Through the Evil Days: A Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery

Written by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Narrated by Suzanne Toren

Now a New York Times bestselling author, Julia Spencer-Fleming rises to the accolade with a powerful, and emotionally charged novel fans have been yearning for.

On a frigid January night, Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne and Reverend Clare Fergusson are called to the scene of a raging fire, that quickly becomes a double homicide and kidnapping. Which is the very last thing Russ needs...Currently he's struggling with the prospect of impending fatherhood. And his new wife is not at all happy with his proposal for their long-delayed honeymoon: a week in an unelectrified ice-fishing cabin. The vestry of St. Alban's Church has called for the bishop to investigate Clare's "unpriestly" pregnancy. She has one week to find out if she will be scolded, censured, or suspended from her duties. Officer Hadley Knox is having a miserable January as well. Her on-again-off-again lover, Kevin Flynn, has seven days to weigh an offer from the Syracuse Police Department that might take him half a state away.

As the days and hours tick by, Russ and Clare fight personal and professional battles they've never encountered. In the course of this one tumultuous week the lives of the Millers-Kill residents readers have come to love and cherish change forever. Listeners have waited years for Through The Evil Days and Julia Spencer-Fleming delivers with the exquisite skill and craftsmanship that have made her such a success.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Nov 5, 2013
• ISBN: 9781427231505

Julia Spencer-Fleming

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING is the New York Times bestselling author of One Was a Soldier, and an Agatha, Anthony, Dilys, Barry, Macavity, and Gumshoe Award winner. She studied acting and history at Ithaca College and received her J.D. at the University of Maine School of Law. Her books have been shortlisted for the Edgar, Nero Wolfe, and Romantic Times RC awards. Julia lives in a 190-year-old farmhouse in southern Maine.

Reviews for Through the Evil Days

[newsieq · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Newlyweds Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne are facing separate career catastrophes. Clare has been asked by her bishop to resign or face a disciplinary hearing for having a sexual relationship with her husband before marriage. It seems that she’s five months pregnant and three months married, so her transgression is pretty obvious. Russ has learned that the town council in Miller’s Kill, New York is thinking of dismantling the police department, of which he is chief, and let the state police take over law enforcement. But they have – or at least HE has -- been planning an ice-fishing honeymoon to a lake house they’re thinking of buying. The house has no central heat and no hot water. It’s obvious that no good can come of this silly-ass move. And when taking the vacation means Russ has to abandon his department in the midst of a nasty investigation – into a house filed that killed two retirees – readers may think Russ has lost his marbles. Then there’s a winter storm that threatens the area with gridlock AND power outages. The entire premise of this novel is preposterous. Any man who would take his pregnant wife out into the wilderness in the middle of a winter storm in upstate New York has got to be an idiot. And a honeymoon in a primitive cottage where they are truly roughing it – well that’s just too much. Of course, things go south from there and soon they’re both fighting for their lives against horrendous criminals and crooked cops. But, then again, readers know that nothing is simple with these two characters.I stayed with the book ‘til the end – although I must confess, I skimmed some of the pages that got tedious, and read the last pages first so I could see if I wanted to get there. Not the best book in this series, but good enough.

[eadieb-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the 8th installment of Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne novels which is one of my favorite series. Clare has to decide if she will resign her post of minister as she finds herself 5 months pregnant and only a couple months married. Her husband Russ may be losing his job as police chief as the board of Millers Kill may ask the state police to patrol instead of the local police. A teen is missing with a medical condition that could kill her and the "Ice storm of the century" has crippled the area. There are lots happening in this new installment and Julia Spencer-Fleming does not disappoint! Her books keep getting better and better!

[laytonwoman3rd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

No. 8 in the Reverend Clare Fergusson/Chief Russ Van Alstyne series. Spencer Fleming hasn't lost it yet. This one got an early grip on me and didn't let go. I didn't want to put it down, hurried to get back to it, and didn't really want it to end. For a bit near the end, I thought she was going to tie everything up, and leave everybody happy, and maybe there wouldn't be any more adventures in Millers Kill. But NO.... And I'm glad of that. I'm also glad (hard as it is to wait) that she takes her sweet time bringing out each new installment. I think she's still really invested in her characters, not getting burned out, and it shows. In this one, a sick child's life is at stake when she is kidnapped; Russ and Clare and the whole MKPD throw themselves heartily into the hunt in the midst of a record-breaking ice storm that makes any kind of traveling treacherous to impossible. Meanwhile both Clare and Russ find their jobs in jeopardy and hesitate to share that information with each other. The pacing is mighty fine, the tension builds just enough with each set of characters, and in context every development seems perfectly plausible. I'll avoid mentioning other plot elements that may not be known to readers who haven't made it this far into the series yet, or *gasp* haven't made its acquaintance at all yet. The finest kind of escapist reading.Review written January 2014

