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SCARY STUFF
by Sharon Fiffer
Minotaur Books, September 2009
304 pages
$24.99
ISBN: 0312387784


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Some folks just love stuff. I mean, they REALLY love stuff! Some make lucky finds, or make a habit of digging deeper than everybody else, or just get intrigued by many different things or stay curious longer. Everybody has something - or things - they love, and for Jane Wheel it's finding old items and finding out old secrets. She's been lucky enough to make both interests pay: as assistant to a professional investigator, she's been offered a partnership in the firm once she obtains her PI license, and she is an antiques picker, searching out obscure household items to sell, often at auctions. Both professions require a strong mixture of tenacity and curiosity, a good practical sense and a tendency to trust hunches - all qualities Jane shows in abundance in this not-too-sweet cosy, an entertaining fifth in the series.

Something is not quite right with her baby brother Michael, now thirtyish and with a nice young family of his own in California. While visiting them briefly she spots some fishy looking collectibles that he is selling online, and can't believe he is scamming folks although the evidence seems strongly against him. When she finds the trail leads back to their family and hometown she sets out to track them down. Jane's interactions with her family are beautifully detailed and very interesting, with her mother Nellie a standout character; one of the strongest elements in this book is the sea change in family dynamics among Jane's relatives by the finale.

Fiffer is adroit and clever enough to present the story slowly and carefully, and so even as a first-time reader of the series I could follow the family dynamics quite easily and was able to entirely enjoy the various plot elements - and people - as they presented themselves, particularly the elements of this novel that are tied to her family and their long history in the small Illinois town of Kankakee. We get to not only peel back the layers of past losses and loves in Jane's family for ourselves, but are allowed to watch her doing pretty much the same.

This was well-paced and excellently plotted - a delight to read - clever, funny, interesting, and, yes, ultimately heart-warming. There is a nice blend of puzzle, small-town triumphs and troubles, family dynamics, a 30-something facing a big change in her life, and (for me, not a small lure) the joys of stuff. Beautiful or ugly, peculiar or particular, wonderful "found things" that just might be very special, we are treated to a number of glorious finds that Jane hunts out, plus some delightful commentary by her about the ethos of collecting and The Joy Of The Hunt, something that many folks can relate to, along with the two very interesting PI cases.

For my taste (puzzle plot, nice and/or interesting people, cosy atmosphere with a touch of history and a bit of humor) Fiffer gets the balance just right. Although most of the action takes place a week or so before Halloween at a peculiar town gathering and one of the important players has a fixation on Halloween decorations, the majority of the story is not holiday-oriented, but centers around Jane and old stuff, her family and old emotions, her town and old ideas, and how all these things are changing. I liked Jane a lot, and hope to read another soon.

Reviewed by Abbey Hamilton, October 2009

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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