Death in Paradise (Henrie O, 4)
Death in Paradise (Henrie O, 4) book cover

Death in Paradise (Henrie O, 4)

Mass Market Paperback – March 1, 1999

by
Price
$13.02
Publisher
William Morrow Paperbacks
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0380790036
Dimensions
4.19 x 0.76 x 6.75 inches
Weight
5.1 ounces

Description

"Hart's laurels need no burnishing but bet on PARADISE for major awards when the lists come out." Washington Times A courageous Pulitzer Prize-winning ex-reporter with an unparalleled talent for deduction, Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins has unraveled some murderous mysteries in the latter years of her long, event-filled life. But this time a killer has struck perilously close to Henrie O's heart. Six years ago, Henrie O's beloved newspaperman husband Richard lost his life on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Now, on a brisk March morning, a chilling message has arrived by Priority Mail claiming Richard's fatal fall from a towering island cliff was no accident -- it was murder. Following cryptic clues and her infallible instincts to a lush and verdant tropical Eden -- and to the lavish mountaintop estate of wealthy matriarch Belle Ericcson, where Richard spent his final days -- the determined sexagenarian sleuth becomes privy to terrible allegations of greed and jealousy, adultery and abuse...and of a mystery surrounding the kidnap-slaying of Belle's eldest child CeeCee. But now that her search for the truth has brought Henrie O to this lethal paradise where giant palm fronds hide evil deeds from inquisitive eyes, she may never be allowed to leave alive. Because the deaths did not begin or end with Richard Collins...and someone's dark and enduring homicidal passions have yet to be fully satisfied. An accomplished master of mystery, Carolyn Hart is the author of twenty previous Death on Demand novels. Her books have won multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards. She is also the creator of the Henrie O series, featuring a retired reporter, and the Bailey Ruth series, starring an impetuous, redheaded ghost. One of the founders of Sisters in Crime, Hart lives in Oklahoma City. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • Six years ago, Henrie O's beloved newspaperman husband Richard lost his life on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Now, on a brisk March morning, a chilling message has arrived by Priority Mail claiming Richard's fatal fall from a towering island cliff was no accident--it was murder. Following cryptic clues and her infallible instincts to a lush and verdant tropical Eden--andto the lavish mountaintop estate of wealthy matriarch Belle Ericcson, where Richard spent his final days--the determined sexagenarian sleuth becoems privy to terrible allegations of greed and jealousy, adultery and abuse...and of a mystery surrounding the kidnap-slaying of Belle's eldes child CeeCee. But now that her search for the truth has brought Henrie O to this lethal paradise where giant palm fronds hide evil deeds from inquisitive eyes, she may never be allowed to leave alive. Because the deaths did no begin or end with Richard Collins...and someone's dark and enduring homicidal passions have yet to be fully satisfied.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
30%
(63)
★★★★
25%
(53)
★★★
15%
(32)
★★
7%
(15)
★
22%
(47)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Henrie O and the Slow Plot

It's been six years since Henrie O's life was shattered by the death of her husband, Richard, in a tragic accident on Kauai. While she has tried her best to move on, there is still a void in her life.

Which is why her world is shattered by a poster she receives in the mail that claims that Richard's death was murder. Unable to let that knowledge go uninvestigated, Henrie starts following his last few days through Dallas to Kauai.

On Kauai, she joins the family of Richard's close friend Belle Ericcson. It was on Belle's estate that Richard took his fatal plunge. And Henrie is beginning to suspect that his death had something to do with the kidnapping and murder of Belle's oldest daughter. Could a member of Belle's family be a killer?

I greatly enjoyed the last book in the series, so I was looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to those standards. It started strong, laying the ground work for the story with plenty of questions. But once the story moved to Kauai, the action stopped. Henrie spent pages analyzing every clue from every possible angle. The good news it is made it easier to keep the multiple to characters straight. Henrie herself came across as weak and over emotional here, not the strong woman we've seen in the previous three books. I realize it was probably more realistic, but it got tiring reading about Henrie's emotions coming to the surface and how she had to fight them to find the killer. We get it already! And the ending was very weak.

If you are new to the author or the series, don't start here. Carolyn Hart is a great mystery writer. She just wrote a clunker here.
5 people found this helpful
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Sorry, not her best.

