This is an intriguing, well written mystery which garnered the 1994 Edgar Award for best novel of the year for British writer, Minette Walters, who has written quite a number of excellent books. She is a writer in the tradition of that other great British novelist, Ruth Rendell, known also as Barbara Vine. The comparison by those who are familiar with the works of both Ms. Walters and Ms. Rendell is inescapable. This book...
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Minette Walters is recognized by many as the Queen of the British psychological mystery and for good reason. I would not hold them in the same class as Elizabeth George's fine novels but they are close and for sheer invention, they are superior. It is the hallmark of a great author that they can transform a rather overworked subject (woman chops up family) into an intense thriller and who should be the star but an obese...
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This is an intriguing story about Olive Martin, who is in prison for murdering and cutting up the bodies of her mother Gwen and her sister Amber. Enter Roz, an author who is not really interested in writing any longer. Her publisher gives her an ultimatum and an assignment to write a book about Olive and the murders. She reluctantly agrees and once she sinks her teeth into this task, she is no longer convinced that Olive...
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Again, Minette Walters transcends her genre! This is no ordinary murder mystery. To the delight of any murder mystery reader, details emerge unexpectedly and continuously change the probabilities. But, beyond the shifting views of the truth, the human dramas unfold in an equally complex way. Love, and hate, stories unfold along with the main plot in a sweet and sour mix. Is Olive Martin an abused and confused child hiding...
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I've been an avid reader of mystery novels for nearly 40 years, and thought I'd seen everything. But this book jolted me -- and not because of the violence (I've read much worse). Not only is it a gripping, well-plotted story with well-drawn characters and a generally satisfying ending, but also the author grapples with larger issues -- the complexities of family relationships and marital problems; the slippery slope of...
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