All By Myself, Alone by Mary Higgins Clark
Series: Alvirah & Willy, #11
First published: April 4, 2017 by Simon & Schuster
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
337 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased
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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Fleeing the disastrous and humiliating last-minute arrest of her fiancé on the eve of their wedding, Celia, an expert on gems and jewelry, is hoping to escape from reality on a glamorous cruise ship.
But it is not to be. On board in the most luxurious suite is the elderly and world-famous Lady Emily Harworth. Immensely wealthy, Lady Em is the owner of a priceless emerald necklace that she intends to leave to the Smithsonian on her death.
Three days later Lady Em is found dead—and the necklace is missing. Is it the work of her apparently devoted secretary, or her lawyer-executor, both of whom she had invited on board for the cruise?
Celia, with the help of her new friends Willy and Alvirah Meehan—who are splurging on their wedding anniversary—sets out to find who the killer is, not realizing that she may have put a target on her back.
Review
All By Myself, Alone by Mary Higgins Clark is the 11th book of the Alvirah & Willy series. It is the story of Celia, a gems and jewelry expert, who accepts the opportunity to hold a lecture in the luxurious Queen Charlotte cruise, hoping to get away from the humiliating arrest of her ex-fiancee who betrayed her.
The first few chapters of this story started with introducing sets of characters which can be quite overwhelming for new MHC readers since she usually introduces lots of characters making it quite challenging (especially for me) to point out the bad guy. We also got to know more about the main focus, Celia, and what she’s been dealing with currently.
I am always a fan of MHC’s who-done-it so it was really good to see that even after all this time, she still makes me enthralled. I’ve been reading her stories for a long time now, but I’m still bad at guessing the bad guy, and this one is no different, lol. I just love how she makes me believe that I finally got the bad guy, then a few pages later and I begin doubting myself.
Another thing I love about MHC’s stories is the way she narrates them. As a non-native English reader, I always appreciate how MHC makes the narration of her stories so easy to read. Nth books later, and MHC still does the same, and I really love her more for that.
As for the characters, I adore the Meehan couple. Alvirah and Willy have been quite a fun couple to read. I have always loved their dynamics ever since, so I am really glad I still feel the same way about the two 11 books after.
Celia on the other hand is not my cup of tea. I’ve been so into strong independent women characters because of the manhwas I’ve been obsessed with lately, so it was quite a challenge to love her. She’s pretty weak compared to other MHC’s heroines. But fortunately she’s not an annoying character overall, so it was still all good, *wink.
Another thing about MHC’s stories is the HEA. I love my HEA so I guess another big reason why I’m a big fan of hers is because of how she delivers her HEA. And they are usually with a hint of romance, *wink.
Lastly, All By Myself, Alone may not be one of MHC’s best stories by far, but it delivered and I love how I genuinely enjoyed it. For mystery lovers out there, it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try!
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Oh yes! I plan to read this one soon. Great review, Vanessa.
Thanks Nadene, hopefully you’ll enjoy this one too 🙂
I am embarrassed to admit that I still need to try MHC for the first time. I’m glad you enjoyed this one, Vanessa.
Hehehe, that’s pretty understandable Sophia Rose 😉 But in any case you are looking for a suspense story, MHC is highly recomended.
I have read several of her books and remember enjoying them. It has been years since I last read her work though.
It was also quite a while for me until I finally came back and read this. It’s nice to know that she can still makes me feel enthralled with her who-done-it 🙂