[mirihawk · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

These are great books. Be sure to read them in order as the interpersonal stuff is as interesting as the mysteries. Some of the plot lines took me by surprise, which is always a pleasure.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Russ and Clare are set to go on their honeymoon - in January, at a remote rural cabin with no electricity or running water - to go ice fishing. They are also carting along a lot of "baggage." Russ has just learned that the town council will be making a decision in a week about whether or not to disband the police department and contract services from the State Highway Patrol. Clare has been given an ultimatum by her bishop. He wants her to resign for "unpriestly" behavior. She is also dealing with the fact that she was still using drugs and alcohol when she became pregnant and the baby could be facing significant issues. Even worse, she and Russ had agreed to not have children before she found herself pregnant and Russ isn't dealing at all well with it.Throw in arson, two executed people in the house before it was burnt, and a missing eight-year-old girl who has just had a kidney transplant and needs her immuno-suppresant drugs or she will die and the story gets filled with drama and tension. Mikayla's mother has lost custody of her because of her drug use. When the police go to search for her, they find that she is gathering pharmaceuticals used in making crystal meth. She flees before they can find out if she has Mikayla.Meanwhile, the storm of the century bringing snow, ice, falling trees, downed power lines, and collapsed cell towers is bearing down on the region. And Russ and Clare attract the attention of bad guys who send them fleeing from their shelter in the height of the storm. While Clare and Russ are dealing with their issues, Kevin Flynn and Hadley Knox are also dealing with theirs. Hadley's ex-husband has shown up demanding money, threatening to take her children back to California, and threatening to expose her secrets. And Flynn is still dealing with his love for Hadley and also a job offer in Syracuse.This was a fast-paced and tension-filled story. Many characters are faced with difficult decisions and police work has to go on while they are troubled. The ending leaves a number of plot threads dangling and I can't wait for the next book to tie them off.

[jspilman-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It seems that Ms Spencer Fleming knows what I like in a book better than I do. Though, at times these characters are annoying and make questionable choices, these flaws are realistic and consistent and add considerable depth to what are often ordinary plot lines. These are characters wrestling with big issues (solving murder cases) and very personal moral conflicts (he's married) that stave off the happily ever after for ages. In any other hands this would get stale, but Spencer-Fleming keeps me reading even though Russ and Clare seem doomed and I don't usually have much patience for that.
The important second point is that Spencer-Fleming employs some interesting literary devices within the Clare/Russ world. One book covers 24 hours, another has parallel plot lines separated by a couple of generations, that converge in the present.
Thirdly, I really appreciate the topical issues and sensibilities. There is a rough edge between social justice and law enforcement that is explored over and again.
Lastly, the bleak winter setting speaks to something deep inside me. A Californian missing the snow.

[lynnsoprano · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

When is the next book coming in this series?

I feel so invested in Spencer-Fleming's characters, that I want to jump into the next installment of this story. Except that, right now, there isn't another. That is this book's only disappointing element.

[bostonterrio-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So much action in this novel! Takes place over the course of a week most of which is during Clare and Russ's honeymoon. The newlyweds are trying to adjust to an unplanned pregnancy while struggling with the potential of job loss for both of them. Of course no simple honeymoon can exist for these two. They are thrown into a kidnapping situation, a severe ice storm and a state trooper who becomes badly injured. Back at home Hadley and Kevin also dealing with the storm and kidnapping are also dealing with Hadley's ex who wants money or he will try for custody of the kids and expose Hadley's early porn career. During the turmoil these two finally hook up and become a couple but there is a cliff hanger regarding that.
Really wish I knew if Julia Spencer-Fleming is continuing the series.

