Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Full of intrigue and suspense with a surprising outcome, August 4, 2009
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (8/09)
"Merryll Manning: The Health Farm Murders" is a well-written story full of intrigue and suspense that will keep you turning pages until the final surprising outcome. John Howard Reid wrote this story twelve years ago, and now it is finally making its way into the United States market. It is the second of twelve in the Merryl Manning series. The story is written about a town named Happy Valley, but it is actually based on the real town of Blackheath, Australia, in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. The characters are fictional but the events are based on actual murders that took placed in a few different places and venues.
Merryll "Merry" Manning is taking a well-earned vacation from the Miami Police Department, or is he? He arrives at Sister Susan's Health Farm in Happy Valley, Australia excited at the prospect of doing something healthy and restful from his stressful job. He quickly finds himself in the middle of an investigation as the other visitors at the Health Farm start dying. Police Sergeant Lambert is quick to blame Jimbo Punter, a local who had an affair with the Sergeant's wife. Merry is not convinced that Jimbo is involved and looks at everyone as a suspect. Each of the suspects is a very colorful character, but do they have the potential of turning into deadly killer?
The author does an excellent job of describing the local countryside in detail. The story setting is in a beautiful valley that was burned by fire. It includes a harrowing hike through the sometimes beautiful, sometimes desolate terrain that has many landslides, sheer cliffs and rivers - all places for people to meet unfortunate ends. As Merry is fully immersed in this nightmare, he finds part of the truth to what has been happening as he almost loses his life. The other part of the truth comes out later and is very surprising.
I recommend the "Merryll Manning: Health Farm Murders" by John Howard Reid to mystery fans; it makes for a great summer read.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Merryll Manning of Miami Police Visits Australia's Blue Mountains, November 30, 2008
It's great to see the second Merryll Manning book finally making its debut in America. The first in the twelve-book series, Merryll Manning: Trapped on Mystery Island, was published in the U.S.A. earlier in 2008. In Australia, the books were not printed in order, but distributed to booksellers and reviewers in a somewhat ad hoc fashion. "The Health Farm Murders" was published first, and with little fanfare. Nonetheless, the book ran through two hardcover editions and gained such fine notices, it is even favorably recalled in Oxford University's "Directory of Australian Literature". As the hero is attached to the Miami Police Department, my agent had no trouble selling the American rights. In fact, we even had a bidding war on our hands. Unfortunately, when the dust settled, we chose the highest bid. Unfortunate, because our successful bidder was absorbed into a larger company and "The Health Farm Murders" was never published in the U.S.A. I had to wait twelve years for the rights to revert to me.
What did the critics say? "A inventive mystery-thriller, set in a thinly disguised Blackheath in Australia's famous Blue Mountains. Author John Howard Reid displays a very fertile imagination and considerable powers of invention. This book receives our strong commendation" (The Times).
"Most exuberantly conceived. Author John Howard Reid shows a firm grasp of character, incident and suspense. A very good mystery indeed!" (The Newcastle Herald).
"John Howard Reid is an Australian Agatha Christie!" (Selwa Anthony's Book Review).
"Some critics have likened John Howard Reid to Agatha Christie. I find the comparison a little unfair -- to Mr Reid. If Reid's work needs comparing, I would liken it to Graham Greene's best light novels or 'entertainments' (as Greene himself calls them)" (American critic, Richard Deutch, in The Sunday Telegraph).
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