Review of Arsenic and Old Men
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Monique Victor 1
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Review of Arsenic and Old Men
[Following is a volunteer review of "Arsenic and Old Men" by Glenn Ickler.]
Arsenic and Old Men by the author Glenn Ickler is a new addition to 13 previously published by this author.
This book is set in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, known as the playground for millionaires at their vacation cottages. Most of the cottages are of the vintage of 19th-century and are Victoria-styled homes.
The book introduces you to David Jerome (aka Dave) and his wife, Cindy Jerome, who take a vacation with their long-time friends, Alan Jeffrey (aka Al) and his wife, Carole Jeffrey, as well as Warren Mitchell (aka Mitch), and his wife, Martha Todd. The friends join them for moral support as this vacation will include Dave and Cindy having to visit Dave’s late Uncle Walter Jerome’s lawyer, Richard Rylander, to claim his inheritance as the sole living relative of Walter Jerome, who apparently died of a suspected heart attack.
Once they all arrive in Martha’s Vineyard, the holiday starts off well for the weekend, until they return home on Monday mid-day, to find that the police have cordoned off the whole property that is now officially a crime scene.
The fun starts, with the police thinking that the cat of Carole Jeffrey gets almost taken as evidence. Everyone is in a bit of a panic as they realize now that that the Late Uncle Walter Jerome was now murdered and they are either all classified as suspects or may get arrested for evidence tampering.
With the help of Richard Ryland, they manage to all dodge being arrested unwittingly, but not without having to pay extra as they cannot seem to win over the trust of the local police due to a previous case that they assisted in solving 9 years prior.
As they had only taken some days to leave, they decided that it was best that the wives return home, and the men remain to cover the story of the retired journalist, now-murdered Walter Jerome.
What happened next, send them to another murder scene, on an additional piece of property located at Chappaquiddick, Edgartown. The victim, being Teddy Brewster, who was a seasonal squatter, stayed on the land as agreed with the Late Walter Jerome, in exchange for fresh fish.
Things get stranger when both men die of the same method, but they do not have much else in common as other than no one had a motive to kill either of the Old Men.
As Dave, Al, and Mitch try and sort through the motive, they have to dodge the raging storm, uninterested police, nagging journalists, and hopefully not get killed in the process as no one knew who the killers were. That is until they decide to check on money trails and it leads them to face some interesting and harrowing ordeals that eventually get the murders solved.
I enjoyed the way the book was set out and was easy to follow. In some areas, it was a bit predictive, but then there would be a twist that sent it on an alternative route.
There was not much bad language and the sexual context was light in a loving way with no explicit scenes being described, other than the odd scene of nudity, that was I feel required to be described so the reader can get a feel of the awkwardness of the situation at hand.
The errors were minimal and made for pleasant reading. I would rate the book 4 out of 4
******
Arsenic and Old Men
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Arsenic and Old Men by the author Glenn Ickler is a new addition to 13 previously published by this author.
This book is set in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, known as the playground for millionaires at their vacation cottages. Most of the cottages are of the vintage of 19th-century and are Victoria-styled homes.
The book introduces you to David Jerome (aka Dave) and his wife, Cindy Jerome, who take a vacation with their long-time friends, Alan Jeffrey (aka Al) and his wife, Carole Jeffrey, as well as Warren Mitchell (aka Mitch), and his wife, Martha Todd. The friends join them for moral support as this vacation will include Dave and Cindy having to visit Dave’s late Uncle Walter Jerome’s lawyer, Richard Rylander, to claim his inheritance as the sole living relative of Walter Jerome, who apparently died of a suspected heart attack.
Once they all arrive in Martha’s Vineyard, the holiday starts off well for the weekend, until they return home on Monday mid-day, to find that the police have cordoned off the whole property that is now officially a crime scene.
The fun starts, with the police thinking that the cat of Carole Jeffrey gets almost taken as evidence. Everyone is in a bit of a panic as they realize now that that the Late Uncle Walter Jerome was now murdered and they are either all classified as suspects or may get arrested for evidence tampering.
With the help of Richard Ryland, they manage to all dodge being arrested unwittingly, but not without having to pay extra as they cannot seem to win over the trust of the local police due to a previous case that they assisted in solving 9 years prior.
As they had only taken some days to leave, they decided that it was best that the wives return home, and the men remain to cover the story of the retired journalist, now-murdered Walter Jerome.
What happened next, send them to another murder scene, on an additional piece of property located at Chappaquiddick, Edgartown. The victim, being Teddy Brewster, who was a seasonal squatter, stayed on the land as agreed with the Late Walter Jerome, in exchange for fresh fish.
Things get stranger when both men die of the same method, but they do not have much else in common as other than no one had a motive to kill either of the Old Men.
As Dave, Al, and Mitch try and sort through the motive, they have to dodge the raging storm, uninterested police, nagging journalists, and hopefully not get killed in the process as no one knew who the killers were. That is until they decide to check on money trails and it leads them to face some interesting and harrowing ordeals that eventually get the murders solved.
I enjoyed the way the book was set out and was easy to follow. In some areas, it was a bit predictive, but then there would be a twist that sent it on an alternative route.
There was not much bad language and the sexual context was light in a loving way with no explicit scenes being described, other than the odd scene of nudity, that was I feel required to be described so the reader can get a feel of the awkwardness of the situation at hand.
The errors were minimal and made for pleasant reading. I would rate the book 4 out of 4
******
Arsenic and Old Men
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks by Morton E Tavel, MD
