Customer Reviews

The Serpent In The Garden

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4 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I wont' try to sum up the events of this book as the other reviewers have done, I believe it is not my place to do so. I will simply give my opinion of it and my feelings towards the piece.

It is a very ineresting book, that kept my thoughts occupied for some time. The language is very nice and a murder mystery never hurt anyone, so if you're looking for a book that u want to entice you, I recommend this one among others to set you back in time and live the life of a successful portrait painter looking to solve a mystery.

The author of The Serpent in the Garden was trained in art, and has worked at Sotheby's in London-so it should come as no surprise that the protagonist of this book is an artist who pays attention to the small details. Although Janet Gleeson does indeed pay attention to detail, she tends to skimp on the plot, especially the mystery itself. However, this is a highly original book, and it was fun to read.

Joshua Pope is a fictional artist living in 18th- century London. Commissioned to paint a wedding portrait of Sir Herbert Bentnick and his bride Sabine Mercier at their estate Astley, Pope immediately encounters a mystery of a singular kind: the death of a man purported to be a Mr. Cobb, in a greenhouse on the estate. Sabine Mercier, originally hailing from Barbados, is an avid cultivator of pineapples, a fruit that was in vogue in the mid-18th century in Europe. The death allegedly was by poison; since poison is thought to be the weapon of choice by women, could Sabine or her daughter Violet be the murderer? Its a tangled, twisted mystery that Joshua gets involved in, especially when no one in the family seems concerned over the death of a stranger on their property.

Coinciding with the death is the mysterious disappearance of a necklace that belongs to Mrs. Mercier- in the curious shape of a serpent, with the head clasping the tail. The serpent, a serpent of temptation, is the subject of a legal dispute which affects everyone in the Mercier/ Bentnick family. What amazed me, in following Pope's investigation, is how he trusts every untrustworthy person in the book, and mistrusts everyone who he should trust. For someone who claims to be an observer of human character, this feature of the book seemed out of character.

If you have read other reviews I have written on this site, you'll know that I'm an avid reader of historical fiction, as well as mysteries. While The serpent in the Garden is neither the best historical fiction nor the best mystery I have ever read, it is certainly well crafted. I can't wait to read other novels by Janet Gleeson.

In 1766, Herbert Bentnick, a widower of under a year, is betrothed to two time Barbados widow Sabine Mercier. Herbert commissions renowned portrait artist Joshua Pope to paint their wedding picture at his Astley estate. However, Sabine, a horticulturist working with her fiancé's pineapple plants, finds a corpse in the hothouse.

While the engaged couple and his family seem unconcerned that someone was murdered on their estate, a shocked Joshua takes it upon himself to investigate. He assumes the deceased is Barbados attorney John Cobb based on documents the dead man was carrying. Joshua also learns that Herbert's wife was still alive and with him when he met Sabine, but died shortly afterward. Finally, he realizes how knowledgeable Sabine is when it comes to plants. Joshua's sleuthing efforts prove fruitless and he now must prove he did not steal Sabine's valuable emerald necklace while the family points their accusing fingers at him.

As with THE GRENADILLO BOX (different artisan detective - cabinetmaker Nathanial Hopson, but similar theme and era), THE SERPENT IN THE GARDEN is an intriguing Georgian who-done-it with the emphasis on the 1760s England. The story line is loaded with historical detail providing the audience a close look at the upper class mostly through the eyes of the moralistic artist. Joshua is a fine protagonist; however the two antagonists will fascinate readers. Is Herbert a besotted fool or a clever killer and even more intriguing is Sabine as Joshua's circumstantial evidence implicates her as the culprit in at least two deaths.

Harriet Klausner

Months ago I discovered a new found passion for historical mysteries. The (I'll call them the Craftsman novels) if Janet Gleeson fit the bill perfectly. Of the two of three I have read so far they are complicated mysteries being dealt with by a craftsman (in the first book a cabinet maker, in this a painter) who is un-used to being a sleuth. Add in a dash of mystery and you have a supposed perfect mix for an engaging mystery novel. Or at least you did with the first book.

Unlike the first novel "The Grenadillo Box", "The Serpent in the Garden" is narrated in third person by a painter named Joshua Pope. Pope, suffering depression from the recent loss of his wife and son is down at the Richmond estate of Herbert Bentick to paint a wedding portrait of the man and his fiancé Sabine Mercer when an unknown man turns up dead in the greenhouse dedicated to growing pineapples (the Pinery.) Pope is initially perturbed that no one is willing to seek any investigation into the man's death and so when he is asked by Mrs. Mercer to investigate, he does so.

Pope learns of rivalries between the soon to be married pair and their grown children, romantic entanglements that grow three ways, and a gambling debt that could ruin the future of a close friend of the family. But the real trouble begins when Mrs. Mercer's most treasured necklace, a gold and emerald snake eating its own tail, goes missing and Pope is blamed. He is thus given one more task-find the necklace, or be thrown in jail. Also finish the wedding picture.

First of all its completely ridiculous that a well to do country Gentry family in the late 18th century wouldn't call the law in when their was a strange death on their lands-and its even weirder that they wouldn't do it when one of their own had been obviously murdered. Tasking a portrait painter to solve a crime is equally strange (as is the likelihood that he would accept such a job without any promise of payment.)

In "The Grenadillo Box" our rather rakish and charming hero was drawn in by his involvement to the murder victim-his best friend and the circumstances in his daily life began to lead him to an answer to the mystery at hand. In the case of this book the investigation a rather plodding Pope leads seems forced, as do most of the clues, any of the confessions and the crimes themselves. All in all the mystery just wasn't believable in any way.

But Ms. Gleeson's writing style holds up during the change from first to third person and as I did enjoy her first mystery, I have every intention of seeking out her third, entitled "the Thief Taker."

1.5 stars. Mostly for the writing.

the plot really had promise, but the writing was very simplistic, and the characters didn't grab me. I stopped reading after 70 pages - I just didn't have the interest to go any further.

Renowned portrait painter Joshua Pope, is commissioned to paint a wedding portrait of Herbert Bentnick and his exotic bride-to-be, Sabine Mercier. Sabine is an expert in the horticultural art of growing pineapples and has coaxed Herbert to devote most of his conservatory space to the cultivation of this crop. Sabine is the owner of an emerald and gold necklace in the form of a serpent which both fascinates and repels Joshua as a beautiful but evil jewel.
The body of a stranger is found among the plants in the conservatory and Joshua, who is of a very enquiring nature, deduces that he has vomited after ingesting unripe pineapple and that the excessive heat of the conservatory has virtually cooked him while he was unconscious. The serpent necklace is found to be missing and Herbert blames Joshua for its absence. He insists that Joshua solves the murder and the theft and threatens to ruin his reputation as a painter and to destroy him artistically as well as financially. It's a wordy and very descriptive novel which would appeal mor to lovers of historical fiction.