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Jemima Shore #1
Quiet As a Nun
When a nun is found dead in Jemima Shore's own convent school, she can't resist the invitation to investigate. She soon discovers that the dead nun, Sister Miriam, was once Rosabelle Powerstock, heiress to one of the largest fortunes in Britain.
187 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
About the author
Antonia Fraser
185 books1,512 followersAntonia Fraser is the author of many widely acclaimed historical works, including the biographies Mary, Queen of Scots (a 40th anniversary edition was published in May 2009), Cromwell: Our Chief of Men, King Charles II and The Gunpowder Plot (CWA Non-Fiction Gold Dagger; St Louis Literary Award). She has written five highly praised books which focus on women in history, The Weaker Vessel: Women's Lot in Seventeenth Century Britain (Wolfson Award for History, 1984), The Warrior Queens: Boadecia's Chariot, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Marie Antoinette: The Journey (Franco-British Literary Prize 2001), which was made into a film by Sofia Coppola in 2006 and most recently Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King. She was awarded the Norton Medlicott Medal by the Historical Association in 2000. Antonia Fraser was made DBE in 2011 for her services to literature. Her most recent book is Must You Go?, celebrating her life with Harold Pinter, who died on Christmas Eve 2008. She lives in London.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 112 reviews
October 7, 2012
My second time to read an Antonia Fraser (born 1932) book. My first by her was a biography, Marie Antoinette: The Journey (4 stars). Lady Antonia Fraser is the widow of Harold Pinter (1930-2008), the 2005 Nobel for Literature winner. Although I liked this book, I thought that Lady Fraser was a better biographer than a detective/thriller novelist.
This book gave birth to Fraser's investigative lady journalist, Jemima Shore whose childhood friend Rosabelle Powerstock is found dead inside the tower inside her convent. Already a nun and called Sister Miriam, her friend locked and starved herself to death. Shore is contacted by the head of the nunnery, Reverend Mother Ancilla to find out the truth about the death. Prior to her death, Sister Miriam wrote some notes reaffirming her desire to relinquish the riches that she is supposed to inherit from his rich parents including the very land where the convent and the adjacent school are located. Sister Miriam wanted to give all the properties that she will inherit to the charitable institutions instead of the nunnery. The title of the book comes from the poem of Wordsworth:
However, I think what makes this book different from the usual whodunnit thrillers is that the character of Jemima Shore parallels that of her friend, Sister Miriam. They are both feminists in the 70's when most women were still expected to be domestic homemakers. If Sister Miriam, wanted to assert her own personality instead of to be just one of the "nuns dressed in black," Shore wanted to grow as a journalist and be her own person. Both did not want to suffer in silence, i.e., quiet as a nun but rather air their voices out.
In short, this is not just a thriller. This is also a feminist book. That's the reason why I liked this. This is also the reason, I think, why it is included in the 501 Must-Read Books.
This book gave birth to Fraser's investigative lady journalist, Jemima Shore whose childhood friend Rosabelle Powerstock is found dead inside the tower inside her convent. Already a nun and called Sister Miriam, her friend locked and starved herself to death. Shore is contacted by the head of the nunnery, Reverend Mother Ancilla to find out the truth about the death. Prior to her death, Sister Miriam wrote some notes reaffirming her desire to relinquish the riches that she is supposed to inherit from his rich parents including the very land where the convent and the adjacent school are located. Sister Miriam wanted to give all the properties that she will inherit to the charitable institutions instead of the nunnery. The title of the book comes from the poem of Wordsworth:
It is a beauteous evening, calm and free,There is actually an irony in the title because even if the nuns are quiet while praying, the politics and secrets inside the convent are disquieting. I've read novels about those controversial events inside the house of God, e.g., altars, seminaries and convents. Reading something as old as this book, originally published in 1977, gives one a feeling that time has not really changed even many decades or centuries ago.
The holy time is quiet as a Nun
Breathless with adoration...
However, I think what makes this book different from the usual whodunnit thrillers is that the character of Jemima Shore parallels that of her friend, Sister Miriam. They are both feminists in the 70's when most women were still expected to be domestic homemakers. If Sister Miriam, wanted to assert her own personality instead of to be just one of the "nuns dressed in black," Shore wanted to grow as a journalist and be her own person. Both did not want to suffer in silence, i.e., quiet as a nun but rather air their voices out.
