The Marx Sisters [Paperback]

Barry Maitland (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Allen & Unwin; Reprint edition (2000)
• ISBN-10: 1865082694
• ISBN-13: 978-1865082691
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A truly outstanding mystery, November 30, 2001

By 

Roger Lee - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Marx Sisters: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Kathy and Brock Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read quite a few mysteries in my time, but only a very few that were as good as this one. The detectives are very likable and three-dimensional. The cast of suspects are very colorful and also well-developed. I liked the way Maitland takes his time developing his two main characters; he allows the reader to become curious about what Kathy and David are really like, and then slowly reveals their personalities and backgrounds. The plot is satisfyingly complex, taking many twists and turns until the final surprising conclusion. The thing that makes this book unusually good is the fact that it combines the great plotting of British mysteries with a faster, more American-like pace. I will definitely be reading this entire series, assuming it continues to be even close to as good as this installment.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A satisfying read, January 14, 2002

By 

Angel L. Soto (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Marx Sisters: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Kathy and Brock Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Kathy Kolla is sent to Jerusalem Lane to investigate the suspicious death of an elderly woman named Meredith Winterbottom. She is surprised when she is teamed up with David Brock, a hotshot from Scotland Yard, who has been in the news lately for solving notorious cases. The author throws a few red herrings in the plot but in the end everything turns out right with the world.

I appreciate that the author split the book in two parts. In Part One, Maitland teams up Kolla and Brock in the first book of his series. He comes up with a reason to team them up and investigate the crime. It is not until Part Two that we learn the real reason that Brock wanted to meet Kolla. Kathy is not happy at first, but later understands the reasoning.

I liked the characters on this novel and am planning on trying to read the other three books in the series. The characters are fresh as well as human. Kolla is having an affair with a married man and she does not like it. There is still more to be learned about Brock. There were some hints near the end but it just makes me want to read THE MALCONTENTA and learn more about these detectives.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Positively dripping with atmosphere and intelligence, August 31, 2000

By 

omnireader "Linda" (New Jersey USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Marx Sisters: A Kathy and Brock Mystery (Kathy and Brock Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

It came as no suprise to me that Barry Maitland has an architectural background, as this book is as much about place as people. His fictional Londan street, "Jerusalem Lane" springs to life through his masterful descriptions. Jerusalem Lane to my imagination was a slice of Central Europe set down in London, with all of that region's tangled politics and ethnic tensions.

When one of three sisters living together in one of the old houses on the street is found dead, Kathy Kolla on her first murder case is unable to find enough evidence to continue the investigation, even with the assistance of one of Scotland Yard's finest, Inspector Brock. However, when the second of the three sisters is found dead in similar circumstances, Kolla and Brock know that it must be murder.

Whether the murders were done by greedy property developers, greedy relatives, alienated neighbors or perhaps a victim of obsession is the puzzle. It should keep you guessing to the end. Even though Kolla and brock would seem to be stock characters, "rookie and old-timer", they both are interesting, complex and intriguing. I wonder why this series, so long known in England and Australia was so slow in being published here. I look forward to the rest of the series.