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A Place to Die

4.16 of 5 stars 4.16 · rating details · 19 ratings · 11 reviews

Murder in the Vienna Woods . . .

Who expects murder and mayhem in a sedate retirement home? Certainly not Eleanor and Franz Fabian who arrive from New York expecting a quiet, boring Christmas with Franz’s mother in her new home. But when the wealthy, charming Herr Graf is found dead in his apartment with an ugly head wound, the Fabians are thrust into a homicide investigati...more

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Published April 21st 2010 by Author Solutions

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Mar 27, 2012 Aaron Lazar rated it 5 of 5 stars

A PLACE TO DIE is an intriguing story set in Austria, reminiscent of a good English mystery. I just finished reading it last night, and am already missing the characters. At first I was attracted to the book because it was set in Wien (Vienna) - I adore Wien. But then as I "visited" with these folks night after night (reading a little in bed each night), I grew terribly fond of them.

I was particularly rooting for American Eleanor Fabian, a woman of great depth who deserved much more in life than...more

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Feb 19, 2012 Leslie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: humor, hope, murder, mystery, police-proceedural, suspense, historical

Article first published as Book Review: A Place To Die by Dorothy James on Blogcritics.

A place to live with all the luxuries as well as friends at your beck and call seems to be a lofty ambition. Could there really be a home for the elderly, one that is capable of housing those who just want a nice place to finish their lives, but for others a place where they can be cared for in the last days of their lives. What happens when things do not work as planned and murder makes a stand?

In A Place to...more Article first published as Book Review: A Place To Die by Dorothy James on Blogcritics.

A place to live with all the luxuries as well as friends at your beck and call seems to be a lofty ambition. Could there really be a home for the elderly, one that is capable of housing those who just want a nice place to finish their lives, but for others a place where they can be cared for in the last days of their lives. What happens when things do not work as planned and murder makes a stand?

In A Place to Die by Dorothy James, she takes us to a retirement home in the Vienna Woods. Here she introduces us to an eclectic cast of characters that charm or annoy. When Eleanor and Franz Fabian arrive from their home in New York to settle his mother in her new rooms, they find themselves in the midst of a murder and a mystery. When the wealthy and well liked Herr Graf is found dead the Fabians find themselves in the middle of a mystery that dates back to the history of some of the residents. Eleanor is a mystery aficionado and is interested in the process, getting involved when she should not be. Her husband however has no time and finds it all very boring. When Inspector Georg Buchner gets the case he finds more mysteries behind each clue he uncovers. The residents are not above suspicion, yet neither are the help, including the physicians and nurses.

Things take a strange turn when suddenly other residents begin dying of what appear to be natural causes and yet the abruptness and the amount of deaths seem out of place. When the Fabians mother is found dead, only more questions begin to churn. What is happening and how will it end?

I loved the characters; even the angry and gregarious ones had a place that fit in with my expectations of what such a home would be like. Eleanor was fun and Franz was just plain annoying. Georg Buchner was a wonder protagonist and kept the tension tight. As each clue unraveled into the next, he found himself in a place he was not comfortable with. His flaws made him so much more human and likable.

James was able to build a mystery using the past, bringing with the charm of the area, a history that today still rattles many cages. In the darkness of the woods, this history still carries anger and danger, and Ms. James is able to make you feel the tension in the air.

I found the story to be very well done, and hard to put down. If you love a mystery this is just the thing to keep you guessing. There are so many possibilities, and yet she sprinkles in red herrings liberally throwing even the best of mystery buffs off track.

This is a great book for your library. It would be a good book club novel or even one for a reading group. There are many potential controversies that would make good discussion fodder, but the theme and tone would also make for a fun read.

