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Torie O'Shea #5
Killing Cousins
After the recent birth of her third child, Missouri genealogist Torie O'Shea is itching to get back to work. When she's approached to research and write a book about a recently deceased local woman who attained fame in the thirties and forties as a jazz singer, Torie figures she's found her new project. But her preliminary research turns up a startling piece of the woman's her infant son was kidnapped from his cradle in 1938 and never seen again.
Back in the present day, the mayor of New Kassell, Bill Castlereagh, is fixing to legalize riverboat gambling in the small historic village, which has Torie and her neighbors up in arms, terrorized by visions of neon lights and dancing girls invading their quaint, picaresque town.
Torie knows she has to do something to stop the mayor's plan before it gets started, but she's finding it hard to tear herself away from her research. She just can't stop herself from wondering what happened to that little baby all those years ago. And then a stranger in town turns up dead, throwing the town further into an uproar. Torie's got plenty on her plate, but with her knack for small town politics, expertise in genealogical research, a lot of perseverance, and a little luck, Torie might ferret out the truth behind a bizarre crime from the past with a dangerous reach into the present.
Back in the present day, the mayor of New Kassell, Bill Castlereagh, is fixing to legalize riverboat gambling in the small historic village, which has Torie and her neighbors up in arms, terrorized by visions of neon lights and dancing girls invading their quaint, picaresque town.
Torie knows she has to do something to stop the mayor's plan before it gets started, but she's finding it hard to tear herself away from her research. She just can't stop herself from wondering what happened to that little baby all those years ago. And then a stranger in town turns up dead, throwing the town further into an uproar. Torie's got plenty on her plate, but with her knack for small town politics, expertise in genealogical research, a lot of perseverance, and a little luck, Torie might ferret out the truth behind a bizarre crime from the past with a dangerous reach into the present.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published March 7, 2002
6 people are currently reading
143 people want to read
About the author
Rett MacPherson
18 books115 followersRett MacPherson was born in Saint Louis, Missouri. She is the author of the popular Torie O'Shea mysteries and helped to pioneer the sub-genre of genealogical mysteries. She is also a bead and fabric artist and loves wineries, cemeteries, genealogy, history and of course, books.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
July 17, 2018
Another good book in the series. I love how past and present events come together and how Torie uses genealogy to help solve mysteries. This was a quick read and lots of fun.
March 27, 2019
These delightful mysteries just keep getting better and better.
I never want this series to end. It flows from one volume to the next, yet they don't necessarily have to be read in order. Such a talented writer!
I never want this series to end. It flows from one volume to the next, yet they don't necessarily have to be read in order. Such a talented writer!
January 31, 2021
This was a rather interesting story... Torie finds pieces of a puzzle about a dead child as she sorts through the estate of the mother, which coincides with a building being torn down that happens to contain the remains of a dead baby. As a mother of two girls, and a baby boy, she feels a connection to the mother -- who by all accounts seems to become so depressed by her son's death that she fails to be a real mother to her other children. A tragedy for everyone in that family, it seems... The title gives away the "who done it" suspense, though, more or less, although it's not as macabre as it appears.
March 13, 2020
Torie's new stepfather asks Torie to inventory the contents of a house. Coincidentally, Torie's boss wants Torie to write a biography about the late owner of the house. Torie knew that the owner had been a world famous singer but had no idea that the singing career ended with the disappearance of the only son, an infant for whom no ransom demand was ever made and who had not been found alive or dead. Torie, having just given birth to her third child and only son, is determined to find the answer.
December 13, 2017
Genealogist Torie O'Shea is to write a biography of a famous singer from her hometown whose life was destroyed when her baby son was kidnapped from his crib, a situation reminiscent of the Lindbergh kidnapping. Torie's discoveries solve the mystery and a homicide that occurs in the interim. An interesting read.
November 18, 2018
It's fun to see the relationship between Torie and the sheriff develop.
July 18, 2019
Macpherson is so good at slowly unveiling details of mysteries. Who knew that genealogy could be so revealing of the roots of present day conflicts?
April 3, 2020
I really enjoy R Macpherson books I want to read them all..I recommend her books...funny, serious and full of mystery!!!!
January 4, 2022
Another great outing! Such a pleasure to read.
macphersom-rett
August 28, 2024very entertaining
March 1, 2014
This was my introduction to this series. I am going to go back and read the others. I really liked the author's sense of humor and her use of place. I started off the first 2 chapters thinking it was going to be a boring tale of how a 'superwoman-mom' managed to juggle EVERYTHING and solve standard mysteries with the cliche nods to supportative characters we could only wish existed in real life. But as I read more I found it harder to put down.
I didn't find the book to be laugh out loud funny, but warm and optimistic despite the sadness dealt with. However, I can see where I might sometimes LOL with her writing - thus I am going to read more of it. For instance, I didn't really "get" the relationship between the main character, Torie, and the sheriff, although I could see where some of the funny lines might have been hysterical if I'd been "in the know".
That's not a criticism. The sheriff and the main character have built a complex history over the previous four (?) issues of the series, although the writer reflects the offhand way they have to deal with each other on a daily basis, because each day only has 24 hours! I don't care for series where each new issue tries to encompass ALL of the relevant history between ALL the characters. So often that just bogs the flow down.
This book was not flow-impeded at all. Just like any busy parent, the character of Torie was constantly active. Her reflections occurred more often while she was doing something (like helping her grandmother out of a chair or bantering with her step-dad-sheriff) than when she was sitting quietly observing nature.
I was however, a little envious of the character Torie. Unlike this real Tori, she did not replace all of her primary interests with her joy in parenting. She added them together: she continued to be incredibly involved in her community (and her work) while still enjoying her children and her husband. Of course he was very supportative and even nurturing to her, but the author did show small amounts of frustration leaking out of his psyche on occassion. Of course, why shouldn't novels reflect live as we wish it was?
I also liked that her use of setting was NOT a lesson in how to use setting as a tool in creating great literature. It was for the purpose of entertainment and moving the story forward! I liked that the talk about fronts coming on, and weather changes, and storm sounds, all led up to a deduction that moved the investigation forward by leaps and bounds. That was really very pleasing. There was only one place I can remember where setting was used otherwise, but it was still used for entertainment. There was a punchline about her (the main character) familiarity with the geography driving to/from the airport.
All in all, I look forward to reading at least one more book by this author, because I expect I will find it warm and humorous.
I didn't find the book to be laugh out loud funny, but warm and optimistic despite the sadness dealt with. However, I can see where I might sometimes LOL with her writing - thus I am going to read more of it. For instance, I didn't really "get" the relationship between the main character, Torie, and the sheriff, although I could see where some of the funny lines might have been hysterical if I'd been "in the know".
That's not a criticism. The sheriff and the main character have built a complex history over the previous four (?) issues of the series, although the writer reflects the offhand way they have to deal with each other on a daily basis, because each day only has 24 hours! I don't care for series where each new issue tries to encompass ALL of the relevant history between ALL the characters. So often that just bogs the flow down.
This book was not flow-impeded at all. Just like any busy parent, the character of Torie was constantly active. Her reflections occurred more often while she was doing something (like helping her grandmother out of a chair or bantering with her step-dad-sheriff) than when she was sitting quietly observing nature.
I was however, a little envious of the character Torie. Unlike this real Tori, she did not replace all of her primary interests with her joy in parenting. She added them together: she continued to be incredibly involved in her community (and her work) while still enjoying her children and her husband. Of course he was very supportative and even nurturing to her, but the author did show small amounts of frustration leaking out of his psyche on occassion. Of course, why shouldn't novels reflect live as we wish it was?
