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Dune House: A Vintage Mystery
In post-WWII San Francisco, Dune House is an oddity—a sprawling, heavily-gated mansion with no telephone, no radio, and no electricity. The city is abuzz when it learns that Julia Paget, the rich, reclusive mistress of Dune House, is conducting a search for her long-lost heir.
When newly-engaged Lark Williams visits Dune House to find the truth, Julia Paget forbids her from leaving. As Lark plans her treacherous escape, she uncovers several unnerving secrets. The tragic drowning of Julia Paget’s sister decades earlier. An enigmatic cousin named Benson Drew. Opera music being sung outside underneath the moonlight. The mysterious photograph that could reveal the most shocking secret of all—But first, she must get out of Dune House alive!
When newly-engaged Lark Williams visits Dune House to find the truth, Julia Paget forbids her from leaving. As Lark plans her treacherous escape, she uncovers several unnerving secrets. The tragic drowning of Julia Paget’s sister decades earlier. An enigmatic cousin named Benson Drew. Opera music being sung outside underneath the moonlight. The mysterious photograph that could reveal the most shocking secret of all—But first, she must get out of Dune House alive!
294 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2021
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24 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 21, 2022
In post WWII San Francisco, Dune House is an anachronism from the 1880s, as is the owner the very rich Julia Paget. Now she decides it time to find the daughter or grandchildren of her disherited brother Ulysses. Lark Williams believes she is the granddaughter and comes to stay at the house, never able to leave. But what mysteries does the house and its occupants hide.
A combination of a murder mystery with a herioine in possible trouble coupled with manipulation by Miss Paget, makes for an interesting and entertaining read.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
(Probably written between 1948 and 1950)
A combination of a murder mystery with a herioine in possible trouble coupled with manipulation by Miss Paget, makes for an interesting and entertaining read.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
(Probably written between 1948 and 1950)
December 14, 2024
It has been some time since I've read vintage mystery fiction. "Dune House" reacquainted me with it, while reminding me of some of the great writers of times past.
Lark Williams was a young, fairly naive woman in her twenties. She works as a stenographer in a San Francisco law firm in the late 1940s. She is 'secretly' married to one of the firms head lawyers. Secretly, because he is paying alimony to his first wife, and wants to wait until the senior partner of the firm retires before they publicize their marriage. Lark's childhood was shrouded in mystery.
Julia Paget, the owner of Dune House, has put an advertisement in the newspaper. She is getting elderly and she is searching for an heir to her vast fortune of millions. The ad is accompanied by a baby photo. A photo that looks eerily similar to one Lark has recently seen while perusing a box of her family mementos. Lark's husband encourages her to go to Dune House with her photo to see if she can lay claim to some of the Paget millions. Such a windfall would enable them to tell everyone of their marriage and pay off her husband's ex-wife.
Once in Dune House, Julia Paget seems fairly certain that Lark is indeed the lost heir. However, she is not a warm and welcoming old lady. Rather, she is a taciturn, embittered, old crone who is quite drunk with the power her millions afford her. And, she does not let Lark leave! Lark, to her utter dismay, learns that this old, 19th century mansion could almost be considered fortified. It has some creepy old staff 'retainers' that seem to guard her every move. And, the grounds are enforced with barbed wire fences and a man who guards the entrance. Everyone wanting to leave the grounds must have a 'pass' from Aunt Julia. With no electricity, and no telephones, the place might as well be in Timbuktu rather than within sight of the Golden Gate Bridge...
After a few days in Dune House, Lark is becoming quite desperate to leave, despite the possible inheritance. Also, there is talk of an intruder. And, Lark hears a woman singing at night. Beginning to fear she has made a terrible mistake, Lark's life is now unrecognizable...
This book really took me back. The opulent and creepy old mansion was the stuff of a Joan Crawford or Bette Davis movie. Some of the terminology was quite antiquated. Most of the doors in the house had portieres. Aunt Julia made frequent use of a lorgnette. (as in above graphic). Dune House had many towers and cupolas.
With themes of avarice, manipulation, deception, and family secrets, this novel has an 'old-fashioned' feel that might not be to everyone's taste. There seemed to be a fair bit of repetition in the descriptions of the house's interior features. Despite, these minor shortcomings, I quite enjoyed this read which had a very satisfying denouement.
