Rating: 
Summary: Lots of herrings, red and otherwise...
Review: Skeleton Key is probably the best thing Jane Haddam's written to date -- and that's saying something considering how prolific she's been over these past 15 years. Her writing seems to have come alive and taken a more mature direction. The characters are filled out. The settings are wonderful -- I saw them all in my mind's eye. I know the country club. I know the cemetery. I know the village green, corned by churches. And I fell for all of the traps, herrings and wild geese -- enough so, I could practically hear Haddam laughing over the fun creating yet another 'gotcha!' She's a master (mistress?) of such sly doings and is at the top of her form in Skeleton Key. My only complaint is I read it too fast because I couldn't put it down!
Rating:
Summary: Unlocking the Skeleton
Review: This is Ms. Haddam's 15th DeMarkian book, and the 15th one that I've read. I love her style -- she focuses on the characters rather than the events, so everything that happens stays in context. This book is no exception. She creates characters that are real, consistent, and layered, then creates a conflict in which these characters are allowed to do what they MUST do . . . it's a simple formula, but Ms. Haddam does it so well! The story is interesting, it moves at a consistent pace, and it keeps you reading right through the last page. A MUST for mystery fans!
Rating:
Summary: Unlocking the Skeleton
Review: This is Ms. Haddam's 15th DeMarkian book, and the 15th one that I've read. I love her style -- she focuses on the characters rather than the events, so everything that happens stays in context. This book is no exception. She creates characters that are real, consistent, and layered, then creates a conflict in which these characters are allowed to do what they MUST do . . . it's a simple formula, but Ms. Haddam does it so well! The story is interesting, it moves at a consistent pace, and it keeps you reading right through the last page. A MUST for mystery fans!
Rating:
Summary: Skeleton Key
Review: This is one of the best! It seems appropriate for the year 2000 that most of the characters are reviewing their lives. And Bennis will have a very big decision to make! Dear Jane, Keep those books coming!
Rating:
Summary: Skeleton Key
Review: This is the best Gregor Demarkian in awhile. The book seems more energetic and the plot twists and turns just enough to be intriguing without getting silly. If you're a lover of Haddam's books, you'll really like this one and if you're new to these mysteries, this isn't a bad place to begin to become acquainted. Bennis and Gregor and Tibor and all of the neighborhood are priceless and leave the reader wanting more. Although all of the Demarkian mysteries are fun, this is the best in awhile.
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: This is the best one yet. I wish I could give more stars
Rating:
Summary: Always A Pleasure
Review: This is the fiftheenth Jane Haddam/Gregor Demarkian mystery I have read. I can't get enough of them. Unfortunately Haddam seems to be writing on a slower schedule these days and the wait is always kind of a trial. I don't make a visit to the bookstore without checking the mystery section under Haddam.Skeleton Key is a wondferfully involved page turner that Haddam is well known for. Even when I have the sense that Gregor now had the solution to the mystery, I still can't figure it out. Jane Haddam is a wonderful mystery writer for a newcomer who can't get enough. After the first one, there are fourteen more ... almost all in paperback. Well worth my devotion.
Rating: 
Summary: "Skeleton Key - Skeletal Structure"
Review: Though I have been an avid fan of Ms. Haddam's work for a number of years, I must admit to dissappointment in "Skeleton Key". I found Gregor and Bennis to lack their usual electricity,in fact Bennis was a ditherer and Gregor was dull. The suspects were flat and one dimensional. The denouement was a relief, because it ended the wait for the obvious murderer to be confronted. I can not say I'm fond of books where everyone knows the ending except the protagonist. This was not Ms. Haddam's best effort.
Rating:
Summary: Sweet Sixteen
Review: WOW! I finished the book and realized two things. The first was that this gem of a series already has sixteen titles. The second? That I have never put down a Gregor Demarkian book with any feeling of dissatisfaction. SKELETON KEY opens with Bennis Hanniford finding the body of a young heiress in Litchfield County, Conn. It continues when sleuth extrodinarre Gregor Demarkian arrives upon the scene to consult on the case and get his dear "friend" the heck out of there. This book has it all. Great characters, a wonderful setting and an old fashioned money plot. For certainly our young and wealthy heiress was murdered for money. This is Litchfield County. As Haddam quickly shows us money and/or the lack there of is what makes this county tick. When Ms. Haddam sets out to write a mystery I know she plans on providing a great read. She'll touch base always with the "regulars" our Cavannaugh Street gang. She'll further the Gregor/Bennis relationship. She tosses a plot up in the air and what hits the page is a book, "never quite a cozy and never quite tough". On the page you'll find a classic mystery full of commentary on today's realities... Always successful this outing is one of if not the best. Full of true slimebags and heroic individuals, you never know quite who's who. I will however never drive in Litchfield after dark. In Skeleton Key Jane Haddam is making the break. With a wink to pumpkins and graves she's leaving the Holiday mystery behind. It's a sad and yet wonderful thing. Sad because I'll miss the part of my holiday celebration and happy because no two books in this series have been cut from the mold and I know now that it won't happen. BUT if I have to wait 2 1/2 years for the next one... well, I'll read it anyway!
Rating:
Summary: Skeleton Key
Review: Years ago i discovered Gregor Demarkian and the world he inhabits, and have been a huge fan ever since. As usual, after i finish the latest of Jane Haddam's Gregor book, i eagerly await the next one. Skeleton Key was definitely worth the wait. Jane never disappoints, and always surprises me with "who dun it." Her characters embody the best and worst in people, and are always realistic. I've come to care deeply for the people who live on Cavanaugh Street. I look forward to see how Donna decorates the building she along with Gregor and Bennis live in, if old George continues in good health, and mainly how Gregor and Bennis are handling their relationship. Haddam described Bennis'illness so well, that i got worried about her, and had to read the end of the book to see if she would be alright. Now that's what i call great writing, getting the reader so involved with the character, they can't wait to see what happens. Skeleton Key is the best in a long series of terrific books by Jane Haddam. Now if she would only write faster so her legion of fans wouldnt have to wait so long until the next one, we'd all be happy campers.
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