In short, this is not just a thriller. This is also a feminist book. That's the reason why I liked this. This is also the reason, I think, why it is included in the 501 Must-Read Books.
April 2, 2021
This was a recommendation, but I’m afraid I was pretty unimpressed.
Jemima Shore, TV investigative journalist and presenter, is asked by her old convent school to look into the somewhat dodgy death of one of the nuns. Secrets emerge about wills, land deals and so on which may threaten the existence of the convent, and more skulduggery ensues as Jemima gets closer to the truth.
Antonia Fraser writes well (of course) and sets this mystery in a community of nuns and their pupils which is quite well drawn, if somewhat rose-tinted given what we now know about some convent education. However, I found Jemima Shore an insipid character and her narrative voice rather dull and uninspiring. The plot creaked pretty badly, with some obvious answers to “mysterious” goings on, some very hackneyed suspense which didn’t convince, an absurd confrontation with the villain (who speaks like a ridiculous caricature of a slimy villain) and an ending which is wholly predictable in its convenience.
I did finish the book, but I was glad to get to the end and probably won’t be going back for more. I can’t recommend it.
Jemima Shore, TV investigative journalist and presenter, is asked by her old convent school to look into the somewhat dodgy death of one of the nuns. Secrets emerge about wills, land deals and so on which may threaten the existence of the convent, and more skulduggery ensues as Jemima gets closer to the truth.
Antonia Fraser writes well (of course) and sets this mystery in a community of nuns and their pupils which is quite well drawn, if somewhat rose-tinted given what we now know about some convent education. However, I found Jemima Shore an insipid character and her narrative voice rather dull and uninspiring. The plot creaked pretty badly, with some obvious answers to “mysterious” goings on, some very hackneyed suspense which didn’t convince, an absurd confrontation with the villain (who speaks like a ridiculous caricature of a slimy villain) and an ending which is wholly predictable in its convenience.
I did finish the book, but I was glad to get to the end and probably won’t be going back for more. I can’t recommend it.
August 18, 2016
Reader I enjoyed this story.... A case of possible murder in a girls convent school.... Written in the late 70's Fraser felt no need for extreme descriptions of violence and, while raising the possibility of "particular friendships" decides not to muddy the waters too much keeping the plot relatively simple. Having attended a school run by nuns, two of whom abandoned the habit late in life as a courageous gesture of protest against attempts to move the school firmly into the private sector, I found the story appealing on several levels. An interesting plot well written but also encouraging the reader to engage with some thorny issues around property and land ownership.
June 5, 2016
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I read it when it was first published but could not remember the outcome of the mystery. The novel is set in Blessed Eleanor's Convent, a girls' school of which Jemima Shore, 'investigator' was a former pupil.
When Sister Miriam, an old schoolmate of Jemima, is found dead, the headmistress, Mother Ancilla asks Jemima to return to the school and try to ascertain exactly what is going on. After some deliberation, Jemima decides to stay at the convent and do a little detective work. This leads her and some of the staff and pupils into some very dangerous situations and the reader is left wondering who the source of evil can be in this holy house. Surely not one of the nuns and the students seem too young, but someone is a ruthless killer and Jemima needs to find out who before they strike again.
Just as good as I remember it from all those years ago.
When Sister Miriam, an old schoolmate of Jemima, is found dead, the headmistress, Mother Ancilla asks Jemima to return to the school and try to ascertain exactly what is going on. After some deliberation, Jemima decides to stay at the convent and do a little detective work. This leads her and some of the staff and pupils into some very dangerous situations and the reader is left wondering who the source of evil can be in this holy house. Surely not one of the nuns and the students seem too young, but someone is a ruthless killer and Jemima needs to find out who before they strike again.
Just as good as I remember it from all those years ago.
March 2, 2022
Antonia Fraser's biographies are splendid but I found this book disappointing. It badly needed editing.
