Bone White

Mundy's Landing #3

by Wendy Corsi Staub

New York Times  Bestselling Author Wendy Corsi Staub revisits Mundy’s Landing—a small town with a blood-soaked past. The town of Mundy’s Landing was founded on a horrifying secret, but stark white bones of the dead never lie… “We shall never tell.” Spurred by the cryptic phrase in a centuries-old letter, Emerson Mundy travels to her ancestral hometown to trace her past. In Mundy’s Landing, she connects with long lost relatives—and a closet full of skeletons going back centuries. In the year since former NYPD Detective Sullivan Leary solved the historic Sleeping Beauty Murders, she—like the village itself—has made a fresh start. But someone has unearthed blood-drenched secrets in a disembodied skull, and is hacking away at the Mundy family tree, branch by branch…

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Audiobook, Contemporary, Mystery Thriller

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 28, 2017

About the author

New York Times bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than ninety novels, best known for the single title psychological suspense novels she writes under her own name. Those books and the women’s fiction written under the pseudonym Wendy Markham have also appeared on the USA Today, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookscan bestseller lists.

Her current standalone suspense novel, THE OTHER FAMILY, is about a picture-perfect family that that moves into a picture-perfect house. But not everything is as it seems, and the page-turner concludes “with a wallop of a twist,” according to #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben.

Her critically acclaimed Lily Dale traditional mystery series centers around a widowed single mom—and skeptic—who moves to a town populated by spiritualists who talk to the dead. Titles include NINE LIVES; SOMETHING BURIED, SOMETHING BLUE; DEAD OF WINTER; and PROSE AND CONS, with a fifth book under contract.

Wendy has written five suspense trilogies for HarperCollins/William Morrow. The most recent, The Foundlings (LITTLE GIRL LOST, DEAD SILENCE, and THE BUTCHER’S DAUGHTER), spans fifty years in the life of a woman left as a newborn in a Harlem church, now an investigative genealogist helping others uncover their biological roots while still searching for her own.

Written as Wendy Markham, Wendy’s novel HELLO, IT’S ME was a recent Hallmark television movie starring Kellie Martin. Her short story “Cat Got Your Tongue” appeared in R.L. Stine’s MWA middle grade anthology SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN and her short story “The Elephant in the Room” is included in the Anthony Award-nominated inaugural anthology SHATTERING GLASS.

A three-time finalist for the Simon and Schuster Mary Higgins Clark Award, she’s won an RWA Rita Award, an RT Award for Career Achievement in Suspense, the 2007 RWA-NYC Golden Apple Award for Lifetime Achievement, and five WLA Washington Irving Prizes for Fiction.

She previously published a dozen adult suspense novels with Kensington Books and the critically-acclaimed young adult paranormal series “Lily Dale” (Walker/Bloomsbury). Earlier in her career, she published a broad range of genres under her own name and pseudonyms, and was a co-author/ghostwriter for several celebrities.

Raised in Dunkirk, NY, Wendy graduated from SUNY Fredonia and launched a publishing career in New York City. She was Associate Editor at Silhouette Books before selling her first novel in 1992. Married with two sons, she lives in the NYC suburbs. An active supporter of the American Cancer Society, she was a featured speaker at Northern Westchester’s 2015 Relay for Life and 2012 National Spokesperson for the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. She has fostered for various animal rescue organizations.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bone White by Wendy Corsi Staub is a 2017 William Morrow publication.


This is the third and final installment in the ‘Mundy’ series.

I’ve been following along with this series from the beginning and so far, it’s been a very interesting, albeit slightly quirky series, which is set in Mundy’s Landing.

Now that the “Sleeping Beauty’ murder case has been solved, and Sullivan Leary has decided to leave the big city and settle in Mundy’s Landing, things have been rather quiet. But, after Emerson Mundy’s father died, and she discovers an old letter bearing the cryptic sentence, “I’ll never tell”, she decides to travel to Mundy’s Landing to search out her past.

However, Emerson’s arrival seems to have unleashed a chain reaction of sorts. Sullivan’s old partner, Barnes, shows up needing a place to lay low, and a skull has been discovered, and turned over to forensics - so once again explosive and long buried secrets come back to haunt this seemingly quaint small town.

