Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
Grand Central Publishing (2007), Paperback, 336 pages
Description
"In Syracuse, New York, a tough-talking, shotgun-toting, ex-debutante gets in over her head in a twenty-year-old murder investigation"--Provided by publisher.
Media reviews
Booklist
Every page is a pleasure in this mystery debut featuring barb-wielding, ex-debutante Madeline Dare. A newspaper reporter trapped among the white trash (or "garbage blanc") of Syracuse, New York, she becomes enmeshed in the 20-year-old unsolved murder of two young hippies. The case was dubbed "the
Show More
Rose Girls," for the thorny crowns encircling the victims' heads. Madeline's preposterously preppy cousin, Lapthorne Townsend, is among the suspects; his army dog tags were found at the scene of the crime.... Bent on exonerating him, she sets out to retrace the Rose Girls' final hours, reportedly spent in the company of two soldiers at the New York State Fair. Read's plot crackles and pops, but her characters steal the show. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member BeckyJG
It is 1988, and cocaine, big hair, and Madonna are all the rage. Madeline Dare, a recovering debutante and cub journalist, lives in Syracuse, New York with her husband Dean. College-educated and a brilliant inventor, Dean is still a farmboy, a townie, and thus pretty much the direct opposite of
When Madeline learns about the gruesome 1969 murders of two beautiful, young, and never identified girls, she is horrified and intrigued. When her father-in-law--in the spirit of "I know something nobody else knows" tosses a set of dog-tags he plowed up in the field where the girls were found across the table at her, Madeline is terrified; the dog-tags belong to her beloved older cousin Lapthorne. What can a girl journalist do but commence an investigation? This Madeline does, an investigation she doggedly pursues even as people she knows begin to fall by the wayside, and even as it takes her to places--physical, psychological, personal--she'd really rather not venture.
Cornelia Read calls her crime fiction "WASP Noir," and has an intimate knowledge of the culture about which she writes; she, herself, as the biography on her official website tells us, was "born into the tenth (and last) generation of her mother's family to live on Oyster Bay's Centre Island." The voice Read has created for Madeline's first person narrative is original and fresh. Maddie is smart and cynical, acutely self-aware and frequently self-deprecating. Her points of reference--cultural and pop-cultural, from Puccini to Joni Mitchell to the Brothers Grimm--are wide, deep, and extraordinarily clever (but without any did-you-catch-that-one authorial winks). I knew from the first page that I would like A Field of Darkness, but it was round about page 75 or so, when Maddie's mom "perkily misquotes Arlo Guthrie for the thousandth time," that I knew I would love it.
A Field of Darkness is a brilliant first novel, an original take on a genre which is all too frequently tired and hackneyed.
Show More
Madeline, whose admittedly disjointed world growing up consisted in large part of coming out parties, summers at the extended family's "camp" in the Adirondacks, and boarding school. Madeline (sometimes Bunny, which is her Oyster Bay Long Island uber-WASP nickname) loathes everything about Syracuse except Dean and longs to get away. She works as a lifestyles reporter at the Syracuse Weekly, the local free rag, reporting in depth on such important topics as "Hot Drinks for Winter" and "Best Midway Food Eats."When Madeline learns about the gruesome 1969 murders of two beautiful, young, and never identified girls, she is horrified and intrigued. When her father-in-law--in the spirit of "I know something nobody else knows" tosses a set of dog-tags he plowed up in the field where the girls were found across the table at her, Madeline is terrified; the dog-tags belong to her beloved older cousin Lapthorne. What can a girl journalist do but commence an investigation? This Madeline does, an investigation she doggedly pursues even as people she knows begin to fall by the wayside, and even as it takes her to places--physical, psychological, personal--she'd really rather not venture.
