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The Rev. Clare Fergusson & Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries #8
Through The Evil Days
The eighth book in the Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery series.
On a frigid January night, Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne and Reverend Clare Fergusson are called to the scene of a raging fire, that quickly becomes a double homicide and kidnapping. Which is the very last thing Russ needs...
Currently he's struggling with the prospect of impending fatherhood. And his new wife is not at all happy with his proposal for their long-delayed honeymoon: a week in an unelectrified ice-fishing cabin. The vestry of St. Alban's Church has called for the bishop to investigate Clare's "unpriestly" pregnancy. She has one week to find out if she will be scolded, censured, or suspended from her duties. Officer Hadley Knox is having a miserable January as well. Her on-again-off-again lover, Kevin Flynn, has seven days to weigh an offer from the Syracuse Police Department that might take him half a state away.
As the days and hours tick by, Russ and Clare fight personal and professional battles they've never encountered. In the course of this one tumultuous week the lives of the Millers-Kill residents readers have come to love and cherish change forever. Readers have waited years for Through The Evil Days and Julia Spencer-Fleming delivers with the exquisite skill and craftsmanship that have made her such a success.
On a frigid January night, Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne and Reverend Clare Fergusson are called to the scene of a raging fire, that quickly becomes a double homicide and kidnapping. Which is the very last thing Russ needs...
Currently he's struggling with the prospect of impending fatherhood. And his new wife is not at all happy with his proposal for their long-delayed honeymoon: a week in an unelectrified ice-fishing cabin. The vestry of St. Alban's Church has called for the bishop to investigate Clare's "unpriestly" pregnancy. She has one week to find out if she will be scolded, censured, or suspended from her duties. Officer Hadley Knox is having a miserable January as well. Her on-again-off-again lover, Kevin Flynn, has seven days to weigh an offer from the Syracuse Police Department that might take him half a state away.
As the days and hours tick by, Russ and Clare fight personal and professional battles they've never encountered. In the course of this one tumultuous week the lives of the Millers-Kill residents readers have come to love and cherish change forever. Readers have waited years for Through The Evil Days and Julia Spencer-Fleming delivers with the exquisite skill and craftsmanship that have made her such a success.
368 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 5, 2013
398 people are currently reading
2324 people want to read
About the author
Julia Spencer-Fleming
27 books1,889 followersWednesday, September 7
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
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September 21, 2013
Let’s get the easy stuff out of the way first. I loved this book! I give it a 5 out of 5 on the Goodreads rating scale. Other reviewers have discussed:
• The need to read the series in order. Yes! It is a series of 8 glorious books. Read them all and in order.
• The various plot lines. They are fairly intricate but also relatively easy to follow.
What I want to get across here is why you will want to read these books and what you will get from them.
1. The books are very well written. You will not find the irritating mistakes in these books that you find in others. And some of the passages deserve to be read just for the sheer beauty of the writing.
2. The characters are rich and believable. You will like them, hate them, or be puzzled by their actions – and will wait for the next book wondering how their lives are going to grow or not grow.
3. The conflicts that occur in the town of Millers Kill are the same as the ones in your town or city – but they are given immediacy and importance because they connect to the characters’ lives. Some of the ways that Julia Spencer-Fleming uses the conflicts to illuminate relationships are so insightful and painful that I find myself thinking about them years later.
4. The books usually revolve around one or more societal issues, but they aren’t preachy. The issues are integral to the story and the author doesn’t go for easy or obvious resolutions to the issues.
5. I read a lot of mysteries, most of them cozies. I am used to being able to predict the arc of the story and the happy ending. That doesn’t happen in these books. They are not predictable. The happy endings are not the clichéd happy endings that cozies often have. I usually argue a lot with myself about the resolution of the various plot lines. I even think out alternative endings that please my romance-loving heart more. But I respect the endings in this series and I am happy that as this series continues it grows and deepens.
6. Julia Spencer-Fleming has been able to move her characters on to new challenges in their lives while moving the “structures” that we look for in cozies, such as developing romances, to other characters while keeping us interested in the maturing relationships.
If my reasons haven’t convinced you to read this series, just take my advice and read it anyway. The books will entertain you, enrich your life, frustrate you, and keep you wishing for the next book as soon as you finish the current book
• The need to read the series in order. Yes! It is a series of 8 glorious books. Read them all and in order.
• The various plot lines. They are fairly intricate but also relatively easy to follow.
What I want to get across here is why you will want to read these books and what you will get from them.
1. The books are very well written. You will not find the irritating mistakes in these books that you find in others. And some of the passages deserve to be read just for the sheer beauty of the writing.
2. The characters are rich and believable. You will like them, hate them, or be puzzled by their actions – and will wait for the next book wondering how their lives are going to grow or not grow.
3. The conflicts that occur in the town of Millers Kill are the same as the ones in your town or city – but they are given immediacy and importance because they connect to the characters’ lives. Some of the ways that Julia Spencer-Fleming uses the conflicts to illuminate relationships are so insightful and painful that I find myself thinking about them years later.
4. The books usually revolve around one or more societal issues, but they aren’t preachy. The issues are integral to the story and the author doesn’t go for easy or obvious resolutions to the issues.
5. I read a lot of mysteries, most of them cozies. I am used to being able to predict the arc of the story and the happy ending. That doesn’t happen in these books. They are not predictable. The happy endings are not the clichéd happy endings that cozies often have. I usually argue a lot with myself about the resolution of the various plot lines. I even think out alternative endings that please my romance-loving heart more. But I respect the endings in this series and I am happy that as this series continues it grows and deepens.
6. Julia Spencer-Fleming has been able to move her characters on to new challenges in their lives while moving the “structures” that we look for in cozies, such as developing romances, to other characters while keeping us interested in the maturing relationships.
If my reasons haven’t convinced you to read this series, just take my advice and read it anyway. The books will entertain you, enrich your life, frustrate you, and keep you wishing for the next book as soon as you finish the current book
November 4, 2021
In this 8th book in the 'Reverend Clare Fergusson and Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries', Russ and Clare look for a kidnapped child. The series does have an arc for the main characters, but the mystery can be read as a standalone.
*****
In this mystery/thriller set in upstate New York, the first part of the book is a mystery: the cops are trying to find out who kidnapped a child, Mikayla, who recently had a liver transplant and will die without her medicine.
Once the suspects are identified, the remainder of the book is a thriller as the cops set out to rescue the girl and catch the perps during 'the ice-storm of the century.'
Meanwhile, the Reverend Clare Fergusson and Police Chief Russ van Alstyne have now married and are about to set off for their honeymoon in a mountain cabin.
Unfortunately, just as they start honeymooning the ice storm hits and Russ and Clare are coincidentally drawn into the kidnapping case. Much hardship and drama ensues heightened by the fact that Clare is pregnant and Russ isn't thrilled about it.
Back home in Millers Kill, Police Officers Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn - who have romantic mishaps/tensions of their own - are on the case as well. During the investigation, Hadley is also coping with troubles at home since her ex-husband has shown up wanting money and threatening to take their kids if he doesn't get it.
I liked the first part of the book but got somewhat bogged down in the second part. For me prolonged scenes of slogging through ice and snow and tangling with the perps seemed like writing to a formula.
Readers who enjoy this type of action will probably love this book. All in all I thought the book had interesting well-drawn characters and a good plot but I found myself skimming through parts of the second half.
You can follow my reviews at http://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com/
March 17, 2023
Julia Spencer-Fleming has never disappointed me. She always writes tightly plotted, high stakes novels like this one. I wondered how she would proceed now that Clare and Russ are legally married, but I should have known that wouldn't prevent roadblocks in their relationship.
Clare and Russ are attempting a delayed honeymoon in a remote cabin on a frozen lake when the worst ice storm in history strikes, a little girl is kidnapped, and all hell breaks loose in Miller's Kill. The newlyweds are both holding back information that each wants to protect the other from. And now they are out of phone coverage range, facing some extreme complications.
Russ has a distressing tendency to forget that his wife is a trained military badass who can take care of herself, just as she did in the very first book. It's a cross that we women of a certain age have to deal with in the men of our vintage. They have these old fashioned notions about women's role in their lives and their condescension is frustrating as all get out. Russ manages better than most at pulling his head out of his ass, eventually.
The sad part was the Kevin and Hadley story line. Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. So many reasons to keep on reading!
Clare and Russ are attempting a delayed honeymoon in a remote cabin on a frozen lake when the worst ice storm in history strikes, a little girl is kidnapped, and all hell breaks loose in Miller's Kill. The newlyweds are both holding back information that each wants to protect the other from. And now they are out of phone coverage range, facing some extreme complications.
Russ has a distressing tendency to forget that his wife is a trained military badass who can take care of herself, just as she did in the very first book. It's a cross that we women of a certain age have to deal with in the men of our vintage. They have these old fashioned notions about women's role in their lives and their condescension is frustrating as all get out. Russ manages better than most at pulling his head out of his ass, eventually.
The sad part was the Kevin and Hadley story line. Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. So many reasons to keep on reading!
April 10, 2014
On the one hand, I read this book quickly, with much affection for its characters. Maybe my expectations were too high. Maybe Julia Spencer-Fleming has become one of those writers who is so successful her editor stops editing her books. I love Clare Fergusson, she is the best, closest-to-real life fictional portrayal of a working priest I've encountered. So I suppose that's why I was disappointed to see Clare, pregnant and in the types of danger that no priest in upstate New York would ever be. My suspension of disbelief just snapped while reading this novel, too many graphic descriptions of grisly violence, too many instances of poor communication, too many bad choices. Oh, I'm sure I'll read the next one. But I hope there's more meat in the story, less action. More interior discussions of ethical and theological issues, fewer broken bones (and broken hearts).
