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43rd out of 128 books
—
42 voters
I Shall Not Want (Rev. Clare Fergusson & Russ Van Alstyne Mysteries #6)
by
Julia Spencer-Fleming (Goodreads Author)
Millers Kill reaches the boiling point in this white-hot novel of love and suspense
People die. Marriages fail. In the small Adirondack town of Millers Kill, New York, however, life doesn’t stop for heartbreak. A brand-new officer in the police department, a breaking-and-entering, and trouble within his own family keep Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne busy enough to ignore the...more
People die. Marriages fail. In the small Adirondack town of Millers Kill, New York, however, life doesn’t stop for heartbreak. A brand-new officer in the police department, a breaking-and-entering, and trouble within his own family keep Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne busy enough to ignore the...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
June 10th 2008
by Minotaur Books
(first published 2008)
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Aaah! ...and they're back! I was ready to quit this series, but no need. Everything that was missing in All Mortal Flesh is back in spades. In fact, I Shall Not Want almost swung too far in the other direction. The mystery was a little on the light side. So much so, that someone (publisher? editor? probably not the author) pulled the most action packed chapter from it's normal place in the progression of the story, and made it the first chapter, then prefaced the rest of the story with "6 Months...more
Read this in just a few, short days. After the trainwreck of an ending in the previous book, I needed a break from Russ & Clare. I was caring too much about them. They're fictional characters for goodness sake! Yet I devour these books and laugh and cry along with them, page by page, as though they were living, breathing friends.
There have been many books and characters that have stuck with me though the years, but very few are the ones who I think might actually be real. Russ and Clare fit...more
There have been many books and characters that have stuck with me though the years, but very few are the ones who I think might actually be real. Russ and Clare fit...more
8 likes · like · see review
I LOVE THESE BOOKS.
Such satisfying mystery and romance, set in a totally believable portrayal of a small, rural town. This one involved Hispanic farmhands without the proper paperwork (i.e. illegal migrant workers) working on dairy farms, and I found myself going “yes!” multiple times as Spencer-Fleming got the dynamics of that situation right.* Add it together with fantastic characterization – her female characters are especially strong and believable – and the alternately frustrating and rewar...more
Such satisfying mystery and romance, set in a totally believable portrayal of a small, rural town. This one involved Hispanic farmhands without the proper paperwork (i.e. illegal migrant workers) working on dairy farms, and I found myself going “yes!” multiple times as Spencer-Fleming got the dynamics of that situation right.* Add it together with fantastic characterization – her female characters are especially strong and believable – and the alternately frustrating and rewar...more
Aug 29, 2008
Jenne
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
people who have read the other books in the series first
Well, I finally caught up to the latest book in the series, and I can't believe I'm going to have to wait (how long???) to find out what happens next.
This was BY FAR the best one yet--what can I say, I'm a hopeless romantic, and especially a sucker for a bittersweet happy ending.
I also liked the Stephanie Plum reference--just what I was thinking.
ETA: I had to come back and say that I was thinking about it and the relationship in this series is basically the opposite of everything that drives me...more
This was BY FAR the best one yet--what can I say, I'm a hopeless romantic, and especially a sucker for a bittersweet happy ending.
I also liked the Stephanie Plum reference--just what I was thinking.
ETA: I had to come back and say that I was thinking about it and the relationship in this series is basically the opposite of everything that drives me...more
I admit that I took this one out of order. I've read 4 in the series and wanted book #5 on CD for my car trip, but it wasn't available at my library, so I took #6. So obviously, there was a surprise in store in this one! I love the very real way the relationship between Clare and Russ has played out over this series and hope it continues to do so (in other words, I hope this isn't the last book!). The supporting characters were all very real and well developed (go, Kevin! who's the man?) and the...more
1 like · like · see review
This series just keeps getting better and better. I like that it's set in a part of the country that I am familiar with (upstate New York), but mostly I kept reading and reading these (all six in ~ a week), because I loved the story of Russ & Clare. Very realistic behavior on all sides from some really well-drawn characters, which made for an engaging story. And it helped that the story plays out over the course of some pretty good mysteries (although I often guessed the solutions before the...more
6th in the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series.[return][return]Superb. Gripping from the start. Spencer-Fleming alters her usual style; the first chapter, in which Russ is seriously wounded, takes place in the present; the time frame then reverts to 6 months previously. The back story is of more than usual interest as the reader waits, tensely, to learn the developments that lead to the shooting. The situation between Clare and Russ has deteriorated badly. The Millers Kill Police Force gains...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
If Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne don't keep you coming back to Miller's Kill over and over again you haven't met them yet. While Reverend Clare is trying to be the good preacher her flock needs she is also trying to get over the hurt that Sheriff Van Alstyne has brought into her life. They can't stand the sight of each other but they are constantly drawn together as people are murdered and each tries to do their job helping both victims and families.
This time the farmers in Miller's Kill...more
This time the farmers in Miller's Kill...more
Just love this series. I guess it helps to read them altogether! Great plot. It just keeps getting deeper and deeper......
