Death on the Holy Mountain
A Lord
Powerscourt Investigation
David
Dickinson
Soho Constable (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-56947-503-2 (1569475032)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-503-4 (9781569475034)
Publication Date: April 2008
List Price: $24.95
Synopsis (from the publisher): In 1905, Lord Francis Powerscourt investigates a series of art thefts from stately homes of the Protestant gentry in Ireland. Then people begin to vanish. As Powerscourt closes in on the killer his own life is threatened and his patriotism is questioned.
Review: Lord
Francis Powerscourt is hired to investigate a burglary at an estate in
Ireland in Death on the Holy Mountain,
the seventh mystery in this series by David Dickinson.
The estate in question is Butler Court, one of many owned by Gervase
St. Clair de Bonneval Brandon, 8th Earl of Lincoln. A number of oil
paintings, portraits of eight generations of the Earl's family, have
been stolen. And it is not the only theft in the area. Other homes have
been targeted as well. The only common factor is that all the estates
are owned by Protestants. Could the thefts be political? The Irish
Catholic workers on the estates are demanding freedom from English
rule, but this seems to be a particularly ineffective way of
accomplishing their goals. Especially since, at least in Lord Brandon's
case, the paintings stolen weren't particularly valuable. It isn't
until a body is found at the summit of Croagh Patrick, Ireland's Holy
Mountain, that Powerscourt is able to gather enough information to
identify the thieves and determine the true reason behind their actions.
Death on the Holy Mountain
is written in an expressive manner, describing the beauty of Ireland
and the expansive estates that include ancestral homes surrounded by
massive amounts of land, trees, lakes, and rivers. The story, set in
the early 20th century, is exceptional in the way the author infuses
the history and plight of the Irish citizens and the constant conflict
between the Protestants and Catholics over the rule of Ireland into the
story, and at the same time effortlessly incorporating all this into a
credible mystery. Death on the Holy
Mountain is a terrific novel and highly recommended.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Death on the Holy Mountain and to Soho Press for providing an ARC of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2009 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
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Death on the Holy Mountain
Soho Constable (Hardcover), April 2008
ISBN-10: 1-56947-503-2 (1569475032)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-503-4 (9781569475034)
Death of a Pilgrim
Soho Constable (Hardcover), March 2009
ISBN-10: 1-56947-540-7 (1569475407)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-540-9 (9781569475409)
Omnimystery keywords for Death on the Holy Mountain ...
Location(s) referenced: Ireland.
