Customer Reviews

Hand in Glove (Charnwood Large Print Library Series)

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

 

 

The plot is well thought out. Unlike most of Goddard's books, half way through, I was sure that I fully understood what was going on and who had committed the murder. All the facts fitted my suppositions so I was a little disappointed at how easy it was to determine what was going on. Then the plot changed dramatically and all my suppositions were proved to be wrong. Red herrings galore! The final pages of the book reveal the most plausible of solutions to the scenario. As with most of RG's books, the final pages reveal a solution not thought of, but altogether too plausible. An Excellent read!
Terry Hockenhull

This is my fifth Goddard, and each maintains a freshly unique, suprising, suspensful character. The Spanish Civil War is an active character in the novel, and offers a valuable learning experience in itself. The theme of webs, connections and linkages continues from Goddard's other novels. All issues are finally resolved but not without unexpected twists and turns that make it difficult to put the book down.

Robert Goddard is a master of the quintessential British upper class mystery. His stiff upper lip, high brow characters are flawlessly drawn on his pages. The beauty of their environment, their high class accents, the glamour of it all.
And then under the paper thin veneer, we see that they are just depressingly human like the rest of us.
"Hand in Glove " is a marvelous excercise in this specific genre.Tight, sharp and without mercy, like life itself.Praise to this great master of his craft.

Once I read one of Goddard's mysteries, I knew I had to find all
of the rest. Normally with most writers there will be one or two
novels by the same writer you do not think is up to par but this
is not the case with this writer. He has you on an emotional
roller coaster until the very last page. Beatrice Abberley is
robbed and murdered. the suspect is believed to be an antiques
dealer who had been interested in some antiques she had and it
doesnt help he has a shady past. He , from prison pleads with
his conservative brother to help him as he says he is not guilty.
Beatrice,s family naturally believe he is. It turns out that
Beatrice had a brother in the spanish civil war who was a poet
revered everywhere. He has written letters to her that she is
determined will not see the light of day which is very strange
and suspicious. Goddard keeps you guessing(until you are about
to lose your wits) why did Beatrice do this. Her neice decides
she is the one to figure out the mystery no matter how many
do not want it to see the light of day. I come from a day
when mysteries were really well written; 1800's-early
1900's and I had almost despaired of ever seeing any really
fine writing again. I am glad I found Robert Goddard before
I left this mortal coil!

There's enough plotting in this book to fill three books and that is its ultimate weakness. It's a long, sometimes tedious, read but one has to give author Goddard a silver star for being able to weave all the myriad of plotting into a cohesive resolution. The plot is way too labyrinthine to go into detail here, but suffice to say it involves the murder of an elderly spinster, a dead heroic poet, a young niece trying to find out who killed her aunt; a somewhat sleazy antiques dealer and the brother accused of the murder; the young girl's brother and his promiscuous wife; an American cad; and the Spanish Civil War.

There's lots of twists and turns, and although I didn't find it one of my favorite reads, it's a well developed if somewhat lengthy read.