[cathyskye · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Julia Spencer-Fleming is one of the very best at portraying the nuanced personal relationships of her characters. The marvel is that she does this and creates a fantastic mystery, too. Periodic chapters from little Mikayla's point of view definitely keep the sense of urgency at the boil as do isolated locations and horrendous winter weather. Some of the behavior of Russ and Clare (particularly Russ) almost had me talking to myself-- not that I'm totally wrapped up in these characters or anything-- but the mystery is just as good as the author's characterizations. I enjoyed myself trying to deduce the identities of everyone involved with Mikayla's kidnapping, and watching all the various plot threads coming together was a delight. For any of you who may be as interested in the relationship between Hadley and Kevin as I am, there's plenty of that in Through the Evil Days.For those of you who love marvelous characterization every bit as much as you enjoy trying to solve mysteries, I can't recommend Julia Spencer-Fleming's series highly enough. There's only one catch: since the lives of the characters play such a large part in the books, if you're new to the series you should really begin at the beginning with In the Bleak Midwinter. Oh, the treat you have in store!

[carol420 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

On the same day they are to leave for their lake house honeymoon, Russ and Clare each learn that their jobs are in jeopardy. Not wanting to ruin the honeymoon, neither tells the other. Concurrently comes a house fire that will turn out to be arson and a double murder, all in service of covering up the kidnapping of a seriously ill little girl who will likely die within days if she doesn't get her required meds. To make matters worse, the arrival of a horrendous region-wide ice storm will greatly complicate the police force's efforts to find the missing child. Meantime, two of our favorite cops, Kevin and Hadley, at long last rekindle their romance while, up at the lake, Clare and Russ set out to head for home, only to fall into the evil clutches of a pair of really, really bad guys, who just happen to be involved in the missing child case.

The author deftly mixes the personal lives of the characters with a series of brutal crimes. Russ and Claire are forced to face their insecurities in themselves and their marriage, and their fears of the future. In Millers Kill, two young police officers have to deal with their failed romance, past secrets, and current career ambitions. The victims and criminals are in turn hateful, pathetic, and human. Diffidently a 5 star read.

[jepeters333 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

On a frigid January night, Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne and Reverend Clare Fergusson are called to the scene of a raging fire that quickly becomes a double homicide and kidnapping, which is the very last thing Russ needs. He's currently struggling with the prospect of impending fatherhood and his new wife is not at all happy with his proposal for their long-delayed honeymoon: a week in an ice-fishing cabin. The vestry of St. Alban's Church has called for the bishop to investigate Clare's "unpriestly" pregnancy. She has one week to find out if she will be scolded, censured, or suspended from her duties.

[olivermagnus · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Chief of Police, Russ Van Alstyne, and Episcopal priest, Clare Fergusson, are getting ready to leave for their belated honeymoon at a remote ice fishing cabin. Before they leave they are both called out to the scene of a raging fire; Russ because he's police chief and Clare to counsel the firefighters who have witnessed the horrible deaths of two people. As soon as they arrive the medical examiner informs them the two burn victims were shot in the head before being burned. They were also foster parents to a young girl recovering from a liver transplant and she's not among the dead. If she's still alive she desperately needs the medicine that keeps her from rejecting her new liver.

Russ and Clare are both faced with possibly losing their jobs when they return, but they are keeping that from each other for now. The town aldermen, concerned about their budget, want to get rid of the police department and have the sheriff patrol the area instead. Clare has been asked to quietly resign form her church role or face a disciplinary hearing.

Once they get to the cabin, a huge blizzard changes their circumstances and they find themselves combating more than just the weather elements.

Steady action, complex mystery, and great secondary character storylines, especially one involving Hadley Knox, make this a must-read for any fan of the series. The author is not afraid to show us all the flaws in her characters, never more so than this eighth book of the mystery series. I highly recommend this series be read in order for maximum enjoyment and character development.

[passiontocreate · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I have devoured this series and this last installment does not disappoint. But, OMG, what a cliffhanger? I hope the next installment is in the works, because I am addicted to finding out what has happened to all these terribly flawed, interesting and morally conflicted characters. Not only Russ and Clare, but now Hadley and Kevin……. Hurry with that next book!!

