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The Rev. Clare Fergusson & Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries #1
In the Bleak Midwinter
It's a cold, snowy December in the upstate New York town of Millers Kill, and newly ordained Clare Fergusson is on thin ice as the first female priest of its small Episcopal church. The ancient regime running the parish covertly demands that she prove herself as a leader. However, her blunt manner, honed by years as an army pilot, is meeting with a chilly reception from some members of her congregation and Chief of Police Russ Van Alystyne, in particular, doesn't know what to make of her, or how to address "a lady priest" for that matter.
The last thing she needs is trouble, but that is exactly what she finds. When a newborn baby is abandoned on the church stairs and a young mother is brutally murdered, Clare has to pick her way through the secrets and silence that shadow that town like the ever-present Adirondack mountains. As the days dwindle down and the attraction between the avowed priest and the married police chief grows, Clare will need all her faith, tenacity, and courage to stand fast against a killer's icy heart.
In the Bleak Midwinter is one of the most outstanding Malice Domestic winners the contest has seen. The compelling atmosphere-the kind of very cold and snowy winter that is typical of upstate New York-will make you reach for another sweater. The characters are fully and believably drawn and you will feel like they are your old friends and find yourself rooting for them every step of the way.
The last thing she needs is trouble, but that is exactly what she finds. When a newborn baby is abandoned on the church stairs and a young mother is brutally murdered, Clare has to pick her way through the secrets and silence that shadow that town like the ever-present Adirondack mountains. As the days dwindle down and the attraction between the avowed priest and the married police chief grows, Clare will need all her faith, tenacity, and courage to stand fast against a killer's icy heart.
In the Bleak Midwinter is one of the most outstanding Malice Domestic winners the contest has seen. The compelling atmosphere-the kind of very cold and snowy winter that is typical of upstate New York-will make you reach for another sweater. The characters are fully and believably drawn and you will feel like they are your old friends and find yourself rooting for them every step of the way.
384 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 4, 2002
1316 people are currently reading
17112 people want to read
About the author
Julia Spencer-Fleming
27 books1,891 followersWednesday, September 7
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,890 reviews
May 4, 2011
The mystery is the only reason I finished the book. I did not like Clare, I did not like Russ, I did not like the narrator. That pretty much sums it up. Knowing that many people whose opinions I respect adore this series and being aware of its awards, I have to just scratch my head and say "but not for me."
As other less than favorable reviews have noted, the premise is fatally flawed. The author tells me that Clare is a smart, competent war veteran while showing me a wacky meddler with a dangerously low level of impulse control. She blurts out what she should keep in confidence and hares off into peril...repeatedly. And she's smug and self-righteous.
Russ is at best a barely competent police chief. He allows Clare to take over his murder investigation. Why? I dunno.
I'm puzzled as to why so many romance readers embrace Clare and Russ. He is married to a woman who is no more than an annoying stick figure and who remains conveniently out of town. Her unworthiness is explained as an overindulgence in window treatments and that she wants to start her own business. Oh, the horror. Clare careens from one TSTL moment to another, always unprepared and laughably underdressed for the bleak midwinter weather.
Both Clare and Russ are old enough and experienced enough to grasp the fact that they're playing with fire, yet they're blindsided and outraged when the inevitable small town gossip starts. Hello?
Cap off all this with a narrator whose Virginia drawl is a mile off base and who reads Russ in weird Daffy Duck voice, and I'm done.
As other less than favorable reviews have noted, the premise is fatally flawed. The author tells me that Clare is a smart, competent war veteran while showing me a wacky meddler with a dangerously low level of impulse control. She blurts out what she should keep in confidence and hares off into peril...repeatedly. And she's smug and self-righteous.
Russ is at best a barely competent police chief. He allows Clare to take over his murder investigation. Why? I dunno.
I'm puzzled as to why so many romance readers embrace Clare and Russ. He is married to a woman who is no more than an annoying stick figure and who remains conveniently out of town. Her unworthiness is explained as an overindulgence in window treatments and that she wants to start her own business. Oh, the horror. Clare careens from one TSTL moment to another, always unprepared and laughably underdressed for the bleak midwinter weather.
Both Clare and Russ are old enough and experienced enough to grasp the fact that they're playing with fire, yet they're blindsided and outraged when the inevitable small town gossip starts. Hello?
Cap off all this with a narrator whose Virginia drawl is a mile off base and who reads Russ in weird Daffy Duck voice, and I'm done.
July 21, 2011
Clever Murder Mystery or Cheesy Romance Novel? You Decide.
Because it is so hot right now I got this bright idea to cool things off by reading a book that had a very chilly setting. I'd read good things about Julia Spencer-Fleming's In The Bleak Midwinter and, since I had a copy handy, I decided to give it a read.
As a murder mystery it is pretty good, clever, well-paced – I didn't figure it out prematurely. The setting, in the Adirondacks in winter, was excellent, the writing was good, the plot moved along. I very, very much liked the charcter of Russ Van Alstyne, the local sheriff. He was charming and smart and had a nice balance of brains and bluff. There were some interesting, sympathetic minor characters.... and then there was Clare Fergusson. Excuse me The Reverend Clare Fergusson, the town's new Anglican priest. Former military helicopter pilot, gourmet cook, wise-cracking smart-mouth who wears cool clothes (when not in her clericals), listens to cool music, drives a very, very cool car, and is a tough don't-mess-with-me cookie.
In my frequent rants about annoying heroines in romance – and other – novels, I have often complained about the three things that can cause me to heave the book at a wall:
1. the scene where the hero just happens to see the heroine dancing (for sheer joy) without her knowledge and decides she is just too adorable.
2. the scene where the hero says or does something relatively innocuous and the heroine takes umbrage and stomps off in high dudgeon like a spoiled brat.
3. the scene where the heroine does something ridiculously impulsive that no woman in her right mind would do thus putting herself in peril so that the hero has to rescue her and make everything all right (and notice how cute and vulnerable she is in the process.)
Sad to say, Reverend Clare, the Episcopal priest, does all three. One I could have handled but all three???
One night good old Russ (who is a married man, by the way) stops by the rectory and, through the kitchen door, just happens to witness the Rev. Clare, in a cut-off sweatshirt, dancing while she whips up a gourmet meal – which she subsequently feeds him. A few scenes later the Rev. Clare gets her patrician nose out of joint because she thinks Russ was being rude and she stomps out into the snowy night in her adorable designer suede boots and leather bomber jacket and stomps all the way back to the rectory, refusing Russ's offer for a ride when he followers her. And finally, after a torturous ride back from Albany, worrying all the way about her adorable little sports car in the on-coming blizzard, the Rev. Clare finds a mysterious message for her to meet someone at a cabin deep in the woods (in an area she has never been to) and, instantly, jumps into said adorable sports car and zooms off to the rescue. Luckily, good oldDudley Dooright Russ finds out in time and comes to the rescue – which gives him the opportunity to get her out of her flimsy, ice-caked clothes. Sigh.
Look, this was a good story and there were some good characters in it and, for the most part, I liked it. I will even go so far as to say that if Clare had been a social worker or a new cop or a teacher or anything else, I might have liked her a little better. But a priest??? Yes, I know priests are people, too – heaven knows I just wrote a book about an all-too-human priest. What really bothered me about it was that, other than going to parish meetings, saying a few prayers here and there, and mentions of services she was officiating at, this priest had not the faintest evidence of any level of spirituality. Consequently, every mention of her “priesthood” might as well have had blinking letters that read “gimmick, gimmick, gimmick.”
Obviously people like these books as there are more in the series. Chances are I might even read another one myself but when are genre writers going to stop concocting these formula-driven, ridiculous, insult-to-womanhood characters?
