The Primrose Convention

by Jo Bannister

Book Overview

The author of "No Birds Sing" introduces a charming new series starring Birmingham, England, advice columnist Rosie Holland. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312181574
• ISBN13: 9780312181574
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.8" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Off the wall

One of the best of today's mystery writers, Jo Bannister introduces us in this book to a new cast of characters led by fat and acerbic Rosie Holland. And they are characters in all senses of the word, for one of this writer's greatest strengths is characterization. Rosie and Alex and the rest of the unlikely bunch you meet in this book are not just three dimensional, they are folk you want to meet again, and soon. Perhaps after the Castlemere series, where the characters were decent, but fairly ordinary policemen, Bannister felt the need to break out and produce some truly outrageous personalities.The plot involves (what else, being English) birdwatching, a retired teacher called Prufrock (shades of Dickens) and his psychic gardener. It is a well-plotted and well-paced book, and if you appreciate England and Scotland and the folk you find there you'll enjoy it.But the writer's secret weapon is her sense of humour, which extends to her sharply-honed dialogue. Oh, what a wicked sense of humour. Wicked, wicked sense of humour. If her characters are off the wall, her sense of humour is what drove them up it.This is a piece of light-hearted melodrama offered, tongue-in- cheek by an accomplished writer. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

A Terrific Series Debut

Pathologist-turned-advice-columnist Rosie Holland dishes out tart replies to a wide array of readers' queries. Fiona Morris is less than satisfied with Rosie's flippant response and shows up at her office to tell her so. Fiona's birdwatching brother has gone missing, and she doesn't see anything funny about that. Rosie begins to investigate Philip Morris' disappearance because she feels guilty for being dismissive to Fiona. But she soon becomes genuinely concerned about Philip's welfare, and curious about what happened to him. Rosie and Fiona head for Scotland (from Birmingham, England) to investigate further. Their posse is rounded out by Arthur Prufrock, a birdwatching expert and retired boy's school teacher, and twentysomething Shad Lucas, who is Arthur's gardener and a disgruntled psychic. Each person in this unlikely group helps out in surprising ways, and they learn about each-other while they learn more about Philip's disappearance.This book was a treat. It expertly depicts rough-edged but likable characters struggling with evolving relationships. Each character is in some way alone, yet that solitude renders them better able to detect and appreciate kindred souls. Independent characters yearning for interdependence form the heart of PRIMROSE. Most of the characterizations are top-notch, but several secondary characters are fleshed-out more fully than Fiona. She's the only character who felt underdrawn. The plot unfolds nicely, but it's the characters and their relationships that are the most absorbing part of the book. It reminded me of Margaret Moseley's BONITA FAYE; the books are infused with a similar warm-hearted, hopeful feeling. It is unfortunate that the next book in the series, THE PRIMROSE SWITCHBACK, replaces that warm-hearted quality with bleakness and hopelessness.

Enjoyable

Rosie Holland is very pleased with her change of careers. Formerly a pathologist, the Birmingham resident, is currently a popular advice columnist. for a small weekly. Rosie is renowned for speaking her mind about any subject under the sun, though many times she ends up in trouble with her editor or whomever she manages to slam dunk. A desperate Fiona Morris turns to Rosie to help find her missing brother, a birdwatcher who seemingly vanished in the Hebrides. Rosie puts together a crack team consisting of a professional ornithologist, a gardener, and a professor with psychic powers. Once in Scotland, the group immediately goes in search of the missing sibling. The other team members would have dedinitely stayed behind if they understood Rosie's approach to problem solving. She constantly plunges right up the middle regardless of the danger that move might entail to herself and her peers. THE PRIMROSE CONVENTION is a welcome addition to the amateur sleuth sub-universe due to the myriad of interesting and eccentric characters, especially Rosie. However, the story line starts exceedingly slow, though once in gear, it goes non-stop to the climax. Jo Bannister has introduced a new series that will please her myriad of fans, but, the debut novel is not quite on a par with her Castlemere mysteries. Harriet Klausner