5.0 out of 5 stars
Stylish mystery with literary flourish, Oct 23 2003
This review is from: The Deadline: A Mystery (Hardcover)
I picked up Ron Franscell's work as a result of reading his thoughtful book reviews in the Chicago Sun-Times. I first read Angel Fire, one of the most beautifully written novels I've read in a long time. I expected the same of The Deadline, and got it -- but in a very, very different package. The Deadline is a mystery that's extremely well-written, beyond the typical stuff in this genre. It's classical in respect to the "closed-room" nature of a small town in Wyoming where nobody comes or goes without being noticed. But it's also a story of the transformation of Jefferson Morgan from a cynical ex-cop reporter in a big city (mine) to a small-town editor whose faith in humankind is restored a little bit when he takes up a 50-year-old murder case that was "solved" before he took notice. Great characters, great language, great twists. I am a great fan of Ron Franscell's writing, which seems equally good whether he's writing newspaper articles, mysteries or literary novels. I'm hoping a sequel to The Deadline is in the works!
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