The Liar in the Library / Simon Brett

An author is found dead in his car the morning after his talk at the Fethering library, and the prime suspect is also one of the village's duo of amateur sleuths.

Alas, this reads more like a first draft than a complete, fleshed out story. The writing is sloppy and very flat, the plot unoriginal and lazily constructed, the "mystery" not particularly clever, and the "reveal" frankly botched. No aspect of the book has any depth — even the killer's motivations are barely touched upon. When the characters manage to display a bit of personality, it's only to behave like sulky teenagers. What sank the novel irremediably in my estimation are the offensive remarks made about certain characters' physical appearance; they may have been acceptable in the Golden Age crime literature so lengthily referred to here, but they're now completely out of order.

Since this novel is part of a series, I'm willing to entertain the possibility that this is simply a weak entry; these things do happen. I'm not, however, inclined to give this author a second chance.

I was provided with a free electronic copy of this book through NetGalley by the publisher, Black Thorn, in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: **