Dead Angler

Doc Osborne is adrift, having lost his wife 2 years earlier. When he is cleaning out his garage, he finds his old fly fishing equipment. He goes to get it appraised, and he is told of its value. His friend then tells Doc he should fish again. Doc agrees, and is pleasantly surprised to be paired with Chief Lew Ferris. However, their outing is cut short when they discover a body floating in the water. Doc realizes that he knows the person, and that it was murder.
What follows is a tale of drugs, greed, and jealously.
So begins the series of Loon Lake mysteries. This is an easy to read novel with an intricate murder mystery. The budding romance between Doc and Lew is sweet.

This is a warm and friendly cozy-leaning mystery which takes place in Loon Lake, Wisconsin. Those who love to fish, either "dancing the fly" or musky fishing, will certainly have fun reading this very good mystery with lots of Wisconsin atmosphere. While it is not necessary to be much of a fisherman to like this series, enthusiasts will probably enjoy it more than others.

Loon Lake is the kind of town where the local MacDonald's isn't just a place to meet in the morning for coffee, but a clearing house for the latest Loon Lake gossip. On any given morning, it's where you can usually find retired dentist Paul Osborne, known simply as "Doc." Loon Lake has a Cabot Cove kind of feel to it, as almost everyone in town is right where they want show more to be.

We’re introduced to Doc’s “out there” good friend Ray Pradt, the best fly fisherman around. Their friendship is given some attention in the narrative, and will add depth to the mystery. Doc's feelings for the town's female sheriff, Lewellyn Ferris, is explored as well. Doc is a musky man, but takes Lew up on her offer to reacquaint him with the joys of fly fishing. When they discover the body of a woman named Meredith, Lew deputizes Doc for his forensic skills.

Doc's old friends soon become suspects, revealing some unexpectedly tangled up relationships. While this definitely is a cozy, there is a dash of unexpected violence that, while not graphic, adds a serious dimension to the mystery portion. For example, someone you were expecting to be a recurring character in the series will not be, making for a sad but exciting ending to the mystery portion of Dead Angler.

As with any cozy, the fun is n getting to the end, getting to know the setting and the characters. Much is revealed about Doc’s past marriage in the first entry, and the lingering effects to his oldest daughter. His buddy Ray meanwhile, wants his fifteen minutes of fame on ESPN. Wisconsin and Loon Lake seem like an additional character in the narrative. The epilog, as the survivors enjoy some burgers smothered under big slabs of Wisconsin cheddar cheese, make this first entry in the series fun for those who like cozies with a lot of atmosphere, and just a little bite. show less

Retired dentist Paul Osborne has gone fly fishing with the female chief of police, Lew Ferris. However, that log they spotted turns out to be the body of one of Doc's daughter's friends who has recently moved back to the area. At first glance, it appears to be a case of accidental drowning until the dentist takes a peak at the girl's mouth and notices that all the gold fillings have been removed after her death. The dentist is quickly deputized by the chief since the usual forensic examiner is out of town. I'm not into fishing, and although it had more references to fishing than I really wanted to read, I still enjoyed this first installment in a promising series. I do wonder how Chief Ferris has so much time for fishing with her job show more and the shortage of deputies. I found myself really liking Chief Ferris although her character is still not fully developed in my opinion and another supporting character named Ray who is certain to figure in future installments. show less

This is the first book in the Loon Lake Fishing Mysteries. It’s almost impossible not to be drawn into a murder mystery where long time friends and acquaintances (of the protagonist) are show to be something other than what they seem on the surface. The characters are “older” for the most part, the dentist turned armature detective (Doc Osborne) is retired and the rest of the main and supporting characters are 45 or older as near as I can tell. In most books that are small town murder mysteries, the lead characters are much younger (mid twenties to mid thirties usually), I enjoyed that because it allowed the characters to have a lot more life experience than normally can be had by any one character without unusual circumstances show more (like being a genius or some resorting to some unrealistic reason for their aptitude and life experience). These are people who haven’t led a life of tragedy…normal, likeable small town folk (who enjoy fishing)…the town and its residents come with the usual quirky characters and the normal jerks…the book is loaded with wonderful visual imagery that is thoroughly enjoyable…half of what makes this book interesting are the descriptions of the fishing locations (and I don’t even LIKE fishing!)…but the mystery itself is as engaging as the characters! I didn’t expect to enjoy this, but I did.

Overall, a fun read. I love that Houston really made a world that feels real and interesting…these aren’t perfect cookie cutter characters, they are flawed, have issues, and actually have lives and interests outside of their “jobs.” It’s rare to find such a wonderful combination of characters, setting, and crime that really feels like it could happen and where the reader feels like Loon Lake is a real place. I give it 4 stars and two thumbs up! I’m looking forward to enjoying more in this series. show less

A cozy mystery - a big part of my enjoyment was the setting in my old northwoods Wisconsin stomping grounds. A tough but appealing female Chief of Police, a retired dentist widower, and the discovery of a body while they're out fly fishing kicks this one off.

Lots of bad guys, lots of good guys, some interesting guys... it was a good read. I might buy others in the series; I KNOW i've read other books by this same author (sometime, somewhere..)

This is what I call an "easy read." Beach type book..... The setting as described the author was beautiful and you came to really love and know the inhabitants of Loon Lake. The mystery was quite easy to solve, though.

I got this book from the library after reading a review on LT (can’t remember whose) because I’m looking for some “new” series mysteries to read next year. I took a break from my Halloween reads yesterday because this is due back soon. This is the first in a series called “Loon Lake Fishing Mysteries” and the first fiction book written by this author. Unfortunately, it shows in her writing both in character development and in plotting. The story was okay and I rather enjoyed the fishing references (including the fishing “lessons”) since in my youth I was quite fond of fishing. A couple of the characters were well done but many seemed to be caricatures rather than real people. Houston also had the habit of “telling the show more reader information about the characters feelings rather than “revealing” this information which interfered with the flow of the story.

Bottom Line: Obviously I didn’t hate this book since I stayed up half the night finishing it, but I found it disappointing. It could have been a much better story in the hands of a more experienced mystery writer. I may try to find one the later books in the series (she has done 10 of them so far) to see if she develops the potential she shows in this first effort. show less