Customer Reviews

An Improper Death (Dr. Alexandra Gladstone Mysteries)

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

 

 

AN IMPROPER DEATH is even better than the first book in the Dr. Alexandra Gladstone series. The opening line has to be one of the best I've ever read, and it launches the reader into an intelligent, thought provoking story that reveals as much about how men view women and women view themselves as it does about the mystery and the killer. At the same time, the author's flair for wry humor keeps the story from being overly serious. Then there's the surprise ending that's like the icing on the cake. I love the way the author has slowly revealed the personalities of the series characters in the course of these first two books, especially Nancy (my favorite) and Constable Snow. I can't wait for the next book in the series.

I found AN IMPROPER DEATH to be even more well written and more intriguing than the first book in the series. The characters are especially intriguing and three-dimensional. The enigmatic Constable Snow is becoming my favorite.

I particularly enjoyed the development of Jane, the admiral's wife, in this story. Details regarding the legal rights (or lack of) for married women in Victorian England were particularly interesting, and the writer used the details to weave a story I couldn't put down.

An Improper Death is the best book in the Dr. Alexandra Gladstone series. It is handled in a manner different from most mysteries set in historical times in that it assumes that the reader is already familiar with the time and place. As a result, there is none of the historical lecturing that one encounters in other series, such as for instance Steven Saylor's Roman series.

As with the other Gladstone mysteries, An Improper Death is written in a fun, cutesy style that makes for excellent escape reading. Best of all, the mystery is one that is difficult for the reader to figure out until all is revealed at the very end.

In contrast to the previous reviewer, I found both Dr. Gladstone and her assistant Nancy very real and very enjoyable to read about. I couldn't figure out Constable Snow at all. I think his mysterious behavior was due only to the author's desire to place a hurdle in Dr. Gladstone's way, nothing more.

As for the comment "some of the characters behave in such strange manner that their reasons for doing so just beggar belief. Unfortunately I cannot really go into this without revealing plot spoilers)", this is absolutely correct. I'd say read this for the characters, and give up on trying to make sense of the mystery.

The little village of Newton-Upon-Sea is bubbling with rumour and conjecture. One of the village's most respected of residents, Admiral George Orkwright, is found dead on the beach, wearing nothing but his wife's underclothes. The village constable, Mr. Snow, believes that the admiral donned his wife's undergarments while under the influence of a lot of alcohol, ventured out into the night, fell into the sea and drowned. Of course the lady doctor of Newton-Upon-Sea, Alexandra Gladstone finds such an explanation ludicrous, and she would like to perform an autopsy so as to be sure about the cause of death. To her surprise, Snow blocks her request. Determined to discover how the admiral died and why he was in his wife's undergarments, Alexandra, together with her trusty housekeeper (and sidekick in investigations), Nancy, begins to discreetly investigate the circumstances surrounding the admiral's death, and soon finds that things are a whole lot more complicated than she anticipated. For example, there are some rather unpleasant rumours about the admiral's estranged stepson, John, who has since taken to a life of crime. And then there is Snow's baffling behaviour. Why is he blocking an investigation into the admiral's death? And why is he so protective of the widow and her family? No matter the personal cost, Alexandra is bound and determined to get to the bottom of the admiral's death...

The trouble with "An Improper Death" was that it was just not written in a very exciting, gripping or tantalizing manner. (Characters were not very well developed, and some of the characters behave in such strange manner that their reasons for doing so just beggar belief. Unfortunately I cannot really go into this without revealing plot spoilers). When I read Anne Perry's mystery novels with similar themes, I become so engrossed with the plot and the characters, that I find it really hard to put down the book and do the day-to-day tasks that must be tackled. With 'An Improper Death," I started flipping after a while. After the initial intriguing and promising start, things just meandered on and on while Alexandra, Nancy and Nicholas Forsythe (Nicholas has been hired to defend John on charges of burglary) try to sift fact from gossip, and try to make sense of all the evidence that Alexandra has collected to date regarding the admiral's death. What I really liked about the novel were the bits of historical detail and the bits that dealt with Alexandra's work as a village doctor. The mystery, however, left me cold. I also found Alexandra Gladstone's character to be as uninteresting as ever; so too her potential romantic interest, Nicholas Forsythe. He was as vapid as he was in the first Dr. Alexandra Gladstone mystery novel. This time around however, I was dismayed to realise that I even found Alexandra's detecting sidekick and servant, Nancy, to be as irritating as well. (Perhaps I'm feeling slightly unwell and things are not as bleak as they seem?) Only Constable Snow remained as interesting, engaging and as mysterious as ever. What is his story? And why does he go to such pains to hide his intelligence and his quick wittedness? And I will probably read further installment of this series for this character (and fortunately, I'm currently working at a bookshop, and so will be able to flip through future books without having to buy them!)

If you want to read a truly gripping English mystery novel set in the Victorian period, try any one of the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt novels by Anne Perry, or one of the early William Monk mysteries (also by Anne Perry). Because, aside from the character of Constable Snow, there is very little to recommend this Dr. Alexandra Gladstone mystery series.