A Golden Age mystery that was written almost a century ago, yet retains elements of a entertaining, more recent whodunit, "Dune House" is an excellent example of vintage mystery fiction.
Lark Williams was a young, fairly naive woman in her twenties. She works as a stenographer in a San Francisco law firm in the late 1940s. She is 'secretly' married to one of the firms head lawyers. Secretly, because he is paying alimony to his first wife, and wants to wait until the senior partner of the firm retires before they publicize their marriage. Lark's childhood was shrouded in mystery.
Julia Paget, the owner of Dune House, has put an advertisement in the newspaper. She is getting elderly and she is searching for an heir to her vast fortune of millions. The ad is accompanied by a baby photo. A photo that looks eerily similar to one Lark has recently seen while perusing a box of her family mementos. Lark's husband encourages her to go to Dune House with her photo to see if she can lay claim to some of the Paget millions. Such a windfall would enable them to tell everyone of their marriage and pay off her husband's ex-wife.
Once in Dune House, Julia Paget seems fairly certain that Lark is indeed the lost heir. However, she is not a warm and welcoming old lady. Rather, she is a taciturn, embittered, old crone who is quite drunk with the power her millions afford her. And, she does not let Lark leave! Lark, to her utter dismay, learns that this old, 19th century mansion could almost be considered fortified. It has some creepy old staff 'retainers' that seem to guard her every move. And, the grounds are enforced with barbed wire fences and a man who guards the entrance. Everyone wanting to leave the grounds must have a 'pass' from Aunt Julia. With no electricity, and no telephones, the place might as well be in Timbuktu rather than within sight of the Golden Gate Bridge...
After a few days in Dune House, Lark is becoming quite desperate to leave, despite the possible inheritance. Also, there is talk of an intruder. And, Lark hears a woman singing at night. Beginning to fear she has made a terrible mistake, Lark's life is now unrecognizable...
This book really took me back. The opulent and creepy old mansion was the stuff of a Joan Crawford or Bette Davis movie. Some of the terminology was quite antiquated. Most of the doors in the house had portieres. Aunt Julia made frequent use of a lorgnette. (as in above graphic). Dune House had many towers and cupolas.
With themes of avarice, manipulation, deception, and family secrets, this novel has an 'old-fashioned' feel that might not be to everyone's taste. There seemed to be a fair bit of repetition in the descriptions of the house's interior features. Despite, these minor shortcomings, I quite enjoyed this read which had a very satisfying denouement.
A Golden Age mystery that was written almost a century ago, yet retains elements of a entertaining, more recent whodunit, "Dune House" is an excellent example of vintage mystery fiction.
October 27, 2022
It is a Golden Age mystery and it must be considered as a Golden Age that is a whudunit with a cast of characters full of secrets.
The language must be considered as those of nearly a century ago.
That said I enjoyed and think this is a good mystery and this new to me author did a good job.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine
The language must be considered as those of nearly a century ago.
That said I enjoyed and think this is a good mystery and this new to me author did a good job.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine
July 21, 2022
“Ahead, between them and the ocean, sand blew like fog off a long bare dune. From every open patch of sand that dappled the beach grass and lupin, the fine mist rose. As the team pulled west, an arc of sun coming out of the clouds gave all the lower air a silvery cast, and the great towered house rising out of the luminous dust had the look of a mirage.
“Now I see why they call it Dune House,” Lark murmured. “It seems to belong to the sand instead of the cliff or ocean”.”
‘Dune House’ was written between 1940-1950 by Eunice Mays Boyd (1901-1971) who published three mystery novels during her lifetime; “Murder Breaks Trail” (1943) Doom in the Midnight Sun (1944) and Murder Wears Mukliks (1945), featuring her amateur detective F. Millard Smyth.
After her death in 1971 her unpublished manuscripts were bequeathed to her goddaughter Elizabeth Reed Aden, including a fourth book ‘One Paw was Red’ featuring her detective F. Millard Smyth, as well as a Christmas mystery; ‘Slay Bells’ and ‘Dune House’. These remained stored at Ms Aden’s mother’s house until their re-discovery in 2016.
Both ‘Slay Bells’ and ‘Dune House’ have now been published and the original published novels, currently out of print, are due to be re-published in 2023 by Level Best Books.
