Bloody Bonsai (Worldwide Library Mysteries) [Paperback]

Peter Abresch (Author)

Book Description

Series: Worldwide Library Mysteries | Publication Date: August 1, 1999

Dandy finds himself in a small beach town taking a course about the Japanese art of bonsai. Cranky and craving isolation, he's accepted as a widower. He doesn't expect to encounter a beautiful woman, a dead body stabbed with a bonsai tree, or the accusations of the police.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Browbeaten by well-meaning relatives, James "Jim" Dandy, a widower, enrolls in a bonsai class at an elder hostel. Bonsai, the elder hostel, and the Jersey shore in the off-season don't exactly spell exciting, but that changes quickly when Dandy falls in love with an alluring artist and becomes involved in crimes ranging from tree theft to murder. This strong first novel opens with a highly original murder by bonsai and includes interesting background on the traditional Oriental art. Abresch skillfully builds plot and suspense and offers good insights on aging. His writing style suggests Elmore Leonard, and the bantering but affectionate interplay between the older man and the younger artist is reminiscent of the relationship between the Art Carney and Lily Tomlin characters in the movie Late Show. This is the kind of compelling mystery that demands a one-sitting reading. John Rowen --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Kirkus Reviews

Unable to generate enthusiasm for anything since his wife's death, retired physical therapist James P. Dandy has let his children cajole him into attending an Elderhostel at the Jersey shore. But the other participants seem indistinguishable except for their name tags and rsumsall but Dodee Swisher, a gallery owner determined to create her own laboratory component for their class in bonsai gardening. With Jim's uneasy cooperation, she talks unsavory busboy Billy Dack into loaning them a shovel so that they can go illegally excavating some trees from city property. But things rapidly get out of hand when the Bolder Harbor police catch these felons in the act. The two end up comforting each other between the sheets back at the Windswept Dunes Motel, and they rise next morning to find Billy Dack fatally speared with the demonstration bonsai plant. Preliminary snooping indicates that Billy was a two-bit blackmailer, so Jim and Dodee ignore Detective Belinda Smith's stern warnings to stay off the case and go after the blackmail tapes, with results about as surprising and dangerous as you'd expect for the Hardy Boys. A bonus in this winsome, if guileless, debut is a short course in how to style a bonsai plant and use it as a murder weapon. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: Worldwide Library (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037326321X
• ISBN-13: 978-0373263219
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,591,807 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fun book, February 17, 2000

By 

"gayeharbor" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bloody Bonsai: A Jim Dandy Elderhostel Mystery (James P. Dandy Elderhostel Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I'm sorry there are not more reviews about this book. I assume not many people read it. Their loss! This was one of the most fun books I've read in a long time. I would recommend it to anyone.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BLOODY BONSAI IS BLOODY WONDERFUL, June 2, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Bloody Bonsai: A Jim Dandy Elderhostel Mystery (James P. Dandy Elderhostel Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I loved this book. I'm a huge fan of mysteries but I find it hard to dig up new writers who I enjoy--most seem to be doing same old-same old. But Peter Abresch has taken a fresh approach to the genre and breathed life into it. This story is wonderful, and the background of bonsai and Elderhostel is fascinating.

Michele Rogers

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great reading experience, April 5, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Bloody Bonsai: A Jim Dandy Elderhostel Mystery (James P. Dandy Elderhostel Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Widower James P. Dandy heeds his daughter's advice to get out more. He travels down the Jersey shore to join his fellow Elderhostelers attending a bonsai class. To his surprise, James finds himself attracted to attendee Dodee Swisher. She dares the fiftyish man into doing feats of daring, which get both of them in trouble with the local law.

However, their exploits make them the prime suspects when a hotel employee is found murdered. Knowing that the police are looking at them and seeking more adventure, James and Dodee begin to investigate the killing. When a second corpse is found, the police raise the heat on this unlikely heroic duo and they, in turn, also raise the temperature in an attempt to capture the culprit.

Due to its great, quirky characters, BLOODY BONSAI is a fun to read who-done-it. The story line is brilliantly tied together by the well-developed cast, while the mystery is a eccentric cozy. The transformation of Jim Dandy from lifeless entity to heroic rescuer is cleverly described by talented Peter E. Absresch. Hopefully, there will be more adventures from the bonsai king.

Harriet Klausner