Buried Stuff

Jane Wheel #4

by Sharon Fiffer

An avid antique collector, Jane Wheel owns a lot of stuff. In fact, she owns too much stuff, which often gets her into trouble. So finally she agrees to do the unthinkable: she holds her very first garage sale.

Thankfully the sale ends almost before it begins, interrupted by a hysterical phone call from Jane's mother, Nellie. But Jane's relief doesn't last long. Nellie is calling to tell Jane about a mysterious discovery on a neighbor's property: bone fragments, buried in his backyard. Since Jane's husband, Charlie, is a geologist, Jane volunteers to make the trip to her hometown, Kankakee, Illinois, to see if they can help her parents' neighbor, Fuzzy Neilson, sort things out.

When they arrive, Jane and Charlie are surprised to find quite a controversy brewing in town, and not just over the mysterious discovery of the bones. In addition to Fuzzy's buried treasure, people are trying to reinvent this sleepy midwestern town. There are a couple of slick real estate developers going around town talking a big game about making Kankakee into Hometown, U.S.A. Then Jane's best friend, Tim, gets in on the act, proposing that Kankakee host the World's Largest Garage Sale. But when a man turns up murdered on Fuzzy's field, the spotlight turns back to the mysterious doings on the Neilson farm.

While Charlie uncovers what may or may not be an archaelogically significant site, Jane manages to uncover the town's buried secrets. With the help of her family, Tim, and sometime partner P.I. Bruce Oh, Jane must sort rumor and gossip from the true crimes before it's too late.

With Buried Stuff, Sharon Fiffer continues to chronicle the events in the life of her charming, human, slightly obsessive main character, Jane Wheel; intriguing, suspenseful and lively, like the best of mystery writing today, reading Fiffer's latest novel is like coming across one of Jane's estate sale discoveries and finding it full of delights and surprises.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Cozy

304 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Diane · Rating 1 out of 5]

So far the writing is all over the place. There is no flow or logical progession to the story or the characters. I'm about ready to throw in the towel. The writing style leads to way more questions raised than answered and I don't find the characters or the plot thus far compelling enough to continue.

[Lois Baron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jane is a tad too let's-think-it-all-through-during-the-narrative to read this series back to back, but I continue to like the people.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the old guys at the bar Jane Wheel's parents run in Kankakee is having strange problems on his farm, so Jane and her geologist husband and adolescent son return to the small, dying town to help out. Since Jane's bestie Tim is running a huge garage sale and wants her help, this is convenient for everyone concerned. The first night on the farm, however, Jane finds a murdered man who is wearing a jacket identifying him as one of Jane's old school friends, who recently died of a heart attack. Jane is still calling for her mentor, former policeman and now private investigator, Bruce Oh, who soon appears (but doesn't contribute as much as he sometimes does).

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A local farmer is selling his topsoil and discovered bones. All is brought to a halt and Charley comes to investigate.

A local reporter is killed and Jane and Oh are hired by the man's parents to find out who did it and why.

In town are a pair of apparent con artists hoping to buy land for an amusement park. Is this a ruse to make the locals feel better about selling their farms for a new reliever airport?

Tied to this is Tim's plan to take the least liveable city in the USA up a notch with a city wide yard sale.

[Melissa Hartwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realize this book was part of a series until half way through. It works as a stand alone, by I felt some of the character traits were a little jagged, which is explained by two previous books that likely flush out the characters more.

I might get around to reading the others, but won't be sad if I don't.

[Cat. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this may not have been the best book to read while hanging out at a Memory Care facility... That gives nothing much away in terms of the actual murderer, which honestly I can say I can't remember, but the story about the people and Jane's growing understanding of her place in her life and her family.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yikes. Main character seems to suffer from hoarding, ADHD, and garden-variety-neuroticism. The writing style reflects this, so it ends up giving you whiplash of the brain trying to follow along.

Also: there are other cool antique materials besides Bakelite. Jeez.

[Marseydoats · Rating 3 out of 5]

I knew I'd read this book before, but the only thing about it that I remembered was "occupado". Weird.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I figured out who did it right out of the gate..

[Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a 3.25

It was a bit odd, but it had some good parts. It was hard to read in one sitting, though. I never would’ve expected that Lola was the murderer.

