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Elizabeth MacPherson #1
Sick of Shadows
The book that started it all for Edgar Award winner Sharyn McCrumb's widely acclaimed series featuring amateur sleuth Elizabeth MacPherson.
When delicate Eileen Chandler is set to marry, her family fears the man is a fortune hunter. Thank goodness, Eileen's cousin Elizabeth MacPherson comes early for support. Unfortunately, Elizabeth also has some detecting to do, as a dead body is found, and none of the wedding party is above suspicion....
"A good deal of suspense...McCrumb writes with a sharp-pointed pen."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
When delicate Eileen Chandler is set to marry, her family fears the man is a fortune hunter. Thank goodness, Eileen's cousin Elizabeth MacPherson comes early for support. Unfortunately, Elizabeth also has some detecting to do, as a dead body is found, and none of the wedding party is above suspicion....
"A good deal of suspense...McCrumb writes with a sharp-pointed pen."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
236 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
221 people are currently reading
1148 people want to read
About the author
Sharyn McCrumb
116 books1,127 followers
Sharyn McCrumb, an award-winning Southern writer, is best known for her Appalachian “Ballad” novels, including the New York Times best sellers The Ballad of Tom Dooley, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, and The Songcatcher. Ghost Riders, which won the Wilma Dykeman Award for Literature from the East Tennessee Historical Society and the national Audie Award for Best Recorded Books. The Unquiet Grave, a well-researched novel about West Virginia's Greenbrier Ghost, will be published in September by Atria, a division of Simon &Schuster.
Sharyn McCrumb, named a Virginia Woman of History by the Library of Virginia and a Woman of the Arts by the national Daughters of the American Revolution, was awarded the Mary Hobson Prize for Arts & Letters in 2014. Her books have been named New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Books. In addition to presenting programs at universities, libraries, and other organizations throughout the US, Sharyn McCrumb has taught a writers workshop in Paris, and served as writer-in-residence at King University in Tennessee, and at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York.
Sharyn McCrumb, an award-winning Southern writer, is best known for her Appalachian “Ballad” novels, including the New York Times best sellers The Ballad of Tom Dooley, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, and The Songcatcher. Ghost Riders, which won the Wilma Dykeman Award for Literature from the East Tennessee Historical Society and the national Audie Award for Best Recorded Books. The Unquiet Grave, a well-researched novel about West Virginia's Greenbrier Ghost, will be published in September by Atria, a division of Simon &Schuster.
Sharyn McCrumb, named a Virginia Woman of History by the Library of Virginia and a Woman of the Arts by the national Daughters of the American Revolution, was awarded the Mary Hobson Prize for Arts & Letters in 2014. Her books have been named New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Books. In addition to presenting programs at universities, libraries, and other organizations throughout the US, Sharyn McCrumb has taught a writers workshop in Paris, and served as writer-in-residence at King University in Tennessee, and at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 140 reviews
November 26, 2013
Um. Well.
I guess, in order to keep Amazon happy, as well as fans of this book, I ADORE THIS AUTHOR!
But this particular novel makes the sacrifice by the trees to print it a shame. Fortunately, I downloaded it.
I think it was a cozy mystery. I think. It was difficult to tell, though, at least for me. Tone-deaf emotional responses, unintentional comedic scenes, the lamest intentional jokes of the year in a book (and I've read 100 books this year), an uninteresting family, socially inept dialogue throughout (it was if female engineers were trying to make conversation at a party - I apologize to my fellow feminists, but it really was like computer engineers trying for a chirpy presentation) overexplaining the obvious while neglecting to lay any groundwork for other incidents, curious non- or over- or not-in-the-right-movie- reactions, and most alarming, a peculiar plot insertion popping out like a jack-in-the-box surprise similar to a clown clopping across the stage waving balloons in a Macbeth production. The ending is literally demented.
If a Romance reader was trying to write a book in the style of Agatha Christie, it might result in this book. If this wasn't an early effort by this author, well, I don't know how to account for how bad this is. Every attribute of telling a good story is utterly eviscerated, except for the mystery motifs utilized which were popular in the 1930's, which nonetheless, are horribly stitched together by the poor quality of the lighthearted writing. However, I'm very curious now as to how this book led to a series of Elizabeth MacPherson the Sleuth mysteries.
In this beginning adventure of Elizabeth's career, she is a social butterfly child-woman attending a family wedding, where a crazy cousin-in-the-attic Eileen is marrying an inappropriate limp-wristed liberal, Michael Satisky. An aunt had a clause in her will that money will be inherited by the first of the cousins to marry. All of the Chandlers are in the top 20% of wealthy Americans, so why this plot point is there, it must be just in case the other motive, inherited insanity, doesn't work for the reader. Elizabeth is relentlessly nice, observing her bizarre relatives and writing notes to her brother Bill, primarily, completely without any detection of dissonance, even though every one of her cousins has a talk with her darkly hinting at the Chandler inheritance of insanity. The only bad moment of her visit, of which includes the discovery of her cousin's body in a boat and that the cousin either died from hitting her head in a fall or by snakebite (yes, lets throw in snakes sitting in the boat for that one fatal minute but which are gone when the body is found, and which are never explained), the insanity of all of her cousins, the medieval castle built by odd laughing Alban across the road, inhospitable and hostile aunt Amanda, Captain Grandfather who believes he is still in the navy, cousin Charles who appears to have autistic tendencies, cousin Geoffrey of the abrupt social transitions - is when the Chandlers curiously ask Elizabeth about the history of the MacPherson branch. She unaccountably is enraged and is defensive while telling them she is part of a Scottish clan and likes tartan colors. For some reason, she is embarrassed and aggravated to talk about this at dinner to the eccentric, delusional, self-involved and schizophrenic Chandlers. It isn't a plot point which is developed further or matters in the least to the mystery. I suppose it was simply a lame attempt to 'humanize' Elizabeth by writing in a show of a disembodied temper tantrum for a character who has been a shallow dimwit so far. Well, iMHO, Elizabeth still is a shallow dimwit by the end of the book. She does not solve the mystery or help the Chandlers or in any way charm this reader by the end of this first book in the series.
It doesn't matter if I go on with my review, whether it's for my book diary purpose or for your interest in my opinion. If I was to enumerate every horrible sentence of dull, brainless dialogue or disassociated meaningless event or fact or inappropriate social interaction, it would mean copying the entire book.
The theme-setting quote at the beginning of the book is from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lady...
Make of that what you will.
November 26 - edit
I was curious about how such a bad book spawned a series - what a surprise I've been having the last week! I've read two more Elizabeth books - and they are truly funny! In the right way, not unintentionally. Elizabeth is charming, if you don't mind that the author has designed her as a dark-haired member of the 'dumb blonde' club. This series is definitely comedic and satiric - but not sardonic, dark or vicious. If you enjoy the goring of oxen, they are fun. 'Sick of Shadows' must have been an early effort. It's a shame the author didn't get the opportunity to make it right before publishing it. I can see that it was a satire of the 1930's mysteries, but it simply is a horribly written novel. I'd love to read a fixed up version!
If you see yourself as a monument of social probity and middle-class propriety and political correctness, you will likely find in the series a character or a beloved American tradition which appears to have been insulted. You are warned, as the author is using the interests and values of the middle-class as the basis for her ridicule. I agree with the author's vision of our monkey silliness (not just about our actual lifestyles and social pretensions, but also the literary genre conventions in which we package our entertainments!). The author is goring a LOT in this series, gently, and I like it - just not this first book.
I guess, in order to keep Amazon happy, as well as fans of this book, I ADORE THIS AUTHOR!
But this particular novel makes the sacrifice by the trees to print it a shame. Fortunately, I downloaded it.
I think it was a cozy mystery. I think. It was difficult to tell, though, at least for me. Tone-deaf emotional responses, unintentional comedic scenes, the lamest intentional jokes of the year in a book (and I've read 100 books this year), an uninteresting family, socially inept dialogue throughout (it was if female engineers were trying to make conversation at a party - I apologize to my fellow feminists, but it really was like computer engineers trying for a chirpy presentation) overexplaining the obvious while neglecting to lay any groundwork for other incidents, curious non- or over- or not-in-the-right-movie- reactions, and most alarming, a peculiar plot insertion popping out like a jack-in-the-box surprise similar to a clown clopping across the stage waving balloons in a Macbeth production. The ending is literally demented.
If a Romance reader was trying to write a book in the style of Agatha Christie, it might result in this book. If this wasn't an early effort by this author, well, I don't know how to account for how bad this is. Every attribute of telling a good story is utterly eviscerated, except for the mystery motifs utilized which were popular in the 1930's, which nonetheless, are horribly stitched together by the poor quality of the lighthearted writing. However, I'm very curious now as to how this book led to a series of Elizabeth MacPherson the Sleuth mysteries.
