Cross My Heart & Hope to Die [Hardcover]

Sheila Radley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2, 1992

When an elderly couple disappears only one week after the husband signed for his pension, Inspector Quantril begins his investigation but finds it hampered by misleading information from well-meaning townfolk.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Radley's ( Death in the Morning ) latest engrossing English village mystery has a new twist: her redoubtable Chief Inspector Douglas Quantrill and capable Sergeant Hilary Lloyd work mainly at the tale's start and finish, their presence effectively framing the intriguing personal history of a rural postmistress/novelist. Quantrill and Lloyd investigate the disappearance of an elderly couple, Ziggy and Gladys Zrzecszczuksp ok, really , dubbed "the Crackjaws" by their neighbors in Byland, Suffolk. After years of regularly cashing pension checks and purchasing provisions, one day Ziggy fails to pick up his usual groceries. Postmistress Janet Thacker comes under suspicion when she insists that she cashed the checks as usual for Ziggy that day, though no one else remembers seeing him. Investigations center on the text of a novel penned by Thacker, the story of a life of disappointment and thwarted talent. But is the novel more than a fiction? Quantrill and Lloyd must find evidence to prove suspicions raised by their reading of a moving portrayal of village life that is anything but charming and cozy. Mystery Guild alternate.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Not so much traditional British procedural as character study, the latest Inspector Quantrill mystery dwells on the psychological motivation of a major suspect in the disappearance of two elderly village inhabitants. As Quantrill and Sergeant Hilary Lloyd reconstruct the last days of the pensioners, they question various locals, but the bulk of what they learn comes from a neighbor's revelatory autobiography, so action is limited. Mainly for series fans.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Charles Scribner's Sons (July 2, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684194104
• ISBN-13: 978-0684194103
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,376,745 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't bother, April 29, 2002

By 

CMBohn "cmb" (Orem, UT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cross My Heart & Hope to Die (Hardcover)

I just read one of her previous books, A Talent for Destruction. I wasn't really crazy about that one, but I love discovering new authors, or new to me, so I read this one too. I should have stopped when I was ahead.

The "plot" involves the disappearance of a reclusive elderly couple following a bad storm. The local police almost immediately suspect the son and a former neighbor. Just when the investigation is getting rolling, a detective steals a script of the neighbors autobiography. (Which would be against any police procedure) The next 150 pages are that book! What's up with that? If you wanted to write that book, write that book. I was expecting a detective story. It was very frustrating and disappointing. I am going to avoid this author in the future.