Old Loves Die Hard
A Mac Faraday Mystery by Lauren Carr
Review: Mac Faraday's ex-wife Christine makes another attempt at reconciliation — he doesn't hurt that he's inherited millions since their divorce — by showing up unannounced at his home. But her visit takes a tragic turn when her current, albeit estranged, boyfriend, Assistant US Attorney Stephen Maguire, shows up in Old Loves Die Hard, the second mystery in this series by Lauren Carr.
Mac delivers Christine that evening to Spencer Inn — Mac took ownership of the luxury lodge when his birth mother, bestselling mystery writer Robin Spencer, died, leaving her entire estate to him — where she spies Maguire having dinner with other guests. Believing that he followed her, Christine has it out with him. "If you know what's good for you, then I suggest you leave — now," she says, adding ominously, "I'm going to kill you." Mac apologizes to Maguire, who he knows from his earlier days as a homicide cop, and escorts Christine to his private suite at the inn. Mac leaves for his own home, returning the next morning to find Maguire dead in his suite. "Christine, what have you done?" he thinks as he examines the crime scene, assuming, not unreasonably, that his ex-wife is guilty of murder. But he has to revise that thought when he finds her body in the bathroom, also quite dead.
The overall murder mystery plot of Old Loves Die Hard is well developed, offering an interesting twist or two along the way. Mac's old cases as a cop provide a solid foundation for motive, leading to a surprising conclusion as to "whodunit". But the book opens with far too much "telling" about Mac and his new life and wealth, and not enough "showing", that is, allowing the reader to become acquainted with, and comfortable with, the character more gradually within the context of the story itself. The setup to the murder is handled somewhat clumsily; Mac is naturally upset with the situation he finds himself in, but is also acting unprofessionally and being a bit of an oaf. He is, of course, a suspect in the murder investigation — the body of his ex-wife was found in his private suite in his inn — and as a retired homicide detective, he knows the process ... and he knows better. Fortunately, he is soon cleared and gets settled into character, one that readers of the first book will now recognize and one that new readers will take to, with what follows more than compensating for this rocky, uneven start.
Acknowledgment: The author provided a copy of Old Loves Die Hard for this review.
Review Copyright © 2011 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Selected reviews of other mysteries by this author …
It's Murder, My Son
CreateSpace (Trade Paperback), June 2010
ISBN-13: 9781452819433; ISBN-10: 1452819432
Location(s) referenced in Old Loves Die Hard: Maryland
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Old Loves Die Hard by Lauren Carr
Publisher: CreateSpace
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN-10: 1-4609-3513-6
ISBN-13: 978-1-4609-3513-2
Publication Date: April 2011
List Price: $14.99
Synopsis (from the publisher): Old loves die hard … and in the worst places. Mac Faraday, an underpaid homicide detective who inherits two-hundred-and-seventy million dollars and an estate on Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, from his birth mother on the day his divorce becomes final, is settling nicely into his new life at Spencer Manor when his ex-wife Christine shows up — and she wants him back! Before Mac can send her packing, Christine and her estranged lover are murdered in Mac’s private penthouse suite at the Spencer Inn, the five-star resort built by his ancestors. The investigation leads to the discovery of cases files for some of Mac’s murder cases in the room of the man responsible for destroying his marriage. Why would his ex-wife’s lover come to Spencer to dig into Mac’s old cases? With the help of his new friends on Deep Creek Lake, Mac must use all of his detective skills to clear his name and the Spencer Inn’s reputation, before its five-stars — and more bodies — start dropping!