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Rating: 
Summary: Characters in Search of a Clue
Review: I read this book when it came out in 1990 and always remembered it fondly. Unfortunately, when I reread it recently I learned it wasn't as good as I believed. Laura Penn is dragged into a murder investigation when the prime suspect, her ex-husband, names her as his alibi, then asks her to play along. Laura is horrified, but doesn't believe him guilty so agrees. But when more murders occur, with her ex looking more and more suspicious, Laura begins to fear she made a mistake. Then there are the strange items that begin appearing in her locked home, items linked to each of the murder scenes. Detective Max Elliott knows Laura is lying about something. Can he get her to confide in him before she becomes the next victim?"Jigsaw" is an acceptable romance. Max and Laura's relationship is developed well, though it won't set the world on fire. This is also one of the most frustrating suspense novels I can remember reading. There aren't that many twists. The only thing that keeps the plot going on so long is the leads' inability to see the obvious. St. George lays out all the necessary clues early on, making it easy for the reader to see where she's going, but the characters consistently refuse to see what's right in front of their faces. I felt like I was having a flashback to when my kids were trying to learn math. 1 + 1 = 3? No. 1 + 1 = 4? No. 1 + 1 = 5? NO! (OK, for the record, my kids were better at math than that!) More than once I threw down the book when the characters dismissed important information or failed to see that 1 plus 1 does equal two. The book also features the kind of climax where the heroine is made vulnerable through sheer stupidity. By the end of this exercise in frustration, I really didn't care if they lived or died. Just as long as they finally got a clue. (On a side note, Laura Gordon tells a similar tale in Intrigue # 282, "Dominoes," which is slightly better. Slightly.) St. George's other Intrigues, "Murder By the Book" (# 198), "Cache Poor" (# 230) and "The Renegade" (#358) are all far superior to "Jigsaw," which is neither as deep or well written as her later work. I would suggest passing on this one and looking for any of those instead.
Rating:
Summary: Characters in Search of a Clue
Review: I read this book when it came out in 1990 and always remembered it fondly. Unfortunately, when I reread it recently I learned it wasn't as good as I believed. Laura Penn is dragged into a murder investigation when the prime suspect, her ex-husband, names her as his alibi, then asks her to play along. Laura is horrified, but doesn't believe him guilty so agrees. But when more murders occur, with her ex looking more and more suspicious, Laura begins to fear she made a mistake. Then there are the strange items that begin appearing in her locked home, items linked to each of the murder scenes. Detective Max Elliott knows Laura is lying about something. Can he get her to confide in him before she becomes the next victim? "Jigsaw" is an acceptable romance. Max and Laura's relationship is developed well, though it won't set the world on fire. This is also one of the most frustrating suspense novels I can remember reading. There aren't that many twists. The only thing that keeps the plot going on so long is the leads' inability to see the obvious. St. George lays out all the necessary clues early on, making it easy for the reader to see where she's going, but the characters consistently refuse to see what's right in front of their faces. I felt like I was having a flashback to when my kids were trying to learn math. 1 + 1 = 3? No. 1 + 1 = 4? No. 1 + 1 = 5? NO! (OK, for the record, my kids were better at math than that!) More than once I threw down the book when the characters dismissed important information or failed to see that 1 plus 1 does equal two. The book also features the kind of climax where the heroine is made vulnerable through sheer stupidity. By the end of this exercise in frustration, I really didn't care if they lived or died. Just as long as they finally got a clue. (On a side note, Laura Gordon tells a similar tale in Intrigue # 282, "Dominoes," which is slightly better. Slightly.) St. George's other Intrigues, "Murder By the Book" (# 198), "Cache Poor" (# 230) and "The Renegade" (#358) are all far superior to "Jigsaw," which is neither as deep or well written as her later work. I would suggest passing on this one and looking for any of those instead.
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