Murder Under a Green Sea (Max & Martha Mysteries)
Meet the Daltons; Martha, daughter of wealth, and Max, former Grenadier Guard and now a journalist in 1936 London. This very British murder mystery wouldn’t be the marvellous tale that it is without this very British couple. The dry wit and restrained humour with which this first in series is written, and the compassionate, loving relationship between Martha and Max, make the pages come alive and rush past far too quickly. In fact, the entire cast of characters benefits this story, which is based around the murder of several of Max’s platoon at the horrific disaster we call Passchendaele. Hunter weaves a complex story around the ‘death list’ of platoon members, and when Max is detained for murdering one of them, he and Martha know they have to investigate the mystery themselves, due to the sensitive nature of relevant information Max cannot divulge. They have no idea how high their investigation will go or how far reaching the consequences.
The dialogue is another reason why the novel works so well, and Hunter’s ability to switch from clever witticisms to the somber outpouring from Max, as he relates his tale of those horrific war days, is truly commendable. Woven into the tale are historical characters such as Churchill, Wigram, and German ambassador von Hoesch, giving us a solemn look at the politics of the time and how WWI slid inexorably into WWII. Much of the mystery is unraveled in the dialogue between Martha and Max, and they also engage in some reckless action, which makes them all the more endearing. For those who like murder mysteries with a humorous aspect, I can confidently recommend this. The novel is fun and witty without diminishing a tragic time in history. I’m eager to see how Hunter ups the ante in the next book.
