The Lost Women of Lost Lake (Jane Lawless Series #19)

by Ellen Hart

Overview

"Engaging . . . sometimes bittersweet."—Publishers Weekly

"This engrossing, thought-provoking entry . . . proves that long-running series don't have to lose steam."—Library Journal

Restaurateur and part-time P.I. Jane Lawless and her best friend, Cordelia, head north to help a friend on crutches. Tessa and her partner Jill run the Thunderhook Lodge, the premier resort on Lost Lake. And while Tessa clearly needs Jane and Cordelia's assistance, she isn't exactly acting all that grateful.

Tessa has been on edge ever since a man who claims to be a journalist arrived in Lost Lake with an old photograph and some questions for her and her neighbors. He is looking for two aging radicals wanted for the 1960s murder of a policeman. After seeing the photo, Lyndie LaVasser calls Tessa in a near panic as she recognizes the woman in the photo—every time she looks in the mirror. Tessa knows all too well that we can't escape our own pasts and sometimes we get drawn into the pasts of other people.

In The Lost Women of Lost Lake—the most engrossing mystery yet from Lambda and Minnesota Book Award–winning author Ellen Hart—Jane's only hope of protecting her friends from the secrets that are surfacing all around them is to uncover the whole truth before anyone else can.

Ellen Hart is the author of twenty-five mysteries. She is a five-time winner of the Lambda Literary Award, and a three-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award for Best Popular Fiction.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781612940519
Publisher:	Bywater Books MI
Publication date:	05/13/2014
Series:	Jane Lawless Series , #19
Pages:	324
Sales rank:	880,428
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

ELLEN HART, "a top novelist in the cultishly popular gay mystery genre" (Entertainment Weekly), is also a Lambda and Minnesota Book Award winner. The author of eighteen previous mysteries featuring Jane Lawless, she lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Editorial Reviews

In Hart’s engaging 19th Jane Lawless mystery (after 2010’s The Cruel Ever After), the lesbian restaurateur, who’s taking a well-earned vacation at the family cabin in northern Minnesota, tries to decide once and for all whether to partner with longtime friend PI A.J. Nolan, who recently took a bullet in the stomach meant for her. Meanwhile, Jane’s drama diva BFF, Cordelia Thorn, recruits her to babysit playwright Tessa Cornell, a mutual friend in Lost Lake, Minn., who’s sidelined by a sprained ankle. , The Ayckbourn farce Tessa’s directing can’t go on without her, but Cornelia plans to step in as backup while Jane plays nursemaid. What neither Jane nor Cornelia can fix is Tessa’s frantic distress over the appearance in Lost Lake of a mysterious man in a Chicago White Sox cap, who claims to be looking for a woman he calls Judy Clark. Guns get passed around, and, lickety-split, somebody’s found shot to death. Jane, temporary amateur sleuth, comes to the rescue in this sometimes bittersweet effort. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

“As ever, author Ellen Hart presents first-rate depictions of her locales and her returning characters.… An appealing homage to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon underscores the bountiful action, which also includes a revelatory scene involving Chess's girlfriend that would made Alfred Hitchcock proud.” —Yahoo Shine! on The Cruel Ever After

“One of the strengths of Hart's acclaimed series (this is the eighteenth book) is that the rich details about food, family, and place never undermine the swift pacing of her plots. Readers feel so much a part of Jane's world that we'd fight for a table at the Lyme House Restaurant in Minneapolis just for a taste of Jane's corned beef and cabbage.” —Star-Tribune (Minneapolis) on The Cruel Ever After

“The Lambda Literary Award and Minnesota Book Award–winning author of seventeen Jane Lawless mysteries knows how to spin a tale full of complex plot lines, fast-paced action, and characters skilled in deception. Fans of the Lawless series and readers who enjoy gay/lesbian mysteries will not be disappointed.” —Library Journal (starred review) on The Mirror and the Mask

“Ellen Hart, one of Minnesota's bestselling mystery writers, weaves a net of complex relationships. . . . Sweet Poison is as much a psychological thriller about unrequited love as a mystery.” —St. Paul Pioneer Press on Sweet Poison

“Hart is at the top of her game.” —Curve Magazine on The Mortal Groove

From the Publisher

Lesbian restaurateur Jane Lawless's (The Cruel Ever After) vacation plans are disrupted when friends Jill and Tessa need her sleuthing skills to figure out why a stranger is asking questions around the little resort town of Lost Lake. Turns out Tessa made bad choices during the turmoil of 1968 Chicago, and someone dearly wants revenge. Jane might be an amateur sleuth, but her tenacity gets her to the bottom of the case. A secondary plot featuring teens provides a haunting contrast to Tessa's dilemma as well. VERDICT This engrossing, thought-provoking entry by a Lambda and Minnesota Book Award winner proves that long-running series don't have to lose steam. Hart makes it easy for newcomers to jump in, and regular followers of this series will be glad to see what Jane decides to tell retired detective friend Nolan at the book's conclusion. Topically, consider pairing with Libby Fischer Hellmann's Set the Night on Fire.—Terry Jacobsen, Fairfield, CA

Library Journal

A sleuth gets involved in a melancholy mystery that unravels the dark past of a close friend.

Restaurateur and amateur investigator Jane Lawless and the outrageous (and outrageously outfitted) Cordelia Thorn head to Lost Lake to provide cheer and respite to their friends Tessa and Jill. Jane imagines that her time will be spent cooking for the longtime couple while Tessa's sprained ankle heals, but it appears that something much greater is amiss in their hosts' apparently idyllic lives. Although Tessa's anything but forthcoming about whatever's bothering her, Jill implores Jane to dig a little deeper. The situation is complicated by the arrival of Tessa and Jill's nephew Jonah. The teen, whose girlfriend Emily is a Lost Lake local, seeks refuge at his aunts' place. In Jonah's absence, it appears that Emily may have gotten involved with Kenny, Jonah's closest childhood friend, though neither of the two is being open with Jonah about their new relationship. Tessa and Jill struggle to rise above Jonah's teen drama while Tessa's secrets threaten the health of their otherwise stable union. A new possible love interest, meanwhile, gives Jane a bit of drama of her own.

A distinct improvement in this series, this tale is more coherent than its most recent predecessors (The Cruel Ever After, 2010, etc.), but also more somber in tone.

Kirkus Reviews