The Cornish Novels by
Janie Bolitho
pbk out November 03
(Allison Busby)
at £10.99
The paperback omnibus volume seems an ideal way of bringing back into print a
number of novels first published a few (or, perhaps, a considerable number of) years
ago. It is surprising, therefore, that publishers have been slow to recognise its
potential. Fortunately, Allison & Busby are an exception. In recent times they have
produced a number of notable collections, including a first rate selection of three titles
from John Dickson Carr. Now they have moved to the contemporary scene, with a
'Rose Trevelyan Trilogy' comprising 'Snapped in Cornwall', 'Framed in Cornwall'
and 'Buried in Cornwall'. Artist and photographer Rose Trevelyan has been compared
by reviewers to Miss Marple, although the likeness is to my mind somewhat remote.
The Cornish setting is plainly more important to Janie Bolitho than any backdrop
(except perhaps for the Middle East) ever was to Agatha Christie. What Rose has in
common with Jane Marple is that she is one of those amateur sleuths you really don't
want to come calling, as she is almost incapable of going anywhere without stumbling
over a corpse. In the first story here, she goes to a party and a body turns up; in the
second, she visits a lonely old friend and finds her dead. All the novels make
enjoyable light reading. Janie Bolitho, who died last year, wrote about her native
county with enthusiasm and warmth and she would undoubtedly be proud of this
posthumous collection.
(
Martin Edwards
- author of the highly acclaimed Harry Devlin Mysteries)
The Cornish Novels by
Janie Bolitho
