Customer Reviews

The Embroidered Corpse

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When Belinda goes to York with Hazel, they decide to visit the Kidbrooke House, just out of curiosity. But when they get there, they are astonished to see an embroidered figure of what appears to be the corpse of a monk. Nobody seems to be able to explain where it comes from, but it has been in the family for a long time. Somehow Belinda becomes intrigued by Kidbrooke House and by Sir Gerald Taylor, as somehow that man fascinates her.
A few days later, a body is found at Kidbrooke House, the body of a man who was murdered in a very brutal and sadistic way. It must have happened just after Belinda and Hazel left. When Belinda finds out about the murder, she and Hazel decide to return to Kidbrooke House. But what they never could have expected happens and before they know it, they are involved in a murder case.
The Embroidered Corpse is one of the most thrilling stories that I have ever read. Sadistic murderers, a religious cult, a strange riddle and monks who are involved in some way... Brian Kavanagh has mixed all of this, and much more, together and the result is a great story that is fascinating to read. I promise you that once you start reading The Embroidered Corpse, you will find it very difficult to put this story beside you! You want to know the clue, who did those murders and why? You'll find out...
Annick EURO-REVIEWS

I thought the beginning was slow vs an action packed opening, The background is modern England, the narrator a young woman who has a closer relationship with the female owner of a pawn shop than with her boyfriend (and yes this annoyed me).
There are two vicars and a church mystery. To me, the villain was too strong, too hateful.
Once the story got going, it was absorbing, the ending came to a satisfying conclusion which was unexpected and wrapped up nicely. I wanted more description,, of tbe English country side. What the major char looked like, niggling stuff. I was engrossed in the plot and satisfied at the conclusion. I am looking for other works by this author.

I enjoyed this book much more than I enjoyed the first of the series. Maybe it's just the medievalist in me, but I loved the plot device of a missing panel of the Bayeaux Tapestry coming to light and not being recognized for what it was (except by a select few). The author deftly winds British history into his story, and made me want to pull out one of my books about the Tapestry to refresh my memory. This book also had a much 'stronger' ending than the first book did - that was my main gripe about the first book - a weak ending. The characters seem a little more fully-developed from the first book, and the action is not as predictable - you can see that the author has matured as well as the characters.

Note on Kindle formatting: Excellent. I did not note any issues at all.

Belinda Lawrence and Hazel Whitby head off on Castle Howard Antiques Fair on a shopping trip for Hazel's antiques shop. In the pub it is suggested to the ladies that if they would like to see antiques, they should visit Kidbrooke House. They meet a very charming older gentleman who tells them of the history of the house and while touring the house Belinda sees a piece of tapestry in a cracked frame that catches her attention. She offers to buy it, but the the gent says that nothing it going to be sold from the house until the family dies out.

As they are leaving Kidbrooke House Belinda sees a couple of monks arguing with the old gentleman. The next day she reads an article in the paper about the old gentleman's murder, replicating the death of a medievael king on the tapestry.

She and Hazel go to the auction at Kidbrooke House and Belinda can't find the tapestry to bid on. Hazel buys some pieces to supply her second shop and they set off home. Belinda is convinced that she has spotted one of the monks at the auction. While unpacking Hazel's purchases at the shop Belinda finds the tapestry in a Jacobean cabinet and Hazel gives it to her as a gift.

Hazel's shop is broken into, Belinda sees the same monk on several more occasions and another murder in the same manner as the first seem to point to something important about the tapestry. The tale is an adventure of historic proportions.

This is the second in the Belinda Lawrence series and it is as finely written as the first. The tidbits of historical information and legend are a delight to devour while reading a finely tuned mystery. The characters continue to grow and I look forward to seeing more of them.
I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in English history and an appetite for a good mystery.