Cornelia Read calls her crime fiction "WASP Noir," and has an intimate knowledge of the culture about which she writes; she, herself, as the biography on her official website tells us, was "born into the tenth (and last) generation of her mother's family to live on Oyster Bay's Centre Island." The voice Read has created for Madeline's first person narrative is original and fresh. Maddie is smart and cynical, acutely self-aware and frequently self-deprecating. Her points of reference--cultural and pop-cultural, from Puccini to Joni Mitchell to the Brothers Grimm--are wide, deep, and extraordinarily clever (but without any did-you-catch-that-one authorial winks). I knew from the first page that I would like A Field of Darkness, but it was round about page 75 or so, when Maddie's mom "perkily misquotes Arlo Guthrie for the thousandth time," that I knew I would love it.
A Field of Darkness is a brilliant first novel, an original take on a genre which is all too frequently tired and hackneyed.
Show Less
LibraryThing member DebR
Read's debut novel is a sharp, witty, articulate murder mystery full of quirky characters, fun pop culture references, and edgy (but not cruel) observations about human nature.
The main character is Madeline Dare, a downstate NY debutante who grew up among wealth, but her particular branch of the
One day everything gets a little weird when Maddie is confronted with an old set of dog tags that her father-in-law uncovered when he was plowing a field - a field that happens to be the scene of a 20-year-old unsolved double homicide. The name on the dog tags is the name of Maddie's favorite cousin and she is gradually, reluctantly drawn into investigating this long-ago crime in order to prove he wasn't involved.
I thought the plot was delightfully twisty, with enough clues to allow the reader to try to solve the crime along with Maddie, but enough turns and surprises to make me doubt my conclusions several times along the way.
But my favorite thing about the story is the fascinating cast of characters, including Madeline herself. She's smart, funny, flawed, messy, and human. I love the fact that she isn't always perfectly likeable, although I did...like her, that is.
I can't wait to see what Ms. Read writes next!
The main character is Madeline Dare, a downstate NY debutante who grew up among wealth, but her particular branch of the
Show More
family tree has gotten a bit shabby. She ends up married to Dean, an upstate farmboy-turned-inventor and they live in Syracuse where Maddie works as a journalist for a small weekly paper. She spends her days writing articles on such riveting topics as green bean casseroles and hot winter drinks, and dreaming of the day she and Dean can leave town and never look back.One day everything gets a little weird when Maddie is confronted with an old set of dog tags that her father-in-law uncovered when he was plowing a field - a field that happens to be the scene of a 20-year-old unsolved double homicide. The name on the dog tags is the name of Maddie's favorite cousin and she is gradually, reluctantly drawn into investigating this long-ago crime in order to prove he wasn't involved.
I thought the plot was delightfully twisty, with enough clues to allow the reader to try to solve the crime along with Maddie, but enough turns and surprises to make me doubt my conclusions several times along the way.
But my favorite thing about the story is the fascinating cast of characters, including Madeline herself. She's smart, funny, flawed, messy, and human. I love the fact that she isn't always perfectly likeable, although I did...like her, that is.
I can't wait to see what Ms. Read writes next!
Show Less
LibraryThing member kageeh
I don't usually read mysteries as I find them too formulaic but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The writing, especially the dialogue and characterization, are snarky and excellent. If you scorn the idle rich, this one's for you. If you love the city of Syracuse, you may be a tad dismayed. I could
Show More
not predict the ending, always the hallmark of a good mystery. Show Less
LibraryThing member JulieFauble
First book from this author. Good mystery, excellent writing. Worth watching for more from her.
LibraryThing member swl
LOVE this book. Atmospheric to the point that I had a somnambulent buzz of familiarity - the kind where the first half of the book was SO good, all the characters feel like one's own lovers, confidantes and enemies by the time you start reading the second half.
I think what I liked best is that all
As for what this bodes for CR's future: I don't get the feeling that she'll suffer a sophomore slide into ignominy. She's just too good at pacing, at creating a sympathetic but screwed-up narrator, at blending hopelessness with helplessness with longing.
And sense of place, as well - I happen to share CR's feelings about Syracuse - but make it Anywhere, USA and I think CR would capture the subtle charms as well as the rough-edged flaws.
I'll be buying the next one asap.
