Uncommon Clay

Starred review from April 9, 2001
In this eighth book in the Judge Deborah Knott series (after 2000's Storm Track), Maron employs spare, straightforward prose and the languid language of the Carolina Piedmont to spin an exceptionally gripping tale of hate, jealousy and murder. Still smarting from the betrayal of her lover, Kidd Chapin, the redoubtable jurist travels to Randolph County, N.C., in order to settle the equitable distribution of the marital property of a pair of freshly divorced potters, Sandra Kay Nordan and James Lucas Nordan. Before she can finish her legal duties, however, somebody bakes James Lucas in a kiln. Deborah's own sense of loss in the wake of Kidd's rejection helps her empathize with patriarch Amos Nordan's multiple tragedies (another son died two years earlier) as well as a hired woman's grief over her retarded son. Amidst a beautifully evoked flowering spring countryside, Deborah pursues the murderer with her usual keen eye and common sense. If the book fairly swells with passion, a healthy dose of Southern humor keeps things from getting too maudlin. By the time the story reaches its dramatic conclusion, readers will be in mourning, wishing the end hadn't come so soon. Maron's mastery of jurisprudence, her well-researched depiction of the potting world but especially her sensitive portrayal of human relationships raise this novel far above the ordinary run of mysteries. (May 22)FYI:The first Knott novel,
Bootlegger's Daughter (1992), won all four top mystery awards—the Edgar, the Anthony, the Agatha and the Macavity. Maron, who's also the author of the Sigrid Harald series, will be the guest of honor at this year's Malice Domestic Convention.

May 1, 2001
The famous Nordan family, who live in an area of North Carolina known for its pottery, is being torn apart by a traumatic and bitter divorce. Judge Deborah Knotts (Storm Track) oversees distribution of the marital property, but her work is interrupted by a tragic death in the family reminiscent of a terrible suicide two years earlier. Heady stuff from a talented author.

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from May 1, 2001
\deflang1033\pard\plain\f3\fs24 The "bright red clay" of eastern Randolph County, North Carolina, is the setting for Maron's latest Deborah Knott mystery; the pottery that local artisans create using that clay and the relationships linking those artisans to each other and to their clients are its subjects. Judge Deborah Knott heads to Randolph County to supervise the equitable distribution of marital property in two divorces. The central case involves her with the Nordan Pottery clan: aging patriarch Amos; his talented son, Donny, deceased under suspicious circumstances several years ago; loyal if less talented son James Lucas and his soon-to-be ex-wife Sandra Kay, a gifted pottery "decorator"; and the family that operates the neighboring Rooster Clay Works--Sandra Kay's brother Dillard; his wife Betty, Amos Nordan's daughter; and their children. Much is shattered at Nordan Pottery--relationships, assumptions, expectations--and Deborah cannot prevent more deaths within this troubled family. As for Judge Knott herself, the book opens with an explosive end to her affair with game warden Kidd Chapin and includes an abortive new-relationship seduction scene that readers will chuckle about for months. (Hint: costumes judicial and prophylactic play key roles!) \plain\f3\fs24" Uncommon Clay\plain\f3\fs24 is a solid addition to the Knott series: a believable mystery blending humor and social issues with an empathetic understanding of the complexities of family life. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2001, American Library Association.)