Seneca Falls Inheritance [Hardcover]

Miriam Grace Monfredo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1992

Going door to door to persuade her neighbors to attend the Women's Rights Convention, Glynis Tryon stumbles upon a murder, and she must solve it amid the confusion of this historic event and with the help of such figures as Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her historically authentic and cleverly entertaining first novel, Monfredo skillfully meshes life in Seneca Falls, N.Y., immediately before the First Women's Rights Convention in 1848 with a page-turning suspense story. Charming spinster librarian Glynis Tryon, like her fellow townspeople, is shocked by the sudden deaths of wealthy Friedrich Steicher and his wife, but she is more surprised by the appearance of a woman who says she is the daughter Steicher never knew. Before the woman can prove her allegation, however, she is murdered. Although suspicion falls heavily on Friedrich's only son, Karl, he denies the woman was his sister, even when her husband comes to town to lay a claim on the estate. Unofficially deputized, Glynis questions those who might have spoken to the woman, and continues the investigation of a second, related murder when the sheriff becomes ill. Historical figures, foremost Elizabeth Cady Stanton, are woven seamlessly into this well-modulated, satisfying tale.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Glynis Tryon, busily cataloguing the books that Friedrich Steicher bequeathed to the Seneca Falls library, politely refuses a stranger's request to handle the Steicher family Bible (included by mistake) and then directs the woman to the livery to hire a carriage; she's off to Waterloo in search of her mother's friend- -Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The woman is murdered first, however, and between stocking the library shelves and canvassing the local women about a possible women's rights conference, Glynis learns that the victim was the illegitimate half-sister of Karl Steicher, who thought he was the sole heir to his father's fortune. Furthermore, the woman's husband, Gordon Walker, decides to sue for his dead wife's share. Meanwhile, it's up to Glynis and the constable's deputy, Jacques Sundown, an Indian, to discover who would most benefit from Rose Walker's death--and then to tie this murder in with the killing of a saloon girl. Nicely conceived first novel, which makes good use of Genesee (malaria) fever, Jane Eyre as a threat to job security, and the First Women's Rights Convention of 1848. More romantic than rabid feminists might like, but a telling glimpse at Bloomers, childbirth, and abused wives of the mid-19th century. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 259 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (April 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312070829
• ISBN-13: 978-0312070823
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #954,648 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great mystery with a good dose of women's history!, August 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Seneca Falls Inheritance (Paperback)

This book and the other four Ms. Monfredo currently has out do an extraordinary job of incorporating women's history and lesser-known history into fascinating mysteries. I encourage you to read them in order, starting with this one, because she builds the characters throughout the series.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Upstate New Yorker of the 1960's Confirms Tone, September 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Seneca Falls Inheritance (Paperback)

This book was recommended to me when I recently visited family back east for the first time in many years. I had asked directions,especially wanting to take my 18-year old daughter to the Women's Rights Museum in Seneca Falls on the drive from Seneca Lake to Syracuse. I remembered having seen the small blue sign along the rural highway and always regretting not having turned there. Being a teen in the 60's, I marveled that the consciousness-raising and role changes that were exploding then (and that now have made so many unappreciated opportunities for girls and women) began in the Finger Lakes area where my great grandparents had settled and my parents grew up! This novel recreates that era and makes the instigation of radical activities by Elizabeth Cady Stanton understandable through the description of the female and male character's lives. While an important theme, the women's rights information is peripheral to the main story. Some detail about characters is obvious but not distracting in the intention to prepare the reader for a series. As this is the first of a series written about a time of restricted public behavior for women, Glynis Tryon's cautious hesitance is understandable and realistic as she follows her instincts and intelligence to solve the murder. I have ordered more books in the series, and expect the maiden librarian's confidence to increase, just as we womenfolk each get more uppity as we proceed through life, finding that our feelings and ideas matter and that we can make a difference.
The description of life along the Erie Canal, the foods served at Thanksgiving dinner, the vegetation and weather were surprisingly familiar to me. My elderly father took me into the Post Office in PennYan, N.Y. and showed me the numbered brass mailbox where,as a boy, he used to pick up his father's mail. There is a sturdy practicality common to Upstate New Yorkers that is also captured in Monfredo's characters. She truly conveys the spirit and history of the area.
If you like the book, go visit! Seneca Falls (there really are beautiful falls there) is not far from Corning, N.Y., with a wonderful tour of the Corning Glass Works. Oneida Silver Company is located along Oneida Lake north of Syracuse. Drive west to Rochester and visit Kodak Corporation's informative exhibits. A bit furthertoward Buffalo is the beauty and power of Niagara Falls , where you can don a raincoat to ride the famous Maid of the Mist right into the whirling base of the falls. It was the American Indians in that area who told settlers that the long, clear Finger Lakes (Canadaigua, Keuka, Seneca, Cayuga, and Cazenovia ) were formed by a swipe of the ancient Great Bear's paw. Although we usually think of bear as fierce, native americans saw him as a wise healer because he knew which plants to eat, and most like man, because he stood on two feet while grazing. A special area, even Joseph Smith had his spiritual experiences that began the Church of Latter Day Saints in nearby Palmyra. The majestic reenactment pageant is attended by more than Mormons each year.
There is more to New York than New York City. The lives of its people are inherent to our American Culture. Enjoy this book; be there!!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A strong introduction to a wonderful series, August 3, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Seneca Falls Inheritance (Paperback)

Whether you're a devoted mystery reader or just looking for a good book for the train-ride, this novel is worth a look. Glynis Tryon is an interesting protagonist--she's smart, she's kind, and she knows what she wants. In a nutshell, she's the kind of person you'd like for a friend. And Monfredo has a talent for expanding her characters, so that her Seneca Falls is populated by a whole town of people you'll get to know over the next few books, and will always be glad to see again. The next two books, North Star Conspiracy and Blackwater Spirits, are among the best mysteries I've ever read. But if you're going to read any of these books, make sure you start with this one, so that your familiarity with the characters develops along with the whole storyline. (I read North Star first, then had to go back and read this one and North Star again, in order to get the full effect.) This is a wonderful series--if you're at all interested in American history, you absolutely must r! ead these books--and a very good first novel.