I Shall Not Want: A Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mystery (Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries) (Hardcover)

by Julia Spencer-Fleming (Author) "When she saw the glint of the revolver barrel through the broken glass in the window, Hadley Knox thought, I'm going to die for sixteen..." (more)
Key Phrases: muster field, ler voice, lis voice, Millers Kill, Sister Lucia, Officer Knox (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
At the start of Anthony-winner Spencer-Fleming's solid sixth mystery to feature Clare Fergusson, an Episcopal priest, and Russ Van Alstyne, her police chief admirer, Clare and Russ are still trying to recover from the death of Russ's wife, Linda, in All Mortal Flesh (2006). Clare and Russ do their best to steer clear of each other in the small town of Millers Kill, N.Y., but when a van carrying Mexican migrant workers en route to jobs at local farms is ambushed, the pair find themselves caught up in an investigation of drug smuggling and gang turf wars. After a number of Latino corpses turn up, Clare and Russ begin to question whether trouble followed the migrant workers or if it's the work of someone closer to home. While the plot takes some implausible turns, Clare and Russ's complex romantic dance is as compelling as ever. The cliffhanger ending will leave readers eagerly awaiting the next installment in this notable regional series. (June)
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From Booklist
*Starred Review* A suspected serial killer in the town of Millers Kill in Upstate New York takes a backseat to the simmering relationship between Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne and Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson in the sixth entry in this tantalizing series. Emotions are raw between the two in the aftermath of a lethal hostage situation and the death of Russ’ wife, Linda, in All Mortal Flesh (2006), so they seek diversion (including Clare’s joining the National Guard) and try to avoid each other. But the priest, feisty almost to the point of being foolhardy, is always in the thick of things, as when bodies of Latino men start turning up. Spencer-Fleming poses the issue of immigration, showing how the hiring of undocumented migrant workers impacts the Van Alstyne family; and she introduces an appealing new character, single mother Hadley Knox, granddaughter of the Episcopal church sexton, who joins the police force and captivates fellow officer Kevin Flynn. Action rachets up in a deadly shoot-out with drug-dealing Latino gangbangers, and just when resolution seems within reach, there’s a final twist. Keenly moving and occasionally laugh-out-loud funny, this is a tour de force in a series that seems to have jumped several levels in quality. --Michele Leber

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books (June 10, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312334877
• ISBN-13: 978-0312334871
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #199,704 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This is item 6 in The Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "...and she shall not disappoint" *, June 10, 2008

By	K. M. "literary devotee" (California) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Julia Spencer-Fleming has never disappointed me. Six Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne mysteries have passed from her agile, witty and plot-rich mind into our eager, hooked ones; and I wouldn't have missed a single one for the world.

Of course, Spencer-Fleming stranded her inimitable Episcopalian rector and police chief in a devastating quandary at the end of book five, ALL MORTAL FLESH. Although I saw various ways to continue their story, I wondered whether the tragic twist was too much for love to overcome.

So, I waited on pins and needles for this newest offering, I SHALL NOT WANT. In it, Spencer-Fleming lays out with confidence the aftermath, the repercussions, of the previous book's tragedy. Guilt. Withdrawal. Frustration. These haunt our protagonists. But since they both continue to live in Millers Kill, unpracticed face-to-face moments can't be avoided. How do Russ and Clare cope? Can the love settled in them when they first met, the love that would not fall away during other testings, revive and strengthen now? These are the vital questions...and they are fearlessly answered.

I SHALL NOT WANT begins with a bang as the reader follows rookie female officer Hadley Knox and the rest of the Millers Kill police force as they desperately attempt to bring a hostage standoff to a bloodless end...but cannot. Then, the story rolls back about six months to trace the causes of and players in that fatal shootout. These include an accident with an overturned van from which injured undocumented foreign agricultural workers flee, a series of execution-style murders, an identity switch, an influx of big city gang members, millions of dollars in illegal pot, and a family of redneck farmers.

But back to Hadley Knox for a second. She is a substantial and pleasing additional to the Miller's Kill cast of characters. As a single mother struggling to make ends meet, her doubts about being able to cut it as the first female sworn officer on Russ' team seem very genuine. Since the youngest member of the force, Kevin Flynn, thinks she is the most beautiful woman around, she, amusingly, also has her hands full with him.

Indeed, no Clare/Russ book would be whole without Spencer-Fleming's gentle sense of humor. I SHALL NOT WANT includes several lovely laugh-out-loud bits. The most hilarious follows a scene of danger and uproar. I won't spoil it, but it is a wonderful tension-breaker.

