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booksuperpower's review against another edition
4.0
All By Myself, Alone by Mary Higgins Clark is a 2017 Simon & Schuster publication.
It seems like it has been a while since I touched base with Alvirah and Willy, so it felt good to hear from them again.
In this eleventh installment in the series, Alvirah and Willy are celebrating their forty-fifth wedding anniversary by taking a cruise aboard a new luxury cruise liner, so opulent it could rival the Titanic.
Also on board is: Celia, who is there to give a series of lectures, but who is also trying to forget her ex-fiance, a con man who stole money from her friends, and has now implicated her in his plot- and ‘Lady Em’, an elderly woman carrying a priceless emerald she plans to donate to the Smithsonian.
But, once they are out to sea, Lady Em is found dead and the emerald is missing…
I enjoyed this one, which was little change of pace for our favorite lottery winners, because it was set aboard a cruise ship, which created the opportunity to introduce a variety of different characters, and of course the murderer has to be on board!!
There is no shortage of suspects or surprise developments along the way. I can’t say Alvirah and Willy were as hands on in the investigation as they sometimes are, and I felt Celia’s story was the more prominent one, but they make their fair share of contributions to the story.
For those unfamiliar with the Alivrah and Willy mysteries, they are always fun, very light, whodunits. With the exceptions of some mild language and adult themes, these stories are clean, and go very easy on the violence, making them a great choice for mystery fans of all ages and tastes. In fact, they could easily be categorized as ‘cozy mysteries’.
If you are familiar with the series, you know what to expect and will find this one on par with the previous installments.
Others, who may be expecting a novel along the lines of Clark’s stand -alone books or similar to her collaboration with Alafair Burke, may feel a little confused by its much lighter tones. So, I feel I should stress that these are very easy to read, are not terribly deep, and perhaps they should simply be enjoyed, taken at face value, and not over- analyzed.
Overall, I found this installment to be one of the better ones in the series and think fans of the author or of Alvirah and Willy, or cozy style mysteries, will want to check this one out.
3.5 stars
It seems like it has been a while since I touched base with Alvirah and Willy, so it felt good to hear from them again.
In this eleventh installment in the series, Alvirah and Willy are celebrating their forty-fifth wedding anniversary by taking a cruise aboard a new luxury cruise liner, so opulent it could rival the Titanic.
Also on board is: Celia, who is there to give a series of lectures, but who is also trying to forget her ex-fiance, a con man who stole money from her friends, and has now implicated her in his plot- and ‘Lady Em’, an elderly woman carrying a priceless emerald she plans to donate to the Smithsonian.
But, once they are out to sea, Lady Em is found dead and the emerald is missing…
I enjoyed this one, which was little change of pace for our favorite lottery winners, because it was set aboard a cruise ship, which created the opportunity to introduce a variety of different characters, and of course the murderer has to be on board!!
There is no shortage of suspects or surprise developments along the way. I can’t say Alvirah and Willy were as hands on in the investigation as they sometimes are, and I felt Celia’s story was the more prominent one, but they make their fair share of contributions to the story.
For those unfamiliar with the Alivrah and Willy mysteries, they are always fun, very light, whodunits. With the exceptions of some mild language and adult themes, these stories are clean, and go very easy on the violence, making them a great choice for mystery fans of all ages and tastes. In fact, they could easily be categorized as ‘cozy mysteries’.
If you are familiar with the series, you know what to expect and will find this one on par with the previous installments.
Others, who may be expecting a novel along the lines of Clark’s stand -alone books or similar to her collaboration with Alafair Burke, may feel a little confused by its much lighter tones. So, I feel I should stress that these are very easy to read, are not terribly deep, and perhaps they should simply be enjoyed, taken at face value, and not over- analyzed.
Overall, I found this installment to be one of the better ones in the series and think fans of the author or of Alvirah and Willy, or cozy style mysteries, will want to check this one out.
3.5 stars
cslats33's review against another edition
3.0
Finished this one on my drive from DC to CT. It was good enough to keep me entertained the during the drive which means something. There were far too many characters to keep it straight without reading it but I knew the main ones. I loved that Alvirah and Willy were main characters in this one.
georgia_p97's review against another edition
2.0
Well that was pretty bad...
The characters felt very fake (their personalities weren't fleshed out and the dialogue was unnatural), I didn't guess the murderer which is good but it didn't make a lot of sense to me, and the '3 months later' epilogue included very unnecessary and cliche aspects.
I was intrigued by the premise, but was let down.
The characters felt very fake (their personalities weren't fleshed out and the dialogue was unnatural), I didn't guess the murderer which is good but it didn't make a lot of sense to me, and the '3 months later' epilogue included very unnecessary and cliche aspects.
I was intrigued by the premise, but was let down.
pagesofpaper's review against another edition
4.0
I have been reading Mary Higgins Clark for as long as I can remember. I usually can pick out the killer early, but this one I was wrong, so one of the best I've read from her in awhile!
southernelateacher's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it until the very end. I felt like it had been building and building and then the ending was disappointing
rachelibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
I have not read a Mary Higgins Clark book in a long time and so I did not realize that this book was part of a long running series of hers. Maybe that is where some of my confusion comes. I found myself having a hard time keeping track of all the characters in this book and the story was very dull. The ending was a little too tidy up for my taste. I would not continue the series but I am hopeful for other future Mary Higgins Clark titles.
sarahkgg's review against another edition
1.0
I knew that I was going to hate this book even as I was checking it out from the library. But for some reason, the fact that this book had landed on a "Great Summer Mysteries" list trumped the fact that I cannot stand Mary Higgins Clark's books. They are the completely predictable murder-y cousin of romance novels.
I don't know what I was thinking. But, I'm pretty sure that my inner monologue went something like this: "If it made a list, surely it must be pretty good. I mean, it's not like this list is straight from the publisher. (Spoiler alert: It totally was.) Maybe I'm being a snob? After all she is a popular author. (Double spoiler: Lots of people like terrible books.) I'll give it a whirl."
Approximately one hour into the audiobook, the inner dialogue shifted.
"I literally cannot. There are about seven million characters in this book, and 97 chapters?! Are you kidding me? Self, I will bet you $1 million that I can predict with 100% accuracy who's going to die, why, and who did it. (Triple spoiler: I did, was right, and now owe myself a lot of money.) Also, this narrator sounds like the voice of a maxi pad commercial, and if she says gemologist one more time....ugh."
I don't know what I was thinking. But, I'm pretty sure that my inner monologue went something like this: "If it made a list, surely it must be pretty good. I mean, it's not like this list is straight from the publisher. (Spoiler alert: It totally was.) Maybe I'm being a snob? After all she is a popular author. (Double spoiler: Lots of people like terrible books.) I'll give it a whirl."
Approximately one hour into the audiobook, the inner dialogue shifted.
"I literally cannot. There are about seven million characters in this book, and 97 chapters?! Are you kidding me? Self, I will bet you $1 million that I can predict with 100% accuracy who's going to die, why, and who did it. (Triple spoiler: I did, was right, and now owe myself a lot of money.) Also, this narrator sounds like the voice of a maxi pad commercial, and if she says gemologist one more time....ugh."
alicewonders's review against another edition
4.0
Solid 3.5 stars
Entertaining! Lots of people to keep track of.
Entertaining! Lots of people to keep track of.