A Murder, A Child Missing, & A Young Woman Determined To Find The Truth ... Something weird's happening. It's too quiet, at least for Brooklyn, so twenty-two-year-old Fina Fitzgibbons is not surprised when she stumbles upon a throttled woman in the heart of Brooklyn Heights and discovers that the dead woman's four-year-old grandson is also missing. She begins a wild hunt for the strangler-kidnapper, Ralph. During the chase, she resists falling in love with her boyfriend, Denny, an NYPD patrol officer, steps on the toes of Detective First Grade Jane Templeton, and uncovers secrets about her own past. In the end, Ralph has a deadly surprise for Fina.
Susan Russo Anderson is a writer, a mother, a member of Sisters in Crime, a graduate of Marquette University. She's taught language arts and creative writing, worked for a publisher, an airline, an opera company. Like Faulkner's Dilsey, she's seen the best and the worst, the first and the last. Through it all, and to understand it somewhat, she writes.
TOO QUIET IN BROOKLYN, the first in the Fina Fitzgibbons Brooklyn mystery series published December 2013. The second book in the series, MISSING BRANDY, published September 2014, and WHISKEY'S GONE completes a trilogy. The working title of the fourth is DEAD IN BROOKLYN.
Author Susan Russo Anderson weaves a sinister plot through the lives of the innocent and not so innocent in this debut mystery series featuring private investigator Fina Fitzgibbons. What begins as a hunt for a strangler-kidnapper develops into a multi-layered plot that has Fina searching for clues to mysterious deaths and to unexplained events in her own past. No stone is left unturned where this courageous PI is concerned!
The characters in Too Quiet in Brooklyn are so vividly described that I felt as if I could see, touch, hear, and smell them. They held my attention in every scene and drove the action forward at a rapid and steady pace. The description of Brooklyn neighborhoods, the New Jersey boardwalk, and the diverse restaurants that Fina frequented give the story a realistic slant. Add Fina’s handsome police boyfriend, a best friend with smarts, opinionated family members, good guys and bad guys, and you have the potential to expand on a thrilling series.
Too Quiet in Brooklyn offers a gripping multifaceted plot that comes together and wraps everything up by the end of the story. If you’re a fan of contemporary whodunits, you’ll want to add this riveting book to your to-read list.
First I must say Fina Fitzgibbons seems much older than 22. She found her mother dead on their doorstep 5 years ago and now she finds another dead woman in the exact same place. She handles it much better than a woman in her 50’s like me would. She runs a cleaning business and is a private investigator. She lives with her boyfriend, Denny, an NYPD patrol officer, but is hesitant about the relationship but she has no trouble going toe to toe with Detective First Grade Jane Templeton. She has definitely been scarred by things in her past. I will just say she reads more closer to 30 and is a heck of a protag.
All the characters in this story are very well crafted and develop well throughout the story. Ralph is downright creepy and Denny is just plain dreamy. I also like that Jane is a strong woman detective in charge but open to taking him from Fina. I was impressed by the variety of characters and that they were all flawed in some way with battles of their own, big and small. It made them all very interesting and real.
The author is very descriptive in not only characters but the settings. I had a clear picture of Brooklyn areas and Jersey too.
The storyline starts slowly but the tempo increases at a perfect pace until it peaks. It has many layers and connections that play out throughout the entire book. The bad guys are really bad guys with no conscience whatsoever. There are several places when the point of view switches from Fina to Ralph and I would just cringe at his thoughts. The change of POV made the story even more powerful.
The was a great debut for this series and now that I have met Fina I want more. I am happy to see that 2 more books in this series are already available, Missing Brandy and Whiskey’s Gone have been added to my wish list.
In "Too Quiet in Brooklyn" Susan Russo Anderson blends strings of a plot that is filled with action, suspense and mystery. As the story opens a corpse has been discovered near the front door of Private Investigator Fina Fitzgibbon's brownstone in the same place her mother's body was found five years before. To add fuel to the mystery the victim's grandson is missing and Fina vows that she will hunt down not only the strangler but the kidnapper.
The plot progresses slowly at first but quickly heats up, to end with several shocking surprises. The characters are realistic and complex with all their strengths and weaknesses. Fina Fitzgibbons has an intense, determined and prickly personality. Hesitant to trust anyone after the corruption that tainted her mother's reputation at Heights Federal Bank and haunted by her unsolved murder, Fina resists loving her boyfriend Denny McDuffy, a conscientious NYPD patrol officer who's sympathetic, kind and caring to the woman he adores. Like all the characters Detective Jane Templeton's personality evolves throughout the story. Ambitious, career-oriented and blunt, she's also perceptive, realizing and admitting Fina's value as a friend as well as to the case. Cookie, Fina's friend and a fellow snoop, is a stark contrast to the other two women. She's an intellectual with a streak of vanity and a perchance for dating the wrong type of men.