As a mystery, I give this book a 4. As a romance, I give it a 2. So I'm splitting the difference with a 3 – because I like Russ. But I think he's headed down a dangerous slope and I don't think the local priest is going to help him avoid any more near-occasions-of-sin.
Because it is so hot right now I got this bright idea to cool things off by reading a book that had a very chilly setting. I'd read good things about Julia Spencer-Fleming's In The Bleak Midwinter and, since I had a copy handy, I decided to give it a read.
As a murder mystery it is pretty good, clever, well-paced – I didn't figure it out prematurely. The setting, in the Adirondacks in winter, was excellent, the writing was good, the plot moved along. I very, very much liked the charcter of Russ Van Alstyne, the local sheriff. He was charming and smart and had a nice balance of brains and bluff. There were some interesting, sympathetic minor characters.... and then there was Clare Fergusson. Excuse me The Reverend Clare Fergusson, the town's new Anglican priest. Former military helicopter pilot, gourmet cook, wise-cracking smart-mouth who wears cool clothes (when not in her clericals), listens to cool music, drives a very, very cool car, and is a tough don't-mess-with-me cookie.
In my frequent rants about annoying heroines in romance – and other – novels, I have often complained about the three things that can cause me to heave the book at a wall:
1. the scene where the hero just happens to see the heroine dancing (for sheer joy) without her knowledge and decides she is just too adorable.
2. the scene where the hero says or does something relatively innocuous and the heroine takes umbrage and stomps off in high dudgeon like a spoiled brat.
3. the scene where the heroine does something ridiculously impulsive that no woman in her right mind would do thus putting herself in peril so that the hero has to rescue her and make everything all right (and notice how cute and vulnerable she is in the process.)
Sad to say, Reverend Clare, the Episcopal priest, does all three. One I could have handled but all three???
One night good old Russ (who is a married man, by the way) stops by the rectory and, through the kitchen door, just happens to witness the Rev. Clare, in a cut-off sweatshirt, dancing while she whips up a gourmet meal – which she subsequently feeds him. A few scenes later the Rev. Clare gets her patrician nose out of joint because she thinks Russ was being rude and she stomps out into the snowy night in her adorable designer suede boots and leather bomber jacket and stomps all the way back to the rectory, refusing Russ's offer for a ride when he followers her. And finally, after a torturous ride back from Albany, worrying all the way about her adorable little sports car in the on-coming blizzard, the Rev. Clare finds a mysterious message for her to meet someone at a cabin deep in the woods (in an area she has never been to) and, instantly, jumps into said adorable sports car and zooms off to the rescue. Luckily, good old
Look, this was a good story and there were some good characters in it and, for the most part, I liked it. I will even go so far as to say that if Clare had been a social worker or a new cop or a teacher or anything else, I might have liked her a little better. But a priest??? Yes, I know priests are people, too – heaven knows I just wrote a book about an all-too-human priest. What really bothered me about it was that, other than going to parish meetings, saying a few prayers here and there, and mentions of services she was officiating at, this priest had not the faintest evidence of any level of spirituality. Consequently, every mention of her “priesthood” might as well have had blinking letters that read “gimmick, gimmick, gimmick.”
Obviously people like these books as there are more in the series. Chances are I might even read another one myself but when are genre writers going to stop concocting these formula-driven, ridiculous, insult-to-womanhood characters?
As a mystery, I give this book a 4. As a romance, I give it a 2. So I'm splitting the difference with a 3 – because I like Russ. But I think he's headed down a dangerous slope and I don't think the local priest is going to help him avoid any more near-occasions-of-sin.
April 23, 2025
4-4.5⭐️ Clare Fergusson, the conservative St. Alban’s new priest, is not at all who the town would have chosen to fill the role; a tough-as-nails former Army pilot who drives a bright red vintage MG roadster, who loves to cook and speak her mind. When Clare comes across an abandoned newborn on a snowy night, it’s Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne who is called to investigate the case.
As the search for the baby’s mother leads them down the path of dark family secrets, Clare and Russ find themselves at the center of the chaos, complicated even more by their growing friendship and attraction to one another.
I remember picking up this series a few years back, when I went looking for a detective series that felt like a thriller and featured a detective meets “his girl Friday” setup. And boy did this one deliver! I quickly proceeded to fly through the nine-book series, desperate for book ten. Now, four years later, it is finally being released. So of course, this means a reread of the entire series to make sure I am properly prepared and remember every little detail necessary. Have I mentioned she loves to end her more recent books in cliffhangers? Sure enough, that last book was a doozy.
I realized in my reread that I had never actually reviewed ANY of the books in the series (shame on me), so here we go…
The first book in any series has a lot of heavy lifting to do - the setting has to be established, the characters and their relationships introduced, and the overall premise must be established. Because of this, most of the first books tend to be less than stellar, which is okay because it allows for the series to just get better and better with each book. I felt that way about this book when I read it several years ago and feel almost the same way now. Having read more series between then and now, I am actually upping my original rating from 4 stars to 4.5 because of just how much this book establishes the entire series and the way in which it pulls you in from the go. And yet, just know that this series gets better and better with every new installment.
These characters feel like friends. I love how relatable Russ is - how down-to-earth and human. Clare, however, is an all-time favorite character. A former Army pilot turned Episcopalian priest who cannot help but get herself into the mix of every case that comes to Millers Kill, she is the heroine I did not know I needed until she came along. She is whip-smart, constantly putting Russ, as well as the nosy townspeople, in their place. As the series continues, we are introduced to more fantastic characters, but these two remain at the heart of the story and the reason I love these books as much as I do.
I also love the cases at the center of each book. In this story, we are treated to one case - an abandoned newborn - only to be hit with a case much more serious. Is it connected? Well, you’ll have to read it to find out, but let me just say that while I don’t always love cozy mysteries, the fact that these cases are much more thriller-based, but with the setting and characters of a cozy, makes this accessible to both sets of readers. And although I’m not very religious myself, the tiny bits incorporated into this series, did not bother me at all.
🎧 This book was published in 2002, which means the audiobooks are not the most cutting-edge. I admit I struggled with the inclusion of the disc number every so often, as well as the voice of the sole narrator. I do not know how she managed to make an FMC in her 30s sound like a grandmother, nor the sheriff sound like a pirate, but alas, here we are. While I would recommend reading this one with your eyes versus your ears for this very reason, in a pitch, the audio will do. I plan to eyeball read the first 25% of each book, to establish the characters in my mind first, and then switch over to audio for convenience.
Read if you like:
▪️domestic suspense
▪️detective series
▪️strong FMCs
▪️upstate NY setting
▪️where thrillers meet cozies
▪️engaging characters
▪️bingeable books
📆 The 10th book, At Midnight Comes the Cry, is releasing on November 18.
As the search for the baby’s mother leads them down the path of dark family secrets, Clare and Russ find themselves at the center of the chaos, complicated even more by their growing friendship and attraction to one another.
I remember picking up this series a few years back, when I went looking for a detective series that felt like a thriller and featured a detective meets “his girl Friday” setup. And boy did this one deliver! I quickly proceeded to fly through the nine-book series, desperate for book ten. Now, four years later, it is finally being released. So of course, this means a reread of the entire series to make sure I am properly prepared and remember every little detail necessary. Have I mentioned she loves to end her more recent books in cliffhangers? Sure enough, that last book was a doozy.
I realized in my reread that I had never actually reviewed ANY of the books in the series (shame on me), so here we go…
The first book in any series has a lot of heavy lifting to do - the setting has to be established, the characters and their relationships introduced, and the overall premise must be established. Because of this, most of the first books tend to be less than stellar, which is okay because it allows for the series to just get better and better with each book. I felt that way about this book when I read it several years ago and feel almost the same way now. Having read more series between then and now, I am actually upping my original rating from 4 stars to 4.5 because of just how much this book establishes the entire series and the way in which it pulls you in from the go. And yet, just know that this series gets better and better with every new installment.