October 23, 2019
Jemima Shore is an investigative TV reporter. She is called in to look into a murder at the convent where she went to school. I really can’t rate this one higher than 3 stars. It didn’t hold my attention. I love a good mystery that’s hard to put down, and this was not it. Not even sure if I’ll read the next in the series...well, maybe if my library has it!
November 7, 2020
In Brief: 🇬🇧💁♀️✝️⚰️🔍😱📁 • ★★★☆☆
𝕊𝕡𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕖𝕒 𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 ℂ𝕝𝕦𝕓 ✦ The sixth selection for the Spilling Tea Book Club was “Quiet as a Nun” by Lady Antonia Fraser, the first in a series that follows an investigative reporter and television personality, Jemima Shore, as she returns to the convent where she went to school. One of the nuns, who was Jemima’s friend in school, was found dead in a locked tower in an apparent suicide. The Reverend Mother asks Jemima to investigate. In her patrol of the school she learns of a mysterious, faceless Black Nun who appears before the death of a sister.
I enjoyed this book and I liked the character of Jemima, a flawed but likable protagonist. Having an affair with a member of parliament, Jemima is not like her friend who is a nun. We get some of the backstory of their relationship, and some of the other relationships in the convent. While many of the nuns had interesting lives, we didn’t get more than a glimpse and the generalizations that nuns are bad drivers and can see in the dark. The author freely exchanged the nuns given names and saintly names, making identifying the many characters difficult. In only 170 pages, a lot of story and characters are packed in efficiently, but we don’t spend much time on any character or subject. The story follows a rhythmic pattern of exploration, obstacle, cliffhanger, repeat in the next chapter. While it works as a mystery, it’s a bit simplistic. Themes in this book explore “particular friendships” forbidden in the order, alluding to homosexuality in the convent, yet this idea is never fully explored. Where this novel succeeds is a deft plot, creepy setting, with well established mood of dread and suspense. ★★★☆☆ • Hardcover • Fiction - Mystery • Published by Viking Press in 1977. ◾︎
𝕊𝕡𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕖𝕒 𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 ℂ𝕝𝕦𝕓 ✦ The sixth selection for the Spilling Tea Book Club was “Quiet as a Nun” by Lady Antonia Fraser, the first in a series that follows an investigative reporter and television personality, Jemima Shore, as she returns to the convent where she went to school. One of the nuns, who was Jemima’s friend in school, was found dead in a locked tower in an apparent suicide. The Reverend Mother asks Jemima to investigate. In her patrol of the school she learns of a mysterious, faceless Black Nun who appears before the death of a sister.
I enjoyed this book and I liked the character of Jemima, a flawed but likable protagonist. Having an affair with a member of parliament, Jemima is not like her friend who is a nun. We get some of the backstory of their relationship, and some of the other relationships in the convent. While many of the nuns had interesting lives, we didn’t get more than a glimpse and the generalizations that nuns are bad drivers and can see in the dark. The author freely exchanged the nuns given names and saintly names, making identifying the many characters difficult. In only 170 pages, a lot of story and characters are packed in efficiently, but we don’t spend much time on any character or subject. The story follows a rhythmic pattern of exploration, obstacle, cliffhanger, repeat in the next chapter. While it works as a mystery, it’s a bit simplistic. Themes in this book explore “particular friendships” forbidden in the order, alluding to homosexuality in the convent, yet this idea is never fully explored. Where this novel succeeds is a deft plot, creepy setting, with well established mood of dread and suspense. ★★★☆☆ • Hardcover • Fiction - Mystery • Published by Viking Press in 1977. ◾︎
May 19, 2021
Jemima Shore, television journalist, returns to the convent where she was educated as a child. Her old friend Rosa (now Sister Miriam) has starved to death, trapped in a ruined tower. Mother Ancilla asks Jemima to investigate what has led to this situation.
This was quite a light hearted and tongue in cheek mystery. The Gothic setting of the convent and the mysterious behaviour of the nuns are often exaggerated and over the top, but make for a readable story. Fraser is quite skilled at showing the contradictions in Jemima’s attitudes to religion and morality, while viewing the nuns with sympathy and humour.
This was quite a light hearted and tongue in cheek mystery. The Gothic setting of the convent and the mysterious behaviour of the nuns are often exaggerated and over the top, but make for a readable story. Fraser is quite skilled at showing the contradictions in Jemima’s attitudes to religion and morality, while viewing the nuns with sympathy and humour.
