Winter's Child
by Margaret Maron
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Book Reviews of Winter's Child
Book Review: It's all about pride
Summary: 5 Stars
There are two murder mysteries in this novel. They may seem unrelated, but when motives are established, a common thread appears.
The one death involves a man who was disliked by almost everyone. He abused his wife, consorted with other women (at least one of whom was married to someone else), picked fights, and generally gave a lot of people reasons to kill him. I suspected the killer, but could not see a motive until the end.
The second death involves Dwight's ex-wife. A generally well thought of woman from a good family who did work in the community and was a member of local society. What secret was there in her life. I did not have a clue until the surprising (at least to me) conclusion of the story.
Dwight leaves the first case to his deputies back in North Carolina, while he goes to Viginia, at first in response to a strange call from his eight-year-old son Cal, then staying when Cal turns up missing and his ex-wife turns up dead. As the case unwinds, there are questions of realities vs. wannabe. People can lead sham lives, giving people false impressions.
The cases involve pride, and secrets in people's lives. It was a little slow going at first, but when I got further into the novel, it was harder to put down. Everyone is not who they seem, even historic figures.
Deborah does end up with a stepson to care for (and a dog) promising changes in her life.
I have read the novels in this series out of order, but they read well as stand alone novels.
Book Review: Great weekend/beach/airplane reading -- and 2 mysteries in one book!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of those mysteries that you wish you could find more of, where you hate to put it down and look forward to getting back to it. It's part of a series involving Judge Deborah Knott, a woman in North Carolina who -- at the time of this book -- has just married Dwight, a long-time friend, who works in law enforcement. He has an 8-year-old son from a previous marriage.
The book begins with a shooting on a rural road that Dwight investigates. A man with a lot of enemies is shot as he drives down the road. Then the book switches to a story line involving the 8-year-old, Cal. Cal lives in Virginia but calls his father begging him to drive up so he can be at some event at his school the next day. Dwight drops everything and goes (of course, with a murder under investigation, one wonders why and if this would happen in real life). Dwight discovers when he's there that Cal's mother is nowhere to be found -- and the mystery then becomes, where is she?
The book moves back and forth between these two mysteries, with the story being told from the point of view of different characters, but not in a way that I found jarring or annoying. Although I guessed the "twist" about halfway through the book for the shooting, the other mystery was harder to work out.
I look forward to reading the next book in the series. I thoroughly enjoyed this well-written mystery.
Book Review: A treat for the true Knott fan
Summary: 4 Stars
This installment in the Deborah Knott mysteries is not the first book you will want to read in the collection. Your full enjoyment of the story relies on your familiarity with past characters and situations. But, for long-time readers, and lovers of the series, it is a true treat. So often authors of continuous series of mystery novels don't let their characters grow. Not the case with Maron. I have thoroughly enjoyed following Judge Knott's live and loves, as well as the cases she tidies up along the way. But Deborah is changing. The author needed to more fully develop her new role as wife. Also Dwight was just a footnote in previous books (other than Rituals of the Season). We needed to understand more about Dwight, and it will be a joy to see him take a more active role in future books.
As other reviewers have noted, the plots of these books are not always the focus or the strength of these stories' appeal - it's the characters and the settings. This is also true of this installment. But the central plot involving Dwight's ex-wife is stronger than many in previous stories.
This is a great summer read, especially if you are a fan of the series. I put the new Stephanie Plum book down after 50 pages because I was bored with the same old stuff and decided to read this one! I am glad I did.
Book Review: A Duo of Southern Murders to Chill the Reader
Summary: 5 Stars
Newly married Deputy Dwight Bryant gets landed with a chilling duo of murders to investigate. The first is the vexed question of who shot J.D. Rouse in his pickup truck, and there are a lot of suspects because he was a wife beater and a troublemaker. Then before he can come to grips with this, he gets a disturbing phone call from his son by his first wife. When he arrives in Virginia in the small town where his ex-wife grew up, he discovers the boy has been alone all night. He's both steamed and disturbed. Whatever her faults, his ex-wife was an excellent, careful mother. He reports her disappearance to the police and swings by her house to pick up clothes for his son. The boy lets his dog out and when Dwight is still checking the house for clues, the boy vanishes.
This mystery is a little different from others in the Deborah Knott series in the split focus between the usual suspects in North Carolina and the chilling mystery that cuts very close to Deborah's heart in attacking her stepson and her new husband. Highly recommended.
Book Review: Not a lot of drama, but satisfying
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the third Maron book for me, and although it was not pulsating with tension, it was enjoyable and satisfactory. The mystery concerning the dead man in the truck was a good foil for the other mystery of a dead woman in a car. It added local color and gave a sense of business as usual instead of having everything depend upon the cleverness of one character. Jonna was well-drawn and it is clear to me why the marriage failed. She was a conscientious worker, a loyal daughter, and a good mother. Her taste was traditional and her compulsion for neatness did not correspond with Deborah's, but she was not a vixen. I would have preferred that the author explore Dwight's feelings more deeply, and the child's reactions were stilted. We shall see what develops when they are all back home again.