July 13, 2016
I LOVED this book. And I hated the ending. I felt the final character had more character than was exhibited at the end. But that shortcoming in no way lessened my love for the book. I can hardly wait for the NEXT Clare and Russ installment!
I had some physical challanges over the summer and reading was one of the things I could do. I received an Advance Readers' Edition of the book which really hit the spot and saved my sanity! Through the Evil Days was thoroughly satisfying. Of course I am sold on the Fergusson-Van Alstyne duo; I am SO glad they found each other and are a family. But the addition of the two young officers--Hadley Know and Kevin Flynn--gives an added dimension to the setting. And the return of the State Police Officer, Bob Mongue, as the newest "hero" is a pleasant surprise.
I loved the use of the short time-frame for the length of the tale. It is a page-turner, to be sure.
I have to say, as an ex-Episcopalian (current Anglican) I LOVE the liturgical and denominational bent in all of this series. But I was a little surprised that Clare was being brought before her vestry and the representative of the Diocesan Bishop for her untimely pregnancy: "activity unbecoming a priest." There have been many concerns in the American Episcopal Church (TEC) but sex outside of marriage (which is basically what they are charging Clare with) is one of the least in the denomination. On the other hand, it is refreshing to see that some Episcopalians have conservative approaches to a rather common occurrance in the Church. I actually liked the way Clare's situation was ultimately handled and the responses of the various church officials to the matter at hand.
I think it is BECAUSE I am a liturgical person (Anglican) that I appreciate Spencerr-Fleming's Clare--Reverend Clare in the book. From the very title (which is always a line from a beautiful old hymn) to the setting of small town Episcopalians in the rugged mountains of upstate New York, Through the Evil Days continues the tradition started with In the Bleak Midwinter. As many others have mentioned, read the series from the beginning to get the full flavor of this winsome duo.
I had some physical challanges over the summer and reading was one of the things I could do. I received an Advance Readers' Edition of the book which really hit the spot and saved my sanity! Through the Evil Days was thoroughly satisfying. Of course I am sold on the Fergusson-Van Alstyne duo; I am SO glad they found each other and are a family. But the addition of the two young officers--Hadley Know and Kevin Flynn--gives an added dimension to the setting. And the return of the State Police Officer, Bob Mongue, as the newest "hero" is a pleasant surprise.
I loved the use of the short time-frame for the length of the tale. It is a page-turner, to be sure.
I have to say, as an ex-Episcopalian (current Anglican) I LOVE the liturgical and denominational bent in all of this series. But I was a little surprised that Clare was being brought before her vestry and the representative of the Diocesan Bishop for her untimely pregnancy: "activity unbecoming a priest." There have been many concerns in the American Episcopal Church (TEC) but sex outside of marriage (which is basically what they are charging Clare with) is one of the least in the denomination. On the other hand, it is refreshing to see that some Episcopalians have conservative approaches to a rather common occurrance in the Church. I actually liked the way Clare's situation was ultimately handled and the responses of the various church officials to the matter at hand.
I think it is BECAUSE I am a liturgical person (Anglican) that I appreciate Spencerr-Fleming's Clare--Reverend Clare in the book. From the very title (which is always a line from a beautiful old hymn) to the setting of small town Episcopalians in the rugged mountains of upstate New York, Through the Evil Days continues the tradition started with In the Bleak Midwinter. As many others have mentioned, read the series from the beginning to get the full flavor of this winsome duo.
August 8, 2014
Adventurous, funny, and oh, so human. Russ and Clare, this one's for you:
If thou but suffer God to guide thee,
And hope in Him through all thy ways,
Though storms roll in, though folks deride thee,
He'll bear thee through the evil days.
God lent thee wits; thy spouse's love;
Thy combat skills; instincts thereof.
Only be still and wait His leisure
With loaded gun and heart content
To take whate'er the Father's pleasure
And all-discerning love hath sent:
Censure; defunding; meth lords; Feds;
A kidnapped girl who needs her meds.
Be nice to dogs and teenage mothers;
Serve town and parish faithfully.
Staties and deacons are thy brothers--
Thou yet may'st find them true to thee.
And trust in God when things look bleak,
E'en shouldst thou have a real bad week.
(Apologies to Georg Neumark and Catherine Winkworth.)
If thou but suffer God to guide thee,
And hope in Him through all thy ways,
Though storms roll in, though folks deride thee,
He'll bear thee through the evil days.
God lent thee wits; thy spouse's love;
Thy combat skills; instincts thereof.
Only be still and wait His leisure
With loaded gun and heart content
To take whate'er the Father's pleasure
And all-discerning love hath sent:
Censure; defunding; meth lords; Feds;
A kidnapped girl who needs her meds.
Be nice to dogs and teenage mothers;
Serve town and parish faithfully.
Staties and deacons are thy brothers--
Thou yet may'st find them true to thee.
And trust in God when things look bleak,
E'en shouldst thou have a real bad week.
(Apologies to Georg Neumark and Catherine Winkworth.)
January 22, 2020
A young foster child is kidnapped and her foster parents are killed in a house fire. Reverend Claire Ferguson is newly married to Deputy Russ Van Alstyne, and in hot water with Episcople church hierarchy for being pregnant before she was married. The two take a delayed honeymoon and this is when it becomes apparent they are idiots. They go in January in upstate New York to a lake cabin with no phone and no cell service. Then a blizzard arrives. After all it’s January! In addition to the kidnapper, and murdered of two people, there is a big and violent meth drug ring active in the area. Claire and Russ made stupid decision after decision. In addition their conversations made me wonder why they were married.
I was further annoyed by the narration. Claire, who is from Virginia, talks like Scarlett O’Hara, an upper-class lady from a deep Georgian plantation. Russ talks like Walter Brennan, and though he’s a decade or two older than Clare, sounds like he’s on his last leg.
2.5 stars.
September 16, 2013
Back in March 2011, I finished One was a Soldier - the book preceding this one in the series about Clare Ferguson and Russ Van Alstyne. After reading the closing line, I threw the previous book across the room yelling - "NO....you can't leave us hanging like this!"
30 plus months later, we are finally able to pick up the story. All of us who are fans of this wonderful cast of characters have been holding our collective breath to see what's going to happen. I really hate to give too much away so that readers who have not read the earlier books can have the fun of catching up before this one hits the bookshelves November 5th.
But it does pick up just where the last one ended. So let's catch up a bit. Clare Ferguson is an Episcopal priest and an Army Air National Guard Helicopter pilot. After she returned from a very stressful tour in Afghanistan, her PTSD led to drug and alcohol problems, not to mention testy scenes with the love of her life, Russ Van Alstyne. Russ, recently widowed Vietnam era vet, is Chief of Police of Millers Kill NY, where Clare's parish is located. After a long and tumultuous courtship, they have recently married and are determined to have the honeymoon they about were unable to have during the previous book. Russ has found the perfect place - about an hour out of town on a quiet lake, there is a rustic cabin for sale. It has no electricity, no plumbing, no phone line, and a big frozen pond where he is going to teach Clare the fine art of ice fishing. He wants to buy it, and this is the perfect opportunity for them to check it out to see if this could become their hideaway retreat. Clare reluctantly agrees to check it out. After all, they're both veterans of Army survival training, so what's the big deal about no power, running water or phone?
The big deal is that Clare is under pressure from her vestry to resign because of some transgressions (the cliff hangar from the last book) and Russ is facing the dismantling of his small town police force by the town council who claim the state police can provide coverage for much less money. Neither tells the other about the impending axes about to fall. Each figures that a week away from pressure will guide them to an answer. Neither counts on the storm of the century isolating them so totally that the situation becomes extremely dangerous. Neither counts on a seriously ill 7 year old being kidnapped back in Millers Kill while the police force is understaffed. Neither counts on becoming entangled with a gang of drug dealers operating nearby.
The story of Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn - members of the MK police force whose on again, off-again relationship is off at the beginning of the book- find themselves thrown back together as partners when they are assigned to lead the search team for the missing child. This relationship has quietly developed over the last several books, and I found myself especially interested in seeing it blossom. In fact, it is becoming as compelling as the Clare and Russ story.
Spencer-Fleming is a master at blending multiple story-lines, a fairly large cast of characters and a setting untamed enough to foster all kinds of evil doings. This one does not disappoint. It is fast paced, taking place over a short week that to the participants must have seemed like a year. It has new characters arriving, old friends still there (although a few are more on the fringes with this one), and a very well plotted mystery with several "Wow, where did that come from?" plot twists.
And now, in her usual white knuckle routine, Spencer-Fleming leaves us yelling at the end again. "NO---don't leave it like this!!!" Please Julia, don't make us wait another 30 months. At least we'll have time to read the whole series again. They are definitely books that don't get old with re-reading.
30 plus months later, we are finally able to pick up the story. All of us who are fans of this wonderful cast of characters have been holding our collective breath to see what's going to happen. I really hate to give too much away so that readers who have not read the earlier books can have the fun of catching up before this one hits the bookshelves November 5th.