In this beginning adventure of Elizabeth's career, she is a social butterfly child-woman attending a family wedding, where a crazy cousin-in-the-attic Eileen is marrying an inappropriate limp-wristed liberal, Michael Satisky. An aunt had a clause in her will that money will be inherited by the first of the cousins to marry. All of the Chandlers are in the top 20% of wealthy Americans, so why this plot point is there, it must be just in case the other motive, inherited insanity, doesn't work for the reader. Elizabeth is relentlessly nice, observing her bizarre relatives and writing notes to her brother Bill, primarily, completely without any detection of dissonance, even though every one of her cousins has a talk with her darkly hinting at the Chandler inheritance of insanity. The only bad moment of her visit, of which includes the discovery of her cousin's body in a boat and that the cousin either died from hitting her head in a fall or by snakebite (yes, lets throw in snakes sitting in the boat for that one fatal minute but which are gone when the body is found, and which are never explained), the insanity of all of her cousins, the medieval castle built by odd laughing Alban across the road, inhospitable and hostile aunt Amanda, Captain Grandfather who believes he is still in the navy, cousin Charles who appears to have autistic tendencies, cousin Geoffrey of the abrupt social transitions - is when the Chandlers curiously ask Elizabeth about the history of the MacPherson branch. She unaccountably is enraged and is defensive while telling them she is part of a Scottish clan and likes tartan colors. For some reason, she is embarrassed and aggravated to talk about this at dinner to the eccentric, delusional, self-involved and schizophrenic Chandlers. It isn't a plot point which is developed further or matters in the least to the mystery. I suppose it was simply a lame attempt to 'humanize' Elizabeth by writing in a show of a disembodied temper tantrum for a character who has been a shallow dimwit so far. Well, iMHO, Elizabeth still is a shallow dimwit by the end of the book. She does not solve the mystery or help the Chandlers or in any way charm this reader by the end of this first book in the series.
It doesn't matter if I go on with my review, whether it's for my book diary purpose or for your interest in my opinion. If I was to enumerate every horrible sentence of dull, brainless dialogue or disassociated meaningless event or fact or inappropriate social interaction, it would mean copying the entire book.
The theme-setting quote at the beginning of the book is from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lady...
Make of that what you will.
November 26 - edit
I was curious about how such a bad book spawned a series - what a surprise I've been having the last week! I've read two more Elizabeth books - and they are truly funny! In the right way, not unintentionally. Elizabeth is charming, if you don't mind that the author has designed her as a dark-haired member of the 'dumb blonde' club. This series is definitely comedic and satiric - but not sardonic, dark or vicious. If you enjoy the goring of oxen, they are fun. 'Sick of Shadows' must have been an early effort. It's a shame the author didn't get the opportunity to make it right before publishing it. I can see that it was a satire of the 1930's mysteries, but it simply is a horribly written novel. I'd love to read a fixed up version!
If you see yourself as a monument of social probity and middle-class propriety and political correctness, you will likely find in the series a character or a beloved American tradition which appears to have been insulted. You are warned, as the author is using the interests and values of the middle-class as the basis for her ridicule. I agree with the author's vision of our monkey silliness (not just about our actual lifestyles and social pretensions, but also the literary genre conventions in which we package our entertainments!). The author is goring a LOT in this series, gently, and I like it - just not this first book.
September 13, 2016
A traditional sort of country-house mystery set on a Georgia estate about to host a wedding. Not as clever as her other works, but really an excellent choice for a day spent lying about sick.
Library copy
Library copy
March 15, 2020
This is what McCrumb was writing before she developed the fabulously wonderful Ballad series. This is the first book in the Elizabeth McPherson series and, of the three or four that I have read, by far the best one. It really deserves a 3.5 rating so I rounded it up. I did enjoy the humor of the book, but I am so glad that she established the Ballad series. Recommended only to McPherson fans.
March 13, 2017
Main character was a dead loss in every way.
October 13, 2018
Actual Rating: 2.5 Stars
First of all, the only summary blurb I can find for this book is extremely misleading, in spite of the fact that it's mostly true. Because as you find out from the beginning of the book, Elizabeth does not actually "come early for support," and actually spends the first two pages of the book making fun of her cousin and her cousin's family in a letter to her brother.
This was a little off-putting since we learn that Eileen Chandler had been admitted into a mental care hospital not long ago in her life. The fact that Elizabeth spends even an ounce of time poking fun of that was quite tasteless and unnecessary. I'm not sure if this has to do with the time this book was written in 1984, but I didn't care for it. It was a bad first impression of the main heroine in this series.
Secondly, Elizabeth doesn't so much do the detecting, as let clues fall into her lap at intervals. In fact, there is a set of policeman in this book who probably have more book time than Elizabeth, and who actually do the detecting. This is a bit of a change from what I'm used to in cozy mysteries--at least the cozy mysteries I've read--wherein the police force is either missing, incompetent, or the asshat of a main male love interest. Instead, the two police detectives are definitely there to investigate and they kind of edge Elizabeth out of the book's limelight.
