Mark Pghfan’s Comments (group member since Mar 06, 2014)

Mark Pghfan’s comments from the The Parlor PI's group.

I'm into the next section already, and there is a twist to the three casings bit.

Well, the Hamptons are not especially used to murders.

Yes, Tina. After all, what could possibly go wrong???

She also seems to have a fairly extensive knowledge of specialized coffee! (Which I do not. Spoiler alert: I don't drink coffee at all. Don't hate me, Ms. Coyle!)

Well, this month we return to Clare Cosi (whom some of us met in one of her later adventures) as she summers as the chef of coffee drinks in the beach home of millionaire David Mintzer. We open at a large party where Clare is working, though it gets interrupted when one of the waiters (a womanizing one) is found shot in David's bathroom. As it turns out, the waiter and David were dressed somewhat similarly, and Clare thinks David may have been the intended victim. The shot seems to have been made from outside the house, a fair distance away. Clare goes out to investigate and finds spent cartridges and foot prints (actually web-prints from someone who may have been wearing swimming flippers)!

Normally, I am a little leery of a situation where the wrong victim is killed, and that may be a trick, though, the business of the distance from the house the shot appears to have come from, certainly makes it possible.

To make matters interesting, Clare's teenage daughter, as well as her ex-mother-in-law are also present, working as well.

Discuss!

If no one beats me to it, I can start the first section. I've finished it and need to move on speedily, to get the book back to the library on time!

A lot of people are unaware of the meaning: Pgh is an abbreviation of Pittsburgh, where I live.

Fellow PIs! I wanted to let you know that I've changed my profile name a bit. The PGHFAN name was what I used in the olden days when a number of us were on the old A&E discussion site. I continued it here. Now, I wanted to personalize it just a bit, so y'all know my first name (as some of you do, already)!

I'm in. Actually started it last night.

Tina,

I saw the clip and it looked good, except for Poirot--nothing like him physically. They say it will be more of a thriller than before. It is hard to imagine how that will work, given that, after so much publicity over the decades, pretty much everyone knows how it ends.

My copy is in and I'll get it from the library this afternoon.

I agree with Annis and Warwick. They are the right age now for By the Pricking of My Thumbs and Postern of Fate.

The book we read was in December of 2013 and titled Latte Trouble. The gift book I received was "Once Upon a Grind".

After watching N or M?, I still haven't persuaded myself to watch Secret Adversary.

I've ordered this from the library as well, so it should be here shortly. I remember reading one of Ms. Coyle's books in our discussion a few years ago (Christmas themed, it was) and found it enjoyable. The author was kind enough to send me a copy of her (then) upcoming book as well!

I would be on board with the Mary Daheim book. I've always wondered about her stuff, but never read any.

Gertie was a bit more sassy and impertinent in this book than she is in future books.

There have been a lot of books in this series, and there is a sub series with this setting and characters that all take place at Christmas, and I've read a number of them.

Well, readers, I've reached the end (after many of you, it seems)! I think we can all agree that it was pretty obvious who the culprit was a bit before the ending. I kind of wish the author would have worked a little more on Keith Torrington, so we thought he would be the villain a little longer than we did. Nevertheless, Daphne it was! Poor woman, in a way, wanting Danbury and then losing him. I was kind of surprised, though, that Danbury apparently loved Lady E more than one would expect, for a fortune hunter.

Those of us who have read other books in the series probably noted (but I'm glad no one let on) that Cecily ends up marrying Baxter, fairly on in the series. In later books, he seems a more stern husband, and not at all the servant any longer.

And of course, Cecily agrees to stay out of crime investigations. Ha, ha! That sure doesn't happen!

I'm still not done, but it appears now that Cecily does not believe Danbury did it. Not sure about the brooch yet.