Ask the Dead

By Joyce Yarrow and Annabeth Albert

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0976540916
• ISBN13: 9780976540915
• Release Date: July 2005
• Publisher: Martin Brown Publishers
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 0.3" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

Terrific book

I very much enjoyed reading this novel, even read it twice. The book jacket compares it to Sue Grafton, but Yarrow is much more like Ruth Rendell. Its complex but entertaining: the reader finds out about New York City, politics, being a private detective, even poetry slams. I recently met the owner of a drug rehab center in upper New York state, and the whole experience reminded me of this mystery. Quite a first novel. Looking forward to the next one.

More Please!

Wow - what a great first! Joyce Yarrow does a fantastic job of keeping action and intrigue moving throughout the book. Her character, Jo Epstein, is a very real, likeable person with amazing depth. Throughout the book, Jo maintains a tough "New York" type exterior, and her investigative journey jumps through action packed twists and turns. Although she is determined and no-nonsense, she reveals herself to be deeply caring as well. Jo has an eccentric ability to gather clues and solve the case, and in this book, even with the help of listening to the dead. The book became more interesting and captivating the more I read, and I couldn't put it down until I was done. I'm looking forward to Ms. Yarrow's next book.

Mystery & Poetry Successfully Intertwine

Ms. Yarrow has combined two of my favorite reading genres in this excellent first novel: poetry and mystery. Her detective, Jo Epstein, is a poet and each chapter begins with a short poem apropos to the coming events in the book. "Ask The Dead" is well written and carefully crafted. As a native New Yorker long gone from the city, it was fun the ride along with Jo in her borrowed car. I anxiously await her next adventure.

Promising Debut for New Mystery Writer

I read "Ask the Dead" last week and was instantly hooked and impressed by this latest witty,independent, female sleuth with a past. This is not a mystery novel for those who pick up the lastest mystery as a replacement for TV soaps. It rockets along with multiple plots, locations, and characters that had me enthralled. The power and beauty of "Ask the Dead" is in the realistic and very colorful characters and settings woven into a series of complex plots that are narrated in first person singular by main character Jo Epstein. If you want to take the plunge into the frenetic activity level of New York today - with all the ethnic mix, complicated police/legal/social services networks and a good sampling of local eateries all wrapped around a fascinating new detective and solid mystery - Joyce Yarrow's inaugural book will delight you.

Great Reading on the Plane!

I was on a recent flight from Denver heading to Seattle (roughly a 2 hour flight). I started to read the book once we pushed back from the gate and I didn't put the book down until the wheels of the plane touch down on the runway in Seattle. I got all the way to page 118 (start of Chapter 12)and I found myself wishing the flight was an hour longer! It is extremely difficult to put this book down. If you like murder/mysteries that will keep you interested as to what will happen next then this is the book to get. If you loan the book to a friend, make sure you ask for it back. You will want to read it again!