Customer Reviews

Coup de Grace (Sarah Deane Mysteries)

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

 

 

Camden, Maine resident Sarah Douglas Deane receives her Ph.D. in English from Bowmouth College. Sarah also accepts a position for one semester at the Miss Merrit's School in Carlisle, Massachusetts. Her physician-husband agrees to visit his spouse on weekends. The first time he travels to see her, their happy union ends when they discover the corpse of a faculty member, Anita Gorshawk, an Art History instructor.

However, there is doubt as to whether Anita was the intended victim since she was wearing the distinguished cloak of the infamous Grace Charpentier. Apparently, all the students hate the arrogant martinet who teaches French. Grace has received death threats adding to the belief that she was supposed to be the victim. Sarah, unable to stay out of a murder investigation, begins some discreet sleuthing that takes her into more violent encounters.

The tenth Sara Deane mystery retains the charm and humor of the previous installments. COUP DE GRACE provides the audience an insider's look at a prep school that includes faculty fighting, student pranks, and political in fighting. This delightful cozy centers on a simple misdirection that shows that J.S. Borthwick knows how to entertain her fans.

Harriet Klausner

Sarah Deane is an ongoing character of author J.S. Borthwick. She is a strong young woman whose personality is developed more and more with each succeeding book. The mystery in this book is pretty good, and suspects and red herrings abound. However, in the end I felt somewhat cheated. Sarah, the main character, does not solve the mystery. In fact, none of the characters solves the mystery. The villain is finally caught in the act, and the last major clue, which would have allowed Sarah (and the reader) to solve the crimes, is not revealed until after the murderer has been arrested. I have been noticing this kind of thing recently with amateur sleuths, and I must say that it is a trend that I do not like. Still, this book is well written and a fun read.

When Sarah Deane is offered a temporary teaching job at Miss Merritt School in Carlisle, Massachusetts where she was raised, Sarah just can't say no. But once there, academics take a back seat when she witnesses a teacher being harassed by a foul-minded, foul-mouthed anonymous person set on revenge. There are two well-known teachers at Miss Merritt's, one is considered the cornerstone of her department, the other is said to be the pillar of hers. One of them will be found with her head pounded to a pulp. Sarah finds she isn't the only amateur sleuth in this one, and it seems everyone has his or her own scenario of who did it.

Ms. Borthwick has done a masterful job in creating her characters, especially Madam Carpentier also known as Madame the Knife. I think every high school has a lively group of seniors who resemble Hannah, Rosemary and Zoe. There are many characters involved, but with a glance at the Cast of Characters page offered at the front of the book, I had no problem remembering who was who. The plot is excellent, and half way through the mystery I found myself just as caught up in working out the scenarios as the characters. I don't know that I found it necessary for everyone to use strong expletives so often in the story; sometimes it seemed like over acting, but the mystery and how it was presented, the characters, the humor and the setting were all A+ as far as I'm concerned.

I find that Borthwick improves with each addition. Amongst New England mysteries she stands alone. I am not sure what annejv is talking about but I suspect she is a french teacher with a lifetime of frustrated students.

Sarah Deane is at loose ends after completing her PhD. Bowdoin College doesn't have a place for her until the next semester, and Alex is incredibly busy at the hospital. Cousin Giddy's phone call seems like a godsend. At teacher at the exclusive boarding school at which she works is taking a maternity leave, and the school is in need of an English teacher immediately. Sarah accepts the position and is off to her childhood home of Carlisle, MA. The teachers are an odd bunch, but not sinister. Having been dragooned into going to a slide show given by the art history teacher, Sarah becomes one of the last people to see her alive.

There are many plot twists and turns in this novel and the mystery is pretty engrossing. Borthwick writes an excellent academic mystery.

Borthwick's characters are nicely drawn and her storytelling good, but her plotting needs work; the killer's identity is obvious from the middle of the story and the final clue is sort of tossed carelessly into the narrative after the killer has already been caught.

However, the lack of proofing and editing is so egregious it distracts from the story. Borthwick has outdone herself in sloppiness in this volume, giving three different names to the medical examiner. A visit to the local high school French department would have greatly improved the French quotations and made Mme Carpentier a bit more believable. (Having gone to the trouble of setting up Mme Carpentier as a plot device for a sequel set at Bowmouth College, in "Foiled Again" Borthwick does no more than drop the name into the narrative like a stone into a pond - it drops in with a tiny splash and vanishes from sight, never to be seen again).

Though I enjoyed the first few books, I don't think I will bother reading any more.

I do not understand how an author can write about a French teacher who is a stickler for perfection and then not have an editor who has some modicum of French. Most of the French words and quotes have blatant errors. Do American readers not care? The story is too lightweight and the plot too contrived.