Heritage of Darkness
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
Dark Secrets Hidden in Norwegian Traditions
For curator Chloe Ellefson, a family bonding trip to Decorah, Iowa, for rosemaling classes seems like a great idea—until the drive begins. Chloe's cop friend Roelke takes her mother's talk of romantic customs good-naturedly, but it inflates Chloe's emotional distress higher with each passing mile.
After finally reaching Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, Chloe's resolve to remain positive is squashed when she and Roelke find Petra Lekstrom's body in one of the antique immigrant trunks. Everyone is shaken by the instructor's murder, and when Mom volunteers to take over the beginners' class, Chloe is put in the hot seat of motherly criticism. As she investigates, Chloe uncovers dark family secrets that could be deadly for Mom...and even herself.
Includes photos of featured artifacts from the real Norwegian-American museum!
Praise:
"Chloe's fourth...provides a little mystery, a little romance and a little more information about Norwegian folk art and tales."—Kirkus Reviews
Kathleen Ernst
Kathleen Ernst is a bestselling novelist, historian, and educator who writes for adults and kids. Her books for young readers include fifteen novels for American Girl. She created Caroline Abbott, the company’s newest historical character, and has written seven books about her. Ernst also writes the Chloe Ellefson Mysteries for adults and mature teens. Honors for her work include Edgar and Agatha Award nominations and an Emmy Award in children’s programming. Visit her at www.kathleenernst.com.
Read more from Kathleen Ernst
Mysteries through History
Related to Heritage of Darkness
Related ebooks
When the Curtain Rises Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Egg of the Glak Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Old House in the Country Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Homecoming: The Inspiration for the TV series The Waltons Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pieces Of The Milky Way Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsElla Rosa and the Song of the Seirenes Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCeleste Ascending: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Raven Mocker's Legacy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Half-Life Party Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWind Dancers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChapter & Verse - D H Lawrence Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOne Snowy Night: Long ago at Oxford Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHer Mother's Secret Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Forgotten Book Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Who Killed Blanche DuBois? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsNineteen Seventy: The Seven, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBe Near Me: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Standing Ground: The Standing Ground Trilogy Book 1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ocean in His Veins: The Ocean Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ghost of Soda Creek Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsI Wish I'd Never Met You Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Highland Lass Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSixes and Eights Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Collector Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Matter of Mercy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5End of Summer: Thirteen Tales of Halloween Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Penta Millionaire Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAlice's Adventures in Wonderland Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Karen Bluejeans: Pathway to Glory Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Schumanns and Johannes Brahms: The Memoirs of Eugenie Schumann Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Mystery For You
None of This Is True: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stories of Ray Bradbury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Short Stories Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pretty Girls: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paris Apartment: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hallowe'en Party: Inspiration for the 20th Century Studios Major Motion Picture A Haunting in Venice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Flight: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Pharmacist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Sleep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Daughter: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Murder Under a Red Moon: A 1920s Bangalore Mystery Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Pale Blue Eye: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pieces of Her: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5False Witness: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hidden Staircase: Nancy Drew #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hunting Party: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Life We Bury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Woman in the Library: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Devil in a Blue Dress (30th Anniversary Edition): An Easy Rawlins Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eight Perfect Murders: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dean Koontz: Series Reading Order - with Summaries & Checklist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summit Lake Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone: A Murdery Mystery Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The People Next Door Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finlay Donovan Is Killing It: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Heritage of Darkness
13 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is a 4 star read, but it's going to read more like a 3 star review. This is one of those books. It's one of those series, too. I order the next book, receive it, and then it promptly sits in the rock-bed of Mt. TBR for an indeterminate period. When I finally pick it up and start reading it, (and I often have to have a psych up session along the lines of "just read it! Now!") I devour it. I've enjoyed every one of the four books in this series so far. BUT. But there's obviously something about these books that inspires the inertia. I've thought and thought about it and I've got nothing. It's this weird dichotomy between thoroughly enjoying the books, and the realisation that if they stopped publishing tomorrow, I'd feel not much more than ambivalence. Right. To the review of Heritage of Darkness. This is a currently-written series but it takes place in 1984. I don't know what the author's rationale is for this, if there even is one, but it makes the mystery feel a bit vintage; no mobile phones, no email, no internet. Chloe has to do her detecting the old-fashioned way. I giggled at one point when she was fishing around for change to use the pay-phone; at another when she actually made a collect call to her best friend. She's a curator of collections at a museum in Wisconsin, but she's on a family bonding trip to Decorah, Iowa and the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum (a real place) for rosemaling classes. Her newly minted boyfriend (but don't call him that), Roelke is along for the ride to take a carving class. She and her mom have Issues, and this week is supposed to help them become closer. You can imagine how well that works out when Chloe and Roelke find the dead body at the opening reception. I like Chloe but I can't say whether or not she's someone I'd want to be friends with. In spite of all the background we get about her throughout all the books, I don't feel like I have a real solid grasp on her character or her personality. She does have a sense of humour - snappy comebacks and snark are sprinkled throughout the book - although not liberally. I get the impression, mostly, that Chloe just goes through life and allows things to happen or not; she doesn't ever make anything happen. She deals with whatever comes at her efficiently enough, she just doesn't brim with optimistic proactivity. The author has given her the smallest touch of psychic ability, but she never depends upon it for, well, anything, really. Although it does play a small part in her piecing the mystery together. Roelke feels very, very real. I imagine that more than a few men think like Roelke, while acting like him as well. He's a very earnest cop, with a bit of a broken childhood background and he adores Chloe, but he keeps it very close to his chest. The book is written in dual POV - quite well, actually - so we get to hear what goes on inside his head, but Chloe doesn't. The author doesn't try to paint him a hero, or even really a protector, as Chloe stubbornly foils his every attempt at keeping her safe. As to the mystery itself? Oh, very well done. Readers are going to get a lot of well-researched information about Norwegian customs and traditions, as they figure heavily into the mystery itself. I really enjoyed the way the myths and traditions were woven throughout the plot. I never even so much as speculated about who the killer was because I just didn't have any idea. The ending was just a bit creepy; not too much so for a cozy, but a delightful change of pace from the vanilla. Will I buy the next one? You bet! Absolutely! Will it sit on the TBR pile until I prod myself to pick it up and read it? Yep! Probably! Would I recommend it? I think so - it's really a very nice read. Which sort of feels like the book equivalent of "She has a great personality!"
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Enrst has written another fascinating historical mystery with Old World Wisconsin curator, Chloe Ellefson. The relationship between Chloe and her mom Marit has seemed strained, so this visit to Decorah, home to both Luther College and a Norwegian museum, during their Festival time, seems like it would help bridge that gap between them. The addition of Chloe's hard to describe police officer companion Roelke, only adds to Chloe's stress. Marit's old friends are all stars of various Norwegian traditions, in particular rosemaling and wood carving. The week of classes turns into a week of mystery after an instructor (and rosemaling competitor to Chloe's mom) is found bludgeoned with a lefse rolling pin. The story is set in December and related many other Norwegian traditions of the holiday season. I knew a little about straw animals, but found I learned quite a bit about some of the traditions my grandfather and his sisters may have participated in as children in Wisconsin, or certainly, their parents, while growing up back in Norway.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5good each book in this series is better .