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Shunning Sarah

(Riley Spartz #5)

Julie Kramer (Goodreads Author)

3.52 · Rating details · 970 ratings · 194 reviews

The latest thriller in Julie Kramer’s bestselling crime fiction series, featuring the smart, funny, and compulsively entertaining television reporter, Riley Spartz.

An insular Amish town . . . A secret that won’t stay buried . . .

Minneapolis’s star investigative reporter Riley Spartz is constantly in search of her next TV sweeps piece. When she hears that a young boy is tr ...more

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Hardcover, 320 pages

Published August 7th 2012 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books (first published June 26th 2012)

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Jul 24, 2012 Brittany rated it really liked it

Shelves: first-reads, amish, mysteries, my-bookshelf, reviewed

As a fan of both mystery and Amish fiction novels, I was delighted when I found that free copies of Shunning Sarah, by Julie Kramer, were up for a giveaway on this site. Luckily, I was one of the eight chosen to receive a free advance copy from Atria. Knowing that Julie Kramer is a National Best Seller, and based on reviews of her past novels, I was confident that I would enjoy the mystery aspect of the novel. What I was a little more hesitant about was the accuracy of the Amish aspect of the no As a fan of both mystery and Amish fiction novels, I was delighted when I found that free copies of Shunning Sarah, by Julie Kramer, were up for a giveaway on this site. Luckily, I was one of the eight chosen to receive a free advance copy from Atria. Knowing that Julie Kramer is a National Best Seller, and based on reviews of her past novels, I was confident that I would enjoy the mystery aspect of the novel. What I was a little more hesitant about was the accuracy of the Amish aspect of the novel. Having read Lewis, Woodsmall, Fisher, Brunstetter (among others) and combined with the research I’ve done on Amish culture and language, I was hesitant when I first cracked open Shunning Sarah. The last thing I wanted to read was an otherwise fascinating novel that was full of inaccuracies concerning the main suspects.

Luckily, my fears were ungrounded. Not only did I get a crash course into the world of Riley Spartz and investigative reporting, but the Amish aspects that I read where intriguing and – most importantly – largely correct. In addition to a murder on Amish soil, the reader also gets to grapple with an angry bear on the loose, Riley’s unconventional new boss, and corruption within the law.

When it comes to mystery novels, the ending often makes or breaks the book. For fear of divulging too much information, I won’t say too much other than you won’t be disappointed! Many aspects of this novel are largely unprecedented when it comes to Amish culture and the ending will leave you thinking long after you finish the last page and put the book back on the shelf. Is someone truly unforgivable? When should a society that values forgiveness over revenge finally seek help from outsiders to help protect loved ones? And these are only a couple of questions...

Overall, if you are looking for a great mystery novel – one that will keep you turning the pages well past midnight – pick up a copy of Shunning Sarah! Even those who haven’t read the previous installments in the Riley Spartz series (like me) can appreciate this book as a stand alone novel if need be. As for me, I will certainly be reading the four previous books in the series and anxiously awaiting more in the future!
...more

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Jul 05, 2013 Nancy rated it it was ok

A solid one and a half stars--and a mental note to avoid this series, forever. In the summer, I like "lite" reading: mysteries, nanny diaries, chick lit, and thrillers. And, especially, series where I can read a long string, watching characters develop. But they have to be well-written.

This book read like the author's daily journal, if the author was a heroic, whip-smart journalist ready to take on all challenges. When I say it read like a daily log, I mean that the story wandered all over the ...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Kristina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016-goal-88, first-reads

I am ashamed to say that I won this book nearly FOUR years ago and just got around to reading it. WHY, oh why, didn't I pick this up sooner? I LOVED it and I WILL be picking up more of Julie Kramer's books. SOON.

Riley Spartz is an investigative reporter and when a "boy trapped in a hole" story becomes a murder investigation, she is on top of it. This murder mystery has it all: Suspense, sex, lies, fraud, money, and even a few dogs. If you're a fan of the genre, check this series out.

*** I recei ...more

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Jan 12, 2019 Anne Trinkle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I’ve enjoyed listening to these books. I think they can be a bit verbose but I also enjoy learning about the ins and outs of the television news business.

