The Happy Birthday Murder (Mass Market Paperback)

Chris comes across two items. First is a note about a young man who died after being lost in the woods in Connecticut. The second is an obituary about a wealthy man that committed suicide. Chris' aunt has never mentioned either of these, so she tries to contact the remaining family of each to find out how her aunt was tied to these people. Turns out the young man was a dear friend of her cousin. Both of these deaths occurred about twelve years ago.

In the investigation, Chris finds that the victims, though they didn't know each other, were wearing each other's shoes. Since they happened in different states (though near each other) this was never put together before. Neither woman thought much about the fact that the shoes they were given were not those of their relative. Chris begins to investigate and see how their lives might have intersected.

She spends lots of hours meeting people in Connecticut to see if anyone saw the young man and also investigating the businessman's life to see whether he really committed suicide.

I always enjoy books in this series. Chris is a very likable, intelligent woman. Her husband has become more understanding of her investigations. He is a policeman so he is able to assist her with information in most investigations. Their young son adds a bit of sunshine to each story.

The fact that Chris is an ex-nun always adds to the story. She always shares her investigations with Sister Joseph at the convent. She is always full of great insight and helps direct Chris.

I look forward to reading many more books in this series. I highly recommend this book and the whole series.

The premise to get this book cooking was a bit far-fetched to begin with. Sifting through some old papers of her aunt's (whose house Chris inherited), Bennett discovers funeral notices and personal notes about a young adult who died essentially from being lost in the woods (in Connecticut) and another about a man who died (ruled a suicide) on his 50th birthday (hence the title) in the New York area. The two deaths occurred within days of each other some twelve years ago. With no more provocation than that, Chris starts bugging the families concerned for more details about their deaths -- and gee, guess what?? It turns out there is a connection between the two that of course was never discovered by the two police forces conducting the official investigations of the cases. We found that all a bit too much to swallow, and the numerous trips to the scenes and hours of questioning random household members and neighbors near the woods, etc., got to be pretty slow going for much of the book. Only at the end, where some brand new revelations helped turn all the clues into a solution, involving a character never introduced until near the final chapter, did things clear up.

We have noticed that since Eddie has come along, much of the books include filler describing the everyday tedium of meals and naps and trips to the babysitter. Indeed, much of this book looked like filler as Chris rambled on from one whimsical idea to another in a frustrating attempt to find clues. Perhaps it was we readers who were equally frustrated by a leading lady we like who has seemed to become, well, progressively boring as her life increasingly begins to resemble ours. We note that Lee Harris has started a new series ("Murder in Hell's Kitchen") and wonder if our author may have come to the same conclusion as us -- it may be time to move on.

Christine Bennett is a fascinating female sleuth with an interesting life. A former nun, released from her vows and now married with an (almost) four year old son, Chris has a real knack for solving murders.

'The Happy Birthday Murder' is her most recent outing, but from little references here and there in the text (and the helpful reading list printed in the back of this paperback) it is apparent that solving murders is something Christine is very good at doing.

Chris resides in the home which her beloved Aunt Meg left to her upon her death. While sorting through some boxes of keepsakes in the basement, Christine finds several letters which refer to the deaths of two individuals that died within a few days of one another over twelve years ago. One was a fifty year old, successful business man who committed suicide and the other a young retarded man who dies of exposure after wandering away from the home of friends and becoming lost for several days.

Nothing suspicious was ever discovered regarding either case and families of each man had resumed their lives, long before Christine left the convent. But for a female sleuth, who is good at ferreting out puzzles, there are some oddities that send her asking questions. And when she talks to the families, she unearths even more questions.

This is a tightly written plot that will keep the reader guessing. Written in a breezy, informal style, it tells the story from the viewpoint of an extremely likable character, who loves her husband and son, is a good neighbor and productive member of her community --- and just happens to be good at solving murders!

I'm now on a quest of my own, to find the previous books of this series that have such names as The Good Friday Murder, The April Fool's Day Murder and The Labor Day Murder. Wish me luck!