May 29, 2021
One and a half stars really. It was a quick read, but there's not much entertainment value. My first Fraser, and quite possibly my last. It could have been so much better than it ended up being. I was really disappointed with it.
A nun locks herself in the convent tower and then can't get out, so she slowly starves to death. (Why didn't anyone look there?) We are told this second-hand, when showing would have been much more effective. Jemima Shore, a TV presenter/investigative reporter who attended the convent's school, is asked to look into the matter. I found Shore a thoroughly unattractive character: a serial adultress who sleeps with influential married men who are in a position to advance her career. Despite having been educated among the sisters of the Order Of the Ivory Tower (!!), Shore seems to know very little about nuns, vocations or convent life. She is supposedly an in depth investigative journalist, and yet she thinks in stereotypes: "repression", "frustrated, hysterical women" etc. While this may be true in some cases, having lived most of my life in a country where nuns abound, I know from personal experience that even cloistered orders are not "totally shut off from the world" and never were, especially since Vatican II. Even in the 19th century they had access to the press,and now use computers, and in some cases even have their own radio and TV stations (yes, even cloistered orders. EWTN is run by one.) There is a strong scent of the author's personal issues.
The foreshadowing is clunky and obvious, along the lines of "if only I hadn't said/done that!" (Cue suspense music, and commercial). All of the "action" is packed into the final chapter or two, after pages and pages of talk about not very much. Shore is supposed to have the freedom to talk to any and everyone in the convent, but only manages two real conversations with anyone but the superior. Most of the time she is talking or thinking to herself, telling the reader about events second or even third hand. How dull. The red herrings stink, and the wrap is worthy of a 1960's detective series.
If this is the same Antonia Fraser who is now well-known for her historical novels (can't be bothered to find out), she must have matured her craft in the past 30 years. I certainly hope so.
A nun locks herself in the convent tower and then can't get out, so she slowly starves to death. (Why didn't anyone look there?) We are told this second-hand, when showing would have been much more effective. Jemima Shore, a TV presenter/investigative reporter who attended the convent's school, is asked to look into the matter. I found Shore a thoroughly unattractive character: a serial adultress who sleeps with influential married men who are in a position to advance her career. Despite having been educated among the sisters of the Order Of the Ivory Tower (!!), Shore seems to know very little about nuns, vocations or convent life. She is supposedly an in depth investigative journalist, and yet she thinks in stereotypes: "repression", "frustrated, hysterical women" etc. While this may be true in some cases, having lived most of my life in a country where nuns abound, I know from personal experience that even cloistered orders are not "totally shut off from the world" and never were, especially since Vatican II. Even in the 19th century they had access to the press,and now use computers, and in some cases even have their own radio and TV stations (yes, even cloistered orders. EWTN is run by one.) There is a strong scent of the author's personal issues.
The foreshadowing is clunky and obvious, along the lines of "if only I hadn't said/done that!" (Cue suspense music, and commercial). All of the "action" is packed into the final chapter or two, after pages and pages of talk about not very much. Shore is supposed to have the freedom to talk to any and everyone in the convent, but only manages two real conversations with anyone but the superior. Most of the time she is talking or thinking to herself, telling the reader about events second or even third hand. How dull. The red herrings stink, and the wrap is worthy of a 1960's detective series.
If this is the same Antonia Fraser who is now well-known for her historical novels (can't be bothered to find out), she must have matured her craft in the past 30 years. I certainly hope so.
February 11, 2014
This was just ok. I had a really hard time getting into this story and I think it was mainly due to the author's slightly strange writing style. A lot of her sentences felt more like fragments to me than actual sentences and I found myself having to re-read passages quite a bit to make sure I was following the story. It wasn't especially heavy prose - it was just strangely written. The story itself was kind of a cute mystery but was never all that suspenseful or scary.
Lastly, and on a personal note, our "hero" Jemima is a television personality investigator and lets us know right off the bat that she is dating a married man and then proceeds to complain about his annoying wife getting in the way. I had a hard time rooting for a hero like that and was unable to really care how she made it through the mystery. It seemed like a strange character choice to me. Apparently this is a series and maybe it resolves itself in future books, but I am definitely not compelled to continue this series.