Belinda Lawrence had emigrated from Australia years ago and had settled in nicely in England with a nice job in the city , along with friends and a moderately comfortable lifestyle. She had one relative in Bath, a great aunt who had been murdered a year before for the sake of the remnants of a historic garden that had been planned and planted by the famous Capability Brown. Thus Belinda moved to Bath and turned what turned out to be her inheritance into her livelihood, a tourist stop at her house and garden.
To furnish her house Brenda goes into partnership with a local antique dealer Hazel Whitby, On one excursion to York while looking for stock the ladies visited a large Tudor house filled with items up for auction. A piece of framed tapestry portraying a mediaeval king seated on his throne caught Belinda's eye. Below the king is the corpse of a monk being buried. The owner of the house told her that it represented William the Conqueror and it was in the style of the Bayeux Tapestry that was a chronicle of the times of the Battle of Hastings and the historic events that began in 1066.

A few days later Belinda reads that this man has been murdered. A game is afoot when Hazel presents Belinda with the tapestry because she found it in the drawer of one of the pieces she bought at auction. Belinda decides to try to find out all she can about the piece of tapestry because she has a hunch that it is in fact a remnant of the original great work, the Bayeux Tapestry itself. As is the case is situations like this she begins to stir up a can of worms.
In order to find out if she is on the right path Belinda traces the history of the Bayeux Tapestry and part of the charm of this mystery is the historical back-story of the times of the Conqueror. For an excellent history of this man Georgette Heyer's THE CONQUEROR is recommended. Heyer would have preferred writing historical texts all the time, if they would have sold. She was an excellent historian and meticulous in her research.
Naturally in every murder mystery there is a worm that turns and Kavanagh is adept at dispensing clues with out giving away secrets. It is no secret that Belinda is in danger and she must take care not to become a corpse herself.
This is the second of the series coming after CAPABLE OF MURDER. There are two more. One is BLOODY HAM and I thought I saw a release date in the next few months for the fourth.

The Embroidered Corpse
By Brian Kavanagh
ISBN: 1-905202-36-9


This book, second in the series, has Belinda, Hazel and Mark searching for clues to a missing tapestry that may have been the reason for more than one murder. The book begins with a murder of a man with antique furniture. Hazel then purchases some of his furniture at an auction, which is how the tapestry ends up with Belinda. Belinda tries to translate the tapestry and it ends up getting stolen. People connected to Belinda's tapestry end up getting murdered. Belinda infiltrates a religious group nearby; they are apparently connected to the tapestry as well. There are many twists and turns in the search for the tapestry and the people who want it.

Belinda, Mark and Hazel are better developed in this book than in the first. The author seems to have hit a good groove of understanding with his main characters. This book was a stronger mystery than the first in the series. I rated it a 4.5/5.

Reviewed by Melissa A. Palmer
Melissaenglish72@yahoo.com

July 27, 2008

The Embroidered Corpse by Brian Kavanagh. The adventures of Australian Belinda Lawrence continue with the second book in Brian Kavanagh's compelling mystery series.
Belinda now has a close relationship with Mark Sallinger, the handsome realtor she met in Capable of Murder. And she's entered a business partnership with Hazel Whitby, a still handsome middle-aged woman with lusty appetites. Hazel and Belinda travel across England in pursuit of rare antiques. Her share of the antique business profits coupled with funds from tour groups visiting her home and gardens has made Belinda comfortable, financially. And with Mark to share her life, she's more than content.
While on one of their antique-searching trips, the two women stumble on a square of tapestry portraying a king seated on his throne. The material appears quite old. The owner's uncertain as to the age of the tapestry but it's supposed to be William the Conqueror. Hazel dismisses the tapestry as Victorian until the owner's killed. Belinda has a hunch the square may be part of the Bayeaux tapestries created to commemorate William's defeat of the English.
Belinda investigates and finds a religious sect loyal to King Harold whose throne William took at the Battle of Hastings. Putting her life in danger, she searches for the truth as more people are murdered. This is another absorbing mystery well worth the reader's time whether he is an anglophile or simply loves a good read. Let's hope the next book is released soon. Kavanagh's books are addictive. Once you start this mystery series, you want to keep reading. Review- Nancy Madison (Clues to Love, Never Love a Stranger, What the World Needs Now}