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32nd out of 83 books
—
6 voters
A Beautiful Place to Die (Martha's Vineyard Mystery #1)
During his career as a Boston cop, Jeff "J.W." Jackson saw enough of the evil that men do to last a lifetime. So he retired to the serenity of Martha's Vineyard to spend his days fishing for blues and wooing a sexy nurse named Zee. But when a local's boat mysteriously explodes off the coast, killing an amiable young drifter, Jackson finds himself reluctantly drawn back int...more
Paperback
Published
August 1st 1991
by Avon Books
(first published 1989)
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This is the first of a long series of detective stories set in Martha's Vineyard, a place author Philip R. Craig (now deceased) apparently knew intimately, because he does an excellent job delivering a strong sense of place throughout the story. This engaging novel is narrated by J.W. Jackson, a former police office, now retired because he has a bullet lodged near his spine.
He has a wry, humanistic point of view and has an easy way of interacting with people. He makes the most of the island life...more
He has a wry, humanistic point of view and has an easy way of interacting with people. He makes the most of the island life...more
A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO DIE (Unl. Inv.-J.W. Jackson-Martha's Vineyard, MA-Cont) - G
Craig, Philip R - 1st in series
From Fantastic Fiction: During his career as a Boston cop, Jeff "J. W." Jackson saw enough of the evil that men do to last a lifetime. So he retired to the serenity of Martha's Vineyard to spend his days fishing for blues and wooing a sexy nurse named Zee. But when a local's boat mysteriously explodes off the coast, killing an amiable young drifter, Jackson finds himself reluctantly dra...more
Craig, Philip R - 1st in series
From Fantastic Fiction: During his career as a Boston cop, Jeff "J. W." Jackson saw enough of the evil that men do to last a lifetime. So he retired to the serenity of Martha's Vineyard to spend his days fishing for blues and wooing a sexy nurse named Zee. But when a local's boat mysteriously explodes off the coast, killing an amiable young drifter, Jackson finds himself reluctantly dra...more
First Line: The alarm went off at three-thirty.
During his years as a Boston cop, Jeff "J.W." Jackson got a bellyful of seeing the evil that people do to one another, so when he decided to retire, he bought a place on Martha's Vineyard. Now he spends his time working out in his garden, fishing, cooking, and getting to know a new nurse on the island.
When a local's boat explodes off the coast, killing a well-liked young man, Jackson finds himself being drawn into the investigation. His island sanct...more
During his years as a Boston cop, Jeff "J.W." Jackson got a bellyful of seeing the evil that people do to one another, so when he decided to retire, he bought a place on Martha's Vineyard. Now he spends his time working out in his garden, fishing, cooking, and getting to know a new nurse on the island.
When a local's boat explodes off the coast, killing a well-liked young man, Jackson finds himself being drawn into the investigation. His island sanct...more
BOTTOM LINE: #1 J.W. Jackson, ex-cop, Martha’s Vineyard. When a nice young man dies in a boat explosion, a friend asks Jackson to look into it and clear up a few loose ends. A satisfying first novel - not quite cosy, not quite PI, but a comfortable blend, with gentle humor.
