Product Description
In her most eagerly anticipated novel yet, Elizabeth George brings back Scotland Yard's Thomas Lynley to investigate a ruthless crime. After the senseless murder of his wife, Detective Superintendent Thomas Lynley retreated to Cornwall, where he has spent six solitary weeks hiking the bleak and rugged coastline. But no matter how far he walks, no matter how exhausting his days, the painful memories of Helen's death do not diminish. On the forty-third day of his walk, at the base of a cliff, Lynley discovers the body of a young man who appears to have fallen to his death. The closest town, better known for its tourists and its surfing than its intrigue, seems an unlikely place for murder. However, it soon becomes apparent that a clever killer is indeed at work, and this time Lynley is not a detective but a witness and possibly a suspect. The head of the vastly understaffed local police department needs Lynley's help, though, especially when it comes to the mysterious, secretive woman whose cottage lies not far from where the body was discovered. But can Lynley let go of the past long enough to solve a most devious and carefully planned crime?
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 Thomas Lynley continues his journey ( nprfan1 )
....metaphorically speaking.
This is a first for George. As with all of her stories featuring Thomas Lynley there is a crime which must be solved, but in this case the crime is really incidental to the main thrust of the story, which is Lynley's journey (both physically and emotionally speaking) from the day his wife and unborn child were gunned down in a senseless street shooting, as detailed in George's previous two novels.
When we first meet Lynley in this story he has retreated into himself. He has started an aimless walk along the paths and trails of the Cornwall coast; he doesn't know where he's going and he really doesn't care - when Helen died a great deal of his soul died with her. But then, along one of those trails, he discovers a body - and his police instincts rise up and take over.
This is mainly the story of how a seemingly typical murder case brings Thomas Lynley back out of his shell, and of the woman who, one hopes, may take Helen's place in his life - although not right away; let's give the man a decent chance to mourn. It does seem plausible, however - George goes into great detail about Daidre Trahair, and although she is initially a suspect in this murder George goes out of her way to show how instrumental the veterinarian is in calling Lynley back to himself.
The officer in charge of the case, DI Bea Hannaford, is quite a character in her own right - a divorced mother of a 14-year-old son who has to balance her job with being a mother, as well as an intense anger at herself and her ex-husband. Hopefully George will bring her back in a future Lynley novel. And yes, Barbara Havers is here too - but she's much more in the background than is usual. Then again, this is Lynley's story.
There is a resolution of sorts to the crime, but it's not a very fulfilling one, either to the characters in the story or to the reader. But I have the feeling that, considering the dominant subject of the story, this was to be expected - a better resolution would have somehow taken away from Lynley's journey.
I'm definitely looking forward to George's next book. There are several deliberately unanswered questions that I hope she'll get around to answering.
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 Disappointed
I read my first Lynley novel Well Schooled in Murder in 2004 and was hooked - read the remaining twelve or so books in about three months.
Careless in Red was a disappointment. The first 300 pages are very tedious and the final 300 are okay but not up to the earlier books. There are too many characters and not many of them are likable. Although Havers finally appears, she seems a secondary character and I miss Lynley's circle of friends. I'm afraid more than Helen is dead.
I give it **/*****.
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Careless in Red
Elizabeth George's latest mystery gets off to a slow start and seems to repeat her earlier work. As the story moves on, the pace picks up and the character development becomes more interesting and engaging. The strength of her work as always lies in her sense of place and her realistic and inticate psychological characterizations. This particular book was hilarious at times, using British vernacular. There were some loose ends by the time the story ended, but maybe that's the teaser for George's next book. We'll see. This book is definately a relaxing and enjoyable read, well worth while.
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Disappointing Sequel to "With No One as Witness"
"Careless in Red" is a disappointment. While I typically love Elizabeth George's writing style and pace, this book dragged through much of the middle. I won't share the ending, but say only that much was left unresolved. Too many characters not essential to the story line cluttered the novel. I await the next book, hoping to see much more of DI Havers, Winston Nkata, and a healed Thomas Lynley.
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I think I see what George did... ( maiaserrelinda )
So, disclaimer: I am a huge fan of George's work. I have spent many years looking forward eagerly to her latest books, and re-read them often because I enjoy her style and characterizations so much. I had the privilege of meeting her and found her to be an intelligent, focused person.
Therefore, I think I understand why she went where she did in this novel. Gone were most of the elements of a typical English mystery; it was nearly a tertiary aspect of this story, perhaps included simply because that's what Lynley does - he solves mysteries. But otherwise the bulk of the story revolved around the healing process needed for Lynley's character to move forward. In fact, I applaud George for doing such a thoughtful job with this. She perceived Lynley's loss and grief as so monumental that to go from the previous novel, which explored the how's, to a novel that did not explore the why's, would have been jarring to anybody who has experienced this kind of loss - real or otherwise. I found the book as a whole to struggle a bit, but even that seemed fitting in context. I have faith in George's understanding of the characters she's created to take us on the journey with them that she wanted, and not to make arbitrary decisions about their actions. This may not have been my favorite of the Lynley mysteries, but I maintain my belief that George knows where she's going with them.
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