See Also Proof by Larry D. Sweazy

First Line: The closet door stood wide open and an empty cardboard box sat at my feet.

The winter of 1965 is a long and a bleak one for Marjorie Trumaine as she deals with sometimes overwhelming grief on her isolated North Dakota farm. Her border collie Shep keeps her company and her work as an indexer keeps her busy while women from the Ladies Aid society urge her to join their ranks.

When Marjorie hears the news that a neighbor's fourteen-year-old disabled daughter is missing, she joins the search which doesn't turn up the young girl but does find the body of a murdered man. The man's body was near the missing girl's house. Why? Who wanted him dead? Is his death connected to the girl's disappearance?

Marjorie's search for the truth leads her six hours away to the Grafton State School where the missing girl lived. And-- as often happens-- the information she uncovers raises even more questions. But the most important question of all is this: will the murderer come after Marjorie now that she knows a long-hidden secret?

Larry D. Sweazy's Marjorie Trumaine series continues to be one of my favorites. In See Also Proof, he uses a chapter of North Dakota history that was swept under the rug (and all other states have similar chapters that they've tried to bury). I also like how Marjorie uses her indexing skills to further her investigation into murder; moreover, readers get to learn more about this little-known skill as the story progresses.

Winter is a major character in this book. One blizzard after another roars through. People have to wear many, many layers of clothing in an attempt to stay warm. It's a fight to keep vehicles running in this brutal weather. And most of all, Marjorie shows us why it's so important to have an emergency kit in your vehicle because the chances of being stranded in a snowbank are very real.

As the investigations into the girl's disappearance and the man's death progress, another important theme of the book is uncovered: how people in these isolated areas come together to help each other in times of grief and of trouble. Once again, Sweazy has created a strong mystery for a stalwart woman to solve, but he's also painted a portrait of community, and that will stay in my mind even longer than the mystery itself.

See Also Proof by Larry D. Sweazy

ISBN: 9781633882799

Seventh Street Books © 2018

Paperback, 251 pages

Historical Mystery, #3 Marjorie Trumaine mystery

Rating: A

Source: Amazon Vine

On My Radar: Larry D. Sweazy's See Also Proof

You know me-- I'm constantly on the lookout for new mysteries to read, and not just for the month ahead but for several months in advance, too. I became a fan of Larry D. Sweazy's writing when I read his first Marjorie Trumaine historical mystery, See Also Murder. The second, See Also Deception, was every bit as good, and his standalone, A Thousand Falling Crows, was on my Best Reads of 2017 list.

The Marjorie Trumaine series is about a remarkable woman. Marjorie Trumaine is a freelance book indexer living on a farm in 1960s North Dakota who also cares for her disabled husband. As you can see by how I've sung the praises of Sweazy's other books, I did a happy dance when I learned that the third book in the Trumaine series is going to be released on May 1, 2018. Let me tell you a bit more about it.

Here's the synopsis:

"Dickinson, North Dakota, 1965. It's a harsh winter, and freelance indexer Marjorie Trumaine struggles to complete a lengthy index while mourning the recent loss of her husband, Hank. The bleakness of the weather seems to compound her grief, and then she gets more bad news: a neighbor's fourteen-year-old disabled daughter, Tina Rinkerman, has disappeared. Marjorie joins Sheriff Guy Reinhardt in the search for the missing girl, and their investigation quickly leads to the shocking discovery of a murdered man near the Rinkermans' house. What had he been doing there? Who would have wanted him dead? And, above all, is his murder connected to Tina's disappearance?

Their pursuit of answers will take Marjorie all the way to the Grafton State School, some six hours away, where Tina lived until recently. And the information she uncovers there raises still more questions. Will the murderer come after Marjorie now that she knows a long-hidden secret?"


One of the things that makes this series so good is how everyone helps each other out on those remote farms. It reminds me more than a little bit of the small farming community where I grew up.

If you've read Larry Sweazy's Marjorie Trumaine books already, then I'm positive you'll be looking forward to getting your hands on See Also Proof. If you have yet to savor one of these books, well... I've listed all the titles so you can have some excellent reading in store!

See Also Deception by Larry D. Sweazy

First Line: By the fourth ring concern started to creep into my heart and mind.

It's an ordinary day for professional indexer Marjorie Trumaine: she has a question for her friend Calla Eltmore, the local librarian. But Calla isn't the person who answers the telephone. No-- according to police, Calla has committed suicide. 

Suicide is a verdict Marjorie just cannot accept, and when she notices something wrong at Calla's wake, the police don't seem to care. That means one thing and one thing only to Marjorie. Despite looming deadlines with her publisher, despite caring for her blind and paralyzed husband, Marjorie is going to find the time to uncover the truth... and unmask a killer.

