Weeping (Fritillary Quilter Mysteries)

Rating:
Summary: Weeping: A Fritillary Quilter Mystery
Review: A thoroughly fulfilling debut by a writer with wit and imagination. The characters are colorfully and fully drawn. The vantage point of the fire inspector is totally fresh. I look forward to more Fritillary Quilter adventures. Bravo!!

Rating:
Summary: Weeping
Review: One bit of advice given to people who aspire to become an author, is to write what you know about. The recently published "Weeping", a novel of murder by arson, is an outstanding example of this advice. Shelly Reuben is an experienced fire investigator and her expertise is dramatically displayed throughout the book. If a well known crime author became a best selling crime writer because of her descriptive autopsies, Reuben should soon be a best selling author for authentic arson cases. For example, the reader learns that even the way a building is constructed may affect the behavior of a fire. Equally interesting was her clear presentation of the related area of litigation, particularly that of product liability.Reuben's characters are appealing, very human; thus believable. Tilly is a young, eager, enthusiastic, intuitive and a bit romantic, pron to hero worship. Ike, on the other hand is older, rational, deliberate, sagacious and although tough in spirit, capable of kindness to the weak and innocent. An unlikely pair, they nevertheless compliment each other; together, they provide for a wide range of views, much to the enjoyment of the reader and the advancement of the story. An author (Thomas Wolfe?) once said there is no such thing as pure fiction. Like her knowledge of fires it can be assumed that Reuben's characters are incarnated from her experience of real people. May they long endure in her novels

Rating:
Summary: Weeping
Review: This was one of the most enjoyable mysteries I've read in a long, long time. Reuben's character, Tillary, was most engaging and I had to laugh so many times at this author's witty writing, and wry humor. Especially when describing her character's feelings and thoughts. I found the fire investigation details fascinating, as well, and it was the treat at the end of my day to sit down with "Weeping" and savor a good old-fashioned mystery!!!
Looking forward to the next one . . .