Rainstone Fall
A
Chris Honeysett Mystery
Peter
Helton
Soho Constable (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-56947-525-3 (1569475253)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-525-6 (9781569475253)
Publication Date: September 2008
List Price: $25.00
Synopsis (from
the publisher): For Chris Honeysett, artist and private investigator in
the city of Bath, autumn threatens to bring down more than just the
roof of his studio. An exceptionally stormy October forms the backdrop
to Aqua Investigation’s strangest case yet.
When Chris downs brushes to take on what looks like a simple
surveillance job he finds himself in a frenetic world of murder,
abduction and blackmail. Dark problems sometimes require drastic
solutions – why else would Honeysett suddenly find himself on
the wrong side of the law?
Cracks are beginning to show in his private life too, just when the
triangle that is Chris, Tim and Annis should be working together to
keep them all out of jail. In Rainstone Fall first impressions count
for nothing and appearances are always deceptive.
Review:
Artist and private investigator Chris Honeysett, together with fellow
artist and lover Annis Jordan and best friend Tim Bigwood, a former
safecracker and thief, take on a situation that involves danger,
treachery, and murder in Rainstone
Fall, the third mystery in this series by Peter Helton.
Honeysett’s new job has him working for an insurance agency
in Bath. He is to follow a man with a limp in order to prove fraud.
While on the job, a single, seemingly poor woman comes to him and
pleads with him to help find her son. The boy is fifteen years old and
has been kidnapped. Chris hears from the kidnapper who tells him he
must do exactly what he is told or the boy will die. The orders include
safecracking (a job for Tim) which fails, stealing a supposedly
priceless stamp (which turns out to be not so priceless), and last but
not least, to steal a Rodin statue from the Bath Museum. Although Chris
thinks these demands are bizarre, he agrees for the sake of the boy's
mother. The pursuit of these demands takes Chris, Annis and Tim through
shadowy fields, over down-trodden paths, and sloshing in flooded
footpaths during a grim autumn. Soon they find themselves meeting
head-on blackmail and murder.
Helton has created three acerbic, yet engaging characters in Chris,
Annis, and Tim. The story takes place in the city and surrounding area
of Bath, England, during the chilly, rainy season of the year. The
visions the author generates along the rustic countryside and the
heavily travelled dirt roads with ruts filled with muddy water, trees
with fallen branches, broken down fences and green hedges surrounding
the farms is astounding. Rainstone
Fall is a compelling, memorable story of greed, blackmail,
kidnapping and murder set in a rustic atmosphere.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Rainstone Fall and to Soho Press for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
Headcase
Carroll & Graf (Hardcover), July 2005
ISBN-10: 0-7867-1529-4 (0786715294)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7867-1529-9 (9780786715299)
Slim Chance
Carroll & Graf (Hardcover), July 2006
ISBN-10: 0-7867-1742-4 (0786717424)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7867-1742-2 (9780786717422)
Rainstone Fall
Soho Constable (Hardcover), September 2008
ISBN-10: 1-56947-525-3 (1569475253)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-525-6 (9781569475253)
Omnimystery keywords for Rainstone Fall ...
Location(s) referenced: Bath, England.
