The Alpine Recluse

February 27, 2006
Well-drawn characters and a complex crime are a winning combination in Daheim's 18th Emma Lord mystery (after 2005'sAlpine Quilt ). The sleepy town of Alpine, Wash., is shocked when a local home goes up in flames in an act of arson\x97and murder. Tim Rafferty, a young husband and father-to-be, was at home when the blaze erupted, and Sheriff Milo Dodge soon realizes Tim was beaten to death with the proverbial blunt instrument before the fire was lit. When Emma, editor of the local paper and inveterate sleuth, learns that Tim was having an affair with another local gal, she wonders if Tim's bride, Tiffany, who isn't exactly playing the part of the grieving widow, might have offed her man. Or perhaps Tim's father-in-law did the awful deed. Emma gets so engrossed in the crime that she lets her nascent romance with a Seattle journalist wane, prompting hope that perhaps she and the sheriff will get back together in the next installment in this popular cozy series.

February 1, 2006
Daheim is back with another entertaining entry in her long-running Alpine series. Featuring Emma Lord, owner and publisher of the weekly " Alpine Advocate," the series winningly depicts life in a small town in Washington's Cascade Mountains. In this adventure, it's a particularly hot summer in Alpine, and lots of people--including Emma--are sweaty and grumpy. Roused from her bed by a nearby house fire, Emma joins her neighbors in searching for the owners, Tim and Tiffany Rafferty. Their worst fears are realized when Tim's body is recovered; thankfully, his pregnant wife, Tiffany, wasn't home. After Police Chief Milo Dodge discovers that Tim was murdered before the fire started, many townspeople become suspects. As Emma tries to pry information from Tim's sister, Beth, and his possible mistress, Toni, she forgets a weekend date with her new love interest, Rolf--and he is not exactly forgiving. Readers will continue to love Emma less for her feats than for her foibles: her too-short haircut, her mishandling of relationships, and her innate nosiness.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)