The Doctor Makes a Dollhouse Call
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Emily and Judith Pancoast, elderly sisters, are the owners of a priceless dollhouse that is an exact replica of their Victorian home in a small seaside resort near Philadelphia. The dollhouse is inhabited by dolls that the sisters crafted to resemble each member of their family.
On Thanksgiving Day, just before relatives arrive for dinner, Emily Pancoast discovers that the dollhouse dining room table, set in miniature of the real one, is in total disarray and the doll representing their niece Pamela is lying facedown in her dessert plate. When Pamela's death soon follows, the sisters turn to the physician detective, Dr. Andrew Fenimore.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This entertaining mystery heralds the return of Dr. Andrew Fenimore, Philadelphia physician and amateur sleuth, along with that of his loyal nurse, Mrs. Doyle. Not only does this doctor make house calls, but he also finds time to tackle deadly murder cases. Fenimore is called to the small town of Seacrest, when two elderly patients, Judith and Emily Pancoast, request his help investigating the poisoning death of their niece, Pamela, on Thanksgiving. Pamela's murder seems to be tied to the sisters' antique dollhouse, an exact replica of their Victorian house down to miniatures representing each member of the family; moreover, Pamela's doll was found facedown shortly before her death. Fenimore's greatest challenge lies in discovering why Pamela's death and the successive murders all occur on or around holidays, and why they are always heralded by an enactment in the dollhouse. Hathaway's nimble prose provides quick, enjoyable reading, and her setting of the small coastal town verges on perfection. Also of note are her varied characters, from the streetwise teenager Horatio, who helps in Fenimore's office, to the members of the geriatric karate class, led by Mrs. Doyle, that meets in Fenimore's cellar. An unexpected conclusion, mixed with charm and tragedy, tops off this expert tale.