Then there's a twist in the end, pertaining to the murder investigation, that bugged me a lot because it didn't make sense, really.
Sick of Shadows wasn't a terrible book--it wasn't even a bad book, to be honest, and was actually written quite well. But the writing was really all that it had going for it. Well, all except for the part where the dialogue read like British instead of Southern U.S.A. I'm not sure if the perception was my fault since I'd been listening to an Agatha Christie mystery in audio book, narrated by Hugh Fraser, but aside from Aunt Amanda, I could not formulate a southern drawl for anyone else in the book. When I tried to "hear" the dialogue of any other character that way, it just slowly morphed into something more British.
I don't think I'd ever had that problem before with books that took place in the U.S. south.
But moving along...
Truth be told, the rest of the story was pretty flat. The characters were a little hard to grasp, and our main heroine--of whom the series is named for--doesn't really play much of a role in this book, as I've mentioned already. Instead, Elizabeth spends time doing the stereotypical feminine chores around the house to be helpful, interrogates people around her about future career prospects, and kind of just fades into the background. All of her cousins are described as eccentric, despite the fact that she describes them as crazy, and yet they come off as entirely too over-the-top, in my opinion. And you never really get to know them, any of them, well enough to care about their emotions or even their existence.
This is a pretty mediocre start to a cozy mystery series that, according to other reviewers, will pick up in the next book. So I'm not writing it off immediately, but I'm not going to hit up a store just to get a hold of the next book. I will wait patiently until my library picks up an e-book copy, or barring that possibility, I might give inter-library loan another go... another time from now.
I DO wish that Elizabeth had had more of a direction and some development to her character. As it is, she's really just another side character in a book full of side characters.
As I already mentioned, I'll give this series another spin some other time and hope that things are a little better outlined.
***
Halloween Bingo 2018
(mystery, supernatural, suspense, or horror set in the Southern part of the United States)
Other Possible Squares: Genre: Suspense; Country House Mystery; Terror in a Small Town; Cozy Mystery; Amateur Sleuth; Terrifying Women; Murder Most Foul
Original review posted at Ani's Book Abyss | Sick of Shadows
First of all, the only summary blurb I can find for this book is extremely misleading, in spite of the fact that it's mostly true. Because as you find out from the beginning of the book, Elizabeth does not actually "come early for support," and actually spends the first two pages of the book making fun of her cousin and her cousin's family in a letter to her brother.
This was a little off-putting since we learn that Eileen Chandler had been admitted into a mental care hospital not long ago in her life. The fact that Elizabeth spends even an ounce of time poking fun of that was quite tasteless and unnecessary. I'm not sure if this has to do with the time this book was written in 1984, but I didn't care for it. It was a bad first impression of the main heroine in this series.
Secondly, Elizabeth doesn't so much do the detecting, as let clues fall into her lap at intervals. In fact, there is a set of policeman in this book who probably have more book time than Elizabeth, and who actually do the detecting. This is a bit of a change from what I'm used to in cozy mysteries--at least the cozy mysteries I've read--wherein the police force is either missing, incompetent, or the asshat of a main male love interest. Instead, the two police detectives are definitely there to investigate and they kind of edge Elizabeth out of the book's limelight.
Then there's a twist in the end, pertaining to the murder investigation, that bugged me a lot because it didn't make sense, really.
Sick of Shadows wasn't a terrible book--it wasn't even a bad book, to be honest, and was actually written quite well. But the writing was really all that it had going for it. Well, all except for the part where the dialogue read like British instead of Southern U.S.A. I'm not sure if the perception was my fault since I'd been listening to an Agatha Christie mystery in audio book, narrated by Hugh Fraser, but aside from Aunt Amanda, I could not formulate a southern drawl for anyone else in the book. When I tried to "hear" the dialogue of any other character that way, it just slowly morphed into something more British.
I don't think I'd ever had that problem before with books that took place in the U.S. south.
But moving along...
Truth be told, the rest of the story was pretty flat. The characters were a little hard to grasp, and our main heroine--of whom the series is named for--doesn't really play much of a role in this book, as I've mentioned already. Instead, Elizabeth spends time doing the stereotypical feminine chores around the house to be helpful, interrogates people around her about future career prospects, and kind of just fades into the background. All of her cousins are described as eccentric, despite the fact that she describes them as crazy, and yet they come off as entirely too over-the-top, in my opinion. And you never really get to know them, any of them, well enough to care about their emotions or even their existence.
This is a pretty mediocre start to a cozy mystery series that, according to other reviewers, will pick up in the next book. So I'm not writing it off immediately, but I'm not going to hit up a store just to get a hold of the next book. I will wait patiently until my library picks up an e-book copy, or barring that possibility, I might give inter-library loan another go... another time from now.