Lastly, and on a personal note, our "hero" Jemima is a television personality investigator and lets us know right off the bat that she is dating a married man and then proceeds to complain about his annoying wife getting in the way. I had a hard time rooting for a hero like that and was unable to really care how she made it through the mystery. It seemed like a strange character choice to me. Apparently this is a series and maybe it resolves itself in future books, but I am definitely not compelled to continue this series.
January 21, 2016
A very lame mystery
Far-fetched, contrived, weak plot, boring characters, insipid dialogues, corny suspense (dark crypt, coffins, etc.) The famous TV investigator heroine doesn't have one interesting thought throughout the book - even her messages to her (married - is that what is supposed to make her interesting ?) boyfriend are unimaginative.
Also, one would have expected better writing from a famous historian. The style is very basic and full of blunders like : "they were exactly similar", "I was profoundly horrified", etc. etc.
Far-fetched, contrived, weak plot, boring characters, insipid dialogues, corny suspense (dark crypt, coffins, etc.) The famous TV investigator heroine doesn't have one interesting thought throughout the book - even her messages to her (married - is that what is supposed to make her interesting ?) boyfriend are unimaginative.
Also, one would have expected better writing from a famous historian. The style is very basic and full of blunders like : "they were exactly similar", "I was profoundly horrified", etc. etc.
September 17, 2012
A thriller set amongst nuns in a cloistered, sheltered world, at least that is what one thinks at the beginning. But Ms. Fraser leads us to discover that these nuns are in reality as flesh and blood, also as quirky and eccentric, as any people we come across in our lives. The mystery is twisting, the writing is witty and clever (making one laugh outloud), the social commentaries are numerous and theology questions abound. I begrudge not one minute that I devoted to this read.
March 6, 2014
Now all we need is some Vilvaldi c/o Nigel Kennedy, which was the Jemima Shore Investigates theme tune. (Did you spot Tom Baker in that clip - he is playing a doctor! haha)
Sometimes when I feel low, I study the Evening Standard as though for examination
Sometimes when I feel low, I study the Evening Standard as though for examination
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 24, 2008
Frankly, it's boring. I got about halfway through the book then gave up.
Antonia Fraser's works of nonfiction are excellent scholarly works, but if she's written other novels, and they're anything like Quiet as a Nun, then I'm going to stick with her nonfiction books!
Antonia Fraser's works of nonfiction are excellent scholarly works, but if she's written other novels, and they're anything like Quiet as a Nun, then I'm going to stick with her nonfiction books!
November 7, 2020
Pretty much read in one sitting for the Spilling Tea book club. This was Fraser's first novel (she was known for writing history). It's a coziness y that mostly takes place in a convent. As a cradle Catholic, I read books about my church with a dose of skepticism because many nonCatholic authors don't always "get it right." Fraser did okay.
Not a great read, but engrossing enough for me to read it in one day. This is my first Fraser and I now know that she write subsequent volumes. I'll read more.
Not a great read, but engrossing enough for me to read it in one day. This is my first Fraser and I now know that she write subsequent volumes. I'll read more.
July 8, 2018
I really enjoyed this! I have read many of Fraser’s non fiction, and was surprised to find this in a used bookstore. It was a very well done mystery for under 200 pages. This was a series and I’ll be on the look out for her others.
July 20, 2021
Ok, lol. Only read this if you're into Catholic school-set lesbian-ish thrillers from the 70s. I happen to be so I had great fun, but would not recommend unless you share that sentiment / went to a Catholic school yourself.
March 6, 2025
Nuns, murder, mysteries, shady convent practices, lesbianism…?? It has the makings of a very good book but unfortunately it failed to captivate me.
February 1, 2025
Quiet As A Nun (Jemina Shore #1) by Antonia Fraser was fine, but I don't think I'll be back for more of this series. I definitely was more interested in the first half in comparison to rest. It's also not terribly memorable either.
