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The Stone Maiden
Before agreeing to marry the man she loves, Katherine Derwith is determined to discover who her real parents are, why they abandoned her, and whether her suspicions toward a newsman supposedly helping her are correct
- GenresMystery
228 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1980
34 people want to read
About the author
Velda Johnston
74 books30 followersVelda Johnston was a writer of romantic suspense. She also wrote under the pseudonym 'Veronica Jason'.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 5, 2015
If you enjoy the thrillers of Helen MacInnes -- and, let's face it, who doesn't? -- chances are that you'll enjoy this novel too.
Years ago, at the end of WWII, an SS officer committed a despicable crime. He died soon after and his second wife and her stepson emigrated to NYC, where they still live -- as does the Nazi who collaborated with the SS officer. Apart from the perpetrators, there was one witness to that crime, an Italian adolescent. He too made it to NYC but, 28 years ago, soon after his wife had died in childbirth and realizing the Nazis were on his trail, he hid his infant child in a warehouse and, assuming she'd soon be adopted, took a beating and went on the run.
Now that child is contemplating marriage to a rich and ghastly blue-blood snob. She doesn't reckon she can do so until she's solved the mystery of her birth, but that of course would involve reopening old secrets that the Nazis would prefer remain forever forgotten . . . unless she might lead them to a fortune in stolen treasure.
The first one-third or so of this novel was, to be frank, a bit tedious. I think this was because most of the narrative in these initial chapters comes in the form of flashbacks: only at the beginning and end of each chapter do we seem to get sections in realtime. I'm normally a big fan of the flashback -- it can really open up and add a dimension to the narrative -- but here for some reason it wasn't working for me. Thereafter, however, despite some more flashback episodes, the narrative really picked up until I found myself eagerly dashing toward the finishing tape.
Johnston's prose is serviceable: it's a bit clumsy but it does the job quite competently. Overall, this is one of those novels of which the 1980s were full that entertained well enough, but aspired to do little more.
Years ago, at the end of WWII, an SS officer committed a despicable crime. He died soon after and his second wife and her stepson emigrated to NYC, where they still live -- as does the Nazi who collaborated with the SS officer. Apart from the perpetrators, there was one witness to that crime, an Italian adolescent. He too made it to NYC but, 28 years ago, soon after his wife had died in childbirth and realizing the Nazis were on his trail, he hid his infant child in a warehouse and, assuming she'd soon be adopted, took a beating and went on the run.
Now that child is contemplating marriage to a rich and ghastly blue-blood snob. She doesn't reckon she can do so until she's solved the mystery of her birth, but that of course would involve reopening old secrets that the Nazis would prefer remain forever forgotten . . . unless she might lead them to a fortune in stolen treasure.
The first one-third or so of this novel was, to be frank, a bit tedious. I think this was because most of the narrative in these initial chapters comes in the form of flashbacks: only at the beginning and end of each chapter do we seem to get sections in realtime. I'm normally a big fan of the flashback -- it can really open up and add a dimension to the narrative -- but here for some reason it wasn't working for me. Thereafter, however, despite some more flashback episodes, the narrative really picked up until I found myself eagerly dashing toward the finishing tape.
Johnston's prose is serviceable: it's a bit clumsy but it does the job quite competently. Overall, this is one of those novels of which the 1980s were full that entertained well enough, but aspired to do little more.
September 21, 2010
This one was weird-- so different from the good ones by Johnston I've read. It was not Gothic and was so far fetched as a mystery that I made it 30 pages in and quit. I don't recommend it to anyone, actually, unless you are a NYC buff or something like that... just due to the setting there.
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September 3, 2008F Joh
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews