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EVAN ONLY KNOWS
by Rhys Bowen
St. Martin's Minotaur, March 2003
226 pages
$23.95
ISBN: 0312301138


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

EVAN ONLY KNOWS is the seventh book in the popular Constable Evans series. Evan has finally received a transfer to the plainclothes division, but is forced to put his plans on hold. The dreaded foot-and-mouth disease has arrived in Wales. The fields and animals of Llanfiar have been quarantined and Constable Evans is viewed as the enemy because he must support and protect the inspectors. In a desire to escape this turmoil, Evan takes his fiancée, Bronwen, to meet his mother in Swansea. Swansea is not the peaceful haven in which he was searching. A young girl was found, murdered and raped, on the front porch of her parents’ house. The most likely suspect is the man who murdered Evan’s father five years before. Evan offers his help to the local police in hopes of finally accepting the loss of his father. Unfortunately, Evan begins to believe that the police have the wrong person in custody. The victim was also not the innocent protected princess, her parents believed her to be. By involving himself in this crime, Evan is forced to reevaluate his father’s murder as well as question his career goals.

EVAN ONLY KNOWS is a strong addition to the Constable Evans series and as always does not disappoint. Evans is somewhat of an indecisive person; however, this only demonstrates his humanity in addition to making him seem more realistic. Even though he wants to escape the troubles surrounding Llanfiar, he is uncertain of how Bronwen and his mother will get along. He is also unsure of Bronwen’s desire to marry him as well as her ability to give up the life her family can provide. His career is uncertain as well. He finally has received the career advancement he wanted, but is no longer sure that this is what he truly wants. Just as every real person in the world, his future is uncertain.

Although EVAN ONLY KNOWS retains the cozy charm of the previous books in this series, it hints at the darker things that occur in an urban setting. Unlike Llanfiar, Swansea is full of problems involving drugs and gangs as well as murders. Rhys Bowen does not hold a future as a hardboiled writer (her descriptions were too gentle to be realistic), it was interesting to see the way the book skirted around more violent issues without completely sugar coating them.

Rhys Bowen’s Constable Evans series continues to attract fans and EVAN ONLY KNOWS will only help keep fans interested. For anyone searching for a lighthearted, non-threatening, relaxing mystery oozing with small town charm, EVAN ONLY KNOWS, and all of the other books in the Constable Evan’s series, will satisfy that craving.

Reviewed by Sarah Dudley, February 2003

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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