Rating: 
Summary: style not substance
Review: I was glued to this book on a vacation at the beach until the last chapter then sorely let down thinking I had missed something after all the build up, all the subtle nuance, the supressed eroticism that preceeded it. I think the author needs a bit more experience in setting up a plot and bringing it to a satisfying conclusion, even though I was enthralled with the descriptions of early 20th century Vienna, forensic and psychology research of that era, curious ideas about sexuality and especially female sexuality, and the tidbits of gypsy lore. Like other reviewers, I think this begs for a sequel with Erzebet and Wally. I haven't seen this brought up but there is a real homoerotic subtext in Wally's feelings for and dependence on Erzebet, which would make for a good continuing plot concept. This is a good writer who needs some assistance in following through.
Rating: 
Summary: Literary and atmospheric but uneven
Review: Literary, well-written and atmospheric, Jody Shields' first novel is the story of a young girl's murder in 1910 Vienna. It's also the exploration of a marriage and the changing, repressive culture of the city and relations between the sexes.Dora, the daughter of respectable people, was murdered in a public park. In her stomach is the remains of a fresh fig, hastily eaten, a fruit unavailable in Vienna in August. The unnamed inspector's wife, Erszebet, a painter, is brought in to make up the corpse and becomes obsessed with the dead girl. Erszebet, a passionate Hungarian, steeped in gypsy lore and superstition, has just returned from an exhausting bout of nursing a servant girl who died. "...this was her patient, returned to her. She was cold Lazarus." Certain that the fig is the key, that Dora knew her killer to eat a fig with him, Erszebet enlists the help of a young English governess, Wally, to search for the tree, which must grow locally and must be found before the first snow when it will be wrapped and buried to keep it alive until spring. Meanwhile the inspector, an adherent of "rationalist criminology" interviews family and friends, exploring inconsistencies for "what is unspoken remains most powerful." His wife's unspoken acitivities loom ever larger between them. The inspector notes small details that warn of a secret in his wife's life, details that would escape most men. Tensions build in the marriage through silence. It's all very intriguing but as the book progresses, questions clamor in the reader's mind. The observant inspector completely ignores the vital clue of the fig. Why? And how does a middle-aged, syphilitic, autocratic burgher (Dora's father) get to be so attractive to women? Why doesn't the inspector have a name? He is certainly an individual and often more sympathetic than his prickly wife. The book abounds with sensuality and repugnance. As part of a vow, Erszebet starves herself and feeds her husband sumptuous dishes. She forces Wally into role playing and housebreaking. Though resentful, Wally remains in thrall to Erszebet and discovers the liberation of passing as a boy. Shields explores the oppression of women as a catalyst for male depravity and female hysteria. Meanwhile the inspector becomes ever more morose while Erszebet grows more powerfully mysterious. Ultimately, the enigmatic second half does not live up to the vitality of the first half and the ending is bizarre.
Rating:
Summary: Rich in local color & gypsy folklore - interesting
Review: While the search for Dora's murderer is the central focus of the story, the book effectively brings to life Viennese society of 1910. Methodically taking the reader on a tour of the city, it's cafes, mouthwatering ethnic foods,and gypsy folklore, the search for the killer proceeds slowly as the Inspector applies the latest science to solve the case. His wife, Ersebeth,mirrors the official inquiry with her own secret and lore driven search for the killer. The book is richly detailed but the ending is rather abrupt. We never know the exact circumstance which led to Dora's consumption of the figs. Yet figs play a major role in the story. Also, I wondered if refrigerators were available in Vienna in 1910 for the preservation and freezing of evidence? Did they also have flashlights at that time? I enjoyed the book not as a mystery novel but because it was well written and descriptive of matters other than crime. Although rich in detail, none of the characters were sharply drawn.Except for Erzebeth and her husband, they remained shadowy and vague and one never got to know them or care about them very much. Promising a lot in the beginning, the ending failed to satisfy. However, I still believe it is worth reading even if it did not deliver all it had to offer. Maybe next time!
