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howiepatootie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bndy28's review against another edition
5.0
Bi kịch Y được viết mượt mà hơn X, đọc dễ dàng hơn rất nhiều. Vụ án vẫn thu hút, nhưng thay vì một loạt các vụ án như X thì ở Y là một loạt các bí ẩn, tưởng như liên quan nhưng lại không tìm thấy đường dây kết nối nào cả. Cuốn sách đã có thể rất shock, rất choáng ngợp nếu như tác giả không fairplay quá mức, tung ra một gợi ý quá quan trọng khiến ai cũng đoán ra được hung thủ. Một điểm trừ cho trải nghiệm đọc trinh thám nhưng lại là một điểm cộng ở mặt nào đó. Vậy nên vẫn dành tặng 5 sao cho cuốn này.
k_lee_reads_it's review against another edition
4.0
The Hatter family is nuts: vicious and bizarre. The father appears to commit suicide, then someone tries to poison the deaf, dumb, and blind oldest sister. The police are stumped and call in Drury Lane, a retired actor turned detective. And what happens next is vintage murder mystery.
I love mysteries. Have since I started on the Bobbsey Twins and Nancy Drew. I thought this was a great story, and no, I really didn't have it all solved until the very end. (But I should have.) My only complaint was that Lane belabored the telling of the solution.
I love mysteries. Have since I started on the Bobbsey Twins and Nancy Drew. I thought this was a great story, and no, I really didn't have it all solved until the very end. (But I should have.) My only complaint was that Lane belabored the telling of the solution.
bev_reads_mysteries's review against another edition
4.0
he Tragedy of Y is Drury Lane's second outing as recorded in print and it brings him in contact with the Hatter family--the Mad Hatters as they are known. The Hatters are not just mad...but they are thoroughly nasty people. The family is ruled by the imperious Emily Hatter--a woman who sowed plenty of wild oats before marrying poor York Hatter. York had been a brilliant scientist before Emily got him in her clutches--sucking the life out of him and making him bend to her every whim. She rules the rest of the household--three grown children, one daughter-in-law, two grandsons, a cook, a maid, and nurse--with an iron fist. The only one she seems to have any feeling for is her fourth child--a young woman born with certain disabilities and who has acquired more. Louisa is deaf, blind, and mute.
The old lady's preference for Louisa only ensures that the woman will be hated by the rest of the family. And it isn't long before the family's madness and vicious streak takes hold. York is the first to go--drowned at sea and an apparent suicide. What follows is a rash of poisonings...all attempts to get rid of Louisa...and then, finally, murder when Emily is killed with the oddest of weapons--York's mandolin. The police are baffled and call in Drury Lane to help them get to the bottom of the mystery. There are clues and false clues and the first thing that must be determined is who was the real target? Were the attempts on Louisa genuine and the old lady killed to prevent the murderer from being caught too soon? Or will someone be wiping out as many of the Hatters as they can? Lane discovers that there is a detailed plan being followed...but whose plan is it? And why are there references to York Hatter when the man was the first to die?
I am enjoying these mysteries featuring Drury Lane very much. The plots are nice and intricate and there are plenty of clues to be had. For a fair amount of the book it looks like a dead man may be responsible and the explanation of the plot is very pretty indeed (in the short form). My one complaint has to do with Lane's methods--he plays that brilliant amateur keeping clues from the police role just a little too well. There are real dangers in his secrecy. The other problem with Lane is his tendency to drag out his wrap-up. An explanation that should take--at most--four or five pages goes on for almost twenty. Another three and 3/4 star adventure.
This was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
The old lady's preference for Louisa only ensures that the woman will be hated by the rest of the family. And it isn't long before the family's madness and vicious streak takes hold. York is the first to go--drowned at sea and an apparent suicide. What follows is a rash of poisonings...all attempts to get rid of Louisa...and then, finally, murder when Emily is killed with the oddest of weapons--York's mandolin. The police are baffled and call in Drury Lane to help them get to the bottom of the mystery. There are clues and false clues and the first thing that must be determined is who was the real target? Were the attempts on Louisa genuine and the old lady killed to prevent the murderer from being caught too soon? Or will someone be wiping out as many of the Hatters as they can? Lane discovers that there is a detailed plan being followed...but whose plan is it? And why are there references to York Hatter when the man was the first to die?
I am enjoying these mysteries featuring Drury Lane very much. The plots are nice and intricate and there are plenty of clues to be had. For a fair amount of the book it looks like a dead man may be responsible and the explanation of the plot is very pretty indeed (in the short form). My one complaint has to do with Lane's methods--he plays that brilliant amateur keeping clues from the police role just a little too well. There are real dangers in his secrecy. The other problem with Lane is his tendency to drag out his wrap-up. An explanation that should take--at most--four or five pages goes on for almost twenty. Another three and 3/4 star adventure.
This was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
krikketgirl's review against another edition
3.0
Only tepid. Too much angst and repetitive verbiage, and far too easy to guess whodunit.
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