What do you think?
Rate this book
A Dark and Lonely Place
“We belong together,” he said.
“Yes,” she whispered fervently in his ear. “We do.”
From Pulitzer Prize winner Edna Buchanan, the novel she has always wanted to write: the gripping saga of star-crossed lovers across generations. A century ago, when Indians and alligators roamed frontier Miami, the legendary John Ashley was accused of murder and sentenced to hang. He insisted he was innocent and went on the run with his sweetheart, Laura. Their crime spree lasted years longer and became far more deadly than the exploits of Bonnie and Clyde a decade later.
John Ashley and Laura Upthegrove became the most notorious, colorful, and compelling figures in Florida’s violent outlaw history. This is their true story of prison breaks, bootlegging, bank robberies, and piracy on the high seas. Their sensual and dreamy saga of love, passion, and violence is juxtaposed with the taut and suspenseful story of their fictional descendants who share the same love and dangers a hundred years later. In today’s Miami, Homicide Sergeant John Ashley investigates a millionaire’s spectacular murder and instantly recognizes a stunning model linked to the case as the girl who has haunted his dreams since childhood. Her name is Laura, and the lightning-fast attraction is supernaturally mutual.
The homicide case goes bad, Ashley is falsely accused of murder, and the new lovers go on the run as history repeats itself. The question is, how powerful is the past? Do the present-day renegades stand a chance? Does anyone? Can any of us with the outlaw patterns of violence and tragedy imprinted in our DNA ever break the cycle? Can we change our own destiny? Or must the end always be the same for dangerous people in dangerous times?
In a sweeping epic that explores the inevitability of fate and the belief in predestination, A Dark and Lonely Place draws the reader into an unforgettable world of intrigue, drama, romance, and tragedy.
“Yes,” she whispered fervently in his ear. “We do.”
From Pulitzer Prize winner Edna Buchanan, the novel she has always wanted to write: the gripping saga of star-crossed lovers across generations. A century ago, when Indians and alligators roamed frontier Miami, the legendary John Ashley was accused of murder and sentenced to hang. He insisted he was innocent and went on the run with his sweetheart, Laura. Their crime spree lasted years longer and became far more deadly than the exploits of Bonnie and Clyde a decade later.
John Ashley and Laura Upthegrove became the most notorious, colorful, and compelling figures in Florida’s violent outlaw history. This is their true story of prison breaks, bootlegging, bank robberies, and piracy on the high seas. Their sensual and dreamy saga of love, passion, and violence is juxtaposed with the taut and suspenseful story of their fictional descendants who share the same love and dangers a hundred years later. In today’s Miami, Homicide Sergeant John Ashley investigates a millionaire’s spectacular murder and instantly recognizes a stunning model linked to the case as the girl who has haunted his dreams since childhood. Her name is Laura, and the lightning-fast attraction is supernaturally mutual.
The homicide case goes bad, Ashley is falsely accused of murder, and the new lovers go on the run as history repeats itself. The question is, how powerful is the past? Do the present-day renegades stand a chance? Does anyone? Can any of us with the outlaw patterns of violence and tragedy imprinted in our DNA ever break the cycle? Can we change our own destiny? Or must the end always be the same for dangerous people in dangerous times?
In a sweeping epic that explores the inevitability of fate and the belief in predestination, A Dark and Lonely Place draws the reader into an unforgettable world of intrigue, drama, romance, and tragedy.
434 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
16 people are currently reading
228 people want to read
About the author
Edna Buchanan
55 books160 followersEdna Buchanan knew she wanted to be a writer since she was 4 years old. She moved to Florida where she got a job at a small newspaper. Ms. Buchanan became a reporter for the Miami Beach Daily Sun in the late 1960s.
In 1970, she was hired as a general assignment and police-beat reporter at the Miami Herald. In 1973, Ms. Buchanan became a police beat reporter, which coincided with the rise of Miami as a center of the international drug trade.
Winning a Pulitzer Prize, Ms. Buchanan became one of the best-known crime reporters in the U.S. She discussed some of her assignments in the books, The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1991) and Never Let Them See You Cry (1993). She has retired from journalism and writes mystery novels. The main character in her crime mystery series is Britt Montero.