Rating: 
Summary: A talented wordsmith but the book's a bit of a yawn
Review: Turn-of-the-century Vienna is effectively re-created for readers - and that's the only reason that I've decided to give this book one star. I can't really think of any other positives to say. Sure, it's got great detail and the writer has obviously done her research, but minutiae do not a novel make. Added to the novel's crawling (some would call it "deliberate") pace are unremarkable characters that I found myself not caring very much about. All in all, a disappointing debut from a writer with a flair for language.
Rating:
Summary: Atmospheric and intelligent
Review: The details of criminal investigations in historical Vienna are fascinating enough to make this book worth reading. Shields undertakes a study of photographic methods, of investigative techniques - both official and gypsy - and winds them into an intriguing plot. Of all the characters in this book, the Inspector's wife Erszebet stands out as an exceptionally interesting woman who ferociously guards her secret life. She is the perfect vessel for Shields to portray gypsy culture, and she steals the show. I was intrigued by her relationships with her husband and with Wally, but disappointed that those relationships never seemed to reach a proper climax. However, that may just be the way of Erszebet, a fascinating lady worthy of a sequel.
Rating:
Summary: Promising writer, weak book
Review: Nothing really special here, although I do think Shields could write a better second book with some solid editorial guidance. It's obvious she didn't get any here. The book starts off strong, then quickly loses steam as the overripe descriptions of period Vienna eventually suffocate and flatten the mystery. The author has an interesting voice. Too bad it's wasted in this flawed and somewhat forgettable first effort.
Rating:
Summary: INTERESTING
Review: BEAUTIFUL DESCRIPTIONS AND MYSTERIOUSNESS OF GYPSY LIFE COULD NOT SAVE THE ENDING. THERE WAS SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON THE 'FIG' BUT NO RESOLUTION. BAFFLING.
Rating:
Summary: The Fig Eater
Review: I thought for a first book this was quite well done. Ms. Fields is a very good writer and is particularly adept at creating a keen sense of time and place....in this case, early 20th century Vienna. The book, of the historical crime/mystery genre, is very atmospheric and Ms. Shields creates a world filled with brooding mystery. Unfortunately, I found her characters flat and unbelievable. Because they seemed unremittingly two-dimensional, they never came alive for me. And I thought the ending was just plain silly. Somehow, I think this will make a better movie than it does a novel (I've heard that a well-known film company has already bought the rights)....but they'll have to come up with a new ending.
Rating: 
Summary: Vivid exploration of love and death
Review: Minute attention to visual detail brings turn of the century Vienna (the Vienna of Freud and Wittgenstein) to life: shop in the open markets, sip coffee in the cafes, stroll magificient parks, wonder amidst monumental architecture. The city is virtually another character in this book. A suggestion: read this novel not as a turn of the century crime story (for me the muder mystery plot does not work so well here), nor as a psychoanalytic expose' (the victim was a famous patient of Dr. Freud's). Read it instead as an exploration of intimacy between two exceptionally single-minded and exceedingly different individuals (the nameless Inspector and his wife Erszebet). An exploration of difference infused with eros. A relationship in stark contrast to the detached and sterile marital triangles engaged in by Dora's father. A family system dysfunctional enough to drive Dora to Freud's couch and eventually to her death.
Rating: 
Summary: An Entertaining and Peculiar Page Turner
Review: I couldn't get my nose out of this once I started. It's a crime novel, with vivid descriptions of turn-of-the century Vienna, a methodical inspector who reminds me of Sherlock Holmes, and his intuitive wife - working secretly, and with more occult methods, on the same strange case. Lots of twists, turns and strange, illuminating mental pictures keep your mind working in several directions, as you try to figure out the answers. The details are vivid and at the same time obscure, and worked well to give me the general creeps as I plowed through this unusual, engaging book. I liked it.
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