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A Fatal Winter: A Max Tudor Novel (A Max Tudor Mystery #2)
by
G.M. Malliet
"There are certain things you want in a village mystery: a pretty setting, a tasteful murder, an appealing sleuth . . . Malliet delivers all that." —Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times
Last year, Agatha Award-winning author G. M. Malliet charmed mystery lovers, cozy fans, and Agatha Christie devotees with Wicked Autumn, the first mystery featuringher captivatingprotagonist,...more
Last year, Agatha Award-winning author G. M. Malliet charmed mystery lovers, cozy fans, and Agatha Christie devotees with Wicked Autumn, the first mystery featuringher captivatingprotagonist,...more
ebook, 400 pages
Published
October 16th 2012
by Minotaur Books
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When the vastly wealthy and elderly Lord Footrussell (no idea if I'm spelling that right--I listened to it on audiobook) decides, after many years, to invite his far-flung family to Chedrow Castle for Christmas he unwittlingly signs his death warrant. The local inspector quickly calls in former MI-5 agent-turned-village-vicar Max Tudor to go comfort the grieving family--and figure out who did it.
I love this new series, for taking the classic English village mystery genre and updating it without...more
I love this new series, for taking the classic English village mystery genre and updating it without...more
Last year, Agatha Award-winning author G. M. Malliet charmed mystery lovers, cozy fans, and Agatha Christie devotees with Wicked Autumn, the first mystery featuring her captivating protagonist, Max Tudor, and the small English village of Nether Monkslip.
In A Fatal Winter, Max—Anglican priest, former MI5 agent, and village heartthrob—investigates two deaths at Chedrow Castle. But his growing attraction to Awena Owen complicates his case, as does the recent arrival at Chedrow Castle of a raucous g...more
In A Fatal Winter, Max—Anglican priest, former MI5 agent, and village heartthrob—investigates two deaths at Chedrow Castle. But his growing attraction to Awena Owen complicates his case, as does the recent arrival at Chedrow Castle of a raucous g...more
Feb 08, 2013
Kathleen
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
my-uk-etc-thing,
mysteries
Malliet’s second novel featuring Father MaxTudor (former MI5 agent) finds him once again investigating a murder within a highly dysfunctional (although quite the cast of characters) family at nearby Chedrow Castle, located adjacent to his small town of Nether Monkslip. The highly efficient investigating team of Cotton and Essex manage to convince Max Tudor to work closely with them again, taking advantage of Tudor’s MI5 experience, masked by his clerical collar, which is disarming to suspects.
Ma...more
Ma...more
The first novel in this mystery series by G.M. Malliet, Wicket Autumn, introduced readers to the former MI5 Agent turned Anglican Vicar Max Tudor who assists police with murder investigations. This second novel in the series, A Fatal Winter, draws him to the lavish setting of Chedrow Castle (outside of the Village of Nether Monkslip where he is asked by DCI Cotton to investigate the savage murder of the 75 year old Oscar, the 8th Earl of Foootrustle and seemingly natural death of his twin sister...more
I really enjoyed the beginning of this book, but somewhere in the middle it started to drag quite a bit, to the point that I was frustrated by the time the murderer was revealed. I missed that it took place outside of Max's village and villagers, which I found so charming in the first book.
Also, while I do enjoy the detailed descriptions of the people and places, I grew really tired of being constantly reminded how handsome and beautiful and perfect both Max and Awena are, by every character th...more
Also, while I do enjoy the detailed descriptions of the people and places, I grew really tired of being constantly reminded how handsome and beautiful and perfect both Max and Awena are, by every character th...more
The cleric, Max Tudor, formerly of MI5, is returning from a symposium, when he meets Lady Banyard of Chedrow Castle, just outside of his village, Nether Monkslip. Max, as he prefers to be called, never dreams that soon he will be involved in a double murder mystery surrounding Lady B.
