|
| Hand in Glove | 
| Author: Robert Goddard
Publisher: Delta
Category: Book
List Price: $12.00
Buy Used: $0.01
You Save: $11.99 (100%)
New (16) from $5.54
Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 360209
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 464
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.1
ISBN: 0385339216
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN: 9780385339216
ASIN: 0385339216
Publication Date: April 25, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy!
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
In her seaside cottage, Beatrix Abberley bravely confronts an intruder moments before her life is brutally taken. The crime stuns the elderly spinster’s family—especially Beatrix’s niece, Charlotte Ladram. But Charlotte has little time to mourn the loss of her beloved aunt and little patience when police quickly arrest a man Charlotte believes is innocent. For Charlotte, a harrowing quest for answers begins—one that will take her into the shadows of the past…and into the life and secrets of the dead woman’s brother, famed poet and casualty of the Spanish Civil War, Tristram Abberley.
Now, amid shattering revelations about her family, and in the aftermath of a second savage crime, Charlotte finds herself at the center of a widening storm. And for Charlotte, something extraordinary is beginning to happen. As fifty years of secrets begin to unravel, shy, cautious Charlotte is coming alive in the shadow of a mystery—uncovering a shocking tale of wartime greed and treachery, and a vendetta of violence seemingly without end….
|
| Customer Reviews:
 Intriguing Literary Mystery February 1, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I have read quite a few books by this author lately and I am impressed by the way he tells a story. The plots are intricate and involved,with many unexpected twists and turns, yet at the end everything is explained in a way that leaves you satisfied as a reader. His books usually touch upon a deeper meaning and his characters are both flawed and likeable. I also enjoyed Into the Blue, Borrowed Time and In Pale Batallions.
 Disappointing Final Third December 10, 2006
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Hand in Glove begins with fine writing and deft character development but the book is diminished by its plot structure. The initial tight and effective family plot falls away and the reader is left with a forced, unconvincing histrical thriller with fading characters.
 Great Writing & Robert Goddard go Hand In Glove October 3, 2006
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Duplicity and intrigue run rampant through the once quiet life of Charlotte Landram. The murder of her Aunt Beatrix is only the beginning of a series of events that confronts Charlotte and places her in the "eye of a storm" that has been brewing for over 50 years.
Mr. Goddard is an expert at integrating history into this clever thriller and has produced an absorbing, plausible story that captures the imagination. He has developed a situation populated by a cast of realistic, well-defined characters so convincing they seem familiar to the reader.
Compelling from page 1, you will find this journey rewarding.
Couldn't Put This One Down! July 9, 2006
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming!
No, his book is not about the "War", rather it's a superb mystery/thriller brilliantly written by British author Robert Goddard.
Beatrix Abberley boldly confronts an intruder in her home and is brutally murdered. What is so bizarre about this heinous crime is that the dialogue suggests that she was actually expecting the perpetrator and she knew what he was going o do and why he was going to do it. We soon find out that weeks before her murder she asked a confidant to mail four preaddressed letters to four different individuals in the event of her death. These letters will contain the reason for her murder and will reveal who the murderer is. Charlotte Ladram, Beatrix's niece, doesn't have long to mourn the murder of her elderly aunt when she is involuntarily pulled into a tangled web of betrayal and lost loyalties. As she enlists help from a most unexpected source she discovers a twisted connection between her aunt's brutal murder and a long lost secret from the Spanish Civil War.
Hand in Glove is part mystery, part thriller, part police procedural (although Goddard convincingly finds a way to tone down the necessity of the police). The characters are wonderful. They are lively, exciting and jump right off the page. They have distinct personalities. As I read each page I felt as if I were standing right there watching all the action and listening to their dialogue. Which brings me to my second point, the dialog is fresh, natural and incredibly engaging; never stiff or boring, and the author uses it expertly to shape the characters and move the story along at a good clip. The plot is well formulated. There is something here for everyone. Every nuisance is covered, every action brings new revelation. And Goddard's research is implacable. He has given us keen insight into an interesting historical period. HAND IN GLOVE is all that you expect a thriller to be and more. Goddard masterfully proves that fiction can go beyond mere entertainment and can inform and enlighten (as well as delight) readers when written well. One caveat...towards the end of the book, as the plot begins to unravel and secrets are revealed, the events and characters get a little complex. Stay with it, all will be settled in the end.
This is a superbly written novel! I am looking forward to reading Goddard's other titles.
Enjoy.
Cris Cunningham for Amazon.com
terrific international amateur sleuth May 6, 2006
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
In England elderly wealthy Beatrix Abberly greets the intruder into her home as Mr. Spicer whom she says to him that she was expecting him. She recognizes the candlestick holder he carries and uses to kill her. Her niece Charlotte grieves her loss in what seems like a robbery gone bad. The police arrest antique dealer Colin Fairfax whose motive was to steal Beatrix' priceless artifacts to sell.
Colin's brother Derek firmly believes he is innocent and plans to prove that though it means finding courage he does not possess. At the same time, Charlie also believes that the motive was not robbery; she assumes the few items purloined were to cover a more sinister crime especially after she finds letters between Beatrix and her brother, highly regarded poet Tristram who died fighting on the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War five decades ago. Charlie and Derek team up as both believe the homicide ties back to the war on the Peninsular in the late 1930s, but neither expected that they could be next.
This terrific international amateur sleuth tale grips the audience from the moment the calm Beatrix says hello to Mr. Spice and never slows down until the final believable twist. The action-packed story line works because of the lead pairing; Derek is shy and struggles to be a hero while Charlie grieves and is a bit overweight while also strains to accomplish something way out of character for her. Part of Robert Goddard's genius is to take everyday people placed in arenas outside their norm performing extraordinary but plausible deeds. HAND IN GLOVE is a superb thriller by an English grandmaster.
Harriet Klausner
|
|
|
Wildlife, nature and the Environment
Sponsored Links
Learn how to get your own Amazon Book shop | |