The ending will surprise you for many reasons--it was well done and interesting, actually quite satisfying in its own way.(less)

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Mar 15, 2011 Janet Hulstrand rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, travel-mystery, literary-fiction

A Place to Die is the wonderful debut volume in a new series of literary detective novels, introducing the sweetly charming Viennese detective, Inspector George Buchner, the cheerful Eleanor Fabian (a would-be English/American Miss Marple), and her irritable and irritating husband Franz. It's a page-tuner, yes, but you wouldn't want to turn the pages of this book TOO quickly: the prose is too lovely, the psychological insights too interesting, and the comic scenes are too funny to want to rush t...more

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Oct 09, 2010 Alice Yeh rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: hide-and-read-reviews

This murder mystery takes place in an assisted living facility, where an increasing number of the elderly live out their days. In some ways, the horror of murder and death itself was muted as most of the "inmates", as James calls them, expect to die under the roof of the Haus im Wald (House in the Woods). In essence, death wasn't unusual; murder was. One act of violence throws a suspicious hue to all of the "natural deaths" and illnesses that follow, tempering the reader's interpretation of the...more This murder mystery takes place in an assisted living facility, where an increasing number of the elderly live out their days. In some ways, the horror of murder and death itself was muted as most of the "inmates", as James calls them, expect to die under the roof of the Haus im Wald (House in the Woods). In essence, death wasn't unusual; murder was. One act of violence throws a suspicious hue to all of the "natural deaths" and illnesses that follow, tempering the reader's interpretation of the events that unfold.

The sense of despair, late romances, and attempts to live and retain some sort of control reminded me greatly of Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont, though these characteristics of the aging were intensified and expanded upon in A Place to Die. Due to their isolation, they often forget about the outside world even as they themselves are forgotten, and this novel captures all of the emotions and struggles that come with that and the difficulty in retaining one's independence as age, infirmity, and strong-willed caretakers attempt to stay one's hand. At certain points, my frustration with the matrons of the facility was almost unbearable, perhaps because such highhanded figures do actually exist.

As the book shifts between three points of view, and about a dozen suspects are introduced, my initial fear was that of mass chaos as I attempt to remember who everyone is. Many of them begin as caricatures of themselves, stereotypes of the youthful old man, the crotchety gentleman, the nagging fishwife, and the long-suffering husband. What happens as the novel progresses is that we see depth and human emotions that give each a distinct persona in the mind's eye, thus making it much easier to keep track of the many goings-on over the course of a mere four days.

As a murder mystery, the novel succeeds in keeping the reader terribly confused. There were many points in the story where I pointed a finger at one potential murderer or another, especially as certain truths are brought to light, but then something else would occur to direct the blame elsewhere for another chapter or two. The final reveal was almost anticlimactic, but everything was explained in such a way that I still found it satisfying.

With little to no background in German, it took a while to get used to the insertion of certain phrases and the use of German titles ("Frau" and "Herr"). That in itself was fine. There were a handful of sentences in the book that are a bit awkwardly worded, and the same verbs for speech are often repeated, but as a whole, the text flows comfortably and allows the reader to become engrossed in the story without frequent verbal tics getting in the way. For instance, the overuse of the word "said" only came to my attention when I started deliberately looking for it.

With a background in pharmacy, my senses perked up with the mention of various prescription medications, and I was thankful that the doses were believable, and the risks discussed are accurate. My one bone of contention is that the names of generic products were capitalized. I imagine that something like that wouldn't really bother those outside of healthcare, however, and so I'm letting it go.

This novel does what a good murder mystery should: it keeps your head turning from one direction to another as you try to piece together the real story, only to fail. What sets it apart is that it also achieves what many murder mysteries don't: solid characterizations that humanize the various players and bring them to life.(less)

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Dec 05, 2010 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: blog-reviews

"The drama of their lives is played out within their own walls, The residents of Melanchthon also find that the small dramas involving one another consume more of their remaining life energies than any larger dramas in the outside world. Even visitors are drawn in if they stay more than a day or so"p128
James has crafted an intelligent mystery that weaves together an intricate web of emotion and secrets. At Haus im Wauld, a residential aged care facility, an elderly resident is found bludgeoned t...more "The drama of their lives is played out within their own walls, The residents of Melanchthon also find that the small dramas involving one another consume more of their remaining life energies than any larger dramas in the outside world. Even visitors are drawn in if they stay more than a day or so"p128
James has crafted an intelligent mystery that weaves together an intricate web of emotion and secrets. At Haus im Wauld, a residential aged care facility, an elderly resident is found bludgeoned to death in his room. There is no shortage of motives or suspects in the case , the care home is a surprising maelstrom of intrigue. Someone is writing nasty notes to residents, two patients have died in the last month and now a man has been murdered. Carefully layering misdirection and clues, James sustains the suspense as Inspector Georg Buchner investigates.
Inspector Georg Buchner is a laid back, traditional detective who uses the unusual technique of immersing himself in the community to find the killer. I felt Buchner could have been more active in his investigation but I also liked his thoughtful analysis of the residents as he pokes and prods at the characters, uncovering secrets and lies.
Eleanor Fabian is a major character in the novel even though she is only ever peripherally involved in events surrounding the murder. Eleanor is reluctantly helping to settle her difficult mother in law into Haus im Wauld when the murder occurs. To distract herself from her unhappy marriage to Franz, an unpleasant man who is resentful towards both his mother and wife, she uses her connection to another resident to engage in some amateur sleuthing. The disintegration of her marriage as Eleanor and Franz considers the life they have left together makes for an interesting subplot.
While the murder mystery drives the plot, it also serves as a catalyst to explore James' brilliantly crafted characters. James gives each of her characters the dignity of a realistic, well rounded and distinct personality. There are no sexless sweet old ladies knitting in an armchair, Frau Hagen is the enigmatic lover of the victim, Sister Barbara harbours a secret love for the unpleasant Sister Agatha and Frau Huber likes to ensure her patients are satisfied with her care. Similarly, the victim has a prescription for Viagra, Dr Hofer 's bedside manner leaves a lot to be desired and Director Shrumm has his own secrets he wants to keep. James doesn't shy away from issues that are usually glossed over where aging is concerned and this adds to the depth of the characters as well as the story.
A Place To Die is a beautifully written mystery with an unexpected wit and honesty in the narrative and skilfully realised characters in a unique setting. This is a unique literary mystery that is a wonderful read.
I am thrilled that Dorothy consented to my request for an interview and has offered to giveaway a copy of A Place To Die to one lucky reader. Make sure you come back to my blog tomorrow to meet her.
(less)

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Nov 16, 2010 melydia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Eleanor and Franz Fabian are visiting Franz's elderly mother at her nursing home in Vienna, Austria. While they are there, an unexpected bit of drama crops up: one of the residents is brutally murdered on Christmas Day. Inspector Georg Büchner arrives on the scene and methodically goes through all the evidence, unweaving the tangle of lies and contradictions and unrelated issues to find the culprit. I enjoyed the musings on aging, the (too brief) discussion of the post-WWII climate in Austria, a...more

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Oct 20, 2010 Literary rated it 5 of 5 stars

The novel was set in Austria, mainly at a living facility for the elderly, so everyone was called either Herr or Frau instead of Mr. or Mrs. The language did not hinder the telling of this story. Instead, the language gave an authenticity to the story that it wouldn't have had otherwise.

The characters were quite wonderful and well-rounded. Even the characters a reader would find unsavory had a realness about them.

I loved this book and would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys a murder mys...more

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Aug 13, 2011 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars

Good mystery. Not your usual cozy. I am looking forward to reading more about the Inspector. I love it when the characters are my age. Getting old isn't as easy as I thought it would be.

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Mar 20, 2011 Debbie Mcdonald marked it as to-read

Saw an ad on Goodreads.com

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Apr 30, 2011 Esther rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: won, mystery-thriller, 2011-from-my-own-shelf, 2011, my_library, austria, europe

Really a 4.5 star

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Aug 04, 2012 Gina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, 4-star, fiction, mystery, own

Very good mystery. Not really a cozy, but not a thriller either. I hope there will be more from this author.

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Sep 13, 2012 wendy rated it 3 of 5 stars

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