In the afterward the author’s goddaughter writes that ‘Dune House’ “is set in the Sunset District of San Francisco”. However in the adjacent Richmond neighbourhood there still exists ‘Cliff House’ an ill-fated tourist destination that has twice burnt to the ground and been re-built. The third Cliff house looks far too modern but the second building, destroyed in 1907 is like the descriptions of the fictional ‘Dune House’. In the novels Boyd isolates the house further inside a mile of sand dunes on one side and the cliffs over the sea on the other.
Second Cliff House c.1900
Boyd’s Dune house is not an hotel but the private home of a reclusive millionairess Julia Paget. "fenced off from the public by ocean and wire in a mile-long rectangle of dunes that the roads had to skirt, the house stood alone on a cliff, facing waves of sand instead of water.… a large house spiked with towers like unlighted fireworks"
“Now I see why they call it Dune House,” Lark murmured. “It seems to belong to the sand instead of the cliff or ocean”.”
‘Dune House’ was written between 1940-1950 by Eunice Mays Boyd (1901-1971) who published three mystery novels during her lifetime; “Murder Breaks Trail” (1943) Doom in the Midnight Sun (1944) and Murder Wears Mukliks (1945), featuring her amateur detective F. Millard Smyth.
After her death in 1971 her unpublished manuscripts were bequeathed to her goddaughter Elizabeth Reed Aden, including a fourth book ‘One Paw was Red’ featuring her detective F. Millard Smyth, as well as a Christmas mystery; ‘Slay Bells’ and ‘Dune House’. These remained stored at Ms Aden’s mother’s house until their re-discovery in 2016.
Both ‘Slay Bells’ and ‘Dune House’ have now been published and the original published novels, currently out of print, are due to be re-published in 2023 by Level Best Books.
In the afterward the author’s goddaughter writes that ‘Dune House’ “is set in the Sunset District of San Francisco”. However in the adjacent Richmond neighbourhood there still exists ‘Cliff House’ an ill-fated tourist destination that has twice burnt to the ground and been re-built. The third Cliff house looks far too modern but the second building, destroyed in 1907 is like the descriptions of the fictional ‘Dune House’. In the novels Boyd isolates the house further inside a mile of sand dunes on one side and the cliffs over the sea on the other.
Second Cliff House c.1900
Boyd’s Dune house is not an hotel but the private home of a reclusive millionairess Julia Paget. "fenced off from the public by ocean and wire in a mile-long rectangle of dunes that the roads had to skirt, the house stood alone on a cliff, facing waves of sand instead of water.… a large house spiked with towers like unlighted fireworks"
The story begins when Lark Williams, a stenographer in a lawyer’s office, sees in a newspaper a photo of herself as a baby under the title “ARE YOU THE MISSING HEIR?”. Encouraged by her employer to come forward and claim kinship, Lark journeys to the inaccessible and remote Dune House. There she meets Miss Paget and while the veracity her claim is being confirmed agrees to stay at the house and goes along with all Miss Paget’s eccentricities. Soon however, Julia’s behaviour becomes more and more controlling and erratic; the other family members are hostile to an interloper who will oust them from their inheritance and Lark wants to leave. But by then it is too late as she realises that the “fence wasn’t built to keep folks out. It was built to keep them in”. Will Lark manage to escape? Is she really the Paget heir due to inherit a fortune? Who among the staff and family members can she trust?
I loved the setting and 1940s atmosphere this novel. The mystery held my interest with enough twists and red herrings to be satisfying. The ending is a bit too rushed, which I put down to its unfinished state before publication. It is refreshing to read a golden age mystery set in San Francisco by an American author. The usual in Golden age crime fiction is very much an English country setting, but this novel is an American period piece with all the vernacular of 1940’s speech, marabou dressing gowns and cable cars. It has a twisty mystery plot in the style of Patricia Wentworth. I would recommend it to fans of Golden age mysteries.
N.B. There is a mistake at 92% of the ebook. “You can reach your own decision without argument. And I’m sure it will be worthy a Paget” should read “You can reach your own decision without argument. And I’m sure it will be worthy of a Paget”
Disclaimer: I requested and was granted a free download of the ebook of ‘Dune House’ from Net Galley.
July 25, 2022
After the death of her godmother, Eunice Mays Boyd, Elizabeth Reed Aden found four unpublished novels which have now been edited for publication. "Dune House' was written between 1948 and 1950 and is set in post-WW2 San Francisco. Although it involves murder, deception, past secrets and inheritance, its major theme is the power and influence that an individual can hold over others through wealth and personality.
