Mr Cadmus / Peter Ackroyd.

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Title:

Mr Cadmus / Peter Ackroyd.

Author:

Ackroyd, Peter, 1949- author.

ISBN:

9781786898944

Publication Information:

Edinburgh : Canongate, 2020.

Physical Description:

186 pages ; 21 cm

Abstract:

"The arrival of an enigmatic stranger wreaks havoc on the denizens of the idyllic English village of Little Camborne; most notably two apparently harmless women. Miss Finch and Miss Swallow, cousins, have put their pasts behind them and settled into conventional country life. But when Theodore Cadmus - from Caldera, a Mediterranean island nobody has heard of - moves into the middle cottage, the safe monotony of their lives is shattered. The fates of the two cousins and Mr Cadmus, and those of Little Camborne and Caldera, become inextricably enmeshed. Long-hidden secrets and long-held grudges threaten to surface, drawing all into a vortex of subterfuge, theft, violence, mayhem ... and murder"--Publisher.

Subject Term:

Older women -- Fiction.

Cousins -- Fiction.

Neighbors -- Fiction.

Family secrets -- Fiction.

Interpersonal relations -- Fiction.

Villages -- England -- Fiction.

Genre:

Suspense fiction.

Detective and mystery stories.

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Avon-Washington Township Public Library	Adult Fiction Book Hardback	120791002940543	F ACK	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A wickedly satirical novel, filled with mystery, revenge, outlandish killings, greed and jealousy, from the multi-award-winning author.

Reviews (1)

Booklist Review

Maud Finch and Millicent Swallow, who are best friends as well as cousins, live in the first and third cottages in a three-cottage row in Little Camborne, a tiny English village. They've lived there for years, and they enjoy their quiet lives nestled away in the middle of nowhere. When Theodore Cadmus arrives unexpectedly, having bought the middle cottage, Maud and Millicent wonder if their peaceful existence is about to be disturbed. Originally published in 2020, and now available in the North American market, Ackroyd's first book-length work of fiction since Three Brothers in 2013 is a remarkably deceptive little novel (it clocks in at just under 200 pages). It starts out like a traditional British cozy, with the mysterious newcomer and the slightly offbeat spinster cousins, but soon Ackroyd reveals that the story has a dark and scary side, with Maud and Millicent's backstory full of secrets. And Mr Cadmus, too, is not simply the courteous newcomer he appears to be. Ackroyd, a renowned biographer and historian (Dickens, 1991, and Newton, 2008, among many others) keeps the reader guessing in this beautifully written, charming, and ultimately unforgettable novel.