In this story the antagonists are chilling and merciless; like Ralph, a simple man with the hunger of a pedophile and the strength to kill, and Winston Connors, a heartless and corrupt ex-financier who has destroyed multiple lives. The plot weaves together the innocent, the guilty and those that span both sides but are desperate to find deliverance from the darkness that has permeated their lives.
At first I wasn't sure I'd like this novel, but after I finished it, I can say unequivocally it's a good murder-mystery, well-worth reading.
After reading Death of a Serpent, I knew I'd found that rare gift, an author I could depend upon for enjoyable, riveting stories and excellent writing.
While Too Quiet in Brooklyn is, for the most part, different from Death of a Serpent, there are similarities. The lead investigator is a strong, colorful, and believable woman. The crimes are not easily solved and would not be solved without Fina's determination and natural ability. Once again, the author leaves me salivating with her descriptions of local cuisine. Seemingly without effort, she conveys the places, people, and action with a minimum of the best words so that all is seen, heard, tasted, and smelled at once.
The author's own words can best describe why I admire her.
Typical of the author's unusual description: "Willoughby unfolded his big frame and catapulted out of the car…"
When writing Fina's Point of View, the author draws the reader in as if relating the events one on one: "…even though the shrinks told me no, it wasn't my fault, you know how they go on. I didn't know what I'd done or where he was or how to get him back….You'd think with all my experience hunting down skips, I'd be able to find him in a blink, but I've never dared to try."
The author changes Points of View throughout the book, but the shifts are always clear and help to break up the narrative. Like one of those terrific comedians who can easily slide from an impression of Jimmy Stewart into one of James Cagney, the author takes on the persona of each POV character down to the finest detail. Ralph: "Boss didn't like blood. He must remember to tell him there was no blood with the old lady, no blood with Arrow. No blood."
The author skillfully writes both Fina and Detective Jane Templeton as exceptionally strong women while keeping both distinct. She writes their opposites as characters Lorraine, Nanette, and Marie with equal skill.
The plot isn't so much a whodunit as an exploration of why they did it while keeping the reader hooked with the kidnapped child. The story moves at a good clip, slowing just enough to allow us to see the victims, thugs, heroes, and heroines as human beings.
As a reader, I was captivated by this book, finding it difficult to set aside. I used it to reward myself for doing chores or exercise I don't enjoy. As a writer, I reread passages hoping to better understand how it's done.
In “Too Quiet in Brooklyn,” lifelong New York resident Fina Fitzgibbons juggles the demands of running her deceased mother’s cleaning service, working the case of a murder victim dumped nearby, and sorting through her emotions for boyfriend and policeman Denny McDuffy. As she investigates the murder case, Fina discovered an unexpected link to her past, producing ever greater emotional turbulence. Fina seeks to excise the demons of her own mother’s murder while simultaneously probing the circumstances of the latest trauma: a grandmother murdered and her grandson kidnapped by a career criminal and an amoral pedophile.
Given that the protagonist is an early-twenties female—and I’m not—I didn't expect to become as engaged in the story as I did. But Fina’s character is fully three-dimensional, with both good and frustrating qualities that can’t help but endear her to the reader. Author Susan Russo Anderson combines Fina and the rest of her cast of characters with lucid descriptions of people and action and a plot that contains enough twists and turns to satisfy mystery readers everywhere. I particularly appreciated the blending of both humorous and poignant moments throughout the book. For example, when Fina introduces Denny (her boyfriend) and Jane (Denny’s boss) to a victim’s daughter, she states, “Denny and I are lovers, Jane and I are not. Yet during the victim’s funeral, Anderson describes the music as “a bit of hope and grief all rolled into one, the way organs do sometimes.”
If you’re looking for a story with plenty of twists and fun characters, “Too Quiet in Brooklyn Strategist” may be right for you.
Too Quiet in Brooklyn is a very well written mystery by a very talented author. When Fina Fitzgibbons finds the body of an elderly woman on the street near where Fina’s own mother supposedly committed suicide, it starts a cascade of actions that relate the current crime to her mother’s death and some shady financial deals. While Fina has been hired to investigate the murder, her bigger concern is a kidnapped little boy, taken when his grandmother was killed. It's bad news when a child is gone for more than a day or two...