[Jennifer Coffman Love · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite so far. Some of the lines I read out loud to my husband because they were so funny and spot on. There was one that describe my feelings/the way I was raised to a T. Oh, and the mystery was fantastic also! I just love the way Jane thinks. Her inner dialog is awesome. Can’t wait to read more.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fiffer really wants to write about Jane Wheel and all her quirky pals, which is fine. But there is also supposed to be a mystery mixed in around the sidelines, and it is persistently pushed to those sidelines again and again. While Jane half-heartedly snoops for clues to who might have killed a journalist, we are treated to repetitive homages to Bakelite and mental sniping about Jane's mother. There are just too many subplots, too many attempts at red herrings, and then a sleuth who doesn't actually do much sleuthing, instead stumbling over the culprit at the same time we do. Not a series I'll pick up again, as I was more interested in mysteries than in laundry lists of anxieties, fears, and love for antiques. If I want those, I can stay in my own head.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book at my church's garage sale, and appropriately enough a city-wide garage sale happens to play a big role in the story.

Jane Wheel is an antiques buyer who is also an amateur detective. A visit to her hometown lands her squarely in the middle of a murder mystery, while also keeping her in town for the garage sales. Her search for clues and her search for treasures are often one and the same.

I enjoyed Sharon Fiffe's writing style, and felt like the characters could have been people I know. There is a whole series of these Jane Wheel mysteries, and I'll likely look for more of them at the library.

[Ann aka Iftcan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice cozy. The heroine, Jane Wheel is a picker--someone who searches for and buys objects for antique dealers--and is also studying to become a P.I.

In this adventure, she's been called home by her parents when an old friend of the family is in trouble. Fuzzy (the family friend) seems to be having memory problems, and a body is found on his farm the very night that Jane and family arrive.

I will admit--I hadn't figured out whodunit by the time the killer was unveiled. Which is surprising, because I usually have that figured out by half way through the book at the latest. Ms. Fiffer does an excellent job with the red herrings.

[Jennifer A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

this one was my favorite yet, I think-- I read it in two sessions, because I didn't want to put it down. Jane does overanalyze things, but I like that she's finally understanding "why" she buys all the stuff she does, and was able to let some of it go to other people. I also enjoy the very complex relationship between Jane and her mother, and this book revealed a bit more about Nellie's feelings. She's not as unfeeling as Jane thinks she is, and that's nice to see.

[Ricki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all Sharon Fiffer's Jane Wheel books! Great mystery, keeps you guessing right up until the end.The characters that this author brings to life are great! Jane Wheel and those she meets along the way feel very real to me. The mysteries are all wonderful, the scenes in these books ring true. You feel like you are right along on the hunt for antiques and collectibles. Good reading!

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I loved this, the 4th in Sharon's series. Maybe the best yet, takes place primarily in Kankakee and deals with a murder while also looking at the demise of Kankakee and attempts to build it back up. Deals also with Jane's past, her relationship with her mother, and helps explain her obsession with stuff."

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this series -- probably because 1) it is set in the midwest and 2) because the heroine might over-think things a bit but I like her philosophy of collecting. And now I want red Bakelite corn holders ...

[Nicole Diamond · Rating 1 out of 5]

If it has one star I liked it a lot
If it has two stars I liked it a lot and would recommend it
If it has three stars I really really liked it a lot
If it has four stars I insist you read it
If it has five stars it was life changing

[Whizilliam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I pick up books at the library without looking at them, because library rentals are free.
I couldn't get into it this novel. I like my mysteries like Rising Sun by Michael Crichton. This novel is more like Murder She wrote.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute read

[Corky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane Wheel number 4 - perhaps the best yet!

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ckv book #4 in the series cute with a strong mystery element
Jane Wheel story

[Jocelyn Montalvo Cullum]

I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12414992

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cozy read. Good characters. Fun to read about pack rats and pickers.

[Sally Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am loving the Jane Wheel cozy mysteries. Fun and interesting, the perfect books for a collector of "junk"!

[Judym · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good installment in this series.

[Jean]

Good mystery

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've decided that this author is not for me. The mystery was okay, but I don't care for the writing style--too much internal soliloquy by the main character. I found myself skimming entire pages.

[Mary]

DNF - book wasn't holding my interest