A Stillness in Bethlehem
Registered by 
GoryDetails
of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 12/5/2017
This Book is Currently in the Wild!
GoryDetails of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 12/5/2017 This Book is Currently in the Wild!
1 journaler for this copy...
I found this paperback on the charity-sale shelves at a local Hannaford's, and nabbed it for another release copy.
It's one of Haddam's interesting "Holiday series" of mysteries featuring ex-FBI agent Gregor Demarkian and his friends and neighbors from Cavanaugh Street in Philadelphia. [Haddam's style's a mix of "cozy" and "procedural" with large casts of supporting characters (and possible suspects) and a good many subplots.]
In this book, the theme-holiday is Christmas, as celebrated in the (fictional, I think) town of Bethlehem VT. Gregor is visiting the little town along with the quirkily charming Father Tibor and the abrasive but interesting Bennis Hannaford (with whom Gregor is beginning a tentative romance). The annual Nativity play is being challenged by a separate-church-and-state group, and one of their representatives winds up getting shot; is it really an accident? Gregor doesn't think so...
Complex plots and entertaining character interaction make this series enjoyable for me - the interaction more than the mysteries, which I seldom even try to figure out, but if you like lots of clues and red herrings, you'll enjoy these. (And I got a kick out of the cover-art as well; a border featuring holiday-theme items from gingerbread houses to mistletoe, but with the addition of a few more sinister objects: a package has a teensy gun attached, an ornament reflects a skull... Nice work!)
It's one of Haddam's interesting "Holiday series" of mysteries featuring ex-FBI agent Gregor Demarkian and his friends and neighbors from Cavanaugh Street in Philadelphia. [Haddam's style's a mix of "cozy" and "procedural" with large casts of supporting characters (and possible suspects) and a good many subplots.]
In this book, the theme-holiday is Christmas, as celebrated in the (fictional, I think) town of Bethlehem VT. Gregor is visiting the little town along with the quirkily charming Father Tibor and the abrasive but interesting Bennis Hannaford (with whom Gregor is beginning a tentative romance). The annual Nativity play is being challenged by a separate-church-and-state group, and one of their representatives winds up getting shot; is it really an accident? Gregor doesn't think so...
Complex plots and entertaining character interaction make this series enjoyable for me - the interaction more than the mysteries, which I seldom even try to figure out, but if you like lots of clues and red herrings, you'll enjoy these. (And I got a kick out of the cover-art as well; a border featuring holiday-theme items from gingerbread houses to mistletoe, but with the addition of a few more sinister objects: a package has a teensy gun attached, an ornament reflects a skull... Nice work!)
Journal Entry 2 by GoryDetails at Grove Street (see release note for details) in Peterborough, New Hampshire USA on Tuesday, December 5, 2017
GoryDetails at Grove Street (see release note for details) in Peterborough, New Hampshire USA on Tuesday, December 5, 2017
Released 6 yrs ago (12/6/2017 UTC) at Grove Street (see release note for details) in Peterborough, New Hampshire USA
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
I left this book, bagged against the elements, on a sleigh in front of the Grove Village shops at 43 Grove street - including Ave Marie Handmade Chocolates and the marvelous Monadnock Oil and Vinegar store. Hope the finder enjoys the book![See other recent releases in NH here.]
*** Released for the 2017 What's in a Name release challenge, for the embedded "Beth" in the title. ***
*** Released for the 2017 Christmas/Holiday release challenge. ***
