Rating: 
Summary: Engaging Mystery with Heart
Review: I love all of Deborah Crombie's books, but this was head and shoulders above even her own work.So many mysteries nowadays are so dark and grim. This one has an underlying theme of redemption and hope that is very appealing. What kept me fascinated and unable to put the book down was the skillful interweaving of present day characters who are tenuously connected to characters hundreds of years in the past. And influencing those characters is a subtle struggle between good and evil. I thought this story worked on so many levels, and I was sorry when it was over. Additionally, I thought this book showed a very realistic view of English society and city life that is remarkable for a lady who lives in Texas!
Rating: 
Summary: not the usual kincaid/james mystery
Review: I rather liked "A Finer End" by Deborah Crombie; however be forewarned this is not the usual Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James murder mystery. Indeed the murder attempt does not take place until almost halfway through the novel! I think that the basic plot of this novel has already been detailed nicely, so I'll stick to what I liked and didn't like about this latest Kincaid/James mystery. I rather enjoyed the entire paranormal angle, and was really interested in what the long dead monk, Edward of Glastonbury, was trying to disclose. And the motley group of characters that were involved with this paranormal investigation were interesting and colourful enough to hold my interest and to pull me into the events that were unfolding before my eyes. I also liked the detailed description of the town, the abbey and the Glastonbury Tor. Deborah Crombie, was I think, entirely successfully in imbuing this novel with the right kind atmospheric feel. Indeed, the first part of this mystery novel held a lot of promise. Strangely enough it was in the second part of the novel, where Duncan and Gemma arrive to help discover who had attacked one of the group, that things became a little unsatifactory. The investigation into this attack seemed to go no where, and then another member of the group is murdered, and again Duncan and Gemma, and the local police seem to be scrambling all over the place, with no coherent plan of action. And when the final denouncement came, I felt enormously cheated, because the motive wasn't even mentioned until the third chapter from the last (except for two tantalising sentences in the middle of the book). I was also a little disconcerted at all the hurdles that Crombie keeps throwing at Duncan and Gemma: they already seem to have an awful lot to deal with, so why did Crombie feel that she should complicate their relationship even more? "A Finer End" is an intriguing novel; however murder mystery wise it does not live up to previous Kincaid/James novels.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I see most of the reviewers on this forum liked the book. I liked it, too, but do not think it is Crombie's best. The murder mystery angle was good & I was kept guessing right up to the end. But the supernatural elements just didn't work for me. Too much suspension of disbelief is required from readers who expect to see the detectives do some hard-nosed detecting. Also, too many characters are introduced right at the beginning. This is a characteristic of her more recent books. It's hard to keep them all straight until the plot actually begins to unfold. And, hey, isn't it time for Duncan & Gemma to get married already?
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I see most of the reviewers on this forum liked the book. I liked it, too, but do not think it is Crombie's best. The murder mystery angle was good & I was kept guessing right up to the end. But the supernatural elements just didn't work for me. Too much suspension of disbelief is required from readers who expect to see the detectives do some hard-nosed detecting. Also, too many characters are introduced right at the beginning. This is a characteristic of her more recent books. It's hard to keep them all straight until the plot actually begins to unfold. And, hey, isn't it time for Duncan & Gemma to get married already?
Rating:
Summary: A great read!
Review: I think A Finer End is the best book yet in the Duncan Kincaid / Gemma James series. This book has multiple mysteries, wonderful characters in Glastonbury (Duncan and Gemma are almost sidelined by the "secondary" characters), history, spiritualism, and themes of faith and redemption. I really think Ms. Crombie outdid herself with this book! Loved it! Highly recommended (and I'd love to see Jack and Winnie show up again in future books).
Rating: 
Summary: Unapealing Novel
Review: I usuakky am an avid British mystery fan; however this book took forever to get me interested. And then, it totally lost me with the unrealistic and unapealing characters. I will not try another Deborah Crombie book. Much better to stick with Robinson and Rankin.
