Judith‘s review of One Was A Soldier
The tension has been building . . . the pieces are all in place . . . and all good things come to those who wait. Julia Spencer-Fleming’s award-winning series has followed the flawed and complex characters Russ Van Alstyne and Reverend Clare Fergusson as they have weathered the storm to be together . . . but, now in One Was A Soldier their love is put to the test as they face their most personal case yet.
Haunted by her time in Iraq, Clare struggles to adjust to a civilian life. But after a suspicious tragedy involving a young Army specialist is ruled a suicide, she takes off on a dangerous mission to uncover the truth behind the young soldier’s death.
This is the 7th in this series of mystery/romances and picks up the saga of this little town in upstate New York and its residents. Chief among those citizens in Russ and Clare, two people from very different walks of life, who share a history in the military, who are separated in age by more than a decade, and who have finally acknowledged their growing love for one another. But that love had to be put on hold during the 18 months Clare spent in Iraq, not as a chaplain but as a helicopter pilot, taking her into the bowels of the conflict, and forever changing her understanding of life and the future. Now she is home and a participant in a veteran’s support/therapy group, all of whom are residents of Millers Kill, NY, and all of whom are recent returnees from the Middle East.
Julia Spencer-Fleming has dared to build a story of murder, betrayal, greed, and pain around the experiences and the post-tour-of-duty anxieties, phobias, angers, upsets of a group of veterans. One of the group is found dead floating in a swimming pool, and Clare, for one, does not accept that it is a suicide. After all, that person was openly sharing feelings and issues, appeared interested in the future, and gave no signs of that kind of underlying pathology. Her insistence that the death was foul play begins to erode her relationship with Russ, and even though he understands her loyalty to her veteran/comrades, he again struggles with the fact that she is right smack dab in the middle of another of his investigations. That this death and its circumstance never is what it initially appears to be, that the causes are so far removed from what was originally thought, that the investigations ultimately takes Russ and Clare to unexpected sources for truth and almost totally compromises their relationship . . . this is the gist of this novel and proof positive that it is a beautifully constructed and well-written novel. It is an interest grabber from page one, and if the reader is already into the series, will continue to develop the characters and their stories, forming a fascinating context for Russ and Clare.
Add to all this the very hidden shame of Clare’s growing addiction to prescription drugs–the anesthesia with which she attempts to battle her post-military service pain, the increasing use of alcohol, and her deep integrity and honesty that makes her aware that she is going to have to “come clean” with Russ before this is all over. It is the fear of what the fall-out of confession may be. After waiting so long to come to a good place in their relationship, will this addiction and alcohol dependence jeopardize her position as rector of St. Albans and will it be the last straw that will end her relationship with Russ?
This is a novel that lets the reader honestly encounter the angers, the nightmares, the sense of uselessness, the hurt and frustration of people who now have to put aside their war experiences, deal with wounds and long-term effects, and try to once again fit in with a civilian way of life. There is no hiding here. And in addition, the author has used quotes from the various services in the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer at the beginning of each chapter. It is the stuff of Clare’s life; it is the foundation of her personal faith and her call to serve. How can she rationalize it all, how can she make sense of her life? I think readers will be pulled out of a personal comfort zone and made to face the after-effects on the warriors we send to fight our battles. Only seems fair that we face the damage that war does to their lives.
This is a truly fantastic read!! Readers will surely love the citizens of this town, embrace the hurts and wounds of the veterans, bravely cheer Russ and Clare on as they work to preserve their relationship, rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. It is a novel that will be on my favorites/re-read list, because there is just so much here a reader cannot get it all the first time. Lastly is it incredibly timely and one that should not only be entertaining but very instructive.
I give it a rating of 5 out of 5.
You can read more from Judith at Dr. J’s Book Place.
This book is available from Minotaur Books. You can buy it here
I won One Was a Soldier through a Goodreads contest and have been anxiously awaiting receipt of the book. I almost didn’t read your review, but was glad I did when I saw the 5 of 5 stars!
Thanks, Karen, for your comment. I hope you enjoy this novel as much as I did. I read lots of books and this one is a “keeper.” I hope I didn’t give anything away . . . I try to tease but not to give away the meat of the story. I think you will find this has lots to like.
I think I really need to read this series, but will have to start at the beginning!
My mother had been reading this series along with me but was quite disgusted with “One was a soldier”, though she had liked the earlier novels. What upset her was the fact that the novel so clearly portrays the negative consequences of war in all its forms, yet not one person in the whole book ever questions the whole going to war concept, the necessity and indeed the morality of it. From her European perspective, that seemed like a total blind spot- of the author, or of US culture in general? I had to agree with her, though I liked the book in a lukewarm way.