These characters feel like friends. I love how relatable Russ is - how down-to-earth and human. Clare, however, is an all-time favorite character. A former Army pilot turned Episcopalian priest who cannot help but get herself into the mix of every case that comes to Millers Kill, she is the heroine I did not know I needed until she came along. She is whip-smart, constantly putting Russ, as well as the nosy townspeople, in their place. As the series continues, we are introduced to more fantastic characters, but these two remain at the heart of the story and the reason I love these books as much as I do.
I also love the cases at the center of each book. In this story, we are treated to one case - an abandoned newborn - only to be hit with a case much more serious. Is it connected? Well, you’ll have to read it to find out, but let me just say that while I don’t always love cozy mysteries, the fact that these cases are much more thriller-based, but with the setting and characters of a cozy, makes this accessible to both sets of readers. And although I’m not very religious myself, the tiny bits incorporated into this series, did not bother me at all.
🎧 This book was published in 2002, which means the audiobooks are not the most cutting-edge. I admit I struggled with the inclusion of the disc number every so often, as well as the voice of the sole narrator. I do not know how she managed to make an FMC in her 30s sound like a grandmother, nor the sheriff sound like a pirate, but alas, here we are. While I would recommend reading this one with your eyes versus your ears for this very reason, in a pitch, the audio will do. I plan to eyeball read the first 25% of each book, to establish the characters in my mind first, and then switch over to audio for convenience.
Read if you like:
▪️domestic suspense
▪️detective series
▪️strong FMCs
▪️upstate NY setting
▪️where thrillers meet cozies
▪️engaging characters
▪️bingeable books
📆 The 10th book, At Midnight Comes the Cry, is releasing on November 18.
January 12, 2008
Apparently, this book won all sorts of awards and got glowing reviews in several respected publications, including my hometown Washington Post. My only question is whether I read the same book as everyone else? I found this book to be predictable, tedious, poorly plotted and characterized. The main characters - there were two - were both conflicted, but their conflicts were sterotypical and the intersection of those conflicts telegraphed with every paragraph. The points of view shifted around - something that was daring with Faulkner, but confusing with this author. Finally, everyone in the book uses the Internet, but no one - not the cops or the teenagers - has a cell telephone. One cell phone and the whole plot would have crumbled under the weight of too many serendipitous coincidences. The only thing I enjoyed in this book were the descriptions of the winter countryside - the author has clearly spent some time in the Adirondacks.
August 22, 2013
I am an avaricious consumer of mystery series, but there are so many stand-alone books that I want and need to read right now that yet another delectable series is an unwise choice. Well, too late. I read the first in the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne, In the Bleak Midwinter, and once again, I'm hooked. Julia Spencer-Fleming is another Bouchercon 2013 author that I wanted to sample before the September gathering, and I duped myself into believing that I could indeed eat just one. I will begin #2 today.
This series, set in the shadows of the Adirondack mountains in the small town of Millers Kill, features ex-Amy helicopter pilot, newly ordained Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson and ex-Army, present-day police chief Russ Van Alstyne. Clare is the first female priest at the Episcopal church in Millers Kill, and is quite different than her conventional predecessor. When only after a month on the job, she discovers a newborn baby abandoned outside the church, Clare quickly becomes involved in the search for its parents and the subsequent murder of the baby's mother. As rapid as her involvement in the resolution to these mysteries and ones to follow, her friendship with Russ Van Alstyne, the chief of police, takes the fast trak to closeness and trusted confidant. Of course, the chief is married, which creates a stumbling block to a more intimate relationship. In solving not one, but two murders, Clare and Russ come to rely on one another's intelligence and intuition, moving in sync as two partners with different skills that mirror in a complimentary efficiency.
It's always so satisfying to encounter yet another author whose manipulation of the language results in a spine-tingling tale. Julia Spencer-Fleming is extraordinarily gifted in her skill of description, including settiing, action, and characters. I was truly amazed at the detail of description in those areas, and it made the story so complete. There is no fuzzy, half-hearted imagery in Ms. Spencer-Fleming's writing. The reader is treated to complete disclosure of what a place looks like, what a character's physical and emotional make-up is, and what the action would look like if you were there. The twists and turns of the plot are page-turning pleasures. Now, on to the next adventure/mystery of the Clare and Russ team. Again, my reading pile groans with the weight of of books waiting.
This series, set in the shadows of the Adirondack mountains in the small town of Millers Kill, features ex-Amy helicopter pilot, newly ordained Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson and ex-Army, present-day police chief Russ Van Alstyne. Clare is the first female priest at the Episcopal church in Millers Kill, and is quite different than her conventional predecessor. When only after a month on the job, she discovers a newborn baby abandoned outside the church, Clare quickly becomes involved in the search for its parents and the subsequent murder of the baby's mother. As rapid as her involvement in the resolution to these mysteries and ones to follow, her friendship with Russ Van Alstyne, the chief of police, takes the fast trak to closeness and trusted confidant. Of course, the chief is married, which creates a stumbling block to a more intimate relationship. In solving not one, but two murders, Clare and Russ come to rely on one another's intelligence and intuition, moving in sync as two partners with different skills that mirror in a complimentary efficiency.
It's always so satisfying to encounter yet another author whose manipulation of the language results in a spine-tingling tale. Julia Spencer-Fleming is extraordinarily gifted in her skill of description, including settiing, action, and characters. I was truly amazed at the detail of description in those areas, and it made the story so complete. There is no fuzzy, half-hearted imagery in Ms. Spencer-Fleming's writing. The reader is treated to complete disclosure of what a place looks like, what a character's physical and emotional make-up is, and what the action would look like if you were there. The twists and turns of the plot are page-turning pleasures. Now, on to the next adventure/mystery of the Clare and Russ team. Again, my reading pile groans with the weight of of books waiting.
April 3, 2014
I finished this a couple days ago (and the next three in the series) and I'm still having a hard time putting my reaction into words. As my teen daughter would say, the feels are just too big. So I'm going to do my best on this one and hope it applies to the series as a whole as much as to this specific book and keep it relatively general (because there's no way I'll be able to do this for every book in the series and I don't plan on being so detailed in future volumes).
While the book is structured as a mystery, that's actually the weakest aspect of the novel. It's not that hard to piece the whodunit together and really, I find that I don't much care. About the mystery. What makes the book stand-out fantastic is the characters and relationships. And I don't just mean the main characters, though that's the best part.
Clare is an Episcopalian priest in a small town in the Adirondacks. She is warm, kind, active, and caring in a way that true Christians strive to be. Which would make her cloying if she weren't so honestly and perfectly human at the same time. The members of her congregation are all fully-developed, complex people of faith as well with a realistic (in my experience, anyway) mixture of kind and venal, saints and hypocrites working together (often in a single person), sometimes overcoming their basest instincts and sometimes not. This book would stand out as one of the best depictions of an honest Christian community even if it never got to the second part of what makes it so awesome.
Russ is the chief of police in this small town. He's a true and honest servant of his people, working to keep peace in a town fallen on hard times and with a hearty mixture of the desperate and the priveleged—a potentially explosive combination. He has integrity in spades and an honest devotion to the law and doing what's right. He's also heavily married.
Clare and Russ are the highlight of the book as their relationship grows from honest trust and respect (with minor, uh, and major, bumps along the way) to something... more. By the end, it is absolutely heartbreaking as Russ and Clare become aware of what the reader has suspected for some time—that they are perfectly matched, almost made for each other and that they have no way of doing anything about it without breaking both of them into something less than they are now. The poignancy of this is heartbreaking in its tragedy and purity and humanity.
Which makes it seem like the book would be heavy. But that's the genius of Julia Spencer-Fleming—she manages to pull off that powerful emotional impact without losing the hope that lies at the heart of faith and integrity. It is easy to forget that Christianity is, at heart, a faith for the fallen and that its promise isn't ease or success or protection from harm but rather comfort in affliction and the eventual achievement of grace. Infusing a hint of grace into the promise of heartbreak (and making both real and powerful) is an amazing achievement and I am so happy to have found it in this story.
While the book is structured as a mystery, that's actually the weakest aspect of the novel. It's not that hard to piece the whodunit together and really, I find that I don't much care. About the mystery. What makes the book stand-out fantastic is the characters and relationships. And I don't just mean the main characters, though that's the best part.
Clare is an Episcopalian priest in a small town in the Adirondacks. She is warm, kind, active, and caring in a way that true Christians strive to be. Which would make her cloying if she weren't so honestly and perfectly human at the same time. The members of her congregation are all fully-developed, complex people of faith as well with a realistic (in my experience, anyway) mixture of kind and venal, saints and hypocrites working together (often in a single person), sometimes overcoming their basest instincts and sometimes not. This book would stand out as one of the best depictions of an honest Christian community even if it never got to the second part of what makes it so awesome.
Russ is the chief of police in this small town. He's a true and honest servant of his people, working to keep peace in a town fallen on hard times and with a hearty mixture of the desperate and the priveleged—a potentially explosive combination. He has integrity in spades and an honest devotion to the law and doing what's right. He's also heavily married.
Clare and Russ are the highlight of the book as their relationship grows from honest trust and respect (with minor, uh, and major, bumps along the way) to something... more. By the end, it is absolutely heartbreaking as Russ and Clare become aware of what the reader has suspected for some time—that they are perfectly matched, almost made for each other and that they have no way of doing anything about it without breaking both of them into something less than they are now. The poignancy of this is heartbreaking in its tragedy and purity and humanity.
Which makes it seem like the book would be heavy. But that's the genius of Julia Spencer-Fleming—she manages to pull off that powerful emotional impact without losing the hope that lies at the heart of faith and integrity. It is easy to forget that Christianity is, at heart, a faith for the fallen and that its promise isn't ease or success or protection from harm but rather comfort in affliction and the eventual achievement of grace. Infusing a hint of grace into the promise of heartbreak (and making both real and powerful) is an amazing achievement and I am so happy to have found it in this story.
May 6, 2012
Goodreads let me down on this one. I was at a loss as to what to read next so I turned to the reviews here. I didn't hate this book but I almost did. The characters were almost interesting and the plot was almost gripping. It needed to be a lot shorter and it easily could have been if you'd cut out all the details about the curtain swags, and people crossing and uncrossing their arms, and standing up and sitting down, or lord help me "swiping whip cream off his mustache." I get that these details were supposed to add richness and in a deft hand they may have but here they felt pounded in by some well-meaning editor. Also, the female main character was supposed to be this amazingly well-trained ex-military person but she couldn't even figure out that she should take a quick trip to Target and pick up a decent pair of boots when it was snowing a freezing outside. Just too dumb for me. When she kept getting caught in her "thin leather boots" in horrible situations snow-falling situations, I had had enough.
September 10, 2020
In the Bleak Midwinter is the beginning of a series featuring Rev. Clare Fergusson and Det. Russ Van Alstyne. I picked it up to read after finishing a later book in the series and realized that I needed some back story. Set in a small New England town, these two have a chemistry that makes the books more interesting than I would have suspected. The crimes, generally, are not too gruesome but the writing style lends to a more "crime fiction" genre than cozy mystery. I highly enjoyed this one and intend to read the entire series now.
December 22, 2024
I was interested in trying out a new mystery series.
Apparently, this book won all sorts of awards and got glowing reviews in several respected publications so I was open to read it.
While the book is structured as a mystery, that's actually the weakest aspect of the novel.
It's not that hard to piece the whodunit together and really, I find that I didn’t care much. About the mystery.
I really wanted to like it, especially since the characters of the Priest (Clare) and Police Chief (Russ) had potential.
Unfortunately, I found this book to be predictable, tedious, poorly plotted and characterized.
The main characters – mentioned above - were both conflicted, but their conflicts were stereotypical and those conflicts were obvious the more we read.
Finally, everyone in the book uses the Internet, but no one - not the police or the teenagers - had a cell phone.
(The book was published in 2002 so it makes sense that they would.)
One cell phone and the whole plot would have crumbled under the weight of too many coincidences.
Bottom line, I didn’t hate this book, but… 2.5 stars.
Apparently, this book won all sorts of awards and got glowing reviews in several respected publications so I was open to read it.
While the book is structured as a mystery, that's actually the weakest aspect of the novel.
It's not that hard to piece the whodunit together and really, I find that I didn’t care much. About the mystery.
I really wanted to like it, especially since the characters of the Priest (Clare) and Police Chief (Russ) had potential.
Unfortunately, I found this book to be predictable, tedious, poorly plotted and characterized.
The main characters – mentioned above - were both conflicted, but their conflicts were stereotypical and those conflicts were obvious the more we read.
Finally, everyone in the book uses the Internet, but no one - not the police or the teenagers - had a cell phone.
(The book was published in 2002 so it makes sense that they would.)
One cell phone and the whole plot would have crumbled under the weight of too many coincidences.
Bottom line, I didn’t hate this book, but… 2.5 stars.
November 12, 2019
Good beginning for this series. Like the story better than the characters so far.
11/11/19 My bookclub is reading this book this month so I thought it would be an excellent time to reread. Had to. I’ve read more books in this series (and loved them, BTW). If I didn’t reread this one I might (would) have dropped some spoilers at the meeting. Now I know where to stop (we hope) when I extol the romance, the action, the 🤐 Nope, I am not going to drop any spoilers.
This is an excellent book by an amazing author!! Grab them, enjoy and get ready for the 9th book in the series coming out in April 2020. 💕
11/11/19 My bookclub is reading this book this month so I thought it would be an excellent time to reread. Had to. I’ve read more books in this series (and loved them, BTW). If I didn’t reread this one I might (would) have dropped some spoilers at the meeting. Now I know where to stop (we hope) when I extol the romance, the action, the 🤐 Nope, I am not going to drop any spoilers.
This is an excellent book by an amazing author!! Grab them, enjoy and get ready for the 9th book in the series coming out in April 2020. 💕
April 4, 2015
Part way through the book I was certain I'd found a new favorite series. Then, around page 100, I figured out who the killer was. This isn't a deal-breaker - I usually identify the killer, but sometimes the how and why of it keeps me riveted. Not so here, because that's obvious too. To make matters worse, the main character, the Reverend, convinced of her own righteousness, jumps into one stupid situation after another with little thought to consequences. I cared for the other main character even less, because I hadn't much faith in his ability to solve anything, which he ultimately proved.
Even forgetting the fact that there was a pastor who was out there doing amateur detecting while privy to everything the police knew, there were so many things that bothered me about the procedure.
Well, I had hopes. My library doesn't stock the rest of the series, which is probably just as well.
Even forgetting the fact that there was a pastor who was out there doing amateur detecting while privy to everything the police knew, there were so many things that bothered me about the procedure.
Well, I had hopes. My library doesn't stock the rest of the series, which is probably just as well.
February 6, 2017
I found this book very heavy going for the first two-thirds or so, and several times was on the point of abandoning it, but in the third reel it picked up a great deal of pace -- essentially, when it stopped being just an infuriatingly self-indulgent, rather vapid mystery and started being a thriller. Spencer-Fleming does action sequences pretty well; interpersonal relationships, not so much.
