Mysterious Reviews: HomeMysterious Reviews: AboutMysterious Reviews: LinksMysterious Reviews: BrowseMysterious Reviews: Search

The House of Seven Mabels by Jill Churchill

The House of Seven Mabels
A Jane Jeffry Mystery

William Morrow (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-380-97736-2 (0380977362)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97736-9 (9780380977369)
Publication Date: August 2002
List Price: $23.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): Homemaking is about to take on a whole new meaning for Jane Jeffry now that she's agreed to help restore and redecorate a decrepit old neighborhood mansion. The home's owner, the prosperously divorced Bitsy Burnside, considers herself to be a feminist to the max and wants an almost all-female crew to do the dirty work - prompting the quick-witted Shelley Nowack to dub the project "the House of Seven Mabels." With her best friend and decorating whiz Shelley on the estrogen-heavy team, Jane thinks this exhausting, plaster-dusty job may not be as unpleasant as it initially appeared to be.

Until, of course, things start to get very messy. It begins with a series of mean-spirited "pranks" - strange odors, mysterious electrical shorts, a myriad of petty annoyances designed to impede the progress of the fixer-uppers. And then the pranks turn deadly, leaving one of the workers lying lifeless at the foot of a staircase.

Tragic, yes, but an accident? Jane thinks not. And with the able assistance of Shelley, not to mention a little help from her best beau, Chicago detective Mel VanDyne, Jane's hoping she can construct a solid case and nail the assassin. Suspects are certainly in abundant supply. The surviving members of Bitsy's building brigade all had the opportunity. Joe Budley - the contractor originally hired, then fired when Bitsy had her "no men allowed" epiphany - had a motive. But the more Jane saws away at the truth, the more complicated the criminal blueprint appears. And she may be painting herself into a corner, leaving no exit if a crafty killer decides to make Jane Jeffry the next demolition project.

Review: The House of Seven Mabels is the 13th outing for Jane Jeffry in Jill Churchill's long-running cozy mystery series.

When the title of a book is more clever than the book itself, there's a problem. It's not that The House of Seven Mabels is a poorly written or constructed mystery; it's just that it's so predictable. The premise is promising, with Jane and her best friend Shelley hired by hard-core feminists to restore and redecorate a local mansion, but Churchill never delivers.

Fans of Jill Churchill and cozies in general will no doubt enjoy this latest entry in the Jane Jeffy series, but those looking for any originality in their mysteries should look elsewhere.

Special thanks to for providing of The House of Seven Mabels for this review.

Review Copyright © 2002 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved



Mystery Books News

Bookmark and Share

Have you read The House of Seven Mabels? How would you rate it?

Mysteries in this series ...

Grime and Punishment
Bantam (Mass Market Paperback), January 1989
ISBN-10: 0-553-27646-8 (0553276468)
ISBN-13: 978-0-553-27646-6 (9780553276466)

A Farewell to Yarns
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), December 1991
ISBN-10: 0-380-76399-0 (0380763990)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-76399-3 (9780380763993)

A Quiche Before Dying
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), February 1993
ISBN-10: 0-380-76932-8 (0380769328)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-76932-2 (9780380769322)

The Class Menagerie
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), February 1994
ISBN-10: 0-380-77380-5 (0380773805)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-77380-0 (9780380773800)

A Knife to Remember
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), March 1994
ISBN-10: 0-380-77381-3 (0380773813)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-77381-7 (9780380773817)

Frome Here to Paternity
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), July 1995
ISBN-10: 0-380-77715-0 (0380777150)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-77715-0 (9780380777150)

Silence of the Hams
Avon Books (Mass Market Paperback), July 1996
ISBN-10: 0-380-77716-9 (0380777169)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-77716-7 (9780380777167)

War and Peas
Avon Books (Hardcover), November 1996
ISBN-10: 0-380-97323-5 (0380973235)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97323-1 (9780380973231)

Fear of Frying
Avon Books (Hardcover), November 1997
ISBN-10: 0-380-97324-3 (0380973243)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97324-8 (9780380973248)

The Merchant of Menace
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), November 1998
ISBN-10: 0-380-97569-6 (0380975696)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97569-3 (9780380975693)

A Groom with A View
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), October 1999
ISBN-10: 0-380-97570-X (038097570X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97570-9 (9780380975709)

Mulch Ado About Nothing
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), December 2000
ISBN-10: 0-380-97735-4 (0380977354)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97735-2 (9780380977352)


William Morrow (Hardcover), August 2002
ISBN-10: 0-380-97736-2 (0380977362)
ISBN-13: 978-0-380-97736-9 (9780380977369)

Bell, Book, And Scandal
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), November 2003
ISBN-10: 0-06-009797-3 (0060097973)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-009797-4 (9780060097974)

A Midsummer Night's Scream
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), November 2004
ISBN-10: 0-06-009798-1 (0060097981)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-009798-1 (9780060097981)

The Accidental Florist
William Morrow and Co. (Hardcover), March 2007
ISBN-10: 0-06-052845-1 (0060528451)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-052845-4 (9780060528454)

keywords for The House of Seven Mabels ...

Location(s) referenced: Chicago, Illinois.

Copyright © 2009   Mysterious Reviews, a Business Unit of Omnimystery   All Rights Reserved