The Russian Hill Murders [UNABRIDGED] [Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Shirley Tallman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2005

Defying convention, spirited nineteenth-century lawyer Sarah Woolson sets out to prove herself in her first criminal trial. Though her own law firm barely tolerates her and her mother begs her to settle down, plucky young attorney Sarah Woolson flouts notions of proper feminine behavior in this nineteenth-century answer to Legally Blonde. When a woman whose husband has died in a sweatshop fire asks for Sarah’s help in finding the culprit, she insists on taking the case against her boss’s wishes. Even more scandalously, when several people affiliated with a charity hospital die within a few days of each other, Sarah puts herself in the middle of the puzzle, racing against time to find the killer and defend a Chinese man accused of murder. Imagine, a woman lawyer in court!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Tallman's top-drawer second mystery set in late 19th-century San Francisco (after 2004's The Nob Hill Murders), attorney Sarah Woolson takes on a couple of cases that draw a torrent of protests from her law firm: the widow of a man killed in a multiple-fatality fire in a sweatshop seeks her help, as does a Chinese tong leader who asks her to defend a fellow countryman accused of murdering an accountant. In addition, a handsome, well-to-do bachelor wants her to handle his business negotiations. When all three clients' situations begin to intersect, Sarah realizes she has waded into dangerous, if not lethal, waters. Judge Woolson, Sarah's father, and Robert Campbell, her sole supporter among her law firm's associates, both lend their assistance, but neither is prepared when Sarah's investigations implicate members of San Francisco's high society in the crimes. Credible characters, cleverly subtle clues and a highly satisfying conclusion mark this intriguing tale as a superior example of its subgenre.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Attorney Sarah Woolson, daughter of a judge in San Francisco in the 1880s, is determined to practice her profession despite the contempt of the firm that reluctantly hired her. Her first-person voice is engaging if melodramatic as she relates her hostess' succumbing to poison at a dinner party and the subsequent deaths, also by poisoning, of several others connected to a charity hospital. When the irascible Chinese cook at the hospital is accused, Sarah becomes his defense attorney. Her various family members and an associate (two brothers, a doctor and a reporter, and the one lawyer at her firm who supports her) along with sundry other admirers are rich in interest if not depth of characterization. Still, Woolson's role as a protofeminist in the nineteenth century is a sympathetic one, and readers will empathize strongly with the obstacles she faces and the triumphs she achieves. GraceAnne DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks; Unabridged edition (July 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786134372
• ISBN-13: 978-0786134373
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 4.2 x 2.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,212,064 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #93 in Books > Books on Cassette > Languages > Russian

More About the Author

ABOUT SHIRLEY


Even as a small child, Shirley Tallman dreamed of being a writer. Born in Los Angeles, California, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area as a teenager, where she attended junior high and high school. She obtained her BA degree in Radio and Television at San Jose State University, while working as Traffic Manager, script writer and director for KNTV, a local ABC affiliate station.

After college, Shirley flew to the Orient and the South Pacific as a flight attendant for Pan American World Airlines. Never one to waste a great opportunity, she used her travels to fill notebooks with ideas, story-lines and snap shots for future novels.

Juggling marriage, children and her new writing career, Shirley wrote a syndicated newspaper column while working up the courage to tackle that first novel. To her surprise when she finally did write it, it actually sold! To date she's written fifteen books, including ten contemporary Harlequin/Silhouette romances published under the pseudonym Erin Ross. During her "romance" years, she placed #6 on Waldenbooks' national bestseller list, and was nominated as "Best Desire of the Year," by "Romantic Times"!

Currently, Shirley is writing an historical mystery series for St. Martin's Press. The books -- MURDER ON NOB HILL, THE RUSSIAN HILL MURDERS, and the THE CLIFF HOUSE STRANGLER -- feature Sarah Woolson, a feisty nineteenth-century female attorney who squares off against an all-male legal establishment. The fourth book in the series, SCANDAL ON RINCON HILL, will be released on January 5, 2010.

