The Last Good Day

I love the Joanne Kilbourn mystery series for a few major facets: (1) The heroine is an independant widowed woman with a strong sense of family, and yet is not reduced to being a simpering victim or wailing emotional wreck. She handles things, and handles them as well as any one could. (2) The strong Canadian content to the stories: be it simple things like surnames that show a european background, or native rights issues, or any number of uniquely Canadian flavours, Bowen finds a niche for them in her books that adds to the story. (3) The mystery is always a good one, and hard to puzzle out any faster than her heroine. Joanne retires to a languid summer at "Lawyer's Bay," where one power law firm seems to rool the roost. When a shocking suicide starts the vacation on a dark turn, Joanne once again finds herself in the middle of the lives of those around her, trying to dig out the dark secrets, and learn if the suicide was even that. When her ex-lover Alex Kequahtooway gets involved, things seem even more personal. The tension keeps rising, and as always, Bowen delivers a stunning finale. Well done.

Gail Bowen has done it again! She somehow manages to write an intriguing mystery plot and sprinkle in wonderfully normal family life elements to make for a comfortable and compelling read. With some authors, the end result would be choppy, but Gail Bowen makes it really work. Every time I pick up a new book in the series, I feel like I'm visiting old friends who will keep me entertained from start to finish.

Gail Bowen has done it again! She somehow manages to write an intriguing mystery plot and sprinkle in wonderfully normal family life elements to make for a comfortable and compelling read. With some authors, the end result would be choppy, but Gail Bowen makes it really work. Every time I pick up a new book in the series, I feel like I'm visiting old friends who will keep me entertained from start to finish.

The mystery novels of Gail Bowen set in Saskatchewan follow the lives of Joanne Kilbourn and her family. While all entries are enjoyable, this one is particularly enthralling. After receiving an invitation from her lawyer friend to rent his cabin situated in an area referred to as "Lawyers' Bay" for the summer, Joanne happily packs up her adopted daughter, her son and his girlfriend for what she anticipates will be a restful and relaxing vacation. While celebrating Canada Day, Joanne has a conversation with one of the partners in the "power firm" of Falconer Shreve and learns he is extemely depressed. By the end of the celebration though, he seems in better humor. So it is a shock when he commits suicide later that night. When she learns that a young female associate appears to have vanished after leaving Falconer Shreve, Joanne's investigation leads to troubling questions. As she is drawn deeper into the investigation, the answers have a devestating affect on those she loves. As I came to the conclusion of the novel, I said "oh no" out loud. It is a powerful ending to a very well written book. I cannot recommend this novel strongly enough.