Fire Engine Dead (A Museum Mystery)
A Museum Mystery
3rd in the Series
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Ross Jones
Cover Design by Rita Frangie
Release Date: March 6, 2012
Nell Pratt, the new president of the Pennsylvania Antiquarian Society, is busy trying to hire staff and keep The Society running in these hard economic times, but when The Fireman’s Museum loses most of it’s collections to a fire she realizes things could be much worse. She tries to help by gathering all the information The Society has about local fire history to help them tally their losses and file an insurance claim. It is a picture that makes Nell understand there is much more to the story that meets the eye. When the smoke clears she knows she has to help find the truth. Hopefully she will not go down in a blaze all her own.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Being a daughter of a firefighter this story really touched by heart. The fire department where I grew up has many treasures from the past including an antique engine that travels around to nearby parades and events throughout the summer. My father was the chief for many years before he passed away. The department was an integral part of my life. There is even a Fire Training Facility dedicated to my dad at a nearby college. So growing up you could say fire fighting and all that goes with it was the family business.
Because of that I know Sheila Connolly has created a very accurate picture of the dedication of the men and women in this dangerous profession. Arson is a horrible crime and the reactions of all the characters are realistic and true. She also takes the saying of “a picture is worth a thousand words” to a very practical level, the key to the mystery.
I enjoy this series because Nell takes us into a museum full of paper and books that unless you are doing research could be quite boring but all the interplay with the characters and where their lives take us is anything but boring. It’s exciting, entertaining, and fun. It’s amazing what can happen in rooms full of ledgers, letters and legal documents. Connolly has created a complex and complicated mystery that will keep your feet to the fire as you follow the clues that will slam the door shut on those who ignited the flames. Sit back and enjoy this one, just stay back from the fire, we don’t want any readers to get injured during the reading of this book 🙂
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Thank you so much for saying great things about Fire Engine Dead! The book came about when I first saw the gorgeous antique fire engine in the museum in my current home town–and it was made in Philadelphia! It is a beautiful thing, and still used occasionally in parades. Couple that with an event I co-managed with the real firemen’s museum in Philadelphia, and I had a story. I was very lucky to have found a wonderful local Pennsylvania resource: Dian Williams, who is a (rare) specialist in firesetting psychology, who happens to work in West Chester, not far from where my heroine Nell lives. I hope she agrees that I got things right!
love to read the book.
GloriaDeal@aol.com