The Body on the Beach

Rating:
Summary: The Jude and Carole Show . . . .
Review: Simon Brett is a very good writer, and I enjoyed the logical flow of the story. The reader can clearly understand the mood and scene of each situation. His two amateur sleuths, Jude and Carole are complete opposites in character, but develop a friendship and a quirky ability to jointly solve a murder. Why only 3 stars? Some parts of the story just seemed a little dry - I was expecting a little more wit and lighthearted conversation between characters. Also, Carole just wasn't that interesting - granted, she is a character that is suppose to have a pretty uninspiring look on life, but it's a little too uninspiring.

Rating:
Summary: A body on the beach you'll be glad you stumbled over.
Review: Simon Brett is one of the most skilled and satisfying practitioners in the detective fiction field. All I ask of such writers he provides: interesting amateur sleuths, shrewd characterisation, fluent but stylish prose, some gentle thrills at the end, and an opportunity to "escape" to somewhere I am happy to be for six or seven hours.

In this novel, he introduces a pair of new sleuths: Carole and Jude. He also introduces a new locale: a coastal resort on the south coast of England, near Worthing. It is called Fethering, and it is fully described in the first chapter.

Simon Brett not only writes, but he also reads his works, using a narrator's voice that resembles that of the current British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, while also providing convincing and distinguishable portrayals for all his cast of characters.

A body on the beach you'll be glad you stumbled over.

Rating:
Summary: Oh Happy Days
Review: This is the first of two vols in Brett's latest series. It is a typical(?) Briddish mystery, with much toing and froing. The main character may seem a bit dry, but by the end of the story she has loosened up quite a bit. Such as going to a pub! I expect that there will be an expansion of her character with perhaps a bit of, dare I say it, romance? Anyhoo, Brett is off to a good start with this one and the second book is on the shelves. Treat yourself to seaside England....tides, rain and some snooty people doing their thing. Enjoy, and aloha...