Coup De Grace

Rating:
Summary: Best yet
Review: I find that Borthwick improves with each addition. Amongst New England mysteries she stands alone. I am not sure what annejv is talking about but I suspect she is a french teacher with a lifetime of frustrated students.

Rating:
Summary: Murder in Massachusetts
Review: Sarah Deane is an ongoing character of author J.S. Borthwick. She is a strong young woman whose personality is developed more and more with each succeeding book. The mystery in this book is pretty good, and suspects and red herrings abound. However, in the end I felt somewhat cheated. Sarah, the main character, does not solve the mystery. In fact, none of the characters solves the mystery. The villain is finally caught in the act, and the last major clue, which would have allowed Sarah (and the reader) to solve the crimes, is not revealed until after the murderer has been arrested. I have been noticing this kind of thing recently with amateur sleuths, and I must say that it is a trend that I do not like. Still, this book is well written and a fun read.

Rating:
Summary: Murder in a girls boarding school
Review: Sarah Deane is at loose ends after completing her PhD. Bowdoin College doesn't have a place for her until the next semester, and Alex is incredibly busy at the hospital. Cousin Giddy's phone call seems like a godsend. At teacher at the exclusive boarding school at which she works is taking a maternity leave, and the school is in need of an English teacher immediately. Sarah accepts the position and is off to her childhood home of Carlisle, MA. The teachers are an odd bunch, but not sinister. Having been dragooned into going to a slide show given by the art history teacher, Sarah becomes one of the last people to see her alive.

There are many plot twists and turns in this novel and the mystery is pretty engrossing. Borthwick writes an excellent academic mystery.