Together with her screenwriting partner, Nancy Hersage, Shirley has written and sold television scripts to NBC, CBS, and ABC. Their movie, "THE BABYSITTER'S SEDUCTION", originally aired on NBC and continues to play regularly on the Lifetime Channel. Their current project, "THE WAR MAGICIAN", was bought for Tom Cruise by Paramount Studios and their story, "LILI", is being produced for the Canadian Broadcast Corporation.

Among other groups, Shirley is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Novelist's Inc., Sisters In Crime, the Pacific Northwest Booksellers' Association, Willamette Valley Writers and the Oregon Writer's Colony.

Shirley welcomes visitors to her website: www.shirleytallman.com. Check it out for great monthly giveaways, plus some exciting contests coming up to celebrate the release of SCANDAL ON RINCON HILL!!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful!, December 2, 2005

By 

L. J. Roberts (Oakland, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Russian Hill Murders (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I am so enjoying this series. The story moved right along, kept me interested and wanting to know what was coming. The final courtroom scene was a bit melodramatic, but didn't put me off the book. Tallman has created a smart, feisty character supported by her family but fighting society's norms, and the supporting characters are equally interesting. I definitely want to know what happens to them and eagerly await the next book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A joyous reading experience, July 14, 2005

By 

T. James "terrica37" (Fremont, California United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Russian Hill Murders (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

As I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series,I had high hopes for The Russian Hill Murders,and Ms Tallman met and surpassed my expectations. The characters are well developed (and delightful, I might add),and the plot is just intricate enough to keep you guessing. I had a lot of fun trying to come up with "whodunnit" before Sarah Woolson.The writing is articulate, and there is a sense of excitement at all times. Highly recommended

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a splendidly absorbing read, June 30, 2005

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Russian Hill Murders (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Shirley Tallman delivers a splendidly intriguing and suspenseful follow-up to "The Nob Hill Murders" in this second Sarah Woolson mystery novel, "The Russian Hill Murders." Definitely, this is a series to look out for!

When first a member of the new Women's and Children's Hospital, and then someone else who vehemently opposed the hospital's existence suddenly die, Sarah Woolson, San Francisco's first female lawyer, is intrigued and perplexed. The authorities dismiss both deaths as accidental, but Sarah has a feeling that there is something more to both deaths. However, she's too busy trying to help a client collect damages for a wrongful death suit, as well as having to put up with the bad tempered crochets of her hostile employer. And then the hospital's accountant dies under highly suspicious circumstances. This time there is evidence that the man was poisoned. And because he had had a very acrimonious relationship with the hospital's hot tempered Chinese cook, the police immediately jump to the conclusion that the cook is guilty of poisoning the accountant. And when they find the poison in the kitchen, they immediately arrest the man for murder. Sarah cannot believe that the cook has been arrested on such a slender piece of evidence, and fears that racial prejudice may at the root of the cook's arrest. So that when Li Ying, San Francisco's most powerful Tong lord whom Sarah met in "The Nob Hill Murders" requests that she defend the cook during the criminal trial, Sarah readily agrees. And even though Sarah realises that she has to contend not only with the racial prejudice of the jury, but also with the sexist opinions of the court and the jury, she's determined to do the best for her client -- and in this instance it means that she will have to discover the identity of the real murderer herself before it's too late!

I enjoyed Shirley Tallman's "The Russian Hill Murders" so much that I had to finish it in one sitting. The plot unfolded at a brisk and continuous pace; and the manner in which the author bridged both of Sarah's cases, cleverly done. Also nicely done was how the author maintained the suspense and how she portrayed San Francisco, both its people and the town, of the late 1800s. But what really made this novel a stellar one is the author's vivid and credible characterisation of her heroine, Sarah Woolson, and how she fitted the mystery around Sarah's stalwart character: a woman who believes strongly in the equality of sexes as well as the races, and who is not afraid to fight for what she believes in or to right a wrong. And it is this strong sense of justice and fair play that made "The Russian Hill Murders" a wonderful and absorbing read, and made me root for Sarah right to the end.