A Little Death

Rating:
Summary: Southern gothic set in England . . .
Review: Any family without secrets is in strong denial--or moribund. In this inventive novel, three distinct voices unveil several family secrets. Although each of the voices may briefly overlap here or there, they do not generally tell the same portion of any given episode of the half-century or so history of the Lomax family.

Georgina was the daughter of the house, with two brothers, Edmund and Freddie. Ada Pepper went into the family's service when not much older than either Miss Georgina or Master Edmund, and so they remained to her for as long as they all lived. Freddie, unfortunately, was the first victim in the family, at the age of five, just about the turn of the century.

The entire family saga unfolds in the interweaving of these three narratives, from little Freddie's death; through World War I; Georgina's marriage, her lovers, and the subsequent death of her husband; the death of the Lomax father; the return of Ada's long-lost love; Edmund's unrequited love. Each segment, no matter how brief, sheds light on the history as it unfolds to the stunning dénouement.

The writing is simply superb in maintaining the three separate voices. You won't soon forget having met the Lomax family.

Rating:
Summary: About the plot twist
Review: I wasn't too sure when I started this little caper if it was a retelling of a true crime story or an inventive package designed to steal my attention. I wasn't even certain after the first couple of chapters that this was the type of mystery story that I would enjoy. BUT, look out, this book will creep up on you and seize your imagination and there will be no way out until you've completed it. And, even then I found myself going back to the beginning of the novel and rereading the first several chapters.

Wilson does a great job of captivating the audience through the use of three very different protagonists all with varying but valid points. It takes the sum of the parts to more than equal this great first novel. Keep em coming Laura. I can't wait for your next enterprise to hit the streets. I know that it will be as inventive and unique as this adventure. Great Read!!!

Rating:
Summary: Well done mystery
Review: In 1928 the English police arrest beautiful Georgina Gresham for murdering her millionaire husband James with a massive overdose of sedatives. The public and the legal system believed this was a crime of passion as most people accepted as gospel that Georgina was having an affair with an aristocrat. Her lofty attitude enforced public opinion, but the judge bent over backwards towards her side, which helped lead to her acquittal. Interestingly, Georgina inherited a small stipend, as the brunt of her spouse's estate went to a Canadian relative, who threw her out of the family home. Georgina moved into a smaller home in London that she shared with her older brother Edmund Lomax and a housekeeper Ada Pepper.

In 1955, unable to deliver his products, the milkman peeks through a window and sees the bodies lying still. He calls the police, who find three corpses: Georgina, Edmund, and Ada all shot to death. The house is filthy and cluttered with all sorts of items, but no clues are found. The police conclude a suicide-double murder occurred, but no one knows which one pulled the trigger.

What led to these events and an even earlier death of Georgina's younger brother requires the fan to read A LITTLE DEATH, an amazingly deep portrait study. The story line is rotated between the three prime characters so that the audience not only understands events, but also sees the perspective and motives of the characters. Laura Wilson's debut novel is not for those individuals who likes action faster than the speed of light, but is a triumph for those in the audience who relish comprehending why people do what they do.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Good character study, but not a great mystery
Review: The book starts out in 1994 with the obituary notice of a 104-year-old woman, who was best known as the last person who might have known the reasons for an apparent murder/suicide that took place in 1955. The victims were Georgina and Edmund Lomax, along with their servant, Ada Pepper.

The rest of the story is told in the words of Georgina, Edmund, and Ada in alternating chapters. They tell their life story up to the event that took their lives. The mystery is solved for us.

People interested in a novel of mystery or suspense, may find themselves disappointed in this one. It is well written, but moves slowly in some parts. As the narrative unfolds, most people can guess the motives involved in the characters' deaths. It is really more of an interesting character study, than a mystery. I gave it 3 stars, because, while most of the book grabbed me, I found myself skimming the pages and wanting to get to the end about three fourths of the way through.

Rating:
Summary: About the plot twist
Review: This is a great book, well written, well plotted, in the tradition of the great british detective novels. I suspect that another lady is about to join the company of Agatha Christie, Ruth Rendell, P.D.James etc. Now about the plot twist mentioned by another reviewer. My humble opinion:
Only an American would find incest distasteful in a novel. It is distasteful but then so is murder or rape, and much more so I might add. Don't get me wrong I am an only child and I don't even have a male cousin. But don't forget, this is a novel. We are not required to make friends with the incestuous characters or even meet them socially.
Also, if there is a plot twist, it certainly should not be revealed in a review of the book, even if the reader did not like
it. It spoils the pleasure of discovery for everyone else.
Try to judge a book by the way it is written and by what it has to say and not by moral standards otherwise you would have to give the Bible only one star.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Review: You can believe all the rave reviews that this book has garnered -- they are all true. I was totally engrossed with this book. And what a dark and subtle plot!

The book starts out ordinarily enough with an obituary ( a prologue of sorts that frames the plot) for one of the minor characters in this mystery novel, Louisa, Lady Kellaway. From this article we learn that she was the cousin of Georgina Gresham, a notorious society matron who was tried for the murder of her husband, James Gresham in 1928. Georgina was later found not guilty of the charge, and she withdrew from society after the trial to live in seclusion with her brother, Edmund Lomax and a housekeeper Ada Pepper. We also learn that in 1955 all three were found dead from gunshot wounds. The consensus then was that one of the three had killed the other two and then committed suicide; but no one was ever sure which one of the three had pulled the trigger, or why.

And then having provided the reader with the blueprint of the plot, Laura Wilson begins the construction of a truly amazing story. There are three voices to this tale: Georgina -- careless, self-absorbed, manipulative and secretive; Edmund -- lacking self confidence and easily lead; and Ada, the servant -- loyal and shrewd. All three are bound together by circumstances and by some pretty nifty manipulation of Georgina's part. The narratives sort of slid from the 1950s to the late 1890s. Each trying to convey to the reader their idea of what really happened, and why and how it occurred. For the most part Ada is our most reliable guide; and it is from her that we get the sense that everything started to go wrong for the Lomax siblings the day their younger brother, Freddie, was killed. After that dreadful event, their father took to drink. Neglected by her father and living in total isolation, Georgina marries James Gresham in order to escape. But that marriage soon turns out to be a disaster as the two have nothing in common with each other. Georgina soon starts up an affair with a friend of James's, Edward Booth, and also takes up with a much wilder society crowd. And then James is found dead from an overdose of drugs, and Georgina is arrested for murder.

This book was engrossing reading. Each time you think that you're ahead of the author and that you know what really happened, Laura Wilson drops a bombshell, so that you even begin to wonder if any of the narratives are truthful or accurate at all. The novel is well written, and all the characters, major and minor are nicely and fully depicted. In fact, it would be accurate to say that there are no minor characters in this novel. Each character, no matter how small the part, plays an integral role in the tragedy that unfolds for Ada, Georgina and Edmund, and helps to shape what happens. And Georgina, Edmund and Ada also affect the people they come into contact with.

This is a truly dark tale, full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing and totally engrossed. An amazing read.