Rating: 
Summary: disappointing
Review: I was very disappointed in this book! I have loved the others in the series, and I re-read them in the two weeks preceding my purchase of this book. I found myself much more interested in Duncan and Gemma's personal problems than in the murder. They both are so likable, I want things to work out for them. Why was Gemma being so cold to Duncan? Why wasn't she helping him out a little with Kit? "Welcome to single-parenthood" seems a little unworthy of a young woman who has been struggling so hard to stay afloat herself. Duncan always tried to be supportive of her when she was having problems. And why is she looking around at other men? Neither of the characters seemed to be themselves in this book, and I think their strong personalities and their normality are what sets this series apart. Even Duncan's boss seemed to be edgy and not his reasonable self! The mystery of Annabelle's murder was much too convoluted, and the solution was totally unbelievable. Way too many characters!
Rating: 
Summary: Just finished it, another winner in this series
Review: I've read all the books in this very enjoyable series, and this one's definitely the best so far. I'd recommend to anyone interested to read the books in chronological order. Crombie has developed the characters of her two detectives beautifully. The skill with which she weaves the plots of the mysteries together with the personal relationship growing between the two detetctives is exceptional. I'm impatient for the next entry.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent read
Review: Okay, should you read this one and then go back and read the others?This is newest in a line of very good books. I think that as in most cases, it is better to go back and find the first books and then read them in order. It makes more sense to me to follow the character development so you can enjoy how far the characters have come and how they came to be the people they are now. Go back and read All Shall Be Well, Leave the Grave Green, Mourn Not Your Dead, Dreaming of the Bones, and then Kissed a Sad Goodbye. Duncan and Gemma deserve your reading their stories.
Rating:
Summary: Kissed A Sad Goodbye is complex jealousy.
Review: One of the aspects of reading a Deborah Crombie novel is the many layers of past & present into which she draws you. In Kissed A Sad Goodbye she goes into the distant past with the great tea trade & the not so far past when the Phony War was stretching everyone's nerves & eventually the children of London were evacuated into the countryside away from the expected bombing.(I was one of those!) I loved learning about the tea trade & the quiet, secluded area of London, the author chose to describe.
Rating:
Summary: Crombie's best yet
Review: The question before you: start with Crombie's first book or start with the best one? The lives of the chief characters are more interesting if read in order, but I found this novel to be much more sophisticated and interesting than the earlier tales. The successful interleaving of historical events with the current mystery is quite an accomplishment. This is also the most British of this Texan's books.
Rating:
Summary: Murder Then and Now
Review: This is not a bad entry in the Kincid/James series, but I too was somewhat disappointed with this story. I have read some excellent examples of stories where the feelings and actions that have occured in the present have come about because of some of the protaganists' histories. Jill McGown and Elizabeth George both have wonderful examples of this type of sub-genre. This one attempts this, but it seems to fall flat in a way. The ending seems hurried somehow, and the two storylines don't seem to flow together until they meet explosively. I thought the book seemed long as I was reading, and it just didn't seem to gel. I really enjoyed "Dreaming of the Bones", and was looking forward to this book, so I was disappointed. Also, the relationship with Gemma and Duncan seems to stagnate. There is no sexual tension, and the relationship seems to be struggling and neither one seems to notice and to do something about it. Hopefully the next book will be better, and we get back to some of the writing that we've seen in this series.
Rating:
Summary: Murder Then and Now
Review: This is not a bad entry in the Kincid/James series, but I too was somewhat disappointed with this story. I have read some excellent examples of stories where the feelings and actions that have occured in the present have come about because of some of the protaganists' histories. Jill McGown and Elizabeth George both have wonderful examples of this type of sub-genre. This one attempts this, but it seems to fall flat in a way. The ending seems hurried somehow, and the two storylines don't seem to flow together until they meet explosively. I thought the book seemed long as I was reading, and it just didn't seem to gel. I really enjoyed "Dreaming of the Bones", and was looking forward to this book, so I was disappointed. Also, the relationship with Gemma and Duncan seems to stagnate. There is no sexual tension, and the relationship seems to be struggling and neither one seems to notice and to do something about it. Hopefully the next book will be better, and we get back to some of the writing that we've seen in this series.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Read
Review: This one was a lot better than the last. Kincaid and James almost seemed back in fighting form. Almost. For some reason, Crombie had James go through a selfish-bitch phase. I don't think it was entertaining. It certainly didn't do anything good for their relationship. Oh well.
Otherwise, a good read!
Rating:
Summary: I really enjoyed the first 3/4 of this book -- a real page
Review: turner beautifully written with compelling characters and lots of information about the recent history of Britain. I love the series in general. The plot involves a beautiful woman found dead in a park in the Docklands area of London, a death that involves several long-time residents of this gentrifying area (which had more or less been destroyed by bombing during World War II and subsequently redeveloped). From time to time, the story is interrupted by a story from World War II, about children evacuated from London to live in the country -- a story of distant events that is clearly relevant somehow to this murder because the same names keep popping up. The romance between the two detectives (Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James) continues to develop -- and flounder a little -- as they attempt to solve this murder. I felt this book could have been edited, made about 50 pages shorter, with certain subplots (particularly that involving Gemma's temptation by another man) deleted for a tighter, more satisfying book. I also was disappointed by the ending -- although I guessed the killer halfway through the book, the reason for the killing did not seem adequate at all. If you love the series, read this book, but if this is your introduction to the Kincaid/James series, start with an earlier book, not this one. I personally did not feel this was her best work although it is well worth reading -- even Crombie's not-so-good books are very good.
Rating:
Summary: I really enjoyed the first 3/4 of this book -- a real page
Review: turner beautifully written with compelling characters and lots of information about the recent history of Britain. I love the series in general. The plot involves a beautiful woman found dead in a park in the Docklands area of London, a death that involves several long-time residents of this gentrifying area (which had more or less been destroyed by bombing during World War II and subsequently redeveloped). From time to time, the story is interrupted by a story from World War II, about children evacuated from London to live in the country -- a story of distant events that is clearly relevant somehow to this murder because the same names keep popping up. The romance between the two detectives (Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James) continues to develop -- and flounder a little -- as they attempt to solve this murder. I felt this book could have been edited, made about 50 pages shorter, with certain subplots (particularly that involving Gemma's temptation by another man) deleted for a tighter, more satisfying book. I also was disappointed by the ending -- although I guessed the killer halfway through the book, the reason for the killing did not seem adequate at all. If you love the series, read this book, but if this is your introduction to the Kincaid/James series, start with an earlier book, not this one. I personally did not feel this was her best work although it is well worth reading -- even Crombie's not-so-good books are very good.
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