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jmckelvey's review
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
nmorin's review against another edition
2.0
This was so much longer than it needed to be, no likable characters, and very little plot.
naluju's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Detectives, yacht, actors
tracey_stewart's review against another edition
2.0
What a pity. I bought the first book of this series from Audible a while back, and enjoyed it quite a bit, so I was happy to grab this sixth book on Netgalley. And it was a slog.
Over and above almost everything else, the book drove me crazy with constant "accidental" puns. "The kitchen of a high-end restaurant is a pressure cooker—no pun intended." "[The chef] would throw him in the soup, if you’ll pardon the expression". "The chef will spill the beans soon enough—sorry, what an appalling play on words." And so on. And on. I seem to keep using the comparison to salt a lot lately: some is usually good, but more is never better. There is so much more in this book that I wanted to smack someone. It might not have been so bad if, every single time, whoever used the pun didn't also apologize for it.
Something else that annoyed me, perhaps more than it should have, was the effortless-seeming massive success of the main character's wife. I seem to remember not being overly fond of Awena, the pagan expert in just about everything who ends up marrying the priest… I think it was largely disbelief in and discomfort with the concept of the pairing; again, I read the first book some time ago, but I vaguely recall some derision or mockery of Christianity from the pagan community, which is apparently more acceptable than derision or mockery of other belief systems in much the same way that it's okay to make fun of white men and no other group.
So the "opposites attract" situation with the two of them seemed very much off, but what irked me more was that Awena seems to have become England's Martha Stewart. (Nigella Lawson without the charm?) She has a tv show, for which she dictated all the terms to suit her and her schedule so that she could continue to be the same domestic goddess. The chef at Buckingham Palace is using her recipes. Yay. Towards the end of the book Max thinks complacently that, as usual, Awena had been right about the solution to the case – when in fact she had said something very specific about the killer which was the opposite of true. For a character who didn't even make a firsthand appearance in the book, she bugged me deeply.
Even apart from these quibbles, I just didn't enjoy the writing this go-round. There were echoes – the exact same wording used at least a couple of times within a short period. The idea that our priest Max's police partner was making notes on their cases to do a Watson later was meta, but not in a good way – it brought up the same old question of confidentiality, of propriety, and about the author's point of view of her own writing when Max muses that their cases would "qualify … only as potboilers". Hmf. The drug aspect of the case struck me as simply absurd. After a certain point my patience had dried up, to the point that a slight to Marilyn Monroe pushed several of my buttons.
The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
Over and above almost everything else, the book drove me crazy with constant "accidental" puns. "The kitchen of a high-end restaurant is a pressure cooker—no pun intended." "[The chef] would throw him in the soup, if you’ll pardon the expression". "The chef will spill the beans soon enough—sorry, what an appalling play on words." And so on. And on. I seem to keep using the comparison to salt a lot lately: some is usually good, but more is never better. There is so much more in this book that I wanted to smack someone. It might not have been so bad if, every single time, whoever used the pun didn't also apologize for it.
Something else that annoyed me, perhaps more than it should have, was the effortless-seeming massive success of the main character's wife. I seem to remember not being overly fond of Awena, the pagan expert in just about everything who ends up marrying the priest… I think it was largely disbelief in and discomfort with the concept of the pairing; again, I read the first book some time ago, but I vaguely recall some derision or mockery of Christianity from the pagan community, which is apparently more acceptable than derision or mockery of other belief systems in much the same way that it's okay to make fun of white men and no other group.
So the "opposites attract" situation with the two of them seemed very much off, but what irked me more was that Awena seems to have become England's Martha Stewart. (Nigella Lawson without the charm?) She has a tv show, for which she dictated all the terms to suit her and her schedule so that she could continue to be the same domestic goddess. The chef at Buckingham Palace is using her recipes. Yay. Towards the end of the book Max thinks complacently that, as usual, Awena had been right about the solution to the case – when in fact she had said something very specific about the killer which was the opposite of true. For a character who didn't even make a firsthand appearance in the book, she bugged me deeply.
Even apart from these quibbles, I just didn't enjoy the writing this go-round. There were echoes – the exact same wording used at least a couple of times within a short period. The idea that our priest Max's police partner was making notes on their cases to do a Watson later was meta, but not in a good way – it brought up the same old question of confidentiality, of propriety, and about the author's point of view of her own writing when Max muses that their cases would "qualify … only as potboilers". Hmf. The drug aspect of the case struck me as simply absurd.
Spoiler
"And then one night the sous- chef ran out of the icing sugar he needed to decorate his pastries. And unknowingly, he used cocaine powder from the stores in the safe room."The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
eososray's review against another edition
4.0
While I liked this story I thought it was a bit short, that it could have taken a little bit longer to get to the answer, it just seemed to go from 'we know nothing' to 'we have the answer' in a few chapters.
edhyndman's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault and Incest
gray5217's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
henrismum's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Audiobook (All of my entries on The Story Graph are audiobooks.)
#6 in series (I started reading this series in May 2022 and I have been committed to this series since December 2022.)
Will I read other installments?Probably Not Maybe Definitely
I'm committed. After a few years break, a new installment, number eight, was released this fall. I'm unsure if it's on audiobook.
Comparison to others in series:Not as good About the same Better
A decent closed room story. Murder on a yacht, an aging actress, children given up for adoption and murder.The baron was illegitimate and tried to kill his brother who was the rightful heir but didn't know it. The actress was collateral.
The narrator was Michael Page. Good as always.
Source: Brooklyn
#6 in series (I started reading this series in May 2022 and I have been committed to this series since December 2022.)
Will I read other installments?
I'm committed. After a few years break, a new installment, number eight, was released this fall. I'm unsure if it's on audiobook.
Comparison to others in series:
A decent closed room story. Murder on a yacht, an aging actress, children given up for adoption and murder.
The narrator was Michael Page. Good as always.
Source: Brooklyn
koprivan's review against another edition
3.0
Disappointing. Father Max seems to have become little bit more formulaic in terms of character (how many times do we need to be reminded that he loves his wife & son?), presumably to allow for the development of other characters, in particular D.C. Cotton. However, we don't learn much more about Cotton than we already knew, and Awena and the rest of Nether Monkslip are incommunicado since this mystery is set, mostly, just offshore from the village. These flaws do not diminish the essentially fine quality of the writing. Malliet's narrator's good nature, as well as her gently humorous observations about human behavior, are flawlessly executed. Some of the minor characters are great fun, too.
lorimichelekelley's review against another edition
3.0
Audible version: This is a super light cozy series that I enjoy for its little village of Nether Monkslip and Father Max. As before, the women are SO beautiful and Max remains incredibly handsome, but most of the rest of the book isn't that ridiculous (well, every time Awena is mentioned it is ridiculous). This one doesn't bring in the other characters from Nether Monkslip, but we do get an update on Awena and the baby. The mystery takes place on a boat and could not have been solved just by listening to clues. For me that works, as I don't always listen with full attention. Maybe I should go down to 2 stars, but I really do enjoy these and love the narrator, so I'm sticking with 3.