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List Price: $6.99 | | Publisher: Hyperion
Salesrank: 182398
Released: April 29, 2008 |
| Our Price: $1.75 |
| Used Price: $0.01 |
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| Media: Mass Market Paperback |
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Editorial Review:
The exciting debut of a snappy, spirited, and irresistible mystery series from beloved and bestselling author Linda Greenlaw
In her bestselling nonfiction book All Fishermen Are Liars, Linda Greenlaw confessed a desire to write fiction -- and readers responded with an enthusiastic "Please do!" At last, she satisfies their hunger with this sharp-witted, compulsively readable mystery, the first in a series featuring marine investigator Jane Bunker.
When Jane moves back to the sleepy Maine fishing community where she was born, it’s to escape the seamy crime scenes and unsavory characters that crossed her path in Miami. Surely whatever crimes are committed in touristy, idyllic Green Haven won’t involve anything as nasty as what she saw in Florida. It’s a bit of a shock, then, when Nick Dow, the town drunk, turns up dead, and it’s not the simple accident that everyone assumes it to be. Jane soon discovers that Dow wasn’t even a drunk -- it was all an act. But why? And what does it have to do with a heated town hall meeting about fishing rights and paternity suits? The more Jane digs, the more confused she gets. Only two things are certain: Nothing is what it seems; and the whole town is in each other’s business. But it’s not until Jane impulsively hops on a boat with the killer -- a boat that suddenly heads out to sea -- that things become downright dangerous . . .
As she proved in The Hungry Ocean, no one knows the sea like Linda Greenlaw. And as she proved in The Lobster Chronicles, no one has a better way with the telling details of Maine village life. This new mystery series features everything readers want: a great setting, wonderful characters, an authentic and original detective -- and a story that will keep them on the edge of their seats.
Slipknot (Jane Bunker Mysteries) Reviews:
Yikes this was bad! 
2009-06-20 - I usually don't bother to submit a review but I view this review as a civic duty. One can never feel any sympathy for the main character as she's been written as a skinflint busbody. Referring to an older lesbian couple as "the Old Maids," Is stupid not endearing. The rest of the cast of characters is unbelievable. Invest your money in another book.
Maritime Mystery 
2008-12-29 - Almost a 4, but parts of this book turned more into a boating and sailing for dummies instructional manual.
Jane Bunker has decided that she is done with her high pressure career as a homicide detective in Miami and traded it all in for Green Haven, Maine. Being an insurance investigator has got to be easier. That is until her showing up for her first day of work and she comes across the body of the towns troublesome drunk.
The town tries to brush it off as an accident, but with the back of his skull smashed in, Jane's detective brain takes over and starts trying to piece the whole mystery together.
Unfortunately, she starts to ask one too many questions and finds herself in quite a harrowing situation. One way or another she is going to find the answer. And it may end up hurting the apparently good people of this close knit community.
Slipknot 
2008-12-14 - Her first novel is as good as her fishing chronicles. She's a wonderful writer. She's one of the few good things to come out of the perfect storm.
Dead drunk: Greenlaw's first fiction is pretty good 
2008-06-29 - Jane Bunker moved north from Miami only days before Nick Dow, the town drunk of Green Haven, Maine, washed up on the beach with his head bashed in--possibly the result of a drunken fall, but maybe not. Jane, who'd been a homicide detective in Florida, is among the first to see the body, and though it's no longer in her job description--she's now a marine insurance investigator--she decides to investigate the death on her own by way of having a hobby. The more she looks into the death, the more fishy it seems to be. Jane suspects it's connected to the hot-button issue that's got the town riled up, the proposed creation of a wind farm off-shore, which would likely have an adverse effect on the town's cod fishing industry.
Jane is a likable protagonist, frugal in speech and finances. We're given to understand that she is running away from her old life in Florida while at the same time returning to her roots. Jane's mother was from Green Haven. She left family behind when she abandoned Maine--running away from something, just as her daughter would--during Jane's childhood. This back story will presumably be fleshed out in subsequent installments in the series. Greenlaw here introduces a number of characters who will likely be regulars: the laconic, slightly hunchbacked Cal, who's fast becoming her friend and accomplice; her frequently sloshed landlords, who are moving into position as surrogate parents; the brash young waitress at the local diner; a potential love interest. It's a cast I'll be happy to spend further time with.
Greenlaw has previously published a handful of nonfiction books, including The Lobster Chronicles and All Fishermen are Liars (see my review) based on her years of experience at sea. (In addition to writing, Greenlaw is the captain of a lobster boat.) Her first foray into fiction reads well for the most part. The mystery held my interest. The writing and the story flow well with a couple of jarring exceptions. There are two scenes in the book which don't work because they are so unrealistic: one at the diner in which Greenlaw has the waitress dramatically narrate events from the previous night's town meeting, and later in the book a sort of catfight between Jane and a local socialite. There is in addition one character--Ginny, a monster of the local fishing industry--whose behavior is too over-the-top to be credible.
My lack of familiarity with naval terminology was not an issue for most of the book, but there is a climactic scene toward the end that I probably would have enjoyed more if I'd had a better idea of what was happening. But even without knowing a turnbuckle from an outrigger I could understand the tenor of what was going on--grave peril and high drama at sea.
I liked Slipknot and look forward to more from Greenlaw. Next up is the series' second knot-titled installment, Fisherman's Bend.
-- Debra Hamel
A very good first novel
2008-06-03 - The world became aware of Linda Greenlaw when her exploits were chronicled in the book "Perfect Storm" and she was portrayed by actress Mary Elizabeth Mastratonio, the captain of the other fishing boat in the George Clooney movie of the same name. Capitalizing on her new-found fame, Linda turned to writing and turned out three excellent non-fiction books: "The Hungry Ocean," "The Lobster Chronicles," and "All Fishermen Are Liars," plus a cook book co-authored with her mother, "Recipes from a Small Island." Now, she turns to fiction with "Slipknot." For a first novel, it is an excellent effort. She has created a singular character, Jane Bunker - former big-city homicide detective from Florida, current marine insurance investigator in Maine. Not much is revealed about her past, including a secret mentor. I suspect she is saving that for future novels. But, what we see of her character is fascinating indeed: a penny-pinching, soon-to-be old maid, with romantic overtures and appreciation for the look of her own breasts. She lays out the mystery in "Slipknot" with ambiguous clues, the occasional red herring, flashes of humor, and a host of interesting characters. For suspense, she gives us a number of surprising events that put the heroine in life-threatening jeopardy, and keep us reading until the end to find out what is really going on. As a mystery writer, she's got the skills down pat. But, she does have a few tell-tale signs of being a novice. First, everyone speaks in the same voice. With the interesting variety of accents available from Maine, she uses none of them. Each of the characters speaks like everybody else. Secondly, sometimes she forgets not-so-incidental occurrences. For example, during her last harrowing adventure, she breaks several ribs. But then, mostly forgets about them. I have broken ribs twice; I know they are not easily forgotten. For example, she lifts four gallon buckets of water (that's over 32 pounds each) over and over with no apparent pain. When she does remember the ribs, it's when she pulls apart a Velcro strip. She also goes overboard in showing off her fishing knowledge with a too-long explanation of cod fishing. But, I am definitely looking forward to her next book and the ones after that, too, with the improvements I know she will insist on making. Linda Greenlaw doesn't have to fish any more, unless it's angling for the right adjective.
