Murder at Five Finger Light

Jessie Arnold & Alex Jensen #11

by Sue Henry

The Jessie Arnold mysteries offer “real thrills set against the wild beauty of Alaska” ( Minneapolis Star-Tribune )—and this time, Jessie unscrambles a deadly puzzle along the Alaskan Inside Passage… Two of Jessie’s friends are throwing a party at their new digs—an old lighthouse on the Alaskan Inside Passage. Not a party in the typical sense, but one where guests earn their keep by scraping, painting, and generally restoring Five Finger Light, named after the long, low islands around it. So Jessie decides to leave her partner-in-crime, Alex, alone for a few days and lend a hand. With the company of old friends and a view to die for, Jessie won’t soon forget this weekend—especially when she stumbles across a dead body. Looks like an accident. But even as a frantic Alex learns that someone’s cut the phone lines and wrecked the radio, Jessie realizes there’s a killer loose on the island. Worse yet, the killing spree might not be over—even though the party certainly is....

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Outdoors, Crime

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Sue Henry is the author of 17 novels in two award-winning Alaska mystery series. Her first book, "Murder on the Iditarod Trail" (1991), was well reviewed and won both the Macavity Awards and Anthony Awards for best first novel, prompting the author to develop a series based on this book's characters, Alaskan state trooper Alex Jensen and Jessie Arnold, a sled dog racer.

In 2005, she started a new mystery series featuring a 63-year-old widow, Maxine McNab, travelling in her Winnebago with a miniature dachshund, Stretch. Maxine had appeared in Dead North (2001) in the first series.

Murder on the Iditarod Trail was filmed for television as The Cold Heart of a Killer (1996) starring Kate Jackson, who bought the rights to the book. Sue Henry lived in Alaska for more than a quarter of a century, and brought history, Alaskan lore, and the majestic beauty of the vast landscape to her mysteries. She also taught writing at the University of Alaska, Anchorage.

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this mystery to be rather predictable and although there was some interesting information on Alaska it was not enough to reuse the book. The chapters did not engage me and I would not recommend the book.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this entry in the series. I’m so glad Alex is back. This mystery was good and I enjoyed the lighthouse/island setting.

[Carol Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is part of a series about Jessie Arnold, a detective who is a dog sled racer. However, this story takes places in Alaska's southeastern islands, far from the Iditarod.
There is plenty of Alaskan atmosphere, but the mystery is ordinary and so are the characters. Jessie has a boyfriend who is an Alaska state trooper. She goes off without him to help friends restore a lighthouse on an island. A mysterious woman is fleeing from a man. It was an okay read, but I wasn't excited.

[Diana Maculan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jessie is invited to help out at the restoration of a lighthouse. While en route she meets Karen and helps her after hearing her story. Story was a bit slow during all of this.Picked up somewhat once they were at Five Finger Light. A dead body is found and the mystery/suspense builds when Jessie and the others find themselves trapped on the island. A quick read and an okay book. I wanted to like the story and characters more, but something was lacking.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really should write a full review for this one, but since I won’t be posting reviews for every book in this series on booksta for it, I’m not going to.

Quick & simple: I love Jessie & Alex, and this whole series, and I do enjoy this one! I loved re-reading this one and remembering nearly all of it but not quite everything, and it was fun to read it from that angle of knowing who was involved! Loved getting to see Laurie & Jim again, and learning more about lighthouses in SE Alaska!

[Clyde W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ultimately very satisfying mystery

Loved the book after the first few pages. At the beginning, the author used such long, wordy paragraphs that I had to reread a couple times to follow her narrative. Also not quite enough background to allow one to understand the relationship of the main characters, as I haven’t read all the preceding books.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the story. Good information about the lighthouse. Too many strange happenings and no one sharing the information or asking to leave the island - think most people would have talked more about what they saw, etc. Good characters, good information about Jessie and Alex, the dogs, etc. I'll keep reading

[Nancy Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the main character, but Karen irritated me through the whole book.

The fact that the first murder didn't happen until very late in the book also irritated me.

It was also difficult to keep the characters straight once the story really started.

Other than those things, this was well written and gripping - I couldn't put it down.

[Bob Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting mystery

This was an interesting mystery set in a lighthouse with a number of twists and turns. I think I liked a few of the earlier books better but it was still an enjoyable read.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the Alaska location of this book. The geography and the characters were well done and authentic. The story was a little weak towards the end and caused me to give it three stars rather than four.

[Katy M · Rating 3 out of 5]

2022 Pop Sugar Reading Challenge-a book that takes place during our favorite season (late summer/ea.rly fall).

Gets off to a real slow start. No murder until halfway through the book. Fairly engaging after that

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

It's been a long time since I read any of the Jessie Arnold books, but I found this to be very enjoyable. It fits perfectly in my sweet spot for mysteries - not cutsey cozy but also not gruesome. I need to keep going with the series...

[TAMMY · Rating 3 out of 5]

kind of slow and predictable but an easy read

[Wendy Hellwig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read. Nice descriptions of Alaska. Enjoyable.

[Donna M Gracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Addicting!!

Another great Jessie Arnold mystery!!! Once I start reading I can't stop. Sue Henry is addictive. Happy to own all her books!

[Tomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one keeps you guessing until the end. Alex is back in Jessie's life, but once again she proves that she can look after herself. This book series makes me want to move to Alaska.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mystery. Kept me engaged wondering till the end. Love Jessie Arnold mysteries.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

While boarding a train in Alaska I spotted this book and decided if I’m in Alaska I should read Alaska. Lots of good information,fun read.

[Elsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure why, but I had a hard time getting into this book, just couldn't seem to enjoy the characters.

[Clyde · Rating 3 out of 5]

good addition to the series

[Dorothy Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story takes place in an interesting Alaska location. The mora: be careful who you invite to an isolated, barely accessible island.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

entertaining, not really my favorite genre

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always the descriptions of Alaska are interesting and informative.

[Renee Panning · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wonder at lighthouses and their history but this book left me skimming pages and resigned to going to the ending. Way too many details that seemed like book filler to me.

[Sarah Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed it but perhaps would have enjoyed it more if I had read previous books.

[Marguerite Mumford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable and simple. An easy and fun book to read. Perfect if you are getting ready to visit Alaska.

[Sherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A look at Alaska's southern islands.

[Jenny Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love all Sue Henry books!

[Lydea Lowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! Great suspense and description used. I loved the Alaska setting. Good plot twist at the end.

[BrkrDave · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amateurish. Foreshadowing made me laugh out loud. Last Sue Henry book I will be reading.