This was the first book I had read by Margot Arnold, and it was an underwhelming experience. The secondary characters were confusing; I had trouble keeping them straight. This was probably because none of them had much personality. Too many one-dimensional men, too many wishy-washy women. The dialogue was often stilted. There were some silly subplots, such as one of the non-entities' husbands running off with a farmer's daughter and his prize bull. This was near the end of the book, and neither the aggrieved farmer, the trampy daughter or the bull had even been mentioned before. However, since I could barely remember who the runaway husband was or what his story was, I didn't care. Just blah. This one is being registered & released on BookCrossing in the hope that it finds a reader who likes it better than I did. ( )

The book opens with Penny wondering what to do over her summer vacation. Just as she's making up her mind, she gets a phone call from an old college friend inviting her to stay with her in a Scottish castle. Penny is happy enough to go, but it turns out that the friend is counting on her to investigate the mysterious sounds and events around the castle. She thinks it must be supernatural in origin, but Penny is convinced it's a more tangible force at work. And when a neighboring landowner is murdered, Penny is sure she's right. She enlists Sir Toby's help and the action is underway.

I like this one as a change from their usual adventure. Plenty of suspects. Not their very best, but still a good read.

CMB ( )