Rating: 
Summary: Latest Perry not up to snuff
Review: I have read most of Anne Perry's mysteries and, while I still find her very readable, I wish she would edit herself a bit more judiciously. Lately, it seems her concerns about Victorian women's positions are too often verbalized and not demonstrated. In 1999, none of us need to be persuaded of the injust treatment of Victorian women. Too, her characters she has created to represent "society's" unsympathetic views are invariably flat and uninteresting. How much more intriguing if the boorish brother in PROMISE were truly concerned for his sibling and vulnerable in his confusion over what to do, if he had a sense of humor or compassion. I found the main plot intriguing, but the subplot rather dull until it finally, and unconvincingly, merged with the main plot. I was also disappointed by the lack of closure in the story--it seemed quite tricky to get the murderer to confess or have sufficient proof of the truth. Instead, the story ended suddenly, needing a good two chapters to tie up loose ends. I'll keep reading Anne Perry, because the atmosphere she creates is excellent, and her mysteries can be very intriguing, but her weaknesses are becoming more apparent with each new book.
Rating:
Summary: not bad ... but not her best one
Review: I have to agree with some of the other reviewers - we were cheated of an ending somehow, but I didn't really mind that lots of things were left to my imagination. And let's be honest - did you really want the story to ramble on after these final words we all waited for? I have to agree though that Perry gets more and more of a women's lib writer in her books and I cought myself skipping these long monologues in favour of women's rights. We all are aware of that Ms Perry! And please, we all know that there are some pretty strange coincidences in life, but this one was a little too much...Certainly not her best book, but not the worst either - that was "Brunswick Gardens". I will keep buying her books anyway, I have grown too fond of the characters to stop now...
Rating: 
Summary: Suing Him When He Backs Out Of Marrying You
Review: I read this mystery set in Victorian England to ascertain how one of these breach of promise cases worked back then. They were abolished in my state several decades ago as being too behind the times with the gains women had made in the market place. In this mystery, a young lady and her family sue the architect who had been building a house for her father for not going forward and marrying her. It's a fascinating case to watch unfold and to see the mystery behind it develop. However, I don't know any of these continuing characters the author uses in her mysteries so that aspect was less successful with me. Also, there's an incredible coincidence that develops at the end of solving this case that the odds were just too long against. An enjoyable read but I'm not rushing out to buy more from this series.
Rating:
Summary: Suing Him When He Backs Out Of Marrying You
Review: I read this mystery set in Victorian England to ascertain how one of these breach of promise cases worked back then. They were abolished in my state several decades ago as being too behind the times with the gains women had made in the market place. In this mystery, a young lady and her family sue the architect who had been building a house for her father for not going forward and marrying her. It's a fascinating case to watch unfold and to see the mystery behind it develop. However, I don't know any of these continuing characters the author uses in her mysteries so that aspect was less successful with me. Also, there's an incredible coincidence that develops at the end of solving this case that the odds were just too long against. An enjoyable read but I'm not rushing out to buy more from this series.
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: I was up 'till 3am to finish it. The coincidences were a little much, but the suspense was grand. I think it was Perry's best yet (and I've read 'em all).
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: I was up 'till 3am to finish it. The coincidences were a little much, but the suspense was grand. I think it was Perry's best yet (and I've read 'em all).
Rating: 
Summary: Reader is cheated of an ending!!!!!
Review: I was very disappointed with the latest Perry book. She spends a great deal of time developing characters and plot, and for the first half of the book you have to wonder where it is she is trying to take the reader. Finally the plot starts to thicken and she takes you on a roller coaster ride through England. Then, just as fast as she gets your attention, she ends the book without a conclusion. I felt cheated and left hanging! It was almost as if she got tired of writing, or the last two chapters got lost in the mail??? She spends over 300 pages setting up a great murder/mystery and then poorly sums it up in less then 15 pages, leaving the reader wondering what happens to the murder and the other characters who are connected. I can't say I will be reading many more Perry books in the future if this is how they will end!
Rating:
Summary: a rockin' victorian-period mystery
Review: I'm not normally much of a mystery fan, but I loved this one. Lots of fun twists and turns. My only criticism would be that the sympathetic characters come off as mouthpieces for modern-day let-it-all-hang-out multiculturalism and liberalism. Turn-of-the-century England had real reformers and radicals, whose viewpoints were not much like the ones that Perry puts in their mouths.
Rating:
Summary: I'm casting the movie!
Review: I've decided it's time to cast the William Monk movie! Easy. Ciaran Hind, that dark, brooding, wonderful Anglo-Irish stage actor, is Monk. The lovely, spirited Juliet Stevenson is Hester Latterly. Jeremy Northam should be quite dashing as Sir Oliver Rathbone.Gemma Jones has the right authority and spunk to be Lady Callandra Daviot. Well! I can't wait for the movie!
Rating:
Summary: Super book - what happened to the ending?
Review: I've read all of Anne Perry's books and consider her my favourite mystery author. I thoroughly enjoyed "Breach of Promise", even though the coincidence tying the plot and sub-plot together was a bit hard to swallow. I was disappointed, however, that the book ended so suddenly. I know that Anne Perry wraps up her books very quickly, but this one was a bit too abrupt! Nonetheless, it was very well done.
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