Review: Difficult subject matter handled with humor and grace
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 7, 2012
This is another great installment in the chronicles of Mary O'Reilly and was such a natural progression to the storyline in general.  Although the subject matter is hard, the author took a supportive approach in dealing with it and we get a very nice blend of all the reocurring characters including Bradley, Fireman Mike, Ian, Sean, Stanley and Rosie. No character was left out of this and it reads very much like the first installment which has been my favorite so far with this as a close second. If you haven't been reading this series, this is not the place to start since all the characters and a major story arc was completed in book five and this essentially picks up where we left off.After dealing with the horror of finding Jeannine's killer in the last book, there is a lot of turmoil left in its wake. Mary is struggling with the knowledge of all of Jeannine's memories including rape and helplessness during her confinement and although Mary has never experienced them herself, her psyche can't seem to separate the two.  Meanwhile, Bradley has his own struggles with exhuming Jeannine's body, telling her parents that their search of eight longs years is over, as well as searching for his daughter. Weaved into these two major storylines is a forty year old mystery of a heroic chemistry teacher who's accidental death is looking more and more like murder.Truly this book does not have many surprises as opposed to simply detailing the fallout of the last book, which is why it's only a 4 instead of a 5 to me.  You pretty much know from the very first pages what's going to happen, yet I found myself reading non stop to get to its conclusion.  It was well balanced, fast paced, and the support from each character was heart warming and poignant at times, but there was much wit and humor weaved in to make it easy to read.  This series encapsulates a wonderful cast of characters, and even though you know the who done it or where the story is heading, I can't seem to help myself that I want to see how it all unfolds.  The ending is obvious, but it is a cliffhanger, and I for one am looking forward to seeing what's going to happen next.