I DO wish that Elizabeth had had more of a direction and some development to her character. As it is, she's really just another side character in a book full of side characters.
As I already mentioned, I'll give this series another spin some other time and hope that things are a little better outlined.
***
Halloween Bingo 2018
(mystery, supernatural, suspense, or horror set in the Southern part of the United States)
Other Possible Squares: Genre: Suspense; Country House Mystery; Terror in a Small Town; Cozy Mystery; Amateur Sleuth; Terrifying Women; Murder Most Foul
Original review posted at Ani's Book Abyss | Sick of Shadows
July 3, 2023
This reads as a truly introductory novel to Elizabeth MacPherson as the main character. She was part of the mystery, but didn't solve it. I'm wondering if her brother will have more involvement in the next book as he solved the mystery. It is clear the author has read plenty of English house mystery novels with the humor, which I appreciated. I agree with another reviewer that the dialogue sounds more British with a couple of y'alls thrown in than truly Southern. This is odd to me since the author is from North Carolina. It may be that this is her first novel, so maybe she is finding her feet. I would read the next one in the series if I got it for free. I was trying to find her Ballad series which was recommended to me, but it was not available at our library.
September 8, 2022
Wow, this was a bomb. Usually the first of a series grabs your interest and makes you excited to get to the next in the series. This one- not so much. If this is a series about Elizabeth McPherson being a sleuth, I didn't read a word of it in this story.
The only one with any deductive reasoning was her brother, whom she was writing letters to the entire time she was at Chandler Manor.
Suffice to say I will not be looking into the next installment of this series.
The only one with any deductive reasoning was her brother, whom she was writing letters to the entire time she was at Chandler Manor.
Suffice to say I will not be looking into the next installment of this series.
July 20, 2013
When I read a cozy, I expect to get a good sense of place from the book. I don't care if the story takes place in 1884 or 2013. This book had me a little confused. The character's dialog sounded British even though the story takes place in a small town in Georgia.
The copy of the book I read stated it's publication date was 1989. I thought I would have a nice stroll down memory lane as I and most of my friend married around this time. I had to double check the publication date because the attitudes were so out of place for circa 1990. Women are more concerned about husband hunting than establishing a career. One of the characters lives in a commune. The heroine who just graduated from college with a degree in sociology considers a career in Archaelogy because her brother's roommate is an Archaelogist and they could excavate together, never mind she hasn't even met the guy. All the female characters are either immature, neurotic or mentally ill. After the death of the murder victim, a family member is scolded for failing to wear black for mourning, not at the funeral but in the privacy of their home. It seemed so Mad-Men-like that I was sure I was reading a book published in the 1960's. When I re-checked the publication date, it was indeed not 1989 but 1984. Even with the earlier publication date, the attitudes seem about 25 years off.
But what really bugged me, was that the mystery was not solved by the heroine but by a minor male character. I think I could have been amused by all the other things but that just went too far.
As to the nostalgia, this novel takes place in a time when people wrote letters, looked information up in an encyclopedia (book), and apparently sent mailgrams. I looked mailgrams up on wikipedia.
The mystery was decent and held my interest. If you can laugh at the mid-century attitudes, you will enjoy this mystery.
The copy of the book I read stated it's publication date was 1989. I thought I would have a nice stroll down memory lane as I and most of my friend married around this time. I had to double check the publication date because the attitudes were so out of place for circa 1990. Women are more concerned about husband hunting than establishing a career. One of the characters lives in a commune. The heroine who just graduated from college with a degree in sociology considers a career in Archaelogy because her brother's roommate is an Archaelogist and they could excavate together, never mind she hasn't even met the guy. All the female characters are either immature, neurotic or mentally ill. After the death of the murder victim, a family member is scolded for failing to wear black for mourning, not at the funeral but in the privacy of their home. It seemed so Mad-Men-like that I was sure I was reading a book published in the 1960's. When I re-checked the publication date, it was indeed not 1989 but 1984. Even with the earlier publication date, the attitudes seem about 25 years off.
But what really bugged me, was that the mystery was not solved by the heroine but by a minor male character. I think I could have been amused by all the other things but that just went too far.
As to the nostalgia, this novel takes place in a time when people wrote letters, looked information up in an encyclopedia (book), and apparently sent mailgrams. I looked mailgrams up on wikipedia.
The mystery was decent and held my interest. If you can laugh at the mid-century attitudes, you will enjoy this mystery.
January 25, 2015
Although I've read other books in the Elizabeth Macpherson series, this is the first time I've actually found and read the FIRST book. I don't know how, as I'm a huge Sharyn McCrumb fan, but I'd not seen this one before.