I think what I liked best is that all
Show More
the creepiness, longing, weariness etc. rang 100% true. If CR's family was not represented faithfully on these pages, you could have fooled me. CR's complicated relationship with Lapthorne just seemed to true and heart-rending to have been manufactured, even for a good cause (that being sustainable suspense) - Dean simply must be someone CR once loved (and thank you for not dooming the one lovely relationship) - and I could so imagine partying with Madeline and Ellis - and it's not just that I'm the same age - her riffs on 80's indulgence were so convincing and dear.As for what this bodes for CR's future: I don't get the feeling that she'll suffer a sophomore slide into ignominy. She's just too good at pacing, at creating a sympathetic but screwed-up narrator, at blending hopelessness with helplessness with longing.
And sense of place, as well - I happen to share CR's feelings about Syracuse - but make it Anywhere, USA and I think CR would capture the subtle charms as well as the rough-edged flaws.
I'll be buying the next one asap.
Show Less
LibraryThing member jharkins
I felt a real "kinship" with Maddie. I felt that she was written to be about my own age (early 40's), and I have heard her voice, casting observations on life, love, work, friends and herself, come from my own mouth. A much younger friend, listening to the audiobook with me, didn't feel the same
Show More
kinship with Maddie. Show Less
LibraryThing member shwetzel
Cornelia Read is a rising star in the mystery field. Her protagonist, Madeline Dare, is a feisty, tough lady and a debutant dropout whose heart is in the right place.
LibraryThing member kraaivrouw
Cornelia Read is a recent discovery of mine. I picked up her third book, Invisible Boy, loved it, and was stoked to discover that it was part of a series and there were two more - A Field of Darkness is the first.
Read's heroine, Madeline Dare, is smart and cynical and sassy. I said in my review of
These books are set in the late eighties and I suppose I also like them because I am the same age as Madeline so her experiences and milieu feel really familiar to me. In this book she is stuck in Syracuse, working for a weekly newspaper, and hating every second of it. When she discovers evidence from a murder of two young women attending the state fair in the late sixties with a possible connection to her family she's off and running.
Ms. Read plots well and writes well and in Madeline Dare has created a character who has a genuine voice. I especially like that I don't always like Madeline - sometimes she's just too whiny for words - sounds odd, but sometimes we don't like people we care about. Even though she is often whiny and overly dramatic about her situation in this book, it reads in a very real manner. I remember what it's like to have finished college with tons of expectations and then to be clobbered over the head with that whole reality thing. Suddenly you're working a boring job in a place you don't like and it's all kind of gray and disappointing and it makes you really whiny because in your twenties you don't know that this stuff can ever change.
I really enjoyed this book and look forward to her fourth one.
Read's heroine, Madeline Dare, is smart and cynical and sassy. I said in my review of
Show More
Invisible Boy that she reminded me a bit of Nora Charles from The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett, played in the excellent 1930's-era movies by William Powell and Myrna Loy. Nora Charles was based on Lillian Hellman and, while Madeline doesn't have the sophistication of Nora, she does have the grit and sass - I bet she'll grow up to be Nora.These books are set in the late eighties and I suppose I also like them because I am the same age as Madeline so her experiences and milieu feel really familiar to me. In this book she is stuck in Syracuse, working for a weekly newspaper, and hating every second of it. When she discovers evidence from a murder of two young women attending the state fair in the late sixties with a possible connection to her family she's off and running.
Ms. Read plots well and writes well and in Madeline Dare has created a character who has a genuine voice. I especially like that I don't always like Madeline - sometimes she's just too whiny for words - sounds odd, but sometimes we don't like people we care about. Even though she is often whiny and overly dramatic about her situation in this book, it reads in a very real manner. I remember what it's like to have finished college with tons of expectations and then to be clobbered over the head with that whole reality thing. Suddenly you're working a boring job in a place you don't like and it's all kind of gray and disappointing and it makes you really whiny because in your twenties you don't know that this stuff can ever change.
