Of Deadly Descent - New Edition (Alex & Briggie Mysteries Book 2)

G. G. Vandagriff

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Lists with This Book. Apr 19, Laura rated it really liked it.

Genealogy, premeditated murder, the Atonement and Oxford, England. An eclectic mix to be sure, but one that makes for a very satisfying reading experience. They are professional genealogists. Alex Genealogy, premeditated murder, the Atonement and Oxford, England. I like the mix of genealogy and mystery in this series of books.

Vandagriff does a nice job, I think, of blending concepts of faith, recognizable by LDS readers, with the elements of a basic who-done-it. In this particular episode in the adventures of Alex and Briggy , Alex, who is a fledgling in her newly found faith, begins to understand how the Atonement has meaning and application in her life.

I found the passage where Alex comes to this precious understanding touching and nicely described by Vandagriff. It was a pleasant interlude in the middle of this tale of deception, greed, and madness. Jul 27, Jeanette rated it it was ok Shelves: In this sequel to Cankered Roots, Alex and Briggie are in England to track down Alex's long lost cousins who don't know that they might be heirs to a rather large inheritance left by Alex's Grandfather. Shortly after arriving in England, Alex's new found cousins start turning up dead and of course, someone is after Alex as well. I don't want to say this is the most enjoyable of the 3 novels by G.

Vandagriff that I read because I don't know that I really enjoyed any of them. It was the one that In this sequel to Cankered Roots, Alex and Briggie are in England to track down Alex's long lost cousins who don't know that they might be heirs to a rather large inheritance left by Alex's Grandfather.

It was the one that had me rolling my eyes the least. Like Cankered Roots, the characters were poorly developed and flat. Only this time there were too many and I did not want to make the effort to try and keep track of all the characters when I did not really care about them. The ending was not very believable and the killer's motive was odd and weak.

I found myself skimming over the parts when the characters started talking about religion, not because I have a problem with the topic but because it just did not fit in and made the story even more choppy. I like a good mystery and while this one was clean, it was not very entertaining. Sep 20, Peg rated it liked it. I originally read this not realizing it was part of a series. I couldn't put my finger on the problem, but I was clearly uncomfortable with the characters and the quite unlikely plot. Having found out it was part of a series, I obtained and read the first one, Cankered Roots.

That quickly explained a lot of things that didn't make sense in this book. I then quickly re-read this one in order to keep the flow of the storyline before jumping into the third work.

Now all of a sudden, my previous dis I originally read this not realizing it was part of a series. Now all of a sudden, my previous discomfort was gone. The characters were now believable, and the storyline made more sense.

Of Deadly Descent

There are a handful of works in a series that don't necessarily require one to read them in order. This one isn't one of those in my opinion, and the publisher would have done themselves a great service to make that more clear to the reader. Instead, on the back cover, they simply mention that Vandagriff is the author of Cankered Roots, not that Cankered Roots was the first in a series of which this is the second.

All that said, I am now enjoying this book much more. Sep 07, Annabeth rated it it was ok. I read the first couple of chapters, could tell it was going to be a doozy, skipped to the last few chapters, and finished it up. And I skipped the wife's cousin's dead neice's great-aunt's second marriage web. I don't even remember who-done-it. Nov 08, Rebecca rated it liked it Shelves: May 18, Chris rated it liked it. Fun mystery but the main character was not as likeable in this book. Mar 25, Marci rated it liked it.

After solving Alex's family's first pedigree problem, Alex and her genealogy business partner, Briggie, go to France to continue the puzzle in the pedigree. They find a number of cousins and Alex serves once again as a catalyst for murder, which she must solve with Briggie's help and that of her boyfriend's father. A new romantic interest is introduced, along with complicating factors that have to do with Alex's Mormon faith, neither of which I welcomed in this book series, mostly because I foun After solving Alex's family's first pedigree problem, Alex and her genealogy business partner, Briggie, go to France to continue the puzzle in the pedigree.

