Murder at the Altar (The Ellie Quicke mysteries) - Hardcover

Heley, Veronica

4.16

1,077 ratings by Goodreads

9780002740739: Murder at the Altar (The Ellie Quicke mysteries)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0002740737 ISBN 13: 9780002740739

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2000

View all copies of this ISBN edition:

The first in a series of Ellie Quicke Mysteries, based in a church setting, and featuring a recently widowed woman who finds herself to be something of a sleuth.

This first mystery finds Ellie struggling to find her place in life after the recent death of her husband. Approaching 50, she has an uncertain air, but there is something very capable about her that lurks beneath her understated prettiness.

In this mystery, she gets to know her neighbour, a young woman who has had an affair with the victim of a brutal muder that has taken place in the parish church. This glamorous, but fretful woman soon becomes the prime suspect.

As Ellie begins to weigh up the strange goings-on in the neighbourhood – a young boy who has seen more than he cares to tell, a car that lurks nearby, stories gossiped at the local shops – she gets nearer to the truth of the drugs dealing at the root of it all. And soon her own life is under threat.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

Review:

From ‘Publishers Weekly’, 23/10/00: Returning to adult crime after many years, Heley introduces loveable widow Ellie Quicke in the first of what one can only hope will be a long series... Heley's keen observations and insights into her characters create a rich atmosphere of the social life in an English town... Combining sparkling wit and humor, quirky acts of fate and a dramatic ending, Heley provides all one needs for a satisfying read, except perhaps a cozy chair, a cup of tea and some chocolate biscuits.

From the Back Cover:

Elle Quicke is struggling to re-establish her place in life after her husband's death. For years she has been there at his beck and call, and now she's alone she begins to wonder what life will hold for her.

As she begins to come to terms with her circumstances a brutal murder takes place in the church opposite. Is this something to do with the arguing couple next door? Or are the police as mistaken in their enquiries as she suspects? Ellie's mind is fogged by sleeping pills, but she's sure she saw something important that night.

In the meantime, her relatives are vying for their share of her husband's will, and more than one potential suitor is already on the scene.

Ellie begins to weigh up the strange goings-on in the neighbourhood. The boy next door seems to know more than he's saying. The murder victim's mother is missing. And something is happening to Ellie. Something more astute and capable is emerging beneath her unassuming sweetness. Perhaps there is more to her than people imagine after all. But soon her own life is under threat.

Through the screening hedge she could see a tall, dark figure walking rapidly down the garden path. A woman in a long, black coat and headscarf hurried out into the alley, across the churchyard, and up to the main road.

Making her escape?

Probably

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.