And... it was great. Not disappointed at all. There was a good balance between all the characters and they had that usual depth and colour to McCrumb's character that makes me feel drawn to reading the book. The pace of reading was good and it didn't give away too much or too little at any time. It's really given me a craving to hunt out the rest of the series and re-read them all as it's been a few years since I've done that.
If you're a fan of Sharyn McCrumb's other works, you will love this. If you're a fan of the sacrastic, strong female, you will love this. If you're a fan of crime fiction, you will love this... I think you get the idea? ;-)
And... it was great. Not disappointed at all. There was a good balance between all the characters and they had that usual depth and colour to McCrumb's character that makes me feel drawn to reading the book. The pace of reading was good and it didn't give away too much or too little at any time. It's really given me a craving to hunt out the rest of the series and re-read them all as it's been a few years since I've done that.
If you're a fan of Sharyn McCrumb's other works, you will love this. If you're a fan of the sacrastic, strong female, you will love this. If you're a fan of crime fiction, you will love this... I think you get the idea? ;-)
October 7, 2013
2 1/2 stars
I found the ending of this whodunit to be preposterous. It angers me when “poof”, a mystery is solved without any realistic explanation of how it was divined. I don’t think I would have bought the explanation even if it had been Sherlock Holmes reaching this conclusion, since it was based on such flimsy evidence.
This was Sharyn McCrumb’s first mystery featuring Elizabeth MacPherson. It was followed by ‘Lovely In Her Bones’, which was named the outstanding work of fiction for 1985 by the Appalachian Writers Association. I may read that, because I enjoyed 95% of Sick of Shadows. It was just the lame ending that was so disappointing.
NOTE: Several reviewers have stated that this book was the weakest one in the series.
I found the ending of this whodunit to be preposterous. It angers me when “poof”, a mystery is solved without any realistic explanation of how it was divined. I don’t think I would have bought the explanation even if it had been Sherlock Holmes reaching this conclusion, since it was based on such flimsy evidence.
This was Sharyn McCrumb’s first mystery featuring Elizabeth MacPherson. It was followed by ‘Lovely In Her Bones’, which was named the outstanding work of fiction for 1985 by the Appalachian Writers Association. I may read that, because I enjoyed 95% of Sick of Shadows. It was just the lame ending that was so disappointing.
NOTE: Several reviewers have stated that this book was the weakest one in the series.
August 18, 2019
I was once reassured by a member of one of the native tribes in Alaska that, in fact, there are not thousands of words to describe snow, despite our myth. If there were a thousand words to describe types of slowness in a book, they would be not enough to describe the slow, slow progress of this book. I’ll likely give this series additional chances; I enjoy the author and applaud her excellent talent, but my aging attention span, never particularly good since the dawn of the 28-minute TV show and pernicious influences like Twitter, struggles with books that don’t draw me in pretty quickly.
Recent college graduate Elizabeth MacPherson reluctantly agrees to represent her family as a bridesmaid at the wedding of a mentally unstable cousin. That entire side of the family is rather eccentric, and the girl whose wedding she will be in is worse than the others. The groom is an obvious loser, and before this ends, the would-be bride is murdered.
I finished this book, but it required an effort. I’m not prepared to delete the series from my hard drive, but it’s going to be a good while before I roll around to the second installment.
Recent college graduate Elizabeth MacPherson reluctantly agrees to represent her family as a bridesmaid at the wedding of a mentally unstable cousin. That entire side of the family is rather eccentric, and the girl whose wedding she will be in is worse than the others. The groom is an obvious loser, and before this ends, the would-be bride is murdered.
I finished this book, but it required an effort. I’m not prepared to delete the series from my hard drive, but it’s going to be a good while before I roll around to the second installment.
July 19, 2018
I read this first book out of order, and now I'm glad I did. The second and third books in this series are much better, in my opinion. I'm not sure I would have finished this one had I not read them first.
Now that I'm back on target, with Book Four waiting in the wings, I hope the second and third were previews of things to come...
Now that I'm back on target, with Book Four waiting in the wings, I hope the second and third were previews of things to come...
January 28, 2019
I was disappointed in this one. I've read and liked other books by this author although it was a long time ago. Maybe my tastes have changed...
August 6, 2020
3 stars feels too harsh. I don't know. This is a fun book, and also one of the VERY few whodunnits that I managed to solve before any of the characters did :)
June 19, 2015
Sick of Shadows is the first book in the Elizabeth MacPherson series.
The most recent book in this series was published in 2000, but I always like to start at the beginning.
At the beginning of May, I wrote a sample review for the first ninety-four pages.
