Miss Zukas and the Raven's Dance (Miss Zukas Mysteries)

by Jo Dereske | Mystery & Thrillers |
ISBN: 038078243X Global Overview for this book
Registered by wingGoryDetailswing of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 2/3/2017
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1 journaler for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by wingGoryDetailswing from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Friday, February 3, 2017
I got this fair-condition paperback at a local Savers thrift shop. It's a mystery series starring Miss Helma Zukas, a librarian in the soggy Pacific Northwest; here, she's tapped to finish the job of cataloguing a collection of books on Native American history - and perhaps to solve the mystery of who murdered the original cataloguer. (Who knew library work could be so dangerous?)

I found the story entertaining, from the details about the residents' growing frustration with the soggy weather - Helma Zukas, the main character, goes to the trouble of finding sunshine-yellow tablecloths and candles in an attempt to bring *some* light into her apartment - to the personal, professional, and romantic ups and downs of the characters. Oh, and the murder plot - which turns out to have some very intricate background, hidden puzzles, and unlikely but interesting complications.

I also enjoyed Helma's gradual reconciliation to the stray cat who's been taking shelter on her porch. She doesn't want a pet - says she never even touches cats - but can't quite abandon it to the storm, and it gradually inveigles its way in.

There are some good riffs on Native American culture, from the genuine variety to the revisionist-history variety - and not ignoring the pop-culture variety either - and there's a pretender whose unmasking is a satisfying little sub-sub-plot. Lots of good library-scenes too, from the patrons wanting help finding "that book, you know, with the couple on the cover?"...

One of the better librarian-themed murder mysteries I've seen. I'd read more in this series.

Released 7 yrs ago (2/11/2017 UTC) at Dunstable Common (see release notes for details) in Dunstable, Massachusetts USA

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

I left this book, bagged against the elements, hanging from a tree near the gazebo on the common at around 1:30; hope the finder enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in MA here.]

*** Released for the 2017 Great Backyard Bird Count release challenge; see the GBBC page here. ***

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