High Country Fall: A Deborah Knott Mystery

Rating:
Summary: High Enjoyment for Maron's readers
Review: About this time next year, we can expect to see a trio of mystery heroine weddings. Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon, Marcia Muller's Sharon McCone and now Margaret Maron's Deborah Knott all are strong women headed for the altar. We've had some great wedding scenes -- Susan Wittig Albert married off China Bayles in a cascade of lavender and Susan Conant created a dog-loving wedding for Holly Winter. Let's see if these three can live up to their predecessors.

I'm rooting for Deborah Knott. In High Country Fall, Knott finds herself caught up in a puzzling case while she substitutes for a judge in a small High Country town. Hearing a murder case, Deborah finds probable cause to bind the young suspect, but she doesn't believe he's guilty. A second murder confirms her hunch: the method is similar and this time the suspect has a tight alibi.

The solution to the murders hinges on a twist of partnership agreements that Deborah knows from her own experience. As other reviewers noted, the author plays fair: we could have followed a trail of clues, but they're not really obvious. We're also provided with a clever and amusing subplot involving Deborah's twin cousins.

This mystery is about as cozy as they come. There's not much suspense. Author Maron takes liberties available to authors writing their tenth mystery: The climactic suspense episode is not related to the main mystery, although Deborah emerges with the clues neatly arranged in her own mind.

As a small-town dweller (and we *do* have a Wal-Mart), I am amazed at mystery heroines who manage to find not only great men -- good-looking, smart and sensitive -- but also great restaurants with perfectly mixed drinks. It makes for good reading but, alas, also a bit of skepticism on the part of some of us readers.

I suspect most readers will read High Country Fall not for plot but for a chance to spend time with Deborah Knott. She's brilliantly drawn, a combination of southern upbringing and contemporary lifestyle. She's totally unpretentious and down-to-earth. And she's got that wonderful family all over the state, flawed but fascinating and always ready to help one another. Deborah's smart without being intellectual. She has a rich exterior life and an astute social sense. And she's strong.

Can she and Dwight live happily ever after? We'll have fun finding out.


Rating:
Summary: Murders among the fall foliage
Review: Deborah Knott has announced her engagement to old friend Dwight Bryant and her extended and very large family are driving her crazy by celebrating at every turn. When she is offered the opportunity to head to the mountains and fill in for another judge, she jumps at the chance. Looking forward to the beauty of the fall foliage, she is chagrined to discover that there has been a murder in the beautiful little town of Cedar Gap. All of the evidence points to the victim's daughter's boyfriend, but his friends, including Deborah's twin nieces, defend him vigorously. Another murder ensues and Deborah begins to suspect that there is a conflict of interests between the long-time residents, those who buy summer homes in the area, and some of the developers and real-estate people in the area. Deborah does some scouting around and puts herself in danger when she crosses a young teenager during a trial. She also begins to have doubts about Dwight when a handsome local DA begins to show interest in her. With her usual blend of Deborah's personal and professional life, Margaret Maron spins another interesting story in this series.

Rating:
Summary: A Smooth Tale about Family, Love and Tribulations
Review: For me, the best mysteries are those that are more like fine novels than mysteries. The mystery just adds a little spice to the novel in those cases rather than being the center point of everything. Margaret Maron has succeeded in crossing that important line into being a novelist with this book. Her lead character, Judge Deborah Knott, continues to develop and surprise . . . even herself. If you have liked any of the books in the series, you will enjoy this one.

As the book opens, Deborah has reluctantly agreed to a marriage of convenience with her childhood friend and recent lover, Dwight Bryant, whom you have met in earlier books in the series. She's got the ring, but she's not excited about the prospects. It's all so unromantic! Not knowing what to do as well-wishing friends and relatives tell her, "I told you so," Deborah decides she needs time to herself.

It just so happens that a small county in the Smokies needs a substitute judge for a week on short notice. Deborah takes the opportunity to be by herself. This places her in the middle of a tony vacation community where comparing the prices of real estate and playing music are the main occupations. Happily, her twin cousins are going to visit while she stays at their parents' condo.

But everything is just a little off. The cousins aren't where they should be when they should be. The telephone is off the hook. Deborah finds herself feeling alone and abandoned. When a chance to socialize happens, she takes a chance to make some music . . . and finds herself in the middle of a local mystery. The mystery develops from several perspectives, including those of her as a judge and as an amateur detective. You won't have any trouble solving the mystery, but you'll enjoy reading how the story develops.

