Anne Perry is an author I’ve discovered in the last year or so. I may have read half a dozen of her books by now, all concerning William Monk and Hester Latterly, but this last title was easily, for me, the best. Whited Sepulchres, formerly known as The Breach of Promise. I first looked out for her books after Donald Maass recommeneded them.
There was one book of the series I tried and never finished. I cannot recall enough of the plot to warn you away from it, but this one gripped me from start to finish. Everyone wonders why Melville is so distraught about the wedding to a beautiful heiress that has been arranged for him, but he will say nothing except that he will not marry the girl. The family sue him for breach of promise. From such seemingly trivial beginnings a story develops that gripped me, had me reading through most of the night, and that’s rare these days.
Consequentially today I can hardly keep my eyes open.
The master storyteller of Victorian Society, claims the lettering on the front of the book, and I can see why. Every word she writes rings true, and is a lesson in how to integrate a plot successfully into a society. Which is why I could hardly believe what I read when I searched the internet for a photograph of her for this blog entry, and saw that she had been convicted for murder. It seems to be true; I’m still catching up with the internet reports, but she admits murdering her school friend’s “mother.” Google the name yourself; there are hundreds of references.
For the record, anyone with any interest in Durham Cathedral should watch Jonathan Foyle climb - yes, climb - the nave and tower. In this region, the half hour programme aired at 6.30 on BBC 2. Superb views of Durham from the air.
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4 comments:
That's interesting to find out what happened to her, Jen! Her story is quite famous here in New Zealand, with the Heavenly Creatures movie actually being part of the secondary curriculum in many secondary schools.
Glad the earthquake didn't get you, Vicky. Do you mean NZ knows about the crime? I looked her up when D Maass mentio ned her, and didn't see any reference to it then.
The master storyteller of Victorian Society, claims the lettering on the front of the book, and I can see why. Every word she writes rings true, and is a lesson in how to integrate a plot successfully into a society. Which is why I could hardly believe what I read when I searched the internet for a photograph of her for this blog entry.
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