Relics (Faye Longchamp Mysteries, No. 2) [Paperback]

Mary Anna Evans (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 9, 2007

Faye Longchamp, back in school to pursue her dream of becoming an archaeologist, has been asked to run a project for which she is barely qualified, under the direction of a man who doesn't seem to like her much. Her assignment: to uncover the origins of a mysterious ethnic group. The Sujosa have lived in Alabama's most remote hills for centuries and have shown impressive immunity to many diseases...including AIDS. Late one night, Faye awakes to find the house in flames. She saves herself and one of her housemates. But her friend Carmen, the project historian, never had a chance. Then within days, an 18-year-old boy jumps from a cell phone tower that, when completed, would connect the outside world to the Sujosa community.... Mary Anna Evans has degrees in physics and chemical engineering, but writing about archaeologist Faye Longchamp lets her indulge her passion for history, archaeology, science, and architecture. Relics is second in this award-winning series, after Artifacts, and followed by Effigies and Findings. www.maryannaevans.com

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Evans' second archeological mystery is every bit as good as her debut, Artifacts (2003). Soon after archeologist Faye Longchamp joins a team in rural Alabama researching the "Sujosa," an isolated dark-skinned people with Caucasian features and an unusual resistance to AIDS, she discovers that the man in charge of the project has made a hash of the preliminary dig. Faye determines to prove her own worth by planning the excavation of a more likely site, but she gets sidetracked when an act of arson kills Dr. Carmen Martinez, an oral historian who was gathering old tales and songs to learn about the group's mysterious origins. The apparent suicide of an 18-year-old Sujosa boy deepens the puzzle. Faye makes a compelling heroine, and she's supported by an interesting array of suspects, though her making use of some conclusions she's jumped to about the Sujosa to unmask the murderer may strike some readers as a stretch. Transcripts of Dr. Martinez's interviews scattered throughout the narrative provide important clues for the discerning reader.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–Evanss Artifacts (Poisoned Pen, 2003) introduced readers to Faye Longchamp, detective and archaeologist. Here, the woman is sent to a rural Alabama settlement to lead a team assigned to unearth the mysteries of the Sujosa tribe. The group is distinguished by a rare eye color and unusual immunity to diseases, especially AIDS. Not long after Faye arrives, an oral historian assigned to the archaeological dig dies in a fire of suspicious origin. Soon after, an 18-year-old Sujosa boy reportedly commits suicide. Now Faye suspects that there is much more intrigue in the tribes history and that a murderer lurking in the community is responsible for both deaths. Unless she can discover the secrets of the Sujosa, she is sure that she will be the next target. Evans delivers a convincing read with life-size, unique characters, not the least of whom is Fayes Indian sidekick, Joe. The archaeological adventures are somewhat reminiscent of Tony Hillermans Jim Chee mysteries (HarperCollins). While the story is complex, Relics will engage the imagination of readers attracted to unearthing the secrets of lost cultures.–Catherine Gilbride, Farifax County Public Library, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (February 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590583620
• ISBN-13: 978-1590583623
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #878,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm the author of the award-winning Faye Longchamp archaeological mysteries: ARTIFACTS, RELICS, EFFIGIES, FINDINGS, and FLOODGATES. The sixth in the series, STRANGERS, will be published in October.

I'm a a chemical engineer by training and license, with a degree in engineering physics thrown in for spice, but I love reading about history and writing about an archaeologist. Truth be told, I'm a little jealous of Faye and her archaeological adventures.

I enjoy reading, writing, gardening, spending time with my family, cooking, and playing my 7-and-a-half-foot-long monster of a grand piano. My cat helps me write, so I should probably put his name on my books. Check them out here on Amazon or at your favorite bookstore.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I want more!, August 1, 2005

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Relics (Faye Longchamp Mysteries, No. 2) (Hardcover)

Faye Longchamp, an archaeology graduate student, has been asked to lead her first major excavation. She and her (assistant) friend, Joe Wolf Mantooth, go to a remote Alabama settlement. Her task is to uncover the origins of a mysterious ethnic group of people called the Sujosa. These people have shown immunity to many diseases, including AIDS. The Sujosa have lived in the remote hills for centuries. They are very poor and do not trust "outsiders". Yet Faye is determined to gain their trust and dig up the facts that would trace the Sujosa's heritage.

Faye is hardly settled in when she awakens, late one night, to find the house on fire. Faye manages to save herself and one other housemate, but Carmen, the project's oral historian, dies. Questions abound about how the blaze began and where Carmen's aluminum briefcase had disappeared to. A few days later, a local teenager dies at a cell phone tower. It looks like suicide, but some things just do not add up.

Faye, Joe, and Fire Marshal Adam Strahan must figure out what Carmen had in her oral history notes worth killing for, before someone else dies.

**** This novel is rich in historical details and written in a way that the plot is easily understood. Readers will have no trouble following along as this tale of mystery and intrigue guides them into a web of deceit. Author Mary Anna Evans has found her writing niche in the genre of Mysteries. BRAVA! I want more! ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars more Joe!!!!!, October 2, 2005

By 

Elizabeth Slater (North Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Relics (Faye Longchamp Mysteries, No. 2) (Hardcover)

2nd in the Faye Longchamp series, Faye travels to Alabama to an archeological site researching an isolated group of people referred to as the "Sujosa". Interesting to outsiders is the Sujosa's resistance to AIDS, so they are under a microscope that doesn't make them happy. Faye encounters resistance from the site coordinator when she tries to set up a proper dig, not to mention outright hostility from the locals. With Joe's help (hubba hubba!), she manages to get things on track, until the building housing the staff goes up in flames. Faye manages to rescue one co-worker but another dies in the fire. After that a local boy commits suicide, complicating the situation. Joe sets out to track in ways only Joe knows how, and Faye uses her observation skills to help the fire marshall find clues to the arson, as well as using the copies of the work of her dead co-worker, an oral historian, had given her the night she died. There are a lot of story lines in the mystery, but they are all intriguing and none detract from the main interests of the mystery. Another wonderful mystery from a talented writer!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Archaeology and Suspense a Thrilling Combination, December 26, 2005

By 

Maggie Mae (Reno, Nevada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Relics (Faye Longchamp Mysteries, No. 2) (Hardcover)

Archaeologist Faye Longchamp is working on a a project in backwoods Alabama, studying the Sujosa who are a clan of dark skinned people with Cacausian features who seem to be immune to AIDS. But the project is plagued with problems from the beginning, because the jobs and grant monies that have been promised to the Sujosa have not been delivered and the head of the operation, Dr. Raleigh seems to be working against, rather than for the project.

Then Faye wakes to flames in the house where she is staying. She escapes, but her friend Dr. Carmen Martinez who had been working on an oral history of the Sujosa does not. Then a young Sujosa man apparently commits suicide by jumping from a cell phone tower. The fire was arson, the suicide was murder and Faye is in trouble.

Ms. Evans first Faye Longchamp mystery ARTIFACTS won the Benjamin Franklin Award for excellence and this one is every bit the book that one was. Both will keep you enthralled.