One Bear's Opinion -- Book Review

The Alpine Uproar by Mary Daheim

The Alpine Uproar is the twenty-first adventure with Emma Lord and the gang at The Alpine Advocate. This is the second one that I notices the title didn’t really feel as though it connected with the story. It’s a minor complaint, and I think the author and the publisher got themselves stuck with the alphabetical theme for the titles, but it felt disconnected, as though it was just a word that began with the right letter and sounded as it would work for the title.

Title complaints aside, the book was an interesting mystery. There were a number of sub-plots that were distracting, but obviously not connected to the main mystery. And there were characters that came and went without any real explanation, despite introducing them as friends or enemies. That is a problem with series mysteries. To avoid killing off regular characters, new ones must come into the stories by some means — either to be the victim or the perpetrator. But there are often other new characters in each adventure, connected with the victim or the perpetrator, or just read herring characters. The new characters in this adventure felt as though they could become friends, or enemies, but definitely felt as though they could stay in Alpine longterm. Alas, they disappeared into the night. Maybe they will return in future adventures.

New character woes were equally minor to the book. I enjoyed the mystery, though it was complicated. It kept me guessing the whole way through, and even at the end, I was surprised by the solution.

I always like adventures with Emma and the gang. I’ve read the blurbs for the next books in the series, so I know what’s coming in the series — which is both good and bad, so I’m looking for signs and signals for the overarching story. Reading series books are always like a visit with good friends, and the residents of Alpine are good friends. And just like visits with good friends, it’s difficult to direct the way the visit will unfold. Often you have to go with the flow and let your friends direct the visit. That’s the way visits to Apline go. As a reader, you have to let the residents direct the visits. It’s fun and frustrating in equal parts.

The Alpine Uproar added a bit to the story of some of the residents’ lives, and I’m sure there will be repercussions from the events in this adventure. It will be fun to see how it unfolds in the next adventure.

One Bear’s Opinion: Four big glasses of peach soda during a good long visit with friends

Happy Reading Everyone,
Oliver