A Nice Place to Die

September 19, 2011
The differences between the crowded losers in the Somerset housing estate of Catcombe Mead and the aging population of the farm village of Old Catcombe propel this middling crime novel from McLoughlin (Coincidence). When vicar Tim Baker tries to bridge the gulf between the two, he receives a fatal beating from a group of teenage thugs led by Kevin Miller. Det. Chief Insp. Rachel Moody and her partner, Sgt. Jack Reid, find the estate residents unwilling to admit to seeing anything: not Kevin’s mother, Donna, whose arrival ended the beating; not Alice Bates, who saw everything that went on from behind her curtains; not retired doctor Peter Henson or his wife, Jean. A lustful relationship between farm boy Mark Pearson and Kevin’s 15-year-old stepsister, Jess, offers a wobbly link between estate and village. More deaths follow before McLoughlin wraps things up with more than one unconvincing resolution.

November 1, 2011
Teenaged thugs terrorize a suburban housing development. When Hester Warren cursed the villagers of Catcombe in Somersetshire for burning her as a witch, no one could foresee that the old woman's oath would be realized in the form of a vast modern housing estate called Catcombe Mead. These neat brick detached homes have brought commuters who work in London and shop in the estate's own shopping center, causing the village shops to wither until all that remains is a post office, a co-op and a junk shop open only in the summer. The residents of Old Catcombe hate what they call "the incomers." Attempting to help heal the rift between the two Catcombes, Tim Baker, the village vicar, rides his bicycle into the Mead with a message of goodwill and gets stomped to death for his trouble. Kevin Miller's mother Donna sees her son attack Baker. So does Alice Bates, hiding behind her curtains. Retired pediatrician Peter Henson knows Kevin's to blame, as do Terri and Helen, the lesbian couple across the street. Yet none of the Forester Close homeowners are willing to share what they know with DCI Rachel Moody or her sergeant Jack Reid for fear of reprisals from Kevin, his brother Nate, and his purple-haired sister Jess. Jess has reason enough to hate Kevin: He's the father of her two-year-old daughter Kylie. But the Millers are a loyal bunch, and as they close ranks along with Helen's daughter Nicky, they show why their cowering neighbors have every reason to fear their wrath. McLoughlin (Shadow of a Doubt, 2011, etc.) seems to specialize in non-mysteries, with suspense arising from the overheated relationships among the principals.

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October 1, 2011
The ancient village of Catcombe, scene of a horrible crime in 1568, is now a modern housing development. It is also the home of a very dysfunctional family, whose children terrorize the neighbors. When the young vicar of the church is murdered while making a house call, DCI Rachel Moody and her colleagues cannot find a motive. It's clear, though, that the residents are keeping many secrets. DCI Moody, new to the area and working hard to prove herself in a sexist department, refuses to give up. A solid procedural and a revealing look at an insular community.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)