Title: A Moment Of Silence: Or, the Observations of Miss Dido Kent
Author: Anna Dean
ISBN: 0749079940
Source: Library Copy
Rating: 4 out of 5
Synopsis: Miss Dido Kent is 28 and unmarried and hence heading towards spinsterhood. Her beloved niece Catherine sends her word that Catherine’s new fiance, Richard Montague, has upset her. Dido rushes to her niece’s help to Bellfield Hall, home of the Montague family. She discovers that Richard has secretly broken off the engagement without any proper reason and since then disappeared. Then, a dead body of a woman is discovered in the garden. Are these incidences related? Dido wants to find out.
My Review:
Given my love for Agatha Christie, more so for Miss Marple, I was really looking forward to this addition to the ranks of worth female sleuths. I wasn’t disappointed. Dido is smart, resourceful and very sure of herself. She is extremely pleased with herself when she deduces something about the mystery. Her letters to her sister are very amusing and she doesn’t mind blowing her own trumpet. Her cleverness and show-off only add to her character, gives it more spunk and personality.
She does a great job of making people confide in her to solve the mysteries. She is no Miss Marple who relied on human psychology. Dido here gathers so much information and confidences of the residents of Bellfield Hall that by the end of the novel it is very easy for her to figure out what the whole matter is.
There twists and turns, the mystery is puzzling and leaves you guessing at every turn of events. The conclusion is happily surprising. Dido is a fun character. The novel is well written and clever. It ends on such a note that I am hoping there is much more to happen in Dido’ life. This is a first in the series and I am looking forward to read more.
Maddie's Musings 