Silent Winter Solstice

by Bonnie Oldre

Library assistant, Beth Williams is rushing to work through the eerily quiet city park, on the evening of the winter solstice, 1968, when a body rolls down a hill and lands near her feet. The body disappears before the police arrive, and they don’t believe a crime has been committed. So, Beth and her best friend, Evie Hanson, both mystery novel buffs, decide to investigate.

Seeking a fresh start, 30-year-old Beth has returned to her hometown, Davison City, located on the northwest Minnesota prairie, after ending a decade-long relationship that was going nowhere. Now she is successfully juggling a job and graduate school. While most of the world is transfixed by the televised images of the first manned flight to the moon, Beth’s main concern is getting to work on time.

Her peaceful life is upended when she discovers the body and glimpses a shadowy figure at the top of the hill. The police dismiss the whole thing as just a drunk who fell, was stunned, and then wandered off after regaining consciousness. But, Beth is certain that a murder was committed. The menace grows when Beth realizes she is being followed around town. Now, Beth and Evie must solve the case, before it is too late.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Historical Fiction

292 pages, Paperback

Published December 13, 2021

Reviews

[Mayda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The year is 1968. Beth is an assistant librarian and attending grad school. She is back in her small hometown in Minnesota after ending a long relationship that was going nowhere. Her friend, Evie, is also taking college courses. Beth is rushing to get to work, walking through a deserted park on the night of the winter solstice, when what appears to be a dead body rolls down a hill and lands at Beth’s feet. Beth runs to the library to call police, but when the cops get to the scene, there is no body. The cops think it was just a drunk who regained consciousness and wandered away. But Beth knows better. Now Beth and her friend are the ones to search for what happened, since the cops aren’t really interested. The book is a quick read and the mystery is an interesting one. The author gives readers enough suspects and clues along the way so we can enjoy solving the crime along with Beth. The setting and the time period are good ones. No cell phones and no social media. Tracking down clues requires actual footwork. The protagonists are likable, but seem more like high school kids than the 30-year-olds that they are. Hopefully, there will some growth and character development in future books. It’s a good start for a series, and I’m looking forward to seeing more from this author.

[Cynthia Wasco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heard great things about this debut book and wanted to check it out. It was a slow start and I almost abandoned it but then the mystery took a twist!

This mystery takes place in the late 1960s so I loved the juxtaposition of the alternative culture and traditional lifestyle in the story.

The amateur sleuth, Beth, found the victim but with no additional connection, the motivation to solve the mystery was weak. Also, it seemed she just took over and questioned suspects without anyone raising much of an eyebrow. Also there is a little push back from a beat cop, not much from the local detectives to keep her out of the investigation.

The mystery is a good one with twists and turns but for me, I needed more connection and reason for 20-somethings to start meddling into crimes.

[Beth Withers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a mystery with several twists and turns with 2 busy bodies who get involved with the investigation when the police don't take the matter seriously. Since the setting of the book is the 1960s, it's more believable that Beth and Evie could nose around like they do. I am a big fan of the Father Brown mysteries, and this book reminds me a lot of those. The characters are likable, and the writing is refreshingly free of what is so often very dark in murder mysteries.

[Cindy Neanen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very quick read. The characters of Beth and Evie, friends from an early age, were initially very simplistic, but left open areas for deeper development perhaps in novels to come. The storyline flowed easily from beginning to the murder's solution. College student, working-girl sleuths keen on solving the mystery. And that they did.

[Johan D'Haenen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ik wou een boek lezen dat gelinkt was aan de winterzonnewende... zodoende.
Laat ik zeggen dat het een leuk boekje was, maar daarmee is zowat alles gezegd. Geen spanning, geen uitgewerkt verband met de winterzonnewende of met de periode daarrond... niets van dat alles. Stilletjes, ja, heel stilletjes, dat was het wel.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this debut novel, especially the details of its 1968 setting -- Woolworth's counter, the classic cars, and characters using rotary phones instead of cell phones. The characters were well developed and the plot moved along well. I look forward to seeing more titles by this author.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nope not great - wouldn’t bother

[Ferne (Enthusiastic Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an atmospheric novel to begin reading on New Year's Eve. Beth Williams is walking to work as her car is at her brother's auto repair shop awaiting service. It's cold and windy with snow on the ground. She slipped and was already worried she would be late to work at the public library. But something's not right, and in investigating, she discovers the dead body of a young woman. It's 1968, so Beth is now running to the library to call the police in this time before everyone carries cell phones. When police checked the scene, there was no dead body in the area. No body, no crime, or so the police believe. Beth decides to investigate and enlists her friend Evie's help.

I enjoyed Beth's character as a library assistant at a public library, returning to school for her Master's in Library Science and enjoying her new apartment with her new cat Chestnut. It was also wonderful to think of Beth's actions inspiring her friend Evie to return to school for her BFA degree to formally pursue her interest in art.

Characterization and dialogue were thoughtful and well-written, and mystery clues held my attention with unexpected twists and turns. My only disappointment was in Chapter 17, when Beth's actions didn't feel realistic to me, even though it was evident that she enjoyed food. Beth begins by sharing Evie's fries at the Big Boy restaurant, then enjoys a ham sandwich and a piece of pie at her mother's. Brother Gary then takes Beth to pick up her car at his garage, and on arrival at home, Beth puts a TV dinner in the oven. Seriously?

Casting that single disappointment aside, I'm curious to read Beth and Evie's future adventures as this was the author's debut novel and designated as the opening of a mystery series.