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Mummy Dearest: A Claire Malloy Mystery (Claire Malloy Mysteries)
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Product Description
Claire Malloy—a single, widowed mother of a teenage daughter and a bookseller in Farberville, Arkansas—has finally said ‘I do’ to her swain, Peter Rosen of the local police department. Now they are on their honeymoon in Luxor, Egypt. Well, Claire is on her honeymoon, accompanied by her daughter Caron, and Inez, Caron’s best friend and frequent partner in adventure. Peter, meanwhile, is mostly away doing business in his new, completely undiscussed role in law enforcement.
At the glamorous Winter Palace in Luxor, Claire is intent on a quiet, uneventful stay involving shopping, and tourist sites. But despite her determined efforts to avoid trouble, the tenor of the trip quickly switches from sleepy to creepy. First, Caron and Inez are chased through darkened deserted alleys by persons unknown. Then a blond college student of their recent acquaintance is kidnapped by two young men on horseback in a scene reminiscent of a Hollywood horror film. Something is clearly afoot in this tourist paradise…and now Claire will stop at nothing to find out what.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #374771 in Books
- Published on: 2009-02-03
- Released on: 2009-02-03
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Mass Market Paperback
- 336 pages
Features
- ISBN13: 9780312365653
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Hess's delightful 17th Claire Malloy mystery (after 2007's Damsels in Distress) pays tribute to the Egyptian novels of Elizabeth Peters, the pseudonym of Barbara Mertz, to whom the book is dedicated. Claire has at long last married her cop boyfriend, Peter Rosen, and they are ostensibly on their honeymoon in Luxor, Egypt, accompanied by Claire's daughter, Caron, and Caron's best friend, Inez. Peter, however, is often called away on mysterious meetings with Egyptian police, and Claire and the girls are left to their own devices. Odd things start happening: the girls claim they're being followed by a sinister Arab with a scar, a young American woman is kidnapped in the desert, and murders dog an archeological expedition. Hess throws into this heady mix a deliciously eccentric cast of supporting characters, including one Lady Amelia Peabody Emerson, reputed to be the descendant of famous English archeologists. Manipulating everything with a practiced hand, Hess concludes the story in a manner worthy of Hercule Poirot in the classic Death on the Nile. (Apr.)
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From Booklist
Bookstore owner Claire Malloy, of Farberville, Arkansas, is on her honeymoon in fascinating Luxor, Egypt, in this seventeenth in the series. Unfortunately, her law-enforcement husband, Peter Rosen, is on assignment in Egypt, leaving them little time alone. Because of Peter’s expected absences, Claire has brought along her teenage daughter, Caron, and Caron’s best friend, Inez. Claire’s reputation as a crime solver has preceded her, and a group of eccentric, elderly residents of their hotel, the Winter Palace, can’t wait to meet her. A kidnapping, two murders, and Caron and Inez’s pursuit by an unknown assailant leave Claire plenty to investigate while she visits Egypt’s treasured ancient sites. The sights and sounds of modern-day Luxor frame the story, and the history of ancient Egypt is also palpable, thanks to walking-encyclopedia Inez, who never misses an opportunity to bring her companions and the reader up to speed on what happened when. Humor, quirky characters, a rich mother-daughter relationship, and the fresh setting all add to this satisfying addition to Hess’ long-running series. --Sue O'Brien
Review
“Delightful…worthy of Hercule Poirot in the classic Death on the Nile.”—Publishers Weekly
“Humor, quirky characters, a rich mother-daughter relationship, and the fresh setting all add to this satisfying addition to Hess’s long-running series.”—Booklist
Customer Reviews
Disappointed
I eagerly awaited another Claire Malloy mystery but was really disappointed in this one. It was fun to see Claire in a different setting but the cast of characters were many and it took a long time to get into the mystery. Some parts were also very silly and situations were hard to believe.
Marginal at Best
For some reason, Joan Hess never seems to put the effort or intellect into the more recent Claire Malloy volumes as she does in the ones on Maggody, which are, without exception, far superior. The characters are bland, the plot overdrawn and protracted, and the ending no surprise. This volume about Claire's long awaited honeymoon was so mediocre that I kept falling asleep. I get the feeling that Hess no longer likes this character. If not, do the kind thing and bump her off! To Ms. Hess - Go back to Maggody where the characters are full of life and humor. It's by far and away your best work.
Elizabeth Peters Wanna-Be
I was delighted to see a new Joan Hess book and couldn't wait to read it! Then I couldn't wait for it to end. Ms. Hess describes her trip to Egypt with Barbara Mertz (aka Elizabeth Peters) and it was painfully obvious in Mummy Dearest that she is a Peters wanna-be. It was either a sore attempt at mimicry or an equally poor attempt to satire Amelia Peabody.
There were a vast number of characters streaming in and out unannounced and typically unwelcome, a mystery man in disguise, cocktails at the drop of a hat, a convoluted and improbable storyline, and even a descendant of Peters famous character Amelia Peabody-Emerson.
Very disappointing and poorly done. Hope the next Claire Malloy book is an improvement.
