in marvelous repartee with his loyal Sergeant Lewis, with a winsome female librarian and with others who aid him in researching the crime. A surprising and inspired solution concludes a jolly good read that juxtaposes past and present Oxford with imagination and finesse. A new series of Inspector Morse mysteries is airing on PBS. 20,000 first printing; Mystery Guild alternate.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
It is generally true that authors do not make the best narrators for their own works. There are exceptions, with Dexter being a great exception. However, knowledge of both Morse and Dexter would enhance the listening experience since Dexter brings so much of himself to his splendid creation. Morse is in the hospital when he, by chance, encounters a booklet about a murder in the Oxford Canal. He brilliantly unravels the 150-year-old mystery from his hospital bed with the assistance of hospital staff, patients, visitors and the ever faithful Lewis. Dexter's timing, pronunciation and pace are the result of the author-narrator reading. This story, given its style, could have lacked dimension but Dexter's wit and knowledge of his work keep the tale as lively and involving as any present-day, action-packed mystery. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine--
Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
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