Customer Reviews

The Cinco de Mayo Murder: A Christine Bennett Mystery

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have loved the Christine Bennett series since I found the first half dozen or so in a bookstore in Tucson, AZ, which is now sadly defunct. The prose in the series is of superior quality and the plots are completely believable. As well, the main character is a wonderful person such as I would like to know in real life. I rate the whole series as a solid 10 out of 10. This particular entry is great because part of it is set in Arizona, where I spend Christmas every year. Harris gets it exactly right, all along the line. Her gentle mysteries are a joy to read and savor.

Unfortunately, her publisher has decided to quit publishing original mass market paperbacks, and apparently has no intention of putting Harris in the hardback to paperback set. This is a crying shame, in my opinion. We need more books like these and we need more authors like Harris. Hopefully, someone will make her publisher see the light. Or maybe she can get a better publisher. Either way. I don't want to see this series end for any other reason than that the author herself decided to stop writing it. If anyone reads this, please consider contacting Fawcett and letting them know you want Harris' books to continue to be available. She is too good to lose to corporate greed.

I have really liked this series and always feel connected to the characters and the plot, until this one! It's like cotton candy: looks good, smells good, but when you are finished with it - what did you have? A rather unstatisfied taste in your mouth. I was so disappointed in Cinqo de Mayo Murder. It made no sense at all. The plot was non-existant, the characterizations weak, there was no back story (always of interest to those of us that read series) and the conclusion was made of air, just like cotton candy. Come on, Ms Harris, you can do so much better. I'll try the next in the series and if it is as flawed as this one, then I am done with Chris et al.

I had high hopes for this installment with Christine being on the road and involved in a murder mystery -- but when she'd already returned home from her trip by page 60, I knew I was in trouble. The rest of the story couldn't have been more boring, as it mainly consisted of Chris sitting at home calling a bunch of strangers over and over, with an occasional face to face meeting with someone locally. She doesn't even solve the murder -- the answer just falls into her lap.

Once again, it made no sense whatsoever that Chris would be involved in this. She takes a trip to Arizona, which prompts her to think about a classmate (who wasn't even a friend) who died out there 20 years ago, which prompts her to befriend the kid's mother out of nowhere and insinuate herself into her life and solving the old case. It gets even more ridiculous when her husband the cop encourages and assists his civilian wife in solving a case that has absolutely nothing to do with her.

People just give Chris information, having no idea who she is. When she has a falling out with the classmate's mother, the lady's doctor calls Chris, basically a total stranger not only to him but to the lady herself, to "mediate the dispute." He then, as her will's executor, takes Chris with him to view the lady's safety deposit box and gives her things to Chris. The whole thing was so far out there that it was almost laughable.

I like Lee Harris, so it's a shame to see her drag this series out way past its time, especially when she has a good thing going with the Jane Bauer series. This series should've been retired awhile ago, and it's painful to see it go on and just keep going further and further down the toilet.

christine Bennett accompanies her former Mother Superior to Arizona for a mini vacation. Christine remembers a high school classmate who was killed in Arizona hiking. She visits his elderly mother and decides to help with closure by investigating the "accident" or suicide. She and Mother Joseph find clues to the 20 year old mystery that points toward murder. That's all Christine needs to begin digging to find the murderer. The Christine Bennett mysteries are a delight to read and this one is one of the best. It's too bad that it appears to be the last in the series, as her publisher has dropped mysteries. This is according to a blog. I'm hoping it isn't true. I will miss this enterprising amatuer slueth.