Synopses & Reviews
Always enticing in divine twenties fashion, Phryne, one of the most exciting and likeable heroines in crime writing today, leads us through a tightly plotted maze of thrilling adventure set in 1920s Australia. The divine Phryne Fisher returns to lead another dance of intrigue. Seven Australian soldiers, carousing in Paris in 1918, unknowingly witness a murder and their presence has devastating consequences. Ten years later, two are dead ... under very suspicious circumstances. Phryne's wharfie mates, Bert and Cec, appeal to her for help. They were part of this group of soldiers in 1918 and they fear for their lives and for those of the other three men. It's only as Phryne delves into the investigation that she, too, remembers being in Montparnasse on that very same day. While Phryne is occupied with memories of Montparnasse past and the race to outpace the murderer, she finds troubles of a different kind at home. Her lover, Lin Chung, is about to be married. And the effect this is having on her own usually peaceful household is disastrous.
Review
From its exotic Australian locale, through its fascinating 1920s setting, to its flamboyant heroine, Greenwood's Phryne (rhymes with Briny) Fisher series is a winner on all counts. Occupying center stage is Phryne's eclectic household, populated by her adopted daughters, cuddly pets, worshipful domestics, and current lover, the gorgeous Lin Chung. Greenwood does a masterful job of imparting history lessons within the context of a suspenseful story. This time, with a plot centering on what happened to seven Australian soldiers on leave in Paris during World War I, she sprinkles the tale with cameos by various real-life figures, including Alice B. Tokias, and reflects on the lingering psychological effects of the Great War. Two of Phryne's friends among the group of seven who caroused together in Paris ask Phryne to look into the suspicious deaths of two of their mates. As she investigates, Phryne, an ambulance driver in France during the war, remembers her own experiences in Paris. Brimming with glamour, high life, and a hint of debauchery, Greenwood's series delivers a literary glass of champagne, lifting readers' spirits while tickling their fancies. -- Jenny McLarin, Booklist
(6/01/2004)
Review
The suspense is ratcheted up steadily, as
Greenwood plunges the reader into a fascinating past. This is the first of her thirteen novels to be published by Poisoned Pen Press. Readers will impatiently await the next exciting tale by a writer withan assured style. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. - Janet Overmyer, I Love A Mystery Newsletter
Synopsis
Seven Australian soldiers carousing in Paris in 1918 unknowingly witness a murder and their presence has devastating consequences. Ten years later, two are dead under very suspicious circumstances. Phryne Fisher's friends, Bert and Cec--part of this group of soldiers--appeal to her for help.
Synopsis
"A most charming, sexy, independent, and candid heroine; clever, literate dialog; and closely woven plotting will win immediate fans for this debut series." --Library Journal Starred review
Seven Australian soldiers, carousing in Paris in 1918, unknowingly witness a murder, with devastating consequences. Ten years later, two are dead...under very suspicious circumstances.
Phryne (pronounced Fry-Knee, to rhyme with briny) Fisher's friends, Bert and Cec (sometimes cabbies and sometimes men for hire), appeal to her for help. They were part of this group of soldiers in 1918 and they fear for their lives and for those of the other three men. It's only as Phryne delves into the investigation that she, too, remembers being in Montparnasse on that very same, and fatal, day.
While Phryne is occupied with memories of Montparnasse past and the race to outpace the murderer, she finds troubles of a different kind at home. Her lover, Lin Chung, is about to be married. And the effect this is having on her own usually peaceful household is disastrous....
About the Author
Kerry Greenwood is the 2003 winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the Crime Writers' Association of Australia. Kerry Greenwood was born in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray and after wandering far and wide, she returned to live there. She has degrees in English and Law from Melbourne
University and was admitted to the legal profession on 1 April 1982, a day which she finds both soothing and significant. Kerry has written twenty novels, a number of plays, including The Troubadours with Stephen D'Arcy, is an award-winning children's writer and has edited and contributed to several anthologies. In 1996 she published a book of essays on female murderers called Things She Loves: Why Women Kill. The Phryne Fisher series (pronounced
Fry-knee) began in 1989 with Cocaine Blues which was a great success.