Prized Possessions

Karl Alberg #5

by Laurali R. Wright

As Canadian police detective Staff Sergeant Karl Alberg investigates the disappearance of Charlie O'Brea, young drugstore worker Eddie Addison's obsession with a pretty student leads to a downward spiral of violence.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Canada, Adult, Thriller

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Aka L.R. Wright

Reviews

[Lighthearted · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two plots collide in the 5th Karl Alberg mystery. The book begins with a tense scene between Charlie O'Brea and his wife Emma -- and then jumps ahead, one year later. Emma seems content, Charlie seems . . . haunted. One stormy night, Charlie doesn't return home and Emma is worried. When there's still no word from him the next day, Emma contacts his office, only to discover that he no longer works there. On compassionate leave after the death of his father, Staff Sergeant Karl Alberg agrees to investigate.

Outside of town, a troubled young man loses his temper when he thinks that a pretty college girl has insulted him. He tries to make amends afterwards but, again feels slighted. He wants to teach her a lesson. A devastating series of choices will bring him directly to Emma.

Another excellent story from Wright. The Charlie/Emma storyline slowly reveals its secrets through reflections on the past, mostly from Emma, whose only goal in life was to be the best wife ever. Eddie's storyline is simply horrifying. Karl faces questions about his future and his relationship with Cassandra.

If you like atmospheric, psychological suspense, this is an excellent series to try.

[Debra · Rating 5 out of 5]

After his father’s funeral, Staff Sergeant Karl Alberg is taking a few days off, although he’d rather be busy. So, when a friend in Sechelt (on British Columbia’s Sunshine coast) asks him to help find his neighbor’s missing husband, Alberg agrees. It doesn’t take long before Alberg is fully engaged in a quest to learn where the husband is and why he left. Meanwhile, a young store clerk in Vancouver named Eddie becomes obsessed with a woman he doesn’t know, but would like to. When his clumsy attempts to connect with her turn sour, his resentment escalates into increasingly dangerous moves.

Prized Possessions is an absorbing novel about relationships about to go over the edge. While the violence is downplayed, there’s something about the situations that made me squirm with discomfort. The sense of foreboding was so strong that I was almost reluctant to turn the page at times. Yet, as the tension built I couldn’t turn those pages fast enough, especially once it became clear where the two stories would converge. It’s a terrific book written by a writer who passed away far too soon. L.R. Wright’s work deserves to live on for a long time to come.

[Flo · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finally finding the rest of this excellent series I quickly finished No. 4 and now, Prized Possessions which is No. 5. L. R. Wright juggles 3 story lines beautifully. I am amazed at her writing and sad that she is so little known. There won't be any more since she died in 2001. But these 8 mysteries are simply jewels with such good writing I read some paragraphs over again. In this mystery we have Eddie, a man who is not very smart to say the least, gets involved in a series of events that he pursues losing control more and more every day. There is a married couple, Emma and Charlie, who are not very happy together, but only one person in this marriage is aware of it. And we have Karl Alberg who has now been in a relationship with his girlfriend for a few years and she is beginning to wonder where they are going. By the end, Wright ties up all the threads of these 3 story lines very nicely indeed. Too bad so many people have to get killed on the way.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The blurb of this book told me nothing and so I had no expectations going into it.  It also still sort of told me what happened, so my 'no expectations' were met.  It was interesting to see how the different perspectives came together.  There almost seemed to be more of the other perspectives than there was of Karl's, which is interesting considering he is the main character.

[Bill Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this series, and this is one of the better installments…despite the fact that the characters are inscrutable, it’s a “mystery” with very little mystery, and a “thriller” with no real twists (although there’s plenty of suspense and an ever-mounting sense of dread). I think the writing is especially good for the genre…that is what keeps me hooked anyway. Although each novel in the series is ostensibly a standalone, I think the continuing characters of Karl and Cassandra don’t make any sense if you haven’t followed them from the beginning…and they still remain a bit oblique even by this point!

[Karalee Coleman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this one was experimental for Ms. Wright. Its structure is a collection of short vignettes of many unrelated characters who inexorably move towards a disastrous conjunction. In many ways it reminds me of Carl Hiaasen’s work, though in Mr. Hiaasen’s case the conjunction is not just disastrous but hilarious. While I did like the story, I didn’t like it as much as previous entries in the Murders in a Small Town series. This may be in part because Staff Sergeant Alberg is on compassionate leave through most of the story, rather than acting as a police officer.

[Alline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another peek in to the lives of Karl Alberg, Cassandra, and the townspeople of Sechelt and the Sunshine Coast. I like this series a lot!

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this one. The mystery was interesting and the way the bad guy story was dealt with was interesting. I still like the way she writes and really enjoy the series. On to the next one.

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

These keep getting better and darker. I am loving this series!

[Neil McGee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well read by full cast around Vancouver Island which was enjoyable to read.

[Lois Rooney-Giurin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A faster pace than the last one. Great plot - and the multiple viewpoints, including a cat, work. Descriptions and metaphor are top-notch. I often skip these but not with this author.