People die. Marriages fail. In the small Adirondack town of Millers Kill, New York, however, life doesn’t stop for heartbreak. A brand-new officer in the police department, a breaking-and-entering, and trouble within his own family keep Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne busy enough to ignore the pain of losing his wife---and the woman he loves.
At St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, the...more
People die. Marriages fail. In the small Adirondack town of Millers Kill, New York, however, life doesn’t stop for heartbreak. A brand-new officer in the police department, a breaking-and-entering, and trouble within his own family keep Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne busy enough to ignore the pain of losing his wife---and the woman he loves.
At St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, the...more
This is my first exposure to this series but I was hooked very early on this book. In fact, I have already gone back and looked at the first five novels just because they are all great mystery stories with the growing love attraction going on from book to book. Certainly in this novel the attraction between Russ and Clare has reached a fever pitch.
But there are other things going on, stuff that can warp a relationship and ultimately kill the most intense attraction. Certainly, Clare is dealing w...more
But there are other things going on, stuff that can warp a relationship and ultimately kill the most intense attraction. Certainly, Clare is dealing w...more
4.5 out of 5. A compelling novel about a very small town in upstate New York that is perhaps a microcosym of American life. A police chief who has suffered the loss of a wife of 23 years and who bears the guilt of angry words and hurt feelings they exchanged just before her death. At the same time he must own up to his continuing attraction and love for the local rector of St. Alban's church, the Rev. Clare Ferguson, a woman who is smart, attractive, good with people, caring, and whose personal...more
This is the sixth in the series featuring Clare Fergusson, an Episcopalian minister (and ex-army helicopter pilot) and Russ Van Alstyne, police chief in Millers Kill, New York, a small town in the Adirondacks.The two have been drawn together, but the attraction has just resulted in frustration and Russ is married. Now however his wife is dead, but Russ is extremely depressed about it, and Clare feels guilty because he was with her rather than his wife when she died. Clare is still struggling aga...more
This series just gets better and better! I think the author does a superb job of creating realistic characters. They are flawed, but "good" people, just like most of us. While most of us don't find ourselves in the kinds of situations that Claire Fergusson ends up in, (after all this IS fiction), the depiction of her relationship with Russ Van Alstyne, and her struggle to find her calling as a priest seems extremely realistic, and this is what drives my interest.
It would be a WRX. I laughed out loud when I read that.
Finally we're past the awkwardness of earlier books. I appreciate the characters all to human struggles with themselves and each other and actually enjoyed their interactions. The train wreck I was anticipating is finally out of the way and there's new train wrecks to come, but I can handle those.
Elizabeth seems to be the Dolores Umbridge of Millers Kill.
The mystery itself was pretty good. For a small town, I think it's jinxed...there's so m...more
Finally we're past the awkwardness of earlier books. I appreciate the characters all to human struggles with themselves and each other and actually enjoyed their interactions. The train wreck I was anticipating is finally out of the way and there's new train wrecks to come, but I can handle those.
Elizabeth seems to be the Dolores Umbridge of Millers Kill.
The mystery itself was pretty good. For a small town, I think it's jinxed...there's so m...more
I had severe let down. I don’t know if it’s because my expectations were so high, after the other one was so good, or if I was just in a different mind space, or if I could predict where it was going as I had read the author before, but this one fell short for me. Or maybe it’s because I have read Harlan Coben, who tends to do a lot a similar things in his books, but more so.
Now with that said, I do like Russ and Clare, but am getting a bit tired of the push/pull between them. I liked that a lot...more
Now with that said, I do like Russ and Clare, but am getting a bit tired of the push/pull between them. I liked that a lot...more
I really loved a couple of the books in this series, and will admit I stayed up all night to finish this installment. That said, there are only a couple of reasons I can see that a reader might be drawn to this book: 1)hope of enjoying an engrossing mystery, or 2) the chance to read about Clare & Russ's relationship. If you're looking for the first, meh. Not much meat. If you want resolution of the second, Spencer-Fleming gives it to you and then some. The murder plot felt completely contriv...more
This was a good book but I disliked the way the chronology was lined up. The first chapter opens with events that don't happen until three quarters of the way through the book. It ends in cliff hanger and then jumps back 6 months in time. I hate that. Its a cheap way to build suspense, but it really just ruins most of the book for me because I know what everything is heading towards, just not the ultimate outcome. Its suspenseful, but extremely annoying. I suggest skipping chapter one and then r...more
I really like this series of mysteries. I must, since this book is #6, and I just read it as quickly as I could push the buttons on my Kindle. Spencer-Fleming knows how to plot an intriguing mystery, but it is the other elements of her series that are gripping. Her two main characters and their relationship, complicated my matters of morality and conscience and duty to God and country and requirements of jobs and differences in age, are like real-life relationships in which there is not always a...more
Jul 06, 2011
willaful
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of the series -- not a stand alone
After the emotional powerhouse of All Mortal Flesh, this was a bit of a let down. I wasn’t very interested in the mystery, and the introduction of several new characters/romantic possibilities reminded me of the desperate attempt of a t.v. series that’s had its main characters go on hiatus. On the other hand, it has one of the funniest scenes in the series and some truly gut-wrenching moments. I really hope this series will someday have a final ending -- and it just better have a HEA. Because if...more
Jul 03, 2012
Elizabeth
added it
Most thrillers are a bit too blood-curdling for me, but I enjoyed this one by an author whom I'd not read before. Although the protagonist, Clare, a Black Hawk pilot in the reserves and an Episcopalian priest, seemed like an odd and improbable combination, I enjoyed the setting and her adventures. In one sense the book was a bit titallating--she and her would-be lover spent most of the book nearly ready to "do it," and then back off. I liked the book's take on the female characters; they seemed...more
Drug wars in Millers Kill, New York! Will Russ and Clare be among the casualties?
