Dark Undertakings

By Rebecca Tope

Book Overview

Fifty-five-year-old Jim Lapsford makes an unusually healthy-looking corpse. A life-long devotee of vitamin pills and herbal remedies, it seems almost ironic that he has succumbed to a heart attack. His GP is convinced that this is the case but trainee undertaker Drew Slocombe isn't so sure and he is convinced that there is enough conflicting medical evidence to merit a coroner's inquest at least. And then there's Jim's personal life: in addition to a long suffering wife, two sons and a grieving terrier, Jim appears to have left behind a series of scorned mistresses. It seems everyone else is happy enough to accept the doctor's verdict and Drew shouldn't really rock the boat, but can he really turn his back on murder? Jim Lapsford may already be dead but surely he deserves to have his killer caught? Even so, Drew may have plenty of suspects but he has no proof. And Jim's cremation is days away...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0749025611
• ISBN13: 9780749025618
• Release Date: November 2019
• Publisher: Allison & Busby
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.0" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

Clever plotting

Fifty-five-year-old Jim Lapsford was in perfect health. He had not seen a doctor since 1986 until he went last week to see Dr. Lloyd for a bum knee. Now Jim is dead with Dr. Lloyd insisting, without any examination, Jim died from a heart attackOnly an undertake trainee for a month, Drew Slocombe feels something is wrong with the way Dr. Lloyd handles the death, especially someone as healthy as Jim apparently was. Drew begins to wonder if a homicide has occurred. Drew is unable to ignore his hunch because he carries guilt from what happened to a child at his previous job at a hospital. He investigates his feeling that a clever individual killed Jim even knowing it could cost him his latest position.Once readers accept Drew's need to investigate against the policy of his employer and the expert opinion of a doctor, fans will find the story line quite an exciting amateur sleuth tale. Drew is a wonderful caring person and his spouse Karen is an ideal individual to help the audience understand the hero. The plot is clever as Rebecca Tope keeps the embalming fluid to a minimum and the suspense to a maximum in what is a unique undertaking.Harriet Klausner