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Like other writers who have already commented, I too now see a difference in the way I read fiction. Some of this is the fruit of having read something like 4000 mysteries over the last thirty-three years, and some is the awareness of the craft which comes from creating my own mysteries. I read much more critically these days, but the better the writing, the more engaging the characters and the storyline, the more the critical part of me recedes into the background as I read. It's always there, assessing what's good and what isn't, what works and what doesn't, but the voice isn't as insistent when I read something truly special. The weaker the writing, the more cliched the characters and the plotting, the louder the voice gets, and the more likely I'll put the book aside before finishing it, or indeed, getting very far. Unless it's something I have to review, and then I'll read it through. I had one of those wonderful experiences last night when I got completely lost in a good story. The book is a first novel by Ellis Vidler, called HAUNTING REFRAIN . The main character is Kate McGuire, who is trying to establish herself as a portrait photographer in a small South Carolina town after a divorce from an older, domineering man. In addition to her talents as a photographer, Kate also has psychic ability; she can sometimes see things after touching an object. She and a good friend, an older woman named Venice Ashburton who is also psychic, are taking part in a parapsychology group at the local college, and they are asked to touch various objects brought to the class. When Kate holds a sweatband in her hands, she has a haunting vision of struggle and death. The sweatband turns out to belong to a young woman who has been missing for several days. Kate insists she has been murdered, and a further touch brings Kate a stark and terrifying vision of the girl's death. Report John Gerrard is interested in the case, though he, like the police, is at first inclined to be skeptical of Kate's psychic abilities. But when the body is find, in circumstances exactly like Kate has envisioned, the police and the newspaper are much more interested. And so is the killer, who thought he had hidden the body so carefully it would never be found. Now Kate has become the killer's target, and the suspense builds as the reader watches Kate, John, and the police try to figure out who it is before his attacks on Kate are all too successful. Vidler very fairly plants the clues to the killer's identity, and eventually the reader knows who the killer is and watches while Kate puts the evidence together. The plot moves along at a fast clip, and there are some excellent twists and turns. I read this one at a gallop, very caught up in the story and the characters. This is an excellent first novel that doesn't read like one. All in all, a very polished performance, and highly recommended. Editor's Note: Dean James, who reviewed this book, is the author of CLOSER THAN THE BONES (May 2001, Silver Dagger Mysteries) POSTED TO DEATH (April 2002, Kensington Publishing) http://www.neosoft.com/~campion/ Reviews of both appear on this site.
Reviewed by Dean James, April 2002
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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