Destroying Angels

by Gail Lukasik

Determined to make a fresh start after beating cancer, Chicagoan Leigh Girard leaves a failed marriage and teaching career and moves to Egg Harbor, Wisconsin. One of her first assignments as a writer for the local newspaper is an obituary feature on Carl Peck, an amateur naturalist, who died suddenly. His widow is claiming medical negligence. But as Leigh looks into the story, she discovers something far possible murder. When the Peck's daughter attempts to take her own life shortly after her good friend kills herself, Leigh makes a shocking connection to a twenty-year-old secret. As she probes the heart of a tragic mystery that bridges past and present, Leigh learns that the survival instincts that have carried her this far are about to be tested against a clever killer.
Gail Lukasik was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She lives in Libertyville, Illinois, with her husband.

Genres: Audiobook, Mystery

Hardcover

First published March 1, 2006

About the author

Gail Lukasik's latest book, What They Never Told Us: True Stories of Family Secrets and Hidden Identities Revealed, tells the stories of ordinary people who made extraordinary discoveries about their parentage and/or race and ethnicity. It's the followup book to her best-selling memoir, White Like Her: My Family's Story of Race and Racial Passing.

Severance Magazine gave What They Never Told Us a glowing review. Click the link to read: https://severancemag.com

Her fifth mystery novel, and first gothic historical mystery, The Darkness Surrounds Us, was praised Publishers Weekly, who said of the book: "Lukasik delivers a gripping ghost story of pandemics past in this well-crafted gothic mystery. With unpredictable plotting and superior atmospherics, this is an early-autumn treat fit for late-night devouring."

Gail's memoir, White Like Her: My Family's Story of Race and Racial Passing, captured national attention leading to her appearance in the documentary History of Memory, which won the X Award at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival. https://garage.ext.hp.com/us/en/moder...

Gail was inspired to write White Like Her after her appearance on PBS's Genealogy Roadshow where her mother's life changing secret was revealed.

The Washington Post named White Like Her as one of the most inspiring stories of 2017.
She was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and was a dancer with the Cleveland Civic Ballet Company.

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent mystery about a woman recovering from breast cancer who takes a job as a reporter in Door County and ends up, in the course of an obituary story, detecting a crime. This feels a bit first-novel-y, with some difficulties in scene changes and a somewhat dissonant author vs character voice. It feels like there are too many echoes of someone else here - tough woman sleuths, maybe, or just the reflections of lifelong deep reading. By the end, though, I enjoyed Leigh’s tough exterior and the other characters setting the winter-in-a-summer-tourist-spot scene.

[Cyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't too bad. I like mystery/investigative novels so this was right up my alley. The protagonist isn't necessarily the most likable character - but that's probably due to the experiences she went through when she battled cancer. The mystery was plotted fairly well -- however, before the "reveal", I'd already guessed who the killer was so it was no huge surprise. When said reveal happened, it felt a bit forced and didn't ring as true as it seemed like it should. Manufactured, I guess is the right word for it. Of course, this is a work of fiction so everything is manufactured. But what I mean is that it felt like the author was trying too hard to make it happen a certain way and it came across as not very believable when it happened. However, it wasn't enough of a negative to turn me away from listening to the next book.

I do have one other complaint though, and it was the narrator. She did well enough on the different characters, but there were times that her delivery would stumble and instead of doing a retake (as she should have done), she just continued ahead, which made for a very unnatural-sounding delivery. And the audio in general ... oh my goodness. It was horribly unprofessional. I could hear paper rustling as she turned the page, throat gurgles and noises, sounds in the background like the rustle of clothing or a chair. As a narrator myself I was horrified at what I heard. Perhaps being a narrator makes me sensitive to audio issues like this but there's really no excuse for those sorts of noises to make their way into the finished product. Could be the narrator wasn't responsible for this and the blame rests at the feet of the audio editor. Either way, it was bad. Perhaps those issues aren't around in the second book, though. Fingers crossed.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Door County setting is beautiful and an interesting contrast to the sinister plot. The local characters are spicy. Good character development makes the reader care about the protagonist and her feelings about breast cancer survival give added depth. A thoroughly enjoyable read. And if you like it as much as I did, you will be happy to know that there's more ahead -- this is the first in a series.

[Pat Klitzman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Door County author. What more cn I say.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mystery and set in one of my favorite places Door County.

[Lizzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not usually one for murder mysteries, but I met Gail at the bookstore. The story was good but somewhat clichè. Also, at it takes place in Door County, I am a bit warier of the locals...

[Dominique Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that there were a lot of plot wholes near the end of the story. Some of the characters that are mentioned in the beginning get left or unintentionally forgotten and then the explanation of who killed Joyce isn't really explained that well. It is hinted at that Eva may have killed her but it isn't said for sure. Overall the writing was well done , really enjoyed watching Sarah Peck develop into an interesting character. As for our main character she really started to get on my nerves by getting into people's business and this is the main reason why she is in so much danger throughout the book.

[Kathryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I live in the Village of Egg Harbor, the setting of this novel, and I absolutely hated this book because of its snobbism. Also, I think that the writing is sophomoric ("a smile played around her lips").

The author lives in Illinois, so my guess is that she only summers in Door County or visits during peak tourist season from Mid-May to late October, and the attitude she shows toward those who are not her "equal" is one of the reasons many year-rounders here refer to people from Illinois as FIBs. (Look it up if you are unfamiliar with the term.)

[Ann Kiefer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book because it is set in Door Co. I enjoyed reading the descriptions of natural areas that I was already familiar with. The protagonist drove me nuts - an outsider recovering from breast cancer recently moved to the area and stuck her nose in everyone’s business. Was that because she was trying to forget her own troubles, as one of the characters asked her? Or because, as a journalist, she doggedly pursues answers? This is the first book of a series, and I might just keep going.

[Nan Babcock · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I would enjoy a mystery set in Door County. The book doesn't reflect the Door County I enjoy visiting. The Door County natives aren't portrayed in a favorable light. Leigh, the main character, kept going off by herself on remote trails in snow or in the dark, and then encountering other main characters in the same location, which just seems too unlikely for me.

[Beth Arocha · Rating 4 out of 5]

good aeries located in nearby Door County

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh--workable but not particularly memorable mystery.

[Debra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cancer survivor flees Chicago for life as a small town reporter in Door County WI. It kept my interest and I will find more of the series.