With Child

This is the most affecting of the Kate Martinelli mysteries I've read, both because of the heroine's physical and emotional vulnerability, and because of the sensitive handling of her bond with the missing girl. It compares well with A Grave Talent, and like it, presents a mystery focused on interpersonal, rather than more broadly social, issues.

I first read "A Grave Talent" and couldn't wait to read "With Child". I only bring mystery books on vacation, and this was the first one I read in Puerta Vallarta over mid-winter break. Not only is it a great way to keep the sun off of your face while lying prone on a beach chair, it is an intriguing story with wonderful characters. I prefer King's American style of mystery plots compared to the traditional set-up of English writers like P.D. James. James gives you the complete cast of suspects, then slowly reveals who did it. I won't give away how King sets up this book, but it isn't the same as James! No trips to Mexico this year with a new baby on the way, but when Baby Jack is born I will definitely send my husband out to fetch me some more Laurie King mysteries to wile away the hours of nursing my newborn, lying prone on a bed this time around.

"With Child" has been my constant companion for the past several hours: it went to lunch with me, and to dinner, and spent a quiet afternoon in between. What kept me going was not the apparent plot--as I read the book, I thought there were two separate plots, the search for Dio and the search for Jules, and I found them quite loosely tied together. Then I completed the last scene and realized that this wonderful book is a web of plots, based on the them of being 'with child', of finding children on many levels. There's Jules and Dio, both lost; Lee's need to have a child despite her lesbianism and her disability; and Rosa surrounded by children. There's the search for missing children at the center of this book, and the search for love at the emotional core. It's the search for partners and for family relationships which motivates all the characters, even the most villanous, and which holds the actions together in a tightly-knit whole cloth

Sensitive, intense, and at times absolutely gut-wrenching, this book, the third in the Detective Kate Martinelli series, is my favorite to date. Even more so than in the previous two books in the series, Kate emerges as a strong, complex woman who is now fighting to reclaim herself after her life partner leaves to spend some time alone. Just as Kate gets her feet back underneath herself, the special bond she has been forming with Jules, a smarter-than average twelve year old, is threatened when Jules disappears while in Kate's care. The ensuing search is surrounded by accusations and strong emotions, climaxing in a thrilling rescue attempt. I encourage fans of King's Mary Russell books to check out her present-day heroine, as well.Just a small warning--make sure you have plenty of time to read when you begin any of King's books--they are impossible to put down! The two books preceding "With Child" in this series are "A Grave Talent" and "To Play the Fool," both excellent reads.

Yet another excellent mystery by Laurie R. King, who has yet to produce a bad book. I recommend this latest effort as well as her earlier books.