A Very Venetian Murder [Mass Market Paperback]

Haughton Murphy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 1993

While vacationing in Venice, Cynthia and Reuben Frost investigate the death of New York fashion designer Gregg Baxter, who was stabbed to death immediately following his big promotional party. Reprint.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the seventh Reuben Frost outing (after Murder Saves Face ), Murphy mixes travelogue with a guide to gourmet meals, neglecting to include much mysterysince food conceit is used in earlier review--see above .some weeks my reviewers are just hungry! no wonder on what we pay them.. Retired Wall Street lawyer Frost and his wife, Cynthia, on vacation in Venice, are invited to an ultraposh dinner where American fashion designer Gregg Baxter will introduce a colleague's new line of fabrics. Baxter, a diabetic, believes someone is trying to poison him by tampering with his insulin, and asks Frost for help. But the next day the designer is stabbed to death with a glass knife. Now the police ask Frost for his (unofficial) assistance in investigating the designer's coterie. As he pokes around, Frost uncovers plausible motives for most of Baxter's circle: the young black designer who was once Baxter's lover; a favorite model; the company's financial adviser; the marchesa; and Baxter's girl Friday, rumored to have a drinking problem. Although the historical background and atmospheric detail are appealing, Murphy (the pseudonym of former Wall Street lawyer James Duffy) skimps on believabilityand excitement.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Retired attorney Reuben Frost (Murder Saves Face, etc.) joins wife Cynthia for their twentysomething stay at the Cipriani Hotel in Venice. Also on hand are glitzy American designer Gregg Baxter and his entourage--his design assistant, his favorite model, his business partner, and his right-hand woman--one of whom tries to poison the designer at his fancy-dress ball and does manage to murder him with a hand-blown glass dagger late at night. Whodunit? Between bites of spaghetti al Gorgonzola and offerings from the Cipriani's $75-per-person, all-you-can-eat buffet, plus trips to the opera house, Harry's Bar, and tombs of the Doges, Reuben sorts through bisexual and homosexual liaisons, possible bankruptcies, and many temper-tantrums--but then, with the assistance of Commissario Valier, breaks an alibi that hinges on a not-so-subtle clue (Murphy's specialty). Lackluster as mystery, but spiffy as a Venice-on-a-zillion- dollars-a-day guide. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 229 pages
• Publisher: Fawcett (March 22, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449220664
• ISBN-13: 978-0449220665
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,044,269 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Trip, February 24, 2011

By 

Nash Black "Troubadour" (Jamestown, KY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: A Very Venetian Murder (Mass Market Paperback)

Haughton Murphy's A VERY VENETIAN MURDER reads more like a travel log than a murder mystery. The designer who is murdered really doesn't seem to be much loss and while you admire Reuben Frost's powers of deduction you can't help but cheer for the killer.
Murphy seems more at home in New York.
Nash Black, author of SINS OF THE FATHERS