Clare Fergusson is the new priest at one of the churches in a small town, Millers Kill ("kill" = river; not sure why it's "Millers" rather than "Miller's"), in upstate New York. It's the depths of winter. Clare finds a baby left on the church steps, with a note that the child's name is Cody and that he should be given for adoption to a wealthy local couple. A little over a week later the murdered body of a young woman is discovered, and it's determined that she gave birth not long before she died. Local police chief Russ Van Alstyne investigates, helped and hindered by Clare, for whom, although married, he develops the hots. There's another murder, and slowly Russ and Clare begin to put the pieces together.
Put the accent on the "slowly." As a single example, on pages 58-9 we have perhaps 300 words during which we establish that Russ likes Clare's coffee because she uses Jamaican blue roast, blended with Colombian beans, adds "a little ground hazelnut and cinnamon" . . . and on and on it goes until, dear reader, some of us wanted to wring Clare's neck.
Throughout the book there are bits and pieces of Christian propaganda thrown at us, like the (male) pathologist who gets in an anti-abortion dig; this sits oddly with the fact that priest Clare, who served in the armed forces before taking orders, proudly drinks from a DEATH FROM THE SKY! mug. Yup. That's what Jesus wanted, all right: people dropping explosives, incendiaries and white phosphorus on kids.
Well before the end it becomes pretty obvious who the other killer is, and why the killer killed. This might irritate any reader seeking a straightforward mystery tale. It's also at about this point, though, that -- luckily for me, at least -- the tale shifted to action, as Clare is stalked by and retaliates against a mysterious figure in the midst of a snow-bound waste. That action is all slightly implausible -- she must have astonishing eyesight at night in a blizzard in a forested terrain -- but it's well enough written that I didn't care.
Overall, I felt as if I were being asked to wade through way too much -- not just the religious propaganda but the overwriting and the smugness -- for the sake of the good bits.
Clare Fergusson is the new priest at one of the churches in a small town, Millers Kill ("kill" = river; not sure why it's "Millers" rather than "Miller's"), in upstate New York. It's the depths of winter. Clare finds a baby left on the church steps, with a note that the child's name is Cody and that he should be given for adoption to a wealthy local couple. A little over a week later the murdered body of a young woman is discovered, and it's determined that she gave birth not long before she died. Local police chief Russ Van Alstyne investigates, helped and hindered by Clare, for whom, although married, he develops the hots. There's another murder, and slowly Russ and Clare begin to put the pieces together.
Put the accent on the "slowly." As a single example, on pages 58-9 we have perhaps 300 words during which we establish that Russ likes Clare's coffee because she uses Jamaican blue roast, blended with Colombian beans, adds "a little ground hazelnut and cinnamon" . . . and on and on it goes until, dear reader, some of us wanted to wring Clare's neck.
Throughout the book there are bits and pieces of Christian propaganda thrown at us, like the (male) pathologist who gets in an anti-abortion dig; this sits oddly with the fact that priest Clare, who served in the armed forces before taking orders, proudly drinks from a DEATH FROM THE SKY! mug. Yup. That's what Jesus wanted, all right: people dropping explosives, incendiaries and white phosphorus on kids.
Well before the end it becomes pretty obvious who the other killer is, and why the killer killed. This might irritate any reader seeking a straightforward mystery tale. It's also at about this point, though, that -- luckily for me, at least -- the tale shifted to action, as Clare is stalked by and retaliates against a mysterious figure in the midst of a snow-bound waste. That action is all slightly implausible -- she must have astonishing eyesight at night in a blizzard in a forested terrain -- but it's well enough written that I didn't care.
Overall, I felt as if I were being asked to wade through way too much -- not just the religious propaganda but the overwriting and the smugness -- for the sake of the good bits.
July 28, 2025
Read in Febuary 2009, again in June 2009, in January 2011, January 2015, and January 2019. A great start to one of my top two or three favorite series!
April 18, 2022
I really enjoyed this first in a series and plan to get #2.
December 13, 2017
The mystery idea for this book wasn't bad, and it had a great first sentence. Unfortunately, although it was billed as a mystery, it felt like the author had read a lot of romance and was really more interested in that. I very decidedly was not interested in reading a romance about a married police chief and a female Episcopal priest more than 12 years his junior.
The mystery is first about who abandoned a baby in a small upstate New York town church. But then a dead girl turns up- could she be the baby's mother?
The author telegraphs who the reader is supposed to like and dislike pretty clearly. There's a spoiled young teenage girl who's a member of the priest's congregation. When the priest agrees to let the police chief show pictures of the dead girl around to the congregation after services (!?!?!) this girl recognizes her. It's clear that we're supposed to dislike this witness because she pays way too much attention to her appearance, is apparently "spoiled". These are all thoughts that our priest has- she has a real problem with judging other people.
And I had a problem with Clare, the priest. She didn't ring true to me at all. She's supposedly an army veteran (helicopter pilot) with survival training, yet she can't manage to light a fire in a fireplace without the police chief to help her. She doesn't have a good winter coat, car that works well in the snow, or pair of boots that have tread, and she never gets them for herself throughout the course of the book despite having some rather frightening adventures in the snow. Fortunately, the police chief is around to loan her a coat and eventually buy her some boots. How is an army veteran that clueless about practicality? She's got no sense of appropriateness. The above example of showing a murder victim's picture around after a church service is one example. Another is that she's all ready to help the baby into an adoptive home without knowing anything about the circumstances of the abandonment, even enlisting her church to do a letter writing campaign to help the parents she thinks should have the baby. Clare is smug and naive, and also seems incredibly untrained in how to counsel someone without falling in love with them. All sorts of boundary issues. I really didn't care for her, and ended up losing quite a bit of respect for the author because I got the feeling I was supposed to like her.
A lot of this book felt like a trip back in time. Do people really apologize every single time they swear or use the word "Jesus" in front of a priest these days? Are letter writing campaigns still a thing?
Well, at this point I am just ranting. Suffice it to say, I do NOT recommend this book. It's sort of a shame, because I can see that the author has talent- I just have no trust in her judgement about characters, romance, or ethics.
The mystery is first about who abandoned a baby in a small upstate New York town church. But then a dead girl turns up- could she be the baby's mother?
The author telegraphs who the reader is supposed to like and dislike pretty clearly. There's a spoiled young teenage girl who's a member of the priest's congregation. When the priest agrees to let the police chief show pictures of the dead girl around to the congregation after services (!?!?!) this girl recognizes her. It's clear that we're supposed to dislike this witness because she pays way too much attention to her appearance, is apparently "spoiled". These are all thoughts that our priest has- she has a real problem with judging other people.
And I had a problem with Clare, the priest. She didn't ring true to me at all. She's supposedly an army veteran (helicopter pilot) with survival training, yet she can't manage to light a fire in a fireplace without the police chief to help her. She doesn't have a good winter coat, car that works well in the snow, or pair of boots that have tread, and she never gets them for herself throughout the course of the book despite having some rather frightening adventures in the snow. Fortunately, the police chief is around to loan her a coat and eventually buy her some boots. How is an army veteran that clueless about practicality? She's got no sense of appropriateness. The above example of showing a murder victim's picture around after a church service is one example. Another is that she's all ready to help the baby into an adoptive home without knowing anything about the circumstances of the abandonment, even enlisting her church to do a letter writing campaign to help the parents she thinks should have the baby. Clare is smug and naive, and also seems incredibly untrained in how to counsel someone without falling in love with them. All sorts of boundary issues. I really didn't care for her, and ended up losing quite a bit of respect for the author because I got the feeling I was supposed to like her.
A lot of this book felt like a trip back in time. Do people really apologize every single time they swear or use the word "Jesus" in front of a priest these days? Are letter writing campaigns still a thing?
Well, at this point I am just ranting. Suffice it to say, I do NOT recommend this book. It's sort of a shame, because I can see that the author has talent- I just have no trust in her judgement about characters, romance, or ethics.
January 16, 2019
I never know these days when I pick up a mystery whether it will be a hit or a miss—I have read so many of them at this point that I’ve become pretty picky.
