From Publishers Weekly
In the solid style of the best British cozies, this sixth offering in the Dorothy Martin series moves across the Atlantic to the rolling hill country of southern Indiana. Sixtyish Dorothy and her second husband, Alan Nesbitt (former chief constable of Belleshire, England), receive word that she's been bequeathed $5,000 by Dr. Kevin Cassidy, a dear friend from her hometown of Hillsburg, Ind. There's a catch, though. To inherit, she must find the doctor's presumed murderer. Since Cassidy died of pneumonia, there are no cast-off shell casings or bloody stilettos around to point to the guilty party. How was Cassidy done in? And by whom? Was it Jerry, the crazy coot in the ramshackle trailer next door to Cassidy? Or Reverend Bussey, the blustering preacher whose finances have risen as those of his parishioners have fallen? Or Mary Alice Harrison, the impoverished niece, who expected to be named in Cassidy's willDbut wasn't? Cassidy made loans to them all, depleting his fortune. Dorothy and Alan must untangle a snarled skein of Medicaid rules, IRS regulations and human foibles to unearth the truth in this skillfully plotted story with retirement-age sleuths. Although cloying at times, Dams writes with a good ear for Midwestern dialogue and develops her characters lovingly. Altogether, this is a warm and worthy read that should generate a lot of interest in Madison, Ind., the model for the fictional Hillsburg, as well as in similar Midwestern venues. Mystery Guild alternate selection. (Dec.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
In the latest Dorothy Martin mystery (the sixth in the popular series), the amateur sleuth returns home to Hillsburg, Indiana, after three years in England. Kevin Cassidy, an old friend, has died unexpectedly of pneumonia, bequeathing Dorothy $5,000 and his suspicions (put to paper before his demise) that someone was trying to kill him. With the help of her husband, a former Scotland Yard chief constable, Dorothy sets out to find out if her friend was murdered. Martin has a genuine knack for transplanting the gentle British mystery to American soil. With its finely detailed (and immensely likable) characters and interesting but not convoluted plot, this is one of those mysteries that goes best with a blanket and a cup of tea. Fans of the Dorothy Martin series (or Dams' Hilda Johansson novels) will be thoroughly satisfied, and readers who haven't yet met the delightful Mrs. Martin are in for a real treat.
David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
