All the energy of her black fast will be directed at Dora's murderer. Wally, a young English governess who pops up at the crime scene one day, helps Erszebet's investigation. The reasons for Wally's involvement are not clear, but the women's superstition provides interesting contrast to the Inspector's science. Dora's autopsy reveals that she ate fresh figs just before she was murdered. If the fruit had just been picked, the tree is growing somewhere in the city.
Shields writes in the present tense, which helps the reader see events as they unfold.
It is also an especially effective style for a mystery, as it evokes the feeling that the author, too, is experiencing each episode for the first time, unaware of what will happen next. The Fig Eater is a stylish and offbeat literary thriller, and an auspicious first novel. The question has echoed down the centuries, but Pilate received no answer - at least in the Gospel of John. The answer she gets fills her 412-page book, which is astonishing considering the skimpy source material she had to work with. The archaeological record consists of one fragmentary inscription on stone, and three coins.