Two young couples are having extra-marital sex! Will Russ and Clare make it three?
My hat is off to Julia Spencer-Fleming. She has gauged her audience. She has hit her stride. Well-paced action; witty dialogue (and one really funny scene near the end); sexual tension that gets played for all it's worth; courageous and capable women with courageous and capable men. Kind of like Janet Evanovich but without the crudity....more
Two young couples are having extra-marital sex! Will Russ and Clare make it three?
My hat is off to Julia Spencer-Fleming. She has gauged her audience. She has hit her stride. Well-paced action; witty dialogue (and one really funny scene near the end); sexual tension that gets played for all it's worth; courageous and capable women with courageous and capable men. Kind of like Janet Evanovich but without the crudity....more
probably would have give this a 4.5 if possible. the literaty set up for this one is tracing the lives of the main characters, in this case Russ and Clare, and new officer Hadley as well as a bigger role for Flynn, through the ups and downs in one year in time. there are social issues that surround the main mystery and that in and of itself leads to some heartbreaking situations. There is also more of a lighthearted side to some of the characters and we see a little more of their personal lives...more
While the emotional realities of life after Linda's death are very well done; I didn't like the mystery. It didn't keep my attention. I didn't find either Isabel or Amado/Octavio to be compelling characters. I just didn't care enough about them to feel invested in their story.
I felt much more could have been done about the issues involving immigration/language/culture/etc in more creative ways. We have this interesting character (Sister Lucia) introduced, but don't really see her after that. Sh...more
I felt much more could have been done about the issues involving immigration/language/culture/etc in more creative ways. We have this interesting character (Sister Lucia) introduced, but don't really see her after that. Sh...more
Great book! Great book! I could hardly stop listening to it! I put aside all of my podcasts in order to devote myself to this mystery! I loved all of the characters and the way they revolved around the murder plot! I can't wait to read the next book in the series. And what a pity! I think the next book is her last book in this series. Why did she have to stop writing!
I give this book an 8.5 on a scale of 10. It WAS just your usual mystery novel (and so I didn't give it a 9 or 10), but I was mesm...more
I give this book an 8.5 on a scale of 10. It WAS just your usual mystery novel (and so I didn't give it a 9 or 10), but I was mesm...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I couldn't put the book down. I was at work yesterday and when my mind drifted, I wanted to be back at Miller's Kill with Clare and Russ, and Margy, Lyle and Harlene. I wanted to protect the migrants and pray like Clare. And where there was suspense around the murders, there was absolute electricity between Clare and Russ. And if you have ever served on a church committee or been an active member of a congregation, you can laugh or cry at some of the situations Clare has to deal with. And the di...more
Another gem in this series involving Rev. Claire Fergusson and Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne of the Millers Kill Police Department. Maybe I partly like it from time I spent around Albany and the Adirondacks years ago. Partly they are interesting people. How many ministers/priests go back, after spending time in the service, and join the National Guard as helicopter pilots and not as clerics?
Claire and Russ and still trying to resolve their differences over the loss of Russ’ wife (from the la...more
Claire and Russ and still trying to resolve their differences over the loss of Russ’ wife (from the la...more
Jun 02, 2008
Emily Love
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Over-14s
Recommended to Emily by:
fellow worker
Not ago, while surfing the literary chat rooms, I came across an inquiry from a man who wanted to find suitable reading for his 14-year-old daughter, a mystery fan. He wanted something that wasn’t soaked in sex and violence, he said. I wasn’t surprised to find my newly favorite author, Julia Spencer-Fleming, among the list of writers that were mentioned: in each of the five books I’d read in her Millers Kill series, while there was plenty of death and certainly a very sexy story line, there was...more
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Wednesday, September 7
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
More about Julia Spencer-Fleming...
Work-In-Progress Wednesday at my Reader Space. We're up to the fifth part of the second chapter of my eighth book, which has some numerological meaning, I'm sure. http://bit.ly/p2QwJa
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“He stomped away like a pint-sized Godzilla looking for Tokyo.”
—
8 people liked it
“Maybe they were back to not talking. That's what she missed the most: talking. Serious, silly, bone-deep, flippant, all their words and thoughts like gifts to each other, the only gifts they, with their hobbled hearts, could give.”
—
5 people liked it
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