A
former villager named Eva moves back to the Devon countryside
after her husband dies. Eva has downsized most of what she
and her husband had, but she did keep all of his work files
and travel diaries. Eva’s cottage catches fire, but
Eva cleans it all up and get serious about her husband’s
work. She tries to gather enough unpublished works to put
in a book. At one point everyone becomes very ill, and that’s
when they find Eva dead. They assume she died of the virus
they all suffered, but Sheila Malory, the series sleuth, starts
to think otherwise….
Death
is a Word is a traditional mystery at its best. Holt
takes the reader into Sheila’s world, and by that I
mean daily encounters, just as you would see on PBS Miss Marple
or Poirot. You listen in on conversations, observe Holt’s
full-bodied characters through her written words, and witness
scenes that no one else does. The suspense builds and you
go back over everything you’ve read, and look for the
occasional clue to pull it all together, but alas there is
always the preverbal twist that fools us all.
I really enjoyed Death is a Word.
I believe Holt’s Malory series is one to be reckoned
with. If you haven’t read it, you should because Holt
is brilliant when it comes to penning a traditional British
mystery.
It has been a while since I read a Shelia
Malory cozy, but I’m glad I was able to review Death
is a Word, because it is Mrs. Holt’s and Shelia
Malory's final curtain. Hazel Holt passed away in 2015. She
will be missed.
Other reviews in this series
Mrs
Malory and the Fatal Legacy #10
Mrs.
Malory and No Cure for Death #16
Mrs.
Malory and A Death In the Family #17
Mrs.
Malory and A Necessary End #20
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