My Ongoing Look at the Mystery Genre - English Detectives Part 7

In my last entry on this topic I discussed Ann Cleeves, Edmund Crispin and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In this post I'll look at the books of two female authors; Liz Evans and Elizabeth Ferrars.

My Ongoing Look at the Mystery Genre - English Detectives Part 7

Liz Evans

1. Liz Evans - Grace Smith. English writer Liz Evans writes a detective series featuring Private Eye, Grace Smith. I've read the first book in the series, enjoying it very much and I've got two more of the six book series on my book shelf.

a. Who Killed Marilyn Monroe? (#1 / 1997).










"Who Killed Marilyn Monroe? by Liz Evans, the first book in the PI Grace Smith series, was an entertaining, fun surprise. Of course, I was somewhat mislead by the title, of course, it had nothing to do with Marilyn Monroe. Grace Smith is a struggling PI working for Vetch Associates, somewhere on the coast of England (struggling because she never seems to have any money and seems to get the odd ball cases).

Marilyn Monroe is a donkey, belonging to December Drysdale, who runs them down to the beach for tourists to take pictures of and to ride them. Unfortunately, Marilyn has been murdered and Drysdale doesn't think the police will take the death seriously enough. Grace 'Smithie' is assigned the case and thus begins an interesting, odd case which might also involve the murder of one of Drysdale's neighbors, a young woman, who was also murdered the same evening.

While it seems an unlikely story, but Evans puts it together nicely, making for an interesting, even fascinating story. She develops her characters with loving care and you find yourself drawn into them and the story. As Liz Lemon would say, "I want to go to there" and meet Grace and the other people in her community; from bar owner and aging rocker, Shane (who feeds Grace for free and entertains with loud rock music), her co-worker, Annie (sarcastic and a tolerant, helpful friend); the residents of the old age home, even Drysdale's donkeys. You find yourself loving these characters.

Evans weaves a fun story, somewhere between Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books and Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone mysteries. Grace Smith is at times hapless, but always determined. She's scruffy, sexy and lovable. I've already ordered the next book, JFK Is Missing!. If you like a cozy, but action-filled, at times humorous mystery, try Liz Evans (4.5 stars)"

b. JFK is Missing (#2 / 1998).












"Liz Evans is in top form in these, the first three investigations in the PI Grace Smith mystery series. Featuring a feisty and engaging heroine, and packed with cracking one-liners and unexpected twists, these pacey novels will keep you guessing to the end.PI Grace Smith is back, walking the mean streets of Seatoun, a seedy town on England's southern coast. Client Henry Summerstone has asked her to find a missing person, but he has no idea of her name, where she lives or works, or what she looks like -- he's been blind for years. In fact, he's not even sure she's missing. But he's offering cash, an offer that Grace finds hard to refuse. Soon she's got a lead on the girl -- several girls, as it turns out -- but instead of them leading her to Miss X, Grace finds herself caught up in government fraud, family feuds, and cold-blooded murder."

c. Sick as a Parrot (#5 / 2004).












"Adopted at birth, Hanna Conti attempts to trace her family. She turns up a mother who, 20 years earlier, was convicted of murder. Convinced that her mother is innocent, Hannah hires PI Grace Smith to prove it. Grace uncovers the story of the very messy murder of Janet Hepburn, a teacher at St. Martin’s Comprehensive, but there are a lot of people who’d rather she stopped digging. On Grace’s side (or possibly not) is an ex-cop with a shady past and Betterman177, a mysterious emailer who sends tantalizing clues about what was happening at St. Martin’s two decades ago. To add to these complications, Grace has been conned into bird-sitting a psychotic parrot, and Terry Rosco, the most chauvinistic cop in Seatoun, is trying to move into Grace’s spare room. And, oh yes—someone keeps trying to kill her."

Elizabeth Ferrars

2.  Elizabeth Ferrars - Toby Dyke. British crime writer Elizabeth Ferrars, née Morna Doris MacTaggart, lived from 1907 - 1995. In 1940 she began the Toby Dyke series. Dyke was a freelance journalist who worked with his friend George. He featured in her first five novels. I've read one so far.

a. Murder of a Suicide (also Death in Botanist's Bay) (#3 / 1941).













"When Toby Dyke and his companion, George, get caught in torrential rain one night, they are surprised to find that they are not the only ones out in such a fierce storm: Edgar Prees, aging botanist of prestige and reputation, is attempting to commit suicide by jumping off a cliff top.
The two men drive Edgar home, collapsed and shaken. When he is then found the following morning shot dead with his own revolver, it seems that his attempt at suicide has succeeded - but is the case really as clear-cut as it appears?" (3 stars)

The remaining Toby Dyke books are -
- Give a Corpse a Bad Name (1940)
- Remove the Bodies (also Rehearsals for Murder) (1941)
- Don't Monkey with Murder (also The Shape of a Stain (1942)
- Your Neck in a Noose (1942)

3. Elizabeth Ferrars - Andrew Basnett. Basnett was a retired botanist. She began this series in 1983 and it consisted of 8 books. I've read one of the books so far.

a. The Crime and the Crystal (#3 / 1985).












"Christmas in Adelaide promises to be a pleasant vacation for Andrew Basnett, retired professor of botany and amateur sleuth. But the shadow of an unsolved murder hangs over the lives of his hosts, Tony and Jan Gardiner. The police still suspect Jan of her first husband's murder and it doesn't help when a second killing takes place under the same bizarre circumstances. What can a guest do in such a case but try to clear his hostess and solve the crime?" (3 stars)

The remaining books in this series are -
- Something Wicked (#1 / 1983)
- The Root of all Evil (#2 / 1984)
- The Other Devil's Name (#4 / 1986)
- A Murder Too Many (#5 / 1988)
- Smoke Without Fire (#6 / 1990)
- A Hobby of Murder (#7 / 1994)
- A Choice of Evils (#8 / 1995)

Ferrar also wrote a series featuring Virginia and Felix Freer as well as a number of standalone novels and short stories.

Well, there you go, my end of the weekend post. I hope you have a great week!