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A review by book_concierge
The Christie Caper by Carolyn G. Hart
1.0
This is book #7 in the Death on Demand series, featuring mystery bookstore owner Annie Darling. She has organized a week-long conference in honor of the 100-year anniversary of Agatha Christie’s birth. But her plans for a wonderful event are threatened when a mean-spirited (okay, downright evil) attendee takes over with his blustering and loud demands. Neil Bledsoe seems to have made a career out of making enemies, and his plans to issue a “tell-all” biography of Christie that will shatter her many fans’ beliefs has everyone riled up. It’s no wonder someone takes a shot at him (though misses)! But the first death isn’t Bledsoe’s …
This is so over-written and poorly plotted that it would be laughable if it wasn’t so painful to read. The main reason I read mysteries (even cozy mysteries) is for the plot and suspense. I like to try to figure it out using my own “little gray cells” and love it when all the puzzle pieces fall into place. But there isn’t enough action here to keep me interested. Hart fills pages with snippets of conversation heard at the conference. She describes every outfit worn in detail - “a lemon blazer, a cream blouse and daffodil skirt.” And if I wanted to know more about Agatha Christie, I’d read a biography; giving facts on Dame Christie’s life in this mystery novel is just filler.
I had read the first in the series several years ago and enjoyed the references to many mysteries, authors and literary sleuths. But Hart seemed to go overboard using various Christie titles and plots in this book. I felt like I was being force-fed facts and that Hart was trying to impress with her extensive knowledge of Christie and her works. This technique did little to further the plot.
Hart apparently needed all that filler or she’d have only a couple of pages in the book. About the only technique she seems to have to build suspense is to regale us with scenes of Annie in a panic over what will go wrong next.
I’ll give her this … I didn’t figure it out much ahead of Annie.
This is so over-written and poorly plotted that it would be laughable if it wasn’t so painful to read. The main reason I read mysteries (even cozy mysteries) is for the plot and suspense. I like to try to figure it out using my own “little gray cells” and love it when all the puzzle pieces fall into place. But there isn’t enough action here to keep me interested. Hart fills pages with snippets of conversation heard at the conference. She describes every outfit worn in detail - “a lemon blazer, a cream blouse and daffodil skirt.” And if I wanted to know more about Agatha Christie, I’d read a biography; giving facts on Dame Christie’s life in this mystery novel is just filler.
I had read the first in the series several years ago and enjoyed the references to many mysteries, authors and literary sleuths. But Hart seemed to go overboard using various Christie titles and plots in this book. I felt like I was being force-fed facts and that Hart was trying to impress with her extensive knowledge of Christie and her works. This technique did little to further the plot.
Hart apparently needed all that filler or she’d have only a couple of pages in the book. About the only technique she seems to have to build suspense is to regale us with scenes of Annie in a panic over what will go wrong next.
I’ll give her this … I didn’t figure it out much ahead of Annie.