Welcome to Week CLXIV of ‘Fishing Parkland Shorelines’. Like most of us I am a novice fisherman, loving to fish, but far from an expert. In the following weeks I’ll attempt to give those anglers who love to fish but just don’t have access to a boat, a look at some of the options in the Yorkton area where you can fish from shore, and hopefully catch some fish.
As much as anyone who loves fishing might dream of being on the water with a fishing rod in hand all summer long, the reality few of us are in a position to do that.
In my own case I’ll even admit I wouldn’t want to be fishing every day. There are a few too many other things I enjoy that I’d want a mix of days to do different things (there are Canadian Rugby Championships coming up the week of July 13 to 18 that I hope to get too as an example).
It’s also a joy to sit down with a good book, although at times I combine that interest with fishing, by turning to a good fishing mystery.
And that brings us to Dead Rapunzel by author Victoria Houston. The title is the 14th in Houston’s now long-running Loon Lake Mystery Series.
“It’s the dead of winter in Loon Lake when a wealthy widow is run down and killed by a logging truck on an icy street. The truck driver insists he saw a man shove the woman into the path of his truck. A lone witness who may have seen the man who shoved the victim is soon found dead – drowned in the icy waters where he was ice fishing. Within hours, Police Chief Lewellyn Ferris finds herself dealing with malicious family members related to the dead woman, a cache of grisly paintings, and strange disturbances on the land surrounding the widow’s contemporary mansion – all of which point to various people who may have wanted her dead,” noted the book’s back cover.
“Lew recruits her close friend and fellow fly-fisherman, retired dentist “Doc” Osborne, for his forensic and interrogation skills. “Meanwhile, Ray Pradt, ice-fishing guide and expert tracker, helps with the initial investigation even as he threatens to engage in an inappropriate relationship with a key witness.”
There are threads here Houston might have wove a grander tale, but that is not what this series has been about.
The mysteries are set in the Northwoods of Wisconsin against a background of fishing – fly fishing as well as fishing for muskie, bass, bluegill and walleyes.
At the author’s website (http://www.victoriahouston.com) she explains; “I was born and raised in Rhinelander, WI, in the heart of the fishing culture that backgrounds my mysteries. I grew up fishing for walleye and bluegills and muskie – and when I turned fifty, I learned to fly fish!
“I’ve always had an aptitude for writing and won a full scholarship to Bennington College in Vermont. I went on to have three children, marry and divorce twice …
“After a decade of magazine and newspaper feature writing – the source of my non-fiction books -- I directed promotion and publicity for Andrews & McMeel/Universal Press Syndicate during which time I had the privilege of working with outstanding writers and cartoonists such as Abigail Van Buren, Gary Larson, Erma Bombeck and Garry Trudeau. Later I joined Jane Mobley Associates, a public relations firm based in Kansas City.
“I moved back to Rhinelander in 1996 (having been gone for over 30 years) where I now hunt, fish and write mysteries. Over the years, I have published 23 books – a fact that surprises the hell out of me as I never finished college. I am just starting my 14th Loon Lake Mystery.”
For me Dead Rapunzel is the fifth book of the series I have read, and I have come to quite enjoy them.
The series has really become one of quick and enjoyable mysteries, so I asked Houston if she found readers like that in a world where free time seems so hard to come by.
“I know I do and rarely will I read a book longer than 300 pages,” she replied via email.
“My non-expert opinion is that most people do like the length of books like mine and that’s why you will see reviewers mention it when a book is really long.”
Dead Rapunzel starts off quickly with an accident quickly identified as anything but.
From the inside cover we have a taste of the tale;
“This won’t be easy Doc,” was all Lew said, pointing ahead and to the left, her breath a cloud in the bitter air. Osborne looked in the direction she was pointing, then away. He caught the eye of an EMT waiting nearby, who nodded in understanding. What was left of the individual who had been hit was difficult for even the most experienced of first responders to stomach.
“Do we have any identification of this … woman?” asked Osborne. The wheels of the truck had crushed the head, masking any identifying features. Not even the jaw remained intact and Osborne was sure a dental ID might be difficult, if not impossible.
It was the clothing – a shearling coat, a bright blue scarf, traces of a wool sweater, and burgundy fleece leggings on the only extremities not damaged – that made it obvious the victim was female.”
So where did the idea for this particular mystery come from?
“Mainly from the explosion of sand mines here in northern Wisconsin due to fracking in the northern U.S.,” said Houston.
“Also, I am a former art critic so I had fun with that. Otherwise the secondary characters are based on people I knew years ago. And I was ready to set a story in the winter. Oh, one more thing — I was having coffee in a small cafe in a small town not far from here when a logging truck rumbled through and I know from working on trucking issues many years ago in my early PR career that those things are impossible to stop very quickly: excellent murder weapon!”
There was a point where a single cigarette butt seemed to me to hint suggestively at who the murderer was. I asked Houston if that was designed as an ‘ah ha’ moment for readers.
“You have read too many mysteries. Sorry I couldn’t deceive you longer,” she said, adding it was not written as a telltale clue, “just my lame effort to leave a few crumbs to be followed.”
While I might have deduced the killer at that point, in a quick read it wasn’t exactly a deal breaker in terms of book enjoyment.
For fans of the series, I count myself in that cadre based on the light reads they are, the good news is Houston is already at work on the next title. She said she is “just getting started on ‘Dead Loudmouth’ which is set in July.
“Two bodies have turned up so far. Who knows what will happen next …”