G. M. Malliet has managed to create a British village reminiscent of Agatha Christie's finest works. The village is thriving with shops, characters, and quite modern in an old fashioned manner. Next to the village...more
G. M. Malliet has managed to create a British village reminiscent of Agatha Christie's finest works. The village is thriving with shops, characters, and quite modern in an old fashioned manner. Next to the village...more
Sometimes there's nothing better than a good old fashioned British "cozy." In this case, there's more than a bit of tongue-in-cheek despite the setting in a village known as "Nether Monkslip." (Doesn't that make you want to visit? It did it for me.) Then there's the main character, Father Max Tudor, very handsome - even dashing? - former MI5, now an Anglican priest and vicar of St. Edwolt's. Father Max has become an unofficial investigator for the local inspector who is a terrier in his own way...more
When Nether Monkslip's studly (and single!) vicar Max Tudor, formerly of MI5, meets Lady Leticia Bayard on a train returning from London, he finds her an anachronistic, autocratic bore. But when he learns that evening that she has died, apparently of a heart attack after hearing of her brother's murder, he regrets his lack of charity. His slightly guilty conscience and the expressed wish of both brother and sister to be buried from St. Eowald, Max's church, play right into the hands of his frien...more
A Fatal Winter
By
G.M.Malliet
My "in a nutshell" summary...Father Max...lives in a quaint village with an odd housekeeper, a cat and a dog, and a penchant for solving mysteries.
My thoughts after reading this book...
Thank goodness for the cast of characters because this was the kind of amazing English mystery that I love and yet have trouble keeping everyone's names correct. There is the very very rich Lord Footrustle and there is everyone else who is either related to him or was once married to hi...more
By
G.M.Malliet
My "in a nutshell" summary...Father Max...lives in a quaint village with an odd housekeeper, a cat and a dog, and a penchant for solving mysteries.
My thoughts after reading this book...
Thank goodness for the cast of characters because this was the kind of amazing English mystery that I love and yet have trouble keeping everyone's names correct. There is the very very rich Lord Footrustle and there is everyone else who is either related to him or was once married to hi...more
3.5 stars
This is an old fashioned cozy English country house updated for modern times. Oscar, Lord Footrustle, lives in the old, family Castle Chedrow only now the National Trust owns it and runs tours through it. Oscar has made his fortune and can now afford the Castle but it's too late. He is surrounded by a complicated family including his sister, his ex-wife, his actress daughter from an early marriage, two nephews, and two late in life twins. He also has live-in staff, a couple who gamely t...more
This is an old fashioned cozy English country house updated for modern times. Oscar, Lord Footrustle, lives in the old, family Castle Chedrow only now the National Trust owns it and runs tours through it. Oscar has made his fortune and can now afford the Castle but it's too late. He is surrounded by a complicated family including his sister, his ex-wife, his actress daughter from an early marriage, two nephews, and two late in life twins. He also has live-in staff, a couple who gamely t...more
Sometimes I come across a book that leaves me shrugging my shoulders with a kind of "So what?" feeling. This was one of those books.
The pros:
There is an intriguing array of characters. The family dynamics gave the story both tension and humor.
The whodunit mystery allows readers to play detective along with the characters.
The cons:
The pace is quite slow. Nothing much happens for the almost the first third of the book.
Part I, the first 30 or so pages, is an information dump. All the characters...more
The pros:
There is an intriguing array of characters. The family dynamics gave the story both tension and humor.
The whodunit mystery allows readers to play detective along with the characters.
The cons:
The pace is quite slow. Nothing much happens for the almost the first third of the book.
Part I, the first 30 or so pages, is an information dump. All the characters...more
Agatha Christie fans rejoice, G. M. Malliet is in the house. I have grown attached to the mysteries of G. M. Malliet and this book is no exception because it has everything that I love--a remote English village, a murder (or two) that take place mostly off-scene, and a very likeable sleuth. Max Tudor is the Anglican priest in the village of Nether Monkslip. When a host of long-lost relatives descend their greedy selves on Chedrow Castle for the Christmas holidays, you just know that the "peace o...more
Every once and a while those of us who grew up on the works of Agatha Christie and later, those of Caroline Graham just need a visit to the lovely villages of England for a dose of murder and mayhem. G. M. Malliet filled that need with last year's Wicked Autumn and now A Fatal Winter. I can assure you though that Dame Agatha never had as dishy a sleuth as Max Tudor, Anglican Vicar and ex-MI5 operative. Nor was her pen quite as acid.
Max felt a call to the priesthood after the death of his partner...more
Max felt a call to the priesthood after the death of his partner...more
For all of the authors who wonder why I have entered your contests but do not have your book on my list to read, here is the quick reason, I check to see if I can get the book through my library system, if I can, the book is added to my 'to-read' list. If it is not available through the library, I do not add it. I am on a very limited SSD income, since I had to buy a new car, I have had to totally change my lifestyle. With that said, this book was a contest entry that I was able to get from the...more
Actual Rating: ***1/2
The second in the Max Tudor series reveals many details about Max's background as he tries to sort out the murderous and nefarious doings at Chedrow Castle. Looking forward to see what's up next for Max Tudor, former spy turned cleric.
