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cbsundance's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
henrismum's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Audiobook (All of my entries on The Story Graph are audiobooks.)
#3 in series (I started reading this series in July 2022.)
Will I read other installments?Probably Not Maybe Definitely
That is the question. This is book three, the decision point. I like Sharon. This book was certainly different from the last, so I think there's a range in her work. Will I regret my decision come book 10 or 20 or 30 in the series?
Comparison to others in series:Not as good About the same Better
Book two was grittier. This was good on its own level.
The narrator was Laura Hicks. No complaints or compliments. I wonder if Ms. Hicks narrates the majority of the series.
Source: Phoenix Library
#3 in series (I started reading this series in July 2022.)
Will I read other installments?
That is the question. This is book three, the decision point. I like Sharon. This book was certainly different from the last, so I think there's a range in her work. Will I regret my decision come book 10 or 20 or 30 in the series?
Comparison to others in series:
Book two was grittier. This was good on its own level.
The narrator was Laura Hicks. No complaints or compliments. I wonder if Ms. Hicks narrates the majority of the series.
Source: Phoenix Library
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Drug use, and Violence
martydah's review
5.0
I've been reading this series randomly for 15 years. It really doesn't matter where you start, the Sharon McCone stories are pretty much timeless and you don't need to read the books in order to enjoy them.
In this installment, Sharon is called upon to unravel the mystery of her friend Jake's murder. Jake, who transformed San Francisco Victorian houses into the archetypal "Painted Ladies" is found dead in a pool of clumsily spilled red paint - a clear indication to Sharon that this is a staged scene. She's hired to investigate the murder by David Wintringham, son of a local millionaire and owner of the house where the crime took place. As usual, there's plenty of hostility, violence.
Wintringham is trying to renovate the neighborhood, a move that is forcing out the working class African-American population. Local merchants and a former, embittered councilman with a thug enforcer are openly hostile to his efforts. He's also facing opposition from the local historical preservation organization, as well as dealing with his sleazy, former-rock-producer partner, an emotionally fragile boyfriend and the high costs of running his renovation business.
To make things even more confusing, there's the matter of a valuable missing Tiffany lamp, in the shape of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. It had disappeared, only to reappear in a dumpster with several fakes. Sharon manages to retrieve it, but not without running afoul of the local ex-councilman. Her investigation is further complicated by the fact that Wintringham's partner appears to be conducting his own 'investigation' into the lamp's disappearance, just a few irritating steps ahead of her.
I didn't quite guess who-dun-it toward the end, which is my standard for a good mystery. If there is a down side to the early books, it's Sharon's relationship with her homicide detective boyfriend, Greg. He's a bit of a misogynist and a jerk. Not a character that I could believe Sharon would give the time of day let alone date.
In this installment, Sharon is called upon to unravel the mystery of her friend Jake's murder. Jake, who transformed San Francisco Victorian houses into the archetypal "Painted Ladies" is found dead in a pool of clumsily spilled red paint - a clear indication to Sharon that this is a staged scene. She's hired to investigate the murder by David Wintringham, son of a local millionaire and owner of the house where the crime took place. As usual, there's plenty of hostility, violence.
Wintringham is trying to renovate the neighborhood, a move that is forcing out the working class African-American population. Local merchants and a former, embittered councilman with a thug enforcer are openly hostile to his efforts. He's also facing opposition from the local historical preservation organization, as well as dealing with his sleazy, former-rock-producer partner, an emotionally fragile boyfriend and the high costs of running his renovation business.
To make things even more confusing, there's the matter of a valuable missing Tiffany lamp, in the shape of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. It had disappeared, only to reappear in a dumpster with several fakes. Sharon manages to retrieve it, but not without running afoul of the local ex-councilman. Her investigation is further complicated by the fact that Wintringham's partner appears to be conducting his own 'investigation' into the lamp's disappearance, just a few irritating steps ahead of her.
I didn't quite guess who-dun-it toward the end, which is my standard for a good mystery. If there is a down side to the early books, it's Sharon's relationship with her homicide detective boyfriend, Greg. He's a bit of a misogynist and a jerk. Not a character that I could believe Sharon would give the time of day let alone date.
nutti72's review
4.0
Sharon is growing on me. I wasn't sure I liked her in the first couple of books. Now I find her charming. It all starts when Jake, an old friend and client asks her to meet him at an old victorian house he's renovating. Jake is known for painting these victorian houses bright gaudy colors, which disturbs renovation purists who think the old victorians should be painted grey. When Sharon arrives she finds Jake dead, obviously murdered. When the owner of the house hires Sharon to find out what happened to poor Jake. Sharon soon discovers that her case deals with an unsolved homicide from years earlier.
amalyndb's review
4.0
These are enjoyable quick reads.
Sharon McCone discovers a friend and former lover dead on arriving late for a meeting in a Victorian house under renovation. This sets her on a case involving stylistic wars over renovation versus restoration, the specter of gentrification over those whose families have lived in neighborhoods for many decades, racial tensions, and a murder a few years prior in a house nearby of the friend’s employer’s father. And a stolen Tiffany lamp
Sharon McCone discovers a friend and former lover dead on arriving late for a meeting in a Victorian house under renovation. This sets her on a case involving stylistic wars over renovation versus restoration, the specter of gentrification over those whose families have lived in neighborhoods for many decades, racial tensions, and a murder a few years prior in a house nearby of the friend’s employer’s father. And a stolen Tiffany lamp
1tolkienfan's review
3.0
somewhat dated w/ some generalized characters but i like/enjoyed the main protagonist
audreyintheheadphones's review
3.0
It was interesting to me to come to this 3rd book in the Sharon McCone series directly after the 4th one ([b:Games to Keep the Dark Away|1004631|Games to Keep the Dark Away (Sharon McCone, #4)|Marcia Muller|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267251844s/1004631.jpg|990757]) because that's one of my favorites in the series, and this one...isn't.
Despite being about SF's famed "Painted Ladies" and the romance of architecture in general, this book felt much less polished than its successor. The mystery unfolds in fits and starts, and parts of it felt like McCone was turning into the suspects' therapist. There's a whole murder in here that really never gets a second look, which was strange.
But at the same time, Muller has Sharon tackle thorny race and gender issues and be honestly uncomfortable with what she finds and uncomfortable with her own unresolved politics, which was challenging and refreshing.
I disliked her romantic involvement with homicide inspector Greg, but I found it interesting nonetheless.
Basically even a lesser Sharon McCone still comes in strong. There's a reason this series is a classic.
Despite being about SF's famed "Painted Ladies" and the romance of architecture in general, this book felt much less polished than its successor. The mystery unfolds in fits and starts, and parts of it felt like McCone was turning into the suspects' therapist. There's a whole murder in here that really never gets a second look, which was strange.
But at the same time, Muller has Sharon tackle thorny race and gender issues and be honestly uncomfortable with what she finds and uncomfortable with her own unresolved politics, which was challenging and refreshing.
I disliked her romantic involvement with homicide inspector Greg, but I found it interesting nonetheless.
Basically even a lesser Sharon McCone still comes in strong. There's a reason this series is a classic.
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