I really enjoyed this book and look forward to her fourth one.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookappeal
Madeline Dare is a contradiction. Born into a family that once had wealth and power and still acts like they do, she's no stranger to traditional WASP culture. But relative poverty has given her a different perspective as well. Marriage to a well-grounded husband helps keep Madeline on the straight
Show More
and narrow but Dean is often away for long stretches of work, leaving Madeline to her own devices. In this first novel of the series, she investigates an old murder because her cousin may have been involved. Intriguing plot but an interesting main character who may not appeal to all readers. Show Less
LibraryThing member jlparent
Madeline is thrust into a cold-case investigation when dog tags left at the scene of a grisly murder years before have a family member's name on them. Overall I liked it; plenty of twists, smooth pacing, cultural references, and engaging characters. I had to warm to the author's descriptive style -
Show More
at first it seemed over-done, like she was cramming stuff in but within a few pages that feeling vanished. It isn't as good as say, Gillian Flynn or Tana French, but it is still an engaging read. Show Less
LibraryThing member joannalongbourne
The first wonderful thing about this book is the writing which is truly unique. Read's writing is both witty and acerbic, both poignant and insightful. Madeline Dare finds herself exiled to Syracuse [Sore Excuse] as a result of marriage to her husband, Dean. Madeline describes her family’s
The story takes place in 1988. The scenes of Madeline’s interactions with her in-laws are priceless. As someone who grew up in upstate New York, her descriptions of life in Syracuse and the locals are absolutely dead-on. Her in-laws are farmers who consider “working for wages” to be a cop-out from real life. She describes the industrial wasteland of contemporary Syracuse compared to the thriving metropolis of the 19th century: “There were still traces of those glory days if you knew where to look, things like our radiator covers, made of the steel sheets from which Remington and Smith-Corona letter-key stems had been punched, leaving behind a delicate herringbone tracery. The ghosts of history are in the details, in the negative space.” Her description of her local grocery store which she has dubbed “The Outpatient Grocery Store”: “The owners knew most people in the neighborhood couldn’t afford a car to get to the nicer, cheaper stores out in the burbs: the solidly clean P&Cs and Big Ms, the Wegmans in DeWitt with the big “international” cheese section. So, just because they could, these guys stocked The Outpatient with nothing but nasty old crap at lunar-colony trade-embargo prices.”
The mystery concerns the twenty-year old deaths of two young women who were found with their throats cut in a local cornfield. Madeline becomes involved when her father-in-law hands her a set of dog tags that he dug up a few years ago in that same corn field. The dog tags appear to have belonged to her cousin, Lapthorne. Despite being relegated to the foods/events section of her local weekly paper where she works, almost against her will Madeline takes on the murder case as an investigative piece. Despite her sometimes bumbling efforts, Madeline slowly zeroes in on the killer and the ending is pretty harrowing.
Show More
wealthy background: “my money’s so old, there’s none left”. She has an exquisite irony about her background: “I grabbed the tabouleh I’d made the night before out of the icebox. Well, okay, “fridge” or whatever. I come from that tribe of verbal conservatives who still say “Victrola” and “toe-mah-toe”—Old High Long Island, my first language.” It’s tough being impoverished amidst a sea of extremely wealthy relatives—Madeline is treated so badly by these relatives that even the servants feel sorry for her, as evidenced by one cook’s habit of slipping Madeline a $20 whenever she can. Madeline’s mother depends on the largesse of her boyfriend, Bonwit, who shares her passion for buying dented cans of food because of the reduced price. On the other hand, Madeline has a good sense of humor about it. Upon her great-grandmother’s death, Madeline inherits her enormous shoe collection because she is the only girl in the family with the same size feet. As she’s packing up the shoe collection, her aunt asks her what she is going to do with the shoes: “I thought I’d wear them to exotic places they’ve never been before. You know, like work.” Her relatives can be unbearably shallow and simultaneously deeply cruel as in this aside from an aunt during the great grandmother’s funeral at a wonderful family camp in the Adirondacks, a place that is very dear to Madeline: “You realize, of course, that when your parents sold their shares in Camp, they were told it meant their children would never be allowed to buy back in?”The story takes place in 1988. The scenes of Madeline’s interactions with her in-laws are priceless. As someone who grew up in upstate New York, her descriptions of life in Syracuse and the locals are absolutely dead-on. Her in-laws are farmers who consider “working for wages” to be a cop-out from real life. She describes the industrial wasteland of contemporary Syracuse compared to the thriving metropolis of the 19th century: “There were still traces of those glory days if you knew where to look, things like our radiator covers, made of the steel sheets from which Remington and Smith-Corona letter-key stems had been punched, leaving behind a delicate herringbone tracery. The ghosts of history are in the details, in the negative space.” Her description of her local grocery store which she has dubbed “The Outpatient Grocery Store”: “The owners knew most people in the neighborhood couldn’t afford a car to get to the nicer, cheaper stores out in the burbs: the solidly clean P&Cs and Big Ms, the Wegmans in DeWitt with the big “international” cheese section. So, just because they could, these guys stocked The Outpatient with nothing but nasty old crap at lunar-colony trade-embargo prices.”
