Mood Indigo

Rating:
Summary: Another great book by Charlotte Vale Allen.
Review: I think the part of this book that hooked me was Honoria's energy towards everybody around her. In a time when many people still looked at black people and assumed they were nothing more than hired help, Honoria hired May as her personal assistant and treated her as an equal from day one. When the son of Honoria's best friend comes to her for help (wanting to prove that his fiancee was murdered, and didn't commit suicide) she reluctantly agrees to ask around and see what she can find. Toss in her loyal housekeeper, Mick (her Russian lover who everybody thinks is her husband), and a smattering of other characters and you've got a great story. Aside from the actual story, I liked the fact that the author kept the number of characters minimal so that you didn't have any trouble following who was whom.

Rating:
Summary: Another great book by Charlotte Vale Allen.
Review: I think the part of this book that hooked me was Honoria's energy towards everybody around her. In a time when many people still looked at black people and assumed they were nothing more than hired help, Honoria hired May as her personal assistant and treated her as an equal from day one. When the son of Honoria's best friend comes to her for help (wanting to prove that his fiancee was murdered, and didn't commit suicide) she reluctantly agrees to ask around and see what she can find. Toss in her loyal housekeeper, Mick (her Russian lover who everybody thinks is her husband), and a smattering of other characters and you've got a great story. Aside from the actual story, I liked the fact that the author kept the number of characters minimal so that you didn't have any trouble following who was whom.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome read!
Review: Mood Indigo is my favorite book. The writing is excellent.

Mood Indigo is brilliant; it kept me guessing "who did it" until the end. Usually in mystery books I can tell right off the bat who the killer is. But not this time. And usually I can say at least one thing I didn't like about a book. But not this time.

I highly recommend Mood Indigo to anyone who wants to read a mystery with exceptional characters in a time before the internet and cell phones. I guarantee you will not be disappointment.

Charlotte Vale Allen has written many books, all different, and Mood Indigo is no exception. She makes you care about the characters.

Mood Indigo is a must read for mystery buffs. Once you've read the book you will see why it's my all-time favorite book.

Rating:
Summary: Mood Indigo is my favorite book!
Review: Mood Indigo is my favorite book. The writing is excellent.

Mood Indigo is brilliant; it kept me guessing "who did it" until the end. Usually in mystery books I can tell right off the bat who the killer is. But not this time. And usually I can say at least one thing I didn't like about a book. But not this time.

I highly recommend Mood Indigo to anyone who wants to read a mystery with exceptional characters in a time before the internet and cell phones. I guarantee you will not be disappointment.

Charlotte Vale Allen has written many books, all different, and Mood Indigo is no exception. She makes you care about the characters.

Mood Indigo is a must read for mystery buffs. Once you've read the book you will see why it's my all-time favorite book.

Rating:
Summary: Pure Charlotte Vale Allen - Once Again!
Review: The book starts off lightly, like an evocative Blues song -with a couple of instruments playing, teasing us with a hauntingmelody line. We 'witness' the crime and are introduced to some of the main characters. We don't know them well at this point, but they are intriguing enough to keep us reading, wanting to know more.

In Blues tradition, as each new segment of the song is played, more instruments are added, a few at a time, adding depth and power to the resulting sound, and we don't even realize how subtly we've been drawn into the heart of the music. So it is with "Mood Indigo". These are people we'd like to know (most of them, anyway!), and their lives, both past and present, form a rich tapestry which comes to life as we share with them this frigid winter month in the heart of New York City during a year when a lot of us weren't even born yet. The settings in which they operate and the clothes they wear, as well as the language they use, draw us back into that era.

As the rhythm of this story picks up momentum, all of the players are now in place, interacting with each other in fascinating, surprising ways, giving us entrancing 'solo' action at unexpected moments. Their individual 'melody lines' weave in and out, all headed in the same direction, but traveling in their own unique way. Honoria, who occupies the pivotal position in the story, is all at the same time strong and vulnerable, in control and at the mercy of, loved and feared - wonderfully, powerfully human. She is the rich, underlying 'melody line' throughout the piece, and her commitment and loyalty draw the remaining players along with her, including us as observers to their drama. We follow eagerly, gratified to be involved.

The end of the 'song' is approaching, all the 'players' are in full swing. The mystery has drawn us in, full of surprising twists, giving us clues, so far, but no answers. We proceed quickly, devouring paragraphs in great gulps as the story expands. We attempt to take it all in, not wanting to miss anything along the way. Once everyone's part in the performance has been disclosed to the fullest (in a song), and the characters' roles have been defined, giving us the answers to our questions (in a story), the individuals begin to slowly withdraw from the inner circle, backing away one or two at a time, leaving Center Stage to the one with the lead melody line. "Mood Indigo" follows this path. The music slowly fades in our heads, and the book is reluctantly closed, because we're not yet ready to be finished with either the entertaining 'song' or the remarkable people whose lives we've shared.

From the haunting picture on the cover to the last typewritten line, "Mood Indigo" will captivate its readers, as it gives us yet another pearl to add to our string of Charlotte Vale Allen treasures. I laughed out loud, cried real tears, and was disappointed only by the fact that the end of the story came so soon. My thanks, once again, to the author!

Rating:
Summary: Awesome read!
Review: This is the first book I have read from this author, but will not be the last. I sat down for a short break, thinking I would read a chaper or two, and ended up reading the entire book in one evening. I simply could not remove my self from the world of Honoria. If you are looking for an escape, this is it!

Rating:
Summary: perfectly consummated mystery
Review: Wonderful as always, Charlotte develops and then allows us to explore vivid and complex characters. She weaves an amazing tapestry of a book, starting with only a few colors then leading us on with the promise of more and brilliant additions, and she does not disappoint.

The pace of this book is exactly as a novel should be paced -giving us time to savor yet propelling us to turn the page. There are valuable insights into the reality of abuse even in the setting of the great depression. Add to all of this a perfectly consummated mystery and you have MOOD INDIGO.