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As She Left It

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As She Left It

Hardcover(Large Print)

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Hardcover(Large Print)
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Overview

A 2014 Anthony Award Winner

When she was twelve years old, Opal Jones escaped her mother's endless drinking. Now, returning to their small Leeds cottage after her mum's death, Opal feels like she's gone back in time. Nosey Mrs. Pickess is still polishing her windows to a sparkle. Fishbo, Opal's ancient music teacher, still plays trumpet with his band. And much to Opal's delight, her favorite neighbor, Margaret Reid, still keeps an eye on things from the walk in front of her house.

But a tragedy has struck Mote Street. Margaret's grandson, Craig, disappeared some ten years ago, and every day he's not found, shame and sorrow settle deeper into the neighborhood's forgotten corners. As the door she closed on her own dark past begins to open, Opal uncovers more secrets than she can bear about the people who were once her friends.

Praise:

Winner of the 2014 Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original

Winner of the 2013 Gold ForeWord IndieFab Award for Mystery

Named one of Kirkus Reviews'"Best Books of 2013"

"The creator of Dandy Gilver...has produced a stand-alone that is worlds apart, a fascinating, mysterious ramble you can't put down."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Dark, absorbing, contemporary stand-alone."—Publishers Weekly

"[A] captivating stand-alone from the author of the Dandy Gilver mystery series."—Booklist

"McPherson has crafted a tale that is both suspenseful and poignant. I wanted to cheer for Opal one second and hug her the next."—Eileen Rendahl, author of The Messenger Novels

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781410462367
Publisher:	Gale Group
Publication date:	10/30/2013
Edition description:	Large Print
Pages:	459
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Catriona McPherson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is the author of several standalone novels for Midnight Ink. She is a four-time winner of the Lefty Award, three-time winner of the Macavity Award, two-time winner of the Agatha Award, and two-time winner of the Anthony Award. Additionally, she has been a finalist or shortlist honoree for more than a dozen major awards. Catriona also writes the Dandy Gilver historical mystery series (Minotaur/Thomas Dunne Books). She is the past president of Sisters in Crime and a member of Mystery Writers of America. She lives in Davis, California.

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Editorial Reviews

British author McPherson takes a break from her Danny Gilver cozy series (After the Armistice Ball, etc.) with this dark, absorbing, contemporary stand-alone. After her alcoholic mother’s death, 25-year-old Opal Jones returns to gritty Mote Street in Leeds, England, where she grew up. There she encounters many of the same people she knew at age 12 when she left home. When Opal learns that three-year-old Craig Southgate, whom she used to babysit, disappeared shortly after Opal’s departure from Leeds, she resolves to find out what happened to him. Opal discovers that everyone in the old neighborhood has a secret—even elderly Mr. Gordon, the New Orleans jazz musician known as Fishbo, who taught her to play trumpet. As her own forgotten memories begin to surface in her search for Craig, Opal must summon the courage to face some hard truths about her own past. Agent: Lisa Moylett, Coombs Moylett Literary Agency. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Winner of the 2014 Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original

Winner of the 2013 Gold ForeWord IndieFab Award for Mystery

Named one of Kirkus Reviews'"Best Books of 2013"

"The creator of Dandy Gilver...has produced a stand-alone that is worlds apart, a fascinating, mysterious ramble you can't put down."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Dark, absorbing, contemporary stand-alone."—Publishers Weekly

"[A] captivating stand-alone from the author of the Dandy Gilver mystery series."—Booklist

"McPherson has crafted a tale that is both suspenseful and poignant. I wanted to cheer for Opal one second and hug her the next."—Eileen Rendahl, author of The Messenger Novels

From the Publisher

A mystery a young woman finds in her childhood home leads her to revelations about her clouded past. Opal Jones left home at 12 to escape her alcoholic mother's promiscuous lifestyle. Following her mum's death, she returns to Leeds and moves into the family home. The neighbors are much as she remembers, but all is oddly changed by the disappearance of Dennis and Margaret's grandson Craig, whose mother, Karen, no longer speaks to them. The police looked closely at everyone on Mote Street--including Opal's mum, whose boyfriend at the time was Karen's husband--but Craig was never found. Across the street from Opal live nosy Mrs. Pickess, obsessed with cleanliness; Opal's beloved old music teacher Fishbo Gordon and his fellow band member Pep Kendal; and the Joshis family, who run a taxi service. They all seem to be hiding secrets. Opal often hears her next-door neighbor, the only new arrival on Mote Street, sobbing through their adjoining wall. After she finds an odd message written inside an article of furniture, Opal resolves to track down related messages. Her quest takes her to the wealthy Fossett family, whose senile daughter, Norah, is the only occupant of a huge house. As Opal tries to discover what happened to Craig and searches Norah's house for more clues, repressed memories of her own past float up, threatening her and all her old neighbors. The creator of Dandy Gilver (Dandy Gilver and an Unsuitable Day for a Murder, 2012, etc.) has produced a stand-alone that is worlds apart, a fascinating, mysterious ramble you can't put down.

Kirkus Reviews