In 1970, she was hired as a general assignment and police-beat reporter at the Miami Herald. In 1973, Ms. Buchanan became a police beat reporter, which coincided with the rise of Miami as a center of the international drug trade.
Winning a Pulitzer Prize, Ms. Buchanan became one of the best-known crime reporters in the U.S. She discussed some of her assignments in the books, The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1991) and Never Let Them See You Cry (1993). She has retired from journalism and writes mystery novels. The main character in her crime mystery series is Britt Montero.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
November 1, 2013
This book was different, but I like it!
The book reflects the similarities between two sets of soul mates who lived in different time periods, which all shared the same names and DNA. The circumstances that determine their choices in life were eerily similar. The second set of soul mates may have a better chance of fulfilling their destiny together than their predecessors.
The book reflects the similarities between two sets of soul mates who lived in different time periods, which all shared the same names and DNA. The circumstances that determine their choices in life were eerily similar. The second set of soul mates may have a better chance of fulfilling their destiny together than their predecessors.
July 20, 2015
Like some other reviewers, I found the structure of the book awkward. The story flips between the real story of John Ashley and Laura Upthegrove, a Bonnie & Clyde story of outlaws in the early 1900s in Florida, and the fictional story of another John Ashley and his girlfriend, Laura. The story of the real outlaw is a very sympathetic portrayal of good man, John Ashley, who is forced into life as bank robber and outlaw which doesn't seem supported in history although he was a hero to the independent Florida Crackers. His great love was Laura Upthegrove who left her husband and two small children for her childhood sweetheart, John Ashley.
The current story is of another John Ashley, a police officer, who is protecting a witness, Laura who also happens to be a beautiful model. John is a decorated officer who will not turn a blind eye to the widespread corruption of the local police and sheriff offices. Set up by his boss, he is framed and chased around Florida until he and his relatives (his gang) are forced into the outlaw life.
The question is whether history is written into people's bones or if they can break out of the pattern. This might fit if the second Laura and John were descendants of the first, but they aren't. The book was interesting, but at times one of the two stories would cover a number of chapters making it hard to remember the other story.
The current story is of another John Ashley, a police officer, who is protecting a witness, Laura who also happens to be a beautiful model. John is a decorated officer who will not turn a blind eye to the widespread corruption of the local police and sheriff offices. Set up by his boss, he is framed and chased around Florida until he and his relatives (his gang) are forced into the outlaw life.
The question is whether history is written into people's bones or if they can break out of the pattern. This might fit if the second Laura and John were descendants of the first, but they aren't. The book was interesting, but at times one of the two stories would cover a number of chapters making it hard to remember the other story.
November 20, 2011
I would say this is more an "almost 3" -- there were 2 distinct stories in this novel and sometimes they didn't connect together very well. Main story, which the author says has been her research interest for many years,is based on the life of outlaw John Ashley, a bootlegger who was drawn into bank robberies and murder to keep the bootlegging operation going. A very colorful character sympathetically described by Buchanan, he lives by the old "Cracker code" of honor. One forgets what a frontier south Florida was in the early 1900s, when Miami was still a small town, and the railroads and draining of the Everglades were just starting. Laura Upthegrove left her husband and children to become his lover & partner in crime, the "Queen of the Glades". The second story is set in modern Miami, with their descendants as a police officer wrongly accused of murder and the beautiful witness he is protecting. This is the weaker story, making up about a third of the book, and I read ahead to finish the story of John and Laura before coming back to the modern in the moment Miami. Buchanan, a longtime police reporter, describes modern Miami very well, even managing humor in dark scenes and I may try some of her other novels.
February 28, 2012
Edna Buchanan sets up her novel with a lengthy summary of the life and times of John Ashley, Florida's most infamous criminal. He and his gang, which included his paramour, Laura Upthegrove, and his brothers, are credited with murder, bank and train robberies, piracy, and bootlegging. Folk legend would hold Ashley up as a modern day Robin Hood sort of hero, and so would Edna Buchanan. Her novel, A Dark and Lonely Place, would have her readers believe the same sort of nonsense. According to her, Ashley was mistreated and misunderstood, and turned to a life of cold blooded crime as a means to support his poor self. The novel is little more than a stars-in-your-eyes romance filled with rationalization.
