Clutch of Phantoms

Rating:
Summary: Cleverly Written Crime Novel
Review: In this story with strong undertones of fate, family, foes, forgiveness and fairness, Cass Evesham finds a lot more than a grandmother she believed was dead was actually a murderess. Not a exactly a cozy mystery, the reader always knows "whodunit" - but the arrival of Cass, Livia and Julia in the present makes much of the past. The twists of hate and betrayal are very realistic, as well as Livia's adjustment to society. Ms. Layton etches a clever cast of characters in a very unusual situation. I am hoping she went rather over-the-top with her portrayal of a merciless press, but I sense that she got the vengeful characters just right. A five star read!

Rating:
Summary: poignant drama about people and their expectations
Review: Twenty-five years ago Livia Claughton was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing her husband and his mistress. The trial judge called her a harpy while passing the sentence. The moniker stuck and when Livia was paroled at seventy-five years of age after serving her full sentence, the tabloid press covered the event.

Cass Evesham, a high flyer stockbroker never even knew that Livia was her grandmother until the media tracked her down. Out of curiosity and a sense of family, Cass visits her grandmother in Cumbria, a meeting that is fraught with tension and other suppressed emotions. It is only when Livia's life is placed in danger does Cass come to realize how much she truly does care about her grandmother.

Clare Layton, known to mystery fans as Natasha Cooper, has written a poignant drama about people and their expectations. The heroine of this tale is an elderly woman who has come out of prison as a kind and strong person who won't back down for anyone when she believes she's right. CLUTCH OF PHANTOMS is a novel that takes you two steps beyond the edge.

Harriet Klausner