Does I SHALL NOT WANT adequately come to terms with the stark situation in which ALL MORTAL FLESH left Russ and Clare? I think so, although arguably it skittered over some of the hard work. However, Spencer-Fleming knows that as long as we live, there is no ending, happy or otherwise. We keep moving from one feeling and circumstance to another. So, if Russ and Clare don't hyper-analyze their every doubt, isn't that a touch of realism rather than a lack of penetrating drama? Deputy Chief Lyle MacAuley tells Clare at one point, " 'We don't have near enough time on this earth, and what we do have, we fritter away acting like damn fools.' " Yup. Clare and Russ can't afford to stay stuck forever in any one moment, not matter how fateful. They can't let any one thing define them. They are the sum of their lives. Lives which keep moving along, whether they like it or not.

Kevin takes his chance to giddily espouse his feelings for Hadley: "That was love....love, love, love." Spencer-Fleming makes sure love has its day in the sun in I SHALL NOT WANT, but again, I won't spoil whether Clare and Russ get the same opportunity as Kevin. Whatever happens, love -- in all its manifestations, including lovemaking -- can't make happy endings, only happiness along the way. In this truth lies the bittersweet residue of the novel's poignant fade out.

Now, here's hoping for a seventh addition to this adroit and distinguished mystery series!

__________________
* from publisher's comments on the back cover.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spencer-Fleming continues to torture her readers, June 10, 2008

By	Lesa Holstine (Glendale, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Fans of Julia Spencer-Fleming's Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne mystery series have been waiting to see what happened after the traumatic events in All Mortal Flesh. She takes us back to Millers Kill, New York in her latest book, I Shall Not Want, where the Episcopal priest and town police chief are still facing the repercussions of past events.

The new book captures the reader immediately, not with a scene that immediately involves her main characters, but with a scene in which a rookie cop is under fire. When the opening chapter erupts into gunfire, Spencer-Fleming leaves the reader hanging, and switches back to tell the story that leads up to the shoot-out.

As usual, Clare Fergusson innocently gets involved in events that lead to tragedy. When she offers to partner with a nun in assisting the year-round Hispanic workforce who are farmhands on the Washington County dairy farms, she has no idea there will be shootings, dead bodies, attacks in the church, and local confrontations with drug dealers. She and Russ still fight over her "good works," but she now has the outlet of her National Guard duty to get her out of town. And, when Russ confronts his sister and mother over their purchase of a dairy farm, he has no idea his family will be caught up in lies and cover-ups.

Once again, Spencer-Fleming embroils her two characters in events out of the headlines; drugs, problems with nonresident aliens, National Guard service during wartime. And, of course, they still face the problem of their attraction for each other. It's a powerful combination for what she calls a novel "of faith and murder for readers of literary suspense."

I Shall Not Want seems to place even more emphasis on the police procedural aspect of the series, following the Millers Kill Police Department in their investigations. The author introduces an interesting new character as well, Hadley Knox, a single mother of two who is hired as the police department's newest officer when she returns home to live with her grandfather. The problems of a single mother, trying to work, learn a new job, and cope with two generations, is another example of Spencer-Fleming's finger on the pulse of society.

Despite the serious tones of this latest mystery, there's always romance and humor in these books. After totalling another car, Clare thinks, "Her parishioners would start calling her the Reverend Stephanie Plum."

No one involves readers in current events, romance, and tragedy in the same way Julia Spencer-Fleming does. I Shall Not Want is another strong story that tortures Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne. Unlike other authors, though, Spencer-Fleming torments her readers as well, and leaves us longing for the next book in this award-winning series.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another All-Night Read, June 13, 2008

By	Sarah - See all my reviews

When I read the first book in Julia Spencer-Fleming's series--"In the Bleak Midwinter"--I was overwhelmed by how quickly she created two interesting and multi-dimensional characters about whom I immediately cared. Clare Ferguson and Russ Van Alstyne continue to to be the focus of this wonderful installment: "I Shall Not Want." Their relationship is realistic and complicated, full of angst but also full of the joy of learning to love another human being. The mystery plot in this book does take a back seat to the more interesting mystery of how these two are ever going to settle into their complicated lives together. As previous reviewers have suggested, start with the first book and watch how Spencer-Fleming makes us love these characters.

Another good sign in this book is her introduction of new characters in the town of Miller's Kill. The community is becoming a little more fleshed out and less like a stereotype of the small town. Spencer-Fleming also continues to experiment with structure. Each book is a little different--different points of view, plot structure, etc.

It looked like Spencer-Fleming had painted herself into a corner with the last book, but she has deftly managed the crisis "All Mortal Flesh" left us with. Now, however, much more is at stake. The ending of this novel will delight her fans but once again leave them anticipating the next novel with some trepidation.