Claire Watkins Mysteries Series by Mary Logue
Claire Watkins Mysteries #2
Dark Coulee
Mary Logue
Claire Watkins, deputy sheriff of Pepin County, Wisconsin, makes a strong second showing that ought to gain her new fans. In spite of recurrent panic attacks associated with the death of her husband, Claire is starting to find the peace and security she's been seeking for herself and her 10-year-old daughter, Meg, since leaving her promising career with the St. Paul-Minneapolis police department for the small bluff town of St. Antoine.One summer evening, while her sister Bridget takes care of Meg, Claire and Rich Haggard, a local pheasant farmer she's been dating for three months, attend a street dance in nearby Little Rock. Just as the fun gets under way, screams for help stop the music and put romance on hold. Someone has stabbed well-liked farmer Jed Spitzler in the chest. Members of the close-knit St. Antoine community join Jed's children in searching for Jed's killer.Long-hidden town secrets are revealed as Claire seeks the truth and continues to struggle with her own demons.From Publishers WeeklyClaire Watkins, deputy sheriff of Pepin County, Wis., makes a strong second showing (after 1999's Blood Country) that ought to gain her new fans. In spite of recurrent panic attacks associated with the death of her husband, Claire is starting to find the peace and security she's been seeking for herself and her 10-year-old daughter, Meg, since leaving her promising career with the St. Paul-Minneapolis police department for the small bluff town of St. Antoine. One summer evening, while her sister Bridget takes care of Meg, Claire and Rich Haggard, a local pheasant farmer she's been dating for three months, attend a street dance in nearby Little Rock. Just as the fun gets under way, screams for help stop the music and put romance on hold. Someone has stabbed well-liked farmer Jed Spitzler in the chest. Members of the close-knit St. Antoine community join Jed's children in searching for Jed's killer. Long-hidden town secrets are revealed as Claire seeks the truth and continues to struggle with her own demons. Logue uses her talents as a poet to depict smalltown life and give rich insights into the hearts of her characters, from the kindly retired school teacher, Ella Gunderson, to the troubled children of Jed Spitzler. Claire performs her duties with intelligence, skill and caring, and readers are left at the conclusion only wanting more. Agent, Jane Chelius. (Nov.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. From School Library JournalAdult/High School-Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins and her 10-year-old daughter Meg are still adjusting to their new life in Fort St. Antoine, WI, when a local farmer, Jed Spitzler, is murdered. Claire finds his three children to be hiding lots of family secrets, which must be ferreted out gently but diligently, and with a great deal of patience. Evidence points to the fact that their mother's death, denoted as an accident at the time, was murder, and to Jed as the perpetrator. Plus, it is revealed that Jed had been molesting his oldest daughter, Jenny. Although the physical abuse isn't discussed in detail, Logue paints a detailed portrait of a young woman who uses drugs and alcohol to hide her pain, shame, and humiliation. With much twisting and rearranging, the murder is solved and Claire begins to recover from her husband's death and past events in her life as well. Logue smoothly carries readers into the hearts and minds of these characters. She just as easily transfers the focus of the story centered on the Spitzler family to the minor plots surrounding Claire's life, and the action never stops. Young adults who enjoy J. A. Jance's series featuring Sheriff Joanna Brady will like this series as well.-Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VACopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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Claire Watkins Mysteries #3
Glare Ice
Mary Logue
Wisconsin winter weather plays as important a role as any individual in this nicely paced tale of domestic abuse and murder. Claire Watkins is still adjusting to life in little Fort St. Antoine when she notices the bruises and stiff gait of a local woman named Stephanie Klaus. Small town or big city, Claire knows the signs of abuse when she sees them.Stephanie, however, won't talk, even when her new boyfriend, Buck, is tied into his car, driven out on the treacherous ice of Lake Pepin and left there to sink and drown.When Stephanie, accompanied by Buck's delightful dog, Snooper, tries to leave town, she is once again beaten; this time, she barely survives . . .From Publishers WeeklyWisconsin winter weather plays as important a role as any individual in this nicely paced tale of domestic abuse and murder. Police officer Claire Watkins, last seen in Dark Coulee (2000), is still adjusting to life in little Fort St. Antoine when she notices the bruises and stiff gait of a local woman named Stephanie Klaus. Small town or big city, Claire knows the signs of abuse when she sees them. Stephanie, however, won't talk, even when her new boyfriend, Buck, is tied into his car, driven out on the