Rating: 4/5
Review:
Enjoyable, with some real emotional heft
I very much enjoyed Waste Of A Life. This series has a good deal more emotional heft than some of Simon Brett’s other work, which I like very much.
Here, in the third of the series featuring professional declutterer Ellen Curtis, an old and much-liked client dies and the death soon begins to look suspicious. As Ellen and her close friends and family become involved, the only real solution is for them to try to catch the culprit.
Brett, as always, gives us an interesting cast of very well-drawn characters, and Ellen herself is an engaging narrator and protagonist. The publishers’ blurb describes this as “a light-hearted mystery,” which I suppose is true of the mystery itself and, to be honest, I found the plot and its denouement a little thin. However, what does give these books real interest and drive for me is Brett’s treatment of various aspects of trauma and mental health problems in his characters. He is perceptive and humane, and I have become very invested in the regulars here: Ellen herself, her adult daughter and son Julia and Ben, and her friend and colleague, Dodge. This may not be to everyone’s taste; the books have all Brett’s usual readability, but slightly less of the light, humorous tone of many of his books. Personally I like it very much and I’m already looking forward to the next in the series.
(My thanks to Severn House for an ARC via NetGalley.)
Here, in the third of the series featuring professional declutterer Ellen Curtis, an old and much-liked client dies and the death soon begins to look suspicious. As Ellen and her close friends and family become involved, the only real solution is for them to try to catch the culprit.
Brett, as always, gives us an interesting cast of very well-drawn characters, and Ellen herself is an engaging narrator and protagonist. The publishers’ blurb describes this as “a light-hearted mystery,” which I suppose is true of the mystery itself and, to be honest, I found the plot and its denouement a little thin. However, what does give these books real interest and drive for me is Brett’s treatment of various aspects of trauma and mental health problems in his characters. He is perceptive and humane, and I have become very invested in the regulars here: Ellen herself, her adult daughter and son Julia and Ben, and her friend and colleague, Dodge. This may not be to everyone’s taste; the books have all Brett’s usual readability, but slightly less of the light, humorous tone of many of his books. Personally I like it very much and I’m already looking forward to the next in the series.
(My thanks to Severn House for an ARC via NetGalley.)
No comments:
Post a Comment