Rating:
Summary: Automatic Writing
Review: Jack Montfort, a widowed architect who is sleeping with Winifred, the local vicar, starts producing automatic writings ostensibly from Edmund, an 11th century Benedictine monk of Glastonbury Abbey. Surprise! Jack discovers he is the direct descendent of Edmund, who shared Winifred's disdain of the Commandments, and had illicit sexual relations with the stone-mason's daughter Alys. He discovers Edmund stole an illuminated manuscript as well as abortifacient plants from the Abbey, to give to his pregnant mistress (apparently she was supposed to learn how to read and have an abortion at the same time). Alys passed the baby off on her hastily acquired Norman French upperclass husband, Montfort, and handed the manuscript down through 900 years to Jack Montfort. Got that far? ALSO, the manuscript contains the "true" religious chant of Jesus, composed by pagan Egyptian priests and brought to Britain by Joseph of Arimathea in the 2nd century. Unlike plain chant/
Gregorian chant, this is the "real" thing, designed to produce trances, altered states of being, etc. Quotes from Dion Fortune prove these channeled statements. There's a schoolmaster who rapes a student, a murder, some attempted crimes, and too many cousins, but the book focuses on the chant, described as the real Holy Grail of the Last Supper.
Rating:
Summary: A teriffic British mystery
Review: Many people believe the earth contains special places of power such as Stonehenge and the Bermuda Triangle. Not quite as known as the others is Glastonbury in England, considered source of power within the nearby ruins. Locals believe that King Arthur is buried there and whenever his nation needs him, he responds to the call. Superintendent Duncan Kincaid's cousin Jack begins doing automatic scribing that is believed to emanate from Edward, a Glastonbury monk dead for almost a century. A group forms that is interested in what Edward is saying through Jack. However, when a car purposely hits a group member, Jack turns to Duncan for help. Along with his significant other Gemma, Duncan investigates only to observe another murder from a killer who must be stopped immediately. Duncan and Gemma play a pivotal but secondary role in A FINER END. The real drama centers on the past and present Glastonbury and the people who feel its power. Deborah Crombie has written a tale about a community as well as a mystery that showcases strong characterizations. Readers who believe in the force will find magic in the pages of Ms. Crombie's latest masterpiece. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: kilometers
Review: One reveiwer mentioned that in England miles would be used rather than kilometers. I live in England and most people still speak about miles. In fact, even the road signs here are still in miles, so I don't believe that the editor missed that at all. I find Crombie's books to be very true to England even if she is from Texas.
Rating:
Summary: ..but a better beginning.
Review: Pros. This is a pleasant read. The first half of this book consists of vignettes developing Crombie's expendable (non-series) characters. They are interspersed with glimpses of the changing state of the romance between our two police detectives, Kincaid and James. The small-town characters are really well-developed, the strongest part of this story. I was really drawn in to their roundly depicted and interesting lives, and not one of them is an obviously crooked or villainous person. Each character has an engaging personality and profession. It turns out that most of them also are concealing regrettable, if not criminal, episodes somewhere in their pasts that provide motivation, and suspicious behavior, in the present. And you get a good feel for their ancient Arthurian pilgrimmage town of Glastonbury, now a New Age mecca, whose glowering Tor and ruined Abbey play their own important roles in the plot. Half way through the story some crimes finally occur and everyone is sucked into the stew. Cons. Because the characters are so well drawn the periodic attempts to introduce an ominous or creepy Glastonbury atmosphere seem artificial. I've never run into a mystery like this where you have to accept visions, dreams, premonitions, sceances, and spirits to make the plot development at all credible. The passing of time between vignettes is not well-marked, and transitions can be jumpy. There isn't as much consistent "Britishness" as you'd expect from a true English writer. Kincaid and James are on holiday here, in another copper's patch. There's a lot of police leaping to conclusions and speculating-obviously to keep us guessing-and rather little hard police procedural. I enjoyed this book much more as a story that resolves the varied personal difficulties of the local characters (ancient as well as modern) rather than specifically as a mystery (which is thin).
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