At the centre of it all is the titular house, a fossilised relic of the 1880s, presided over by the autocratic and unloved Miss Julia Paget. Dune House is as magnificent in its awfulness as its chatelaine and it plays a big part in the events which unfold.
Miss Paget decides to search for a missing heir who will inherit a huge trust fund, and in pursuit of this, Lark Williams, secretly married to a lawyer who works in the firm which deals with the Paget's legal affairs, arrives, and is forced to live, at Dune House.
The novel is an interesting amalgam of the heroine-in-peril, and murder-mystery genres, with spooky goings-on, psychological manipulation and family secrets added in. It is mostly well written, and while one has to suspend belief a little, the plot is no worse for that. It does sag a bit in the middle, and would benefit from a little pruning. I did not find it difficult to work out most of the solution and the ending is a bit sudden after the leisurely pace of the bulk of the book. as well as overly melodramatic. The heroine is just a bit too naive for her own good, However, I will certainly read more of this author's work.
3.5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and Level Best Books for the digital review copy.
At the centre of it all is the titular house, a fossilised relic of the 1880s, presided over by the autocratic and unloved Miss Julia Paget. Dune House is as magnificent in its awfulness as its chatelaine and it plays a big part in the events which unfold.
Miss Paget decides to search for a missing heir who will inherit a huge trust fund, and in pursuit of this, Lark Williams, secretly married to a lawyer who works in the firm which deals with the Paget's legal affairs, arrives, and is forced to live, at Dune House.
The novel is an interesting amalgam of the heroine-in-peril, and murder-mystery genres, with spooky goings-on, psychological manipulation and family secrets added in. It is mostly well written, and while one has to suspend belief a little, the plot is no worse for that. It does sag a bit in the middle, and would benefit from a little pruning. I did not find it difficult to work out most of the solution and the ending is a bit sudden after the leisurely pace of the bulk of the book. as well as overly melodramatic. The heroine is just a bit too naive for her own good, However, I will certainly read more of this author's work.
3.5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and Level Best Books for the digital review copy.
September 15, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.
What a great classic mystery. I enjoyed it and will have to look into some of the other books that have now been released by this authors family. I understand there are several written in the 40’s and 50’s they were never published till now. Looking forward to reading those next!
Great mystery.
What a great classic mystery. I enjoyed it and will have to look into some of the other books that have now been released by this authors family. I understand there are several written in the 40’s and 50’s they were never published till now. Looking forward to reading those next!
Great mystery.
May 10, 2022
I couldn't put it down! I felt like I was inside of the story with every word! Captivating writing from start to finish keeps the book grasped in your hands: “Marriage wasn’t meant to be just six weekends in three months. It was meant to be two cups on the breakfast table and heating the baby’s bottle…” Lark doesn’t get that idyllic scene, instead she gets locked in a house… Secrets, money, love, humor, murder, twists, and turns—this book has it all! With writing like this you immerse yourself and hope to never come up: “She paused in the doorway, watching Aubrey’s black head close to Miss Paget’s tarnished gold, with its pointed knot on top of her head like an extra nose to turn up at the world.” It’s a fantastic who-done-it with flourish and flair! Loved every word.
July 1, 2022
I don't often read mysteries and I'm very selective in the ones I do read. I want just the right amount of can't put the book down mystery but nothing that's over the edge with violence. I received a copy of Dune House as a gift, and I was captivated right from the beginning and holding my breath as I turned each page! The intriguing characters, mystery, plot twists and turns resulted in my to do list put on hold and reading into the wee hours of the morning as I wondered what the mysterious Julia Paget was up to next and who would be caught in her sticky web of entrapment. Dune House was a five-star read!
May 31, 2022
Dune House is visually descriptive in its telling of the details of the trappings within the opulent dune house. It keeps building as it adds intrigue and details about the characters and their motives! It is one of those books that is hard to stop reading in one sitting! Love it!