Fina is a recently licensed PI, but while she is dogged in her approach I would not call this a hard-boiled mystery, though some might. The characters are more fully developed than in some PI stories, and there’s a bit of romance. The Brooklyn and New Jersey settings are very realistic.
What Anderson does especially well is build on several lines of action, each connecting with others as the novel progresses. The story is largely from Fina’s point of view, but we are sometimes in the minds of a couple of other characters, largely one of the bad guys. In some books, multiple points of view let the reader know much more than the PI, and the story becomes a matter of letting the PI know what the reader knows so the book can end. That’s generally not the case here.
Good pacing and imperfect people. Too Quiet in Brooklyn is a very good book.
**I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review**
"Too Quiet in Brooklyn" by Susan Russo Anderson is a fun mystery starring quirky PI-on-the-side, Fina Fitzgibbons. Fina stumbles upon a body on the sidewalk, in the same place that Fina's mother's body was found years earlier. Still affected by her mother's apparent suicide, Fina follows the clues and stays just one step ahead of police. The deeper she digs, the more links she finds to her own mother's death, fueling her strong conviction that her mother was also murdered.
The style of writing is light and fun, with characters full of personality. The mystery is also very intriguing, and keeps the reader turning the pages to find out what happens next. Entwined in the mystery is the relationship between Fina and boyfriend, Denny, and their own personal struggles. What struck me the most about the book was the setting. Brooklyn Heights is very well described, and really brings the reader into the setting with the rich detail.
Overall, this is a great mystery and hopefully Fina will be back again!
THe author has potential...interesting characters, a decent plot, fun descriptions of places and neighborhoods...BUT....she seriously needs an editor Too many places where it's clear she changed the wording, but forgot to delete the original words. Also, there were a few inconsistencies in some events. The short chapter where Denny went on his own to his parents was weird, from his point of view, not hers, so it just felt out of place. And she's only 22? She comes across closer to thirty and being in a relationship with Denny at 22 seems unlikely to me. I enjoyed the chapter with Fina taking Denny's mother to New Jersey. The idea percolating in Fina's head at the end doesn't make too much sense, timeline-wise, as the person would have to be older than the other character, and throughout the book, he was identified as younger.
Susan Russo Anderson has written a very interesting story in, Too Quiet in Brooklyn. The story introduces private investigator, Fina Fitzgibbons and the meticulous way she went about solving the mysterious deaths that had taken place in and around Brooklyn; and their possible connection to events in her own past. The story begins with the murder of Charlie's grandmother and his disappearance, and it picked up the pace and moved from one unexplained happening to another. Anderson painted the characters so vividly; they practically jump off the pages at you. The suspense got more intense with every unexplained event, until by the end you are on the edge of your seat. Fans of murder mysteries will find this a great read.
This story set in a Brooklyn neighborhood near the Brooklyn Bridge, took me back to my hometown. I liked the descriptions of the area and the people who live there. The main character, Fina, is a private investigator who is hired by a woman who wants to discover who murdered her mother and kidnapped her 4-year old son, Charlie. The author not only describes the efforts of Fina and her friends but also gives us close-up insights into the character of the murderer. We were able to get a view of both sides as the story unfolds. The last chapters were fast-moving as Fina closes in on the powerful man who had ordered the murder, and desperately races against time to save Charlie. I recommend this well written story.
This book is the first in a series about PI Fina Fitzgibbons who also owns Lucys, a home cleaning business. When someone is murdered in front of her business, Fina goes on a mission to find out who did it. You see her mom was also murdered in the vicinity and it starts to look like they are connected. This is part mystery, part romance (she has a detective boyfriend on the case also) and part dangerous. There is a wild hunt for the murderer whom they also find out has kidnapped the victims grandson.
They story itself turns around a bit because three-quarters way through you are not sure who is mixed in this caper and who is innocent. But Fina cracks the case - and gives us a bit of a surprise ending....
The author crafted several discrete and distinctive personalities to populate her story. My one personal disappointment was the number of questions raised but unanswered by the end of the book. If the resolutions were set forth by the author then perhaps I was too obtuse to suss them out.
I got this book for free which is why I decided to read it. I can now see why it was free. One really annoying aspect was the frequent shift in voice, first person sometimes, third person other times. Didn't flow well and the book dragged on too long
A fairly good read. The main character, Fina, is a bit of a nutcase and though I thought this was the first book in the series there really is very little explanation as to why she is the way she is. It would have helped me to know why she had so many issues.