The mildly-reclusive Jackson seems to live for the outdoors and good food, fishing and beers with friends, and comes across as a thoroughly good guy. And a pretty darn good sleuth too - even though the premise is a mite flims...more
The mildly-reclusive Jackson seems to live for the outdoors and good food, fishing and beers with friends, and comes across as a thoroughly good guy. And a pretty darn good sleuth too - even though the premise is a mite flims...more
I love mysteries, not the bloody, gory, scary kind; the knotted, smart-ass, funny kind mostly. I love them in a series if I like the main character; you have to like someone if you are going to hang around them for a couple of hours. I really liked this first book in the series. He is funny, smart-ass and the story was pretty good, if a bit too convoluted for the denouement. That can be forgiven up to a point. Now on to the next one. I am only worried that the series takes place on Martha's Vine...more
I've heard good things about this author, but this first entry in the series is a little standard. Fans of the mystery genre will see all the standard tropes (ex-cop who gets dragged into investigating a crime by some pretty young girl, the disgtraught girlfriend eagerly awaiting her beau as the ship pulls into harbor BEFORE IT EXPLODES!, etc.) Plot twists can be seen fairly easily and there are some huge gaps in deductive reasoning that completely escape the author (For example, the main charac...more
My husband and I read this as a compromise, as it was recommended to us as a mystery/romance with exciting action but no gruesome or gory murder scenes. We both really enjoyed it! The book starts out a bit slow, but really ropes you in once the clues start falling into place. Set in Martha's Vineyard, a favorite vacation spot of ours, it is also full of beautiful descriptions of the landscapes, anecdotes about fishing, and mouth-watering recipes. One warning - it left my husband mooning over the...more
Light mystery set in Martha's Vineyard. 1st in the series. Jeff Jackson, the protag, is an ex-cop of disability living on the Vineyard. He's a good cook, a bit curmudgeonly, and falling for a local nurse. It's surprising to find out near the end of the book that he's only in his 30s...he seemed much older to me. The rest of the characters are not much developed. The mystery involving a long-lost son, drugs, a lecherous older woman, and a boat explosion, was very flat. The author didn't do a very...more
This is the first book in the Martha's Vineyard's Mystery series by Philip R. Craig. I discovered this series at my local library and although I'm not very familiar with Martha's Vineyard itself, I love reading about my home state of Massachusetts.
This story was darker than I expected, but still very readable. It had a bit of a Spenser vibe to it, if Spenser had retired to Martha's Vineyard to fish. Perhaps it's just the Massachusetts connection...
In any case, I liked the characters and I enjoy...more
This story was darker than I expected, but still very readable. It had a bit of a Spenser vibe to it, if Spenser had retired to Martha's Vineyard to fish. Perhaps it's just the Massachusetts connection...
In any case, I liked the characters and I enjoy...more
My husband and I read this as a compromise, as it was recommended to us as a mystery/romance with exciting action but no gruesome or gory murder scenes. We both really enjoyed it! The book starts out a bit slow, but really ropes you in once the clues start falling into place. Set in Martha's Vineyard, a favorite vacation spot of ours, it is also full of beautiful descriptions of the landscapes, anecdotes about fishing, and mouth-watering recipes. One warning - it left my husband mooning over the...more
I've never been to Martha's Vineyard and unlikely to do so. Visiting with retired cop Jeff Jackson and his newfound love Zee is a pleasant trip, one I plan to immediately repeat. This first in the series is a tolerable mystery (drugs, an exploded boat meaning murder, an old high school ring that bears a secret), but it's the landscape - and Jeff's food - that really drew me in.
This series was recommended to me by a patron who knows I love mysteries. The author died in 2007 but this is the beginning of quite a large series. Some of the dialogue was "Sam Spade-ish" but was still enjoyable and a quick read. I'll continue this series since I'm always on the lookout for new-to-me mystery writers.
I loved this first book in the Martha's Vineyard Mystery. I am not a fan of fishing but even this book made it seem easy and fun. Lots of ideas on how to cook things too. I can hardly wait until the next one. I have it, but will start it next month sometime.
The setting (Martha's Vineyard) is attractive but the characters are one dimensional. Too much description of the protagonist's fishing "business" and female characters are very thinly drawn. Would not continue to read this mystery series.
Excellent; Continuing character: J.W. Jackson (first in series); former Boston cop now living in Martha's Vineyard is asked to investigate strange happenings related to a boat that exploded and drug running on the island.
01/13/08
TITLE/AUTHOR: A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO DIE by Philip R. Craig
RATING: 4.5/B+
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Mystery/1989/211 pgs
SERIES/STAND ALONE: #1 Jeff Jackson series
TIME/PLACE: 1980's/Martha's Vineyard
CHARACTERS: J. W. (Jefferson Washington) Jackson/former Boston cop, now fisherman & reluctant PI
FIRST LINES: The alarm went off at 3:30.
