Family Life (Inspector Starrett Mystery) [Paperback]

Paul Charles (Author)

Book Description

Series: Inspector Starrett Mystery | Publication Date: December 31, 2010

As the Sweeney clan gathers at Liam Sweeney's farm in County Donegal, Ireland to celebrate his birthday, the banter and storytelling are abundant. But with the arrival of Inspector Starrett it becomes clear that all is not well with the Sweeneys as the body of one family member has just been discovered in suspicious circumstances. Starrett's investigation leads him into the weird and wonderful politics of family life as he discovers that many of his suspects are Sweeneys. ""Charles is a fine storyteller.""-Booklist ""[Starrett] is a first-rate addition to the topmost ranks of UK police detectives.""-I Love a Mystery

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The complicated relationship between Inspector Starrett and his on-again, off-again significant other, Maggie Keane, threatens to overwhelm the crime solving in Charles's second procedural to feature the Irish policeman (after 2007's The Dust of Death). Starrett and his team investigate the drowning death of farmer Joe Sweeney, whose corpse turned up in a waterfront warehouse courtyard with his hair dry and combed. Despite the victim's reputation as a decent man, the Donegal police find no shortage of suspects and motives, starting with members of the extended Sweeney family. Rival food distributors, whose prices were undercut by Joe, may also have wanted him dead. While this book doesn't live up to its predecessor, given the strength of Charles's Det. Insp. Christie Kennedy series (The Beautiful Sound of Silence, etc.) readers have every reason to expect a better effort next time. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

The second Inspector Starrett mystery (after The Dust of Death, 2008) finds the Irish Garda detective looking into the suspicious death of a local man. His investigation is complicated by the fact that the deceased was part of a large family (most of whom have gathered nearby to celebrate the patriarch’s birthday), and, like any large family, this one has its share of secrets. But is one of those secrets a motive for murder? In the Starrett novels, Charles, author of the popular Christie Christy? Kennedy mysteries, heads off in a new direction. Although Kennedy can hardly be called flashy, and his Camden Town is hardly a booming metropolis, his stories are positively flamboyant compared to the Starrett novels, small-town stories featuring crimes of a more personal nature and starring an unassuming, methodical protagonist. Will the Starrett novels appeal to fans of the Kennedy series? Absolutely. Charles is fine storyteller, and this shapes up to be a fine series, different in tone from the Kennedy novels but equally involving. --David Pitt --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: Brandon Books (December 31, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0863224156
• ISBN-13: 978-0863224157
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,830,694 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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