From Publishers Weekly
With sharp eye and barbed wit, Greenwood demonstrates that her cup does not overflow with charity, at least not for the more worldly and unworthy members of the Anglican clergy. Her amateur sleuth, Reverend Theodora Braithwaite, who was last seen in Unholy Ghosts , is sent on a lay training ministry to Bow St. Aelfric, a small cathedral with large problems, including an ambitious unpopular new dean, Vincent Stream. Its problems multiply when an exploding water main unearths a Roman statue of Janus in the cathedral close. Seen as everything from a "pagan horror" to a possible source of revenue, the statue is a hot topic of conversation at a party given by Stream where Theodora senses "an undertow of disquiet." The next morning, a verger finds Stream's body neatly laid out in front of the statue, his throat cut. Theodora's ability to move among and talk to church folk makes her helpful to Inspector Spruce, on loan to the Bow Constabulary from the Norfolk CID; they are an effective pair, though much of the sleuthing is limited to mundane who-was-where-when conversations. The real spice here--and the best reason to read the book--is found in Greenwood's pointed observations of England's established church.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
Third in the author's tales of life and death among the Anglican clergy finds Reverend Theodora Braithwaite (Unholy Ghosts, etc.) on loan to the country cathedral of Bow St. Aelfric, where Dean Vincent Stream has just been installed. The pompous, self- promoting new Dean has already raised hackles among members of the Chapter--among them casually dressed, car-loving Archdeacon Gold, Canon Erica Millhaven, and choleric Archdeacon Riddable, to say nothing of vergers Tristam Knight and Nick Squires. Add to the list Oliver Fresh, head of an impoverished but self-sufficient community living on land soon to be sold by the church. The sudden unearthing, on cathedral ground, of an ancient bronze figure of a two-faced Janus sparks new controversy--a controversy that climaxes with the discovery of Stream's murdered body, carefully laid beside the Janus, the morning after his official welcoming party. Theodora is soon pressed into service by old acquaintance Inspector Spruce to gather inside information while he explores alibis and backgrounds. A simple plot lurks beneath layers of church lore, formidably intellectual chitchat, and a jumpy narrative--heady stuff for some; a slightly pretentious bore for most. --
Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
