Riverwatcher: A Fly-Fishing Mystery

by Ronald Weber

Lottery winner and ex-journalist Donal Fitzgerald joins forces with his girlfriend, DNR conservation officer Mercy Virdon, to solve the mysterious death of a beloved angler, Charlie, who was murdered in his tent in a state campground and who was known by all—and who may have known too much. Set in the engaging small town of Ossning on the Borchard River in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—an angler’s dream, filled with eccentric, believable, sympathetic, and unforgettable characters—Riverwatcher is a classic whodunit. Fitzgerald and Mercy’s investigation to discover the deadly secret among the locals leads to dead ends until a surprisingly bookish theory surfaces. Weber expertly weaves this character-driven novel with a strong sense of place, creating a great yarn for anglers and mystery lovers and, as it turns out, a literally literary mystery.  

Genres: Mystery

241 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 19, 2013

Reviews

[Paul V · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one got away

Too hard to follow and contrived. Seemed like a copy of much better books and plots...knows fly fishing and the UP

[Linda Frances · Rating 2 out of 5]

A line in the novel said"novelists tell plausible lies". The problem with this novel is that there is too much that just isn't plausible.

[Steve Dunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

So dull I think characters in the book lost interest half way through.

[Kyle Haack · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mediocre mystery, with the benefit of fly fishing.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lottery winner and ex-journalist Donal Fitzgerald joins forces with his girlfriend, DNR conservation officer Mercy Virdon, to solve the mysterious death of a beloved angler, Charlie, who was murdered in his tent in a state campground and who was known by all—and who may have known too much. Set in the engaging small town of Ossning on the Borchard River in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—an angler’s dream, filled with eccentric, believable, sympathetic, and unforgettable characters—Riverwatcher is a classic whodunit. Fitzgerald and Mercy’s investigation to discover the deadly secret among the locals leads to dead ends until a surprisingly bookish theory surfaces. Weber expertly weaves this character-driven novel with a strong sense of place, creating a great yarn for anglers and mystery lovers and, as it turns out, a literally literary mystery.

[Jersey Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a dandy read. Set in Michigan, the murder of a campground regular gets everyone into the act of investigating. Many interesting characters, yet, not so many that one has difficulty following. Not sure how I stumbled on to this book, but must go back and get the first two.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Four scor seven years ago our fathers... finish the sentence

[KDWeber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! Well written

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay read. Not fantastic but it was fun because I know the area.

[Sia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible, hard to follow and extremely boring.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many people are shocked when elderly Charlie Orr is shot. Charlie had spent many of his summers camping in the State Parks campground, fishing and reading. He had high standards for sportsmanship and environmental protection, but was never aggressive about his beliefs. Among the people who were Charlie's friends are the DNR chief for the area, Mercy, and her lover Fitzgerald, who took his small lottery winnings and left his Detroit newspaper job to write a novel and fish. Mercy must fight allegations that the DNR's supposed laxity about poachers lead to Charlie's death.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story takes an interesting historical turn at the end that for me, added much to the interest of the story.