Here are a few quotes from that review:
“Where is the mystery?”
“I have to give this a very low hook rating because, based on the book alone, I have no idea what the point of it is.”
“I’ve never read a book that takes this to get to the murder.”
After finishing the book, my reaction isn’t much better. It takes way too long for anything to happen in this book. It isn’t until Chapter 9, which was quite a ways in, that Eileen, Elizabeth’s cousin, is murdered.
The characterization is great for all the secondary characters–the eccentric members of Elizabeth’s family, but the characterization of Elizabeth herself falls flat. There isn’t much to like about her. She’s awkward, unsure of herself, and boring. The blurb on GoodReads says Elizabeth wants to solve the murder, but I didn’t get that feeling. Elizabeth really just goes along for the ride. Yes, she figures out who the killer is at the end, but only after her brother has already figured it out.
I was really hoping to like this book. It was just so-so. The only good thing was how the killer was apprehended at the end.
I’m not sure if I will read the next book in this series.
The most recent book in this series was published in 2000, but I always like to start at the beginning.
At the beginning of May, I wrote a sample review for the first ninety-four pages.
Here are a few quotes from that review:
“Where is the mystery?”
“I have to give this a very low hook rating because, based on the book alone, I have no idea what the point of it is.”
“I’ve never read a book that takes this to get to the murder.”
After finishing the book, my reaction isn’t much better. It takes way too long for anything to happen in this book. It isn’t until Chapter 9, which was quite a ways in, that Eileen, Elizabeth’s cousin, is murdered.
The characterization is great for all the secondary characters–the eccentric members of Elizabeth’s family, but the characterization of Elizabeth herself falls flat. There isn’t much to like about her. She’s awkward, unsure of herself, and boring. The blurb on GoodReads says Elizabeth wants to solve the murder, but I didn’t get that feeling. Elizabeth really just goes along for the ride. Yes, she figures out who the killer is at the end, but only after her brother has already figured it out.
I was really hoping to like this book. It was just so-so. The only good thing was how the killer was apprehended at the end.
I’m not sure if I will read the next book in this series.
September 19, 2017
I'll start positive: I really admire and enjoy McCrumb's Ballad books, with Nora Bonesteel. I feel they have excellent atmosphere, sense of place and characterization, and the mysteries they depict develop in subtle, unexpected ways.
None of which apply to this tedious little book. The novel is completely tone-deaf. There is nothing remotely funny about a mentally ill young woman who is murdered on the eve of her wedding. But McCrumb treats the young woman's desperate determination to escape her toxic family, and convince herself that she actually is even slightly lovable by hitching up with a self-centered clot as simply hilarious, even after the young woman is found with her head bashed in, floating Ophelia-like in a pond on the family's estate. The dynamic of the family is unbelievable. Elizabeth McPherson is no detective -- just an occasional narrative voice who is rather over-impressed with her own wit and "good sense."
I understand, from other reviews, that the McPherson novels did improve, as the series went on, but I'd take some convincing to waste my time on another one.
None of which apply to this tedious little book. The novel is completely tone-deaf. There is nothing remotely funny about a mentally ill young woman who is murdered on the eve of her wedding. But McCrumb treats the young woman's desperate determination to escape her toxic family, and convince herself that she actually is even slightly lovable by hitching up with a self-centered clot as simply hilarious, even after the young woman is found with her head bashed in, floating Ophelia-like in a pond on the family's estate. The dynamic of the family is unbelievable. Elizabeth McPherson is no detective -- just an occasional narrative voice who is rather over-impressed with her own wit and "good sense."
I understand, from other reviews, that the McPherson novels did improve, as the series went on, but I'd take some convincing to waste my time on another one.
February 7, 2017
Let me start by saying Zombies in The Gene Pool is one of my favorite mystery novels of all time. That being said, I wouldn't use this book to start a fire. The MC isn't even the MC and doesn't get to solve the mystery! Her brother and his roomate who are NOT in the entire rest of the book drive down from college and are like "lol we solved this mystery based on the clues in your letters." What? Can a bitch have some space to solve her own mystery please? GTFO! I was so, so angry at this. I'm just going to take comfort in the fact that this is her first book and she got way way way way way way way way better. Maybe anyone CAN be a writer with practice and this book proves that by being terrible.
November 2, 2013
I found this pretty watered-down and weak, even for a cozy. Elizabeth, the lead in this new series, barely makes an impression other than reflecting on how awkward she feels to be in the presence of family members she barely knows. Surround her with a larger-than-comfortable contingent of characters who are entirely too determined to be eccentric and quirky in different ways from each other and she pretty much fades into the tasteful, country-gentry woodwork.
