In the Bleak Midwinter - SFBA Book Club

eBook, 272 pages

English language

Published April 1, 2010 by St. Martin's Paperbacks.

ISBN:: 978-1-4299-0905-1
OCLC Number:: 1155178450
Goodreads:: 75020130

(1 review)

It's a cold, snowy December in the upstate New York town of Millers Kill, and newly ordained Clare Fergusson is on thin ice as the first female priest of its small Episcopal church. The ancient regime running the parish covertly demands that she prove herself as a leader. However, her blunt manner, honed by years as an army pilot, is meeting with a chilly reception from some members of her congregation and Chief of Police Russ Van Alystyne, in particular, doesn't know what to make of her, or how to address "a lady priest" for that matter.

The last thing she needs is trouble, but that is exactly what she finds. When a newborn baby is abandoned on the church stairs and a young mother is brutally murdered, Clare has to pick her way through the secrets and silence that shadow that town like the ever-present Adirondack mountains. As the …

It's a cold, snowy December in the upstate New York town of Millers Kill, and newly ordained Clare Fergusson is on thin ice as the first female priest of its small Episcopal church. The ancient regime running the parish covertly demands that she prove herself as a leader. However, her blunt manner, honed by years as an army pilot, is meeting with a chilly reception from some members of her congregation and Chief of Police Russ Van Alystyne, in particular, doesn't know what to make of her, or how to address "a lady priest" for that matter.

The last thing she needs is trouble, but that is exactly what she finds. When a newborn baby is abandoned on the church stairs and a young mother is brutally murdered, Clare has to pick her way through the secrets and silence that shadow that town like the ever-present Adirondack mountains. As the days dwindle down and the attraction between the avowed priest and the married police chief grows, Clare will need all her faith, tenacity, and courage to stand fast against a killer's icy heart.

In the Bleak Midwinter is one of the most outstanding Malice Domestic winners the contest has seen. The compelling atmosphere-the kind of very cold and snowy winter that is typical of upstate New York-will make you reach for another sweater. The characters are fully and believably drawn and you will feel like they are your old friends and find yourself rooting for them every step of the way.

4 editions

Phil in SF reviewed In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming (Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne, #1)

Starts off great, but doesn't stick the landing

3 stars

Clare Fergusson is a new Episcopal priest in Miller's Kill when she finds a baby in a box on the steps of her church with a note that the baby should be adopted by prominent parishioners who have wanted a child for ages. Russ Van Alstyne is the Miller's Kill police chief. After Fergusson requests a ride-along, the two stumble on the body of a young woman (and presumed father of the child) when patrolling the local hangout where kids go to drink.

Van Alstyne is the kind of officer I normally like in police procedurals, steady and methodical. Fergusson is not. She inserts herself in the investigation in ways that no cop would allow, messes things up, runs off without thinking things through (multiple times) putting people in danger. The reader is lead to believe that Van Alstyne is competent because of his demeanor, but multiple times Fergusson figured …

Clare Fergusson is a new Episcopal priest in Miller's Kill when she finds a baby in a box on the steps of her church with a note that the baby should be adopted by prominent parishioners who have wanted a child for ages. Russ Van Alstyne is the Miller's Kill police chief. After Fergusson requests a ride-along, the two stumble on the body of a young woman (and presumed father of the child) when patrolling the local hangout where kids go to drink.

Van Alstyne is the kind of officer I normally like in police procedurals, steady and methodical. Fergusson is not. She inserts herself in the investigation in ways that no cop would allow, messes things up, runs off without thinking things through (multiple times) putting people in danger. The reader is lead to believe that Van Alstyne is competent because of his demeanor, but multiple times Fergusson figured out key answers in the investigation that Van Alstyne should have figured out. For instance, somehow the police don't search the victim's residence until much later, and the police questioning of her roommates is half-assed at best.

It's a first book though, so I'll read the second at least to see if the first book flaws are less an issue in book 2. Also, I already have it in my library so I might as well.

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Passes the "Bechdel Test"