The Lost Years (originale 2012; edizione 2012)

Biblical Professor Jonathan Lyons has discovered a parchment which he believes to be a letter written from Jesus to Joseph of Arimathea. However, before he can return to the parchment to the Vatican Library, he is murdered – shot dead in his own study. The Police believe that his wife Kathleen, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease is responsible, as it was known that she was jealous about his affair with another woman. However, the couple’s daughter Mariah refuses to believe that this could be the case and sets out to find out the truth. Who would really want to kill Professor Lyons, and why? And where is the mysterious document that he talked about to his friends?

This is the first book I have read by Mary Higgins Clark, and will almost certainly be my last. It may not have been a good choice of hers to read (I have read reviews by fans of Higgins Clark, who have said that this is not one of her best), but it has pretty much put me off venturing further with her novels.

Don’t get me wrong – I actually quite enjoyed parts of it, and it’s certainly a book that doesn’t require too much thinking, but even while reading it, I found myself shaking my head and thinking what a load of hokum.

There was very little characterisation – there was nothing particularly distinctive about any of Richard’s close circle of friends, around whom much of the story revolves. The only characters who were quite distinctive were Mariah’s friends Alvirah and Willy – and frankly, Alvirah was a complete nightmare. I would imagine that she would be a neighbour from hell, going around recording people’s conversations on a brooch that was really a microphone, and sticking in her nose everywhere. (I can’t imagine that this was even remotely realistic; I am sure that the Police would have told her to stop interfering with their investigation, as she seemed to be doing more enquiry and investigation work than they were!) I am told that these characters have appeared in previous novels by this author, which is another reason no to read them.

So overall, while this was not a book I hated, I certainly couldn’t say that it was a good or believable read – I was unable to care about any of the characters, even remotely! Higgins Clark is a hugely popular author, and certainly doesn’t need my recommendation, which is fortunate, because I am not able to give it. ( )

Time for Mary Higgins Clark to stop writing. Her once unputadownable mysteries are nothing special. I feel like she has a formula and just plugs in some new details and creates a new novel. The Lost Years is a bit of this and a bit of that which amounts to zip, zero, nadda.

My once guilty pleasure read of a Mary Higgins Clark mystery has come to an end. I am certainly glad that I borrowed the past 2 from the library and next time I'll pass on that idea too. ( )

As usually Mary Higgins Clark keeps you guessing, she really is the queen of suspense. From the description I was afraid it would be different than her usual works (or too Dan Brown-y) but it wasn’t it was another great mystery/suspense and with the bonus of Alvirah who was not even mentioned in the synopsis which I don’t understand, I am a fan of Alvirah so was happy when her and Willie showed up!

Yes there is a supposed letter/parchment written by Jesus but as I said it doesn’t go into a big church cover-up type story. When biblical scholar Jonathan is murdered, police think his wife, who has Alzheimer’s, is the culprit but where is this parchment and why are all Jonathan’s friends lying about it? Also Jonathan had a mistress what is her part in all this?

This one had me guessing and second guessing all the way through, but that’s the beauty of MHC’s writing. As always she writes a good mystery. These are hard to review because you don’t want to spoil it for anyone and the way MCH always makes everyone a suspect I don’t want to say too much and give it way! Suffice it to say if you’re a fan of Mary Higgins Clark you’ll like it if you’ve never given her a chance she has a great selection of stand-alone books pick one you won’t be disappointed. I also highly recommend her books on audio with the majority of them read by Jan Maxwell.

Jan Maxwell always does a great job on MCH’s books her narrations never get stale no matter how many Mary Higgins Clark’s books I’ve heard her narrate. I also just recently found out that Jan Maxwell and I went to the same high school so that was a little small world fun fact!

4 Stars ( )

Read from March 30 to April 09, 2012

Received for Review
Challenges: Audiobook
Overall Rating: 3.75
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 3.50
Audio Rating: 4.00 (Not part of the overall rating)

First Thought when Finished: The epilogue really helped tie everything together!

What I Loved: I will admit that this is my first Mary Higgins Clark book and it won't be my last. I really enjoyed MHC's story telling ability. I loved how she took what seemed like an open/shut case and had enough twists/turns to make it interesting. Not a single character was just good or bad but full of shades of grey. That is always fun to read in a mystery. My favorite part was the lottery winning couple! They cracked me up at times!

What I Liked: Mary Higgins Clark did a good job of weaving everyone's stories together in a way that made them connected but not necessarily friends. While there were times I questioned the motivation behind certain characters thoughts by the end I was convinced that they acted accordingly. The mystery itself was interesting enough but don't think it is like a wide sweeping DaVinci Code. This mystery is about a murder and I think you will enjoy it more if you remember that!

What made me go huh?: I loved the lottery winning couple but I was amazed at often the police let them interfere. In the real world, I have a feeling the police would have put the hammer down on that pretty quickly.

Audio Review: Jan Maxwell did an excellent job with the rhythm and pace of the story. I would listen to a book read by her again.

Final Thoughts: This was a good murder mystery that was perfect for a weekend listen while working! ( )

This was a pretty good tale spun by a veteran storyteller. The book starts out slow but quickly picks up in pace. It's nice to see old favorites like Alvirah and Willy Meehan. Clark does a good job keeping everyone's plates spinning and tying up all the loose ends. ( )