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Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | MYSTERY BAL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Stillwater Public Library | MYSTERY BAL | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
When Kate McBride returns to her hometown of Bishop's Bridge, North Carolina, for a family reunion, she expects questions about her husband's conspicuous absence. What she doesn't expect is murder.
Soon after arriving, Kate finds her great uncle's housekeeper, Ella Stegall, badly injured and incoherent, at the bottom of a wooded ravine after an apparent fall from a ledge. But moments before losing consciousness, Ella whispers she was pushed--not surprising, considering that Bramblewood, Uncle Ernest's woodsy estate, is no stranger to murder and intrigue.
Could Ella's accident be connected to Bramblewood's mysterious past, or was her claim just the rambling of a delirious old woman? Poor Ella slips away before leaving more clues to her death.
Now Kate must come to terms with disturbing doubts about close family members while coping with her troubled young daughter. Luckily for Kate, guardian angel Augusta Goodnight has dropped by to help, this time with a bumbling young apprentice in tow. With fresh baked goods and sound, heavenly advice, Augusta helps Kate investigate Ella's untimely demise--and a few other unsolved mysteries along the way.
Author Notes
Mignon F. Ballard lives in Fort Mill, South Carolina, with her husband. She is the author of the award-winning children's novel Aunt Matilda's Ghost , as well as several acclaimed mysteries, including Minerva Cries Murder and Raven Rock . The Angel Whispered Danger is the fourth book in her Augusta Goodnight mystery series.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Augusta Goodnight, that heaven-sent assistant to earthbound amateur sleuths, is back for her fourth appearance in Ballard's heartwarming tale (after 2002's Shadow of an Angel). Kate McBride and her young daughter are headed for a family reunion in Bishop's Bridge, N.C., while her estranged husband is in California for a professional conference. Nearing despair over the state of her marriage, and uncertain how to handle her daughter's truculent behavior, Kate frets over what to tell her inquisitive family members. The family is soon distracted from asking pointed questions about the absent husband when the housekeeper of Kate's great-uncle Ernest falls off a ledge and claims she was pushed. Kate doesn't want to think that someone in the family is a murderer, but aided by guardian angel Augusta and her clumsy trainee angel, Penelope, she looks for the answers to several questions. What really happened to Ernest's runaway wife, Rose? Or to the two hippies who disappeared many years ago? Can the current troubles be connected to those long-buried secrets? Ballard's warmth and compassion for her characters make this series a must for readers who like their mysteries on the cozy side. (July 7) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Augusta Goodnight is an amazing character: she floats about in iridescent raiment, wafting through with peppermint tea and scones, trailing the scent of strawberries and happiness. She is, after all, an angel. She is also a kind of sleuth; although she doesn't foretell the future or keep people from specific danger, she is deeply sensitive to emotional clues and past history. In this latest in the series, Kate McBride goes home to North Carolina with her 10-year-old daughter and bruising memories of her estrangement from her husband. Great-uncle Ernest is hosting the family reunion, and Kate arrives to find the usual familial tensions abraded by memories of a long-ago murder and disappearance. Augusta appears at key moments to propel Kate in the right direction or provide both solace and chocolate. Murders are solved and relationships mended, of course, and Augusta even has a young angelic assistant in training to watch over. Not quite so seamless or beguiling as last year's Shadow of an Angel, but with the same southern artlessness and warmth. --GraceAnne DeCandido Copyright 2003 Booklist
Kirkus Review
Celestial sleuth Augusta Goodnight (Shadow of an Angel, 2002, etc.) has her heavenly hands full protecting a family on the brink of disaster while serving as mentor to an apprentice angel named Penelope. Kate McBride must have been one of the youngest coeds on record; she's a few years younger than her 30-year-old cousin Grady, and her daughter Josie, now 10, was born a year after Kate's graduation. Maybe that's why her marriage to Ned has turned rocky--so rocky that she drags a reluctant Josie to her great-uncle Ernest's North Carolina home for a family reunion sans Dad. Back in the Blue Ridge, Kate faces the well-intentioned prying of Ma Maggie, her maternal grandmother, and Ma Maggie's cousin Violet, along with the not-so-well-intentioned needling of her own cousin Deedee. Augusta soon arrives, accompanied by Penelope, who leaves a trail of broken dishes and spilt milk in her wake. Good thing, too, because Kate's troubles are about to bump up a notch. She discovers Uncle Ernest's housekeeper, Ella Stegall, at the bottom of a ravine, not far from the place where, 20 years ago, Kate and Grady had stumbled upon the body of a murdered vagrant. Unraveling the web of family secrets that connects the two murders takes all Kate's wit and intelligence--plus the usual help from above. Clean up that backstory and you've got a pretty decent mystery. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Library Journal Review
Having journeyed to mountainous western North Carolina for a family reunion, Kate McBride pines for her estranged husband, worries about ten-year-old daughter Josie, and meets her guardian angel, Augusta Goodnight (An Angel To Die For). This "ghost" fits right in, provides intermittent wit, and acts as a kind of deus ex machina for the plot. When someone pushes Kate's great-uncle's housekeeper off a ledge, Augusta prods Kate into sleuthing. Midnight graveyard wanderers, diggers in the night, a tarp-wrapped skeleton, 1960s missing persons, and an "accidental" car wreck death add to the moody but populous surrounds. A real treat for series fans and readers who enjoy cozies. Ballard is also the author of the Eliza Figg mysteries. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
