Monday, July 5, 2010

Unhappy Returns Makes for Happy Reading

A good, solid outing by Detective Superintendent Tom Pollard of the Yard. I always enjoy this series by Elizabeth Lemarchand and this one was particularly good. Unhappy Returns starts with the death of eccentric spinster Ethel Ridd who has recently announced that a chalice that no one else knows anything about has been stolen. All sorts of distracting little details muddy the waters: just how important is the alleged missing centuries-old jewelled chalice; does it matter that the shifty-eyed local grocer seems to be holding something back; what about the teenager who seems to have more than teenage angst on her mind? Lemarchand does a great job juggling all the elements and keeping the reader on their toes. Three stars out of five.

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