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Entombed |
Author: Linda Fairstein
Published: 2005-01-04 |
List price: $26.00
Our price: $3.15
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As of: January 07th, 2009 07:24:00 PM
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Customer comments on this selection.
 I shouldn't have enjoyed this book. But I did.
I actually have no idea why I like these Alexandra Cooper novels. The plot is far-fetched. The dialogue is often quite cardboard. I find the jeopardy stuff irritating, not cute. The relationships between the characters feels forced. Listen to me. As I write this I'm thinking-- "Gosh, I really didn't like this book, or the other Fairstein
(Death Dance) that I've read either."
But that would be a lie. I actually really enjoyed the reading experience. I felt guilty as it was happening, but I liked it. It's like an irritating pop song that won't leave your head or a really nasty sweet soda pop that you only buy in secret when depressed. I don't feel this urge to run out and buy another one of her books. Still, I have the feeling that I will secretly be delighted whenever I find one second-hand.
What Fairstein does really really well is use the city as a character. Both of the books that I have read by her use the history of New York buildings and public spaces as a spectacular backdrop. You get a sense that the author (and through her, the main character) really love New York. Since exploration of different localities is a lot of what is pleasurable about reading a detective novel, this serves as a very strong point in her favor.
The minor crimes in her books are also handled very well. In both cases, I have been nearly annoyed by the main crime. However, as part of establishing that Cooper is an assistant DA and therefore very busy Fairstein seems to regularly pepper the book with one or more minor crimes. These have felt very concrete and grounded-- tribute, I suppose, to Fairstein's background as an actual DA in an actual Sex Crimes Unit.
I would be willing to bet that I'll read more in the series. Even if I am not sure why.
 Entombed
I can't say enough about Linda Fairstein's series of Alex Cooper Mysteries. I bought the tenth, Killer Heat, by accident and after reading it immediately bought the first nine in the series. I have read all but one of these in the past few weeks.
Fairstein ran the sex crimes unit of the New York City District Attorney's Office for over 20 years which speaks to her credentials.
There are five reasons to read her Alex Cooper books:
1. Each book is wrapped around a compelling case which is based on a real crime situation. One or two other cases are also introduced which may or may not be directly related to the main case. You won't know until the last couple of scenes in the book.
2. Each book focuses on some cultural, historical, and/or geographical theme about the New York City area. The book I just finished, Entombed, contains a fascinating look at the life and literature of Edgar Allen Poe who lived in New York and who becomes an intregal part of the main crime story. Other books focus on the history of Governor's and Roosevelt Islands off Manhattan, the art world centered in New York, Lincoln Center, Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Natural History, King Farouk or Egypt, etc. I read her books with a detailed map of New York by my side and break for frequent Google episodes to delve further into the non-fictional elements in her stories. I not only enjoy a good read but benefit from the educational experience. These are not crime stories for dummies or lazy readers.
3. There are three main characters in the book and each book in the series revolves around their personal and professional lives which works to humanize the characters and add a sense of reality to the fictional events in the story. One cannot tell how much of Alex Cooper is really Linda Fairstein since both are University of Virgina Law School graduates with family money who work for the DA and maintain residences on Martha's Vineyard. By the way, all of the locations referenced in the story are real and described in such a way that you feel that you are there with her enjoying a meal at Patroon's, walking the area of Foley Square or experiencing a storm lashing the shore line of Martha's Vinyard. Some readers may find the details about the "lives" of the main characters a bit tedious or distracting but I enjoy the way she develops her characters and puts flesh on their bones.
4. There is an abundance of police and judicial procedural information to satisfy the "needs" of readers of crime stories. There are also enough "CSI" scenes to satisfy crime techies who like the forensic aspects of police work. Unlike many authors, Fairstein has extensive real world experience in such matters and can write authoritatively. She published a non-fiction book, Sexual Violence, in 1994 that I have not read but mention it as one of her credentials.
5. There are plot twists and suprises a plenty that demonstrate that Fairstein's credentials as a legal authority are matched by her abilities as an author and that keeps me turning the pages. I am a little distressed that I have but one book of hers left to read.
While the ten books in the Alex Cooper series are sequenced by time, they are crafted in such a way that one can read them in any order without sacrificing any significent sense of continuity. Of course, those of us with "Monkish" tendencies would find that impossible to do. I usually give my crime story books away after I read them but the Cooper mysteries will remain a permanent part of my book collection to be read and reread with more detailed maps perhaps and more extensive Googling. I also have this almost uncontrollable need to plan an extended visit to New York. I really want to visit Poe Cottage in the Bronx Botanical Gardens.
Needless to say, I highly recommend, Entombed, and the other nine books in the Alex Cooper Mysteries all of which are available from Amazon,com.
Bob Davis
Entombed
This mystery involves a female lawyer from the New York City prosecutor's office who specializes in Special Victims Unit. She has two mysteries to solve. The first is the return of an unidentified rapist the media had previously named "The Silk Stocking Rapist." That mystery is actually secondary to the second mystery - a skeleton discovered in the basement wall of a building being demolished by the New York University Law School, a building in which Edgar Allan Poe used to live. The two mysteries are connected by the perpetrator of the second mystery, who copies the perpetrator of the first mystery to cover his murder of the one person who can identify him. It was well-written but I did feel that the end left several loose ends untied.
FABULOUS.........
I confess that I had never read one of Mrs. Fairstein's novels [I read few novels...check my reviews], but decided to do so after she made a good impression on "Murder By The Book". I picked this one after reading the plot teaser on the back cover.......
I won't spoil the plot for you, and won't bother to discuss the "living" characters...Alex Cooper seems like a nice, bright, girl, but Carly Simon, and Anne Murphy from the Lisa Scottoline books, provide enough vicarious crushes for one man. No, the five stars are for the REAL central character of this book, the late Edgar Allan Poe. This book is one long history, and literature, lesson, and Mrs. Fairstein NEVER misses a beat. I can't qualify as an expert on Poe, but I used to be a volunteer guide at the Poe Museum in Richmond [which is in the book], and I do know some things. A serious error would have propelled this book to the garbage, and resulted in a one star review... no errors of fact, though the inspiration of some of the poems is a matter of conjecture...
We all suffered with Poe in High School, but some of us grew to enjoy the sufferings. Poe was a dark, deeply troubled, man. If you remain fascinated by him, grab this book...you will learn some things, and have a very interesting visit with a legend.
 Poor introduction to Fairstein
This is the first Fairstein novel I've read and it was a poor introduction to the author. The characters are boring and her attempts to interweave the motivations of the protagonists fail miserably. She is trying so hard to lecture the reader about minutiae about Poe that she fails to interest us in her plot. Fairstein tries to capture our attention in the beginning with tales of the Silk Stocking Rapist but his capture at the end is almost an afterthought. I had the feeling she suddenly remembered that was how she began the book and "Oh ... I better find an end to it". The Cooper character may have some substainence in other books but not in this one. Perhaps, if you are familiar with the characters from other books in the series, you will be more forgiving of the lack of character development. However, if you want to get involved with the characters, this is not a stand alone book.
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