Death Comes Too Soon
Patricia Harrington
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 PublishAmerica
ISBN: 1413777082

Bridget O'Hern goes to the Oregon coast to work a little & finds foul play.

After her 23 year marriage ends disastrously, Bridget has every intention of seeking her bliss. She lives in St. Mary's Corner, a small town halfway between Seattle & Portland, & has a just finished testifying in the Hahn Ly murder case & completed a project for the Wilhelm Foundation. A time out would be welcomed.

The high-pitched voice & breathless rush of words could only belong to one person: Beverly Tilton. Her image popped up right away: model-slim, thirty-ish & long, straight blonde hair. She was an artist who painted boldly, lived impetuously, & didn't do anything in pastel. She had an intensity that wore out those close to her, & she ran a bed-&-breakfast in Seaview, Oregon.

     “We've got a problem... come down right now... check out what's going on... cut through the crap... find out why the art league's losing money...”
     “Exactly what is it that you want me to do?”
     “Snoop around.” Bev laughed. “Stay at my B&B... it'll be on me... four days...”

Visions of warm sand & white-foamed waves dance in Bridget's head. It was summer time, Bev's B&B was a couple of blocks from the ocean, & her invitation was enticing.

Bridget looks down at Narvik, a Norwegian Elkhound & her best friend, lying at her feet, head cocked & intelligent brown eyes watching closely. She'd followed the whole conversation. Bridget could see her thinking: “The games a-foot, Watson!”

So Bridget sets off in her 1964 T-Bird, with Narvik, to the seaside to see how George Harris, the executive director of the Oregon Coast Art League, is living high off the hog, on a salary that couldn't possibly support it.

All is not quite as it seems nor rosy in Bev's life, as Bridget soon observes: her friend has alarming mood swings; there's a much too solicitous husband; trouble about wanting children; lies, drugs & secrets lurking between two married couples, & a domineering doyen of the Art League with an impeccable past & particular ideas about everything -- even whom her son could marry. There are locals with shady pasts & a lot of anger just below the surface. & then there's the beachside party to prepare for.

Bridget's investigation suddenly explodes after a suspicious fatal accident at the beachside party, & the interim police chief reluctantly requests her help.

Death Comes Too Soon is an atmospheric mystery set in a lovely part of the world, with a host of very real people with equally real problems... each with their own reasons for wanting Bev out of the picture. & Narvik, the enchanting four-legged friend who takes Bridget on all sorts of adventures. & along the way, this empty-nester finds something to excite her.

More from Patricia Harrington: Death Stalks the Khmer
(09/11/05)

Rebecca