There is a parallel plot, in which one of John's descendants, a 21st century detective, falls in love with a witness, Laura Grove (get it?), and falls afoul of the law he is pledged to uphold. Both Johns and Lauras suffer similar fates. Is destiny imprinted upon our DNA? Can we escape the patterns of the past? Not according to Buchanan, but never fear. There's always a good excuse for embracing criminal activity.
There is a parallel plot, in which one of John's descendants, a 21st century detective, falls in love with a witness, Laura Grove (get it?), and falls afoul of the law he is pledged to uphold. Both Johns and Lauras suffer similar fates. Is destiny imprinted upon our DNA? Can we escape the patterns of the past? Not according to Buchanan, but never fear. There's always a good excuse for embracing criminal activity.
April 28, 2014
In a Dark and Lonely Place, this is a tale of two similar stories that took place and became separated 100 years in time. Like Bonnie and Clyde, in this nine-part novel, it's about the historical true love story of John Ashley and his girlfriend Laura Upthegrove, the first outlaws in Florida history that span years and ended in tragedy. In present day Florida, the fictional John Ashley, a framed and famed police detective, and his witness girlfriend, Laura Groves, who's wanted on the war. From start to finish, Edna Buchanan interwove the historical and fictional counterpart stories with the same story about the police who were after them in two different centuries and ended up two different outcomes, when both world collides towards the end of the story. For those who love historical mysteries, this is the one for you.
June 26, 2012
I sort of enjoyed this book but found the structure quite clumsy. I liked the idea of reading about two similar couples in two very different time periods but some of the sections for each time frame where too long and I lost track of what was happening with the other couple. Like some of the other readers I skipped sections to carry on with current story line. The resolution for the modern day couple was weak and happened rather abruptly.
I am new to Good Reads and this is the first time I have read reviews before I read the book. Maybe this prejudiced my view.... next time I will wait until I finish the book!
I am new to Good Reads and this is the first time I have read reviews before I read the book. Maybe this prejudiced my view.... next time I will wait until I finish the book!
March 9, 2012
Taking an old Florida legend of injustice and splicing it into a modern-day crime drama doesn't work for me.
I'm sure that the tale of a desperado falsely accused of murder could have been a page turner, but when you're turning those pages and find yourself in modern day Miami police procedural, the effect is jarring. And not enjoyable.
Couldn't get into the story, couldn't come to care about the protagonist(s)--- is the hero supposed to be a reincarnation or blood relative or cosmic twin or what? I'm not interested enough to find out.
I'm sure that the tale of a desperado falsely accused of murder could have been a page turner, but when you're turning those pages and find yourself in modern day Miami police procedural, the effect is jarring. And not enjoyable.
Couldn't get into the story, couldn't come to care about the protagonist(s)--- is the hero supposed to be a reincarnation or blood relative or cosmic twin or what? I'm not interested enough to find out.
December 12, 2011
This was the story of Laura and John and of Laura and John. Two couples, one from the 'wild' Florida of the twenties and the other from the corrupt Florida of today. Each couple receives portions of the book and each one's lives are on a similar pattern. The plot is intriguing and the narrative itself very well done. Good reading for a long weekend.
March 4, 2012
wow! I was so afraid this would end badly, I almost didn't finish it. 2 stories in 1,this was nothing like the britt montero mysteries. I think I enjoy those more, just because I figure that since it is a series, she will survive. Edna buchanon did an excellent job with expanding on facts, then writing a whole new, but connected story.
January 28, 2012
Trite, one of the rare books I couldn't bother to finish, with only 50 pages to go.
June 7, 2012
Not up to her earlier works.
July 18, 2012
Very disappointing from an author I have always enjoyed in past
January 29, 2023
Usually LOVE Buchanan's crisp writing style. This book is very different from her other books. I had a hard time getting into this book and, in fact, did not even finish it.
Read
August 21, 2012total waste of time and paper
January 21, 2013
Melodramatic and predicitable. A waste of time. I'm running out of decent audio books to borrow from the library.
December 19, 2014
A pleasant surprise. Cracker-jack yarn.
September 29, 2018
The book starts by briefly telling us the whole story. Then we get to go through the rest of the book watching the writer fill in the details. There is a reason people don't write books this way. It makes the thing seem rather pointless.
