From Publishers Weekly
The redoubtable Miss Seeton, seen last in the pseudonymous Crane's Miss Seeton Undercover, here foils the dastardly plans of a gang bent on treason. Gathering to gossip at their English village post office, the women of Plummergen discuss the pending arrival of Princess Georgina for the opening of the nearby nuclear facility. Another topic is the strange doings of two older local ladies who are amassing a strange assortment of goods and seem to be digging a coffin-sized hole in their backyard. One of Plummergen's children is chosen to present the Princess with flowers; accompanying young Sally and her mother on the big day is Miss Seeton, whose finery includes an inherited necklace. Uranium salts used in the necklace's painted beads activate the security bells and, in the ensuing confusion, the Princess is kidnapped. Then Miss Seeton herself is abducted. Her old friend, Scotland Yard's Chief Inspector Delphick, investigates, using Miss Seeton's sketches as clues. Crane adeptly gives readers a feel for English village life and the meandering style used by Miss Seeton's originator, Heron Carvic, in the 1970s.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
Away with the petty intrigues of the Kentish village of Plummergen and its equally petty rivalry with neighboring Murreystone. After besting Murreystone in a school essay contest, Plummergen is due for a visit from none other than Princess Georgina, darling of the royal family and all England, to congratulate the winning essayist and accept a bouquet at her hands. Who better to escort the inconsequential young winner than retired schoolteacher/Scotland Yard consultant Miss Emily Seeton, the Battling Brolly (Miss Seeton Undercover, p. 248, etc.)--and who more likely than Miss Seeton to end up providing unwitting cover for a quartet of kidnappers (calling themselves Catesby, Rookwood, Keyes, and Winter--quiz time for British historians) who have their eyes on Georgy Girl? Naturally, as soon as Miss Seeton is freed from her arrest for high treason, she's able to draw a sketch that sets the Yard on the trail of the abductors; and naturally, she soon falls into the villains' clutches herself, sharing an impromptu cell (don't worry: it's got all mod cons) with the Princess, who's just as woolly in her way as the indomitable Miss Seeton. Before the final heraldic flourish, there'll be a pair of homicides (one sabotaged auto, one exploding privy) and another revelatory drawing whose clue is based on a deliciously dim-witted pun. Grave, charming, and foolish--the sort of case that suits Miss Seeton down to the ground. --
Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
