12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A rich mystery tale full of dramatic irony, June 24, 2005
Julia Spencer-Fleming's mystery series set in the town of Millers Kill, New York has already won rave reviews, awards, and legions of fans. TO DARKNESS AND TO DEATH, its fourth installment, should bring even more accolades to this deserving series.
Spencer-Fleming's main characters are Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne. As the two inevitably get drawn into solving mysteries in their small town, they also have developed an undeniable romantic attraction. The only problem? Clare is the town's Episcopal priest while Russ is Millers Kill's older, married police chief. The moral complexities of the pair's attraction to each other add a thought-provoking dimension to the series' excellent character development and exquisite plotting.
In TO DARKNESS AND TO DEATH, both Russ and Clare's relationship, and Spencer-Fleming's storytelling skills, are taken to the next level. The author takes the risky move of setting the novel's entire action in a single day, switching rapidly from character to character as she tells her story, often revealing events only through a series of overlapping perspectives. The result is a tale that is rich in dramatic irony, as the reader soon becomes aware of mistaken identities, lies, and misunderstandings that are unapparent to the characters, who do not have the benefit of these multiple perspectives. Despite making the reader feel all-knowing, though, Spencer-Fleming still has some tricks up her sleeves, and will almost certainly still manage to surprise most readers somewhere along the way.
Like other books in the series, this latest installment touches on environmental issues and on small-town politics. This time, a large estate occupied by a mysterious, reclusive burn victim is about to be sold to a large corporation and managed by the Adirondack Conservancy Corporation. The impact on the area's hunters, not to mention its logging companies and paper manufacturers, will be significant. It seems that every businessperson in town has a stake in the future of the land, and that some will go to great lengths to protect their own interests.
Spencer-Fleming has a good understanding of small-town life, and TO DARKNESS AND TO DEATH underscores many of her themes. All the characters seem related in multiple ways, connections that can provide support but also complications. Near the end of the novel, Russ Van Alstyne reflects, "It's true... We are all related. If not by blood, then by bonds we don't even realize. Until they're gone." In her mysteries, Spencer-Fleming offers not only good stories, but also reflections into the nature of human connections and the human heart.
--- Reviewed by Norah Piehl
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exquisite Tension Throughout, September 5, 2006
This review is from: To Darkness and to Death (A Rev. Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
Julia Spencer-Fleming treads a fine line between professional respect and deep passion in her wonderful series featuring Russ Van Alstyne and Clare Fergusson. Like all really accompished series writers, she keeps her readers initimately involved in the struggles of her characters while continuing to create plausible circumstances for an Episcopal priest and small town police chief to be working to solve crimes together. This series has a brilliant take on sense of place, almost as if it were a third character. Well worth recommending.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Where Are Claire and Russ????, September 11, 2005
I have enjoyed this series since the beginning. There is something very unique about Spencer-Fleming's style. She writes her dialogue in a very natural tone. Her characters are well-developed and interesting. The mysteries are challenging without being too complex to figure out.
That said, I have to say this is my least favorite book of the series. I agree with other reviewers on one major point. Russ and Claire are in the background way too much. At one point, there is something like 128 pages between scenes of them together. In that space, there is very little story involving either of them at all. This was very disappointing.
The story itself was not terribly interesting and I found myself having to reread portions just to remember who was who. Honestly, I skipped over many parts because it just got boring and tedious to read. Had Spencer-Fleming used characters we already knew, this might have been a better story. However, she brought in many new characters, of which maybe only one or two were even likable.
The scenes between Claire and Russ were excellent as usual but there just weren't enough of them.
With her first three books, Spencer-Fleming quickly became one of my favorite authors. She still is dispite this disappointing installment. I hope in the next book, the focus is back on the characters that have made me want to continue this series in the first place.
I can't name one author of a series who does not have at least one book that doesn't live up to the rest of the series. Hopefully this will be the only one.
I still recommend this book to her readers in order to keep up on the Russ/Claire storyline.
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