I really, really wanted to like this book, since I was already invested in the story, and wanted to see how everything wrapped up.

But, I confess, I really struggled with this one for a while. The pacing was painfully slow, and the suspense level seemed to stall out. I was only mildly curious about Emerson’s fiancé, and I was moderately interested in Ora and what the lab would discover about the skull, the truly perplexing part of the story, for a while there, was what might be going on with Barnes.

But….

I’m glad I stuck it out, because the twist, that I assure you, you will never in a million years, see coming is worth the wait.

Once I finished the book and had a little time to think about all the various threads and how the trilogy came to a close- or at least I’m presuming this is the final chapter, I began to see the genius in the way characters from previous installments popped in and the history plays such an important role. I think maybe I had underestimated this one at first, perhaps overlooking some of the finer points and nuances, which only came to me once I had finished the entire book.

So, now that I’ve thought about it a while, this installment ended the trilogy in the best possible way. I guess it kind of grew on me.

I think this series is well worth the time for any mystery lover. It’s unique, has a perfect setting, and is very cleverly plotted, adding in rich historical backgrounds, that relates to the crimes currently under investigation, which is a very nice touch and adds another layer of mystery and substance to the story.

I recommend reading the series in order for the best enjoyment-

4 stars

[Laura Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

It starts with a note, “We Shall Never Tell.” Emerson, a Mundy family descendant, travels to Mundy’s Landing to discover what terrible secret from the families past has come back to haunt her and her relatives.

It’s been a year since the Sleeping Beauty murders were solved and Sully has changed places, now working as a detective on Mundy’s Landing’s police force. She’s looking forward to quieter times, but it isn’t long before she’s smack dab in the middle of another murder investigation. Someone’s determined to killed the Mundy family, one by one.

On top of that, Sully’s old partner, Stockton Barnes, shows up on her doorstep looking for a place to crash. He’s evasive about why he’s there and Sully can tell he’s in trouble.

And something weird is happening with Ora Abrams, curator of the Mundy’s Landing Historical Society. It gave me some eerie vibes.

As much as I enjoyed the other books in the series, this one is my favorite. From the 1600’s to the present, and from the West coast to the East, it’s a convoluted series of events and crimes. There are some new characters to contend with along with some favorites. The author fleshes them out and tangles their lives together. It’s up to you to sort out who did what, and she doesn’t make it easy.

Numerous plots abound in this mystery and it’s a race to the finish line, with no easy answers and plenty of intrigue. And you won’t see the end coming. I couldn’t read this fast enough and wished it were longer.

I received a complimentary copy. My review is voluntarily given.

[Kathleen Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bone White
"In Mundy’s Landing, bygone bloodshed has become a big business. During the rigorous winter of 1666, all but five colonists in the small Hudson Valley settlement died of starvation. Accused of unimaginable crimes, James and Elizabeth Mundy and their three children survived, but the couple were later accused of murder and executed."


 


Bone White is the third book in the Mundy's Landing Series and features many of the same characters including NYPD Detective Sullivan Leary, who solved the Sleeping Beauty Murders. All she wants is to be able to settle into this quaint community and leave behind the big city. Quiet is not what she gets when the elderly lady, Ora Abrams, that runs the town's museum decides that a skull in the museum will have answers as to who the skull belongs to, it is believed that it is the skull of a Mundy from 1666.


 


Emerson Mundy shows up from California to learn more about her descendants, her father killed himself and a note found by his body has Emerson wanting to find out more. Not long after she arrives in Mundy's Landing, a man is found hanging from a tree outside an inn, also with a note similiar to the one from Emerson's father. 


 


Out of all of the characters, I liked Ora as she is the one with all the knowledge and stories about the original founders of Mundy's Landing. The story actually has two different stories at the same time. The one from 1666 survivors from the Mundy family and the current one in 2017. 


 


I have been reading Wendy Corsi Staub's works for many years and it is always a treat. A taut murder mystery with enough twists to keep the reader interested. The writing is well done and enjoyable.

 
 

[Susan Snodgrass · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good mystery and thriller. Wendy Corsi Staub delivers on all counts. This is book three in the Mundy's Landing series. Emerson Mundy's father has died and she comes to Mundy's Landing, her ancestral hometown to trace her past. She connects with long lost relatives and a closet full of skeletons going back centuries.