I also liked that her use of setting was NOT a lesson in how to use setting as a tool in creating great literature. It was for the purpose of entertainment and moving the story forward! I liked that the talk about fronts coming on, and weather changes, and storm sounds, all led up to a deduction that moved the investigation forward by leaps and bounds. That was really very pleasing. There was only one place I can remember where setting was used otherwise, but it was still used for entertainment. There was a punchline about her (the main character) familiarity with the geography driving to/from the airport.
All in all, I look forward to reading at least one more book by this author, because I expect I will find it warm and humorous.
August 17, 2007
I really like this series. The main character Torie O'Shea is quite the character. It's odd. I don't normally like books with a female lead, especially one that has 2 or 3 kids, depending on what book it is. However, Torie's just so damn determined to be the nosiest woman on the planet, I can't help but smile at her tenacity.
In this particular book, she's just had her third child and is on leave. She's been given the tasks of writing a local history about a famous citizen, a jazz singer from the 30s, and to inventory her estate. Her new father-in-law, the sheriff, has bought the goods and wants to open up an antiques business when he retires. So, while he and Torie's mom are on their honeymoon, he's asked her to sort through the goods. The love/hate relationship she has with the sheriff is actually part of the fun of the novels.
At any rate, a man's body and a baby's skeleton is found in the wall of a nearby home, both with possible links to the estate. Things heat up from there as Torie tries to figure out what happened years ago when a baby was kidnapped and never returned. Is the skeleton the remains of that child? How did he die? Who killed the man? What was the man doing there in the first place? All good questions and Torie has to have answers. This is a quick and entertaining read that I think fans of a good cozy would enjoy.
In this particular book, she's just had her third child and is on leave. She's been given the tasks of writing a local history about a famous citizen, a jazz singer from the 30s, and to inventory her estate. Her new father-in-law, the sheriff, has bought the goods and wants to open up an antiques business when he retires. So, while he and Torie's mom are on their honeymoon, he's asked her to sort through the goods. The love/hate relationship she has with the sheriff is actually part of the fun of the novels.
At any rate, a man's body and a baby's skeleton is found in the wall of a nearby home, both with possible links to the estate. Things heat up from there as Torie tries to figure out what happened years ago when a baby was kidnapped and never returned. Is the skeleton the remains of that child? How did he die? Who killed the man? What was the man doing there in the first place? All good questions and Torie has to have answers. This is a quick and entertaining read that I think fans of a good cozy would enjoy.
November 22, 2014
n the 5th installment of the Torie O'Shea Genealogical Mystery series, Killing Cousins, by Rett MacPherson, Torie got stuck into another genealogical puzzle. This time, it happened after she gave birth to her third child, Matthew, she had gotten back to work at the Gaheimer House. Besides being a mother of three had given her a full plate on her hands, she was more than thrilled to be asked to write and work on the biography of Catherine Finch, a famed jazz singer from the 1930s. Not only that, since her step-father Colin Brooke, the local sheriff, had brought her estate. This gave her easy access to look over her belongings, when the house was haunted by the discovery of a dead baby skeleton, and a man was found killed in a condemned warehouse only days before. Now it was up for Torie to link both murder cases together, and why someone wanted to cover up the shadowy past from the Finches as well.
October 7, 2009
This was another Torie O'Shea Mystery, the second one that I have read. Torie works for the Historical Society and has lived in the town of New Kassel Missouri all her life. Which does give her a wide variety of friends and knowledge of the town. This book starts out when she is on leave after having her third child. She is trying to stop riverboat gambling coming to her little town and when they start to tear down the house where they want to put the main casino, they find some strange things in the house and of course Torie gets involved and straightens everyone and everything out. It was another fast read and enjoyable. The author has a good sense of humor and does keep your interest. It was worth the time to read.
January 30, 2011
This series just keeps getting better. There was a lot less genealogy in this one, at least the serious digging type of genealogy but the mystery was very well done. It involves a 60 year old disappearance of a baby, a murder of that baby's cousin and the complicated relationship between Torie and her new step-father, the Sheriff.
Pretty much everyone that has been introduced in town was involved in this one. There is some sadness in this book, proving that if you write (or read) a series you have to deal with some of the bad as well as the good. It is this willingness to tackle the deeper issues that makes this series so good.
I can't wait to read the next one, and soon I'll be caught up and waiting impatiently for new additions to the series.
Pretty much everyone that has been introduced in town was involved in this one. There is some sadness in this book, proving that if you write (or read) a series you have to deal with some of the bad as well as the good. It is this willingness to tackle the deeper issues that makes this series so good.
I can't wait to read the next one, and soon I'll be caught up and waiting impatiently for new additions to the series.
September 8, 2007
Torie O'Shea, genealogist and amateur snooper, gets 2 new jobs. Her boss asks her to write a biography of a prominent local citizen and jazz singer, and her new father-in-law asks her to catalog the same celebrity's estate for sale at his antique shop. But just as she starts to work, she uncovers a mystery. The singer's young baby disappeared years ago in the middle of the night and was never found. Several children were in the house the night the baby vanished. Now those children are all grown, and one of them turns up in town snooping around. Then he dies.
I enjoyed this book. The mystery was interesting. And I like Torie. But I found myself losing interest for some reason.
I enjoyed this book. The mystery was interesting. And I like Torie. But I found myself losing interest for some reason.
January 20, 2012
Another example of a small town woman who has a weird hobby (other series have chefs, quilters, crocheters... This one is a geneologist) who solves mysteries. I haven't read the other books in the series, but I'm willing to bet that there is an extremely high murder rate in this small Missouri town. Anyway, this was entertaining and far better written than the last book I read in this vein (see review for "The Deed in the Attic"). I don't plan on looking for any more books in the series, but I wouldn't throw them at walls either.
December 8, 2009
I love these books. I think part of the draw for me is that I grew up in the area the stories are all set in, but the characters drew me in from the first book. I hope there will continue to be more new titles in this series. I have combed through many used book stores looking for the old titles.
June 8, 2012
I loved this book so it's highly recommended. Lots of excitement and a darned good tale. Torie O'Shea is one of my favorite heroines and I am on a hunt for the early entries in this series. There are only a couple more that I haven't read available as e-books so I have my fingers crossed. Ms MacPherson - keep 'em coming!!
October 19, 2015
Once again, Rett MacPherson delivers an enticing mystery solved be an everywoman sleuth in small-town Missouri. I will say that I liked the idea of this plot/mystery more than the actual execution of the plot at times. I felt there could have been a more climatic discovery and resolution. That being said, I never regret a minute I spend in New Kassel.
April 20, 2011
Another delightful book in the Torie O'Shea series. Torie is a historian/genealogist and while working on family trees she always seems to stumble across a murder. I love doing genealogy and am happy enough to just discover those ancestors without murders too!
August 25, 2016
I really enjoyed this book. When I make a dent in my reading backlog I'm planning to go back and read more of this series.
What I really enjoyed about this book was how you would read some details and then later on find out that they are key to the solution.
What I really enjoyed about this book was how you would read some details and then later on find out that they are key to the solution.
July 10, 2008
Small town, plucky problem solving woman, old mystery solved. It was a great 'mindless' summer read. Quick and easy, finished reading it the day I started.
August 4, 2009
Torie #5
July 8, 2010
Fun read!
January 29, 2011
entertaining, amusing (Torie O'Shea series, set in rural town near St. Louis)
February 28, 2011
Not my favorite in the series. I don't want to give away the plot, but this book made me feel very sad by the end.
March 25, 2011
I dearly love this book...it is so good.
Read
June 27, 2011Torie O'Shea is a little brash & whiny for my tastes but like most of the secondary characters & the small town ambience rings true.
July 2, 2011
A cozy and charming southern mystery.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews