“Can Kate solve the murder and save the man she loves at the same time?”
- Book: A Body At The Altar (Kate Palmer book #4)
- Location: Cornwall
- Author: Dee MacDonald
How much more can my poor nerves take with that vital fourth element, ‘you can’t be dead’, which for me is always the mark of a good story! Yes, this one hits the ground running from the very first page. From then on the action is pretty much non-stop and relentless. The ending is one of the most satisfying I have read for some time and ties up those niggling loose ends beautifully. But goodness, how close can two people get to not making it out in one piece and how much longer can their luck hold out for? If they were cats they would definitely have used up all nine lives by now!
How many murderous misdeeds can occur in one small town, in such a short space of time and how does Kate manage to get herself drawn into the thick of the action every time? These locals most definitely aren’t people to be trifled with when they consider themselves to have been wronged. The local police force is now on its third Detective Inspector since Kate moved to Tinworthy a mere couple of years ago and yet they still continue to be bested by her when there is a serious crime to be solved. Such is the reputation she has gained, the local papers have dubbed Kate, ‘Tinworthy’s Miss Marple’. However, I do believe that given things such as her age and the fact that she has the added advantage of a law enforcement officer assisting her with her investigations ( I firmly believe that Woody is retired by definition only), I fear I must reluctantly cede to my mystery loving friends on the other side of the Atlantic, in declaring Kate to be the British equivalent of Jessica Fletcher, who together with Sheriff Amos Tupper, solves murder after murder in the quaint town of Cabot Cove, Maine, which is more than ably matched by Kate and Woody’s own small slice of the beautiful North coast of Cornwall.
There are always plenty of red herrings and twists in any case with which Kate is involved and this one proved to be particularly tricky, with the final sting in the tail being totally unexpected by just about everyone, despite the copious lists which she assiduously and meticulously makes when trying to narrow down her potential suspects. Even with a small mountain of names and motives to grapple with, neither Woody, Kate, the police, nor myself worked this one out, until two people had lost their lives and a third had only survived by the kind hand of fate.
This complicated and multi-layered storyline, is well structured and fluently told in short and well defined chapters, which seamlessly keeps the action progressing at an even pace. There is definitely plenty of dirty linen to be aired and Kate finds out more about many of her neighbours than perhaps she might have wanted to, although I just know that she is going to store away all those titbits of information for a ‘rainy day’, which there is certain to be eventually! There are also one or two more light-hearted moments to this nicely textured storyline, which would be more at home in the gossip pages of a magazine and Kate will always be the first to raise a smile, when she can see that reacting to the funny side of a situation is obviously a way to bring the tension down, put people at ease and encourage them to unwittingly open up the gossip channel for her eager ears. Masses of wonderfully assured observational and descriptive narrative, together with some excellent conversational dialogue, offers a really good sense of time and place, making it all too easy to follow events as they unfold, whilst still not being able to spot the real villain of the piece.
Dee has created a multi-faceted, well drawn and defined cast of characters, who I could clearly visualise in my minds eye. Whether they are on the side of good or bad, all are authentically realistic and genuinely believable in the individual roles which have been created for them. Theirs is collectively a strong voice, with which they tell their own story, although some are more reliable witnesses, easy to connect with and relate to than others.
I actually did see a few snatches of the other side of Kate this time, which quite surprised me. When ‘Charlotte the Harlot’ seems to take a shine to Woody, and he her, Kate’s claws are busy being sharpened up and she does make a few unconcealed verbal barbs, before she realises that Charlotte isn’t trying to lure Woody from her side and that they can all three work amiably together to solve this complicated and as it transpires, most dangerous of cases.
Will Kate and Woody be back to fight another day, or are they really going to hang up their investigative hats for good? I most certainly hope not, as each time I close the final page on one of their adventures, it is like saying au revoir to a couple of good friends as they take with them my wish that they visit again very soon, so long as they bring their fun loving, four legged friend, Barney with them of course!
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