So I was pleasantly surprised by this selection—for a first book of a series, it was great. First off, I enjoyed the author’s style. I was never distracted by the words, I was able to immerse myself in the world of Millers Kill, N.Y. and go with the flow.
Secondly, I really connected with her two main characters, Rev. Claire Fergusson and the Chief of Police, Russ Van Alstyne. I loved Clare’s independence, the unexpectedness of her being an Episcopalian priest, being ex-army, driving an impractical hot little red car, and learning the ins and outs of this new community where she has been hired. I also couldn’t help liking Russ, who grew up in the community and has returned after his army career.
Just like Agatha Christie, Spencer-Fleming has chosen a small town as a setting for her story. It gives Clare and Russ a much better knowledge of the people around them, making the crime-solving aspect much more informed and interesting. Solving murders in a big city involves much more luck, while these mysteries set in small communities allow for much more exploration of the human decisions that pull people into criminal acts.
Unlike so many series where I’ve sampled one book and feel no need to follow up, I suspect I will catch up with Claire and Russ again in the near future!
So I was pleasantly surprised by this selection—for a first book of a series, it was great. First off, I enjoyed the author’s style. I was never distracted by the words, I was able to immerse myself in the world of Millers Kill, N.Y. and go with the flow.
Secondly, I really connected with her two main characters, Rev. Claire Fergusson and the Chief of Police, Russ Van Alstyne. I loved Clare’s independence, the unexpectedness of her being an Episcopalian priest, being ex-army, driving an impractical hot little red car, and learning the ins and outs of this new community where she has been hired. I also couldn’t help liking Russ, who grew up in the community and has returned after his army career.
Just like Agatha Christie, Spencer-Fleming has chosen a small town as a setting for her story. It gives Clare and Russ a much better knowledge of the people around them, making the crime-solving aspect much more informed and interesting. Solving murders in a big city involves much more luck, while these mysteries set in small communities allow for much more exploration of the human decisions that pull people into criminal acts.
Unlike so many series where I’ve sampled one book and feel no need to follow up, I suspect I will catch up with Claire and Russ again in the near future!
August 18, 2020
Actually 4 1/2*
Let’s just say that I zoomed through the last third of the book, loved the ending. We have a police chief and a female priest in an Adirondacks small community. A newly born infant is found on the priest’s doorstep. Did I mention the police chief is married? The priest is a woman of strong faith and of daring. I will definitely be getting the next book in the series : )
Let’s just say that I zoomed through the last third of the book, loved the ending. We have a police chief and a female priest in an Adirondacks small community. A newly born infant is found on the priest’s doorstep. Did I mention the police chief is married? The priest is a woman of strong faith and of daring. I will definitely be getting the next book in the series : )
May 24, 2015
A police chief and a woman priest team up to solve several mysteries and murders in a small town during the winter. The characters are real and the plot full of imagination. There are surprises in the outcome. Great book.
April 30, 2014
This book won awards? REALLY??? I just finished reading it only because I thought it had to get better - but it doesn't! It reads like a self published ebook from an author without the benefit of a writer's group or a good editor.
There are so many elements of this book that will test your willing suspension of disbelief. The main character, Claire, is a priest who would in real life be kicked out of her church immediately for her interactions with the sheriff (who is married) and for the way she handles her clue gathering relating to a mystery revolving around her church members. She's supposed to be a tough ex soldier who has completed survival training but doesn't have the good sense to go to Walmart to buy proper winter footwear after moving to a snowy, mountainous area in the winter. She's been to seminary but she doesn't know when and where it's appropriate to counsel a married man. She charges around accusing and confronting her most influential parishioners as soon as she collects another clue or has a hunch. She can't be bothered to unpack moving boxes and get settled in the parsonage but she has suddenly unpacked her kitchen and decorated the room when one evening she cooks a gourmet meal to serve the married sheriff who just happens to stop by.
The sheriff doesn't know how to identify a young woman murder victim or run a murder investigation. Instead of starting with local high school administrators and teachers for identification, like most small town police departments would, he goes to Claire's church to flash morgue photos of the murdered girl at coffee hour after the service. He lets Claire horn in on his investigation no matter how crazy or impulsive her actions are. He doesn't follow up on questioning the murder victim's roommates after police in the victim's college town have made initial contact, even though the roommates would have information on her actions in the weeks before her death. He doesn't send an investigator to search the victim's apartment. He has a wife with a very successful business and he isn't proud of her and he doesn't seem to call her when she's out of town on a buying trip. He suggests the priest leave her little sports car that can't make it through heavy snow on outside his house over a snowy night, seemingly unaware of small town gossip or the possibility of his wife finding out.
The unbelievable plot twists and character actions go on and on. By far the most unattractive thing about the book is the romance between a female priest and a MARRIED sheriff, portrayed in a favorable light. Unless you are a cheater yourself, this is not hero and heroine behavior most people want to read about.
I recommend passing on this series.
There are so many elements of this book that will test your willing suspension of disbelief. The main character, Claire, is a priest who would in real life be kicked out of her church immediately for her interactions with the sheriff (who is married) and for the way she handles her clue gathering relating to a mystery revolving around her church members. She's supposed to be a tough ex soldier who has completed survival training but doesn't have the good sense to go to Walmart to buy proper winter footwear after moving to a snowy, mountainous area in the winter. She's been to seminary but she doesn't know when and where it's appropriate to counsel a married man. She charges around accusing and confronting her most influential parishioners as soon as she collects another clue or has a hunch. She can't be bothered to unpack moving boxes and get settled in the parsonage but she has suddenly unpacked her kitchen and decorated the room when one evening she cooks a gourmet meal to serve the married sheriff who just happens to stop by.
The sheriff doesn't know how to identify a young woman murder victim or run a murder investigation. Instead of starting with local high school administrators and teachers for identification, like most small town police departments would, he goes to Claire's church to flash morgue photos of the murdered girl at coffee hour after the service. He lets Claire horn in on his investigation no matter how crazy or impulsive her actions are. He doesn't follow up on questioning the murder victim's roommates after police in the victim's college town have made initial contact, even though the roommates would have information on her actions in the weeks before her death. He doesn't send an investigator to search the victim's apartment. He has a wife with a very successful business and he isn't proud of her and he doesn't seem to call her when she's out of town on a buying trip. He suggests the priest leave her little sports car that can't make it through heavy snow on outside his house over a snowy night, seemingly unaware of small town gossip or the possibility of his wife finding out.
The unbelievable plot twists and character actions go on and on. By far the most unattractive thing about the book is the romance between a female priest and a MARRIED sheriff, portrayed in a favorable light. Unless you are a cheater yourself, this is not hero and heroine behavior most people want to read about.
I recommend passing on this series.
May 25, 2024
In the first book of the series we are introduced to Russ Van Alstyne, Chief of Police in the small town of Miller's Kill, New York and the Reverend Clare Ferguson, newly ordained priest of St. Alban's Episcopal Church and former Army helicopter pilot.
They meet when Clare finds a newborn baby wrapped in blankets outside the church. The person who left the baby also left a note asking that the baby be given to a local couple who have been desperate to adopt a child, Geoffrey and Karen Burns. Since the Burns' are also members of the church, Van Alstyne thinks there may be some connection to one of the birth parents. Clare asks Russ to accompany him on his patrol one night and they discover a young murdered girl who turns out to be the baby's mother.
As they continue to investigate, the married agnostic chief and the impulsive priest become attracted to each other. They have a lot in common even though it might not seem like it. They both have a need to pursue justice, one through the law and one through religious convictions. The relationship between Russ and Clare is well done and I'm curious to see how it progresses.
