The premise grabbed me – three similar murders about 20+ years apart. As of note, the timeline in this novel has “present day” about 2006. Russ makes a comment about it being 34 years since the last one.
This is the first novel by Julia Spencer-Fleming I’ve read.
When I saw it here on BookishFirst, I HAD to use my points to redeem for it.
Content warnings will include: references to Tea Party, racism, white supremacists, drug and alcohol use, along with post-partum issues. None of this really seemed to be part of the main plot.
The reason this novel took the author seven (7) years to write was due to personal reasons. She had decided to pause writing it due to family obligations with her son in August 2016.
About a month later, her husband was diagnosed with cancer and died in September 2017. So, readers do need to take this into consideration when trying to get into this novel after a seven (7) year hiatus.
This is #9 in the Fergusson/Van Alstyne mysteries. It works as a standalone read, though I am sure readers will get more out of it if they have read the series. I had not read any prior to this novel.
This time, Clare and Russ are married with an infant son. Russ is facing the dissolution of the police department because some feel it isn’t needed, while Clare is facing some personal demons despite being a reverend.
The cases in 1952 and 1972 could be connected as well as the 1972 and current day. But, there is no way the 1952 and the current day case can be connected given the 54 year difference.
However, Russ was a person of interest in the 1972. He was never charged, but still remained of interest.
This is told in all three times; written in quick, short chapters making this a nearly non-stop read. The ARC was 423 pages and I was able to get through it in about a day.
Despite the pacing, this was hard to get through and I did feel bogged down in parts. I felt like it was a clear struggle to read.
It seems like the police are never going to catch a break. Lead after lead seems to fizzle out – frustrating the police and the reader. As much as I can keep up with multi-part and multi-plot stories, this was a bit of a stretch for me.
Carnies, communes, and even rich people are not safe from suspicion in this multi-generational murder mystery.
In addition to the problems with the case; there is a matter of a lawsuit against the police department, a current officer, and a former officer. While this is interesting and I am sure it is setting up the events in the next novel (from the way this goes, it looks like there will be a #10) … it does cloud the current story a bit.
Clare’s situation is overwhelming – her work as a reverend, her son, and also battling addiction. She gets an interesting intern that can’t seem to find placing within the church – a transgender woman, Joni. And, Joni has a connection to the case, the current one and the 1972 one as well.
Throughout the story; things bounce back and forth between keeping the police department, the 1952 investigation, the 1972 investigation, the current day, Clare’s issues, and the lawsuit.
There is a lot to track and keep up with in this story. Some readers might get frustrated. Those who enjoy more complex and twisted plots will likely enjoy this.
The author did a great job with trying to keep it all together and work well. She did a great job in keeping the mystery until nearly the very end. The connection and “motive” was a bit weak in my opinion. The 1972 and 2006 murders were connected, and in a slight way – so was the 1952. The writer didn’t go into too many details with the cases.
As far as Clare being the average reverend, I don’t know much about the Episcopal church to know either way so I can’t comment as to whether or not she is believable. Either way, for me, she wasn’t that compelling of a character.
The end of this story seems to wind down too quickly to set up for the next story. And, the way this one ends, the next one might be a “have to read”. The author assures us it won’t be another seven (7) years though.
This wasn’t a great read by any means, but it wasn’t a bad read either. It did keep me interested. And, I don’t consider the time I spent reading it that much of a waste.
I would highly suggest that those who are interested in the novel to read the previous eight (8) before this to get the idea of the series.
Fans of the series and author will probably like this.
This is the first novel by Julia Spencer-Fleming I’ve read.
When I saw it here on BookishFirst, I HAD to use my points to redeem for it.
Content warnings will include: references to Tea Party, racism, white supremacists, drug and alcohol use, along with post-partum issues. None of this really seemed to be part of the main plot.
The reason this novel took the author seven (7) years to write was due to personal reasons. She had decided to pause writing it due to family obligations with her son in August 2016.
About a month later, her husband was diagnosed with cancer and died in September 2017. So, readers do need to take this into consideration when trying to get into this novel after a seven (7) year hiatus.
This is #9 in the Fergusson/Van Alstyne mysteries. It works as a standalone read, though I am sure readers will get more out of it if they have read the series. I had not read any prior to this novel.
This time, Clare and Russ are married with an infant son. Russ is facing the dissolution of the police department because some feel it isn’t needed, while Clare is facing some personal demons despite being a reverend.
The cases in 1952 and 1972 could be connected as well as the 1972 and current day. But, there is no way the 1952 and the current day case can be connected given the 54 year difference.
However, Russ was a person of interest in the 1972. He was never charged, but still remained of interest.
This is told in all three times; written in quick, short chapters making this a nearly non-stop read. The ARC was 423 pages and I was able to get through it in about a day.
Despite the pacing, this was hard to get through and I did feel bogged down in parts. I felt like it was a clear struggle to read.
It seems like the police are never going to catch a break. Lead after lead seems to fizzle out – frustrating the police and the reader. As much as I can keep up with multi-part and multi-plot stories, this was a bit of a stretch for me.
Carnies, communes, and even rich people are not safe from suspicion in this multi-generational murder mystery.
In addition to the problems with the case; there is a matter of a lawsuit against the police department, a current officer, and a former officer. While this is interesting and I am sure it is setting up the events in the next novel (from the way this goes, it looks like there will be a #10) … it does cloud the current story a bit.
Clare’s situation is overwhelming – her work as a reverend, her son, and also battling addiction. She gets an interesting intern that can’t seem to find placing within the church – a transgender woman, Joni. And, Joni has a connection to the case, the current one and the 1972 one as well.
Throughout the story; things bounce back and forth between keeping the police department, the 1952 investigation, the 1972 investigation, the current day, Clare’s issues, and the lawsuit.
There is a lot to track and keep up with in this story. Some readers might get frustrated. Those who enjoy more complex and twisted plots will likely enjoy this.
The author did a great job with trying to keep it all together and work well. She did a great job in keeping the mystery until nearly the very end. The connection and “motive” was a bit weak in my opinion. The 1972 and 2006 murders were connected, and in a slight way – so was the 1952. The writer didn’t go into too many details with the cases.
As far as Clare being the average reverend, I don’t know much about the Episcopal church to know either way so I can’t comment as to whether or not she is believable. Either way, for me, she wasn’t that compelling of a character.
The end of this story seems to wind down too quickly to set up for the next story. And, the way this one ends, the next one might be a “have to read”. The author assures us it won’t be another seven (7) years though.
This wasn’t a great read by any means, but it wasn’t a bad read either. It did keep me interested. And, I don’t consider the time I spent reading it that much of a waste.
I would highly suggest that those who are interested in the novel to read the previous eight (8) before this to get the idea of the series.
Fans of the series and author will probably like this.