Book Review: The Silver Anniversary Murder

Reviewed By: Pat Reid - RAM

[3 stars]

The Silver Anniversary Murder Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Lee Harris
Class/Genre: Mystery Woman Main Character Religious Fiction Cozy
Series: Chris Bennett # 16
Fawcett Books, 2005, 245 pps.

“A body will be found later today.” Imagine if you are a wife and mother and pick up your phone to hear a message like this. What would you do? Probably known of us would do what Christine Bennett did and that was leave the phone off the hook and drive to the nearest police station and bring a detective back with her to attempt to trace the number. But then Christine Bennett is not just an ordinary housewife. She lives with her husband who is a police Lieutenant and her little boy Eddie. Christine was educated by the nuns affiliated with St. Stephen’s college and took vows as a Franciscan nun. Christine met her future husband a few weeks after being released from her vows.

Christine has a history of helping the police department with solving crimes. That seems to be the reason for the phone call. Someone wishing to get Christine involved in a crime that had happened or was going to happen.

Christine follows Detective Palermo to the residence where the phone is located after he successfully traces the call due to Christine being alert enough not to hang up the phone.

The apartment is vacant and no bodies are found but the bodies eventually do turn up and Christine is off to help the police determine the identity of the couple who are found. It turns out they have more than one identity and the mystery deepens.

I found this to be an easy read, an enjoyable cozy although unbelievable. It is hard to believe that any police department would share information with a citizen who is not a member of the police ranks. But share they did and maybe they should do this more often and crimes would be uncovered at a faster rate.

In any event, I would like to read more Lee Harris novels and intend to do just that.

Pat Reid - RAM

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Pat Reid - RAM