A Fatal Winter5stars

 

 

Another Great Mystery from Malliet

By G.M. Malliet
Minotaur Books, $24.99, 364 pages

A wealthy, elderly and lonely earl invites his less-than-desirable relatives home for the Christmas holidays. Shortly thereafter, his bloody body is found in his bed, and his aristocratic, hypochondriac twin sister’s body is found in the estate’s hothouse. This is the crime at the center of the second G.M. Malliet mystery featuring Max Tudor, the former MI5 agent turned priest residing in the small English village of Nether Monkslip.

Malliet, an Agatha Award-winning author, is an excellent mystery writer, leaving the reader in the dark until the very end. Furthermore, she has a talent for writing interesting characters. For example, Max is not simply a priest but a man with a trauma in his past. The reader almost wonders if he really belongs in the priesthood. Without revealing too much, Malliet also provides a bit of romance. All of this combines to make a very satisfying British murder mystery that is difficult to put down. After reading the first two installments in the series, the reader will be watching closely for Malliet’s next publication.

Reviewed by Annie Peters

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