Don't be put off by the fact that one of the protagonists is a priest. Clare is much more than that. The religious aspects of the mystery are not heavy handed at all. The pacing is action packed and the author creates a very vivid Adirondack winter atmosphere. My only complaint about the book is the way Clare is constantly dashing off and putting herself in jeopardy. It reminds me of those movies where the audience knows the serial killer is inside the house and the heroine goes in alone. It seemed a little unbelievable to me. I won't that keep me from discovering what happens in the next book of this entertaining series.
They meet when Clare finds a newborn baby wrapped in blankets outside the church. The person who left the baby also left a note asking that the baby be given to a local couple who have been desperate to adopt a child, Geoffrey and Karen Burns. Since the Burns' are also members of the church, Van Alstyne thinks there may be some connection to one of the birth parents. Clare asks Russ to accompany him on his patrol one night and they discover a young murdered girl who turns out to be the baby's mother.
As they continue to investigate, the married agnostic chief and the impulsive priest become attracted to each other. They have a lot in common even though it might not seem like it. They both have a need to pursue justice, one through the law and one through religious convictions. The relationship between Russ and Clare is well done and I'm curious to see how it progresses.
Don't be put off by the fact that one of the protagonists is a priest. Clare is much more than that. The religious aspects of the mystery are not heavy handed at all. The pacing is action packed and the author creates a very vivid Adirondack winter atmosphere. My only complaint about the book is the way Clare is constantly dashing off and putting herself in jeopardy. It reminds me of those movies where the audience knows the serial killer is inside the house and the heroine goes in alone. It seemed a little unbelievable to me. I won't that keep me from discovering what happens in the next book of this entertaining series.
August 27, 2015
Wow, this was really good! The mystery kept me guessing, yes, and I really enjoyed seeing Clare doing her priestly duties--I love stories in which religious people are portrayed as not crazy or venal or misguided. There's a good tension between Russ as the hard-headed, cynical cop and Clare as the more optimistic, generous priest, especially since neither of them is stereotypically so. But what I loved was the developing relationship between Russ and Clare, how I could see where it was going even though they couldn't. It's interesting that Russ's wife Linda was only present in her absence, only appeared off-stage. It suggests that Russ and Linda have drifted apart, and that they don't have a lot in common (and may never have had) but not that their marriage is irredeemable or that this justifies any feelings that might be developing between Clare and Russ. I'm definitely looking forward to the rest of the series.
August 10, 2011
Hey, I liked this! I don’t like many traditional mysteries. Though to be fair, I don’t actually like this mystery qua mystery.
He’s the police chief of a tiny, upstate New York town. She’s a former army pilot turned Episcopal priest. (She’s improbable in that way that makes a character seem more real, instead of less, if you know what I mean). They solve crime, yeah, whatever. But mostly they have this slow-blooming connection. This book is about them becoming friends in this wonderful, organic, completely believable way. They are sexually neutralized to each other – he’s married and she’s a priest – so they come together free from most of the usual romance bullshit. Just two interesting, conflicted, smart, ethical people who don’t notice that they’re falling until it’s way too late.
Really nice.
He’s the police chief of a tiny, upstate New York town. She’s a former army pilot turned Episcopal priest. (She’s improbable in that way that makes a character seem more real, instead of less, if you know what I mean). They solve crime, yeah, whatever. But mostly they have this slow-blooming connection. This book is about them becoming friends in this wonderful, organic, completely believable way. They are sexually neutralized to each other – he’s married and she’s a priest – so they come together free from most of the usual romance bullshit. Just two interesting, conflicted, smart, ethical people who don’t notice that they’re falling until it’s way too late.
Really nice.
January 21, 2016
I would rate this 3.5. A female priest and the Chief of Police join forces to solve two murderes and the mystery of a baby left on the church rectory steps. In a small town in Up-State, NY. Clare is characterized as intelligent though at times pushy and at other times going beyond the expected for a non-authorized police snoop. Spencer-Fleming does hold one's attention and expertly keeps readers guessing until the mystery is finally solved. I look forward to seeing where the physical attraction between Chief Russ (married) and Reverend Clare heads in future books.
March 5, 2024
5 is bold for me for a first book in a mystery series over a decade old.
However, the book is bold at the same time as being age old.
I did read this several years ago but remember nothing of it and I didn’t read further in the series.
I was in a different place in my life and I assume the storyline either scandalized me or shocked me. Who knows? But this is a way to remember that we all change all the time.
However, the book is bold at the same time as being age old.
I did read this several years ago but remember nothing of it and I didn’t read further in the series.
I was in a different place in my life and I assume the storyline either scandalized me or shocked me. Who knows? But this is a way to remember that we all change all the time.
May 25, 2012
How could an ex-military helicopter pilot be so stupid? Every time I started getting into the plot she would do something unbelievably stupid. The book had a great premise, but the Reverend is just too stupid for words.
February 6, 2012
I have read this book twice now within six months. It only got better upon the second reading.
The story wasn't what I thought it was going to be from the blurb because of their relationship statuses in the book. So it had me worried for a very long time. I think that was the reason for the four stars I gave the book after the first time I read it. I'm going to try to keep this review to the first book alone, though it's hard as I want to comment on what comes later. I apologize if I fail at it, but there won't be any spoilers.
I love Julia Spencer-Fleming's writing style. It is descriptive without being over-flowery. There are no lines that stand out as trying too hard, she has a very consistent voice. She sets scenes that draw you into what's happening in an almost effortless way. It can dip into a bit of the cliche, but it never really dives in. Fleming doesn't write a mystery that drops clues along the way, allowing the reader to play junior detective along with the characters. You get the information as the characters do and it's a snaking vine that keeps you guessing but never allows you to get it right. I'm sure some people will hate that because they love trying to put clues together, but I really liked not being bored with the mystery because it was so easy to tell whodunit.
The story is engrossing, and there are definitely a few edge of your seat moments. One that happens on a snowy mountain that I just love. Though this scene and the climatic ending do veer somewhat into head scratching territory it's easy to forgive because they're so absorbing.
The number one thing Fleming does best is characters. I'm a character driven person. I can forgive a lot of things in a story if I love the characters, and a decent story will be terrible to me if I hate the characters. The love I have for this series is very much tied to my love for Russ Van Alstyne and Clare Fergusson. Both are very strong characters, intelligent, with great senses of humor. They're both stubborn (and that trait definitely gets her into trouble) and can set each other off, but they also listen to each other well (most of the time). I love that they're not perfect. They don't always make the right choices (and the choices they have to make get harder and harder). You would think that would be the case with a priest, but she has to fight her pride, her stubbornness, her emotions, and temptation. She has to question herself and her calling. The two have some similarities but they are also very different. For instance, Russ is clear about being an atheist and Clare is an Episcopalian priest. They certainly have their theological discussions but he doesn't really impugn her beliefs and she never preaches at anyone who doesn't ask her to. That's another thing I love so much about her. Throughout the series I found myself wishing they were real and my friends too many times to count.
Their friendship is so effortless and such a joy to read. They get each other on such a fundamental level. And the reader gets to see that! It is so rare now that a reader gets to actually see a relationship begin and unfold instead of being told that it happened. We're given many conversations, joking around and even arguments. I never feel as though I have to take anything about them on faith. We can even see when it begins to evolve into something more. It was fun picking up on things I didn't notice before the second time I read it. Almost everything about their friendship just makes me happy. I start to flail and then I end up a lot like this guy:
The secondary characters are just as easily likable, or they can be annoying or rage inducing, but that's their purpose and they're always well drawn and compelling. Even when they're doing things I don't understand.
So, if you can't already tell from my rare, effusive gushing (that I still feel doesn't do this story justice), I heavily recommend picking up this book. Then I dare you to not devour the next six books in the series. I read all of them within a month and that was on top of reading other books, moving, and breaking bones.
