Marcia Muller

Finally I found the first in a series! While I originally picked this up for the female-male detective partnership, west coast setting (not New York for once!), and interest in whether the book would be complete historical fiction or actually feature Sherlock Holmes, I ended up reading it in part for research in my ongoing project.

In that respect, I was glad I did--electricity and technology was a bit more advanced than I expected! I'd completely forgotten to think about telephones, and I show more hadn't expected the cable cars to be in operation already in the 1890s. And the fact that Sherlock Holmes is part of the world--Carpenter and Quincannon discuss Doctor Watson's stories in the first chapter--also gave me some ideas about my Frankenstein tie-in.

This was a fun and fluffy book, a good one to read to relax after Paradise Lost. I loved that Carpenter and Quincannon both had their own mysteries to solve--it allowed them both to be equally competent, which would have been an immense challenge if they'd been on the same case. It was fun to see both characters through the others' eyes, and they both had a great balance of silly and serious personal traits and backstories. They both feel very real and fleshed-out after one slim book.

Sherlock Holmes was a fun inclusion, especially when Carpenter and Quincannon are horrified by his methods--you can't housebreak to collect evidence! I wasn't particularly wrapped up in the case itself. The drive came from watching the characters interact and work, not wondering who dunnit or how. That might be a strength or a weakness, depending on how you like your mysteries.

The historical detail was superb, and I was especially appreciative of the descriptions of food--yum! I also liked the way Carpenter's character was handled. She was aware of the casual misogyny in her world, but she knew how to work around it. Most people were very respectful of her as a detective, just the kind of fantasy I need in my life. At the same time, this was not a Disney-style rewriting of history. There were places that Carpenter could not go, men and women who dismissed her. It was a well-handled balance.

I could have done without the romantic "tension", and was glad that it dropped off as the book went along and the plot thickened. Seemed too rote and boringly predictable compared to the rest of the book.

I was also incredibly disappointed by the fact that the male main character went by his last name while the female main character went by her first name--on the chapter headings, no less! This is a basic pervasive inequality: men in professional positions are more likely to be called "Mr" or "Dr" while women in the same positions are more likely to be called by their first names, effectively stripping them of their earned titles. I see and experience this at work all the time.

In sum, a fun quick read. A good escape, nothing too dark, nothing too ludicrously modern. Highly enjoyable, if not substantial. show less

I love anthologies. You can enjoy a fully formed story whenever you have a few spare minutes & It’s such a great way to find new-to-you authors. This volume is in honour of the MWA’s 75th anniversary so it’s only appropriate that all 19 entries have some kind of anniversary to be celebrated. Or not. Because these are crime & mystery writers so don’t go in expecting tales full of roses, cake & karaoke.

The first thing you’ll notice is the stellar line-up of authors. It’s veritable show more who’s who of the genre including Lee Child, Sue Grafton, Jeffrey Deaver, Meg Gardiner, William Kent Krueger, Laura Lippman & S.J. Rozan to name a few. The wide range of style, location & time period guarantees something for everyone. As usual, readers will have different personal favourites & I’ll just mention the ones that stood out for me.

If You Want Something Done Right - by the late, great Sue Grafton. ‘Nuff said.

Ten Years On - a shortie by Laurie R. King featuring May Russell & Sherlock Holmes. I’ve read & loved this series for years so it’s always a pleasure.

Chin Yong-Yun Sets the Date - S.J. Rozan writes the popular Lydia Chin/Bill Smith series but every now & then pens a short story featuring Lydia’s mother, a woman I find frightening & hilarious.

Ten Years, Two Days, Six Hours - the take away message for me was do NOT piss off a woman the day she buries her husband. I’m ashamed to say Wendy Hornsby is a new author for me, something I plan to rectify after reading this.

30 and Out - by Doug Allyn, another author I haven’t read (must crawl out of my cave more often…). A gritty procedural that delivers a gripping & complete story in few pages. And there’s a police dog!

Those were my faves but there’s really not a dud in the bunch. Bring on the next one. show less

The 27th Sharon McCone mystery finds McCone hospitalized, paralyzed by a gunshot wound to the head, in a "locked-in" state, meaning that she can hear, she can think, but she cannot move or talk. At best, she can respond by blinking - once for "yes", twice for "no".

Her colleagues gather to try to find out who attacked her, delving through old files on the not unreasonable assumption that this was likely related to one of her old cases.

Ordinarily, Muller writes from McCone's point of view. show more But because of the situation in which she has placed her protagonist, this book is written from multiple points of view. It's a departure which I found interesting, and which worked, particularly as we also got inside Sharon's head as she responded mentally to what she was being told by others. Muller really captured the frustration that someone who is "locked-in" must feel, particularly if that person is ordinarily as physically and mentally active as McCone. show less

Marcia Muller's Sharon McCone mystery series is deservedly successful and long lived (this is the 34th volume). McCone has evolved and aged in this series, but remains the idealist she was at the start. Muller uses this series to examine issues of our time—in the case of Ice and Stone, she focuses on the ongoing killings and disappearances of First Peoples women in Canada and the U.S. McCone travels to a very conservative—and very snowy in mid-January—northern California county that show more has experienced a number of such deaths and disappearances. The local sheriff not only has no interest in investigating these crimes, but also blocks attempts by other organizations and individuals to investigate.

I'm delighted to see Muller taking on this particular topic in Ice and Stone, it's received far too little coverage, but among the volumes in the series. it isn't one of my favorites. It feels "skeletal," if that makes sense. There are a number of narrative threads: searches for both a murderer and a pair of rapists, a shooting in McCone's San Francisco office, possible drug dealing, sales of illicitly obtained electronic goods, and an attack on McCone where she's investigating. There are many potentially interesting characters: First Peoples, wealthy ranchers, many returning characters from McCone's agency. But somehow, there aren't many moments or characters that pull readers in, something Muller's work generally offers. Instead, the reader jumps from plot element to plot element, character to character, but never has a chance to settle in or with any of them.

Muller's McCone mysteries are always solid reads, but Ice and Stone isn't one of the best, despite the crucial importance of its topic. If you know the series, you'll enjoy Ice and Stone. If you're new to the series, this probably isn't the best volume to start with.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via Edelweiss; the opinions are my own. show less