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showell's review against another edition
3.0
Reminds me of Elizabeth George in the way she spends time developing all of her characters, rather than simply doing the bare minimum needed to create a reasonable plot line for the mystery at hand.
400mom's review against another edition
3.0
I have been reading this series backward but might need to start at the beginning. I enjoyed the characters, as usual, but the story line had me a little skeptical. The part where she pulled in information on the Old Religion was interesting but I didn't buy into the way it figured into the denouement of the story. So only 3 stars this time. I am enjoying the series, though.
pr727's review against another edition
2.0
I'll give it a 2.5. A Finer End stands out as quite different from the other Duncan Kincaid & Gemma Jones books for several reasons. The murder does not occur until about halfway through the book. A main character is injured before that, leading this reader to wonder if the injuries would lead to death. Also, Duncan and Gemma do not appear until later in the book. The setting is Glastonbury, site of the old abbey and the famous tor, which is quite interesting, but the New Age/paranormal aspects of the story and how they prompt several characters to behave are not believable. The who of who-dun-it seems, again, rather neatly explained at the end in a rather contrived fashion. I listened to the audio book, read by a different narrator than the earlier books in the series. It was not easy to distinguish the male characters and many times the voicing is so low in tone and volume that it was difficult to understand. I'll forge on with the series, hoping this installation was an aberration.
jengirlreads's review against another edition
2.0
This was the weakest of the Kincaid/James series so far. It took far too long to get into the action and mystery of the plot, and the set-up about Glastonbury just weighed the story down. I'm also not a big fan of the mysticism element that was heavy throughout this one. Since I liked the previous stories, I'm going to keep on in the series and hope that the author returns to what made the earlier books so good.
bkdrgn303's review against another edition
3.0
I listened to this one and would have enjoyed it more if the narrator hadn't made Gemma sound like a narcotic Nellie. Very annoying.
addie_e's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
nixieknox's review against another edition
I cannot possibly finish mystery whose basis is in automatic writing and chanting. I simply cannot. I learned my lesson when I read Faye Kellerman’s Moon Magic to the end only to find the murderer could fly and this got away without leaving clues. Ridiculous.
And as far as Gemma and Duncan - I hope they redeem themselves in the next book.
And as far as Gemma and Duncan - I hope they redeem themselves in the next book.
kit_moonstar's review against another edition
4.0
Lots of things are changing in this installment of the series, and a lot of it is for the better in my mind. Gemma has finally been promoted to Inspector which means reassignment away from Duncan, and while both of them are adjusting to the change in their professional relationship, it means that there isn’t nearly as much of a power imbalance in their romantic one. It’s also looking like Kit might be coming to live with Duncan permanently. It is a lot, but I think that overall it will make for a better dynamic for the characters as well as make for interesting future scenarios. The supporting characters we meet are also very interesting in this one, especially Jack and Winnie. I hope we see more of them in future book. Duncan needs more people in his life besides Gemma, Kit, and Toby. Gemma has gotten to develop friends and hobbies outside of work and her relationship, and Duncan needs to do the same. We also get to meet Duncan’s new sergeant, though we don’t seem much of him.
The mystery itself was good as well, and it took some interesting turns. The one odd aspect was until this book there was nothing to indicate that this wasn’t just our real world. Part of the plot hinges on the supernatural or at least, the book never actually provides a logical explanation for Jack’s spontaneous writing in Latin. I didn’t mind that element, but I can see how it might turn some people off. But after the last installment of the series being probably the most disappointing of these books so far, this one was pretty great and got me excited to keep reading the series again. Four out of five stars.
The mystery itself was good as well, and it took some interesting turns. The one odd aspect was until this book there was nothing to indicate that this wasn’t just our real world. Part of the plot hinges on the supernatural or at least, the book never actually provides a logical explanation for Jack’s spontaneous writing in Latin. I didn’t mind that element, but I can see how it might turn some people off. But after the last installment of the series being probably the most disappointing of these books so far, this one was pretty great and got me excited to keep reading the series again. Four out of five stars.
maureenr's review against another edition
4.0
always liked this series, but apparently I skipped this one when I went on a Crombie jag several yrs ago. satisfies my anglophile soul!