Synopsis
Peter Shandy, the botanist-sleuth from The Corpse in Oozak's Pond, discovers deception during a field trip, when a man is poisoned and the locals seek out the murderer--to give proper thanks. 35,000 first printing. Tour.
Reviews
Despite its goofy plot, cast of caricatures, digressions and lack of suspense, MacLeod's lively mystery lampoon set in coastal Maine, where she lives, will surely please her myriad fans. Jasper Flodge, a loutish dinner guest at Bright's Inn, abruptly expires onto his recently cleaned plate of chicken pot pie and is pronounced dead of cyanide poisoning. The only other diners at the time are Peter Shandy, professor of botany at Balaclava Agricultural College and unofficial "sleuth-for-all-seasons," who was seen most recently in An Owl Too Many , and elderly Claridge Withington, an avid amateur horticulturist who reminds Shandy of the Ancient Mariner. Shandy proceeds to unravel a devious scam involving unloved, miserly Flodge, the flamboyant woman claiming to be his widow, and two others. He figures out the murderer and the suitably loony method. But he nevers solves the mystery that has drawn him from his native Massachusetts to Maine: Why do the lupines growing in the rocky soil of nearby Rondel's Head bloom so gloriously? And what keeps their nonagenarian nurturer, Frances Rondel, so spry? MacLeod has good sport with the laconic reputation of Maine residents, but this arch humor, no matter how fond, will likely appeal most to MacLeod followers. Mystery Guild selection .
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Botanist-sleuth Peter Shandy (An Owl Too Many, etc.) is staying at Bright's Inn, a landmark in the Maine coastal village of Pickwance, while he visits the famed lupines of elderly retired teacher Frances Rondel. This peaceful mission is interrupted, though, by the sudden death of despised local con man Jasper Flodge, who collapses into his chicken potpie one night in the Inn's dining room, dead of cyanide poisoning. As days pass, the restaurant becomes a backdrop for drama--explosive outbursts from Flodge's estranged widow Lucivee; the tender reunion of Fred Wye with wife Iolanthe, separated for three years by one of Flodge's nastier scams--all of it endlessly and boringly commented on by the Inn's resident busybody, Claridge Withington. It takes a second killing and a flood of casual gossip before sharp-eared Shandy, now joined by wife Helen, figures it all out. A bizarre puzzle fueled by bizarre characters in the comfy downhome ambiance so well done by MacLeod. Her legion of fans will love it. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Professor Peter Shandy, a botanist par excellence, witnesses the sudden death of a diner in a landmark Maine restaurant. No one believes that the despised man died naturally, but did he commit suicide to spite his wife or die by another's hand?
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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