Wentworth, Patricia -- The Listening Eye

Your eye might as well have been listening. The visual function it performs while reading this book only renders to dull your brain. That sums the tone of the review this book is about to get.

"Great British Tradition" - this is how the mystery is weaved in front of your eyes. So, there is everything - the murder, Scotland Yard (not the new one, for that, go to Er. J, P.D.), disgruntled family members, pancakes, thankfully very little tea, and pesto! the aging single detective-ess.

The problem? Not the pancakes, but the plot. If there is one, it makes itself clear as a crystal in the first few pages. For one, anyone worth their salt would expect murdery mysteries, especially written in the G.B. tradition to have a string of murders or murder attempts. That being the give away, how would you like it if the author goes into exquisite details of the personal lamentations of all the characters, while painting the suspects in every disgraceful shade possible?

The part about the deaf lady doing the listening through her eye was the eye - catcher for me, if you will excuse the pun (I wonder why!). That ends in the first five pages. To make matters worse, the love scenes are obnoxious, and the last five pages do not help. Yes, it does turn into a poorly written romance novel.

All in all, Miss Silver, you might have solved many cases, I don't think they were either exciting, or I suspect your ghost writer had any imagination whatsoever.

2/5 -- Not worth reading, unless you are embarked on the path to a PhD (permanent yada yada) on "Sloppy Mystery Novel Writing Exercises in 20th century G.B"

PS: Of course, there is a post script. What were you thinking? Given my recent poor reviews on British novels, please don't presume any antipathy towards the British. After all, I love the scribbles of the C.D., A.D, PGW and so on. If you are biting your nails for censure of bad American novels, you won't have to wait much longer....