But it does pick up just where the last one ended. So let's catch up a bit. Clare Ferguson is an Episcopal priest and an Army Air National Guard Helicopter pilot. After she returned from a very stressful tour in Afghanistan, her PTSD led to drug and alcohol problems, not to mention testy scenes with the love of her life, Russ Van Alstyne. Russ, recently widowed Vietnam era vet, is Chief of Police of Millers Kill NY, where Clare's parish is located. After a long and tumultuous courtship, they have recently married and are determined to have the honeymoon they about were unable to have during the previous book. Russ has found the perfect place - about an hour out of town on a quiet lake, there is a rustic cabin for sale. It has no electricity, no plumbing, no phone line, and a big frozen pond where he is going to teach Clare the fine art of ice fishing. He wants to buy it, and this is the perfect opportunity for them to check it out to see if this could become their hideaway retreat. Clare reluctantly agrees to check it out. After all, they're both veterans of Army survival training, so what's the big deal about no power, running water or phone?
The big deal is that Clare is under pressure from her vestry to resign because of some transgressions (the cliff hangar from the last book) and Russ is facing the dismantling of his small town police force by the town council who claim the state police can provide coverage for much less money. Neither tells the other about the impending axes about to fall. Each figures that a week away from pressure will guide them to an answer. Neither counts on the storm of the century isolating them so totally that the situation becomes extremely dangerous. Neither counts on a seriously ill 7 year old being kidnapped back in Millers Kill while the police force is understaffed. Neither counts on becoming entangled with a gang of drug dealers operating nearby.
The story of Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn - members of the MK police force whose on again, off-again relationship is off at the beginning of the book- find themselves thrown back together as partners when they are assigned to lead the search team for the missing child. This relationship has quietly developed over the last several books, and I found myself especially interested in seeing it blossom. In fact, it is becoming as compelling as the Clare and Russ story.
Spencer-Fleming is a master at blending multiple story-lines, a fairly large cast of characters and a setting untamed enough to foster all kinds of evil doings. This one does not disappoint. It is fast paced, taking place over a short week that to the participants must have seemed like a year. It has new characters arriving, old friends still there (although a few are more on the fringes with this one), and a very well plotted mystery with several "Wow, where did that come from?" plot twists.
And now, in her usual white knuckle routine, Spencer-Fleming leaves us yelling at the end again. "NO---don't leave it like this!!!" Please Julia, don't make us wait another 30 months. At least we'll have time to read the whole series again. They are definitely books that don't get old with re-reading.
November 7, 2013
Wow, it was hard to rate this book. I love this series, love the characters, love the way the author makes the characters real. Clare, an Episcopal priest and war veteran, is so interesting and complex. Russ seems very much like men I have known, in love with a strong woman, unthreatened by her strength but struggling a lot with the energy and change she brings to his life. The others characters too have distinct and complicated personalities and lives. All good. However, I had to give this book a 4, for writing style and characters, generous because some the events during the plot were so unbelievable. At times I felt events played out like a Saturday cliffhanger serial. It annoyed me and seemed almost silly, killing the suspense that was otherwise building nicely. One mishap, fine. Two, o.k. But too many and the whole thing begins to pass into farce. Not the best of her books, but in fairness a common flaw in her writing. She needs to dial back the artificial ways she complicates the action, and keep the plot cleaner. In the end, I figured out one major plot point midway, another not at all. But the author's sure hand with the major mystery plot and the characters is betrayed by the Coyote and Roadrunner action.
August 29, 2018
This is a great, and timely (read to learn the IDs of some of the villains) book in the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series. Ms. Spencer-Fleming incorporates action on every page (thank you!) while making us care about the characters.
Although this series is a more romance-heavy than I prefer, it is at the top of the genre. Clare and Russ are winningly capable protagonists.
Strongly recommended.
Although this series is a more romance-heavy than I prefer, it is at the top of the genre. Clare and Russ are winningly capable protagonists.
Strongly recommended.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 23, 2020
Why would you do that to Kevin & Hadley?
January 4, 2014
Not my favorite in the generally excellent Clare Fergusson mysteries, but still an enjoyable read. The mystery in this entry focuses on a missing girl and a meth lab operation. You'd think that would lead to a roller coaster plot full of suspense. Eventually, it does take off and the action builds to a satisfying conclusion, but it takes Ms. Spencer-Fleming longer than usual to get there. The reason: a much greater focus on the personal lives of Clare & Russ and two supporting characters, Hadley and Kevin.
Indeed, I would say the mystery and suspense elements of the story are more like subplots throughout the first half of the book, which concentrates on the personal drama between newly married Clare and Russ. The shift to focusing so much on character development was unexpected and definitely slowed down the action.
That said, the twist in the kidnapping plot that comes near the end of the book was entertaining and definitely made for a dramatic climax. However, I wish the developments in the main characters' personal lives could have been integrated more smoothly with the mystery. I truly respect that Ms. Spencer-Fleming does not want her characters to become static, cartoon cutouts, a la Miss Marple, but the lack of balance between the two stories made this a weaker entry in a generally wonderful series.
Every author is entitled to a stumble, though, so I'll certainly be coming back for the next book. After all, I can't wait to find out how the "new addition" to the team of Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne will affect their sleuthing abilities.
Indeed, I would say the mystery and suspense elements of the story are more like subplots throughout the first half of the book, which concentrates on the personal drama between newly married Clare and Russ. The shift to focusing so much on character development was unexpected and definitely slowed down the action.
That said, the twist in the kidnapping plot that comes near the end of the book was entertaining and definitely made for a dramatic climax. However, I wish the developments in the main characters' personal lives could have been integrated more smoothly with the mystery. I truly respect that Ms. Spencer-Fleming does not want her characters to become static, cartoon cutouts, a la Miss Marple, but the lack of balance between the two stories made this a weaker entry in a generally wonderful series.
Every author is entitled to a stumble, though, so I'll certainly be coming back for the next book. After all, I can't wait to find out how the "new addition" to the team of Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne will affect their sleuthing abilities.
April 29, 2014
I'm going to do what I've done with several of these books in the past, and start off with a few paragraphs that are safe for anyone, then switch to safe if you've read through book 7 in the series but not this (with maybe the odd spoiler line or two) and then launch into discussion with my 4 friends who've read this one already behind spoiler cut.
Most of what I have to say about the series overall has been said in bits and pieces, by me and/or by my fellow addicts, but this might be a good place to pull it together, while at my first enforced stopping place in the series read. It's also nice because there's a juicy metaphor that just falls into your lap in this particular book, when it's said that the horrific storm - ice, snow, freezing rain, power lines down, communications down, you name it - is being called the storm of the century. As I was reading, deeply engrossed, a small, cranky bit of my brain was sitting back throwing popcorn at the screen and heckling: "Oh, of course this storm happened just when X, Y, and Z were going on. Oh, and of double course that had to go and compound the storm's already-disastrous effects." And the thing is that everything - personal, professional and all messy combinations thereof - in this series is always the storm of the century. Russ is never going to have an average-sized problem with crime in his small town - not unless there's one of the worst villains ever known hidden behind the nickle-and-dime crime, cooking up utter mayhem and evil. Nor is he going to have a couple of books' worth of personal problems followed by a nice spell of domestic tranquility. (Not even an Irish couple.) Clare - well, the point made about Russ applies to Clare too, and even if the reader gets a very brief lull from worrying about Russ, Clare, and/or Russ-and-Clare (it -- almost happens, very occasionally), there'll be other characters just setting out onto the black ice that underlies everything in this world.
That relentlessness, quite aside from the sheer implausibility of quite so many things of such tragic or evil import happening to a few people in a small town, should make this a series I'd want nothing to do with. As, indeed, should the banner of "Forbidden Love" which hung over the series from the beginning. Initially I was hooked because the dangled carrot (that Russ and Clare would find a way to be together, to be happy, and still to be true to their moral values) was so alluring, given that the characters themselves were so beautifully developed. The relentlessness of the storms hitting them was really a part of that allure initially, and I appreciated the fact that the series moved, rather than keeping everyone stuck playing out the same game of temptation, resistance, and suffering. I felt that I loved this book despite the relentlessness, rather than because of it (even if in part), though. (I could prove totally wrong, of course, and the next book could leave me weeping inconsolably over a tragedy I never saw coming and begging for the next book.) As Melissa said, there's hope for emotional payoff from all the relationship woes we were dragged through in this book, and if it's anywhere near the emotional payoff we’ve received earlier, it'll be truly worth it. Even if we've already got most of what we're due (DUE, I say! All that readerly suffering!), the books have lots of smart humour, characters you can't help but care about, and always a lovely touch on secondary characters who surprise you again and again, through becoming much more than you'd seen in them initially.
Okay, on to the part of this book that hinges on the big reveal at the end of book 7. (If you've read the blurb here for this book, you're already spoiled about it, so don’t worry about reading on.) I have realised that I have a lot of problems with this whole plot arc, right from its very early inception (or conception - sorry!) Before I try to tease it out, I do want to make clear that it's not that I would have a problem with Russ or Clare for choosing not to have children, if it had felt as if they'd actually done that. It didn't though, and that's the whole storyline I have trouble with, because it feels like clumsy authorial plot-manipulation, rather than a way these characters would actually behave.
By the whole plot arc, I really mean the whole thing. I thought the very brief discussion about whether or not they’d have children was quite out of character, given what we’d seen each of them thinking before. Convenient in order to set up for the unexpected thunderbolt from above, but at the expense of feeling true to the two of them. (Clare’s line about giving too much of herself to her pastoral work to have anything left to take care of a kid especially made all kinds of red flags go up in my head, at least.) I also thought it more than a little odd that neither of them even went near to considering the possibility of contraceptive failure. (Again, convenient, but not terribly realistic.)They go ahead and start having sex, despite Clare's continued worry that parishioners will find out - indicating, strongly, that she knows this is not a totally insignificant matter to them, to the (by this point disappointingly flat) deacon appointed to keep an eye on her, to her bishop. Fair enough, the narrative says that her parish will give her a free pass before she goes off to Iraq, as they would, but the same set-up happens when she comes back from Iraq, addicted and with a serious drinking problem.