April 26, 2023
Not Your Expected Cozy Mystery
Although a cozy mystery, Dune House by Eunice Mays Boyd, is not the traditional model, and Lark Williams, the main character, is not the iconic amateur sleuth. Caught between her romantic and financial aspirations, she is thrown into a world she could never have imagined. With the expectation of being heir to the Paget fortune, Lark goes willingly to Dune House. At first, she is both fascinated and disconcerted by this anachronistic castle with the mosaic of cultures displayed decoratively throughout its many rooms. Only when she discovers that the fence surrounding the property with its barbed wire overhangs was meant to keep people in, not just out, does she begin to question her mission. When she is not allowed to leave and learns no one is allowed to leave the property without a pass, she becomes suspicious of everyone’s intentions, including those of her autocratic host, Julia Paget.
The reader won’t be disappointed by this cozy mystery, for there is certainly murder and mayhem, along with romance in the wings, of course.
The author’s presentation of this tale reminds me of a kaleidoscope. Just when you believe you recognize the pattern that is emerging, she twists the tube, and the pattern shifts. As with the kaleidoscope invented in 1817, the setting of this cozy mystery in Dune House with its eccentricities aplenty presents the reader with opportunities to mentally observe the beauty and form of various cultures. However, the human influence presents its own shifting patterns, keeping the reader reassessing on a regular basis – the very essence of a good mystery.
Review by Dannye Williamsen, a cross-genre author
Although a cozy mystery, Dune House by Eunice Mays Boyd, is not the traditional model, and Lark Williams, the main character, is not the iconic amateur sleuth. Caught between her romantic and financial aspirations, she is thrown into a world she could never have imagined. With the expectation of being heir to the Paget fortune, Lark goes willingly to Dune House. At first, she is both fascinated and disconcerted by this anachronistic castle with the mosaic of cultures displayed decoratively throughout its many rooms. Only when she discovers that the fence surrounding the property with its barbed wire overhangs was meant to keep people in, not just out, does she begin to question her mission. When she is not allowed to leave and learns no one is allowed to leave the property without a pass, she becomes suspicious of everyone’s intentions, including those of her autocratic host, Julia Paget.
The reader won’t be disappointed by this cozy mystery, for there is certainly murder and mayhem, along with romance in the wings, of course.
The author’s presentation of this tale reminds me of a kaleidoscope. Just when you believe you recognize the pattern that is emerging, she twists the tube, and the pattern shifts. As with the kaleidoscope invented in 1817, the setting of this cozy mystery in Dune House with its eccentricities aplenty presents the reader with opportunities to mentally observe the beauty and form of various cultures. However, the human influence presents its own shifting patterns, keeping the reader reassessing on a regular basis – the very essence of a good mystery.
Review by Dannye Williamsen, a cross-genre author
November 19, 2022
Dripping with atmosphere, evocative Dune House is a Golden Age mystery written between 1948 and 1950, set in San Francisco in post-WWII. Interestingly, the author's goddaughter discovered the manuscript for this book, previously unpublished. What a treasure!
Lark Williams works at an office job alongside her husband, Aubry, to whom she is secretly married. She responds to an advertisement by the indomitable recluse Julia Paget who seeks her trustee to inherit millions. Armed with the requisite photograph as proof, Lark goes to the sprawling Paget house surrounded by sand dunes. Each nook and cranny holds a secret. The portieres swoosh and the staff members clearly have something to hide, including the story of a drowning. Music at night is disconcerting. Rules must be obeyed. Eccentric doesn't even begin to describe Julia who ensures her house and grounds are beyond secure. What happens next is a string of events which grows stranger and stranger and the story grows more and more claustrophobic until the very end when mysterious happenings are explained.
Golden Age mystery lovers, this is well worth reading. Not only is it a splendid mystery jam packed with plenty of red herrings but it is also about the powerful hold one (and/or money!) can have over others. Sure, there are imperfections in this novel but I became utterly lost in it and enjoyed it for what it was.
My sincere thank you to Level Best Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this wonderfully imaginative book.
Lark Williams works at an office job alongside her husband, Aubry, to whom she is secretly married. She responds to an advertisement by the indomitable recluse Julia Paget who seeks her trustee to inherit millions. Armed with the requisite photograph as proof, Lark goes to the sprawling Paget house surrounded by sand dunes. Each nook and cranny holds a secret. The portieres swoosh and the staff members clearly have something to hide, including the story of a drowning. Music at night is disconcerting. Rules must be obeyed. Eccentric doesn't even begin to describe Julia who ensures her house and grounds are beyond secure. What happens next is a string of events which grows stranger and stranger and the story grows more and more claustrophobic until the very end when mysterious happenings are explained.
Golden Age mystery lovers, this is well worth reading. Not only is it a splendid mystery jam packed with plenty of red herrings but it is also about the powerful hold one (and/or money!) can have over others. Sure, there are imperfections in this novel but I became utterly lost in it and enjoyed it for what it was.
My sincere thank you to Level Best Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this wonderfully imaginative book.
May 4, 2022
Almost too good to be true.
Written around 1948 by the golden age mystery writer Eunice Mays Boyd, the unpublished Dune House manuscript was discovered a few years ago by her goddaughter, Elizabeth Reed Aden. Published last year, what a treat it is for mystery fans! Set in an ancient home in San Francisco’s Ocean Beach, Dune House is a classic “whodunit” in the style of Agatha Christie.
When the aging matriarch, Julia Paget, advertises for a long-lost heir to the family fortune, numerous candidates pop up, but none more convincing than Lark Williams until another fortune-seeker appears with the same relevant photograph. Soon, both are locked in Miss Paget’s great towered mansion where an intruder is suspected, a visitor goes missing, attorneys gather, and rumors fly.
The characters are all memorable, even as early memories are upended by as many twists as you are likely to find in a novel written more than 70 years ago. Congratulations to Betsy Aden for bringing this hidden classic to print.
Written around 1948 by the golden age mystery writer Eunice Mays Boyd, the unpublished Dune House manuscript was discovered a few years ago by her goddaughter, Elizabeth Reed Aden. Published last year, what a treat it is for mystery fans! Set in an ancient home in San Francisco’s Ocean Beach, Dune House is a classic “whodunit” in the style of Agatha Christie.
When the aging matriarch, Julia Paget, advertises for a long-lost heir to the family fortune, numerous candidates pop up, but none more convincing than Lark Williams until another fortune-seeker appears with the same relevant photograph. Soon, both are locked in Miss Paget’s great towered mansion where an intruder is suspected, a visitor goes missing, attorneys gather, and rumors fly.
The characters are all memorable, even as early memories are upended by as many twists as you are likely to find in a novel written more than 70 years ago. Congratulations to Betsy Aden for bringing this hidden classic to print.
May 11, 2024
If you're a fan of Golden Age Mysteries, DUNE HOUSE: A VINTAGE MYSTERY is a book you shouldn't miss. The novel was written by the award-winning author Eunice Mays Boyd in the 1940s. Interestingly, the author's goddaughter discovered the manuscript in a trunk in 2016 and sought publication for the murder mystery. DUNE HOUSE is a captivating whodunit that will keep you turning pages with its gothic vibe, ethereal atmosphere, and intriguing cast of suspicious characters. As a mystery reader, I highly recommend this book.
March 15, 2023
I loved this book it was interesting, exciting and mysterious, I could not put this book down. I loved the story of an old house gated on a sand dune, a rich woman looking for her heir, a mysterious secret marriage, a photograph of a baby from 40 years ago. The story was exciting and the characters were so interesting it was fun to read about the house and the mystery.
Read
May 3, 2023This novel was fun and kept my interest throughout. The innocence of the main character Lark kept you invested in her story of sudden but not totally wanted wealth and attention. The eccentric wealthy spinster was believable but over the top. The attention to detail was well done and I recommend this as a fun diverting read.
June 8, 2023
Having read A Vacation to Die For by the same author, I thought I'd give Dune House a read. I enjoyed it immensely, even though I figured it out almost from the beginning. I like how real events (the 1906 San Francisco earthquake for example) are woven into the story to make it feel more real. I can't wait to find more from Elizabeth Aden.
April 20, 2023
I found Dune House to be a wonderful blend of melodrama and mystery, and setting the story in 1940s San Francisco added to the enjoyment. The novel had a variety of colorful and intriguing characters, and the plot played out in the very sinister Dune House and its surroundings. I also was entertained by the sensibilities of the life of the wealthy (and not so wealthy) in the 40s. The marriage situation of the main characters was a bit odd, but that didn’t detract from the story. I didn’t solve the “whodunit” and was surprised at the ending, which is what I hope for in a mystery. A very entertaining read!
March 30, 2023
Agatha Christie vibes. This book was well written and thought provoking. You'll have a hard time putting it down!
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews