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A review by cj_mo_2222
The Alpine Zen by Mary Daheim
4.0
I have been reading Mary Daheim’s Alpine series for a long time. I enjoy main character Emma Lord’s sharp wit and seeing the inner workings of a small town newspaper. The banter between Emma and her co-workers has always been amusing and the friendly bickering between Emma and Sheriff Milo Dodge entertaining. Best of all has been Emma’s friendship with co-working Vida Runkel. The two women don’t always see eye-to-eye, but have always been there for each other when it counted. Sadly that element is missing in the prior installment and much of this one.
I was glad to see Emma and Milo finally realize how much they love each other a few books back, but their funny squabbling has been replaced by two much mushiness, even for newlyweds. This book is a little better than the previous installment. Emma and Milo are still acting like teenagers going steady, but seem more like themselves. Vida is completely obnoxious in the beginning of the book. Although her tirades are somewhat humorous, Emma and Vida’s friendship has been the highlight of this series. I like when things get closer to normal by the end of the book and Emma could confide in Vida and trade theories about the strange things going on in Alpine. Those things are an eccentric young woman coming to town with a strange story about her parents being murdered and the current danger she is in, as well as a dead body found at the town dump. The various subplots are interesting, but the most important part of this book is the wrapping up of various things in the characters’ lives since I have come to care about these characters after reading each of the books in this series. I had assumed this would be the final installment of this series, but the author's website said this isn't the end.
I recommend “Alpine Zen” to readers of other books in the series, but new readers would be better off reading a few of the earlier books before reading this one.
I received this book from NetGalley, through the courtesy of Ballantine Books. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.
I was glad to see Emma and Milo finally realize how much they love each other a few books back, but their funny squabbling has been replaced by two much mushiness, even for newlyweds. This book is a little better than the previous installment. Emma and Milo are still acting like teenagers going steady, but seem more like themselves. Vida is completely obnoxious in the beginning of the book. Although her tirades are somewhat humorous, Emma and Vida’s friendship has been the highlight of this series. I like when things get closer to normal by the end of the book and Emma could confide in Vida and trade theories about the strange things going on in Alpine. Those things are an eccentric young woman coming to town with a strange story about her parents being murdered and the current danger she is in, as well as a dead body found at the town dump. The various subplots are interesting, but the most important part of this book is the wrapping up of various things in the characters’ lives since I have come to care about these characters after reading each of the books in this series. I had assumed this would be the final installment of this series, but the author's website said this isn't the end.
I recommend “Alpine Zen” to readers of other books in the series, but new readers would be better off reading a few of the earlier books before reading this one.
I received this book from NetGalley, through the courtesy of Ballantine Books. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.