Quiet Dell: A Novel

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Ms Phillips writes with deep sympathy for her characters, some fictional and some real life tragic figures. She has carefully researched her subject and the book is infused with facts I did not know about the Harry Powers murders near Clarksburg, WV, my hometown. I had heard the stories when I was in high school in the 1950's as told to me by my mother and grandmother who lived down the street from the Power's grocery store. They spoke of the crowds coming to gawk at the store as the press descended. My mother had occasionally been sent to the store to get things for her mother, although I don't believe she ever met Harry Powers there. Mother also rode horses in the area of the infamous garage where he committed his atrocities. The book fills in many blanks for me and the sites around Clarksburg are as I remember them as a child, very dear to my heart. Ms. Phillips describes the children with affection and tenderness, making the story all the more tragic. She also helps me to better understand the difficulties women faced in the 1930's if they had the misfortune to become a widow, left with no income or means to support themselves and their children. This is one of the best book I have ever read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story about a true murder case from rural America in 1931. Despite the crime's 82-year antiquity at the date of publication, the same danger plays out today in modern dating apps and is a mainstay of contemporary TV police dramas. The part-murder, part-romance narrative is peppered with text and memorabilia from the 1930s. Only four characters--it turns out--are Ms. Phillips' inventions. Curiously, I looked for an early publication date for this literary novel because it came across as authentically historical. Its vibe is reminiscent of "Cosmo" editor, Helen-Gurley-Brown, and her open sexuality and single woman independence. Brown is reflected here in the figure of Emily Thornhill, a well-heeled, woman-centered reporter for a major newspaper. The book testifies to the author's sensibility and skill in reproducing a bygone era. (Another Phillips novel I read about a week ago is similarly evocative of its era and exhibits a forthright sensitivity toward female sexuality.) One might pine for Ms. Phillips' sturdily charismatic male objects of desire and Emily's endearing--if sentimental--heart. The early plot deals with an attractive but impoverished family that falls afoul of the villain, including a delightfully imaginative little girl and an abandoned barkless dog named Duty. This story satisfies our every hope for the improvement of human nature in others and ourselves. The narrative is laden with twists, turns, triumphs, disappointments, and--to be nitpicky--far too many coincidences.

This is a captivating book. It is written in first person from the vantage point of three people; one victim, the murderer, and an outsider. Best, or worst of all it is a true story told through a historical fiction mode, but with much truth. Quiet Dell, WV is a real, beautiful town. These people, except for a minimum number of invented characters necessary to tell the story, are real. Combines humanity, horror, love, compassion, and hope so well.

Quiet Dell by Jayne Ann Phillips is a novel based on a 1930s true crime that took place in Chicago and West Virginia. Since I was born in Chicago and raised in the area, I am drawn to stories having to do with that great metropolis. I found the first part of the book compelling. Phillips depicts Asta Eichler, who becomes widowed, and her children in a way the made me care for them as the story of their victimization by Harry Powers unfolded. Unfortunately, once Powers, who seduces lonely Asta with love letters, succeeds in luring Asta and then her children to West Virginia, the story shifts its focus to Emily Thornhill, a female reporter for the Chicago Tribune assigned to cover the story of the family's demise. Thornill is intrepid in her search for the truth, but she falls instantly in love with the Eichler family's banker; the scene in his office where this occurred is cringe-worthy. She also befriends, reforms and then adopts a wayward street urchin who had robbed her, a storyline that seems too pat. And I found myself skipping through interludes written in the voice of Anabelle, one of the murdered Eichler children. The novel might have worked better had it been centered on Thornhill from the beginning. As it is, the different parts just don't fit together well. I still recommend it though. I think it would be a great book for a critique group to pick apart for insights about what works and what doesn't, and what might have made it a more cohesive, powerful book. I love the author's writing style and want to read more of her work.

This book really drew me in. It is a shockingly realistic portrayal of the lengths to which widowed or lonely women went during the depression to keep their home and children. Without a man and his money many families faced a very uncertain future. Opportunistic evil preyed on such women. Knowing this mass murder was a true story made the evil more intense. I thought the secondary story involving the reporter, love affairs, gay issues, women’s rights was a bit too tidy with all loose ends tied neatly, as if this "happy ending" made up for the horrific crimes.

Read 3 books on my week's break, but this was THE one, glad I left it till last. Strong, interesting main characters, specifically Emily Thornhill, the journalist who was professional but with loads of heart. The murdered children haunted the whole story, and I can still feel them now. Wonderful writer, will seek more of her work.

Basé sur un fait réel d'un tueur en série aux USA début des années 30, l'auteur en introduisant 4 personnages fictifs parvient à faire un vrai roman, construit, émouvant et reproduisant bien l'ambiance de cette époque. Une enquête policière et judiciaire réussie.

A heartfelt, well written novel re-telling a true story of a Lonely Hearts killer in 1930's small town U.S.A. The author uses the device of interspersing fictional characters amongst real people, partly to fill in gaps in the historical record, and partly to bring the story to life. This works well, and the central fictional character, a free-spirited female journalist becomes deeply involved with the lives of a family who were tragically wiped out by the murderer Powers. The only slight criticism I have is the depiction of the romance between the journalist and the real-life banker Malone who felt somewhat responsible for the fate of the Eicher family. Overall, it was depicted in a tender and positive way, but there was a slight Mills and Boon feel to some of the passages.

A very intriguing insight about how people lived in those times but very dark and depressing. I was fascinated in the way life and investigation unfolded and how the press and police dealt with such a gruesome incident. It was not a happy read but fascinating if you are interested in the social history of criminal investigation in the 1930s. Art fish,