Immaculate Deception: A Fiona FitzGerald Mystery [Hardcover]

Warren Adler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 15, 1991

By the author of The War of the Roses, a riveting new novel, second in the crime series featuring Washington, D.C. homicide detective Fiona FitzGerald. The first novel in this series, American Quartet, was selected by the New York Times Book Review as one of the ten best books in the crime category of 1982. And now, through a comgination of wit, intuition, and skillful deduction, Fiona unlocks the secret to this crime in our nation's capital.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

YA-- Fans of Detective Fiona FitzGerald, tough-but-vulnerable Washington, D. C. cop, will enjoy her latest challenging case: Was the famous dead congresswoman a suicide or a murder victim? To add to the excitement, an autopsy reveals that the middle-aged woman was six weeks pregnant, and evidence suggests that her estranged husband could not be the father. Woven into this tale are several complicating threads. FitzGerald walks a social tightrope as a white woman in a police environment dominated by African-American men. Powerful government officials want the case solved as soon as possible--but as a suicide, not a murder. Influential leaders from both sides of the abortion debate clash; the victim was a national leader of antiabortion forces. And in private life, Fiona, determined to become a single mother, has decided on the man she wants to father her child. Adler carries this case forward with speed and ingenuity, tying up loose ends nicely with a satisfying closure for readers and an ironic twist for the heroine.
- Carolyn E. Gecan, Thomas Jefferson Sci-Tech, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"A compelling mystery based on characters that intrigue the reader . . . deals thoughtfully with basic matters of life--and death." -- Chicago Tribune

"Fascinating." -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 241 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult; First edition (February 15, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556112297
• ISBN-13: 978-1556112294
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,519,816 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Warren Adler is a world-renowned novelist, short story writer and playwright. His 32 novels and story collections have been translated into more than 25 languages and two of his novels, The War of the Roses and Random Hearts, have been made into enormously popular movies, shown continually throughout the world.

Three short stories from his acclaimed collection, The Sunset Gang, have been adapted as a trilogy and shown repeatedly on the Public Television network.

Mr. Adler's blogs appear regularly in the Huffington Post and other sites throughout the world and his short stories appear in numerous anthologies.

Mr. Adler is a pioneer in electronic publishing. He was one of the first authors to acquire his complete backlist and to convert his entire library to digital publishing formats.

A product of the New York public school system, Mr. Adler graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School and New York University, where he majored in English literature. In 2009, he was honored by being chosen "Alumni of the Year" at NYU's School of Arts and Science. He has taught novel writing at honors seminars at NYU.

After graduating from New York University with a degree in English literature, Mr. Adler worked for the New York Daily News before becoming Editor of the Queens Post, a prize winning weekly newspaper on Long Island. His column, "Pepper on the Side," became a staple of a number of newspapers in the country.

During the Korean War, after basic training, he was recruited by Armed Forces Press Service to serve in the Pentagon as the only Washington Correspondent for the service. His Washington by-line went all over the world and was published in every publication put out by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Good Amount of Detail, April 9, 2002

By 

John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Immaculate Deception (Fiona Fitzgerald Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Another great book by this author. If this is your first but them all because you will really be pleased. They are just what I am looking for. Interesting and inventive stories and really grab your attention and move at a great pace. I really believed the hatred and pain the lead character was carrying around with him as he went on the hunt. The action was well written, not immature like so many of this type of book give you. You are really cheering this guy on.

2.0 out of 5 stars If your reading time is valuable, don't bother... but it's good for bus commuting, June 28, 2011

By 

N. Young (Bayfield, CO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Immaculate Deception (Fiona Fitzgerald Mysteries) (Paperback)

This novel has the disjointed feel of a badly abridged audiobook. I gave it two stars because the mystery part of it is intriguing. I have a HUGE amount of tolerance for mediocre writing, but this is so painful that even I can't believe I keep opening it up. If this weren't on my Sony reader, I'd probably "accidentally" leave it in a public bathroom somewhere, since I have a mental block against throwing away books - I think I've thrown away one novel in my entire life. I found it extremely difficult to suspend my disbelief, let alone have much sympathy or empathy for any of the characters.

I've been reading this book for several weeks - I can only get through a few digital pages at a time. The story line is interesting (I think I know who did it and I want to find out if I'm right), but the characters are exactly what I would expect a middle-aged male author with shallow stereotypes in mind and with no imagination to create, and the dialogue is jumpy and trite, the logic fragile, the emotions contrived, and the characters are predictable and inspire many "oh please" moments. Ironically, I hear someone say "they'll stick like that" every time I roll my eyes. And go ahead, get me started on his portrayal of a woman who desperately wants a child: it's thin, stiff, and totally unbelievable. The word "flighty" comes to mind, less for the Fiona character, more for Adler's sterotypical portrayal of her as a childless woman trying to make it in a man's world. Snort.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good read!, September 25, 2001

By 

Jennifer Case - See all my reviews

This review is from: Immaculate Deception (Fiona Fitzgerald Mysteries) (Hardcover)

The mysteries of Fiona FitzGerald have always approached provocative and daring topics-relations between races, political intrigues and sabotage, S&M. Now in this Fiona tale, she tackles the infamous pro-life battle. As always, very well written and is read in a fast frenzy of page turning.