It's not been that long since I last visited Marjorie Trumaine on her North Dakota farm in See Also Murder, and I was happy to be back. Sweazy knows how to put readers right in the middle of farm life in the 1960's, with party lines on the telephones, sewing your own clothes, proper funeral etiquette, and just "making do" in general. 

After what occurred in the first book of this series, Marjorie's comings and goings have been seriously curtailed. In some ways it doesn't bother her. Her husband Hank-- blinded and paralyzed in a freak hunting accident-- needs her, and her work as an indexer is done at home. But the mere fact of not being able to go somewhere when the mood strikes is crippling and shows just how isolated Marjorie has become. Her determined attempts to find Calla's killer is the best possible example of how much her friend meant to her. 

I like watching how Sweazy's mind works. Just as I foresee a problem that could affect future books, he lays the groundwork to take care of it. (What's done in See Also Deception really has me looking forward to the third in the series.) He can also make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end, such as the scene when Marjorie finds out her truck tires have been slashed and her telephone line cut. The killer is making a move, and Marjorie can't get away or call for help... what in the world is she going to do? Sweazy makes that farm house feel like it's a thousand miles to the nearest neighbor.

The tone of See Also Deception is rather bleak, just as it was in the first book, but it's not a gray depressing weight that brought me down. I found Marjorie too interesting as a character, and besides-- with what that woman has to deal with should she really be laughing and kicking up her heels? (I think not.) But as I said before, changes are afoot, and I'm hoping that the author brings Marjorie a bit of happiness because she certainly deserves it.

Time period-- check. Characters-- check. And Sweazy is also good at crafting puzzling whodunits, although I have to admit that I was a bit willfully blind as I read because of the sympathy I felt for one of the characters.  Yes, people can live secret lives even in the smallest of towns, and Marjorie Trumaine is just the sort of character to bring those secrets to light. Bring on book three!  
   

See Also Deception by Larry D. Sweazy

ISBN: 9781633881266 

Seventh Street Books © 2016

Paperback, 270 pages

Historical Mystery, #2 Marjorie Trumaine mystery

Rating: A

Source: Amazon Vine  


 

See Also Murder by Larry D. Sweazy

First Line: I saw a plume of dust through the window over my desk, and something told me trouble was heading my way.

After her husband is paralyzed and blinded in a hunting accident, there's just not enough money to pay the bills. It's 1964 up in North Dakota farm country, and after taking a course, putting in some hard work, and having a tiny bit of luck, Marjorie Trumaine is a professional indexer. It still doesn't bring in enough money to cover all the bills, but at least she can stay on the farm and take care of her beloved husband.

When her closest friends (and nearest neighbors) are murdered in their beds, Marjorie has a whole new set of worries come home to roost. One of her murdered neighbors was clutching a strange amulet, and knowing Marjorie's powers of research, Sheriff Jenkins asks her to find out what it is. As she closes in on the identification of the amulet, more people die, and that makes Marjorie realize that the killer has to be closing in on her as well.

From the very beginning of See Also Murder, author Larry Sweazy plopped me down right in the middle of Hank and Marjorie Trumaine's North Dakota farm. You get a true feel for life on the Great Plains in the 1960s. Not just the weather. Not just what needs to be done on a farm. But the loneliness, and also-- with things like party lines on the telephone-- the interconnectedness of people in rural areas.

As I watched Marjorie care for her husband and cook, clean, and index with her constant companion Shep the border collie, I was completely immersed in her world of no microwave ovens, no mobile phones, and no computers. Part of her world is creating indexes for books, and I appreciated the insights into that as well, especially since I've used them for years but never really gave their creation any thought.

Marjorie's mind is an orderly one, as you'd expect from a professional indexer, and somehow Sweazy uses that orderliness to lull readers into a false sense of security. Trouble, when it comes, is violent and frightening.  As closely as I was paying attention, you'd think that I would have the mystery all figured out. Think again. When the killer was revealed, it came straight out of left field. And when I began to say, "But wait a second!" I went looking through the pages of See Also Murder and found all the carefully planted clues that I didn't see the first time around.

My little grey cells are still percolating with this first Marjorie Trumaine mystery, so you have to know that I have the next book (See Also Deception) on my radar!

 

See Also Murder by Larry D. Sweazy

ISBN: 9781633880061

Seventh Street Books © 2015

Paperback, 253 pages

Historical Mystery, #1 Marjorie Trumaine

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Book Outlet