LemonSky reviewed 13 white tulips. by Frances Crane
Review of '13 white tulips.' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
A fun mystery that is made even better by the presence of the Abbotts' dachshund, Pancho (love that name!). Ms Crane must have been a dog lover and been familiar with dachshunds in particular for Pancho really comes to life. He is definitely one of the more interesting characters in this novel. (I'm a dog lover, can you tell?)
The story starts with Jean Abbott noticing a very stylishly dressed young woman walking down the street. As always, she takes particular note of the young lady's clothes, especially her hat and bag. Pancho, too, seems very interested in the young woman and watches her until she disappears. It is only later that Jean learns the young woman is Leonora "Lee" Strehl, wife of a famous surgeon and chief suspect in the murder of Jack Ivers, a man-about-town that Mrs Strehl finds dead in his bed.
"Life is full of coincidences, …
A fun mystery that is made even better by the presence of the Abbotts' dachshund, Pancho (love that name!). Ms Crane must have been a dog lover and been familiar with dachshunds in particular for Pancho really comes to life. He is definitely one of the more interesting characters in this novel. (I'm a dog lover, can you tell?)
The story starts with Jean Abbott noticing a very stylishly dressed young woman walking down the street. As always, she takes particular note of the young lady's clothes, especially her hat and bag. Pancho, too, seems very interested in the young woman and watches her until she disappears. It is only later that Jean learns the young woman is Leonora "Lee" Strehl, wife of a famous surgeon and chief suspect in the murder of Jack Ivers, a man-about-town that Mrs Strehl finds dead in his bed.
"Life is full of coincidences, of course, and it was just one more that Leonora Strehl should be the girl in dusty pink who had walked out of that patch of fog. I glanced at the clock. Two hours and five minutes ago, at half-past eleven, this girl walked past our house. Because of her, I had a new hat. And now I knew why Pancho had watched her like that. It was because she was upset. Dogs observe such things because of their keen sense of smell and their superhuman intuition. To me, when she passed our gate, she was just a pretty woman in a dusty pink coat, with handsome Benedictine accessories and a new flowery hat. But to Pancho she was a worried woman. Worry has its own smell."
And Leonora Strehl has a great deal to be worried about.
The most memorable person in the book is Grace Strehl Harrison, Leonora's sister-in-law, who is by far the most obnoxious, downright horrible character Ms Crane ever created. By contrast, her brother, Dr Strehl, is inconsistent at best. I never understood him or his motivations.
This is one Abbott mystery that I did not figure out who did it. I was pretty surprised by who the killer turned out to be. I also liked the detail of the tulips, especially where the white ones came from.
This Abbott mystery isn't as good as [b:The Man in Gray|18217365|The Man in Gray|Frances Crane|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1374323771s/18217365.jpg|18136890] or [b:Death In Lilac Time|21950510|Death In Lilac Time|Frances Crane|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1397921981s/21950510.jpg|17036066], but it is an entertaining and fun read.