The House of Seven Mabels (Jane Jeffry Mysteries, No. 13)

by Jill Churchill

Book Overview

"Homemaking" is about to take on a whole new meaning for Jane Jeffry, now that she's agreed to help the prosperouslydivorced Bitsy Burnside restore and redecorate a decrepit old neighborhood mansion.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0380804921
• Release Date: April 2003
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 0.6" x 4.2"

Customer Reviews

Renovations Can Be Murder!

The 13th book in the Jane Jeffrey shows Jane and her best friend Shelley Nowack at work again. These two suburban mothers are asked to help old friend, Bitsy, renovate/redecorate her Victorian home and the two, looking for something to ease their boredom, agree to help. It seems that Bitsy only wants female contractors working on the house, and when Jane and Shelley show up, they realize that the lead contractor is a bit too demanding. When she ends up dead, Jane and Shelley once again are determined to find a killer. Add to this the fact that all of the renovations are going wrong (with a prankster adding to the mess), and Jane again finds herself in a situation she feels she has to "fix".I have enjoyed each of the books in this series more for the relationships between the characters rather than the suspense of the mysteries. This was a good addition to the series, and I like the fact that Jane is becoming more independent (she keeps working on her book) and actually buys herself and her son computers. If Jane would only buy herself a new car, she would be all set! On the whole, I would recommend reading this book if you enjoy cozy mysteries even if you have not read any of the previous books in this series.The first book in this series is "Grime and Punishment". Enjoy!A Cozy Lover

A good read

I enjoyed this book. Jane Jeffrey is a very likeable character. Although I enjoyed some of the other books in the series to this one, this is still a great read!

Quick read, great story.

I'm a new fan of Jill Churchill and the Jane Jeffry Series. I enjoyed the writing and story and the only weaknesses I saw was that I couldn't understand why Jane would continue to go along with Shelly's project when she had such strong reservations. Also, I figured out who the killer was soon after she was introduced (and I guess that's kind of a biggie in a mystery). There were some distracting editing flubs too. But I still liked it enough that I will read the other books in the series. I found a story featuring women in non-traditional businesses appealing. And I appreciated the length. Some seem to feel a book is better the longer it is, no matter how the story drags in some parts. I say get to the point and get it over with. Thank you Miss Churchill.C.M. Miller, author Accrual Way To Die---An Audrey Wilson Mystery

cerebral amateur sleuth

After her husband died, Jane Jeffrey was left to bring up their three children alone. Now her eldest son is in his second year of college while her only daughter is a senior in high school and the youngest child is in ninth grade. She along with her neighbor and best friend Shelley suffer from a form of empty nest syndrome and want to do something interesting with their free time.When Bitsy Burnside contacts them to decorate a dilapidated old Victorian house, Shelly is intrigued and Jane sees the possibilities. However from the first day they enter the house things go wrong. When the contractor is found dead at the bottom of the basement stairs, Jane knows that somebody killed her. However, whom is nearly impossible as the victim was such an obnoxious individual, there is a plenty of suspects. Soon a series of malicious pranks occur and nobody knows who is behind them or if it was the same person who killed the contractor.Anyone who likes a cerebral amateur sleuth novel with little violence will want to read THE HOUSE OF SEVEN MABELS. This is a lighthearted cozy, the perfect book for beach reading. The friends of Jane and Shelly come across as real and believable while the story line is filled with enough unexpected twists and turns to keep readers turning the pages. Jill Churchill imbues her plot with enough humor to have her audience chuckling out loud.Harriet Klausner