Do you always suspect the butler...or not?
p. 74: The butler did it? Far too predictable, that solution, but always a possibility. Only in fiction did the butler not do it. They were the last of the put-upon employees, a dying breed, born forelo...more
The second in the Max Tudor series reveals many details about Max's background as he tries to sort out the murderous and nefarious doings at Chedrow Castle. Looking forward to see what's up next for Max Tudor, former spy turned cleric.
Do you always suspect the butler...or not?
p. 74: The butler did it? Far too predictable, that solution, but always a possibility. Only in fiction did the butler not do it. They were the last of the put-upon employees, a dying breed, born forelo...more
After the promise of the 1st book in this series, WICKED AUTUMN, I was disappointed in this installment. The author is skilled, and she's got some great ideas: the village of Nether Monkslip, the mystery du jour of each book, and the character of Max Tudor. But something is lost in translation from germinal idea to actual book. She head hops to a destructive degree, does far too much telling when it's convenient for her plot, and her characterization of her village characters—especially Max and...more
I enjoy Agatha Christie novels, mostly because they end up being fairly simple but clever. I mention it, because the back of this book says Agatha Christie devotees were charmed by the first book in this series, which is why I entered the giveaway. Unfortunatley, the story turned out to be far more convoluted than I was anticipating. I guess that is one drawback ofsetting expectations on the back cover with statements like " destined to become instant classics". In all fairness, the back cover d...more
Nov 19, 2012
Jenn Estepp
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
sleuths-and-gumshoes
More literate than your average, run-of-the-mill cozy, although I don't think it's always successful. Meaning, it's super wordy and could really have been edited down by at least fifty pages, perhaps more. At times, the murder(s) at hand seemed to be entirely forgotten, while we dwelt endlessly on what a pensive dreamboat Father Max is. The romance that he becomes involved in - and the other bits that tried to meld events in town with the mystery at the castle - felt a bit awkward and forced to...more
Reading the Max Tudor mysteries is very much like reading Agatha Christie. This second installment finds ex MI5 agent Father Max helping DCI Cotton uncover who murdered the lord of the manor. The entire family has been invited over the Christmas holidays where old Oscar turns up murdered. The suspects are all the members of the family. It was a little slow going at first but I thought it was rather cleverly solved. Fortunately there was a family tree included to help me keep the cast of characte...more
Read my full review @ http://bit.ly/XnKY3W
My rating: 3.5 Stars
My opinion: This series reminds me of the Midsomer Murders series. I love the village setting of Nether Monkslip with its' quaintness and cast of quirky characters. Ms. Malliet does a wonderful job at laying out the mystery of the whodunit and gives readers many suspects to choose from. I can't help thinking that this book is a little bit too light compared to the writings of such authors as S.J. Bolton or Val McDermid, so although I...more
My rating: 3.5 Stars
My opinion: This series reminds me of the Midsomer Murders series. I love the village setting of Nether Monkslip with its' quaintness and cast of quirky characters. Ms. Malliet does a wonderful job at laying out the mystery of the whodunit and gives readers many suspects to choose from. I can't help thinking that this book is a little bit too light compared to the writings of such authors as S.J. Bolton or Val McDermid, so although I...more
This is a predictable British mystery that I've read many times before. An upper-crust British family gathers at the family castle and one of the characters is murdered. The local constabulary call in a man of the cloth (and former MI5 agent) to scope out the family and find out all the dirt. Of course it had to have been one of the family members or perhaps the Butler or the cook. Motive - money and revenge. In the end, they gather the entire group together and confront the culprit(s) and expos...more
Do yourself a favor...skip the mystery (it drags and the ending is not all that exciting) and head straight to the Epilogue (p. 347). The budding romance of Max and Awena is the winner of this novel.
"In A Fatal Winter, Max—Anglican priest, former MI5 agent, and village heartthrob—investigates two deaths at Chedrow Castle. But his growing attraction to Awena Owen complicates his case, as does the recent arrival at Chedrow Castle of a raucous group of long-lost, greedy relatives, any one of whom h...more
"In A Fatal Winter, Max—Anglican priest, former MI5 agent, and village heartthrob—investigates two deaths at Chedrow Castle. But his growing attraction to Awena Owen complicates his case, as does the recent arrival at Chedrow Castle of a raucous group of long-lost, greedy relatives, any one of whom h...more
I wish I could relocate to Nether Monkslip. What a delightful village! This is one of those mysteries where you can look forward to learning whodunit while still enjoying the gentle pace and all the little side paths of the investigation. Nicely plotted and nicely paced. I actually hated to get to the end.
The author's style of writing is one of the best elements of this book. Just a light touch of humor and a perfect balance of artifice and reality in building the characters. This is the closes...more
The author's style of writing is one of the best elements of this book. Just a light touch of humor and a perfect balance of artifice and reality in building the characters. This is the closes...more
The English whodunit is alive and well! Malliet here creates a variation of the locked room mystery with the attendant cast of idiosyncratic characters. It is a novel of manners as much as of mystery, though one has to believe the author's tongue is occasionally touching her cheek. As these types of books tend, it starts a bit slowly, with a somewhat confusing cast of characters, but one is drawn into the story in such a way that the events and conversations become interesting in themselves as w...more
It's almost Christmas time when former intelligence officer Max Tudor, now a village pastor, meets elderly Lady Baynard on a train. So he's shocked when he finds out, a day later, that she's died of what the doctors persist in calling natural causes, and her twin brother the wealthy Lord Footrustle has been murdered. Lady Baynard's adopted granddaughter needs spiritual consolation, and the police are happy to have Max, who has helped them before, move into the castle to keep an eye on the family...more
I'm sort of unclear on the concept of how an Anglican vicar could drop out of his congregation's life long enough to move to a local castle and solve a double murder or why the police would actually encourage it or how it would work for said vicar to fall for a new age shopkeeper (how do you explain that to your bishop?). And finally, how are we going to keep Max Tudor in murders enough to keep the series going when he lives in a teeny-tiny and quit isolated village where the one murder in the i...more
In the second installment of the new series by G M Malliet, we return to small village of Nether Monkslip, a idyllic village full of interesting characters, including former MI5 spy turn Anglican priest, Max Tudor. Father Max is returning to the village from a speaking engagement in London when he meets the Lady Baynard, of Chedrow Castle in the nearby town of Monkslip-super-Mare. Max is greatly surprised when his friend, Inspector Cotton, asks for his assistance in the murder of Lady Baynard's...more
I loved this book for so many reasons. I believe Malliet must be the reincarnation of Agatha Christie and some popular present day satirist/ comedian. Max Tutor is a handsome Anglican priest who used to be a MI-5 agent. His church is located in the small English village of Nether Monkslip, with all the foibles and characters one would expect to inhabit such a village. But Malliet has updated their thoughts and actions to fit expertly into the twenty-first century.
Max is a combination of Hercule...more
Max is a combination of Hercule...more
OL mystery Malliet 2012. I liked it. I had just finished another book that I just loved.. should have waited a few days to start a new book. This is 2011 story happening in a village in England..with a Downton Abbey museum down the road..The gumshoe is an ex MI5 turned Anglican priest. This is his second murder to solve..
p-238 "I don't believe in God." "What makes you think God cares?" p-98"Bible according to the Apostle Barney. p-Sarah Palin p-327 Barcodes on produce tells date and place of or...more
p-238 "I don't believe in God." "What makes you think God cares?" p-98"Bible according to the Apostle Barney. p-Sarah Palin p-327 Barcodes on produce tells date and place of or...more
An unexpected delight, this book was won in a Goodreads giveaway. Max Tudor is a former MI5 agent, with a tragic secret in his past involving his late best friend and fellow agent. Now, an Anglican priest, he is called to investigate two deaths at Chedrow Castle. It's a traditional English mystery with all the favourite elements, old country house, rich elderly owner, gathering all the rival feuding relatives for a family get together and a real old fashion Christmas, to decide how to change his...more
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G.M. Malliet is currently at work on a new series for Thomas Dunne/Minotaur Books. The first book in the new series is the Agatha-nominated WICKED AUTUMN (September 2011), which received starred reviews from Booklist and Library Journal. Library Journal and the Boston Globe also named it a Best Mystery of 2011: "Sly humor rivals Jane Austen’s."
WICKED AUTUMN also has been chosen by Shelf Awareness...more
More about G.M. Malliet...
WICKED AUTUMN also has been chosen by Shelf Awareness...more
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Jan 17, 2013 07:25am