Reviewed By Liz

ISBN 1-59414-591-1

THE BURNING GLASS is the third book in the Jean Fairbairn/Alasdair Cameron series. Jean writes for Great Scot, which is sending her to the Scottish Border for two weeks to cover an assortment of stories for the publication. And ex-cop Alasdair Cameron is now the caretaker of Ferniebank Castle, one of the sites Jean is to write about, and the two of them have an extended tryst planned. However, Ferniebank Castle is no longer off the beaten path, thanks to THE DA VINCI CODE – Ferniebank’s chapel and the famous Rosslyn were built by the same hands.

Jean and Alasdair’s plans for a romantic getaway are complicated by a New Age developer who wants to turn the castle into a conference center and spa, the theft of an antique harp, the disappearance of a local politician, and the fact that both Jean and Alasdair can see the Castle ghost roaming around at night as she reenacts her death. They quickly realize that some of these problems are going to have to be fixed before they are going to have any peace and quiet.

THE BURNING GLASS is a fairly hefty book and has lots of interesting plot elements that I can’t really do justice in a short review. Carl incorporates some very interesting historical elements, a little romance, and a generous dash of the supernatural into her book. I found the supernatural aspect of the book very interesting. One of the things that Jean and Alasdair have in common is the fact that they are both sensitive to ghosts. But they aren’t weird about it, they just accept and acknowledge it. The two of them are intrigued by the castle ghost and the mystery surrounding her death and, since they can see here, they can pick up some clues and figure out what really happened.

If you took one of the better X-Files episodes and turned it into a mystery novel with more mature characters, you would end up with something very like THE BURNING GLASS.

Favorite character? I quite like Ciara Macquarrie, the New Age capitalist. Did I guess it? Mostly. Will I read another? Yes. In Carl’s previous books, Jean and Alasdair turn their attentions to the lost treasure of Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Loch Ness monster. These sound like too much fun to miss.

Mystery Book Reviews by Liz at http://reviewedbyliz.com ©2007

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