September 2, 2011
68. Quiet As A Nun by Antonia Fraser. Jemima Shore spent many school years as a student at the Blessed Eleanor's Convent. There she became good friends with fellow student Rosabelle, the daughter of the wealthy family who owned the land the convent stood on. When the two girls graduated their paths diverged, with Jemima becoming a famous television investigator and Rosa becoming a nun. Years later, Jemima finds herself back at the convent to try and discover what drove her friend to lock herself in the convent tower and starve herself to death, and if the stories of the ghostly Black Nun of the convent are true.
This is part of a series of Jemima Shore books written by Fraser, but this is the only one I've read so far. It was turned into an episode of the old "Armchair Thriller" t.v. series in the U.K. and I'd really love to see this. The character of Jemima is interestingly flawed- she's in love with a self-absorbed married man and admits that a previous affair led to her success. Yet she's likeable and always looks for the reasonable explanation, even when she's creeped out.
This is part of a series of Jemima Shore books written by Fraser, but this is the only one I've read so far. It was turned into an episode of the old "Armchair Thriller" t.v. series in the U.K. and I'd really love to see this. The character of Jemima is interestingly flawed- she's in love with a self-absorbed married man and admits that a previous affair led to her success. Yet she's likeable and always looks for the reasonable explanation, even when she's creeped out.
September 9, 2010
You never know what you'll find in a library. On my last trip there this book caught my eye, so I thought I may as well read it. It was definitely worth reading. There were certain characters (like the main character) that I took a while to warm to, but it was a good read and a well-written thriller. Particularly considering that I had no idea that Antonia Fraser wrote this sort of thing - I thought she only focused on historical stuff. I'll certainly keep an eye out for others in this series, but I'm not sure what my verdict on that will be.I was drawn to this one because of the religious aspect, but we'll see what the others are like before I make a final decision.
December 19, 2014
This book was a fast read but not engrossing. The mystery was predictable and I was put off by the way the nuns were portrayed. I never got the sense that the author understood what it means to be a nun or a Catholic. I suppose this should be fine as the heroine is neither, however, it detracted from the quality of the story for me. I found myself just wanting to finish the book so I can move on to another.
August 22, 2012
First-rate mystery which was "contemporary" when it was published and is virtually historical now. Set on convent grounds and concerning political maneuvers which might threaten the convent with dismantling to make way for low-income housing. (And yes, there does seem to be some implicit criticism of government "welfare" but maybe I'm hyper-sensitive on that issue.)
October 6, 2013
I really like what I've read of Fraser's work as a historian, but this was a very frustrating novel; it was both unsatisfying as a mystery and the prose while usually competent sometimes became quite annoyingly bad. I am going to try another one of her books, though, in the hopes that she has improved as a novelist with practise.
May 4, 2012
This is one of those books I'm reading to the end because I started it. It's not good.
July 24, 2013
I just couldn't finish it. There was something about the style of writing that just put me off
December 2, 2021
A bit dated, but an enjoyable read.
December 16, 2025
I vaguely remember there being a Jemima Shore series on TV but think I was too young to watch it, and I was very surprised, when finishing another history recently by this author, to discover she'd written a detective series. So I thought I'd give it a go.
Jemima Shore Investigates is a TV programme hosted by an investigative journalist, which has leftish leanings and investigates social topics such as poverty, as well as women's subjects such as inequality, at a time in the early Seventies when the rights of women and the 'women's liberation' movement were coming to the fore. As such, it is inevitably dated, some of the language anachronistic and in some cases a bit toe-curlingly non-pic, but I've read lots of this kind of fiction and got over these issues. To an extent, with this series, I did again. Why? Because Jemima Shore as a character really intrigued me.
She is not conventional, which is always a winner for me. She is very independent - in fact extremely guarded of her own individual life. In her mid-thirties, she's a career woman and a successful one at that - aspirational in Seventies terms. But she's a bit of a cold fish, Jemima, she's had to be all out for herself and that can be quite off-putting. And in this first book, she's having a long-term affair with a married MP that you kind of don't really understand because she really doesn't seem to love him. Intriguing though - what is going on behind that cool facade? And that worked for me.