treacherous ice of Lake Pepin and left there to sink and drown. When Stephanie, accompanied by Buck's delightful dog, Snooper, tries to leave town, she is once again beaten; this time, she barely survives. Still she won't identify her attacker. Claire, in between Thanksgiving details involving her daughter, her sister, her boyfriend, Rich a teensy bit tiresome in his devotion and Rich's mother, tracks down Stephanie's creepy parents, ex-husband, brother and a police officer full of attitude. Claire still can't identify the culprit, but Stephanie has some protection in the form of her neighbor Sven Slocum, a retired executive with a generous heart. As a massive snowfall begins to pile up, visibility is practically nil, but Claire at last begins to see things clearly. The finale is not as fully developed as it might be, but a powerful sense of place and good clean writing greatly enhance this somewhat unremarkable plot. In addition, Claire Watkins is an appealing heroine who, in a refreshing break from the standard modern female protagonist, leaves her political agenda at home. Agent, Jane Chelius. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.From BooklistThe third entry in a popular series continues the saga of deputy sheriff Claire Watkins, living and working in western Wisconsin with her daughter, Meg. Claire is settling into a relationship with Rich Haggard, a local farmer, and preparing for the long winter ahead when she is awakened one morning by a mysterious and abruptly disconnected phone call from a distraught woman. After running into Stephanie Klaus at the post office and noting her battered face, Claire is fairly certain that she has identified the caller. Before she can act, another local resident is killed when his car falls through the ice of a frozen lake--Stephanie's boyfriend, Buck. As Claire works to determine whether Stephanie's bruises and Buck's death are related, all the while planning holiday festivities with her family, Stephanie struggles with the secrets that are placing her in grave danger. An atmospheric mystery whose engaging subject matter makes up for somewhat awkward dialogue and an unrelated, unnecessary subplot concerning a little old lady. Recommend to fans of J. A. Jance's Joanna Brady series. Carrie BisseyCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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Claire Watkins Mysteries #6
Maiden Rock
Mary Logue
Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins is back, in this tragic, personal follow up to Poison Heart. Claire’s daughter Meg is struggling with depression - after an all-night high school Halloween party, Meg’s best friend was found dead of an apparent suicide at the foot of Maiden Rock. Krista and Meg had fought at the party, over a boy, and Krista had run off. Meg feels responsible, but what shocks the deputy is that Krista was found with meth in her system. Now Claire is faced with a growing trend in her rural town - meth labs, doped-up teenagers, and young girls just looking for a way to escape their small-town lives.From Publishers WeeklyWhen Meg, deputy sheriff Claire Watkins's 15-year-old daughter, doesn't come home from a Halloween party hosted by close friend Krista Jorgenson at the start of Logue's harrowing fifth mystery set in Pepin County, Wis. (after 2005's Poison Heart), Claire fears the worst. Early the next morning, Claire discovers Krista, still wearing her Halloween costume, lying dead at the foot of a high limestone ledge called Maiden Rock. Two hours later, Claire and Meg, who had spent the night making out with a boy in his car, have a tearful reunion. After Meg learns of Krista's apparent suicide, she blames herself because the two had had a falling out at the party. But when meth turns up in Krista's bloodstream and a woman manufacturing meth in her trailer dies in an explosive fire, it becomes clear there's a serious drug problem among the community's young people. With minimal detail, limited characterization and few plot twists, this cautionary tale may be too straightforward for many mystery readers. (Nov.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. About the AuthorMary Logue is an award-winning poet and mystery writer. She was born and raised in Minnesota. Her most recent books are Snatched, a middle-grade mystery she wrote with Pete Hautman; Poison Heart, her seventh crime novel; and Meticulous Attachment, her third book of poems. Meticulous Attachment was awarded honorable mention by the Midwest Booksellers Association in 2006 and Dark Coulee won a Minnesota Book Award in 2000. She has also published a young adult novel, Dancing with an Alien, with Harper Collins. Her non-fiction books include a biography of her grandmother, Halfway Home, and a book on Minnesota courthouses, both published by the Minnesota Historial Society Press. She has been an editor at The Village Voice, Simon & Schuster, Graywolf Press, Mid-List Press, and The Creative Company. She has taught for many years at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis and at Hamline University in St. Paul. She lives with writer Pete Hautman in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