A new romantic interest is introduced, along with complicating factors that have to do with Alex's Mormon faith, neither of which I welcomed in this book series, mostly because I found them a distraction to the plot. I really liked the setting in this one--I love Oxford, England, having spent a lot of time visiting relatives there, and also being on my own there. I visited France only briefly, but I really liked the towns we drove through and stayed in, and this was quite evocative of that pleasant time. I liked it that the author's writing style is smoothing out.

I like the characters, so maybe my disagreement with including Alex's inner life is not justified--but only if I am the target audience. Perhaps that is the key--these books are written specifically for the Mormon-genealogist-murder-mystery-lovers audience. Jan 21, Trisha rated it it was amazing Shelves: Alex and Briggie go to France and then to Oxford, on the track of cousins Alex discovered in Cankered Roots who will possibly disinherit her.

They scarcely arrive in Oxford before one of her cousins is killed. Did it have anything to do with their search? If so, who even knew they were coming? While trying to answer these questions, they uncover among her relatives a number of secrets someone would kill for. In the midst of her sleuthing, Alex attracts the attention of Ch Synopsis: In the midst of her sleuthing, Alex attracts the attention of Charles Lamb, an impossibly handsome bachelor who is used to having women fall at his feet.

Aug 21, Kimberly Fields rated it liked it Shelves: Of Deadly Descent takes Alex to new terrain-- Oxfordshire, England-- where she continues to work on uncovering her family history, and in the process, becomes entangled in another murder. This was a worthy sequel to Cankered Roots. The new setting was interesting, as were the new characters. I did start to wonder just how many deep dark secrets one family can have, but I enjoyed the story nonetheless. A fun new genealogy mystery. Jan 03, Susan rated it it was amazing. The story picks right up following "Cankered Roots". Alex and Briggie have been hired to follow the trail of Joe Cuendet and find his heirs.

They learn that the Cuendet family has their own geneologist, Philippa, and make arrangements to meet her in Oxford. The day they arrive is also the day Philippa is murdered. Once again Alex and Briggie must solve the mystery using their research skills. Scarry moments as Alex learns the truth. Jan 09, Mashell rated it really liked it Shelves: I really enjoyed this book.

The mystery was intriguing and kept me guessing until the very end. This is actually book 2 of 3 in this series, written by an LDS author. The reason I gave it four stars is because there are parts where the author includes spiritual beliefs among some of the character's conversations.

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Even though her and I believe the same, I felt it detracted from the story. Nov 01, Terry rated it really liked it.

If you enjoy mystery, tied in with history, you should enjoy any books written by this author. Plus her books are very clean. I always think that the sign of a good author is someone who can write a book that keeps the reader's attention without a bunch of smut and coarse language--anyone can do that stuff!

Dec 28, Kay rated it really liked it.

I enjoyed the 2nd book in this series. A murder occurs and they are again in danger as they find out more and more of Alex's genealogy. Once again I enjoyed the link to the LDS church.

Nov 21, Chrystal rated it really liked it Shelves: This book reminded me a little of Clue. Customers who bought this item also bought. Page 1 of 1 Start over Page 1 of 1. A Jane Madden genealogical mystery.

Product description

A Jayne Sinclair Genealogical Mystery. Product description Product Description Alexandra Campbell is a thirty-something widow whose husband, Stewart, died in a terrorist plane crash. Kindle Edition File Size: Orson Whitney Press 31 August Sold by: Amazon Australia Services, Inc.

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item? Share your thoughts with other customers. Write a customer review. Most helpful customer reviews on Amazon. I don't like to be proselytized by the Mormon church. The stories themselves are fine though the technology is quite dated at this point. The formatting for the kindle is terrible. I don't know if the original books have as many typos and formatting problems as what I'm seeing on the kindle but I sincerely hope those issues were caused by the creation of the electronic version.

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