The mystery itself doesn't even happen til almost halfway through the book, and the rather abrupt resolution came out of nowhere. I might read another one but it won't be a priority.
The mystery itself doesn't even happen til almost halfway through the book, and the rather abrupt resolution came out of nowhere. I might read another one but it won't be a priority.
May 16, 2011
I've read other reviews that say that this series, and this episode in particular, are not as good as her others. I can't compare but must say I didn't really like this book too much. It started out entertaining, with interesting characters and some humor. But some of the characters seemed to change their personalities mid-way through, and the heroine Elizabeth just seems to be muddling through life. If she's the basis of a series, I'd expect her to be a bit more together. Maybe she's an accidental heroine, and murder seems to follow her around?
September 16, 2014
I read this some time ago and recently decided to collect all the Elizabeth MacPherson books. Just about the only McCrumb that I do not have on collections shelves. I still took almost the entire book to figure out the guilty one. I do not wake up to a new world every day, but not too far from it when it comes to books. I now have the entire set of Elizabeth, so will read in order. I may have read them all but will likely enjoy them again, something said for a non-re-reader. That cannot be correct, but maybe will be understood.
Read
December 22, 2024I'm not going to lie...this is the kind of mystery I would like to write. Very character-driven, often funny, reliant on small town and southern customs.
I was only a few pages in when I laughed out loud and told the family it was like Noel Coward play only southern. Lo and behold, if McCrumb didn't namecheck Coward in a few more pages. There are Macbeth jokes and a reference to Songs of the Portuguese. For heaven's sake, one character is Captain Grandfather.
I may be late to the McCrumb party, but I'll be staying a while.
I was only a few pages in when I laughed out loud and told the family it was like Noel Coward play only southern. Lo and behold, if McCrumb didn't namecheck Coward in a few more pages. There are Macbeth jokes and a reference to Songs of the Portuguese. For heaven's sake, one character is Captain Grandfather.
I may be late to the McCrumb party, but I'll be staying a while.
June 3, 2016
I have liked nearly everything Sharyn McCrumb has written, but this one, not so much. Of course, when I looked it up on fantastic fiction, it was her first novel, so that might have something to do with it. I still love the Ballad series, and will try the second one in this series, but wasn't very impressed with this particular book. Read the kindle format, so no narrator. <><
April 18, 2018
Elizabeth MacPherson, recently graduated from college with no specific plans for her future, is invited to be the bridesmaid for her cousin Eileen's wedding. The Chandler side of the family is very eccentric. Things start out strange and continue to become more bizarre with each passing day. The nuptials never take place. There is a funeral instead. Who among this weird group could be a killer? This is the first in a series. I am looking forward to reading more.
December 20, 2019
This is the first book in the MacPherson stories. The characters are extraordinary. They are true Southern characters. We don't our strangeness down in the South. It sits right on the front porch. While I loved the characters, the plot was weak. It was a whodunit that I solved before the murder actually occurred. I thought the plot lacked the pizzazz of the characters. It is a decent book, just not in the top tier of McCrumb's books.
July 18, 2017
Good mystery
I enjoyed this book more than I expected. I think this was written or set in the 1970-1980's before personal computers, etc. The characters were somewhat strange, but intelligent. I plan to read the next book in the series.
I enjoyed this book more than I expected. I think this was written or set in the 1970-1980's before personal computers, etc. The characters were somewhat strange, but intelligent. I plan to read the next book in the series.
February 6, 2019
Couldn't put it down
It's midnight. Couldn't sleep until I was finished. A good mystery with intelligent humor occasionally. An eccentric collection of characters. On to #2 Lovely in her Bones.
It's midnight. Couldn't sleep until I was finished. A good mystery with intelligent humor occasionally. An eccentric collection of characters. On to #2 Lovely in her Bones.
February 17, 2019
Pretty good story....aristocratic family of which Elizabeth is a cousin and their eccentric relatives, one getting killed a week before her wedding ...kept my interest but seemed to chug along instead of building to an exciting finish..
August 8, 2008
the murder didn't happen until more than halfway through the book... but the characters weren't particularly developed in that time so it just felt like waiting for someone to die
September 27, 2017
3.5 rounded up. I wish I didn't dislike the family so much but I will say unfortunately they are somewhat believable in their selfishness and reactions.
October 18, 2017
Excellent read
Hard to put down, one of Ms. McCrumb's best. Well plotted with no give-away as to the ending. Just the tiniest hint of romance, lots of mystery and intrigue.
Hard to put down, one of Ms. McCrumb's best. Well plotted with no give-away as to the ending. Just the tiniest hint of romance, lots of mystery and intrigue.
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