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Claire Watkins Mysteries #7
Point No Point
Mary Logue
The seventh book in the Claire Watkins mystery series. Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins is faced with a difficult case when a friend of the family is suspected of killing his wife. Her investigation puts a great stress on her relationship with her husband. Things are further strained when the suspect attempts suicide, solidifying his guilt in Claire’s mind. But what if she’s wrong?From Publishers WeeklyIn Logue's disturbing seventh mystery to feature Wisconsin deputy sheriff Claire Watkins (after 2007's Maiden Rock), Claire's live-in boyfriend, Rich Haggard, gets a frantic, middle-of-the-night call from an old friend, Chet Baldwin. Rich rushes to Chet's house to find Chet lying in bed next to the body of his wife, Anne, who's been shot in the forehead. When Claire arrives at the scene soon after, Chet gets up and drops the handgun he's been cradling. Rich resents the strictly official posture Claire adopts, and their relationship deteriorates further after Claire conceals the fact that Chet attempts suicide while in her custody. Meanwhile, Claire's protégé on the force, Amy Schroeder, looks into the murder of a stranger found floating in the Mississippi River, a case that, predictably, ends up connected with the Baldwin case. Readers who care more about intelligent depictions of passionate emotions than the details of police work will be most satisfied. (Dec.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. About the AuthorAward-winning poet and mystery writer Mary Logue was born and raised in Minnesota. Her most recent books are Maiden Rock,her eighth crime novel; Skullduggery, the second in the Bloodwater mystery series with Pete Hautman; and Meticulous Attachment, her third book of poems. Her most recent awards include: Snatched, the first book in the Bloodwater series, nominated for an Edgar Award; Meticulous Attachment, awarded honorable mention by the Midwest Booksellers Association; and Dark Coulee won a Minnesota Book Award. She has also published a young adult novel, Dancing with an Alien, with HarperCollins. Her non-fiction books include a biography of her grandmother, Halfway Home, and a book on Minnesota courthouses, both published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. She has been an editor at the Village Voice, Simon & Schuster, Graywolf Press, Mid-List Press, and The Creative Company and has had articles published in the Village Voice, the New York Times and the Hungry Mind Review. She has taught for many years at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota, and Hamline University in St. Paul. She lives with writer Pete Hautman in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
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Claire Watkins Mysteries #8
Frozen Stiff
Mary Logue
Car mogul Daniel Walker is celebrating New Year’s Eve alone. Or at least he thinks he is. At midnight, he runs outside naked for a quick roll in the snow. But when he tries to get back in the house, he can’t. He’s been locked out.From Publishers WeeklyAt the start of Logue's tepid eighth mystery featuring Pepin County, Wis., deputy sheriff Claire Watkins (after 2008's Point No Point), Dan Walker, who's been celebrating New Year's Eve alone in his cabin's new sauna, finds himself locked out of his cabin after a brief naked roll in the snow. Subzero temperatures ensure that he's frozen stiff by the next morning. Miraculously, Dan revives, but is unable to recall what happened to him, though it appears someone deliberately locked him out. Suspicion falls on Dan's soon-to-be-ex-wife, Sherri, as well as his spoiled daughter, Danielle, but other suspects soon emerge. Meanwhile, a possible change in Claire's long-term relationship with Rich Haggard, among other personal issues, complicate Claire's hunt for who wanted Dan dead. Series fans may enjoy the rough Wisconsin winter and revisiting old friends, but Logue fails to generate much suspense or excitement. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistIt is New Year’s Eve in Pepin County, Wisconsin, 20 below zero with lots of snow. Daniel Walker is relaxing in his sauna, enjoying a bottle of vodka and a cigar and contemplating a new land deal and a divorce. At midnight, he leaves the sauna for a nude roll in the snow, but when he tries to get back inside, the door won’t open. When his soon-to-be-ex discovers him frozen in a pile of snow the next morning, she calls for help and the paramedics take him to the hospital to see if he can be saved. Sheriff’s investigator Claire Watkins has to figure out whether the incident was an accident or a crime. Daniel Walker made many people unhappy: his wife, his daughter, those on the wrong sides of his land deals. As she investigates, Claire ponders her own relationship with boyfriend Rich. After the death of her husband many years ago, she has been hesitant to remarry. The freezing weather echoes the relationships in this story. Some are frozen, while others, previously icy, show signs of thawing. A satisfying entry in a consistently entertaining series. --Barbara Bibel
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