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Review: The Moonspinners, by Mary Stewart


Pages: 388
Original date of publication: 1962
My edition: 2003 (HarperTorch)
Why I decided to read:
How I acquired my copy: Local bookshop, June 2009

Awhile ago, the author Deanna Raybourn had a blog post which basically sums up the essence of Mary Stewart’s novels, much better than I could ever describe them. The Moonspinners sticks pretty much to Mary Stewart’s tried-and-true formula—but she always manages to hold her readers in suspense, no matter what.

Here, Nicola Ferris is a young secretary with the British Embassy who decides to take a holiday and meet her cousin on Crete. She inadvertently arrives a day early and runs into two hikers, one of which is Mark Langley, who has witnessed a murder and is in hiding. Added on top of all this is that Mark’s brother Colin has disappeared…

Mary Stewart’s novels are quick, beachy reads, and highly addictive—I finished this one in several sittings over the course of a day. She writes about place very well, almost to the point that the location of a book is almost as important as the plot. The characters in this book, as in her others, are kind of stereotypical; but nothing beats the plot, in which literally nothing happens—but the reader keeps turning the pages in suspense. This in my opinion is the hallmark of a good suspense writer, and why I keep turing to Mary Stewart’s novels time and again for comfort reading.


Comments

Anonymous said…
I'm so glad I'm not the only one who comfort reads. I haven't picked up a Mary Stewart in years. My favourites were always the Merlin books. I think I feel a re-read coming on. Thank you.

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