Total eclipse [Hardcover]

Liz Rigbey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1995

Trying to clear his lover's name after she is charged with murdering her family members, Lomax, an astronomer, uncovers a web of cruelty, deceit, and desire that comes to a shocking conclusion at Julia's trial. A first novel. 100,000 first printing. Lit Guild Feat Alt.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When beautiful Julia Fox is accused of murdering her husband and stepdaughter, her lover, an astronomer named Lomax, assists the defense team investigating the crime. But to his dismay, Lomax uncovers evidence that helps the prosecution more than the defense: a history of antagonism between Julia and her step-daughter, Gail; hints of incest between Gail and her lawyer father; a huge withdrawal from Julia's trust fund that may have been a blackmail payment. Complicating matters are the dead man's membership in a club that caters to peculiar sexual tastes, and Lomax's obsessive jealousy of Julia. Set in and around an unnamed California observatory, which serves as the source of a subplot about celestial distortions that neatly ties into the main story line, Rigbey's first novel boasts gripping courtroom sequences, a driving style and believable characters?but only up to a point. The trouble is that the plot climaxes in what is clearly meant to be a stunning surprise?but it's one that many readers will have guessed long before. And once the secret is out so are the author's manipulations, which now appear obvious, as does the lack of discernment in otherwise intelligent characters. Still, excepting this major flaw, this is a well-written and engrossing debut, tailored for a hot summer day's read. Major ad/promo.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Suspended from his job at a high-powered observatory, research astronomer Lomax takes on the task of clearing the beautiful but enigmatic Julia Fox, who is charged with the brutal murders of her husband and stepdaughter. The other-worldly Lomax is assisted at times by a roly-poly colleague who has eyes for him; a misanthropic, nicotine-addicted children's librarian with encyclopedic knowledge of her neighbors' foibles; and a strange woman with a super-sensitive olfactory system. Their quest holds the reader's attention but is barely credible. The trial scenes that follow are perfunctory, and the ending is gimmicky. A second mystery (involving the observatory) is never truly resolved. Total Eclipse combines a potentially interesting novel of character with a mechanical, convoluted, not terribly believable thriller. While first novelist Rigbey displays an eye for people's traits and looks and the character of Lomax is appealing enough, the book eventually sinks because of its phoniness.
--David Keymer, California State Univ., Stanislaus
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 472 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books (1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671795791
• ISBN-13: 978-0671795795
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #549,025 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars absolutely fantastic, April 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Total Eclipse: Total Eclipse (Paperback)

One of the best mystery suspense novels I've ever read, and I'm very critical! Extremely literate, complex, and believable, as well as being very very creepy. Read it practically all at one sitting, couldn't put it down. Up there with Presumed Innocent and Silence of the Lambs, don't know why it's not more popular here in the US.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very pleasant surprise, August 22, 1997

By 

Angela Linton "Angie" (Manchester) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Total Eclipse: Total Eclipse (Paperback)

Buying a secondhand book by an unknown author is always a bit of a gamble so I was pleasantly surprised by this book which was one of the most readable, offbeat and engrossing thrillers I had read in some time. I did guess the ending quite early on but this in no way spoiled my enjoyment. The characters are highly believable and Ms Rigbey, without preaching at the reader, makes many valid points about the current day obsession with physical perfection. Only one complaint - I HAD to finish this book and sat up until the small hours to do it - now I'm knackered

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste your time, September 12, 2011

By 

C. Mathieu "waldenpond88" (Worcester, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Total eclipse (Hardcover)

I have two books by Liz Rigbey and hope the other one will be better.
This one is way too slow to keep me reading. After 100 pages I gave up.
A complete waste of time.

I rather recommend books that are thrilling from the first page like "In a Dry Season" by Peter Robinson, "A Place of Execution" by Val McDermid, "Night over Water" by Ken Follett, "Landscape of Lies" by Peter Watson, "Tom Ripley" by Patricia Highsmith or "The Unforgiven" by Patricia MacDonald.