At the start of this book, Clare’s obvious pre-marital sexual relationship has led to trouble - which is a bit of a no-brainer, really. But, the thing that bothered me a lot was that she “repeated” her argument that the only options for a priest were not “either married or celibate” but also “ or in a faithful, monogamous relationship if they’re not allowed to marry by the laws of their state.” That's downright Jesuitical, as well as dishonest, since she knows - better than anyone - that that clause has no relevance to her. It bothered me so much that I was reminded of a family friend of ours, who was a Roman Catholic priest involved in a bizarre game (to him) in which he won as long as he wasn’t kicked out while trying to get away with as much as he could, despite having no respect for the hierarchy at all. So - why play the game? Or in Clare’s case, why fight to remain a priest while refusing to admit that you either a) don’t respect the hierarchy or b) did something you believed to be wrong too?
And then, the whole thing got messier still when Russ assumed she'd get an abortion. I could be misreading this, but in my experience, abortion is not an issue that remains totally ignorable when religious people (whatever they believe about the legality or morality of abortion in a variety of situations) and strongly non-religious people get together. His pushing her made me wonder if we're supposed to think he really doesn't get anything about her belief, or maybe doesn't care. Because abortion on the basis of inconvenience and embarrassment, for Clare? And she never even says that he can't ask her to give it 24 hours' thought? Never says that it's a moral matter for her? I really think this was a serious authorial misstep taken in order to mess with Clare and Russ so they don’t have even a moment conflict- and drama-less.
Back to Clare - the appointment with the ob/gyn was "one of the most humiliating experiences" of her life. (I'm not quite so sure that the doctor would have been able to say that the amount Clare drank wouldn't cause FAS, but that's really neither here nor there. It's the effect of putting the humiliation front and central, prioritising it over her concern about the damage she may have done to the baby that bothers me.) There's less humour in this than in the other books, I thought, but I loved Clare's prayer about being more understanding of her husband, "who's being a monumental jerk". Which he is, quite often. But again - when he finally bursts out (to Bob, of all people!) that he'd just got his life exactly where he wanted it, and then Clare messed it all up - it's an uncharacteristically jerky thing for him to say. And by “uncharacteristically” I mean not even true in the context of how his life actually was at the time. I doubt if anyone would choose for their long-desired marriage to be when your spouse is addicted and suffering from PTSD. Especially when he of all people knows how desperately hard it can be to stay sober and clean. He's absolutely unstinting in his support and understanding and love of her, and anyone who has ever been with someone with a substance abuse problem will know that that can be beyond heart-breaking. Certainly beyond difficult.
Yeah, all in all, not a fan of the way Clare’s pregnancy was handled! It’s a pity, because time and time again the author has managed to go down the ‘worst thing that can happen to the protagonists’ route - cause difficulty, pain and humiliation to her characters - and yet leave readers feeling that all involved have behaved in a way that allows them their own reality. Here, not so much.
And finally, the totally spoilery
I’ve been very verbal, or possibly just long-winded, about things that didn’t work for me in the book, to the extent that it might not seem an obvious 4 star rating. Some of that appreciation is left-over good stuff from earlier books, so if, for example, Russ and Clare seemed out of character in a few scenes, it’s because they’ve grown into characters I believe in - to the point of readerly rationality and beyond - and care about - ditto. A few scenes, even ones relating to an important plot-line, won't destroy all of that. I enjoyed the thriller aspect (with the above caveats) about as much as I’ve enjoyed earlier mystery aspects too, which helped. Like almost everyone else, I loved Bob Mongue, and his deepening from a bit of a jerk side-character (and a HUGE jerk, in Russ’s opinion) to a good, and interesting guy was great. And another one who makes me really happy is Geoff Burns - one of the least appealing characters in the first book, aggressive and an irritant to almost everyone, he’s still arrogant and brash, but he also comes through time and again for Clare. I also hope that Lyle gets more of a life outside the job in books-to-come, as I’m becoming very fond of him. Also, that little reveal he gets near the end? Yikes.
Even though I know how utterly pathetic it is, I’ll admit that I had to check towards the end to see if something I very much feared would happen did, and it wasn’t the tragedies I should have been worrying about. My priorities may be pretty screwed up, but it still made me very happy that we didn’t have to go there. It would be nice to hear that book 9 would be out soon, though it probably won't, but this is an okay place to take a bit of a breather before the next storms hit Millers Kill.
Most of what I have to say about the series overall has been said in bits and pieces, by me and/or by my fellow addicts, but this might be a good place to pull it together, while at my first enforced stopping place in the series read. It's also nice because there's a juicy metaphor that just falls into your lap in this particular book, when it's said that the horrific storm - ice, snow, freezing rain, power lines down, communications down, you name it - is being called the storm of the century. As I was reading, deeply engrossed, a small, cranky bit of my brain was sitting back throwing popcorn at the screen and heckling: "Oh, of course this storm happened just when X, Y, and Z were going on. Oh, and of double course that had to go and compound the storm's already-disastrous effects." And the thing is that everything - personal, professional and all messy combinations thereof - in this series is always the storm of the century. Russ is never going to have an average-sized problem with crime in his small town - not unless there's one of the worst villains ever known hidden behind the nickle-and-dime crime, cooking up utter mayhem and evil. Nor is he going to have a couple of books' worth of personal problems followed by a nice spell of domestic tranquility. (Not even an Irish couple.) Clare - well, the point made about Russ applies to Clare too, and even if the reader gets a very brief lull from worrying about Russ, Clare, and/or Russ-and-Clare (it -- almost happens, very occasionally), there'll be other characters just setting out onto the black ice that underlies everything in this world.
That relentlessness, quite aside from the sheer implausibility of quite so many things of such tragic or evil import happening to a few people in a small town, should make this a series I'd want nothing to do with. As, indeed, should the banner of "Forbidden Love" which hung over the series from the beginning. Initially I was hooked because the dangled carrot (that Russ and Clare would find a way to be together, to be happy, and still to be true to their moral values) was so alluring, given that the characters themselves were so beautifully developed. The relentlessness of the storms hitting them was really a part of that allure initially, and I appreciated the fact that the series moved, rather than keeping everyone stuck playing out the same game of temptation, resistance, and suffering. I felt that I loved this book despite the relentlessness, rather than because of it (even if in part), though. (I could prove totally wrong, of course, and the next book could leave me weeping inconsolably over a tragedy I never saw coming and begging for the next book.) As Melissa said, there's hope for emotional payoff from all the relationship woes we were dragged through in this book, and if it's anywhere near the emotional payoff we’ve received earlier, it'll be truly worth it. Even if we've already got most of what we're due (DUE, I say! All that readerly suffering!), the books have lots of smart humour, characters you can't help but care about, and always a lovely touch on secondary characters who surprise you again and again, through becoming much more than you'd seen in them initially.
Okay, on to the part of this book that hinges on the big reveal at the end of book 7. (If you've read the blurb here for this book, you're already spoiled about it, so don’t worry about reading on.) I have realised that I have a lot of problems with this whole plot arc, right from its very early inception (or conception - sorry!) Before I try to tease it out, I do want to make clear that it's not that I would have a problem with Russ or Clare for choosing not to have children, if it had felt as if they'd actually done that. It didn't though, and that's the whole storyline I have trouble with, because it feels like clumsy authorial plot-manipulation, rather than a way these characters would actually behave.
By the whole plot arc, I really mean the whole thing. I thought the very brief discussion about whether or not they’d have children was quite out of character, given what we’d seen each of them thinking before. Convenient in order to set up for the unexpected thunderbolt from above, but at the expense of feeling true to the two of them. (Clare’s line about giving too much of herself to her pastoral work to have anything left to take care of a kid especially made all kinds of red flags go up in my head, at least.) I also thought it more than a little odd that neither of them even went near to considering the possibility of contraceptive failure. (Again, convenient, but not terribly realistic.)They go ahead and start having sex, despite Clare's continued worry that parishioners will find out - indicating, strongly, that she knows this is not a totally insignificant matter to them, to the (by this point disappointingly flat) deacon appointed to keep an eye on her, to her bishop. Fair enough, the narrative says that her parish will give her a free pass before she goes off to Iraq, as they would, but the same set-up happens when she comes back from Iraq, addicted and with a serious drinking problem.
At the start of this book, Clare’s obvious pre-marital sexual relationship has led to trouble - which is a bit of a no-brainer, really. But, the thing that bothered me a lot was that she “repeated” her argument that the only options for a priest were not “either married or celibate” but also “ or in a faithful, monogamous relationship if they’re not allowed to marry by the laws of their state.” That's downright Jesuitical, as well as dishonest, since she knows - better than anyone - that that clause has no relevance to her. It bothered me so much that I was reminded of a family friend of ours, who was a Roman Catholic priest involved in a bizarre game (to him) in which he won as long as he wasn’t kicked out while trying to get away with as much as he could, despite having no respect for the hierarchy at all. So - why play the game? Or in Clare’s case, why fight to remain a priest while refusing to admit that you either a) don’t respect the hierarchy or b) did something you believed to be wrong too?
And then, the whole thing got messier still when Russ assumed she'd get an abortion. I could be misreading this, but in my experience, abortion is not an issue that remains totally ignorable when religious people (whatever they believe about the legality or morality of abortion in a variety of situations) and strongly non-religious people get together. His pushing her made me wonder if we're supposed to think he really doesn't get anything about her belief, or maybe doesn't care. Because abortion on the basis of inconvenience and embarrassment, for Clare? And she never even says that he can't ask her to give it 24 hours' thought? Never says that it's a moral matter for her? I really think this was a serious authorial misstep taken in order to mess with Clare and Russ so they don’t have even a moment conflict- and drama-less.
