Book Review: The Alpine Recluse

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Alpine Recluse     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Mary Daheim
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Amateur Sleuth   Woman Main Character   Cozy
Series: Emma Lord # 18
Ballantine, Apr 2006, $23.95, 336 pp.

In Alpine, Washington, editor and publisher Emma Lord works on finalizing this week’s edition of the Alpine Advocate. Tired but excited about the paper that night from her home she saw the orange glow and then heard the sirens. She races to the sight to find an inferno engulfing the new house of Tim and Tiffany Rafferty.

Once the blazing inferno is put out and the house cools down, investigators find a ghastly sight; the corpse of Tim, but the cause of death was a blow to the head before the fire that is now deemed arson based. Sheriff Milo Dodge investigates the death and soon believes the arson was done to hide a murder. Unable to get Emma to stay out of the inquiries, Milo and the newspaper editor begin looking into who had a motive to commit homicide.

THE ALPINE RECLUSE is a fabulous Emma Lord journalistic investigative police procedural tale. The story line is action-packed as Emma and Milo begin their inquiries as both agree that the fire was set to hide the homicide though the arsonist was obviously an amateur fire bug for not understanding how the skull “survive” the inferno. Fans of the series will appreciate Mary Daheim’s hot thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner