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Loading... Dangerous Undertakingby Mark De Castrique
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. The first chapter with the funeral scene remains as the best opening I have enjoyed. The story, told by Barry Clayton, unfolds in the North Carolina mountains. In this short novel, the characters dominant the pages from the circuit preacher, Lester Pace, to the reclusive liquor maker, Talmadge Watson; and many minor characters throughout the story. The weather, greed, and family loyalty greatly factor into the story. I have read both series by Mark de Castrique, but Barry Clayton pulls me into the story of the problems and heartaches that control our existence. Mark de Castrique softly hints of the encroachment of business into the freedom of rural life. First I want to say that I read this off and on and it made it a bit hard to follow. So I had to go back a few times which is always tedious. But that was not the book's fault. The mystery is very good. I really liked Barry and the other characters in the book. I thought the depiction of North Carolina hill folks was good if a bit over the top. AI did get the feeling I was right there, and I have relatives who fit into this category. So I am planning to read the next book because I think I will really enjoy it if I don't take so long to read it. Burying Barry Clayron, who was thus nick-named in high school because his family were the local undertakers, left his job in the Charlotte, North Carolina Police Department to return home to help his father. Having been diagnosed with Alzeimer's Barry's dad could no longer keep on working. Despite his lack of enthusiasm for the profession Barry has picked up the slack and is helping his mother and uncle when he almost has the need for a coffin himself as he barely dodges bullets at a funeral. Barry joins the police in the hunt for this killer in an interesting mystery which takes place in rural North Carolina. I am ;poking forward to the next in the series, GRAVE UNDERTAKING. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to Series
Barry Clayton has a job he doesn't want. When his father became stricken with Alzheimer's, Barry left the Charlotte police force for the small mountain community of Gainesboro, North Carolina, where his family runs the local funeral home. "Buryin' Barry" reluctantly assumed the mantle of town undertaker, trying to fit his life into this somber profession. Almost at once it turns deadly. At the graveside service for an elderly woman, a grieving grandson strides in clad like Clint Eastwood in a duster, rips out a shotgun, and murders his family. Then the shooter turns the weapon on Barry. "Take a message to my grandmother," Dallas Willard shouts. "Tell her they tried to take the land. Tell her I love her." The blast hits Barry in the shoulder. Barry is not cut from the same black cloth as his father, and his irreverent wit and independence have already won him the friendship of the county sheriff, one-eyed war hero Tommy Lee Wadkins. Besides, Barry's a police pro. Trusting his wounds to the hands of local surgeon Susan Miller, Barry begins a search for both the killer and the reason for his crime. It isn't long before a second shooting occurs - but when Dallas Willard's body is discovered at the bottom of a quarry pond, it becomes clear that Gainesboro is caught in the grip of something more than a deadly family quarrel... No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Barry, a former police officer, is pulled into a murder investigation when a gunman stalks into a funeral, killing his brother and sister and shooting Barry.
This is a good start to a new series. A series based on a mountain Sheriff and an undertaker who combine forces to find a killer. The characters have become my friends. The dialogue flows from the page with a hint of suspense. I enjoyed this book. ( )