Former NYPD detective Sullivan Leary has moved to Mundy's Landing and is now a detective with the local police force. Sully solved the historic Sleeping Beauty murders the previous year and has made a fresh start. Someone, however, has unearthed blood-drenched secrets in a disembodied skull and is hacking away at the Mundy family tree, branch by branch.

The day after Emerson arrives in town a murder happens. Sully has many ideas, some good, some not, but she is determined to solve this case. Before more murders happen.

Corsi Staub builds suspense bit by bit until you're racing along, wondering who the culprit is! And I never would have thought that it was who it was, either. Totally wrong in my guesses. This one is a good one.

[Beth Lechman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was the best of the 3. Sullivan Leary leaves the NYPD and moves to Mundy's Landing. While living there a young woman comes to town to find her heritage. When Emerson's fiancé is found dead they fear for Emerson's life as well. Sully is working for the police dept. in Mundy's Landing and her old partner comes to town as well. He won't tell Sully why and she is torn between her job and him.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, definitely going to have to read more by this author.

[Vali Benson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting premise. Both extremely unique and entertaining. Recommended for any fan of historical fiction.

[Iyanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the storyline. The book was interesting from the first intro,but as you continue to read the book got bland,boring and soo confusing that I have to read some of chapters twice.I understand the past and future in the story,but
Emerson Mundy decline is unanswered,there should have been more to her decline, then her father's death bed confession.

[Joyce · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book in a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
Police detective Sullivan "Sully" Leary has left her job and partner (and sometime lover) Stockton Barnes in New York, and taken a job with the police department in small town Mundy's Landing. Mundy's Landing is infamous due to the harsh winter of 1666 when all but 5 colonists died of starvation. Sully is slowly adjusting to life in a small town when Emerson Mundy comes to town in search of her roots. A suspected homicide occurs and Emerson is connected. It may be related to a murder that occurred in 1666, and Emerson may have new information about it. Many twists and turns ensue.
The plot was very interesting, but I found the ending unsatisfying and too abrupt.
There is a subplot involving Barnes, but I suspect that it will play out in the next book in the series. I found the scenes with Barnes to be annoying and distracting from the plot.
The writing style was a bit awkward to read. It took me a little while to realize why I kept stumbling over the sentences. Most books are written in past tense, but this was written in present tense.
This was #3 in the Mundy's Landing series. I have not read the previous books. This book had many characters, and I had a difficult time keeping them and all of their backstories straight. I wondered if I had read the previous book, would it have been easier to keep the characters straight.

[Hazel Rainfall · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel was well written and quite creepy. The plot is not overly obvious, which is refreshing.

I do wish that the main characters were not so stereotyped within their roles/careers. I did start to get bored after the fist 100 pages or so.I did not enjoy how rapidly new characters were introduced in the novel. It seemed as though the reader was bombarded with 30 characters within the first 20 pages (yes I am averaging). It does not help that a major part of this plot involves a family genealogy that is good if you can remember, though the author does reiterate it a lot.
I also know I may be a minority here but I did not like how the novel ended. I really hoped that someone would have been able to break the 'curse' so to speak.

I would not recommend this book to anyone simply because it wasn't riveting enough to warrant passing along.

[Marianne Stehr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes forever to get started. It really shouldn't as the 3rd and final book in a series, but it does. I think the only reason I didn't give up is because it is the 3rd and final book. I had invested two books already! However I am glad for other reasons that I did not give up. It really is a good book, it just has an 150+ page intro. It gets going well after the 150 page mark and really is filled with thrills and suspense. Those thrills really don't end until the final page and to be honest there is easily a 4th book here as it ends with a lot of questions. It may not be a Mundy's Landing 4th book but ta 4th book with Barnes and Sully.

[Rhea · Rating 5 out of 5]

The entire Mundy's Landing series is engrossing and suspenseful. The first, Blood Red, was thrilling and a definite page-turner. The second, Blue Moon, was emotional and scary. The third (and I hope not last), Bone White, continues in that vein with gripping suspense and a full history of Mundy's Landing that is filled with tragedy. I almost shouldn't want a 4th book because the people of this fictional town have suffered so much but I must have more. More Mundy's Landing and more Sully and Barnes. Don't miss this series.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up accidently thinking it was a different book with the same title. I had no idea it was the third book in a series until I started reading it. I don't know if that was the reason I was so confused or if it was because of all of the POV changes. There was Emerson, Roy, Sully, Savannah, the hangman, I don't know, maybe even the kid next door. So many times I'd think, hey, I thought that happened to someone else. Who's point of view am I reading anyway?

