Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Page Five of SixThe Second Sorrowful Mystery by Jonathon Harrington
Write Way, June 1999.Hardcover, 240 pages.
ISBN: 1885173377.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
American Danny O'Flaherty has fallen in love with
the green hills of Ireland, and moves to Dublin to take
a teaching job. He spends many weekends in Ballycara,
visiting his good friend, Father O'Malley. But something is amiss
in the charming Irish village. Father O'Malley said Mass
one Sunday, then promptly disappeared. Danny, who
had received an urgent summons from the priest,
hurries to the village and finds Father O'Malley
dead in a locked basement below the church. Now the
hunt is on to find a killer -- before he strikes again.
This is the second book in the Danny O'Flaherty mystery series, and it's another winner. The Irish village provides a wonderful backdrop for Danny's sometimes bumbling sleuthing attempts. With a large cast of possible suspects, a zippy pace and a delightful locale, this is sure to please lovers of the classic English village murder mystery.
Standing in the Shadows by Michelle Spring
Ballantine Books, April 1999.Paperback, 343 pages.
ISBN: 0345424921.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Howard, the older brother of a young murderer, asks private
investigator Laura Principal to look into why
his brother Darryl Flatt murdered his foster mother
when he was only eleven years old.
Offhand, Laura recollects facts from her
memory about the highly publicized murder where Darryl
dropped a cement block from a tree fort on top of the
old lady who was taking care of him, killing her. Laura
asks Howard why he
wants her to look into the case, because it is pretty clear
his brother was guilty. He says he knows his brother is
guilty (Darryl has even admitted his guilt to him),
but he just wants to know why Darryl did it.
But no one connected to the case wants to talk to her,
and it's soon clear that there's more to this incident
than appeared at first glance.
Standing in the Shadows is an intriguing murder mystery set in England, with scores of interesting characters and subplots, including an interesting sideline about a bicycle-riding flasher. A well thought-out mystery that will delight private eye and cozy mystery fans.
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