Vineyard Stalker: A Martha's Vineyard Mystery (Martha's Vineyard Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Philip R. Craig (Author)

Book Description

Series: Martha's Vineyard Mysteries | Publication Date: June 5, 2007

J. W. Jackson, the ex-Boston cop turned fisherman, cook, and jack-of-all-trades, delves deep into the mysterious depths of his beloved Vineyard in author Philip Craig's most compelling caper yet.

With his wife, Zee, and two kids visiting relatives in "America," J.W. is alone and quickly tiring of his temporary bachelor status. A request from Carole Cohen comes as a blessed diversion. Carole wants J.W. to find the person who's stalking her brother, Roland. Known locally as "The Monk" for his reclusive ways, Roland lives on a beautiful piece of Vineyard real estate that he co-owns with his cousin Sally Oliver. A number of people, including Sally, would do almost anything to convince Roland to sell his valuable property. But does that include violence?

J.W. is happy to take on what looks like a short and easy assignment, though he soon realizes that Roland may lead a more complicated life than his austere living arrangements suggest. And when a body turns up near Roland's land, what seemed like a property dispute takes a detour into murder -- with J.W. in the midst of the action once again.

Featuring a rich mix of money, lust, pride, and jealousy, spiced with a little poignant regret, Vineyard Stalker is a page-turning and deftly plotted addition to this popular and engaging series in which Martha's Vineyard itself is always the star.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Secret love affairs and real estate schemes drive Craig's lively 18th Martha's Vineyard mystery featuring retired Boston cop J.W. Jackson (after 2006's Dead in Vineyard Sand). While J.W.'s kids and wife, Zee, are off-island, Zee's friend Carole Cohen asks J.W. to help track down a stalker harassing her reclusive brother, Roland Nunes. A carpenter and Vietnam vet known as "The Monk," Roland lives in a cottage on a valuable plot of land. Carole, a realtor, worries that someone wants to scare her brother away. Could it be their cousin Sally Oliver, who wants to sell the land? The plot thickens with revelations about Roland's neighbors, provocative divorcée Melissa Carson and Melissa's financier fiancé, Alfred Cabot. The level of crime plaguing West Tisbury escalates from stalking to murder, leading to a resolution sure to satisfy loyal fans. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

With his wife, Zee, and the children gone to "America"--what those who live full-time on Martha's Vineyard call the mainland--J. W. Jackson is enough at loose ends to take a job that seems easy. A Vietnam vet named Roland, now in his 60s, living in a cabin he built himself on family land, is being harassed, and his sister believes that land lust is behind it. In effort to find out who might be putting poison in Roland's cat's food and a skunk in his water supply, J. W. does what he does best--hangs out, has lunch, drinks beer, talks to people. Then, after a woman Roland has been seeing is found dead, things get more complicated. J. W.'s easy and intelligent charm goes to darker places this time, and regular readers of the series will miss the lovely and talented Zee and their precocious children as much as J. W. does. Recipes, as always, included. GraceAnne DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Scribner; 1 edition (June 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743270452
• ISBN-13: 978-0743270458
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #856,071 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Martha's Vineyard mystery, June 26, 2007

By 

Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vineyard Stalker: A Martha's Vineyard Mystery (Martha's Vineyard Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Philip Craig passed away in May, leaving three completed novels in the publication pipeline. This is the first of the three. While all the novels are set on Martha's Vineyard, he managed to maintain the readers' interest by varying the characters and local settings.

The present novel relates to the skyrocketing prices of real estate on Martha's Vineyard - something that the author witnessed first hand. It is about greed, jealousy, lust, and rage. An older man has a one room cabin on a prime piece of real estate, allowed to occupy the land under conditions of a family trust. His cousin wants him to move so that she can sell the property. Now someone is trying to drive him off the land.

The man's sister has hired J. W. Jackson to find out who is behind the harassment of her brother. When you turn over rocks, there is no telling what you will find. There are many relationships involving the principals in the case, and someone tries to eliminate J.W., which is not a smart move. Money talks and some high priced attorneys become involved.

There are some victims in the novel, and some sleezeballs that may walk away clean. It has a sad ending.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another enjoyable trip to Martha's Vineyard, June 17, 2007

By 

Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vineyard Stalker: A Martha's Vineyard Mystery (Martha's Vineyard Mysteries) (Hardcover)

During the years he's been writing the Vineyard Mysteries, Philip R. Craig has probably done more for the Martha's Vineyard tourist trade than any Chamber of Commerce could. He paints a perfect picture of the popular destination, from its beautiful beaches to the quaint shops of its inhabitants. His protagonist, J.W. Jackson, is a laid-back ex-cop who loves catching bluefish, cooking, and spending time with his family. In his spare time he conducts investigations, such as this one where he looks into vandalism which has been occcuring at the home of Carole Cohen's brother, Roland. Roland owns some valuable Vineyard property which many island realtors would love to sell to developers. As J.W. investigates, he finds several people with motives for murder, ranging from money to love triangles.

It is with sadness that I learned of Philip Craig's recent death, since I always look forward to a good summer read in June, knowing that another Vineyard mystery is coming out. I heartily recommend this whole series.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The last vineyard Mystery, July 20, 2007

By 

Stafford Mckay "[e-mail]" (Indian Wells, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vineyard Stalker: A Martha's Vineyard Mystery (Martha's Vineyard Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Sadly this will be the last vineyard Mystery from Philip Craig. He died this past May and will be sorely missed by those of us that have read every one of his books. I totally recommend starting this series from the beginning and you will get to know all of the characters that are repeated in each book. Watch JW fall in love with Zee and watch their two children grow. JW is always able to figure out the mystery and the reader can never figure it out before he does. Philip Craig will be a hard act to follow.