The Christmas Bow Murder (Celtic Interest) [Paperback]

Brian Battison (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1994 | Series: Celtic Interest

When the attractive and promiscuous Stella Caraway, wife of the shifty and temperamental Steven Caraway, is murdered and displayed like a bizarre Christmas package, Chief Inspector Jim Ashworth's investigation leads him into a bewildering forest of clues.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This debut novel by a British actor introduces Chief Inspector Jim Ashworth of the Bridgetown CID. The latest case for the 30-year veteran copper involves the murder of Stella Carway, who was strangled to death with a scarf that was then tied neatly in a bow. Ashworth learns from the housekeeper that, while Mr. Carway might be a ladies' man, the victim herself was "no better than she should be." Evidence conveniently points to the husband, whom Ashworth's assistant, DS Owen Turner, is convinced is the culprit. But Ashworth suspects that the fatal relationship may be hidden somewhere in the tangle of Stella's friends and lovers (some unsavory). The pressure on Ashworth increases when his superior wonders if the veteran detective is past his prime and if Turner, a skilled detective and opportunist, is ready to take the baton. The honorable Ashworth manages to ferret out the murderer and lay waste to another scheme in the process. Battison plots his tale well, but wordily.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Stella Carway's dying words to whoever killed her (``I thought you loved me'') are no help in narrowing down the suspects, since, before she was stunned, strangled, and arranged in her flat with the ends of the murder weapon tied in a neat bow around her neck, Stella seems to have been on intimate terms with half the district, from suave Conservative councillor John Faulkner to car repairman Rodney Watson, her bit of rough, and gardener Rory James, the nearest available male. None of which endeared her to her husband, Steven, who'd been moving slowly on his divorce, despite the prenuptial agreement he'd salted away against his own inveterate philandering, or to any of the vengeful women she left in her wake. When news-seller Susan Ratcliffe, whom one of those aggrieved women rather implausibly identified as having gotten into Stella's car on the last day of her life, does a bunk, stolid Chief Inspector Jim Ashworth, already on the track of œ200,000 in blackmail payments Stella wormed out of her husband, has still another trail to follow. But it looks as if his right-hand man, Sgt. Owen Turner, working on the hypothesis of Steven's guilt, will come up trumps, despite being haunted by family problems of his own. Though the solution to the crime is both obvious and underclued, Battison shines in tying his all-too-human coppers' problems to the investigation, producing an uncommonly seasoned and rewarding first novel. The only problem: What room does his ending leave for the sequel Jim Ashworth deserves? -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Constable (January 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0094728801
• ISBN-13: 978-0094728806
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,764,648 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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