Evan Blessed (Constable Evans Mystery) [Mass Market Paperback]

Rhys Bowen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Constable Evans Mystery | Publication Date: July 5, 2006

Constable Evan Evans scours a Welsh mountainside to find a missing woman-and then copes with the subsequent disappearance of his beloved Bronwen.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Edgar-finalist Bowen's smooth, fast-paced ninth Constable Evans mystery (after 2004's Evan's Gate), the case of a girl who's disappeared while hiking on Mt. Snowdon interrupts Evan Evans and Bronwen Price's wedding preparations. A search fails to turn up the girl, but the police do find a bunker dug into the mountain, complete with survival supplies and chains and handcuffs. As the investigation continues, Evan receives an odd note, a threat in the form of music. Convinced he's dealing with a clever, twisted mind after other missives follow, Evan never suspects that Bronwen could be a target. When his fiancée goes missing, Evan is even more desperate to solve the riddle of the musical threats. Bowen keeps the suspense slowly building to a satisfying and tidy conclusion.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

One bothersome aspect about this series is that the books aren't as funny as their punning titles indicate: Evan's Gate, Evans to Betsy, Evan and Elle. While not knee-slappers in the vein of Joan Hess' Maggody series, though, they do offer a quieter sort of wit, fully in keeping with the cozy tradition. This time Constable Evan Evans, the hardworking, good-hearted copper who maintains order in a small Welsh village, searches for a missing woman. The matters get complicated when a second woman, Evans' own fiancee, also vanishes. Is Evans the villain's target, or is this latest development merely a coincidence? The Evans series has settled nicely into the classic pattern of the British village cozy, and fans of the series will be completely satisfied with this offering. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (July 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425211169
• ISBN-13: 978-0425211168
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #354,158 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rhys Bowen's books have been nominated for every major mystery award and she has won thirteen of them to date. She currently writes two historical mystery series, each very different in tone. The Molly Murphy mysteries feature an Irish immigrant woman in turn-of-the-century New York City. These books are multi-layered, complex stories with a strong sense of time and place and have won many awards including Agatha and Anthony. There are 10 book so far in this series plus the free Kindle story, The Amersham Rubies--a great way to introduce new readers to Molly's spunky personality.

Then there is Lady Georgie, Rhys's latest,and very popular, heroine. She's 34th in line to the throne of England, but she's flat broke and struggling to survive in the Great Depression. These books are lighter and funnier than Molly's adventures. They poke gentle fun at the British class system--about which Rhys knonws a lot, having married into an upper class family rather like Georgie's, with cousins with silly nicknames,family ghosts and stately homes. The fifth book, Naughty in Nice, is in stores now, and watch out for a big Christmas book in time for the 2012 holidays.
This year the series received the Readers Hoice Award for favorite mystery series.

Rhys was born in Bath, England and spent a lot of time growing up in Wales with her Welsh relatives. Those childhood experiences colored her first mystery series, about Constable Evans in the mountains of Snowdonia. 10 books including the Edgar nominee Evan's Gate. She has lived in Austria, Germany and Australia, but has called California her home for many years. She now escapes to a condo in Arizona during those cold California winters. When she's not writing she loves to travel, sing, hike and play the Celtic harp.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We are Blessed With Another Great Book, August 16, 2005

By 

Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Evan Blessed (Hardcover)

In only two weeks, Evan and Bronwen will be married. But the once simple affair has turned into a complicated production with all the trimmings and potentially hurt feelings in the village. It only gets worse with Mrs. Evans, who still hasn't warmed up to Bronwen, shows up early.

But all that's minor compared to the missing girl. Her boyfriend first finds Evan and tells him that they got separated on the mountain. Search parties can find no trace of her, and with the crowds from tourist season, no one seems to remember her from the crowd. The discovery of an empty bunker near a trail adds to the intensity of their search. Evan, meanwhile, is getting messages from the maniac - musical clues that he needs to solve to solve the case. Why has he been singled out? What do they mean? Will they find the girl?

This book, like the last few in the series, is a little darker then the early books. Even so, it's just a shade darker, and the interactions with the residence of Llanfair and the plans for the wedding help keep it fun. The plot seems to get bogged down in the middle, and I was getting frustrated. Of course, the characters were frustrated as well, so I figured I was in good company. Then the final 100 pages hit and the plot really took off. It took all my will power not to keep reading past my lunch hour. I thought I had it solved early on, but was thrilled to see that there were some nice twists I hadn't expected. And I simply loved the ending.

This book does mention a few previous cases, so you might want to stay away until you've read the others in the series. Series fans will love this latest adventure with Evan and be left wanting more. I'm certainly ready for the next one.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable., October 13, 2005

By 

L. J. Roberts (Oakland, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Evan Blessed (Hardcover)

Evan is a well-drawn character who has a good relationship with his superior. He follows the clues and his instincts, while realizing the impact of crime on the victim, those around them and the perpetrator. This is a very enjoyable series that has, particularly with this book, gone from being cozy to traditional mystery. There is still humor and light moments, but the mystery has more focus and is more interesting. I enjoyed book, and liked the ending.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Evan Blessed, September 23, 2005

By 

K. R. Norton (New York, New York United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Evan Blessed (Hardcover)

Very enjoyable 'cozy' mystery (one of a series) set in Wales. Evan, the main character in the series, is a wonderful person to spend time with, and the Welsh village is populated with an array of marvelous personalities. Funny, great attention to detail, wonderful use of Wales (feels like you're vacationing), and an interesting mystery as well.