Henry O visits Hawaii to try to find the cause of her husband's death. There is a conglomeration of characters, way to many for me to keep track of. Too much description of Hawaii's flora and fauna. Too much repetition of facts and events that had already occured. I skipped over a lot of the last several pages just to get this one done.
5 people found this helpful
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Just because you are over 50

doesn't mean you are dead - or worse, boring.
Carolyn Hart's series starring Henrietta O'Dwyer "Henrie O" Collins is an excellent and worthy read. Why?
This mystery series offer great characters with believeable dialogue, nice little plot twists, a kiss of humor, and a heroine - Henry O - who is NOT a gal in her 20's or 30's, with a fast mouth, a clumsy foot always determined to trip over one corpse after another, and a love interest that somehow always seems to elude the final stage of commitment - have any of you noticed just how many mystery novels seem to have this same type of heroine?!?
It is difficult to find truly good mysteries where the main character is actually a woman who is over 50, intelligent, clever, sometimes humorous, and even a little grouchy; yet if you are a true fan of mysteries you will know exactly how terrific it is to stumble across heroines like: Henri O, an Amelia Peabody, Mrs. Jeffries, Agatha Raisin, OR a Mrs. Polifax!!
5 people found this helpful
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A Great Find

I don't like mysteries series that are gimmicky, and Carolyn Hart is a find: classic and classy, a bright, articulate protagonist who brings emotion as well as intellect to the table. The characters are well drawn, the mystery nicely done, and the setting beautifully drawn. I'll be reading more Carolyn Hart
4 people found this helpful
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A real page-turner

Henrie O still mourns the loss of her husband Richard. She has always assumed that his death was accidental, but an anonymous note to her implies that he was murdered. She can do nothing but follow up on this note and investigate Richard's death. Doing so involves trips to Texas and Kauai where she confronts Richard's friend Belle whom he was visiting at the time of his death. Henrie O had always been afraid that Richard's involvement with Belle was more than platonic and she vows to find out the truth behind their relationship, as well as the identity of the person who murdered Richard. There are no end of suspects on the island, all of them Belle's family or employees, and Henrie O has her work cut out for her trying to discern which one killed Richard. As always, author Hart crafts a well-written book and this one has an added emotional intensity because of Henrie O's love for her late husband. The setting of Kauai just adds to the ambiance of this excellent mystery.
3 people found this helpful
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A great book for mystery buffs!

I thought I knew "who done it" in Paradise based on the plot of Riverwalk but I was way off the mark; refreshing in itself. I couldn't put it down. I'd think "I'll stop at the end of this chapter and go to sleep"....but I couldn't, I had to read the next chapter and the next.... A plot to keep you up late and wondering......
3 people found this helpful
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A great mystery.

This was the first Henrie O book I've read. It won't be the last. I liked Henrie O. She is a strong character who can face her fears and do what needs to be done. In this case, she needs to begin to solve the mystery of her husband's death. So it's off to Hawaii to meet one of her husband's old friends, who is also a lady and thus begins her experience.
This is not like the Carolyn Hart mystery series Death on Demand. The characters are very different and the mystery a bit more dark. Also, she doesn't put in all the references to other mystery novels as she does in her Death on Demand books.
Enjoy.
2 people found this helpful
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Henrie O - A Favorite Sleuth

Death In Paradise is the fourth book in a series about Henrie O. Henrie O has become a favorite sleuth. Carolyn Hart has written a very good series. Henrie O is a 60 plus widow who is confident, intelligent and a take charge person. She is a retired journalist. Henrie O receives a mailer which contains information that her husband's supposedly accidental fall which caused his death was murder. She then follows her husband's trail to discover what really happened to him. Along the way more murders are discovered. Her travels end in Kauai Hawaii at the site of her husband's death. The mystery was complex enough as I did not figure out who the murderer was until the end. There were many suspects.

As the series progresses, one finds out more about Henrie O's past life. In this book I learned more about her marriage and relationship with her beloved husband Richard.

However, even though as much as I like the Henrie O series and Carolyn Hart's writing, this book had some slow spots for me which the previous three did not. I look forward to preceding through the rest of series. Have Death On The River Walk to read next.
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Good Read

I love Hawaii and enjoy reading mysteries taking place there. This had a good plot and the descriptions of Hawaii were wonderful!
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Henrie O returns to the site of her husbands death

Henrie O is dreading the date of her husbands death. The day he fell off a cliff at the mountain home of his dear friend Belle. Then she receives a strange card that causes her to think maybe her husband was murdered.

Henrie digs through her husbands notebooks and sets out to research his last days. She ends up at Belle's mountain retreat on the anniversary of the death of Belle's daughter. It looks like the same person who killed CeeCee also killed Henrie's husband Richard and may be trying to kill her. It's a race to identify the killer before more people are killed.

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