Back to Clare - the appointment with the ob/gyn was "one of the most humiliating experiences" of her life. (I'm not quite so sure that the doctor would have been able to say that the amount Clare drank wouldn't cause FAS, but that's really neither here nor there. It's the effect of putting the humiliation front and central, prioritising it over her concern about the damage she may have done to the baby that bothers me.) There's less humour in this than in the other books, I thought, but I loved Clare's prayer about being more understanding of her husband, "who's being a monumental jerk". Which he is, quite often. But again - when he finally bursts out (to Bob, of all people!) that he'd just got his life exactly where he wanted it, and then Clare messed it all up - it's an uncharacteristically jerky thing for him to say. And by “uncharacteristically” I mean not even true in the context of how his life actually was at the time. I doubt if anyone would choose for their long-desired marriage to be when your spouse is addicted and suffering from PTSD. Especially when he of all people knows how desperately hard it can be to stay sober and clean. He's absolutely unstinting in his support and understanding and love of her, and anyone who has ever been with someone with a substance abuse problem will know that that can be beyond heart-breaking. Certainly beyond difficult.
Yeah, all in all, not a fan of the way Clare’s pregnancy was handled! It’s a pity, because time and time again the author has managed to go down the ‘worst thing that can happen to the protagonists’ route - cause difficulty, pain and humiliation to her characters - and yet leave readers feeling that all involved have behaved in a way that allows them their own reality. Here, not so much.
And finally, the totally spoilery
I’ve been very verbal, or possibly just long-winded, about things that didn’t work for me in the book, to the extent that it might not seem an obvious 4 star rating. Some of that appreciation is left-over good stuff from earlier books, so if, for example, Russ and Clare seemed out of character in a few scenes, it’s because they’ve grown into characters I believe in - to the point of readerly rationality and beyond - and care about - ditto. A few scenes, even ones relating to an important plot-line, won't destroy all of that. I enjoyed the thriller aspect (with the above caveats) about as much as I’ve enjoyed earlier mystery aspects too, which helped. Like almost everyone else, I loved Bob Mongue, and his deepening from a bit of a jerk side-character (and a HUGE jerk, in Russ’s opinion) to a good, and interesting guy was great. And another one who makes me really happy is Geoff Burns - one of the least appealing characters in the first book, aggressive and an irritant to almost everyone, he’s still arrogant and brash, but he also comes through time and again for Clare. I also hope that Lyle gets more of a life outside the job in books-to-come, as I’m becoming very fond of him. Also, that little reveal he gets near the end? Yikes.
Even though I know how utterly pathetic it is, I’ll admit that I had to check towards the end to see if something I very much feared would happen did, and it wasn’t the tragedies I should have been worrying about. My priorities may be pretty screwed up, but it still made me very happy that we didn’t have to go there. It would be nice to hear that book 9 would be out soon, though it probably won't, but this is an okay place to take a bit of a breather before the next storms hit Millers Kill.
January 16, 2019
Why did I read a book revolving around a catastrophe of an ice storm when there's a snow forecast for the weekend? I guess I'll go stock up on--well, judging by this book, I guess I'll go stock up on first aid kits, emergency supplies of Oxy, heavy weaponry, wood-burning stoves, and all the hand-crank radios in the world. That should do it.
This is a tense, well-constructed, complex entry in the series. Spencer-Fleming creates a set of urgent, troubling circumstances for her cast of characters--they're all believable enough that this doesn't feel forced--and then makes it worse by adding in the ice storm of the century and the kidnapping of a little girl whose recent liver transplant means that a week without her medication could mean her death. So, no pressure, everybody.
Let's see if I have them all down...
Clare is married now, but her pregnancy was obviously started beforehand, and now her bishop is requesting her resignation--she can refuse to give it, but that could mean a trial by canon law, and a bad outcome there could mean she's finished in the clergy for good. The clock is ticking on her decision.
Meanwhile, after books and books of hearing about Millers Kill's tight budget and the inability of the police department to get another officer hired, the town aldermen have decided that they may just want to give up the MKPD entirely and farm out the area's policing to the staties, who will cover it (though presumably less thoroughly) for a fraction of the cost. This could mean the wreck of a lot of careers in a town without many available jobs, and also the loss of Russ's income--and, again, potentially Clare's--right when the two of them are (with mixed emotions) expecting a baby.
Naturally, this overlaps with their belated honeymoon to a vacation cabin up by a lake. They're going ice-fishing. In January. In upstate New York. Better them than me.
Then the earnest, lovesick Kevin Flynn has an offer on the table to join the Syracuse PD. It's an escape hatch if the MKPD goes under and it's guaranteed to have more opportunities for promotion and better pay than his current position, but it means leaving behind his close-knit, loving family... and his crush on fellow offer Hadley Knox...
...whose vain, self-centered ex-husband has just turned up, threatening to take the kids back to California if Hadley doesn't either give him $20,000 or turn over the "assets" of their old production company--which means the original reels of the porn movies she starred in under her for-real birth name of Honey Potts. He wants to start distributing them digitally, but she remembers all too well the looks she started getting in California when people slowly started gossiping about her. She doesn't want a repeat of it right when she's rebuilding her life.
And then, yeah, there's the kidnapped child, stolen out of the burning home of her temporary foster parents who turn out, in an interesting wrinkle, to have been former FBI, and not because of a coincidence. The investigation on her heats up at home--while everyone tries to deal with increased traffic accidents and power outages--while Clare and Russ have a less-than-peaceful exile in their cabin and soon find themselves hunted across a frozen lake while being even more directly involved with the missing girl.
There are a lot of coincidences here, but Spencer-Fleming works them out well and intelligently, to the point where it actually makes sense that all of this is happening more or less at the same time. By this point in the series, Millers Kill is a fully developed small town and has a great organic messiness that adds to the believable nature of the world. I would reluctantly say that I think the wilderness survival/escape scenes here are slightly less good than they were in the first book, In the Bleak Midwinter, but that was a very high bar. Everything is still tense and well-done. Moreover, the ultimate denouement manages a stellar mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly, as situations work out both better and worse than I would have hoped. I started this one happy to be finally fully catching up with at least one ongoing series I love, and now I just want the next book.
This is a tense, well-constructed, complex entry in the series. Spencer-Fleming creates a set of urgent, troubling circumstances for her cast of characters--they're all believable enough that this doesn't feel forced--and then makes it worse by adding in the ice storm of the century and the kidnapping of a little girl whose recent liver transplant means that a week without her medication could mean her death. So, no pressure, everybody.
Let's see if I have them all down...
Clare is married now, but her pregnancy was obviously started beforehand, and now her bishop is requesting her resignation--she can refuse to give it, but that could mean a trial by canon law, and a bad outcome there could mean she's finished in the clergy for good. The clock is ticking on her decision.
Meanwhile, after books and books of hearing about Millers Kill's tight budget and the inability of the police department to get another officer hired, the town aldermen have decided that they may just want to give up the MKPD entirely and farm out the area's policing to the staties, who will cover it (though presumably less thoroughly) for a fraction of the cost. This could mean the wreck of a lot of careers in a town without many available jobs, and also the loss of Russ's income--and, again, potentially Clare's--right when the two of them are (with mixed emotions) expecting a baby.
Naturally, this overlaps with their belated honeymoon to a vacation cabin up by a lake. They're going ice-fishing. In January. In upstate New York. Better them than me.
Then the earnest, lovesick Kevin Flynn has an offer on the table to join the Syracuse PD. It's an escape hatch if the MKPD goes under and it's guaranteed to have more opportunities for promotion and better pay than his current position, but it means leaving behind his close-knit, loving family... and his crush on fellow offer Hadley Knox...
...whose vain, self-centered ex-husband has just turned up, threatening to take the kids back to California if Hadley doesn't either give him $20,000 or turn over the "assets" of their old production company--which means the original reels of the porn movies she starred in under her for-real birth name of Honey Potts. He wants to start distributing them digitally, but she remembers all too well the looks she started getting in California when people slowly started gossiping about her. She doesn't want a repeat of it right when she's rebuilding her life.
And then, yeah, there's the kidnapped child, stolen out of the burning home of her temporary foster parents who turn out, in an interesting wrinkle, to have been former FBI, and not because of a coincidence. The investigation on her heats up at home--while everyone tries to deal with increased traffic accidents and power outages--while Clare and Russ have a less-than-peaceful exile in their cabin and soon find themselves hunted across a frozen lake while being even more directly involved with the missing girl.
There are a lot of coincidences here, but Spencer-Fleming works them out well and intelligently, to the point where it actually makes sense that all of this is happening more or less at the same time. By this point in the series, Millers Kill is a fully developed small town and has a great organic messiness that adds to the believable nature of the world. I would reluctantly say that I think the wilderness survival/escape scenes here are slightly less good than they were in the first book, In the Bleak Midwinter, but that was a very high bar. Everything is still tense and well-done. Moreover, the ultimate denouement manages a stellar mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly, as situations work out both better and worse than I would have hoped. I started this one happy to be finally fully catching up with at least one ongoing series I love, and now I just want the next book.
July 25, 2022
I had written a good review, but hadn't refreshed the page, so it disappeared into the ether. This was a good continuation... I just wish I knew what Clare and Russ have for a baby, guess I need to read the next one. As I sit through a very hot summer heat wave it's nice to read about ice and snow and snow, but it doesn't make me much cooler, just saying. Excellent story and mystery, I enjoy watching the relationship build with Clare and Russ... as well as Hadley and Kevin.
October 22, 2023
I think this was one of my favs. Plenty of action, lots of emotional questions as these two came to grips with their impending parenthood. And then there’s the church of course! Loved it!
November 11, 2013
This was fine, but there was too much going on and I'm not really a fan of the books that take place in a super-short timeframe.
February 10, 2022
5 Stars!!
Wow. This might have been the most intense and exciting of the bunch. I loved it. I lost sleep over it. I also got a little dreamy-eyed over the romantic moments between Russ & Claire AND Flynn & Hadley. Great secondary characters, too. Especially Oscar. Oh, but that ending….
I want to read book nine asap but I also don’t. It took seven years between book eight and nine. Who knows when there will be a book ten? An avid reader’s true dilemma.
November 18, 2013
Although I only discovered Julia Spencer-Fleming's amazing Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series this past summer, I immediately became a steadfast fan. The bonus I received for playing catch-up is that I only had to wait four months between my reading of One Was a Soldier, #7 in the series, and Through the Evil Days, #8. Also, I had the fan-dream-come-true opportunity to meet Julia at Bouchercon in September and take a drive through a bit of the Adirondacks, eating lunch at a rustic inn on Lake Sacandaga. Driving on one of the mountainous roads within the stunning beauty of these mountains served to drive home the point of how treacherous the roads would be in winter weather conditions. So, I was well and truly primed for Through the Evil Days and its wintry setting amid the overwhelming landscape of towering trees and isolation. Of course, Spencer-Fleming's description of the powerful setting envelopes the reader into what becomes an inanimate character that challenges the strength of the resourceful, determined Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson and Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne. Complex and complicated are conditions with which the two are all too familiar.
In reviewing a series in which you arrive at its eighth book, it is simply impossible not to include spoilers concerning previous books. So, I feel compelled to post a warning for the remainder of the review. These novels are way too good to read in any way other than building one upon the other. So, my advice for optimum enjoyment is to read the books before the reviews. Its already a given that Julia Spencer-Fleming's Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series is a remarkable one, so just hop on and enjoy the ride.
In Through the Evil Days, January has arrived in Millers Kill, along with the wintry weather that tests endurance. Of course, Clare and Russ are taking their delayed honeymoon now, ice fishing in a remote lake area (Russ' idea), with Clare five and a half months pregnant. The fact that they've only been married less than three months is a typical Clare/Russ complication, one that this time is causing discussion of concern in the Episcopal diocese that Clare serves. Russ has his problems, too, with discussions from the town council of disbanding the police department. Before the couple can get out of town to start their chilly honeymoon, they are called to the scene of a deadly fire during the night, where two people have died and a child has been kidnapped. Russ hands over the investigation to his second-in-command Lyle MacCauley and vows to keep in touch as best he can from an area where communication is sketchy at best. MacCauley pairs up officers Kevin Flynn and Hadley Knox to deal with the minutiae of the investigation, a pairing that has its own history and entanglements. With the unexpected arrival of the ice storm of epic proportions, everyone's lives and jobs are thrown into disarray. The news that the missing child has had a recent liver transplant and is probably in need of her life-saving medications puts a time crunch on solving the arson/kidnapping case amidst the impossible weather conditions and impaired communication systems. Clare and Russ are cut off from any news from Millers Kill and vice versa. Of course, the honeymooning couple has no need of communicating. Right? Well, nothing is ever that simple or easy with the pair. The investigation and hunt for the eight-year-old girl will reach well beyond Millers Kill, and, as usual, Clare and Russ will be in the thick of it.
Reading this series continues to be so satisfying, truly like an old, dear friend visiting. I feel fortunate indeed to have discovered this talented author and this engaging series when I did. Although I came late to the party, I have made up for lost time and now am sitting on the front row of fans anticipating the next thrilling story.
In reviewing a series in which you arrive at its eighth book, it is simply impossible not to include spoilers concerning previous books. So, I feel compelled to post a warning for the remainder of the review. These novels are way too good to read in any way other than building one upon the other. So, my advice for optimum enjoyment is to read the books before the reviews. Its already a given that Julia Spencer-Fleming's Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series is a remarkable one, so just hop on and enjoy the ride.
In Through the Evil Days, January has arrived in Millers Kill, along with the wintry weather that tests endurance. Of course, Clare and Russ are taking their delayed honeymoon now, ice fishing in a remote lake area (Russ' idea), with Clare five and a half months pregnant. The fact that they've only been married less than three months is a typical Clare/Russ complication, one that this time is causing discussion of concern in the Episcopal diocese that Clare serves. Russ has his problems, too, with discussions from the town council of disbanding the police department. Before the couple can get out of town to start their chilly honeymoon, they are called to the scene of a deadly fire during the night, where two people have died and a child has been kidnapped. Russ hands over the investigation to his second-in-command Lyle MacCauley and vows to keep in touch as best he can from an area where communication is sketchy at best. MacCauley pairs up officers Kevin Flynn and Hadley Knox to deal with the minutiae of the investigation, a pairing that has its own history and entanglements. With the unexpected arrival of the ice storm of epic proportions, everyone's lives and jobs are thrown into disarray. The news that the missing child has had a recent liver transplant and is probably in need of her life-saving medications puts a time crunch on solving the arson/kidnapping case amidst the impossible weather conditions and impaired communication systems. Clare and Russ are cut off from any news from Millers Kill and vice versa. Of course, the honeymooning couple has no need of communicating. Right? Well, nothing is ever that simple or easy with the pair. The investigation and hunt for the eight-year-old girl will reach well beyond Millers Kill, and, as usual, Clare and Russ will be in the thick of it.
Reading this series continues to be so satisfying, truly like an old, dear friend visiting. I feel fortunate indeed to have discovered this talented author and this engaging series when I did. Although I came late to the party, I have made up for lost time and now am sitting on the front row of fans anticipating the next thrilling story.
May 27, 2021
I've been reading my way through this series for two and a half years now. I knew, as soon as I started 'In The Bleak Midwinter' that I'd found a series I could lose myself in. I've just finished the eighth book, 'Through The Evil Days' and I've never been disappointed. These books are more than a comfort read, each of them has given me something to think about while still spinning a tense narrative and getting me hopelessly entangled in the lives and hopes of the main characters. My only regret is that there seems to be only one book left in the series, 'Hid From Our Eyes' which was published in 2020. Personally, I'll continue to read these books as long as Julia Spencer-Fleming continues to write them.
I don't know how Julia Spencer-Fleming does it but I stepped back into this series six months after I read the last book, 'One Was A Soldier' and I was immediately re-invested in the lives of Clair and Russ. And what complicated lives they are. It's December and Russ and Clare are due for a week's honeymoon in a remote cabin on a lake in the mountains. All would be well if it wasn't for the fact that the future of Russ' police department is being assessed and Clare is visibly pregnant, which is an unhappy surprise for Russ, who thinks he's too old to become a father, and a problem for Clare's Church as the pregnancy is a public declaration that Clare and Russ had sex before they were married. As they are about to leave for the mountains, where they will be out of contact with everyone, they are called to the scene of a fatal fire that may be arson and discover that a little girl is missing.
Of course, while thrashing out their futures and the feelings about parenthood, Clare and Russ find themselves at the centre of a violent conflict where they put their lives at risk to try and save the missing girl. There's also a well-told and emotionally charged sub-plot about the relationship between Hadley and Kevin and Hadley's ex-husband.
The storytelling is vivid without being lurid and it remains very people-focused. This is a tense thriller with a lot of action and a couple of surprises that kept me wanting to know what would happen next. It also captures the feeling of being caught in an ice storm in the mountains very well.
And, of course, there's the humour, which keeps the whole thing human and makes the people easier to believe in and care about. For example, when the fire chief, on seeing the Reverend Claire heavily pregnant, turns to Russ and ask 'Can Protestant Ministers do that?', Russ replies, 'If they're women they can.'
So, I'm going to read the ninth book next month and hope that a tenth is published later this year.
I don't know how Julia Spencer-Fleming does it but I stepped back into this series six months after I read the last book, 'One Was A Soldier' and I was immediately re-invested in the lives of Clair and Russ. And what complicated lives they are. It's December and Russ and Clare are due for a week's honeymoon in a remote cabin on a lake in the mountains. All would be well if it wasn't for the fact that the future of Russ' police department is being assessed and Clare is visibly pregnant, which is an unhappy surprise for Russ, who thinks he's too old to become a father, and a problem for Clare's Church as the pregnancy is a public declaration that Clare and Russ had sex before they were married. As they are about to leave for the mountains, where they will be out of contact with everyone, they are called to the scene of a fatal fire that may be arson and discover that a little girl is missing.
Of course, while thrashing out their futures and the feelings about parenthood, Clare and Russ find themselves at the centre of a violent conflict where they put their lives at risk to try and save the missing girl. There's also a well-told and emotionally charged sub-plot about the relationship between Hadley and Kevin and Hadley's ex-husband.
The storytelling is vivid without being lurid and it remains very people-focused. This is a tense thriller with a lot of action and a couple of surprises that kept me wanting to know what would happen next. It also captures the feeling of being caught in an ice storm in the mountains very well.
And, of course, there's the humour, which keeps the whole thing human and makes the people easier to believe in and care about. For example, when the fire chief, on seeing the Reverend Claire heavily pregnant, turns to Russ and ask 'Can Protestant Ministers do that?', Russ replies, 'If they're women they can.'
