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EVAN'S GATE
by Rhys Bowen
St Martin's Minotaur, April 2004
272 pages
$23.95
ISBN: 0312301146


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

This is an exciting time in Evan Evans' life. He is no longer stuck in the Llanfair police substation. He finished his training course and has moved to the plain-clothes division and is now Detective Constable Evans. Happily, Evan has been assigned to follow his friend Detective Inspector Watkins.

Evans and Watkins are currently investigating the disappearance of five-year-old Ashley Sholokhov. Ashley's parents are separated. The authorities hope her father has abducted her rather than something more sinister happening to this young child.

Evan and his fiance, Bronwen Price, have been looking for a place to live after their wedding. They've found an old shepherd's cottage they want to renovate, but they have to get permission from the National Parks Authority. One of the things Evan must do is dig out the water line so that it can be checked. While digging, he uncovers the skeleton of a young child. Evan believes the skeleton belongs to Sarah Bosley-Thomas who disappeared when Evan was a youngster. Evan believes there must be some connection between the two girls.

EVAN'S GATE is the eighth novel in the cozy mystery series by Rhys Bowen featuring Evan Evans. The previous novels provide a wonderfully solid and convincing background for Evan. He has grown into an immensely likable and sympathetic character. In this novel, we learn more about Evans' childhood and it plays a significant role in solving the case of one of the missing girls.

Fans of the series will be delighted to see the return of some of the independent, slightly dingy characters living in Llanfair. Characters like Betsy, the bar girl at the Red Dragon Pub, Evans-the-Meat, Mr. Owens-the-Sheep and Roberts-the-Pump. Llanfair is a small, close knit Welsh community and Bowen uses a gentle humor when describing them.

Writing and reading about missing children can be very difficult. Bowen writes with language that is simple, straightforward and sensitive. There is a comforting rhythm in EVAN'S GATE as Bowen seesaws back and forth between the stories of the two girls.

If you are looking for a police procedural, this book is not for you. The police make an assumption at the beginning of the novel that I believe a real police investigation would not have made. If, however, you are a cozy mystery fan, then I highly recommend EVAN'S GATE. Rhys Bowen won the Agatha for best historical mystery of the year for MURPHY'S LAW, her debut novel in a new series set in New York City.

Reviewed by Lane Wright, April 2004

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