G.M. Malliet Reviews (2)

(2009) Death and the Lit Chick    
 
When a handful of mystery authors from both sides of “the pond,” agents and a lone publisher gather in a Scottish castle, murder is on someone’s agenda. The “Lit Chick” of the title is Kimberlee Kalder, an overnight sensation who’s raking in royalties hand over fist. The flamboyant Ms. Kalder is the topic of much conversation and none of it very pleasant. The other attendees aren’t too pleasant, either. All have their quirks – and their reasons to dislike the victim.
 
Helping local authorities sort it all out is English Detective Inspector Arthur St. Just, on the program to speak about police procedure. While he’s looking for baddies, he’s also keeping his eyes on author Portia De’Ath, whom he’s rather smitten with. But she’s made it clear a policeman/beau is on in the cards for her.
 
G.M. Malliet paints vivid pictures of her characters – she’s able in a few sentences to make them absolutely come alive for readers. It’s a characteristic I noticed in the first book in this series, Death of a Cozy Writer, which I loved. Death and the Lit Chick is even better.
 
The writing is A+ -- smooth, clever (in the good sense) and a pleasure to read. (The snarky bits about writers, mysteries and the publishing biz add to the fun.) In some ways, Ms. Malliet’s books remind me of Carolyn Hart’s – albeit with a bit of an edge and some salty language. Fans of Ms. Hart should give Death and the Lit Chick a look.
 
By Diana. First published in Mystery News, April/May 2009 edition.
 
(2008) Death of a Cozy Writer (Publishes July 1, 2008)

Oh-so-wealthy Sir Adrian Beauclerk-Fisk, the cozy writer in the title, is NOT a nice man. He’s manipulative, mean-spirited and a candidate for World’s Worst Father. He rewrites his will as often as most people write grocery lists, letting each legatee know when he or she is in or out, pitting one against the other. As Death of a Cozy Writer opens, Sir Adrian has invited his four grown children to his Cambridgeshire estate for an engagement party. He’s marrying Violet Winthrop, a woman whose shadowy past includes a dead husband and the suspicion she murdered him and got away with it.

In the opening pages of Death of a Cozy Writer, the author concentrates on setting the stage and developing and assembling the main characters/suspects in Cambridgeshire. After the first murder occurs and Detective Chief Inspector St. Just arrives on the scene, it’s a by-the-book police procedural.

Although G.M. Malliet has written a book reminiscent of Dame Agatha Christie’s mysteries, Death of a Cozy Writer has a decidedly modern feel to it. The writing is clever, in the very best sense of that word, and a bit edgy, with a little coarse language that would redden the ears of Sir Adrian’s "Miss Rampling" character just a tad. Ms. Malliet has a keen eye for sensory details and the skill to describe them deliciously. Her similes are spectacular. And yet, her  writing doesn’t draw undue attention to itself, flowing along smoothly and effortlessly, or so it appears.

Death of a Cozy Writer is a book anyone who cut their teeth on Agatha Christie’s mysteries will treasure. I read it once for the story, and plan to read it a second time just to savor the language. It’s that good.

By Diana. First published in the Cozy Library March 10, 2007.