The Resurrection Man [Mass Market Paperback]

Charlotte MacLeod (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn Mysteries | Publication Date: August 1, 2001

Boston-based art detectives Sarah Kelling and husband Max Bittersohn were hoping for some time offafter their last case. That hope dies quickly though, when they run into Countess Lydia Ouspenska, an expert forger of Byzantine icons. She tells them that an old aquaintance, Bartolo Arbalest, known in their circles as "The Resurrection Man" because of his skills in restoring damaged works of art, has set-up a Renaissance-style "guild" in their fair city. Nothing mysterious about that of course, except for the fact that some of Boston's wealthiest citizens have been murdered shortly after valuable object d'arts restored by Arbalest's organisation were returned to them. When Sarah's old friend George Protherie becomes the latest victim, her investigation, which ties in with Max's search into Arablest's background, reveals that Protherie was not the staid Boston Brahmin he appeared. In fact, he was guarding an array of secrets that stretch back to his old days as an importer of oriental antiquities...

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

This tenth outing for investigators (specializing in art and antiques) Max and Sarah Bittersohn (The Silver Ghost, 1988, etc.) finds them spending a summer in Sarah's Beacon Hill house in Boston and deeply involved in the murder of Sarah's aged old friend George Protheroe, found stabbed to death in the overstuffed mansion he shared with unflappable wife Anora. Max and Sarah sense a connection to recent thefts of artworks newly restored by Bartolo Arbalest, who calls himself ``the Resurrection Man.'' After a series of eerie misfortunes, Arbalest has set up a tightly controlled atelier of artisans and restorers--all of them bodyguarded by patrician Carnaby Goudge. As mourners gather at the Protheroe home after George's funeral, a second murder begins to reveal the long-ago-in-India roots of the present carnage. The heavy-handed, near-parody plot is loaded with excess in all departments--myriad details of food, clothes, and furniture; arch dialogue; red herrings; fey characters; and, in the end, massive ennui. Strictly for faithful fans. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Charlotte MacLeod does what she does better than anybody else does it; and what she does is in the top rank of modern mystery fiction." Elizabeth Peters

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: I Books (August 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743423771
• ISBN-13: 978-0743423779
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,707,353 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Max and Sarah are still entertaining., January 29, 2003

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frumiousb "frumiousb" (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Resurrection Man (Mass Market Paperback)

Even though this book is late in the series, it is still a decently entertaining read. Sarah and Max get pulled once again into the crazy world of Countess Lydia Ouspenska. This time instead of forging, she's taken up restoring-- working for an eccentric group of restorers who've patterned themselves on a Renaissance guild. The only trouble is that their treasures keep disappearing after the group has restored them.

The Max and Sarah novels are characterized by their eccentricity and likable characters. It will never be mistaken for being thought-provoking, but it should prove a good way to pass a few spare hours.