The mystery concerns the twenty-year old deaths of two young women who were found with their throats cut in a local cornfield. Madeline becomes involved when her father-in-law hands her a set of dog tags that he dug up a few years ago in that same corn field. The dog tags appear to have belonged to her cousin, Lapthorne. Despite being relegated to the foods/events section of her local weekly paper where she works, almost against her will Madeline takes on the murder case as an investigative piece. Despite her sometimes bumbling efforts, Madeline slowly zeroes in on the killer and the ending is pretty harrowing.
Show Less
LibraryThing member susan259
It took me awhile to get into this, and it may have been a touch too long, but the suspense was really ratcheted up in the second half of the book, and the ending was something else. I guess I do wish there had been a little more information about why the killer did what he did...it was hinted at
Show More
but not explained. I have already requested the second book... Show Less
LibraryThing member susan259
It took me awhile to get into this, and it may have been a touch too long, but the suspense was really ratcheted up in the second half of the book, and the ending was something else. I guess I do wish there had been a little more information about why the killer did what he did...it was hinted at
Show More
but not explained. I have already requested the second book... Show Less
LibraryThing member susan259
It took me awhile to get into this, and it may have been a touch too long, but the suspense was really ratcheted up in the second half of the book, and the ending was something else. I guess I do wish there had been a little more information about why the killer did what he did...it was hinted at
Show More
but not explained. I have already requested the second book... Show Less
LibraryThing member debs913
This one is a bit different from what I usually read. The main character is a pretty mixed up woman--from a very wealthy family, with drugged out hippie parents, and a huge store of angst. I really didn't like Madeline Dare, but I did admire her perseverance in trying to figure out who brutally
I usually figure out "whodunit" within the first third of the book. Ms. Read's plot was twisty enough that I kept rethinking my choice...always good in a mystery/thriller. At the end, everything tied together and the villain made sense.
I'll be reading more Cornelia Read books and hope for more likable characters in future titles.
Show More
murdered two young women 19 years in the past. I usually figure out "whodunit" within the first third of the book. Ms. Read's plot was twisty enough that I kept rethinking my choice...always good in a mystery/thriller. At the end, everything tied together and the villain made sense.
I'll be reading more Cornelia Read books and hope for more likable characters in future titles.
Show Less
LibraryThing member tmph
Pretty good, though the self-doubting youthfulness of it all is a bit tiresome, but certainly well-written enough, and an intriguing mystery. Not a terrible ending, either. I'll check out #2. Maybe. I give it a 3.5.
Subjects
Awards
Audie Award (Finalist — Mystery — 2007)
Edgar Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2007)
Anthony Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2007)
Barry Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2007)
Macavity Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2007)
Gumshoe Award (Nominee — First Novel — 2007)
Language
Original publication date
2006
Physical description
336 p.; 5.25 inches
ISBN
0446699497 / 9780446699495
Other editions
A Field of Darkness by Cornelia Read (Hardcover)