The Winter Widow [Paperback]

Charlene Weir (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1993

Ten days after city slicker Susan marries Hampstead, Kansas, police chief Daniel Wren, Daniel is killed by a sniper's bullet, and Susan finds herself the new police chief. Reprint. PW. K.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Winner of the publisher's second annual Malice Domestic contest for traditional mystery, this first novel bursts with nonstop action and harrowing suspense. San Francisco policewoman Susan Donovan moves to Hampstead, Kans., when she marries the small city's police chief, Dan Wren, only to become a widow within six weeks. Shocked and enraged, Susan gets herself appointed Hampstead's temporary police chief and vows to find Dan's killer. When a reporter, daughter of the area's leading family, is strangled while investigating Dan's death, the mayor responds to local pressure and threatens to fire outsider Susan before more citizens die. She wins a five-day reprieve but must survive various assaults, from humans and animals, before she can solve the cases. Weir skillfully guides readers through a treacherous Midwest winter, the multimillion-dollar bull-sperm business, the covert search for a toxic waste dump and a college town's accumulated secrets--all observed by a city cop who refuses to be charmed by anything far removed from asphalt and neon.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Susan Wren, a former San Francisco cop scarcely recovered from the shock of her husband's murder, takes over his job as police chief of Hampstead, Kansas, vowing to avenge his death. Everything backfires as she attempts to overcome the multiple burdens of sexism, resentment, ignorance, and her own wild suspicions; still, her investigation uncovers a second murder, dubious land development schemes, and illegal toxic waste dumping. Instead of using her brains, Wren follows her overwrought instincts, to the partial detriment of the plot. Winner of St. Martin's second Malice Domestic contest.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Worldwide Library (August 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373261284
• ISBN-13: 978-0373261284
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 3.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,063,902 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunately the main character got on my last nerve, June 18, 2010

By 

Cathy G. Cole (Phoenix, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Winter Widow (Paperback)

First Line: Definite disadvantages to being chief of police, Dan Wren thought as he headed the pickup along the graveled, hilly road past tree-dotted fields with barbed wire fences.

Thirtysomething San Francisco police officer Susan Donovan meets the man of her dreams at a conference. Within six weeks, she's married, she's moved to northeastern Kansas with her police chief husband, Dan Wren... and she's a widow. Susan gets herself appointed temporary chief of police and vows to find her husband's killer. When another person dies, the mayor wants her gone, but Susan manages to get a five-day reprieve. Will she find the killer before time runs out?

Mysteries set in Kansas are not common, and Weir skillfully guides us through a Great Plains winter, the vagaries of the multi-million-dollar bull sperm business, and a search for a toxic waste dump. All that was interesting and the pace moved right along. What didn't work for me was the main character. It wasn't until the end of the book that I ever felt that Susan had been a police officer on the San Francisco police force. She didn't use her brain; she let her rage and grief take command and lead her into numerous dangerous situations. I tried to take it easy on her, allowing her time to grieve, but sooner or later when a character keeps behaving like the blonde bimbo in a slasher movie, I'm going to hold the basement door open for her the next time there's a weird noise down there.

To sum it up: fine setting, good pace, and the murderer was not easy to spot; however, the main character got on my last nerve. Toto, I took the first plane out of Kansas.