A Dirty Death by Rebecca Tope

Here is Bill Evans, my favorite jazz pianist.

A Dirty Death by Rebecca Tope

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've read four of Tope's Cotswold Mysteries and this is my first of the Den Cooper series. Actually I'm a little surprised to see that it's called a Den Cooper series, because Cooper doesn't seem to play a large or effective role in this particularly mystery.

As other reviewers have said. The mystery takes place on a farm where the farmer is found dead in a slurry. Being American, at first I thought this was a sort of bog, but I'm pretty sure now it's where they pile all the cow poop. Yuck. I suppose there's worst ways to die, but not many.

We get to know the victim through the inner narration of many of the characters. I found this to be an interesting and skillful way of developing the characters as well as the story line.

None of the characters seem to understand the others. Their primary attitude toward each other is annoyance and impatience. Everyone has their inner angst that seems to obstruct a clear view of who the other people really are. I found this interesting, because I found myself despising a certain character when another character related to them, but then we get inside that character's mind and realize they've got their own problems and reasons for acting the way they do.

The Farmer, his name is Guy by the way, turns out to be someone no one except his daughter liked. His daughter liked him because he treated her well, like a little girl, even though she was in her twenties. It was hard to imagine her as a grown woman, because she seemed so adolescent.

No one liked Guy with good reason. He was emotionally and psychologically abusive to his wife. He was verbally abusive to Sam, his hired man. In fact, he was a plain all round nasty individual. He was married before and had two sons from this previous marriage, whom he never contacted and left nothing to in his will.

So. Who did it? Of course I'm not going to tell you, except to say that I found the plot line very interesting and it kept me going to the very end.



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A Cotswold Ordeal by Rebecca Tope

I'm listening to Dvorak's New World Symphony.  This work got me through the wee hours of the night at college.

My efforts at chipping away at Mount TBR.  This is my bedside reading pile.

A Cotswold Ordeal by Rebecca Tope

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I usually like to spread out the stories by authors I enjoy, but I jumped right into this one after reading the first and plan to start the next one in the series tonight.

In A Cotswold Ordeal, Thea has just left her last house sitting job, staying in a house for an uptight couple that swiftly embark on a vacation that takes them away from England. Naturally a murder happens in their back yard. In one short week, Thea meets a variety of village people and one police inspector in particular, although only barely.

In this second mystery, Thea is once again house sitting, in a neighboring village, this time for a hectic blended family (his kids, her kids) who are rushing off to Ireland and don't contact them! Thea is left with a small farm, which includes rabbits, guinea pigs and an old pony, suffering from Laminitis.

It is not long before Thea is up to her ears in the same old trouble. She finds the pony won't go in her stall and for good reason. There's a body hanging in it.

As all mysteries go, who is it? Why are they hanging in the barn? Suicide or murder?

This time we have a couple of sub plots going. Lieutenant Hollis plays a much larger role in the investigation and also in Thea's life. Plus, once again, Thea gets to know a variety of the town folk. Are any of them involved?

And just to further complicate things, Thea's youngest sister arrives. She has decided to leave her husband and five children.

How does the story develop? Very well. I have grown attached to Thea and now must see what happens to her in the next novel.



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A Cotswald Killing by Rebecca Tope

I'm listening to works for the Viola de Gamba by the French composer Marin Marais.

A Cotswold Killing by Rebecca Tope

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


OK, I have to start this review with a little story. As my blog followers know, I belong to an international postcard club. I receive cards from all over the world from interesting people. It's been great fun.

Recently, I received a nice card from the UK by a woman who enjoys writing. Well, I am supportive of aspiring writers and told her I would like to read some of her stuff. She directed me to Amazon where I bought a Kindle version of a Cotswold Killing. Shortly into the book I realized that if this was an aspiring writer she was extremely good. I've read and reviewed so much tripe from people asking me to review their book that I've stopped accepting review requests.

This was not tripe. This was a great read. I believe it falls under the category of cozy mystery and it was just a lot of fun. I should also mention that Rebecca Tope is not an aspiring writer but has three best selling crime series under her belt. Yes, my face is a little red.

But who cares? I'm glad to discover more wonderful weekend reads.

A newly widowed woman, Thea, and her spaniel Hepzibah, have decided to house sit around the Cotswalds. Her first job house sitting brings her to a murder in her very backyard.

And that is the premise. I don't want to give any of the plot away, because the whole point of a mystery is to be mystified until the end.

But I want to tell you what I liked about the story in order to allow all of you to be able to make an informed decision about whether Ms. Tope's writing is your cup of tea or not. I say that because some of the reviewers on Amazon were critical of the very thing that I liked about her story.

We read the story from Thea's perspective in the limited third perspective. This is my favorite method of narration. Either in first person or limited third, I like following along inside the head of one person, getting their perspective, whether reliable or not, because a good writer can present reality through an unreliable narrator.

Thea is a flawed individual. She's depressed. The pain of losing her husband is very raw. She's tired of hurting and she tries to distract herself by hurting herself and by getting out of the environment she spent with her husband. I'll admit that someone hurting herself (not self-mutilation, she keeps a thumbnail sore and bleeding with a pin) was a bit strange to me.

But I decided that this really happens. People who are severely depressed are trying to crawl out of their hole. Other than that little bit, Thea is pretty normal.

Thea's character as well as the other characters are very real and convincing. At first I felt the other characters were all going to be mere shadows. Unpleasant people who make Thea feel like an outsider and they initially come across that way: distant, suspicious, unhelpful.

However, a number of them start to thaw and show a human side to her. Nevertheless, somebody murdered a local farmer and from the evidence they could not have done it alone, so as to be expected, not everyone is going to be friendly and helpful.

But is it as simple as that? Are the unfriendly people guilty of murder or do the friendly people have something to hide as well? There are wheels within wheels.

While starting a bit dark in tone, we see glimmers of light through every character trying to live their lives as best they can while all of them must come to terms with the tragedy that has been thrust upon them.

And, of course for the reader is the question, why was the farmer murdered?

Quibbles? I found it hard to keep track of everyone, but I think a lot of this was due to reading on a Kindle and I don't know how to go back and forth on it so I had to remember the best I could who went with what name. Not very hard, but that is my only complaint.

I look forward to reading more from Ms. Tope.



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