Death of a Hollow Man [Large Print] [Paperback]

Caroline Graham (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2002

A visit to a Causton Amateur Dramatic Society production is not Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby's idea of good entertainment, but loyalty to his wife prevails. And when the leading man takes his role too much to heart in a gruesome final act, Tom finds his professional skills are called upon.

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

Editorial Reviews

Review

'An exemplary crime novel' Literary Review 'An ingenious murder..and a clever solution' The Times 'Hard to praise highly enough' The Sunday Times 'Lots of excellent character sketches... and the dialogue is lively and convincing' Independent 'A mystery of which Agatha Christie would have been proud... A beautifully written crime novel' The Times 'The best-written crime novel I've read in ages' Susan Hill, Good Housekeeping --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Dubbed by the Sunday Times as, 'Simply the best detective writer since Agatha Christie' and by the Yorkshire Post as 'the most underrated British crime writer', Caroline Graham is the author of eight Inspector Barnaby novels. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press (November 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786245093
• ISBN-13: 978-0786245093
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,025,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Definite Shades of Ngaio Marsh, May 20, 2002

By 

S. Schwartz "romonko" (alberta canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death of a Hollow Man (Paperback)

It's beem awhile since I read the first book in this series. It was enjoyable because I love "cozies". This one is quite different than the typical English village where death upsets the daily lives of the villagers, but it sure reminded me of Ngaio Marsh. For those of you who have read Ms. Marsh, you know that she sets her mysteries around English theatre. This book by Ms. Graham is set around an English theatre company, and all of the innuendos and undercurrants that surround a small country company. It's a good story, and I found that I still really like Barnaby and Troy. Ms. Graham is the first modern author that I have found that can write mysteries like the old English masters- Marsh, Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie and Margery Allingham. Nice subplots, humour, characterization, ambience and setting.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific whodunnit with style, wit and great characters., July 21, 1998

By 

Dr. Heather MacIvor (Windsor, Ontario) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death of a Hollow Man (Paperback)

In "Death of a Hollow Man", Caroline Graham presents a typical amateur theatrical troupe in a small English village. The characters and situations are wonderfully described, with sparkling wit and psychological truth. When one of the actors turns up dead, Inspector Barnaby and his politically-incorrect-yet-sympathetic sidekick Sergeant Troy have to sort out the suspects from those who just can't resist the chance to show off. A first-rate whodunnit; I can't believe it's out of print!

24 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the original "Midsomer Murders"., August 14, 2003

By 

John Austin "[e-mail]" (Kangaroo Ground, Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death of a Hollow Man (Paperback)

You have probably read hundreds of books that use these ever-fresh ingredients. There is one small English village, peopled by eccentric collectors, partner-swapping couples, and a class system in microcosm, housing well-disguised deviants who write poison pen letters, carry guilty secrets, or devise well-planned murders.

Caroline Graham is a current dealer in these items, and I reckon she turns them into as good an entertainment as any writer, past or present, I know. Her own experience in the theatre provides the amazing verisimilitude in this, her second crime novel. The murder occurs during the opening night of an amateur production of "Amadeus".

Older readers will recall how New Zealand writer Ngaio Marsh used the theatre for some of her murder mystery settings. Miss Graham is a much better writer. Rarely in detective fiction will you find such depth and variety of character drawing, and such charming and elegant prose.

Her sleuth is Chief Inspector Barnaby and his assistant is Sergeant Troy. As created by Caroline Graham, they are considerably different from their television depictions in a popular series "Midsomer Murders" that has already run to more than twenty episodes.