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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN num: 9780425201985
ISBN number: 0425201988
Label: Berkley
Manufacturer: Berkley
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 304
Printing Date: April 05, 2005
Publishing house: Berkley
Release Date: April 05, 2005
Sale Popularity Level: 96566
Studio: Berkley
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Product Description:
Welsh constable Evan Evans has found the most delightful shepherd's cottage, but before he seals the deal, a five-year-old vanishes from a seaside caravan park--and he must consider all the suspects. But he can't help wondering if the abduction is related to the disappearance of another girl, twenty-five years ago. Now, as he and his fiancée try to build their dream house, he must also build a difficult case against a possible double murderer.
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Rated by buyers 
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This book was grotesque. And here is why - our constable training to be a detective, without any hardcore facts or scientific evidence, confronts a family about their missing daughter/sibling and informs them that in all likelihood he has found her body. He does this on a hunch and at a party!
No forensics at this point has confirmed the identification. Personally, in any police force across the world he would have been quickly demoted and kicked to the curb for improperly approaching the family without going through his superiors. Bowen also has her facts all screwed up about how the police give information to the media - it's done only by an appointed Public Relations officer, not one of run-of-the-mill detectives.
Next they bring the family to identify a skeleton? Obviously this author knows nothing, absolutely nothing, about how the police force works. I am sure even in small Wales, they have procedure and I can make you a bet it goes something like this: when the girl went missing a file was formed giving any relevant, identifying information, including dental. If no dental, broken bones etc... then the only positive identification that would be accepted in this day and age would be DNA no matter how "expensive" Ms. Bowen thinks it is. In no way shape or form would the family be brought in to look at an unidentified skeleton and then trotted off to have their mouths swabbed for DNA!
The police came across as idiots and unfeeling throughout the entire book. And Evan? Does he inform his fiancee that he found a body and then shows any second thoughts living in a house where a body of girl he used to know was found? Heck no. He's too busy hanging out at the pub or running off to tell the girl's family members they might be suspects.
And it only gets worse from there. The side mystery of the newly missing girl is grossly apparent from page one when it is introduced. To compare this story to the works of Agatha Christie is laughable. All you have to do is read the statements of the people he interviews about the weather and you know from the beginning what is really happening. Extremely weak.
Sorry folks go read Hamish Macbeth if you want something that will actually make you think instead of laugh or throw the book against the wall.
P.S. and it's an old wives tale that sucking your thumb gives you buck teeth - but this one of the methods of identifying a skeleton! MY GOD let's hope I never die in Wales!
Rated by buyers 
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Evan's Gate
Rhys Bowen
I pick up one of Rhys Bowen's "Evan" mysteries whenever I'm in need of a fairly quick relaxing read. I know I can rely on this writer, and this series, to give me a thoroughly professional job of writing. Plot, characters, pacing, setting - all are very first rate, but unless you are reviewing the book you don't even notice any of them, they're that good.
Evan, the Welsh policeman, bridges the two worlds, the ancient Celtic culture of Wales and the trendy life in the present day British Isles. He is most at home in the Welsh culture of yesteryear but his work and his life demand that he keep up with changing times. Many of us feel for him in this dilemma.
In this story the apparent abduction of a little girl resonates with Evan as the discovery of another child's body on his own land reminds him of another child who disappeared years ago in the area. As he searches for the present day missing child he wonders ever more deeply about the other child. Are there any links here? Could one of his childhood friends possibly be the murderer of one, or both little girls?
As you relax and enjoy the gentle tongue-in-cheek humour of Rhys Bowen you are led into much deeper waters than you expected. Very gently she presents both sides of child custody battles. Evan's quest to locate the missing child leads to his personal journey of self-discovery. The final resolution, Evan's realization of who might be responsible for the child's body found lying near his own new home, digs deeper than you might expect from an apparently light read.
I enjoyed this book thoroughly. On the one hand it was an easy read, the settings well drawn, the characters vivid and true to life, the writing fresh. On the other hand it left me thinking more deeply. The writer appealed to her readers on several levels and left at least this reader satisfied. Not many light mystery novels accomplish so much.
Rated by buyers -
8th in the Constable Evan Evans series. Ashley Sholokhov has disappeared from the beach while on vacation with her mother. Many search parties are on the case looking for the missing 5 year old, but the biggest discrepancy, in Evan's mind, is the lack of footprints in the sand around where Ashley was playing. Elsewhere in the area there is a birthday party in the works, celebrating the 80th birthday of Tomos Thomas. Unfortunately the missing Ashley brings an old case to the forefront of Evan's attention - the disappearance of Sarah, Tomos's granddaughter and Evan's playmate, who went missing 20 years ago. Now all the suspects have returned to the area and another child is missing. Evan works the case, although adjusting to his position in the Plainclothes Division is not as easy as it would seem. The story lines have the reader wondering how the puzzle will end.
Rated by buyers -
This series never fails to please. It covers the quirkiness and foibles of a Welsh village with the help of a good plot line and the very likeable Evan Evans.
The author has the talent to make you care about the characters and what happens to them.
Rated by buyers 
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The Evan Evans series is a much admired set of "cozy" mysteries, and I've enjoyed each one of them, reading them in order--something I'd encourage any new reader to do. The wonderful characterizations, carried over from book to book, and the strong sense of place which pulls the reader into the small Welsh villge, combine with excellent plotting to make the books very first class. But, I hate to confess, this eighth book of the series has what I think of as a major flaw in any mystery; some serious "pulling of punches." Earlier reviews by other readers have mentioned much of the plot, and I of course wish to spoil no one's fun, so I can't really explain my objection well. The problem is, what do we have the "right" to expect, as devoted readers and fans of mysteries? I felt a little cheated in this book and was surprised that Ms Bowen bent her own rules somewhat, perhaps moving the center of our interest from mystery to romance or something like it. By all means, read the book for its wonderful characters and the ongoing playing out of Evan's personal life, but be prepared if you're a hard-core mystery lover--you'll grumble a little when you're finished.
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