The book's overall theme is that favorite question of novelists: What's life really for? We don't often take time to think about it, but the characters in the book do. I hope you will follow their lead and do the same.

The book's main weakness is that Ms. Maron provides much too much background information so you'll be able to figure out the mystery, and this makes the story both bulky and too obvious at the same time.

The book's strength is in exploring what family, love and tribulations are all about . . . and how to deal with them. If any of those themes are favorite ones of yours, you won't mind the weaknesses in the mystery writing part of the novel.

Another strength is in capturing dialogue and internal self-talk in convincing and compelling ways. Ms. Maron has a finely tuned ear for the oral and mental word. Nice!

This is a nice, heart-warming story. I wish more authors could produce novels like this one.


Rating:
Summary: Add this series to the Must-Read List if you haven't already
Review: I picked up this book on a whim, based on the simple cover graphics (a sugar maple leaf in four stages of autumn color), the setting (the North Carolina mountains) and the title (I like both mountains and autumn). What a good decision! I love reading mysteries, and this one meets every criteria I can think of to make a good, entertaining, and suspenseful read. Other reviewers have spoken about the plot, so I need not address it. Suffice it to say that Judge Deborah Knott is an independent woman of a sensible age who is intrigued by crime and murder even when she's not on her home turf. All of the characters here are believable and likable -- at least, at first -- and they talk like people do in real life. Maron's descriptions paint such complete scenes that I could picture the town of Cedar Gap fully: the streets, the businesses, the big MacMansions built by the Florida seasonals. I spent such an enjoyable time in Cedar Gap that I must go back and read the other nine Deborah Knott novels, in order. Perhaps by the time I'm caught up, another one will be waiting on the shelf...

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Awesome
Review: Margaret Maron continues her series of the Southern Judge, with an excellent book. Trying to get some time away from her family, who are just thrilled about her wedding plans, Judge Knott takes a temporary job in a different community.. She uses a condo, which also has some of her cousins staying there, and they are up to something. Of course, a murder occurs, and the judge is off and running. THe end of the book provides a very welcome surprise. I think this book is very well done, with all the characters we're used to, and some good Southern Humor. This author has not dropped off at all, like some of the other series authors have done this year.

Rating:
Summary: fascinating crime thriller
Review: Since Judge Deborah Knott has not found love or lasting passion with anyone, she agrees to marry her childhood friend Deputy Sheriff Dwight Bryant for practical reasons like good sex and companionship. His and her relatives are happy for them; making such a big deal of the upcoming nuptials that Deborah wants to escape from the wedding talk. She gets her chance when she is called in to substitute for the judge in Cedar Gap, which is five hours away from where she lives.

One of her first cases when she arrives is the arraignment of Daniel Wayne Freeman in the death of Dr. Carlyle Grayson Ledwig. Although Danny passes for white, he is part black and the victim did not want him to marry his daughter. There is enough evidence to bind him over for trial but when Norman Osborne is killed in an identical manner and Danny has an alibi, the authorities believe they were too quick to judge him and set out to find a killer who has struck twice.

Margaret Maron once again delivers a fascinating crime thriller that grabs and keeps reader interest. The judge does not play an active role in finding the killer but when she is trapped in a car after an accident, the identity of the killer comes to her. Her antics to escape nuptial bliss is amusing and brings to life the closeness of small town living.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: Another winner for Margaret Maron
Review: The Judge Deborah Knott books by Margaret Maron are among the most popular, and the most award-winning, titles in mystery fiction. Interesting family dynamics, some darned good-sounding food, real characters, humorous asides, introduction to various North Carolina industries (like pottery and furniture) and of course puzzling mysteries, have built Maron's following. Her readers will not be disappointed at all in HIGH COUNTRY FALL, which takes her temporarily from Colleton County to the high Smokies in the busy fall tourist season. We visited this area during the foliage season a couple of years ago and returning via these pages was a real pleasure. The mystery solution took me by surprise, but when I looked back, the clues were sure all there. Deborah is questioning, however, her recent engagement to Dwight Bryant, and the deputy plays only a very small role in this series entry. All in all, a very satisfying read. And I want the recipe for Granny Knott's baked toast.