So, I'm going to read the ninth book next month and hope that a tenth is published later this year.
February 2, 2023
Number 8 in this series. I was cold and anxious throughout the novel. Winter in upstate New York, and plenty of bad guy action!
August 6, 2016
This latest installment in the series reads a lot more like a thriller than a mystery, with Clare and Russ trapped in a not-so-wondrous winter wonderland and the rest of the MKPD fighting the worst storm in years as well as trying to find the kidnappers of a little girl. The two plots eventually connect, fortunately, keeping the story from feeling like two books in one, and the solution to the mystery has enough twists to make it interesting. I thought the main kidnapper was a little too evil to be realistic--he kept coming up with the perfect threats to keep Clare and Russ under his power--but as an aspect of the thriller genre, he made sense.
I'm still more interested in the characters, of course, and the real story (from my point of view) is a matter of transitions, where some beloved characters face decisions that will dramatically change their lives: Clare faces the fallout from her premarital pregnancy, Russ receives word that the MKPD may be shut down by the Miller's Kill aldermen, Hadley's ex shows up with a horrifying ultimatum, and Kevin receives a job offer that will boost his career but would require him to leave Miller's Kill. The tension of the mystery-thriller plot is always in the foreground, but we're never far from wondering what's going to happen to these characters, and there's no guarantee that there will be a happy ending for any of them. (Though in truth, if there were happy endings all around, the series would end, and I don't want that.)
Spoilers:
I feel less impatient to get to the next book than I was with some of the other installments, which is fortunate because it's probably going to be a couple of years before that next book is available. I liked that there was both resolution and uncertainty, because I found that more satisfying than perfect resolution would be. In fact, I think "satisfying" is probably an accurate description of my overall feelings about this book.
I'm still more interested in the characters, of course, and the real story (from my point of view) is a matter of transitions, where some beloved characters face decisions that will dramatically change their lives: Clare faces the fallout from her premarital pregnancy, Russ receives word that the MKPD may be shut down by the Miller's Kill aldermen, Hadley's ex shows up with a horrifying ultimatum, and Kevin receives a job offer that will boost his career but would require him to leave Miller's Kill. The tension of the mystery-thriller plot is always in the foreground, but we're never far from wondering what's going to happen to these characters, and there's no guarantee that there will be a happy ending for any of them. (Though in truth, if there were happy endings all around, the series would end, and I don't want that.)
Spoilers:
I feel less impatient to get to the next book than I was with some of the other installments, which is fortunate because it's probably going to be a couple of years before that next book is available. I liked that there was both resolution and uncertainty, because I found that more satisfying than perfect resolution would be. In fact, I think "satisfying" is probably an accurate description of my overall feelings about this book.
September 2, 2013
I've been a fan of this series ever since I discovered the first book, and eagerly await each new book as it is released. I was delighted to receive a free review copy of this book. "Through the Evil Days" (since main character Clare is an Episcopal priest, all the titles are drawn from Anglican hymns) picks up shortly after the last book left off, with Clare newly sober and newly pregnant, and her husband Russ reeling and a bit resentful about the unexpected pregnancy. Clare and Russ are planning to spend a week at an isolated cabin as a sort of honeymoon, and even though the weather isn't looking great (ice and snow) and a few new cases are brewing at the police station (a missing child and an arson), the couple decides to stick to their plan to get away. Clare offers to give a ride to a teen mom and her baby who are headed in the same direction to stay with the teen's boyfriend. The presence of the teen and her child delay the inevitable unpleasant conversations that the couple need to have: Clare's bishop is making noise about bringing her up on "conduct unbecoming a priest" charges since she got pregnant before she was married, while the Miller's Kill council is considering eliminating the police force, which would put Russ out of a job. So even though Clare and Russ are finally together, Spencer-Fleming does a good job of setting up plenty of conflict to keep tensions high.
Most of the book takes place within a window of a few days, as the ice and snow turn into a massive storm that downs trees, knocks out power lines and cell phone towers, and blocks roads. Up at the cabin, Clare and Russ are coping with the fallout from their career crises, while concerned about the teen and her child they gave a ride to (they suspect not all is as it seems there) and trying to monitor the missing child case going on at home. Supporting characters Hadley and Kevin are left doing much of the legwork on the missing child/arson case, and Hadley is also dealing with the unexpected appearance of her ex-husband, a slimy guy who is trying to use child custody to extort money from her.
As the weather turns into "storm of the century" mayhem, Russ and Clare are isolated in the woods while Hadley and Kevin are struggling to keep their investigation on track and respond to the many weather-related incidents. It's probably not a spoiler to say that Russ and Clare end up entangled with some nasty bad guys while cut off from home, and that Kevin and Hadley end up in a case more complicated than they originally imagined. The tension ratchets up to an action-packed finale, and in typical Spencer-Fleming style, we're left with some cliffhangers to whet our appetite for the next book in the series.
What I liked about the book:
1. Spencer-Fleming manages to keep characterization developing in new directions.
2. Suspense that doesn't let up (arguably the middle part, where Russ & Clare are stuck in the cabin could have been condensed a bit, but it didn't bother me too much)
3. Lots of attention paid to supporting characters Hadley and Kevin, and their attraction to each other
4. Plot is twisted and intricate without crossing over into the wildly implausible
5. Great writing
6. Terrific cliff-hanging ending (but all the loose ends from this particular plot are tied up)
What I didn't like:
Having to wait a year from the next book in the series.
Most of the book takes place within a window of a few days, as the ice and snow turn into a massive storm that downs trees, knocks out power lines and cell phone towers, and blocks roads. Up at the cabin, Clare and Russ are coping with the fallout from their career crises, while concerned about the teen and her child they gave a ride to (they suspect not all is as it seems there) and trying to monitor the missing child case going on at home. Supporting characters Hadley and Kevin are left doing much of the legwork on the missing child/arson case, and Hadley is also dealing with the unexpected appearance of her ex-husband, a slimy guy who is trying to use child custody to extort money from her.
As the weather turns into "storm of the century" mayhem, Russ and Clare are isolated in the woods while Hadley and Kevin are struggling to keep their investigation on track and respond to the many weather-related incidents. It's probably not a spoiler to say that Russ and Clare end up entangled with some nasty bad guys while cut off from home, and that Kevin and Hadley end up in a case more complicated than they originally imagined. The tension ratchets up to an action-packed finale, and in typical Spencer-Fleming style, we're left with some cliffhangers to whet our appetite for the next book in the series.
What I liked about the book:
1. Spencer-Fleming manages to keep characterization developing in new directions.
2. Suspense that doesn't let up (arguably the middle part, where Russ & Clare are stuck in the cabin could have been condensed a bit, but it didn't bother me too much)
3. Lots of attention paid to supporting characters Hadley and Kevin, and their attraction to each other
4. Plot is twisted and intricate without crossing over into the wildly implausible
5. Great writing
6. Terrific cliff-hanging ending (but all the loose ends from this particular plot are tied up)
What I didn't like:
Having to wait a year from the next book in the series.
February 18, 2015
4.5 stars I honestly don’t remember who was the first to recommend Julia Spencer-Fleming’s
Clare Fergusson/Russ van Alstyne
series to me. I know Rachel Potter and Jean Wan here at AAR have raved about these books, as have posters on our message boards and various other bloggers I read. And I have to say that I agree with them. These books are fabulous. Spencer-Fleming gives readers good mysteries, but more importantly, her characters are intelligently written and over the course of the 8(so far) books in the series, she takes readers through a complex relationship arc. The history between Episcopal priest Clare and police chief Russ requires both characters and readers to wrestle with some tough questions, but the more I get to know these characters, the more I care about them even if some of the dilemmas they wrestle with make me uncomfortable on occasion.
And now for the obligatory spoiler warning – this blog contains spoilers for some of the earlier books in Spencer-Fleming’s series. For February I read the most recent book in the series, 2013′s Through the Evil Days. I would say that it’s not my favorite in the series, but it’s still a very solid entry and I’d give it a B+. It’s not a DIK for me, but it’s mighty close.
This book picks up not long after where One Was a Soldier leaves off. Claire and Russ are now married and awaiting the arrival of the child they never planned to have. Given that it’s obvious Clare got pregnant before the wedding, she has possible church disciplinary proceedings to look forward to, and she and Russ are also working through the tension related to their new marriage and unplanned pregnancy. And if that wasn’t enough, their honeymoon trip happens to coincide with a storm of epic proportions. And yes, they also get sucked into a murder investigation.
This is a partial review. You can find the complete text on the All About Romance blog: http://www.likesbooks.com/blog/?p=155...
And now for the obligatory spoiler warning – this blog contains spoilers for some of the earlier books in Spencer-Fleming’s series. For February I read the most recent book in the series, 2013′s Through the Evil Days. I would say that it’s not my favorite in the series, but it’s still a very solid entry and I’d give it a B+. It’s not a DIK for me, but it’s mighty close.
This book picks up not long after where One Was a Soldier leaves off. Claire and Russ are now married and awaiting the arrival of the child they never planned to have. Given that it’s obvious Clare got pregnant before the wedding, she has possible church disciplinary proceedings to look forward to, and she and Russ are also working through the tension related to their new marriage and unplanned pregnancy. And if that wasn’t enough, their honeymoon trip happens to coincide with a storm of epic proportions. And yes, they also get sucked into a murder investigation.
This is a partial review. You can find the complete text on the All About Romance blog: http://www.likesbooks.com/blog/?p=155...
May 19, 2015
#8 in the Clare Fergusson / Russ Van Alstyne series. The book starts with posing 3 problems with a one week deadline. Clare has been charged with un-priestly behavior for her pre-marital pregnancy and the Bishop has given her a week to quietly resign from St. Alban's or face a trial by the church. Russ has found that in a week the town council will decide whether to place the question of eliminating the Miller's Kill Police Department and turn its functions over to the State Police. Kevin Flynn has received an employment offer from the Syracuse PD and must respond in a week. After a week of crime, weather, and angst these problems have reached a resolution but author Spencer-Fleming has raised more issues. This is disappointing due to her most recent writing speed - 2 books in the last 5 years. The writing is great, but at this pace, the books should be self-contained.
Clare Fergusson / Russ Van Alstyne series - Newly married (and pregnant) Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson and Miller's Kill Police Chief Russ van Alstyne are grateful for the solitude of their ice-fishing honeymoon, as they both have a tangle of professional and personal complications to sort. But soon after they arrive, a snowstorm begins burying the region. As the honeymooners make preparations to depart, they encounter a pair of cagey meth heads and find themselves battling criminals and the elements. In the meantime, Miller's Kill is left without Russ to solve the murders of local foster parents and the disappearance of their foster child. Officers Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn, awkward after an ill-advised fling, are forced to struggle together against terrified witnesses and blizzard conditions to reveal the kidnapping's connection to a local methamphetamine kingpin.
Clare Fergusson / Russ Van Alstyne series - Newly married (and pregnant) Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson and Miller's Kill Police Chief Russ van Alstyne are grateful for the solitude of their ice-fishing honeymoon, as they both have a tangle of professional and personal complications to sort. But soon after they arrive, a snowstorm begins burying the region. As the honeymooners make preparations to depart, they encounter a pair of cagey meth heads and find themselves battling criminals and the elements. In the meantime, Miller's Kill is left without Russ to solve the murders of local foster parents and the disappearance of their foster child. Officers Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn, awkward after an ill-advised fling, are forced to struggle together against terrified witnesses and blizzard conditions to reveal the kidnapping's connection to a local methamphetamine kingpin.
December 29, 2014
I had very mixed emotions about this one. I did not like some of the plot elements - going to an isolated cabin in the winter in upstate New York for a honeymoon? insisting on going when there is an ice storm coming your way? the 5.5 month pregnant woman agreeing to this?
Knowing the situation the characters found themselves in, the isolation seemed like a good idea. Then events just spun out of control. Once they got to the lake and crossed paths with the bad guys, I can see why the rest of everything played out the way it did. And although some of the events seemed impossible, or not the best choice for a pregnant woman, once in danger, there was not much else they could do because that had to survive.
I really did not like that there was not much communication between Russ and Clare. They are dealing with an unplanned pregnancy and many other issues and there is no discussion. We see some movement int their points of view and acceptance of the conditions through the actions of the story, but it was minimal. It did not seem as if there was enough to get these two people to where they need to be, although that might be in the next book.
The Flynn and Knox storyline is totally left hanging. I hope there is more to that as we move into the next book.
The writing was excellent as usual, and we learn a lot about some of our favorite characters, especially Flynn and Knox. The descriptions of some of the area was engaging and it is obvious that the weather was yet another character in this installment. The plot just did not totally work for me. I wanted so much more from this installment, based on where we were left off with Russ and Clare at the end of Once Was a Soldier
Knowing the situation the characters found themselves in, the isolation seemed like a good idea. Then events just spun out of control. Once they got to the lake and crossed paths with the bad guys, I can see why the rest of everything played out the way it did. And although some of the events seemed impossible, or not the best choice for a pregnant woman, once in danger, there was not much else they could do because that had to survive.
I really did not like that there was not much communication between Russ and Clare. They are dealing with an unplanned pregnancy and many other issues and there is no discussion. We see some movement int their points of view and acceptance of the conditions through the actions of the story, but it was minimal. It did not seem as if there was enough to get these two people to where they need to be, although that might be in the next book.
The Flynn and Knox storyline is totally left hanging. I hope there is more to that as we move into the next book.
The writing was excellent as usual, and we learn a lot about some of our favorite characters, especially Flynn and Knox. The descriptions of some of the area was engaging and it is obvious that the weather was yet another character in this installment. The plot just did not totally work for me. I wanted so much more from this installment, based on where we were left off with Russ and Clare at the end of Once Was a Soldier
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 5, 2016
Com certeza percebi mal algo que li sobre este livro ser o final da série, o que me provocou um sentimento de ansiedade e tristeza por ver a série terminar, uma série que adoro e que é muito especial para mim. Russ e Clare são um casal mesmo muito especial, inesquecível! Quando cheguei ao fim desta leitura e havia ali umas pontas soltas, fiquei desiludida. Só depois é que procurei informação com mais atenção e sei agora que a autora está a trabalhar num novo livro. Ufa! Que alívio!
Pensei que com a morte da (primeira) mulher de Russ, que a relação dele com Clare fosse mais fácil, mas não, tem sido justamente o contrário. Quem diria? É triste, mas ao mesmo tempo dá uma alegria no coração ver que, apesar de tudo, são tão apaixonados um pelo outro.
Este deve ter sido o livro mais frustrante da série, com Russ e Clare afastados de Millers Kill numa cabana a passar a lua de mel (atrasada) quando uma violenta tempestade chega e uma menina recém transplantada raptada e em perigo por não ter os seus medicamentos... E a ameaça a Hadley por parte do ex-marido que ameaça levar-lhe os filhos para a Califórnia e a possibilidade de ser revelado o seu passado feio que iria complicar o que se adivinha ser o início (finalmente) de um relacionamento com Kevin Flynn... Oh céus! Que frustração!
E aquele final? Mata-me!
Pensei que com a morte da (primeira) mulher de Russ, que a relação dele com Clare fosse mais fácil, mas não, tem sido justamente o contrário. Quem diria? É triste, mas ao mesmo tempo dá uma alegria no coração ver que, apesar de tudo, são tão apaixonados um pelo outro.
Este deve ter sido o livro mais frustrante da série, com Russ e Clare afastados de Millers Kill numa cabana a passar a lua de mel (atrasada) quando uma violenta tempestade chega e uma menina recém transplantada raptada e em perigo por não ter os seus medicamentos... E a ameaça a Hadley por parte do ex-marido que ameaça levar-lhe os filhos para a Califórnia e a possibilidade de ser revelado o seu passado feio que iria complicar o que se adivinha ser o início (finalmente) de um relacionamento com Kevin Flynn... Oh céus! Que frustração!
E aquele final? Mata-me!
March 14, 2016
What an awesome addition to this series!!! I didn't want it to be over, as Clare and Russ start their short honeymoon. But when you're 5 months preggers and a female Episcopalian priest who just married the local Sheriff, things tend to get sticky. Now Clare has a week to decide to resign quietly or face charges from her bishop of conduct unbecoming to a priest. Russ for his part has his own problems as the city council has decided that Miller's Kill may not need their own police force. Never mind the fact that he is a 52 year old facing the fact that he is going to be a daddy for the first time in his life. Let's throw in a couple of murders, a missing sickly little girl, a drug dealer and things get even more tenuous for Clare and Russ. Then let's throw in the situation with Hadely and Kevin...OMGosh I didn't see that coming with Hadley nor did I see that ending coming for them. I so hope they work that out, because I am in love with Kevin myself now. I CAN'T wait for the next one and I can't wait for Russ to have to change his first stinky diaper. Please let it be a little girl ...he is going to melt like big wax teddy bear. WAY TO GO JSF, the wait was worth it. If you haven't read this series, start with the first book to get the full effect of Clare and Russ's relationship woes. But be warned in the early books there is situations that you may not like.
April 8, 2014
Now I'm all caught up on the series, and I want to know what happens NEXT. Though this wasn't my favorite--too much of Clare and Russ's honeymoon from Hell felt a bit too conveniently messed up, on top of some threats of life-changing proportions in their lives (and I'm not just talking about impending parenthood, though the book does deal with that as well). It does say something for the propulsive nature of the narrative that I managed to overcome my loathing for kidnapped-child stories. Though, as others have pointed out, the mystery isn't really the strong point in these stories, this one had a nice little twist at the very end that made my jaw drop. And the character development is once again stellar. Though for a while I wanted to kick Russ in the teeth on Clare's behalf.
One thing I wanted to mention, with the return of State Police Lieutenant Bob Mongue, is the knack Spencer-Fleming has for presenting characters in new ways, so the reader ends up with a more nuanced view of them. Mongue appears in earlier stories--and in the beginning of this one--as a semi-unfriendly rival for Russ, but I suspect I won't be the only reader who will close this book with a much greater appreciation of him. That's one of the things that makes this series such a rich one.
One thing I wanted to mention, with the return of State Police Lieutenant Bob Mongue, is the knack Spencer-Fleming has for presenting characters in new ways, so the reader ends up with a more nuanced view of them. Mongue appears in earlier stories--and in the beginning of this one--as a semi-unfriendly rival for Russ, but I suspect I won't be the only reader who will close this book with a much greater appreciation of him. That's one of the things that makes this series such a rich one.
September 26, 2020
Chief of police Russ and Rev Clare are called to a house fire that turns out to be murder and there is an 8 year old sick girl missing. They still leave on a week long ice fishing honeymoon even though both of them are wrestling with personal problems. Since Clare was pregnant when they got married the church wants her gone and the police dept is thinking of disbanding so Russ will be out of a job. he also isn’t happy about becoming a father. Hadley is also having problems with her ex-husband wanting to take the kids and her boyfriend is offered a job out of town. The book has so many thing going on.
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