Isabel's Wedding

May 28, 2012
Fans of Oldfield’s previous period whodunits (The Boat House, etc.) shouldn’t expect a strong mystery element in this average effort set in 1900 England. Isabel Fratton’s mother died two days after giving birth to her, the youngest of four children, while her father, Jack, left the family for California before she was born and soon ceased communicating. But those dark times should be behind them as the Fratton family gears up for Isabel’s wedding, even if that means enduring the bride-to-be’s continuous fussing with the details. The past resurfaces at this most emotionally charged time when a letter arrives from Jack Fratton announcing his intention to return home. Apart from their total unfamiliarity with the man their father now is, his grown children can’t help speculating as to what motivated him to seek to return at this time. Unfortunately, things don’t get more interesting once he does show up, and some authorial heavy-handedness dissipates the suspense early on.