Monthly Archives: July 2023

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Street of the Five Moons

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Street of the Five Moons by Elizabeth Peters

Street of the Five Moons (Vicky Bliss, #2) by Elizabeth Peters

Amy Caudill‘s review

When blonde bombshell/medieval art historian Vicky Bliss is shown an unbelievably perfect forgery of a piece of famous jewelry, housed in their own Munich National Museum, she convinces her boss that she should investigate the origins and purpose of this copy.  She soon finds herself on the way to Rome to check out an obscure clue from a dead man’s pocket.  

While there, she will encounter an Englishman who may be both an ally and a criminal, and an underground art forgery ring that touches the highest echelons of Italian society.  When she is invited to visit the mansion of one of the main suspects the morning after being kidnapped, and rescued, by her sort of ally/rival, Vicky doesn’t hesitate to accept, even knowing she is probably going into even more danger.  She will follow clues leading through a garden of monstrous statuary, a secret lab, and a thrilling escape through the Italian countryside.

I have read all of Elizabeth Peter’s Amelia Peabody series, and a few of her stand alone books written under the pseudonym of Barbara Michaels.  I adore the Peabody books, patterned somewhat after the author herself, who holds a doctorate in Egyptology; but I found the books she wrote as Barabara Michaels a little less in substance than those, so I was happy to discover the Vicky Bliss series seems to be just as fascinating as the Peabody books.

While the subject matter is obviously different, being medieval art versus ancient Egyptian artifacts, it is obvious that the author put in her due diligence in research as well as creating several memorable, fascinating characters; including Vicky and her bumbling, lovable boss Professor Schmidt, and her future possible (?) love interest/antagonist, who she only knows as John Smythe. 

I enjoyed this story very much, and intend to go back and read the rest of the series as I have time.  I award this book four and a half stars and recommend it to anyone who enjoys thriller/mystery stories featuring strong female heroines.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : The Guest List

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The Guest List by Lucy Foley

The Guest List by Lucy Foley (Goodreads Author)

Amy Caudill‘s review

A murder mystery at a wedding held on an isolated island gives a promising start to this novel by Lucy Foley.  The author paints a dreamy romantic scene populated with ruins, including the foundations of a chapel for the wedding itself, on an island haunted by legends and folktales of the now-absent native population.

The author also, through continual change of point of view throughout each short chapter, develops three promising suspects who each have motive and perhaps opportunity to commit murder.   

First up, Johnno, the betrayed “best friend” who shares a history of dark secrets with the murder victim, the bridegroom Will.  Next, Olivia, the bridesmaid and younger sister of the bride, had a clandestine affair with the groom and was nearly destroyed after he rejected her pregnancy which she terminated.  Finally the bride, Jules, discovers some of Will’s dark secrets but only after saying “I do.”

While there are plenty of side stories told from various viewpoints, so many of these are left undeveloped and unexplained.  For instance, Charlie, the oldest friend of Jules, and his wife Hannah, the “plus one,” have backstories that are interesting but have no direct connection to the main events and no resolution.

In the end, none of the likely suspects is the murderer.  The fourth person used for POV, other than the groom himself, seems the least likely person to commit a crime, until she does.  The reader is left longing for a great reveal, aka Agatha Christie, as at first the story seems building into; but the actual unveiling is done in a most disappointing way, after the fact.  We don’t get the satisfaction of the murder happening “on camera,” so to speak, so the victim can witness his end in the murderer’s eyes.  Plus as the story ends, it appears that the true killer will get away with the crime, because one of the more likely suspects has been arrested.

While this story premise had promise, the constant shift between point of view was at first hard to follow, and then as I began to figure it out, I was able to solve parts of the mystery prior to its reveal.  The novel could have used more development of both plot and subplot, which is why I only give it three stars.