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Aug 05, 2012 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Riley Spartz is an investigative reporter in Minneapolis who knows a good news story, even when her new boss Bryce doesn't. When she gets a tip about a ten year old boy who has fallen into a sink hole in Harmony Minnesota, a rural area that is in the middle of an Amish community, she convinces her boss that it is a newsworthy story. By the time she arrives on the scene though the little boy Josh Kueppers has already been rescued.Undaunted Riley decides to interview the sheriff on the scene, and Riley Spartz is an investigative reporter in Minneapolis who knows a good news story, even when her new boss Bryce doesn't. When she gets a tip about a ten year old boy who has fallen into a sink hole in Harmony Minnesota, a rural area that is in the middle of an Amish community, she convinces her boss that it is a newsworthy story. By the time she arrives on the scene though the little boy Josh Kueppers has already been rescued.Undaunted Riley decides to interview the sheriff on the scene, and soon learns that there is another story. A dead body was down in the sinkhole with Josh, a body that might be hard to identify because it is missing its face. Riley is determined to see the case solved, even if it puts her own life in jeopardy.

I am a huge fan of Amish fiction and when there is mystery and suspense involved I know I am in for a great read. With "Shunning Sarah" the author spins a story that pulled me in from the beginning.
A little boy trapped, I wondered how or if he would be saved, but then the real story begins after he is rescued. A woman's body at the bottom of the sinkhole who turns out to be an 18 year old Amish girl named Sarah Yoder. What happened to Sarah? Well that question kept me turning the pages to find out. As a fan of Amish fiction I admit I was most fascinated by the Amish portion of the story, but there was also an interesting secondary story going on as well that involved the drama of TV news. Ms. Kramer is truly knows how to paint a picture with her words, she brings her scenes, and characters to life, without being overly graphic in her descriptions.

Even though this book wasn't the first in the Riley Spartz series I had no problems diving right in. The author provided enough background information so that I didn't feel lost. While Riley was the main character in the story, for me I couldn't get Sarah out of my head, as her story is finally revealed my heart broke for her. Fans of mystery, suspense,and a plot filled with more twists than a winding country road will certainly want to read this one, the Amish twist is an added bonus. On a scale of one to five I would easily give this book a six, and plan on going back and reading the rest of the series! Highly recommended.

A complimentary copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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Jul 15, 2012 Kathy rated it really liked it

This is my first introduction to the Riley Spratz series by Julie Kramer and I am very impressed. She has a captivating writing style that keeps you reading. The main character Riley Spartz is a television news reporter whose investigative skills take her deep into a mystery in the Amish country of Minnesota.

Amish books particularly in the romance field are very popular these days. I would imagine it is because in our complicated technology filled lives it is nice to go to a simpler place...the ...more

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Dec 28, 2016 Michael O'Leary rated it it was amazing

This was an unexpected great mystery read. It was one of those "this book looks interesting" impulse reads. This is book #5 in the Riley Spartz series by Julie Kramer. Here's what the publisher says about the book:

"Minneapolis’s star investigative reporter Riley Spartz is constantly in search of her next TV sweeps piece. When she hears that a young boy is trapped at the bottom of a sinkhole, she smells ratings. Little does she know just how big the story will be—not only does it involve a tragic ...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Videoclimber(AKA)MTsLilSis rated it liked it

Shelves: sex-abuse-crimes, should-have-been-better, amish, who-did-it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 04, 2013 Kira Gimm rated it it was ok

Eh. My mom told me to read it and raved about how awesome it was. But it was only ok. The premise of the story was good, but what really bugged me was the author is local (which is fine), but how many Minnesota references does she want to make? I swear every other page she was making a mention about small town MN life, or referencing some MN landmark or history etc. It was very annoying and distracting. I get it, you hail from MN and want to show your MN pride but come on! Also, this book had ab ...more

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Dec 09, 2012 Melissa rated it liked it

Was hoping it would have been GREAT because part of the storyline takes place in Harmony. Even though the storyline was a bit lackluster, it was fun to read about some of our local favorites being included in the book, such as The Village Square and Quarter/quarter. It took me a LONG time to get through the first half of the book, but things did improve as the story lines started coming together in the final chapters. Worth a read if only for the local references and the fact that the author wil ...more

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Sep 14, 2012 Zabel rated it it was ok

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Jan 15, 2014 Marissa rated it it was ok

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Mar 01, 2015 Jessica Kern rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book was a book that kept me up in my seat all night. It is one book I couldn't put down. Julie Kramer writes with good taste and skill and she really gets the characters to come alive in the story. This story is about an Amish woman who was murdered and people who work on the news want to use this story on tv they try to help sole the crime and this story is also great because the location of this story is right in Harmony Minnesota. ...more

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Jan 24, 2013 Debra rated it really liked it

Another solid addition to Julie Kramer's series featuring the fictional character of Riley Spartz. Living in the Midwest I love that her thrillers are all set regionally. If you have not read any of her books yet start with Stalking Susan..Julie Kramer has one of the best new thriller series in crime fiction I have read!! ...more

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Aug 10, 2012 Denise rated it really liked it

Julie Kramer just gets better and better with each book. In this one she takes us to the world of the Amish and creates a wonderful mystery. Add to this a new station manager who tends to use his power in a way that only Riley can take

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Aug 09, 2012 KC rated it liked it

Shelves: crime, amish

Multiple layers to this story but not as well written as Linda Castillo but worth the read.

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Aug 17, 2014 Kaitlin Marie-Brown Salter rated it it was ok

Shelves: quit-now-while-you-re-ahead

weirdly, I like Amish murder mysteries, but this book was not that great. The first few chapters were good, but it all went down hill from there

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Aug 26, 2015 Carol rated it liked it · review of another edition

When I picked up this book I thought it would be a typical Amish/mystery romance. This was not so, there is a lot going on in this book. It seemed to go a little to fast.

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Sep 03, 2012 Mary Jo rated it really liked it

loved it. want to read more of her books

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Jul 30, 2017 Nancy rated it really liked it

I have a love hate relationship with this series. There are certain parts that I love – Riley’s bumbling. Yet at the same time, I really dislike Riley’s bumbling. Some parts seem to take too long to conclude, yet other parts are over much too quickly. There is only one more book in this series, and hopefully, Julie Kramer will be able to draw all the parts of Riley’s life together and maybe see a happily ever after for her.

You have to go with what mom says and if she is pointing you towards the I have a love hate relationship with this series. There are certain parts that I love – Riley’s bumbling. Yet at the same time, I really dislike Riley’s bumbling. Some parts seem to take too long to conclude, yet other parts are over much too quickly. There is only one more book in this series, and hopefully, Julie Kramer will be able to draw all the parts of Riley’s life together and maybe see a happily ever after for her.

You have to go with what mom says and if she is pointing you towards the body of an Amish girl and you are a news reporter, you had better grab your camera and go. Oh, and do not get distracted by a bear. Apparently, there is one in the woods that has others grabbing their guns.

When a local boy falls into a sinkhole, no one expected that hole to be hiding the dead body of a woman wrapped in a quilt, but that is exactly what happened when Josh Kueppers falls in and comes face to face with her. Doing what any other panicked child with a shotgun would do, he blows off her face. Now with no way of identifying the woman, the local police and Channel 3 reporter Riley Spartz set out to find out who this woman could be.

Come to find out that the dead woman is Sarah Yoder from the nearby town of Harmony. Since this is technical outside of the broadcast area that her market audience is from, Riley has to battle the new news director. He is a disgusting sort, but this story is too interesting and Riley is willing to put up with just about anything to keep her news followers up-to-date on her findings.

The Amish are a quiet self-contained community and they have no need of the devil in the form of television or its reporters, but that does not stop Riley. As she digs further into Sarah’s life and shunning, Riley’s life, if not her hair, is in danger. Being slow on the uptake, she eventually figures out most of the parts, but not before she is running for her life and needs to climb into a bear’s den to get the help that she needs.

By the end, Sarah’s tormented life is revealed, yet Riley is not comfortable sharing it all. She will make sure that those that need to be protected will be. She will see a grieving mother, yet not feel sorry for her. Riley will do what she can, but right now, she needs to go home, to the farm and her parents. Her own personal life is in turmoil, but that can wait for another day. Today she just needs her family.
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Jun 22, 2017 Sarah rated it liked it

Shelves: amish-fiction, 2017-reading-challenge

My oldest grabbed this off the inspirational shelf and I ended up reading it. I liked that it wasn't the typical Amish fiction where girl is bemoaning her Amish life and can't decide if she wants to marry the Amish guy and eventually she stays and marries. I liked that but I will admit I'm mystified by the fact it's considered inspirational as there was much in the way of Christianity, unless you count Riley's few conversations with a Catholic priest, religious. She does get anointed at the end ...more

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Dec 19, 2017 Rebecca rated it liked it

Started somewhat strong - good storyline, but main character is flat to me, as were her relationships. Maybe because this was a series, it would've helped to have read in order. Surprising, if that's true. Usually the author paints a better picture of what happened in previous books, especially when it's backstory, not anything relating to the current plot. Who was Garnett? Just her ex-fiancee. Nothing to make you feel she's sorry he's gone. (Maybe she's not!) Did she feel any sense of remorse a ...more

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Jan 22, 2018 Carolyn D. rated it liked it · review of another edition

As far as Amish stories go, this one was lackluster. The story jumped from one thing to another very quickly and then would somewhat work it's way back around, but it doesn't matter. There was too much going on to make this thing stick.

Predictable storyline. Kinda boring.

I couldn't tell what age the narrator was portraying for the main character?? This lady's voice sounded maybe 50s-60s. But then would talk about engagement, marriage, children, her sex life, etc in a way that you think maybe she ...more

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Aug 25, 2017 Susan rated it liked it

Happenstance moment in seeing this book on the library shelf. Author, Julie Kramer , is new to me. I am so delighted with this read, even though I read this book out of order, book 5, I plan to go back to book 1, Stalking Susan and catch up with this series taking place in Minnesota.

This story is a religious mystery in SE Minnesota within the Amish Community. This religious sec does not integrate with the "English" people, as Amish people remain separate unto themselves. So
for news anchor, Rile ...more

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Sep 26, 2020 Mellanie C rated it really liked it

When a young boy gets trapped in a sinkhole, reporter Riley Spartz smells a human interest story and rushes off to the scene. The boy is recovered safely, but so is the corpse of an unknown young woman. Battling with a new station manager, Riley is determined to follow the story and discover the killer of the girl. I had never read this author before, but I liked the layering of twists and turns of the story, the sleazy boss, the secretive Amish, and Riley's mentorship of up-and-coming reporter ...more

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Aug 19, 2019 Jenna rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars

So when I did "delivering death" (#6) in this series, I thought I missed something. Now I know why. Apparently, I had skipped this one (#5) w/out realizing it.
Oops!

Ok, so now I’m caught up and very glad to have another book in this series to listen to at work.

This one was interesting b/c it occurred in the Amish community.

The mystery developed slowly over the narrative building up the anticipation.
I had a feeling about some of it so I really wanted to know how correct I was.
...more

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Sep 05, 2020 Jodie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

To me, this book was all over the place. I just kept skipping anything that didn’t have to do with the main topic or what I thought was the main topic of the book which was who killed Sarah. I didn’t care for the bear stories, etc. and the mundane daily crud of office life. Her reporting jobs beyond Sarah’s death, were boring. I skipped all that. I kept thinking she needed a job change desperately. All in all, the book was disappointing and not for me.

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Aug 07, 2017 Betty Day rated it really liked it

4.5 if it were possible . . . just a little glib . . . too many hair-raising escapes . . . could have been several books with a little more development for each . . . characters almost believable . . .

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Mar 27, 2018 Louise Pledge rated it it was amazing

I found there were two Julie Kramer books I didn't have so had to remedy that. This was one, and I'm so glad I bought it! It was, particularly, interesting to me since I have spent some time in the last few months at Amish villages. I love their marketplaces! Great plot, loved the book! ...more

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May 07, 2018 Mary Mann rated it really liked it

Shelves: mary-s-books

I enjoyed this book never read this author before but will look for her other books
I was afraid in the beginning of the story that I wouldn’t enjoy it but the author really reeled me in with the suspense

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About Julie Kramer

Julie Kramer

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Julie Kramer has moved from journalist to novelist. She writes a mystery series set in the desperate world of television news—a world she knows well from her career working as a freelance news producer for NBC and CBS, as well as running the acclaimed WCCO-TV I-Team in Minneapolis.

Her thrillers, STALKING SUSAN, MISSING MARK, SILENCING SAM, KILLING KATE, SHUNNING SARAH and soon to come - DELIVERING ...more