This is primarily a book about an outlaw in old Florida. It appears someone suggested to the author the gimmick of having a modern story that kind of parallels the "true" story, so she threw in some stuff about that and voila, one inconsistently paced and somewhat chaotically organized book made up of two similar stories spliced together for no apparent reason.
This is primarily a book about an outlaw in old Florida. It appears someone suggested to the author the gimmick of having a modern story that kind of parallels the "true" story, so she threw in some stuff about that and voila, one inconsistently paced and somewhat chaotically organized book made up of two similar stories spliced together for no apparent reason.
March 31, 2023
This novel raises the question of how much of our lives is determined by our ancestors--what we inherit from them--or is it possible we re-live our lives? Set in southern Florida in two different time periods, characters with the same names live similar lives. Eerily, one character in the present recognizes someone from his past, but he can't remember from where--because it wasn't his present past. Think multiverse.
January 1, 2025
Based on a true story, I learned a lot about the early history of Florida. Seems strange to think of Florida having “pioneers” but somebody had to be the first settlers. Although the title of the book didn’t really seem appropriate to the story (despite her use of the phrase multiple times throughout), it was an interesting way to tell two stories side by side. Was hard to predict which way it would go in the end.
February 22, 2018
I liked the structure of this book. I thought the two timelines were a great way to tell the stories. Thought the phrases were a bit clumsy and pat at times, it kept my attention. I really enjoyed the Florida history-I was surprised.
October 31, 2018
Loved the local Florida history and enjoyed the weaving of past historical characters (outlaws) with present day characters - thought that was clever and got caught up in the romantic deja vu atmosphere....but did find it draggy about two-thirds through.
December 17, 2017
I love her Britt Montero novels ... this one is different, haunting, partly based on real events. Not my favorite, but I couldn't put it down.
June 19, 2019
Enjoyed
April 13, 2020
Packed with more action than you probably can handle. Should of been a movie and even in the book a character implied that idea.
September 27, 2024
Three 1/2 Stars
January 2, 2025
This one’s a doozy. A historical family with troubles with the crooked law, and a modern almost repeat. Great fun reading.
April 25, 2025
It took a minute to get started but what a wonderfully, intertwined story.
February 9, 2012
This is my first taste of Edna Buchanan's work. I grabbed it off the shelf because I find it hard to resist a book written by a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist. I always look for the best and highest. Pulitzer Prize winners seem to fall in that category.
Keep the word "journalist" firmly in mind if you read this crime-thriller. The author has woven the true story of a pair of star crossed lovers in early Florida with the story of a pair of modern day fictional characters caught up in a parallel situation. The author knows Florida like the back of her hand and gets a chance to show off her muck raking abilities and investigative prowess through both the facts and fictions.
The true crime occurred in 1911 when a man named John Ashley was accused of murder and sentenced to die in Florida. Insisting on his innocence, he breaks out of jail and takes off on a crime spree, but some of his reported crimes may have been mere propaganda circulated by a corrupt sheriff and mistakes by a primitive newspaper system. He and his childhood love named Laura reunite despite the pressures of living life on the lam and they crisscross Florida like Bonnie and Clyde.
The modern day fictional character is also falsely accused of murder and caught at the center of corrupt political maneuvering within the police department. He is also called John Ashley and of course meets his soul mate Laura, who might be the reincarnation of his alter ego's childhood sweetheart.
The tantalizing question is whether the present day, but fictional, John Ashley will suffer the same sad fate as the real John Ashley and real Laura.
It was an ambitious project to tell a story that occurred a hundred years ago and then use the theory of reincarnation to point out modern day parallels. The author tried to combine an excellent true crime story with a modern day thriller.
Buchannan however, has a disconcerting habit of switching to reporting mode in the midst of the fictionalized parts of the book, so the reader is left a bit confused and suspicious. The reader is left uncertain where facts leave off and fiction begins. the A really good editor would have, in my humble opinion, snipped about 30 or 40 pages of the love story that did not propel the story forward.
I liked the book, and applaud the author's open mindedness towards astrology (hip, hip, hooray!) and reincarnation, but thought that the fascinating account of the real life John Ashley and his lover, Laura, would have been better served up in a standalone book.
Keep the word "journalist" firmly in mind if you read this crime-thriller. The author has woven the true story of a pair of star crossed lovers in early Florida with the story of a pair of modern day fictional characters caught up in a parallel situation. The author knows Florida like the back of her hand and gets a chance to show off her muck raking abilities and investigative prowess through both the facts and fictions.