[Carolien · Rating 4 out of 5]

L.R. Wright has the ability to put ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, her culprits are seldom hardcore criminals - mostly just the people who you will find in a small town who meet with an accident or a domestic situation that gets out of hand. In this case, we encounter both. Charlie and Emma have been married for 6 years. Emma is clinging to the illusion that they still have a good marriage, while Charlie is aiming to escape the stultifying relationship. In another town a young man has a mortifying encounter with a young woman while delivering a parcel. His efforts to manage the situation soon spirals out of control. Karl Alberg is officially on leave when he starts investigating Charlie's disappearance, but soon these two story lines will collide with tragic consequences. I love this series.

[Dominick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong crime novel, though how the two parallel plots come together is implausible. One plot involves a woman whose husband just disappears one day, the other a rather slow delivery guy who manages to offend a woman to whom he is delivering, a situation that escalates to multiple murder. Wright is very adept at depicting the eccentric to the disturbed mind, which applies especially to Emma (the wife) and Eddie (delivery guy), but to her characters generally, into whose minds she frequently steps. The plot's basically a slow burn with suspense built further by the withholding of some key information about Emma and her husband for a good chunk of the novel. Crime for Wright fairly clearly functions as a metaphor for social/psychological ailments. A good read for the fan of the psychological rather than the action-oriented crime novel.

[Diane Schultz · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like a vignette

Less a murder mystery and more vignettes of people in a small town, although half of this book is taking place in Vancouver and then moves to a small town for the bigger scene/ finale. Maybe it's a statement about small towns not having crimes. Even the other mystery centered around a man who worked in Vancouver. So, while the author has an interesting writing style, this isn't really much of a mystery book with a mystery to solve, although there is a missing man. And the police are only tangential. Might be a good episode on the show, but not so good for a book.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not a pleasant read and is basically a “what if” story that asks “what if aman doesn’t get what he wants from a woman “? what if he’s smart ? what if he’s slow? what if she’s got her head in the sand ? what if he’s never sometimes may not telling the truth ? what if she can’t tell ? what if he does tell the truth and it’s not what she wants to hear ? What if you put all that in a blender and leave the lid adjar when you press “on”?

Then you’d have something like this on your hands and it wouldn’t be pretty most of the time - even if she wanted it to be .

[Libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not sure that I can put into words my feelings about these books. There is the comfort of recurring characters, Karl and Cassandra and others. There are always quirky story lines. This time, there is Charlie, the disappearing husband, and Emma, his wife, and the big lumbering red head that is definitely “on the spectrum”. The reader knows that somehow their oaths will cross. When they meet there is a crisis. Unfortunately, the big redhead screws up lots of stuff and kills people.

[☺Trish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe I would have liked this one more if Eddie was portrayed as an Incel instead of simply being a misunderstood, misguided, struggling man/child "on the spectrum" dealing with his feelings of being disrespected by lashing out - first with words, then with weapons. Murders don't happen "by accident", though, and three young women (almost four) paid the price for one's stuck up, nasty mean girl behavior.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found Prized Possessions, the 5th book in the Alberg & Cassandra series by L.R.Wright to be one of the best of the series. Like many of her books, the author presents two plots and gives you, the reader just enough about each character to keep you confused or wondering if you missed something. You did not. And that is what makes this series so unputdownable!

[Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this to be a rather unpleasant read and was happy to finish it. First we meet a strange couple who are Sid's neighbours, rather unsuited for each other. When he doesn't come home from work one day, Karl volunteers to look for him. Then we have a rather stupid man who doesn't know how to talk to people, so instead he kills them. Ugly story.

[Deane · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual a good story....Alberg is shocked over his father's death....he needs to make up his mind about a future with Cassandra, a man disappears after his 6th anniversary and murders are committed by a simpleminded stock boy. Ending is sad....

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delusions DeJour

So much clearer than the previous book. Watching two paths slowly veering toward each other inexorably like a car crash. One was able to wake up from their delusion.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve really enjoyed this series but this book was my least favorite - it got better in the last 1/3 but I didn’t like Emma or Eddie at all - It was disturbing to realize just how out of control Eddie was and Emma was just such a cold fish.

[Deborah Gaspar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Revenge for no reason

Lesson in this book is that being nice to people who are a bit weird might save your life. Second lesson is that there are worse things than divorce. Well written. Interesting characters.

[Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn’t like the main story.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

An example of great writing, but very weak story-telling. Two plots, one quite vague, suddenly tossed together to bring the book to a close.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

So good! You have to read it straight through as there is no stopping spot. As unrelenting as a train crash. Best of series so far.

[Billie Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful read!

When I first started to read this book I wondered where it was going. Was pleasantly surprised! So pick it up you won’t be disappointed. Believe me!

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

So very sad, even the happy endings

But it was a complete story that Wright actually finished. Left me feeling melancholy. On to the next one ...

[Sharon Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great series

Alberg and Cassandra have a lot going on. There are two stories going on. Great characters old and new. Storyline is good and well written.

[Phyllis · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5