Customer Reviews

The Saddlemaker's Wife (Berkley Prime Crime Mysteries)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was originally disappointed when I learned that there wouldn't be a Benni Harper mystery this year. However, my disappointment was quickly eliminated. I couldn't put the book down. The characters were so well written and believable. I was immediately taken to Cardinal and drawn into the characters lives. The whole McGavin family is so easy to relate to, yet so complex you can't stop turning pages to learn more. I loved the fact that it was a mystery, a love story, and a drama, all at the same time.

I love the Benni mysteries but this was a really terrific book. For some reason as I read this one I was really taken by her ability to write. There were just a lot of passages that I'd read and think how terrific they were. The story is compelling, the characters, as always so very human. I never thought I'd want to encourage anything that would take away from my getting a Benni book but I really want to know what happens next to these people. Again, I don't understand telling the story in a review because that's why we buy books, but it is a story of self discovery as well as of unpacking a husband's past that the wife was unaware of. That past includes a family she thought was dead. As you can imagine things don't run smoothly with the family. I will be glad to recommend this book to any of my friends who love a good book. The editorial review said this might be her breakout book and I hope that is true. She deserves a lot more attention than she gets. If you love Earlene Fowler's Benni books you'll love this. They are in no way the same but the quality is just as high. In the end I was surprised by some of the revelations and pleased by others. There's sadness and love and struggles, all the things life is all about. Just a great read.

Earlene Fowler's first mainstream novel is a winner! The characters of Ruby and Lucas, Bobby and Birch, and even Cole will stay with you long after you turn the last page. I loved the town of Cardinal and Lucas's saddle shop, and wanted to book a room at the Tokopah Lodge for myself. This book is part love story, part family saga, and all a great book I will definitely read again and buy for my friends.

Cole and Ruby McGavin were married six months when he died in an apparent accident in which his truck was found in the bottom of a ravine. Ruby mourns her sudden loss, but receives a second shocker when she learns that she inherited part of his family spread, the Circle MG Ranch in Cardinal, Tokopah County, California. The stunner is that Cole insisted his entire family died ironically in a car accident near Bakersfield.

Taking Cole's ashes to his hometown while also planning to sell her share of the ranch, Ruby meets her in-laws. Cole's Aunt Birch is especially welcoming to her, the total opposite of her mother-in-law June, who treats her with disdain and fears she will bankrupt their spread with her quarter share. However, the biggest surprise is Lucas, Cole's younger brother, a former San Francisco lawyer who came home to become an impoverish saddlemaker. He has the same obsession as her, a need to know what drove Cole to deny his family's existence. They team up to learn the truth, but family members are silent leading them to Cole's friends as their only hope.

Displaying her talent without Benni Harper to help, Agatha Award winner Earlene Fowler provides a deep family drama starring two likable protagonists needing to know the secret that led to Cole's actions. The story line is character driven especially indirectly by the late Cole. Fans of powerful psychological thrillers that require a one sitting read will want to know why at least as much as THE SADDLEMAKER'S WIFE needs to know too

Harriet Klausner

At first you might be disappointed that Benni Harper is missing, but you will fall in love with Ruby. Another stunning book by Earlene Fowler that I could not put down! I consumed it in one sitting. 3 of the most stellar characters are Ruby, Lincoln Holyoke, and Birch. These are solid, dependable people that have had their share of life's rollercoaster, but you'll want to hop on and ride with them. Thank-you Earlene. I cannot wait for your next book.

I was a little reluctant to read this book, the first that Fowler's published outside her popular "Benni Harper" series. What if I didn't love it as much as the mysteries? What if I was sorely disappointed??

I need not have feared. "Saddlemaker's Wife" continues the wonderful tradition of making the people of the West come alive. The characters are real, different, compelling -- and there's even a mystery involved! I also love how Fowler incorporates her spirituality as a natural, organic part of the storyline, not as something she forced.

The other thing I have to mention about Fowler's writing, and this book in particular, is the way she uses the multiple-POV. I usually hate books that switch POV each chapter -- it seems like a way to get out of the hard work of writing. Not so with Fowler; I don't even notice the POV change, it works so well.

A must-read.

As always, Earlene Fowler, kept me entertained and engrossed. It is so refreshing to read a book that actually has a story plot and lifelike characters without resorting to smut and violence as a way of portraying what writers think people want to read. I feel Ms. Fowler brings her characters to life in situations that are real enough that keep me turning pages to find out what happens next. In this book a woman's husband dies and she finds out more about him after his death than she knew while they were together. The ending enables the reader to decide what happens next -- or formulate whatever kind of ending you want.

Branching out from my usual Christian fiction, I had the privilege of receiving an autographed copy of THE SADDLEMAKER'S WIFE (thank you Debbie). And as I've said before, being a sucker for a western, I couldn't wait to read it. Though THE SADDLEMAKER'S WIFE does have a contemporary setting, its penchant for small town, ranch-living, allowed me to picture open plains and horses running wild. The story starts with Ruby McGavin returning to her husband's hometown of Cardinal with the news of his death. Soon she learns how very little she knew about her husband. Dealing with her grief over her loss and her need to find out the truth, Ruby stays on in Cardinal to learn more about her husband and the family secret that could be responsible for his death. Cole's brother Lucas helps Ruby deal with many of her struggles. Who could not appreciate a soft-spoken man in boots and a cowboy hat? Though I must say, I felt cheated not having the opportunity to get to know Cole McGavin first hand, I loved getting to know him through the admiration of the people he impacted in the town of Cardinal. Earlene's description of some of the eccentric town folk along with the McGavin family made for great visualization. Except for the few instances of swearing and off-colored language, this secular book could have easily made its way into the Christian fiction market. Earlene allows her faith to appear softly in characters like Ely and in times when characters struggle with the grand scheme of life. At times the sadness was difficult to endure, but much of life's travels have long roads of difficulty before there is calm. I can only pray for a sequel.

This is really a novel containing a mystery that the characters grapple with, rather than a mystery novel. It is well written with nicely developed characters and the author makes you care about them. It is better than Earlene Fowler's earlier novels.

It takes place in a small western town with small-town characters, some of them explicitly Christian. In fact the way the protagonist grapples with the ideas of an evangelical Christian that she meets is a smallish (unresolved) subplot. This book shows how you can write a novel about Christians that is not just a piece of propaganda, and I appreciate it particularly for that reason. (I am a liberal Christian myself.)

I would actually give this a 4.75 rating. Earlene Fowler did a terrific job with this book. It is different from her Benni Harper mysteries. I felt the emotions of grief and sadness throughout the book, and I could not put it down. You could feel as though you were a part of the story. It was so well written that I did not guess what the secret was behind Cole's trauma. That impressed me, because I can't stand when I can guess what happens before I even near the end. I finished reading it in 2 days, and I am hoping there will be a sequel. Even though there is a lot of grief and anger, you still sense the silver lining for the characters. So true to life. I highly recommend this book.