[terribooks · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I love this series, and I especially think that Clare is one of the most interesting and sympathetic characters I've met in fiction. That said, I was disappointed in this book. What happened to the chemistry between Clare and Russ? It shouldn't disappear just because they're married and pregnant. Plus, there was so much action that it felt rushed. I would have liked to spend a bit more time with the ordinariness of their lives, to see a bit into the hearts of these characters. Finally, the set-up for the next book in the series is just too blatant. It makes me feel manipulated. I want the next book because I love the people and the stories, not because the author has left a cliff hanger that hasn't been resolved.

[lauralkeet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's difficult to write a review of the eighth book in a mystery series, when the crime-solving duo has changed significantly since the first book. To avoid spoilers, I have to leave out significant details about Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson and Chief of Police Russ Van Alstyne. Rats, it's good stuff.But anyway. There's a crime to be solved involving the kidnapping of a very sick little girl, and the crystal meth trade. This time, Clare and Russ inadvertently launch their own investigation, at the same time as the Millers Kill Police and the FBI are tracking the bad guys. A huge snow and ice storm keeps the two investigations running on parallel paths for most of the novel, each uncovering clues that would benefit the other. As usual, Clare finds herself in dangerous situations she really has no business with. And as a side note, the on again, off again romantic relationship between two police officers continues to evolve.The story held my interest, and I feel like I've come to know most of the characters really well. So even if the general premise and structure are a wee bit formulaic by now, I don't really mind.

[seasidereader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoy many aspects of this series and wish the author would quiet down the non-stop action to explore the characters more. Claire Fergusson in particular is intriguing - an Episcopal priest and combat vet with complex character and challenges.

[helenoel · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This one alternated between "can't put it down" wanting to find out how it resolves and "Eeww, I can't believe what scummy folks the bad guys are - do not want to see more" This series brings societal issues into the fore- this time rural methamphetamine production and major ice storms. But we also watch relationships evolve - primarily Clare and Russ, but also others... 4.5 stars - but I had to put it down several times.

[bookappeal · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The characters in this series are appealing and suitably flawed and Spencer-Fleming keeps the action moving in this latest installation. The winter storm setting was particularly effective this winter, with most of the country suffering from unusually cold and snowy conditions. Being hindered by snow and ice is all too familiar to most readers! The plot, however, strains the limits of credibility. It's possible that a pregnant woman would honeymoon in a remote cabin in the middle of winter, but not likely. Even less conceivable are the heroic and baby-endangering actions Clare takes throughout the story. The resolution of the criminal activity is also hard to believe and the whole novel veers dangerously close to reading like a B action movie script. So, while entertaining for a snowed-in winter's day, this book is below Spencer-Fleming's usual quality.

[kathy89_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this page turner. It had the most action of all the books in this series. Claire and Russ are married and going on a honeymoon to a cabin in the woods for ice fishing. She's pregnant and Russ is not happy about it. A horrific ice and snow storm hits leaving them stranded while back in Miller's Kill and 8 yr old girl with health issues is abducted by her drug dealer father. There's a secondary story with the supporting characters, Kevin and Hadley that's just as interesting.

[pennykaplan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I do love this series. The main characters, Clare and Russ, are very sympathetic and the fact that one is an episcopalian minister and the other a police chief in a small Adirondack town add lots of interesting quirks. This said I wish the author didn't feel the need to jeopardize their lives in each book. There is steady action as Clare and Russ battle an ice storm and criminals on their honeymoon spent ice fishing, of all things. The book jumps around a bit too much between Clare and Russ, and Hadley and Flynn, and the meth makers. So much that the plot becomes hard to follow. Still I'm delighted to read another entry in the series and hope I don't have to wait so long for the next one. After all, it does have a cliff-hanger ending. Am I going to have to wait 2-3 years to find out what happens?

[sleahey_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The suspenseful story of survival through a treacherous ice storm when Clare and Russ head to a deserted cabin for their honeymoon and some ice fishing. They find out just before leaving that they both may lose their jobs, and Clare's pregnancy weighs them down in many ways, and they become embroiled in an FBI case involving a meth ring and a kidnapping. A parallel story follows Flynn and knox as they try to sort out their feelings for one another while dealing with the ice storm and kidnapping. At times it seems like much too much going on to be at all believable, but fans of the series are unlikely to care. The ending.leaves us hanging and eager for the next installment.

[brenzi_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

You’ve got to hand it to Julia Spencer-Fleming. She has ideas about the timing of her series that fly in the face of common, accepted practice among series writers. Bottom line---it has taken 30 months, almost three years, since her last book. This is fairly unprecedented among mystery series writers. Most readers want to read the latest offering every 12 months or so. But the upside of the long wait for a new book is the top notch story that the author cranks out. And the newest edition is a humdinger.Russ and Clare are about to leave for a week of ice fishing (Clare really needs to explain to him what a real vacation looks like) when a house is burned to the ground and the two adults in the house were both shot in the head before the house was torched. But the big question is where is young Mikayla, a child who had undergone a liver transplant and needs vital immunosuppressant drugs.As with other books in this series, there is more than one mystery to try to solve, and the quality throughout is very high in both the development of the twisting turning plot and the wonderful prose construction. And of course, Clare gets herself involved in ways that had me scratching my head and thinking, “What was she thinking?” And the usual people from the Millers Kill Police Department have plenty to do as an ice storm of epic proportions makes communication between Russ and the other police agencies impossible and finding the missing child in time nearly impossible.All in all, another excellent edition in this high quality mystery series. And now the wait begins for the next book and it will be a particularly heart wrenching wait because, darn it all, Spencer-Fleming left us with an incredible cliff hanger.

[bookswoman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This series keeps getting better. Spencer-Fleming writes a powerful story and also weaves in an intriguing mystery. Claire and Russ are off on their honeymoon, in January, to a remote fishing cabin with no electricity. What starts out as a quiet week soon turns into a fight for survival. Weather and a group of very bad guys conspire to make this a trip they won't ever forget.There were several plot points that will stick with me for a long time. The sub-story of Hadley and Flynn, the six year-old who is fighting for her life, the number of bad people in the world who will create chaos just for money and power.Highly recommended. While this is a complete book in its own right, if you want background than read the first in the series and continue through in the order written to get the more subtle points of this story.

[eawsmom · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I highly recommend this latest installment in the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series. Picking up where "One Was a Soldier" ended, Clare and Russ are still trying to come to grips with her pregnancy. Her job is threatened because of it; their marriage is threatened because of Russ's feelings about it; and the pregnancy itself is threatened because of events which take place on their honeymoon. Julia Spencer-Fleming manages to weave together the pregnancy story line with a compelling saga involving a kidnapped girl who has had a liver transplant and may be without her immunosuppresant medications, a drug lord's efforts to eliminate anyone who might testify against him, Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn's rekindling romance, Hadley's run-in with her ex from California who wants to take their kids back with him, and the ice storm of the century. All of these events take place within one week's time, making for a very fast-paced read.While it's not as important to read the other books in the series as it is with previous books, I would still recommend that they be read in order. If that's not possible, read this one first and then go back and catch up on the others. Disclaimer: I received an Advance Readers' Edition of this book from the author with the proviso that I review it in as many places as possible.

[tututhefirst_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Back in March 2011, I finished One was a Soldier - the book preceding this one in the series about Clare Ferguson and Russ Van Alstyne. After reading the closing line, I threw the previous book across the room yelling - "NO....you can't leave us hanging like this!"30 plus months later, we are finally able to pick up the story. All of us who are fans of this wonderful cast of characters have been holding our collective breath to see what's going to happen. I really hate to give too much away so that readers who have not read the earlier books can have the fun of catching up before this one hits the bookshelves November 5th.But it does pick up just where the last one ended. So let's catch up a bit. Clare Ferguson is an Episcopal priest and an Army Air National Guard Helicopter pilot. After she returned from a very stressful tour in Afghanistan, her PTSD led to drug and alcohol problems, not to mention testy scenes with the love of her life, Russ Van Alstyne. Russ, recently widowed Vietnam era vet, is Chief of Police of Millers Kill NY, where Clare's parish is located. After a long and tumultuous courtship, they have recently married and are determined to have the honeymoon they about were unable to have during the previous book. Russ has found the perfect place - about an hour out of town on a quiet lake, there is a rustic cabin for sale. It has no electricity, no plumbing, no phone line, and a big frozen pond where he is going to teach Clare the fine art of ice fishing. He wants to buy it, and this is the perfect opportunity for them to check it out to see if this could become their hideaway retreat. Clare reluctantly agrees to check it out. After all, they're both veterans of Army survival training, so what's the big deal about no power, running water or phone?The big deal is that Clare is under pressure from her vestry to resign because of some transgressions (the cliff hangar from the last book) and Russ is facing the dismantling of his small town police force by the town council who claim the state police can provide coverage for much less money. Neither tells the other about the impending axes about to fall. Each figures that a week away from pressure will guide them to an answer. Neither counts on the storm of the century isolating them so totally that the situation becomes extremely dangerous. Neither counts on a seriously ill 7 year old being kidnapped back in Millers Kill while the police force is understaffed. Neither counts on becoming entangled with a gang of drug dealers operating nearby.The story of Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn - members of the MK police force whose on again, off-again relationship is off at the beginning of the book- find themselves thrown back together as partners when they are assigned to lead the search team for the missing child. This relationship has quietly developed over the last several books, and I found myself especially interested in seeing it blossom. In fact, it is becoming as compelling as the Clare and Russ story.Spencer-Fleming is a master at blending multiple story-lines, a fairly large cast of characters and a setting untamed enough to foster all kinds of evil doings. This one does not disappoint. It is fast paced, taking place over a short week that to the participants must have seemed like a year. It has new characters arriving, old friends still there (although a few are more on the fringes with this one), and a very well plotted mystery with several "Wow, where did that come from?" plot twists.And now, in her usual white knuckle routine, Spencer-Fleming leaves us yelling at the end again. "NO---don't leave it like this!!!" Please Julia, don't make us wait another 30 months. At least we'll have time to read the whole series again. They are definitely books that don't get old with re-reading.

