Death Down Home [Board book]

Sandstrom (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 28, 1990

In this Sam and Nicky Titus mystery, the newlyweds spend their honeymoon in Holton, Oklahoma, where Sam's father suffers a mysterious accident and Sam's brother disappears without a trace. Reprint. PW. K.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Readers must brave their way through some initially flat prose in Sandstrom's mystery debut as they meet a cast of small-town Oklahomans with motives for murder. Once the story swings into gear, however, Sandstrom unravels an intriguing plot with an exciting climax and satisfying resolution. Photographer Nicky Titus accompanies her new husband, military detective Sam, on leave to the small Oklahoma town where he grew up. A Nancy Drew type, Nicky is at first cowed by her new role in the clannish community, especially when she tries to work side by side with Sam to discover the attempted killer of her father-in-law and the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of her brother-in-law. She learns in short order that Sam prefers not to involve her in his investigation; when she presses him for details, he becomes rejecting and silent. In fashioning the plot so that Nicky must try to understand the reasons for her husband's secretive behavior, Sandstrom runs the risk of losing reader interest by making Sam boorish and taciturn. The couple is no Nick and Nora; readers should not expect entertaining banter. But Sam's bad humor dissolves in the face of Nicky's charming tenacity and the newlyweds solve the crime together, while grasping the true depth of their relationship.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Sandstrom introduces a new series with the newlywed sleuthing team of army captain Sam Titus and photographer/wife Nicky. Family tragedy sends them to Holton, Oklahoma, where Sam struggles with the ramifications of his father's debilitating "accident," the disappearance of his brother Bill, and various financial difficulties facing the family ranch. While Sam investigates, Nicky worries about his perpetual cold shoulder, but manages to take some crucial photos that advance the plot. The prairie setting works well enough, but bland prose, trite characters, and tepid suspense hardly make a visit worthwhile.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Board book: 256 pages
• Publisher: Scribner (November 28, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684192446
• ISBN-13: 978-0684192444
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,283,405 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great sense of place, February 29, 2000

By 

Christina P. Branson "Strixaluco" (Fort Collins) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death Down Home (Paperback)

If southern Oklahoma is anything like the rural Missouri I grew up with, then Sandstrom nailed the atmosphere. The landscape is a bit different (no oil wells in Harrison County, MO), but every page evoked some memory of summers and holidays spent on my grandparents' 440 acres. The reminiscence factor was so great that I almost forgot that there was a mystery to be solved.

Looking back, I pegged the murderer almost as soon as the character was introduced. I don't normally get such a strong intuitive feel for a character, and there wasn't anything in the writing that blared, "This is a bad, bad person!" So I was a little surprised when clues started popping up to support my hunch, but it made for a smooth read.

The other characters were well drawn, also, but I wish Sandstrom, writing from Nikky's point of view, hadn't felt the need to make fun of the local speech patterns. It made an otherwise sympathetic character seem smallminded and petty. I was also a little disappointed that Sam started off the book in military CID stationed in Germany for what amounted to no real good reason. I'd like to see Sam and Nikky return to military life in a future book.