Shortly before her sudden death, Georgina Fletcher writes a letter that she asks a close friend to post in the event of her death. The letter’s recipient, Ellen Winter, a young American graduate student, is quite shocked when she receives the missive. Georgina has bequeathed her family home to Ellen, saying that it rightfully belongs to Ellen’s family. In addition, she asks Ellen to investigate the circumstances of her death, which, she implies, will not be from natural causes.

Ellen is naturally overwhelmed by the contents of the letter. Not only does Georgina suspect she will be murdered, but she also suggest that because of dishonest activities, Ellen was not considered the rightful heir to Cairnwell House. Ellen turns for help to her academic mentor, Ben Reese, an archivist at her college. Ben has had some experience, albeit inadvertent, in murder investigations in the past.

Pursuit and Persuasion is a ponderous novel. There are a multitude of characters (which the author has, fortunately, summarized at the outset in a list of characters -- otherwise only the most attentive reader would be able to keep them all straight). Several of these characters have esoteric jobs or avocations requiring detailed explanations. There is a sculptor, a man that teaches falcons to hunt, an individual with a keen interest in antiquarian books, and a microbiologist to name a few.

As a result of all these side journeys into various fields, following the main plot is no mean feat. Not that the information set forth about these subjects is uninteresting, but it does draw the reader’s attention away from the essence of the mystery.

Ms. Wright does make some perceptive observations about life in her digressions. Her view of gossip as a gutless attack on something that should be approached head on is worthy of consideration. Or how much more difficult it is to describe someone you know well than someone you have just met. The person you have just met evokes a lot less complex range of feelings.

The story takes place in the early 1960’s, but, with the exception of some references to the Americans early space program, one really doesn’t get the feeling of that era. It is easy to believe that events are really unfolding in the 1990’s. In particular, some of the slang used seemed much too contemporary for the 60’s. Ms. Wright also makes a point of using, what I assume are Scottish colloquialisms such as, “it-tis’ to give local flavor.

The plot itself, which involves a series of deaths spanning several decades is entertaining, though it requires a healthy stretch of the imagination. Ben ends up doing some rather exotic things to extract himself from difficult situations -- ones that would be physically demanding on a young man. We can assume that Ben who has seen action during World War II is not young. However, he is our hero, and he knows a lot about books, so I’m willing to grant him some slack.

The most entertaining parts of Pursuit and Persuasion were the educational information the author provided on a variety of subjects as a result of her forays into falconry, sculpture, book collecting, and microbiology. Although the mystery element and basic story line are a bit rambling, the book is well worth your time to acquire such interesting tidbits of knowledge.

--Andy Plonka