Her main character Cassandra Lynch, while in Bergen, Norway,
gets a job of her dreams, being the skipper of a Viking longship for a
film. The downside is she has to return
to the Shetland Islands, where she escaped some fourteen years earlier. Now she must face all the ghosts and skeletons
she left behind.
During the movie shoot, Cassie finds the starlet of the film
dead on the deck of the Viking longship.
Usher in a tired trope of identical twins. We’ve seen it before. Favelle, the actress had a twin sister Maree,
who routinely fills in for the star for certain shots. And has mysteriously disappeared.
The questions begin quickly.
Was Favelle the intended victim? Or was someone trying to kill her
stand-n sister Maree? Was Favelle mistaken for Maree? Where is Maree? As moldy as this trope is,
Taylor does manage to keep it new and not tedious.
Another breath of fresh air is the array of characters.
First, we meet a group of hardened sailors and fishermen in Shetland. Then in a slight dig at Americans (which we
probably deserve), the movie production crew descend upon the small village, rather
oblivious to the local customs and ways, giving the natives much to laugh
about. The crew includes the starlet
diva Favelle, her husband-director Ted, his guard-dog assistant Elizabeth, and
the twin sister Maree.
Albeit later in the novel, Cassie’s internationally famous
opera singer mother minces back into the scene, trying to wrest control of the
situation.
Taylor keeps the plot convoluted and confusing to the readers
to keep them guessing to the last minute.
In a scene, straight out of a Scooby-doo cartoon, Cassie is able to
unmask the killer.
If one enjoys cozy mysteries with a modern setting in a colorful location, Taylor’s first foray into the mystery genre is a good read. For fans of the grittier, rougher stories, one might find this one a bit tame.
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