Death of Corinne [Paperback]

R.T. Raichev (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2009

Death threats start arriving in the mail, and legendary French diva Corinne seeks refuge at her godmother's country estate. Other house guests include Antonia Darcy and her husband, Corinne’s dominating agent, her godmother’s nephew, and a private detective.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This intricate and inventive mystery is embellished by very witty dialogue and a cast of gloriously eccentric characters." -- Francis Wyndham --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

R.T. Raichev is a writer and researcher. He grew up in Bulgaria and wrote his university dissertation on English crime fiction. He lives in London.

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

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Soho Constable (June 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569475784
• ISBN-13: 978-1569475782
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.6 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,846,822 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Super New Thriller from Raicho Raichev, July 16, 2007

By 

DUSA "DUSA" (Panama City Beach, FL USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Death of Corinne (Paperback)

If, like Catherine Morland you realize that in England, one could rely on "the laws of the land, and the manners of the age. Murder was not tolerated...and neither poison nor sleeping potions to be procured like rhubarb, from every druggist," [Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey, Volume II, Chapter IX., Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1971 edition, p 161], you will be in for shock when you read the glorious country house crime novels of Raicho Raichev.

The minute you delve into Raichev's latest, THE DEATH OF CORINNE, you are thrilled by contrast: bizarre crimes and criminals set in the reassuring world of English landed society. With the entrance of visitors from the Continent, will the gentle shades of English verdure run to red?

Raichev's second novel in the Antonia and Hugh Payne Country House mysteries has the pedigree of the English thriller greats. The settings are handsomely drawn and the leading lady's understated manners do not conceal her exquisite intelligence. Antonia Darcy Payne is the mystery within the mystery.

We encounter Hugh and Antonia Payne at the tail end of their honeymoon. This they are spending at Chalfont Park, the home of Hugh's Aunt, Lady Grylls. The serene and romantic mood is altered by the announcement of the arrival of Lady Grylls's god-daughter, the fabled, wealthy and French chanteuse, Corinne Coreille. Will Corinne bring a retinue, her own hair dresser, a private jet...

...or death threats. "Somebody wants to kill her?"[12] asks Antonia? And wouldn't you know it, Corinne is seeking a safe haven from anonymous letters threatening her life. With a croquet lawn that's "terribly overgrown," [16] what better place to go to earth than shabby-chic Chalfont Park? However, given the nature of the other characters who live and murder on Raichev's pages, Corinne may have have chosen the wrong spot.

Could Corinne be bringing trouble with her? Here's a clue: As Hugh and Antonia ask Lady Grylls about Corinne, two photographs of the singer on the Chalfont's drawing room mantle [13] become central to byzantine plot.

And, here's another: There's an extraordinary scene in the dining car of a train speeding from Paris to London that is ten pages of past events told us through the stream of consciousness of a uniquely troubled character. This chapter is quite a little masterpiece all by itself. Possessed by vocal inner demons, the character presents as a stone around which the river of everyday life seems to flow. "Sticky...it's so hard to keep the line between past and present," [33] says the character. But that is what Raichev does so well.

While most of the people in Antonia's life get on with things and barely think twice about motives, Antonia is a deliciously reflective lady of the still-waters-run-deep variety. "Self-consciousness," said "Young" Jolyon Forsyte "is a handicap, you know...." [ John Galsworthy, The Forsyte Saga, Book II, In Chancery, Part I, Chapter VII, "The Colt and the Filly," New York: Scribner, [1920] 1998, p 395] Antonia Payne is the exception who proves the rule.

And regarding those who lack self-consciousness, "Young" Jolyon Forsyte said, "Never to see yourself as others see you, it's a wonderful preservative...." Which explains the substantial and enduring charm of Hugh Payne's "Aunt Nellie," relic of the late Lord Grylls and current chatelaine of Chalfont Park, the scene of much of the novel. Ravaged by time and socialism, the estate has been in the care of old retainers and her cigarette-stained hands for some ten years. Never fear, she's bearing up.

The passage of time has not dimmed Lady Grylls's ability to recall past incidents which do much more than delight. Raichev's drawing room touch is perfect as he peppers the pages with allusions to a marriage in Paris of "lethal gamblers" in the 1940s[46], a Kenya safari gone wrong in 1960,[102] and a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 1969.[41]

Be prepared to be tossed between that which seems normal and that which is sinister. Wonderfully complex and compelling, the book's only problem is that it has a last page.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Antonia and Major Payne return!, July 2, 2007

By 

K. M. "literary devotee" (California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Death of Corinne: A Country House Crime (Hardcover)

THE DEATH OF CORINNE is the second English country house mystery featuring amateur detective pair Antonia and her now-husband Major Payne, and I've waited eagerly for it. This sequel again leads the reader into labyrinths of cagey subterfuge. Author Raichev is a wily master at conjuring twists and turns as character associations dizzily unravel.

The plotting of this book assigns more of a supporting role to our sleuths than they enjoyed in THE HUNT FOR SONYA DUFRETTE. I had hoped this second installment would treat us to murder at the site of their matrimonial festivities or some such thing because I so enjoyed their fledgling courtship and hoped to see more of its progress. Ah well... we catch up with the newlyweds on "the last leg of their honeymoon at Chalfont Park," the home of the major's aunt, Lady Grylls, and within days they have another murder on their hands. The couple does find opportune moments -- as they snoop -- to banter. Yay!

The reader should be prepared for a quite a few chapters before the victim actually arrives at Chalfont Park. In Lady Grylls' "spacious drawing room," extensive conversation whirls concerning the title character. Her family history and gossip get aired, together with trademark witticisms and the name dropping SONYA so agilely introduced... although a few less names dropped in CORINNE would have suited me. Betwixt these chatty chapters runs an internal monologue of a batty mother-in-mourning who has set out on a journey of vengeance against famous crooner Corinne Coreille, and she (the mother) unfortunately grows tiresome.

Antonia, who now writes detective fiction full time instead of working as a librarian, opines amusingly and tellingly about certain conventions of the mystery genre toward the end of CORINNE. It is fun to hear her pooh-pooh the staid idea that police inspectors need to be accompanied by their sergeants. And she primly advises that the police don't enter her stories "till chapter twenty-five, say, or thereabouts." She also claims, "I never do any extensive research." Now where would she get such ideas about writing, I wonder?

SONYA had a more ideal structure and perhaps better-fleshed characters, but CORINNE delivers the goods as well as its predecessor with regard to the murder mystery itself and its solution.

A third Antonia/Major Payne novel is already entitled: ASSASSINS AT OSPREYS. According to the publisher's catalogue of new titles for July 2007 - January 2008, this book will feature darker, more threatening cover art. ASSASSINS sounds like another don't-miss title. But right now, dig into this entertaining, ingenious release: THE DEATH OF CORINNE.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Adequate first mystery, December 15, 2008

By 

Atheen M. Wilson "Atheen" (Mpls, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Death of Corinne (Paperback)

The plot is carefully constructed and the characters well rounded, but to some extent the work seems confused as to whether it's a modern work or a classic who dunnit. I found it a little difficult to become engaged with the characters because just as I had settled into what seemed a period setting, there was the mention of something profoundly modern to upset the apple cart. The characters, especially Lady Grylis, exhibit the perkie dialogues of a 1920'2-1930's style mystery and in the manner house venue, but the modern references distract. The ending was, however, very clever, which makes the book an adequate first mystery, and I look forward to the author's other work.