Death of a Heavenly Twin

Tessa Crichton #6

by Anne Morice

She lay on her back, her head and shoulders at an unnaturally curved angle, as though she had arched herself in a last tremendous convulsion as death overtook her. The grass around her was stained with blood and a dart was sticking out above the neckline of her dress.

This is a sparkling whodunit in the best Anne Morice style: the action takes place in and around an ostentatious stately home where murder strikes at the garden fête.

The gala is being thrown by a millionaire tycoon in aid of the local conservation society. Noted actress Tessa Crichton has been given the job of declaring the event 'open'. While not expecting open season on murder, Tessa is unable to resist the chance to do some on-the-spot investigation, especially as the police are building a damaging case against someone she considers to be innocent.

There are plenty of suspects and plenty of motives; nobody shows much inclination to tell the whole truth and Tessa's involvement becomes more personal and more dangerous when another corpse is discovered soon afterwards.

Death of a Heavenly Twin, originally published in 1974, is a crime story of ingenuity and wit, with a cast of sharply-observed eccentrics and a final surprise revelation. This new edition features an introduction and afterword by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

Genres: Mystery

191 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Birth name: Felicity Shaw

Reviews

[Eugene · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve heretofore enjoyed this reprinted old series, but now I’ve come acropper. This sixth effort just felt “mailed in” as if the author was distracted at the time of writing it, or late for a deadline just made a slapdash effort. Never mind that there isn’t much in the way of plot in the ones I’ve read, but here the characters are more cardboard cutouts, the narration isn’t as crisp and fun, and the “bad guy” and his family are rather hard to accept. I’ve got several more of these on hand and I’ll definitely continue reading, every writer is allowed an occasional clunker…

[Neer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as good as I was lead to believe. More here: https://ahotcupofpleasureagain.wordpr...

[Clyde Tosalini · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was easy to read, but I never felt part of the action. Didn't really get to know or care about most of the characters. Why wasn't the other sister killed also?

Many times in the book a character starts to say something but is interrupted.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tessa Crichton is invited to visit the home of multibillionaire Sir Magus, to open a fete he's throwing as part of his capaign to be elected to Parliament on the Labor ticket. When his decisive, well-organized twin daughter Sarah is found murdered, the police think that the obvious culprit is a young African student living in the neighborhood. But Tessa sees other suspects, including Sarah's dim twin and Sarah's fiance.