Bones in the Belfry [Hardcover]

Suzette A. Hill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2008

Praise for Suzette A. Hill:

“I think this is tremendous.”—Dame Beryl Bainbridge

Francis Oughterard was the contented vicar of Molehill when he accidentally strangled a lady parishioner. A sleazy art dealer gave him an alibi, and Maurice—his victim’s cynical cat—and Bouncer—a neighbor’s dog—rescued him from police suspicion. Now he is called upon to return the favor by storing stolen paintings in the church belfry. The intrigue mounts as hapless F.O. bumbles through confrontations. Maurice and Bouncer each contribute their version of events.

F.O. made his debut in A Load of Old Bones.

A graduate of the universities of Nottingham and Newcastle/Tyne, Suzette A. Hill taught English literature for many years at Reading College before retiring to Herefordshire.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Hill's delightful second mystery to feature the Rev. Francis Oughterard, the Surrey vicar is still reeling from having gotten away with the murder of one of his parishioners in 2007's A Load of Old Bones. Oughterard feels he has no choice but to agree to storing stolen artwork at the vicarage at the insistence of an old theology college classmate, Nicholas Ingaza, because Ingaza provided him with an alibi for the parishioner's murder. The plot thickens when a visiting author with plans to write a mystery about the murder insists on a thorough search of the church and belfry where the clergyman has hidden the paintings. With his usual propensity for getting involved in crime, Oughterard soon finds himself in the midst of another tangled web of deception that even his cat, Maurice, and his dog, Bouncer, can't untangle, as revealed in chapters from their points-of-view. This dry, funny British gem, with its eccentric cast of characters, will leave readers laughing and eagerly awaiting the next episode. (Aug.)
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From Booklist

The second entry in Hill’s pet series combines an animal investigator (á la Midnight Louie),    the cozy setting of Sneaky Pie Brown, and a Miss Marple–like British village mystery. Somehow, Hill manages to make it all work, with humor and appealing characters, both human and animal. Chapters alternate between “The Vicar’s Version,” “The Dog’s Diary,” and “The Cat’s Memoir.” Francis Oughtergard (or F. O. to his pets) is a slightly manic vicar with shaky nerves and a taste for strong liquor who thinks he has a gift for funerals but not weddings. After an unfortunate incident with one of his parishioners (he killed her), F. O. ends up being forced to store some hot pictures for an old acquaintance, sending his shaky nerves into high gear and forcing him to self-medicate with cream buns and peppermint humbugs. The only drawback to this charming and engaging tale is the author’s overuse of exclamation points. Recommend this series to anyone who reads cozy pet stories. --Jessica Moyer

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Soho Constable (August 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569475105
• ISBN-13: 978-1569475102
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1.1 x 8.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,264,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a load of fun and suspense, August 14, 2008

By 

zinnia (UT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones in the Belfry (Hardcover)

I got a kick out of this book. Ms. Hill's snappy and unmistakable British style was a treat to read - fantastic vocabulary and descriptions. Reading bits from the POV of Maurice and Bouncer, the vicar's cat and dog, respectively, only reinforced my suspicions about these seemingly ordinary pets.

There is plenty to laugh about, and a few ironic plot twists. I didn't read the first one but now I'll have to find it too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Series, October 4, 2008

By 

Truth Seeker "lifelong student and reader" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones in the Belfry (Hardcover)

This is the second in what apparently is going to be at least a three book (I hope more) series. They're terrific. Great and original reads, the characters, including the animals, are enjoyable, the period, the settings, even the village. The Anglican clergyman is wonderfully flawed.
Actually, the second book flows a little better than the first which was still well done. Enjoy this book!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars amusing British crime caper, August 20, 2008

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bones in the Belfry (Hardcover)

In Molehill, Surrey, Vicar Reverend Francis Oughterard feels remorse and guilt for choking to death a parishioner (see A LOAD OF OLD BONES). He beat the rap thanks to his brilliant pets Maurice the cat and Bouncer the dog who removed revealing evidence from the crime scene.

When his former theology classmate, Nicholas Ingaza Oughterard asks him to hide stolen art in the vicarage, Francis reluctantly agrees; not out of some college loyalty but because Nicholas gave him his phony alibi. However, a true crime writer obtains permission to look around the church and belfry forcing the beleaguered clergy to relocate the paintings in his sister's home. Things turn worse when one of the masterpieces is put up for fund-raising.

BONES IN THE BELFRY is an amusing British crime caper that older readers will think of Terry Thomas starring as the helpless beleaguered Vicar who seems to somehow find himself trapped in criminal activities. This time his saviors Maurice and Bouncer realize there is very little they can do to keep the hands that feed them out of jail. The two pets makes the tale fun to read with their resigned feline and canine sense of inevitability in which their human pet will be locked up; if not this time, perhaps the next time. Purist mystery fans need to pass as there is no detecting, but those readers who appreciate the antics of a humorous bungler supported by an eccentric cast of human fumblers and two loyal brilliant animals will want to read the lighthearted BONES IN THE BELFRY.

Harriet Klausner