What also worked was the mystery she solved, which was set in a convent. There's a lot of subtext here about the community of women, and though religious obviously plays a key part for them, for Jemima it's about the lifestyle choice and the effect it has on their equanimity/ambitions/emotions - which is what I found fascinating. Yes, this was a sort of detective story, but it was mostly something else.
The outcome was very convoluted and a bit unbelievable, but I forgave that. I wanted to know what happened next to Jemima Shore, so although it was in many ways not a great read with a good many times where I was drawn out of the story, I downloaded the next one.
Jemima Shore Investigates is a TV programme hosted by an investigative journalist, which has leftish leanings and investigates social topics such as poverty, as well as women's subjects such as inequality, at a time in the early Seventies when the rights of women and the 'women's liberation' movement were coming to the fore. As such, it is inevitably dated, some of the language anachronistic and in some cases a bit toe-curlingly non-pic, but I've read lots of this kind of fiction and got over these issues. To an extent, with this series, I did again. Why? Because Jemima Shore as a character really intrigued me.
She is not conventional, which is always a winner for me. She is very independent - in fact extremely guarded of her own individual life. In her mid-thirties, she's a career woman and a successful one at that - aspirational in Seventies terms. But she's a bit of a cold fish, Jemima, she's had to be all out for herself and that can be quite off-putting. And in this first book, she's having a long-term affair with a married MP that you kind of don't really understand because she really doesn't seem to love him. Intriguing though - what is going on behind that cool facade? And that worked for me.
What also worked was the mystery she solved, which was set in a convent. There's a lot of subtext here about the community of women, and though religious obviously plays a key part for them, for Jemima it's about the lifestyle choice and the effect it has on their equanimity/ambitions/emotions - which is what I found fascinating. Yes, this was a sort of detective story, but it was mostly something else.
The outcome was very convoluted and a bit unbelievable, but I forgave that. I wanted to know what happened next to Jemima Shore, so although it was in many ways not a great read with a good many times where I was drawn out of the story, I downloaded the next one.
June 8, 2019
Jemima Shore, popular television news announcer, is drawn to Blessed Eleanor's Convent in Sussex when Reverend Mother Ancilla asks her to visit. A former classmate of Jemima's, now known as Sister Miriam, has died in the tower at the convent. Mother Ancilla believes Jemima can help make sense of the death as well as of other recent happenings.
The story is not straightforward. Although given permission to ask questions of any residents, Jemima uses the cover of an upcoming television program to hide her real purpose. Further, Reverent Mother herself is not altogether straight with her.
Sister Mirium died of starvation. She had taken to the tower in a bid for greater understanding. She told only one other nun where she was, hiding out to find answers to a quandary facing her. When she entered the convent she gave all of her worldly goods to the convent, as is required, and those goods included the convent itself. However, she was unable to offer the land beneath the buildings because it was legally entailed.
There were rumors among the sisters that Miriam had made a new will, clarifying the disposition of the land. There were worldly interests in the land, a developer at her heels, promising homes for the less fortunate. What served the Lord best?
Through off-and-on conversations, Jemima finally puts together the story and, in so doing, puts herself in danger.
I found it a decent story with enough movement to keep me going. I found the writer's use of "ess" on the end of nouns like "foundress" offputting. It harks back to the 1950s. I wasn't in love with Jemima. I had hoped for more.
The story is not straightforward. Although given permission to ask questions of any residents, Jemima uses the cover of an upcoming television program to hide her real purpose. Further, Reverent Mother herself is not altogether straight with her.
Sister Mirium died of starvation. She had taken to the tower in a bid for greater understanding. She told only one other nun where she was, hiding out to find answers to a quandary facing her. When she entered the convent she gave all of her worldly goods to the convent, as is required, and those goods included the convent itself. However, she was unable to offer the land beneath the buildings because it was legally entailed.
There were rumors among the sisters that Miriam had made a new will, clarifying the disposition of the land. There were worldly interests in the land, a developer at her heels, promising homes for the less fortunate. What served the Lord best?
Through off-and-on conversations, Jemima finally puts together the story and, in so doing, puts herself in danger.
I found it a decent story with enough movement to keep me going. I found the writer's use of "ess" on the end of nouns like "foundress" offputting. It harks back to the 1950s. I wasn't in love with Jemima. I had hoped for more.
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