This was billed as a murder mystery, but the first on-screen body doesn't even show up until page 212.

The ending did keep me reading. I couldn't put it down.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this finale of the Mundy's Landing trilogy! Ms. Staub never disappoints. She hooks you from the first paragraph and launches all kinds of twists and turns until the ending. The quote on her books is "if you like Mary Higgins Clark you'll love Wendy Corsi Staub." Well I think Ms. Staub is like Mary Higgins Clark on steroids! Just keep writing them and I'll truly enjoy reading them. Great job!

[Margaret Behling · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the final book of the Mundy's Landing series, the lineage lines of the Mundy family plays a significant role, as well as a rare genetic trait called heterochromia, a centuries-old skull, and an unsolved "hangman" puzzle. While I appreciated the connections, history, and symbolism once again, the lineage lines and names were a bit confusing and hard to keep track of. Not quite as nail-biting as the other two books, but still worth reading to finish the series.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super disappointed in this book. I liked the previous books in the series but I found this one confusing and anticlimactic. No crimes happened into at least halfway through the book, which left the end feeling rushed and a little to unpredictable. There were simply two many characters, which the present ones and the ones in the past. So many characters that none of them felt very developed other then the characters we met in the previous books in the series.

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy the Sully character in this series. Were she not in it, I'm afraid I probably would not have read all three novels. This one is better than the second installment, but not as good as the first. I did like that it focused more on characters that were in the first novel while throwing in a couple new characters as well. It's a solid story, if not a bit too depressing. I actually hated the way it ended though.

[Shannon Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid thriller with fascinating historical details woven in. Some character motivations and details needed more fleshing out (why did this person do this or act this way?), but I enjoyed it all the same. Mundy's Landing is an interesting place. I started out of order, so haven't read books 1 and 2 yet.

[Shelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is always disappointing to me when an elderly character starts to suffer from memory loss or dementia, especially when that character has had a recurring role in a series. I read to escape from reality, and a character suffering through dementia always makes me recall the worst thing I have had to deal with in my life.

[Darlene Kenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of characters made it a little difficult to keep things clear. Consistency issue, one character was doing something and then was given a different character's name. Had to read that section a couple of times because it confused me and I thought I missed something. This could have just been a one off based on the printing.

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was not a true trilogy - the location was the same and some of the characters were in all 3 books, but each one could truly stand alone. The ending was somewhat confusing and completely unsatisfactory. It left you wondering if there was going to be another follow on book, but I can find no evidence of one.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is the third in a series. Entirely too much time is devoted to the mysteries, characters and events in the first two books. It ends with a teaser for the next book. The references to earlier family history are the best part of the book; the contemporary villain is not very believable.

[Sheri Jesse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Different..I found this book to be very strange and had to force myself to finish it. It jumped back and forth between centuries (via letters thrown in periodically) and I couldn't really figure out why. I was totally blown away by "who done it" though; I wouldn't have guessed in a million years.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This third and final book in the trilogy did not disappoint! I liked the fact there was less Mundy history in it than the previous books and the ending is what I've been waiting for since the first book!!!

[StephieFrost · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this audiobook from the library app , Overdrive. I give you my willing review, an honest opinion. The plot was extremely interesting, and exiting. I did not see the end coming, it took me by suprise. I really recommend this book, and the two that come before it.

[Mary Longo]

Gruesome, horrific, great read. This is book 3 in a series but can be read and enjoyed without having read the other two books first. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy family secrets, historical puzzles, and modern detectives.

[Carole Runnett · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first one was good, the second one was bad, this one was worse.

I really had a hard time plowing through Bone White. This series was very disappointing. It should have stopped with Blood Red.

[James Cooper · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book Two was much better!

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story, though not my usual type. Obviously part of a series; I didn't realize that when I started. But it works as a stand-alone as well.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

please see my review on MyShelf.com