[ronrose1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Episcopal Priest Clare Fergusson and Millers Kill Police Chief Russ van Alstyne have come a long way since they first met in, In the Bleak Midwinter (A Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery). They have tied the knot, although a little late, as Clare is already pregnant. The fallout from that will have to wait. The two are called out in the middle of the night to the scene of a burned out farmhouse. Believing it to be a simple case of arson, Russ and Clare leave town in a building snow storm for a long delayed honeymoon at a remote lake side cabin. They hope to find some answers to the problems arising from an unexpected pregnancy and the pressures of approaching parenthood. As the remainder of the Millers Kill police department continue the investigation into the arson, they discover the remains of two bodies with bullet holes in their skulls. Worse yet, a young girl is missing. Without her medication to treat the effects of a recent liver transplant, she will die. The chances of finding the girl in time become slimmer and slimmer as the weather grows into the worst snow and ice storm that has been seen in years. Highways and roads are shut down and communications are knocked out by the growing ice storm. Clare and Russ are isolated at the cabin and the police are seemingly stymied at every step in their investigation by the weather. The story is full of action with the characters reacting appropriately to the situations. There is enough side story action to blend the whole together and give the story a plausible feeling. Book provided for review by Amazon Vine.

[jfe16 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The story of “Through the Evil Days” spins out over one week in the lives of our favorite Millers Kill residents, all of whom face daunting challenges and inner apprehension as they are thrown into situations fraught with emotional upheaval. While Russ and Clare struggle to come to grips with her unexpected pregnancy, Clare once again finds herself at odds with the bishop and Russ is caught up in an unexpected issue with the aldermen. The department’s investigation of an early-morning house fire that has claimed the life of two people quickly takes an even more ominous turn when a kidnapping is revealed. Officers Hadley Knox and Kevin Flynn are thrown together in the investigation, forcing them to cope with difficult moments and tough decisions even as Mother Nature unleashes the ice storm of the century, stranding Russ and Clare in an isolated cabin at the lake where they have gone for their long-delayed honeymoon. With the dangerous Adirondack storm knocking out communications, closing roads, and bringing daily life to a virtual standstill, nerves are frayed, tension is running high, and the clock is ticking . . . .Julia Spencer-Fleming’s eagerly-awaited eighth installment of the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne series doesn’t disappoint. Here we find all the elements we’ve come to expect from her books: a tightly-crafted story that puts the reader right in the middle of a multi-layered mystery, exploration and insight into personal relationships, life-changing reveals and decisions. The story teems with excitement, offering up enough twists and turns along the way to keep the reader eagerly page-turning; as always, there are a few gut-wrenching “wow . . . I never saw that coming” moments to ratchet up the turmoil. It’s a powerful, emotional, can’t-put-it-down masterpiece that will keep readers on the edge of their seats right to the very last word. A highly recommended, satisfying read worthy of far more than five stars . . . don’t miss this one.