Customer Reviews

She Shoots to Conquer (Center Point Premier Mystery (Large Print))

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

 

 

I have enjoyed this series about Ellie and her exploits in her small English town, but this book may be my last by Ms. Cannell. The central character with her little twin boys, the character of a housekeeper and Elle's long suffering husband are becoming trite, in my opinion.
The book's take off them stumbling upon a reality show in the making at a british manor house is very silly and not terribly interesting. The cumbersome details of each scene, not to mention the long winded tale was quite poderous for me.
Ms. Cannell may want to steer clear of the doting of the boys too. the Mommy track in the books is not terribly appealing to most, the main point is the mystery! Might be time to retire this character and move to a new one.

If you loved The Thin Woman please don't read this. It's time for Dorothy Cannell to retire Ellie and let her live out her remaining days in peace at Merlin's Court. It's too late for me to recover the money and time wasted on this book but, maybe, this will help the rest of you.

...Mrs. Cannell! I'm a big fan of Ellie Haskell, but this was just terrible. From start to finish. I can appreciate that it must be hard to keep the creative juices flowing on a even keel. But when they don't, maybe it would be better to take a break. Better luck next time. I'm not giving up on Ellie yet! One star for the occasional glimpse of the true Ellie Haskell.

I CANNOT BELIEVE THE SAME AUTHOR WHO WROTE THE DELIGHTFUL BOOK THE THIN WOMAN WROTE THIS ONE. YIKES! IT WAS SO BORING IT WAS PAINFUL TO FINISH! THE STORY INVOLVING THE REALITY SHOW COULD HAVE BEEN FUN, BUT THERE WAS WAY TOO MUCH FORCED HUMOR FROM THE MAIN CHARACTER, WAY TOO MUCH ABOUT THE DOG, AND WAY TOO MUCH TIME SPENT ON THE ANNOYING THREE SERVANTS AND THE RAT. THE ENDING WAS NOT ONLY SO OBVIOUS, IT WAS JUST TERRIBLY FLAT. SADLY, A WASTE OF TIME.

On a foggy evening while driving along the Yorkshire moors, Ellie and Ben Haskell and their housekeeper Mrs. Roxie Malloy end up lost. They manage to reach Muckelsfeld Manor where they hope to stop for the night. French director Georges LeBois is in residence producing a reality TV show Here Comes the Bride in which six contestants will vie for the role of wife to Lord Aubrey Belfrey, owner of the estate.

A car accident leaves the show short a contestant so Georges persuades Roxie to participate. When they learn Ben is a highly regarded chef, Georges and Aubrey convince him to prepare the meals as the help cannot boil water. Aubrey is stunned by Ellie's looks as she resembles the second wife of his late older brother allegedly vanishing with a fortune in jewels just before her spouse died. As the other ladies work on Belfrey's affection, Ellie investigates the stolen jewels and the driveway accident that she thinks is a homicide.

This is a fun over the top of Big Ben (and perhaps across the Channel) Ellie Haskell amateur sleuth tale due a zany cast staying at aptly named Muckelsfeld Manor. The story line focuses on Ellie as her two traveling companions suddenly have jobs so she fills in her time by sleuthing. While the support mostly provides amusing asides, Ellie investigates the potential crimes though she fails to look closely at the reality show, which means Here Comes the Bride is underdeveloped. Fans of the series will enjoy the heroine's exploits in a lighthearted romp on the moors of Yorkshire.

Harriet Klausner

Dorothy Cannell has another winner in the Ellie Haskell series. This one is especially relevant as it features a reality television show that goes awry in the most wonderful ways.

I love the Ellie Haskell mysteries--just enough realism to say--"maybe this could happen", and just enough craziness to keep me laughing. And the story is always good--entertaining as well as page-turning.

Dorothy Cannell has a winner with this new Ellie Haskell novel. Sometimes, a series can get derivative, but this novel is delightful. Ellie is swept into a mystery and has to go it alone, with no help from Mrs. Malloy, who's distracted by the lure of matrimony and money. For once, Ellie isn't jealous of women interested in Ben; he's the one who's worried about Ellie's charms for Lord Belfry. In all, it's a fun, entertaining read.