Dead and Gone

A Well Told Story Dead and Gone, by Dorothy Simpson, was an interesting story that I thought the author handled well with all the interviews of witnesses and possible suspects that were made by Inspector Thanet and his partner. It was well plotted with enough suspense to keep me reading. The story could have used a bit more conflict to keep interest high, but the Inspector's personality was staid and dry and set the mood. The ending was rather a shocker and was really the height of the story. Overall, Simpson is a terrific story teller and I enjoyed reading her book.

"Dead and Gone" is the final novel in Dorothy Simpson's 'Inspector Thanet' series: apparently the onset of RSI forced the writer to abandon writing in 2000. Unlike many of his fictional contemporaries, Thanet is a family man - and while he suffers secondary problems with his wife and children, these are kept as background matters in the books and his family is basically a well-adjusted and happy one. The books are set in Kent, England (the author herself residing for a long time in Maidstone, the county town), and take the form of gentle police procedurals (no Val McDermid-style angst and graphic violence here). This final story begins when the wife of a local Q.C (high-ranking lawyer) disappears following an informal dinner party at which their daughter has announced her engagement to an unsuitable fiance. The development of the plot is quite compelling, and athough the final twist was rather telegraphed, it is a good read for a winter's afternoon, a long journey or a beach holiday. (And yes, to that other reviewer - I have read the novel!)

Those who have read hundreds of crime novels will surely never have been asked to guess who killed the woman found dead at the bottom of a well in the courtyard of the house where she had arranged a swimming pool party the night before. Such is the task for the reader, shadowing Inspector Thanet, in this highly enjoyable 1999 addition to Dorothy Simpson's publications. The enjoyment derives mainly from Dorothy Simpson's mastery of story telling. Other writers might provide deeper psychological analyses or incorporate more detailed forensic pathology along the way, but Dorothy Simpson keeps her story moving. There is sometimes an amazing coincidence or two, and an occasional shade of gothic melodrama, but no more than voracious readers of detective fiction and suckers for good stories might expect.

Having read all of the Luke Thanet mysteries, I didn't think that Dorothy Simpson could get any better, but I was wrong. This is her best effort so far, mingling the dramas surrounding Luke's own family and that of a very complicated local barrister. Simpson continues to hone her craft with each new book. I can't wait for the next installment!

Scotland Yard Inspector Luke Thannet anxiously worries about his pregnant daughter recently hospitalized for toxemia. He feels blessed that his mind is occupied by a high profile case. Virginia Minitor, wife of renowned barrister Ralph Minitor disappeared during a dinner party at her home. The police searched the Minitor estate but found nothing until the next day when her corpse was discovered at the bottom of a well.The police treat the death as a homicide with Thannet in charge of the investigation. He questions all the guests of the Minitors only to realize that each one had a motive for killing the deceased who apparently slept with or tried to sleep with every available and not so available male inside her circle of friends. Thannet also knows that each party attendee had the opportunity. Using his skills, he has to ferret out a killer amidst a plethora of viable suspects.Anyone who enjoys a good old-fashioned police procedural will want to read the latest Inspector Thannet tale. DEAD AND GONE is the fifteenth entry in this absorbing series. Due to Dorothy Simpson,s talent, the current tale retains a freshness and creative feel as if this is the first installment. The enthralling mystery is a maze of twists and turns that requires concentration to solve the puzzle, leaving the reader thinking while desiring novel number sixteen.Harriet Klausner