Well it's not like it's the worst book I've ever read, or even the worst tie-in fiction I've ever read, but it's far from the best in either category. The plot itself was decent and in dialogue Bain captured Jessica, I think, but it was hard to imagine the narration portion really being Jessica's first person thoughts. When I think about standout writers in the mystery field, who cross over to make broad sales outside of those who purchase heavily within the genre (which describes, canonically, JB Fletcher) I think about prose that both captures an atmosphere and says something incisive about the other characters, the setting and the relevant themes. There's nothing really wrong with Bain's first person prose as it fits into the general paperback cosy catalogue, but when people choose to write first person (in this case I suppose not really a choice but a stylistic device to make putting her name on as a fake co-author more sensical) and their protagonist is someone with a special way of looking at the world around them -- a top notch writer like Jessica, a photographer, etc. -- I get kind of disappointed when the writing doesn't match up with that. In this book the description is sometimes vacant, leaving at times a feeling as though everything happens in white space, or sometimes overly descriptive of random things like what everyone ate or what Jess is wearing, and sometimes the author just seems to sort of ... describe the wrong elements of a scene to evoke anything. Early in the book the author describes a wide hallway lined with bookcases, but he wants to expound on that. Sure. But he just chooses to give us the width in feet of the hallway. Well. Okay. Thanks. Definitely I have a different opinion of this home now I know to imagine the halls eight feet instead of seven. I'm sure that's exactly the sort of thing a mystery-writing, book-loving sleuth like Jessica Fletcher would notice, and not, say, the architecture or the decor or what kind of books dominated the shelves or basically anything else which might create atmosphere or show us a little something about the house's owner, rather than having everything told us by Jess' thoughts.Anyway, my copy seemed to have the offensive car scene excised and replaced with a little pondering about the fact that she doesn't drive, so that's nice. Overall the book's probably got a slightly better plot than many of the novels it would be sold alongside, but some awkward issues with when to show, when to tell, and when it's irrelevant. I'll read more of the later ones, as some of this could be teething issues trying to hit a nice stride between getting the polite, even respectable atmosphere of the show while balancing the need for fluid writing and the creation of atmosphere and suspense.
Non proprio quattro stelle perché in alcuni punti si sentiva l'influenza maschile dello scrittore,ma il mio amore per la signora in giallo ha avuto il sopravvento. Sono una fan sfegatata. Ho visto e stravisto tutte le serie..e quando per sbaglio la ribecco in tv la,guardo sempre con moltissimo piacere. Che vi devo dire..a me piace tantissimo!!, per cui non potevo non leggere un suo libro..e alla fine c'è l'ho fatta.L'ho trovato scorrevole divertente e intricato al punto giusto. E poi vogliamo parlare di Jessica? mi sembrava proprio di vedere Angela Lansbury fare le sue solite facce, o la sua risata!!!! Bello bello bello. E soprattutto bella descrizione di Londra. Libro,perfetto per qualche ora di relax con giallo ben articolato però senza troppe pretese, ma soprattutto in compagnia della ficcanaso Jessica Fletcher.Letteralmente divorato. ^_^
What do You think about Gin & Daggers (2000)?
The first of the "Murder, She Wrote" tie-in novels. Jessica's off to London to speak at a mystery writers' conference, when a dear friend, the world's foremost mystery writer, is murdered in her own home. Jessica's immediately declared a suspect, and as she forges a friendship with a Scotland Yard investigator, she realizes her life may also be in danger.Interestingly, a subplot concerns the possible ghostwriting of an elderly writer's mystery novel (the novel is called "Gin and Daggers") by a younger man. The writer of these books, Donald Bain, has long been suspected to be the ghostwriter of Margaret Truman's mystery novels. In the second book in the series, "Manhattans and Murder," which I have previously reviewed, we are told that Jessica Fletcher is reading a Margaret Truman novel. Shout-out to a friend, or clue to a mystery? Hmmm.The characterizations are a bit uneven in these initial novels, so I'll be interested to see how later novels match up.
—Mary Ann
I've watched quite a few seasons of Murder, She Wrote and I jut love Jessica. Normally I've got the murderer pegged about halfway through but with this story I was puzzling my way through it the whole way, the author had me second guessing my instincts which is a good thing. Now this book, and I'd assume the rest of the series, is written in first person which I usually find to be sloppy writing but with Jessica it just seemed to work. It was nice to get into Jessica's head for once, in the show it always seems that she knows who the murderer is within the first five minutes, I also enjoyed the small hints at romance and I hope to see more in the future novels.
—Daniel Devereux
This is one of the worst books I've ever read. I will say that at least grammatically everything was correct.I bought this book as a joke. I thought it was funny and I'm going to give it to a friend who likes Murder, She Wrote. I was bored so I started to read it. I don't know why, but I started and I could stop. So I read the book to the end. The overall plot was mildly interesting. The idea of Jessica Fletcher going to a mystery writer conference in London was somewhat interesting, but there was too much explanation of London and British culture that anyone should know and ESPECIALLY Jessica Fletcher. Regarding some things it was like she lived in a cave. It just wasn't believable. Don't read this book. You have no reason to. It's an insult to Murder, She Wrote and Jessica Fletcher.
—Ryan
