Now You See Me...: A Novel of Suspense

Voice performer Deanna Hurst delivers a controlled, finely nuanced reading of Rochelle Krich's fourth episode in the adventures and misadventures of writer Molly Blume. As many know, Blume's Orthodox Jewish faith is very much a part of her life - Krich describes this beautifully and Hurst reads these passages with dignity and respect. Further, it's a bit of a dual performance for Hurst as the story revolves around a missing girl, Hadassah, and Hurst imbues this character's lines with guilelessness and gullibility. Finding the missing Hadassah is not a job Blume sought, but she feels she owes a friend a favor. Seems the girl may have run off with someone she met on an Internet chat room, but the plot becomes murky with murder when the man in question is found dead. Surely the ingenuous Hadassah couldn't have committed such a crime....or could she? Takes an expert voice performer to inhabit the voices of two rather disparate characters convincingly, but Hurst carries it off. Listen and enjoy! - Gail Cooke

Thirty-year-old Molly Blume is writer whose speciality is true crime stories and she has been happily married to the love of her life, Rabbi Zach Abrams, for eight months. When an eighteen-year-old Orthodox Jewish girl named Hadassah Bailor runs away with a man whom she met in an Internet chat room, Rabbi Chaim Bailor enlists Molly's help in finding his daughter. The rabbi would like Molly to track Hadassah down and convince her to come home. Not only is her father worried about what might befall Hadassah, but he is also concerned about his family's good name if Hadassah's actions become common knowledge. Although Molly would prefer that the Bailors go straight to the police, she reluctantly agrees to do what she can to bring Hadassah back. "Now You See Me" is a sad story about the many pressures and temptations that lead young people astray, even in the so-called sheltered world of the Orthodox Jews. The book has an intricate plot with many twists, turns, and red herrings, and it highlights such timely issues as self-mutilation ("cutting"), teen suicide, and cheating by both high school faculty and students. Krich's characters are not caricatures, but flawed, three-dimensional people. Hadassah is a very troubled and gullible girl, Rabbi Bailor is a bit too concerned with his reputation, and even Molly reveals herself to be a person who holds grudges. "Now You See Me" is not a "feel good" novel in which everyone lives happily ever after. It is a slice of life about the many evils that threaten our children in America's open society.

It isn't the fact that NOW YOU SEE ME... by Rochelle Krich is her best novel to date that makes it noteworthy, though certainly this would be enough for her fan base, which has been quietly and exponentially growing. What makes this latest installment in Krich's Molly Blume series worthy of comment is that its many strengths render it one of this year's best mystery novels. It begins with a disappearance that is voluntary but then leads to a death --- which may be accidental, or a murder, or self-defense --- framed against a religious and cultural backdrop that causes an incidental impediment of the investigation. The result is an intriguing, engrossing, and even enchanting tale magnificently and beautifully told. Blume is an orthodox Jew, a reporter and semi-successful author of true crime books who balances her writing career with her duties as a rabbi's wife. NOW YOU SEE ME... begins with Blume taking notice of an apparent fan who attends three of her book signings consecutively. At first she believes that he's a stalker, but then learns that he needs a favor. Reuben Jastrow informs Blume that his daughter, Hadassah, has run away from home with a man who she met on the Internet. Jastrow is concerned that this incident will ruin not only Hadassah's reputation, but also that of her older sister and their entire family. Blume agrees. But there are difficulties. Hadassah is 18, and in the eyes of the law is of age to do as she wishes. An even bigger problem, however, is that Blume has not been told the entire truth about Hadassah. The truth indirectly involves an incident in Blume's past, one that makes her hesitant to involve herself in Hadassah's disappearance yet ultimately causes her to interject herself into the matter. There is a built-in time bomb, if you will, that makes the discovery of Hadassah's whereabouts within a few days imperative, one that creates a remarkable tension that by itself makes this book worth reading. When Hadassah finally reappears, it seems that the matter is settled. Subsequently, however, an apparent suicide victim is tied to Hadassah's disappearance; and when it is discovered that the man is actually a murder victim, Hadassah, her father, her other relatives, and even Blume herself are prime suspects. The ultimate key to the entire mystery is shrouded in the past, in matters almost (but not quite) forgotten by those involved, demonstrating that the errors and omissions of the past generation are often visited upon the present. There is a subtle but constant interplay between tradition and modernity in NOW YOU SEE ME... Krich does not make judgments here; keeping true to the traditions of Jewish orthodoxy is no doubt difficult, particularly given the temptations inherent in this world. Yet there is a comfort in ritual and belief, and the underlying reasons therefore, that shine through in the Blume novels in general and this one in particular. Krich also deserves kudos for including an extensive glossary of H

Krich presents a very insightful look into the teen world in her latest Molly Blume mystery. Blume, a true crime writer and freelance reporter, is now happily married to a rabbi. When she's accosted at a book signing, she's reluctant to attempt to find a teenage runaway. But, Hadassah Bailor is more than a typical runaway. She's the eighteen-year-old daughter of a rabbi, who ran away with a man she met in an Orthodox Jewish chat room. Blume knows Hadassah's father, the Orthodox Jewish community, and she's about to learn more about teenagers in order to look for Hadassah. Krich does a masterful job telling the story from two viewpoints, Molly's as she frantically searches for a teen she worries about, and Hadassah's as she tells of her loneliness and fear. Hadassah's story reveals a teen world of chat rooms, stolen tests and term papers, teen suicide, loneliness, and teens who cut themselves. Molly's not as surprised as others, because she herself was a troubled teen with a run-in with Hadassah's father. The family wants to keep Hadassah's story to themselves because it would shame them and their marriageable children. The school Hadassah attends has secrets to keep. As Molly unravels the layers of secrets, she discovers threats and dangers too serious to keep to herself. Krich's latest suspense novel is her best one yet.

Recently married Molly Blume feels good about her life. Besides her personal life, her book is selling and her column is becoming even more popular. However, she becomes concerned when an apparent fan Reuben Jastrow turns up at three consecutive book signings. She initially thinks he is a stalker but he explains that he wants to hire her as a Jewish private detective to find his missing eighteen years old daughter Hadassah. She reluctantly agrees to help because she learns that Reuben is a highly regarded Orthodox rabbi. Molly's inquiries lead to unsafe chat rooms and Goth-suicidal teens, but these prove false as the sleuth is no closer to finding Hadassah then when she started. The case seems to be going nowhere as Molly ponders what could have happened and reconsiders several times all the possibilities, but finding no clues that take her closer to the vanished teen. The story line is more character driven than usual as Rochelle Krich concentrates on Molly's muses leading to a brilliant insight into the orthodox Jewish American community. However, a twist in the middle of NOW YOU SEE ME leads to questions as to why Molly does what she does for the rest of the plot. Though not quite at the caliber of a typical Blume tale (see GRAVE ENDINGS), fans of the series will enjoy the happily married Molly's fourth sleuthing adventure played out against a backdrop of Orthodox Judaism Harriet Klausner