Rating: 
Summary: Every weird thing imaginable!
Review: A crucified priest with an astonishing secret! A teen-age girls' cult that idolizes a beautiful film star! A detective whose brother is a priest in the same parish as the crucified one. That same detective's lover is the object of the teen girls' obsession. Those girls being murdered. All this takes place in 1920's New Orleans. This is a great read and the end will blow your mind! I must now read "Mortal Sins." This one was awesome!
Rating:
Summary: Every weird thing imaginable!
Review: A crucified priest with an astonishing secret! A teen-age girls' cult that idolizes a beautiful film star! A detective whose brother is a priest in the same parish as the crucified one. That same detective's lover is the object of the teen girls' obsession. Those girls being murdered. All this takes place in 1920's New Orleans. This is a great read and the end will blow your mind! I must now read "Mortal Sins." This one was awesome!
Rating: 
Summary: Captivating Suspense
Review: A former author of historical romances, Penelope Williamson has successfully transitioned to suspenseful mysteries. Her latest revisits 1927 New Orleans where two teenaged girls have gone missing, and one has been found murdered. Detective Daman Rourke solved this murder when he arrested Titus Dupre, a young black man soon to be executed for his crime. Rourke's investigation of another disturbing murder leads him to an abandoned macaroni factory where he finds local priest Father Patrick Walsh dead from crucifixion . Disturbingly, Father Walsh was a priest at the parish where Rourke's brother Paulie also serves. Rourke's life is further complicated by the fact that his lover, film star Remy Lelourie, is receiving obsessive mail and phone calls from an unknown source. In a bizarre twist, young women keep disappearing, and all of those young women that have either disappeared or been murdered happened to belong to a club that idolized Miss Lelourie. Daman Rourke's sultry New Orleans is brought vividly to life, from the bordellos of the quarter to the mansions of the high society as they divest their hidden secrets. Steamy love scenes between Damon and Remy underscore the free spirit of the 1920's, especially after the repressed sexuality of the Victorian era. And as the two mysteries seem to become intertwined, the suspense is brought to a fever pitch reaching the novel's stunning conclusion.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating Suspense
Review: A former author of historical romances, Penelope Williamson has successfully transitioned to suspenseful mysteries. Her latest revisits 1927 New Orleans where two teenaged girls have gone missing, and one has been found murdered. Detective Daman Rourke solved this murder when he arrested Titus Dupre, a young black man soon to be executed for his crime. Rourke's investigation of another disturbing murder leads him to an abandoned macaroni factory where he finds local priest Father Patrick Walsh dead from crucifixion . Disturbingly, Father Walsh was a priest at the parish where Rourke's brother Paulie also serves. Rourke's life is further complicated by the fact that his lover, film star Remy Lelourie, is receiving obsessive mail and phone calls from an unknown source. In a bizarre twist, young women keep disappearing, and all of those young women that have either disappeared or been murdered happened to belong to a club that idolized Miss Lelourie. Daman Rourke's sultry New Orleans is brought vividly to life, from the bordellos of the quarter to the mansions of the high society as they divest their hidden secrets. Steamy love scenes between Damon and Remy underscore the free spirit of the 1920's, especially after the repressed sexuality of the Victorian era. And as the two mysteries seem to become intertwined, the suspense is brought to a fever pitch reaching the novel's stunning conclusion. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
Rating:
Summary: A True Suspense Novel
Review: Detective Damon Rourke of the New Orleans police force has his work cut out for him...and it's gotten personal. A beloved priest has been crucified in a most horrible way and the autopsy reveals an incredible secret that Father Patrick Walsh never wanted his parishioners to learn of. In order to find out what dark reasons hide behind the motive for Father Patrick's death, Rourke must "shake down" the other priests of Holy Rosary, including his own brother, Father Paul, who is plainly bearing a heavy burden of his own guilt. At the same time, two young girls have been raped and murdered. And the young Negro chimney sweep who has been tried and convicted now faces execution in the newfangled electric chair. But did he really commit the ugly crimes or is he dealing with an occurrence common in the world of 1927 - conviction based on circumstantial evidence and skin color? Closer still to Rourke's own back door are the threats to his girlfriend, popular silent screen actress Remy Lelourie. What starts out with notes written in blood and lipstick escalates into things Rourke doesn't even want to imagine. And is determined to keep from happening. Sleep deprivation is well-known by Rourke as he attempts to unravel the mysteries behind these crimes...even more so when he realizes there may be a tenuous thread connecting them all. Penelope Williamson not only knows how to create suspense, she also has what it takes to involve the readers into the lives of her characters in such a way as to make it possible to care what happens to them. Those combined accomplishments make "Wages of Sin" a difficult book to put down. With practically each chapter, a new possibility is opened up as to what might be driving the person(s) involved in the threats and murders and the tension grows to nearly insurmountable levels. What is touted as the top case, however, is not the one that the reader will find most enthralling. The mystery of the death of Father Patrick Walsh is an interesting one, indeed, but those characters just don't bring out the same emotions as the one surrounding executed seventeen-year-old chimney sweep Titus Dupre. This definitely deserves top billing. Those involved in this particular plot are easier for the reader to empathize with and some aspects are so well described, one will feel like an actual witness to the events. Putting all these factors together adds up to "Wages of Sin" being an excellent read. Williamson definitely has what it takes to compete in this genre.
Rating:
Summary: delightful early twentieth century who-done-it
Review: In 1927, there are few events, including murder, that would shock the residents of New Orleans. Even the recent deaths of teenage fans of silent screen queen Remy LeLourie hardly dent the demeanor of the citizens. However, the crucifix torture killing of Father Patrick Walsh, perhaps the most popular priest in the city, stuns even the most decadent individual. Homicide Detective Damon Rourke leads the inquiries into the murder of Father Walsh. He believes a link exists between that homicide and the rash of female teen deaths who cult worship his lover Remy. He also feels that a connection exists to another crime that has divided the city. He never sleeps as he searches for the thread that will tie these seemingly three different situations together and lead to the culprit(s). Damon finds clue after clue, but the clock ticks with little progress. WAGES OF SIN is a superb historical police procedural that brings alive the 1920s in New Orleans. The story line is no stop action as the workaholic Damon ignores his lover, his daughter, and his health to find the blood line that runs through each case like beads on a necklace. Read very carefully this tale as Penelope Williamson reveals all the clues. However, if not closely followed, the final twist will surprise the audience who will realize that the author hid nothing yet succeeded with a delightful sleight of the hand early twentieth century who-done-it. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: delightful early twentieth century who-done-it
Review: In 1927, there are few events, including murder, that would shock the residents of New Orleans. Even the recent deaths of teenage fans of silent screen queen Remy LeLourie hardly dent the demeanor of the citizens. However, the crucifix torture killing of Father Patrick Walsh, perhaps the most popular priest in the city, stuns even the most decadent individual. Homicide Detective Damon Rourke leads the inquiries into the murder of Father Walsh. He believes a link exists between that homicide and the rash of female teen deaths who cult worship his lover Remy. He also feels that a connection exists to another crime that has divided the city. He never sleeps as he searches for the thread that will tie these seemingly three different situations together and lead to the culprit(s). Damon finds clue after clue, but the clock ticks with little progress. WAGES OF SIN is a superb historical police procedural that brings alive the 1920s in New Orleans. The story line is no stop action as the workaholic Damon ignores his lover, his daughter, and his health to find the blood line that runs through each case like beads on a necklace. Read very carefully this tale as Penelope Williamson reveals all the clues. However, if not closely followed, the final twist will surprise the audience who will realize that the author hid nothing yet succeeded with a delightful sleight of the hand early twentieth century who-done-it. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: I Hated the Ending
Review: The story was great, exciting and so very interesting, but I really really hated the ending.
Rating:
Summary: A lush, noir-like thriller that echoes Hammett and Chandler
Review: The year: 1927
The place: New Orleans
The crimes:
- Father Patrick Walsh is found crucified to death in an empty macaroni factory. Several young girls, all friends, disappear only to then turn up raped, tortured and dead.
- A young black teenager is found guilty of two of the girls' murders and is executed in Louisiana's brand new electric chair.
- Someone with access to every part of her life is stalking Remy Lelourie, a most popular and beautiful silent film star who is shooting a picture in New Orleans, her hometown. Her lover, homicide detective Damon Rourke, is determined to solve the crimes that ultimately force him to confront his own personal demons. WAGES OF SIN by Penelope Williamson (MORTAL SIN, THE OUTSIDER) is a lush, noir-like thriller in the style of Hammett and Chandler. It captures the flamboyant period made famous by flappers and the Charleston. The tale is told in stark prose tempered with "down home" southern inflections. Readers will find themselves almost able to feel, see, smell and hear everything from the stench of the mud flats to the glitter of Bourbon Street; from the noisy, crowded speakeasies to the quiet mansions of the moneyed folks; from the aroma of sizzling catfish to visualizing the sun's brightness as it shines off the yellow patina of the Stutz Bearcat that Detective Rourke drives around town. Williamson spares no detail as she presents the events and characters early in the narrative. This more than sets the stage for the information that follows. And, as readers move into the actual investigations, where all of the puzzle pieces are slowly revealed, the entire picture soon falls into a sharply carved, cohesive whole. While we are given clues and red herrings, in the finest tradition of suspense/mystery novels, few will guess who is responsible for the horrible crimes, so carefully limned is the mystery tale tightly woven into the plot. Most often, genre writers present plot-driven books, especially those who write mystery novels. In WAGES OF SIN, however, Penelope Williamson adds a deeper dimension to an already challenging read, because she offers a glimpse into the feelings and the minds of her characters. A perfect example of her riff into persona is how she portrays the tortured detective Rourke as he relieves his tension: "'Rourke lifted the sax to his mouth, licked his lips, took a tight breath, and then he hit a note that would have left an impression on bone ' [w] hat he played on this night was dark music, and deep, like the ocean, and you felt it in your liver as well as your heart. You heard things in it you'd never heard before, things you weren't sure you wanted to go near." This kind of prose is indicative of Williamson's style: it is literary, full of emotion, deeply insightful and as sharp as a scalpel. This book is full of 'southern gothic' elements, rich in patois and the language so common to hard-boiled detectives of the 1920s. The plot is set up like a series of panels, each part of a whole that begs to be put together and the plot twists are truly inspired. This book is a winner, rich in nuance and overflowing with every element necessary for a terrific, suspenseful read. --- Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum
Rating:
Summary: Great Read
Review: This is the second book about Daman Rourke, a detective in 1920's New Orleans. It's a great "who dunnit". I was completely surprised at the end. What an ending! The characters are so well developed and the suspense keeps building throughout the book. I wanted to give it 5 stars, but there was one hole in the conclusion, I thought a man like Daman would have seen through, although in all honesty I didn't. Read Mortal Sins first, but don't miss this one.
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