The true crime occurred in 1911 when a man named John Ashley was accused of murder and sentenced to die in Florida. Insisting on his innocence, he breaks out of jail and takes off on a crime spree, but some of his reported crimes may have been mere propaganda circulated by a corrupt sheriff and mistakes by a primitive newspaper system. He and his childhood love named Laura reunite despite the pressures of living life on the lam and they crisscross Florida like Bonnie and Clyde.
The modern day fictional character is also falsely accused of murder and caught at the center of corrupt political maneuvering within the police department. He is also called John Ashley and of course meets his soul mate Laura, who might be the reincarnation of his alter ego's childhood sweetheart.
The tantalizing question is whether the present day, but fictional, John Ashley will suffer the same sad fate as the real John Ashley and real Laura.
It was an ambitious project to tell a story that occurred a hundred years ago and then use the theory of reincarnation to point out modern day parallels. The author tried to combine an excellent true crime story with a modern day thriller.
Buchannan however, has a disconcerting habit of switching to reporting mode in the midst of the fictionalized parts of the book, so the reader is left a bit confused and suspicious. The reader is left uncertain where facts leave off and fiction begins. the A really good editor would have, in my humble opinion, snipped about 30 or 40 pages of the love story that did not propel the story forward.
I liked the book, and applaud the author's open mindedness towards astrology (hip, hip, hooray!) and reincarnation, but thought that the fascinating account of the real life John Ashley and his lover, Laura, would have been better served up in a standalone book.
July 3, 2013
John Ashley is a Miami homicide sergeant who has an impeccable record. While at the beach with his girl, he's in the wrong place at the wrong time since a speedboat comes crashing onto the beach. Thankfully, not many are hurt, but the driver of the boat is dead and not from the collision. He's been shot in the head, and John is first on the scene of a high-profile murder.
Also on the beach is a model photo shoot, and one of the girls looks familiar to John. He believes he knows her, but he can't recall from where. As their investigation into the murder delves deeper, the model becomes a suspect. Her name is Laura and she finds John just as familiar as she finds him. They find one another irresistible and begin a passionate relationship, irregardless of the charges piling up against them.
Back in the early nineteen hundreds, John Ashley was in love with a girl named Laura. However, John was charged with murder, even though he surrendered to clear his name. This backfired and John was sentenced to hang for the crime, until his younger brother tried to break him out of jail - forfeiting his own life. With Laura by his side, John had a shoot-out with the police and spent many years on a path of crime and eluding the authorities.
John and Laura in today's time are from the same line as the pair from the past, but will they choose the same path that their ancestors did? Will they fight for their innocence and their love, or will they run like their ancestors did?
Brimming with four remarkable characters, romance, crime and action, A DARK AND LONELY PLACE is worth reading over and over again. A suspenseful and fast paced romantic suspense, fans of Edna Buchanan will highly praise this remarkable winner! Creative writing, complex and formidable characters, bittersweet romance and a string of crimes are woven together into a breathtaking tale.
Also on the beach is a model photo shoot, and one of the girls looks familiar to John. He believes he knows her, but he can't recall from where. As their investigation into the murder delves deeper, the model becomes a suspect. Her name is Laura and she finds John just as familiar as she finds him. They find one another irresistible and begin a passionate relationship, irregardless of the charges piling up against them.
Back in the early nineteen hundreds, John Ashley was in love with a girl named Laura. However, John was charged with murder, even though he surrendered to clear his name. This backfired and John was sentenced to hang for the crime, until his younger brother tried to break him out of jail - forfeiting his own life. With Laura by his side, John had a shoot-out with the police and spent many years on a path of crime and eluding the authorities.
John and Laura in today's time are from the same line as the pair from the past, but will they choose the same path that their ancestors did? Will they fight for their innocence and their love, or will they run like their ancestors did?
Brimming with four remarkable characters, romance, crime and action, A DARK AND LONELY PLACE is worth reading over and over again. A suspenseful and fast paced romantic suspense, fans of Edna Buchanan will highly praise this remarkable winner! Creative writing, complex and formidable characters, bittersweet romance and a string of crimes are woven together into a breathtaking tale.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews