In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer- Fleming, 3 stars

[NancyJ]

This is a murder mystery set in a small town in upstate New York (north of Albany). I was really enjoying this book, with its strong sense of place and season. One of the main characters is somewhat unusual. Reverend Claire Ferguson, the new female priest of the Episcopal church, is a southerner with a military background. The mystery starts with the discovery of a baby on the steps of the church. Soon after, Claire and the Sheriff find the body of a young woman who turns out to be the baby’s mother. I enjoyed the dialogue and budding friendship between the Sheriff and the priest. Some of the other characters were less interesting - cardboard cutouts of well-to-do versus white trash town residents. The story starts to go off the rails about midway with some dumb moves that were nonetheless suspenseful. I learned some winter survival skills that I hope never to need. I absolutely hated the ending of the book, with a series of highly unlikely and maddening incidents. I would have liked the book if I was able to suspend disbelief, but I just couldn’t. I think I’m out of practice. I wonder if I might like this author better if she wrote in a different genre.