COMMENTS: library book. JW/Jeff meets Zee fishing and helps her w/ her casting. His friend, George has 2 teenaged children Susie & Billy. Billy is in a b...more
TITLE/AUTHOR: A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO DIE by Philip R. Craig
RATING: 4.5/B+
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Mystery/1989/211 pgs
SERIES/STAND ALONE: #1 Jeff Jackson series
TIME/PLACE: 1980's/Martha's Vineyard
CHARACTERS: J. W. (Jefferson Washington) Jackson/former Boston cop, now fisherman & reluctant PI
FIRST LINES: The alarm went off at 3:30.
COMMENTS: library book. JW/Jeff meets Zee fishing and helps her w/ her casting. His friend, George has 2 teenaged children Susie & Billy. Billy is in a b...more
The guy made a living writing and living on Martha's Vinyard. And he can cook. And shoot. And he marries the girl of his dreams. And she can shoot. And they raise kids. I love the Vinyard.
Liked it, but I kept thinking about the parallels to Parker's Spenser novels, with the setting and the obsession with food and the girl. But I'll go back and try some more in the series.
I've read some his other books and liked very much. Now, I am going to start from the beginning and read all JW Jackson series in chronological order. This book was pretty goood.
This book draws a nice visual of the Martha's Vineyard area, a place I have always thought I would like to visit. Nice food talk too, if you are a "foodie" like me.
I really enjoyed this book. I am glad I picked it up from the library on a whim. J W Jackson was a terrific character that was charming and witty,and full of charisma. A good storyline to boot.
The perfect series for summer reading. Martha's Vineyard, cooking, mysteries and a laid-back life. With an occasional murder!
Craig's books are entertaining and well written. They give a good view of life on Martha's Vineyard, with a little murder thrown in!
Mar recommended this series and it looks like I'm going to be hooked. Just started it this afternoon and I'll probably finish it tonight!
ANOTHER FABULOUS SERIES, WITH ANOTHER LOVABLY HUMAN PROTAGONIST. YOU WILL ENJOY EVERY ONE!
First of this series. A compfortable book to read. Fluff, but good for a rainy day.
A well-written story hindered by needless sexual content.
This book follows retired Boston Cop Jeff Jackson, more commonly known as J.W. When a local ship blows up he is contacted by the sister of the owner to investigate to find out what happened. Turns out the case involved illegitimate children, drugs etc.
Jeff has his hands full as he becomes the target of an angry drug addicted kid. Jeff also bonds with a nurse named Zee, they seem to be bonding very well in this budding friendship/romance.
This is a cute book that is full of mystery, action, catch...more
Jeff has his hands full as he becomes the target of an angry drug addicted kid. Jeff also bonds with a nurse named Zee, they seem to be bonding very well in this budding friendship/romance.
This is a cute book that is full of mystery, action, catch...more
Interesting. Good first in the series.
Apr 08, 2010
Cajun97
marked it as to-read
Martha's Vineyard mysteries, number 1.
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Author Philip R. Craig passed away on May 8, 2007 after a brief battle with cancer.
Phil left three completed novels, which have now all been published posthumously. Vineyard Stalker, came out in June of 2007 just after Phil's death. Third Strike, co-written with Bill Tapply, came out in November of 2007. The final J.W. Jackson mystery, Vineyard Chill, is on the shelves now. Another J.W. book is p...more
More about Philip R. Craig...
Phil left three completed novels, which have now all been published posthumously. Vineyard Stalker, came out in June of 2007 just after Phil's death. Third Strike, co-written with Bill Tapply, came out in November of 2007. The final J.W. Jackson mystery, Vineyard Chill, is on the shelves now. Another J.W. book is p...more
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