Scandal on Rincon Hill: A Sarah Woolson Mystery (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Shirley Tallman (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sarah Woolson Mysteries | Publication Date: March 30, 2010

“Bringing Victorian San Francisco to colorful life, Tallman offers an entertaining mystery…will appeal to fans of Anne Perry and Rhys Bowen.” —Library Journal

A body is found just blocks from attorney Sarah Woolson’s home on Rincon Hill. Sarah is on the case, but 19th-century San Francisco is soon thrown into a state of panic as a gruesome crime spree begins to take hold of the city.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The lack of a satisfying solution to the whodunit at the heart of Tallman's fourth historical set in 19th-century San Francisco (after 2007's The Cliff House Strangler) is the only real flaw in an otherwise solid read. Idealistic and iconoclastic attorney Sarah Woolson investigates the bludgeoning murder of botanist Nigel Logan, who was at a party with Woolson's judge father only the night before and whose body was found near the Woolson home. Several days later, a friend of Logan's, a church deacon, apparently falls victim to the same killer. When the police latch onto some Chinese immigrants as the culprits, despite the absence of any real evidence, Woolson bravely takes on their defense. Convincing period detail supports an engaging lead who's a more plausible character than, say, Rhys Bowen's Molly Murphy, a PI in early 20th-century New York City. The romantic subplots don't overwhelm the mystery, but the ending will surprise few. (Mar.)
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Review

''A solid read . . . Convincing period detail supports an engaging lead who's a more plausible character than, say, Rhys Bowen's Molly Murphy.'' --Publishers Weekly

''Sarah's fourth neatly marries mystery, romance, and historic San Francisco in an enjoyable tale of the stubbornly independent career woman.'' --Kirkus Reviews --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 340 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (March 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312386974
• ISBN-13: 978-0312386979
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 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: #1,091,483 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Series, Sarah Woolson is wonderful, April 25, 2010

By 

Robin (NY, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scandal on Rincon Hill: A Sarah Woolson Mystery (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I listened to the first 3 books and have just finished reading the fourth (which I hope will be available on Audible soon). If you like historical fiction/ mysteries you will enjoy these books. Unlike a previous reviewer I find the main character Sarah W. interesting and full of pluck. These stories are set in the 1880's 40 years before women won the right to vote and therefore, I find Shirley Tallman's male characters and their sexism and racism to be perfectly believable and Sarah's frustration with her society and the men who control it to be reasonable. The author has several important male characters who are neither sexist nor racist so she does not generalize about all men. It is clear that the author has done her research on the role of women in the 1880's and in the legal profession. It is hard to believe but some law schools such as Harvard did not admit women until the 1950's. The mysteries are good but I enjoy the books because of the characters. I think if you enjoy Elizabeth Peters you would also enjoy this series. I hope there will be many more books in this series and that the love story will become even more central and lead to further growth for the character of Sarah. Anna Fields was a great narrator and will be missed.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mystery Solved, April 18, 2010

By 

Shelly Itkin "Book Lover and Mom" (Long Island, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scandal on Rincon Hill: A Sarah Woolson Mystery (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Mrs. Tallman has scored a total winner in her Scandal On Rincon Hill. Of course we are all familiar with the spinster Sarah Woolson who is an attorney and who has a heart and who is not above making up her own mind even if it could get her into trouble which should be her middle name.
When two deaths occur two from her home you know Sarah is going to get involved. When two innocent men are accused of the crime Sarah goes into action and agrees to defend them.
What she discovers and how she goes about it is exciting and keeps you so interested in the book you wont be able to put it down. If you have not read her others this will make you a fan to get out and read the other three books Mrs. Tallman has written about Sarah.
Sarah in love???? Lots of unexpected surprises in this book but by far the biggest is the actual killer. A MUST READ.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, April 17, 2010

By 

doc peterson (Portland, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scandal on Rincon Hill: A Sarah Woolson Mystery (Sarah Woolson Mysteries) (Hardcover)

The fourth book in the Sarah Woolson series is an entertaining read. Like any relationship, after the first whirlwind romance, the blush and shine on the partnership begins to fade, and things hit a lull. It is this first bump that makes or breaks the relationship: either it will find a second wind and bloom again, or it will be a bust. WIth Tallman it is still early to tell how the Sarah Woolson series will go, but things look encouraging.

I am a fan of Sarah Woolson - I like the idea of a strong, independent woman as protagonist. I love Tallman's descriptions of San Francisco (a world-class city, all the more so with her descriptions of it in the late 19th century) and the mysteries themselves are pretty good. In _Scandal on Rincon Hill_, Woolson represents a young lady who was a mistress of a powerful and influential newspaper owner (allusions to Hearst?) who seeks restitution, and two wrongly imprisioned Chinese immigrants accused of several grisly murders. The plot was entertaining, if not particularly page-turning, its resolution a bit anti-climactic. What really rankled me was the liberal use of exclaimation in Woolson's dialogue - a personal preference, I guess, but I found it a bit exasperating.

These misgivings aside, I remain a fan of Tallman's work and will certainly follow the series as it continues. There are clear attempts to grow the main charactersand develop them more - both romantically (Sarah has several beaus in pursuit of her, much to her chagrin) as well as professionally. I found this encouraging, as its evident that Tallman is not willing to rehash old plot lines and let the characters go stale. While its not as strong or interesting as the previous books in the series, I will return for more.