The story wasn't what I thought it was going to be from the blurb because of their relationship statuses in the book. So it had me worried for a very long time. I think that was the reason for the four stars I gave the book after the first time I read it. I'm going to try to keep this review to the first book alone, though it's hard as I want to comment on what comes later. I apologize if I fail at it, but there won't be any spoilers.
I love Julia Spencer-Fleming's writing style. It is descriptive without being over-flowery. There are no lines that stand out as trying too hard, she has a very consistent voice. She sets scenes that draw you into what's happening in an almost effortless way. It can dip into a bit of the cliche, but it never really dives in. Fleming doesn't write a mystery that drops clues along the way, allowing the reader to play junior detective along with the characters. You get the information as the characters do and it's a snaking vine that keeps you guessing but never allows you to get it right. I'm sure some people will hate that because they love trying to put clues together, but I really liked not being bored with the mystery because it was so easy to tell whodunit.
The story is engrossing, and there are definitely a few edge of your seat moments. One that happens on a snowy mountain that I just love. Though this scene and the climatic ending do veer somewhat into head scratching territory it's easy to forgive because they're so absorbing.
The number one thing Fleming does best is characters. I'm a character driven person. I can forgive a lot of things in a story if I love the characters, and a decent story will be terrible to me if I hate the characters. The love I have for this series is very much tied to my love for Russ Van Alstyne and Clare Fergusson. Both are very strong characters, intelligent, with great senses of humor. They're both stubborn (and that trait definitely gets her into trouble) and can set each other off, but they also listen to each other well (most of the time). I love that they're not perfect. They don't always make the right choices (and the choices they have to make get harder and harder). You would think that would be the case with a priest, but she has to fight her pride, her stubbornness, her emotions, and temptation. She has to question herself and her calling. The two have some similarities but they are also very different. For instance, Russ is clear about being an atheist and Clare is an Episcopalian priest. They certainly have their theological discussions but he doesn't really impugn her beliefs and she never preaches at anyone who doesn't ask her to. That's another thing I love so much about her. Throughout the series I found myself wishing they were real and my friends too many times to count.
Their friendship is so effortless and such a joy to read. They get each other on such a fundamental level. And the reader gets to see that! It is so rare now that a reader gets to actually see a relationship begin and unfold instead of being told that it happened. We're given many conversations, joking around and even arguments. I never feel as though I have to take anything about them on faith. We can even see when it begins to evolve into something more. It was fun picking up on things I didn't notice before the second time I read it. Almost everything about their friendship just makes me happy. I start to flail and then I end up a lot like this guy:
The secondary characters are just as easily likable, or they can be annoying or rage inducing, but that's their purpose and they're always well drawn and compelling. Even when they're doing things I don't understand.
So, if you can't already tell from my rare, effusive gushing (that I still feel doesn't do this story justice), I heavily recommend picking up this book. Then I dare you to not devour the next six books in the series. I read all of them within a month and that was on top of reading other books, moving, and breaking bones.
July 2, 2008
Mystery in which a male cop and a female (Episcopalian) priest in a small upstate New York town team up to fight crime! I liked this more than I expected to. Russ (the cop) and Clare (the priest) are both complex, realistic characters, and I really enjoyed how the relationship between them was developed. The way they find common ground and begin to seek out and crave each other’s company felt very natural and wonderfully genderless, if you know what I mean, and after reading a lot of crappy, weirdly misogynistic romance novels, it was very refreshing to see two people become attracted to each other as people. They solve the crime at the novel’s center based on a combination of their respective skills, and I really liked all the scenes where they just…enjoy each other’s competence. The sexual tension is well drawn out in general; Spencer-Fleming makes good use of Russ’ (and possibly her readers’) ignorance about various denominational differences in a fun scene where Russ discovers that no, Clare has not, in fact, taken a vow of celibacy—though that doesn’t change the fact that Russ is married. UST FTW!
As for the mystery plot itself, aside from one “I’ll just follow the instructions in this telephone message of dubious origin and go out to a cabin in the middle of the woods by myself in a snowstorm without telling anyone” moment, which actually had me sending keyboard-mashing IMs to Siria, there aren’t too many bad mystery clichés or examples of terminal character stupidity. Overall, I really enjoyed it, and look forward to reading the next book in the series when my mood rolls around that way again.
As for the mystery plot itself, aside from one “I’ll just follow the instructions in this telephone message of dubious origin and go out to a cabin in the middle of the woods by myself in a snowstorm without telling anyone” moment, which actually had me sending keyboard-mashing IMs to Siria, there aren’t too many bad mystery clichés or examples of terminal character stupidity. Overall, I really enjoyed it, and look forward to reading the next book in the series when my mood rolls around that way again.
January 22, 2020
I received an ARC related to this series from Minotaur Books and thought it would be a good idea to familiarize myself with the characters by reading the first book in the series. This book was a fantastic read. I tried to guess who the murderer was all along but failed. This is a sign of a great book. In this book, we are introduced to Rev. Clare Fergusson, a female priest who just moved in the upstate New York town of Millers Kill, and to Russ Van Alstyne, Chief of Police in the same town. After a baby boy is left at the doors of the church and a young woman is found dead, Clare and Russ team up to try to figure out if the two are related. Their investigation will lead them to many suspects and as they get closer to the truth, danger is also knocking at their doors.
This was a great read and I am looking forward to reading Hid From Our Eyes by the same author.
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March 10, 2021
Is it bad that I totally forgot that I added this to my TBR back in 2016? If not, cool cool - let's forget that I said anything about it. If yes, then oops? My bad!
In the Bleak Midwinter was a pretty interesting mystery book to dive into. Lots of murder to solve and it involves around an abandoned baby. In it, you will meet Reverend Clare and she is the one who found the baby. Not sure why someone figured it would be a smart idea to leave the baby outside the back door but whatever. Horrible people suck.
So when Clare took the baby to the hospital and notified the police, I just knew that I was going to end up liking her. That being said, I was very intrigued to figure out what exactly went down and what was going to come my way.
What I didn't expect was to find a ship between Russ and Clare. For some odd reason, I think of Reverends and such like nuns. They only love god and don't get married (or whatever). It's definitely laughable but that's just what I automatically think of. So it was a nice change of pace for me to enjoy all the chemistry and sparks between her and the chief of police.
Other than that, the twists and turns kept me on my toes and I enjoyed the heck out of this book. Definitely looking forward to the next book in this series!
In the Bleak Midwinter was a pretty interesting mystery book to dive into. Lots of murder to solve and it involves around an abandoned baby. In it, you will meet Reverend Clare and she is the one who found the baby. Not sure why someone figured it would be a smart idea to leave the baby outside the back door but whatever. Horrible people suck.
So when Clare took the baby to the hospital and notified the police, I just knew that I was going to end up liking her. That being said, I was very intrigued to figure out what exactly went down and what was going to come my way.
What I didn't expect was to find a ship between Russ and Clare. For some odd reason, I think of Reverends and such like nuns. They only love god and don't get married (or whatever). It's definitely laughable but that's just what I automatically think of. So it was a nice change of pace for me to enjoy all the chemistry and sparks between her and the chief of police.
Other than that, the twists and turns kept me on my toes and I enjoyed the heck out of this book. Definitely looking forward to the next book in this series!
August 5, 2021
4.5 Stars!
I enjoyed this so much. I finished it in a day. It helps that it was an audiobook and I've been busier than ever driving to appointments and completing a house project. Very conducive to listening time.
I found the mystery compelling and not at all easy to figure out, but I'm also not a regular mystery reader. It's the characters of this town that I found mesmerizing. Main characters Clare and Russ are only one part of it. Although, their relationship was fascinating and I'm clamoring for more of their subtleties and how and where it could be headed.
My one issue in the story would be Clare's hastiness to jump into situations without proper thought of the consequences. Russ was way too easy on her.
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