Customer Reviews

The Dark Shore

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Expecting this older mystery to be dated and predictable, I was agreeably surprised at finding it engaging and, well, mysterious. Sometimes the outcomes in older books are ridiculously easy to foresee, but The Dark Shore kept me guessing most of the way through. The descriptions of Cornwall are good, and Howatch is a skilled writer, one who improved over time but was never half bad. Enjoyable.

I normally like all of Susan Howatch's books but I'm not too sure about this one.It's a bit like a junior version of "Rebecca" It's a murder mystery peopled with dark characters and the hero has a mysterious former marriage.I finished it but it left me with an unsatisfied feeling.I found it in an op-shop so I don't suppose that many people will read it these days but I'd love to talk to anyone who does.

I agree with one of the reviewers - this has strains of Rebecca but obviously is nowhere as good as the original. The characters are not well developed and the mystery is unsatisfying. There is a feeling of incompleteness after reading this shorter Howatch novel. However it is fairly well written and the romance between the young, inexperienced Sarah, her husband Jon and the mysterious Marijohn are enough to keep you occupied.

A detective story, close to the "How done it?" genre. Most of te time it keeps the reader suspense, although most of the time it gets to imaginary. Certainly, this isn't a "must have" book, but a light and nice book...