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Mineral Spirits: A Novel
 
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Mineral Spirits: A Novel [Hardcover]

Heather Sharfeddin (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

Price: $21.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Book Description

August 2, 2006
In Mineral Spirits, Sheriff Kip Edelson investigates the story behind a woman's skeleton that a young boy stumbles across on a river bank. He gets a tip that her name was Chris and he knows her death was not accidental-but little else. As he traces Mineral County residents with similar names and seeks clues to who might have killed her and why, a story evolves that includes drug dealers, a shootout, an abandoned boy, and the sheriff's own marital strains.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sharfeddin's second western (after 2005's Blackbelly) is a sharp, perceptive blend of crime and contemporary life issues. When 10-year-old Gray Dausman reports a badly decomposed body near the Clark Fork River, Kip Edelson, the new sheriff of Montana's sparsely populated Mineral County, is impressed by the boy's bravery, but becomes concerned after he learns about Gray's troubles at home. A tip about the female corpse's identity leads the sheriff to investigate area women with names similar to "Chris," including Gray's missing mother, Kristi Blackhorse, and Christen Vining, the sister of Randy McHugh, owner of a popular tavern. Complicating the situation is the twisted relationship Randy has with Christen, the wife of a drug dealer Kip kills in self-defense. Tight and emotionally satisfying, this impressive novel should gain the author new readers. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Freshly elected as the sheriff in a one-lawman town in Montana, Kip Edelson is immediately put to task when 10-year-old Gray Dausman discovers a rotting corpse down by the river. As Edelson attempts to discern the identity of the victim, he becomes increasingly convinced that it is none other than the boy's missing mother, and he reluctantly takes Gray under his wing even as his own marriage evaporates before him. When Edelson stumbles upon an illicit drug ring involving the local tavern owner and various other shady locals, the identity of the corpse takes on a new, unexpected significance. Sharfeddin's novel is a hybrid modern -western-murder mystery: taut, gritty, and layered with enough subplots to keep the arc steady, even if the bond between Edelson and Gray is somewhat forced. More interesting is the relationship between the drug-dealing tavern owner and his incarcerated half sister. The payoff is satisfying enough, though, and one hopes for more explorations from Sharfeddin of the psyche of a modern West, which still retains some vibrancy while struggling to maintain identity. Ian Chipman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 264 pages
  • Publisher: Bridgeworks - Warren Phillips; First edition. edition (August 2, 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1882593987
  • ISBN-13: 978-1882593989
  • Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,125,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A Pacific Northwest Author -- Born in Forsyth, Montana, educated on life in Missoula, pining for the glassy, early morning sculling waters of Flathead.

Ten early years in Riggins, Idaho, down along the Salmon. The flavors of peaches, icy streams, forest fire smoke, and brook trout still on my tongue. Those quirky, off-beat characters wandering through my psyche most often hail from that arid canyon with its mesmerizing river.

On to Oregon's Willamette Valley. As sweet and tart as its blueberries in July--I will always be romanced by its produce. Birthplace of my son--my inspiration.

Home: West of the continental divide, north of the 45th parallel, south of the Canadian border. The Sevin Devlis, Imnaha, The Zumwalt, Hells Canyon, The River of No Return, The Cascades, The Pacific, Lake Missoula, The Columbia Gorge, Going To The Sun, Flathead, Wallowa, Joseph Canyon, The Rattlesnake, Pittsburg Landing, The Lochsa, Lookout, Mission Falls. I am a daughter of the west.

 

Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Another excellent novel, September 27, 2006
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This review is from: Mineral Spirits: A Novel (Hardcover)
This is 2 for 2 good novels from Heather Sharfeddin. I recently read Blackbelly which I really loved. The imagery was fantastic and the detail made it so real. I was not disappointed with the next novel, Mineral Spirits. This book follows one of the more likable characters from the first book, Sherriff Kip Edelson to a new location in Montana (Mineral County). Kip's character is well developed here and is given more depth. He becomes emotionally entangled with a heartbreakingly trusting but neglected young boy in the course of the investigation into a skeleton unearthed by the young man. Kip is drug through an amazing range of emotions during the course of this book, tenderness for Gray, the young boy, and for the sweet old lady who needs them as much as they need her; hurt and betrayal from his wife with a good dose of confusion; terror and measured response upon meeting up with members of a drug ring and sadness at the way people (including himself) can treat each other. Thrown into the mix is an almost school boy giddiness at meeting an intensly interesting but unapproachable woman who he continually devises ways to approach. On the periphery and intertwined in the story are other characters who are equally interesting. The tavern owner with his secrets and occasional glimpses back to the romantic wild West Montana is captivating. I highly recommend this fast read and can't wait to see what's comming next.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Kept me reading past midnight, October 10, 2006
This review is from: Mineral Spirits: A Novel (Hardcover)
Sharfeddin's latest book kept me turning the pages until the wee hours on a work night. I enjoyed the intricate plot, the beautiful descriptions of rural Montana, and the fast-paced action. Kip Edelson is a complicated man--tough sheriff on the outside, yet complex and emotional in ways he tries to hide from everyone, including himself and those he loves. A satisfying ending and a great read. I can't wait for Sharfeddin's next book.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Mineral Spirits, February 17, 2007
This review is from: Mineral Spirits: A Novel (Hardcover)
This exciting new author really hooks you quickly into her storyline. Her characters, while flawed and resistant to relationships, develop into people you wish you could write a thank you letter to for allowing you into their world. Ms. Sharfeddin captures Montana perfectly with just the right mix of one foot in the past and one foot in modern times and leaving you uncertain which way you would like to see it step next. Mineral Spirits has just the right mix of pathos, humor, possibilites and heartbreak. A gem of a book

I totally enjoyed her first book "Blackbellies" and am anxious to read whatever she next releases. 4 thumps up!
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