Easy believable read, interesting plot and characters. Writing style kept me involved and wanting to read on. I'm not what you would call an avid reader so I can only tell you that I would read more of this authors books.
I just couldn't get into this book. Character development was lacking. I think a 5 year old could write a better book. There aren't too many books I don't like, but unfortunately this was one of them.
OK. I am needing to know what happens next so I suppose my rating "it was OK" might be low but ... I am thinking this series has promise and it was, after all, book #1 ... so let's try #2 and see if the promise is realized.
Lead character, Fina, is interesting and I am curious about her, her back story, her development and the fabric of the life she is the center of.
This feels like an early work of an Author who may very well grow on me ... Brooklyn, the old neighborhoods, a character who lived there all her life and had never been to Jersey, cops including a somewhat reluctant detective who values Fina's efforts, oddly flawed 'bad guys' (meaning they had humanity and not just 'stock' characters), the mystery itself multi-layered. Lots of threads opened and suggestions that the plan is clearly a series of some length.
My expectations for growth in the craft of the writing, editing (which felt like there might not be a fully formed partnership yet) and overall flow will need to be apparent before I send others in this direction. I read a lot of series and like the genre so I am a hesitant to give up but not ready to recommend it ... yet.
A lot going on in this book, several plots moving through the action. A little dark for my taste, but well written. I stuck in until the end because each scene began to feed into the next as I read. A 4 year old boy was kidnaped, his grandmother killed. The murderers/kidnappers run throughout. Connections begin to form as more characters are introduced. Fina begins to see connections to her own mother's murder. Can they find the child and trace all the raveled strings from the events? Will all the families finally get their questions answered or will a few still remain for the next book in the series? Easy to follow and it draws you into conflicts making them hard to leave unsolved.
This book reminds me of Columbo and his style of solving crimes. You learn early on who the murderers are and soon after who the boss is. The mystery is more about the why. The characters are so real I can visualize them as well as the areas of New Jersey described. There are so many interesting layers to Fina's personality and her determination to get the full story and history of other persons involved, no matter how small their involvement. She continues her investigations even though the case is already coming to a close. So easy to read I couldn't put it down. So ready to see where Fina leads us from here. This author was a great find!
I almost gave up on this book and then it sucked me in. It’s multigenerational with a solid sense of place. The characters are well drawn with a feather not a blowtorch and the mysteries unpeels layer after layer. You’ll love the world of Brooklyn and New Jersey with all the sounds and smells and tastes and the coming resolution will carry you to the end. Oh, and there is romance too as well as all sorts of love.
A fun quirky New set of characters in an amazing mystery. This one will keep you speculating and wowing the whole way through. Ms Anderson has a great eye for details. Plus she'll keep you guessing and you never know what's gonna happen next. I hope we get to see more of Fina and all of the characters from this book.
Cold case plus current cases, throw in a toddler kidnapping, with potential sexual abuse. Was more concerned about the toddler as there is a special place in Hades for them. Murder is important, but the victims are gone and the four year old hasn't had a chance yet.
My expectations were nil. I like children and was drawn to This book because Charlie had been abducted. I gave the strong review of five stars because of the author's skill in showing the human pain of the characters and in using the voice of Gina as first person narrator. This Southern woman has decided she likes Brooklyn and will follow this author.
It needs some careful editing. Sometimes it’s not clear who is speaking, and there are syntax and grammar problems - not a lot, but enough to be distracting. Characters are likeable and effective. (Also, move the characters and places lists to the front of the book!)
A good read although disturbing content other than murders. No humor at all and therefore something I wouldn't Normally pick but I stuck with it because a story is a story. I almost always read to the end. Strong women in it. I like that.
A well-constructed mystery. Characters had substance and were interesting enough to want to get to know them better in future books in the series. The action kept going and it was definitely a page-turner.
I enjoyed reading Too Quiet In Brooklyn, it had enough suspense and excitement to keep you on your toes. I also enjoyed reading about Brooklyn and life in the area. I could just picture the neighborhoods, even though I have never been there.
The story held my attention all the way thorough. Good characters that you want to know !ore about them and their future. Will not hesitant to read more Fina Fitzgibbons novels.
Reading this book was to understand more of my own life. No matter who we are or where we live, these different characters teach us many things. I love a book that keeps me thinking well after it is finished. Thank you Ms Anderson.