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I read this when it came out back in '72 but revisited it after I saw the DVD of the same name (highly recommended) to compare and contrast. There were some variants in the film, to be expected, but the magical quality translated beautifully. Six-year-old Sophie, her artist father, and her tough old grandmother have been coming to this small cottage on a small island in the Finnish Archipelago every summer, this time without her mother who's died. The interplay of natural beauty, challenging terrain, and unspoken but subtly acknowledged grief play out with lucid restraint. It's autobiographical fiction, close to the bone and very moving.
The “lucky” in the title is ironic, because this story features a hard luck cast of characters, Vlautin’s specialty. Eddie is a skilled house painter, suffering from a broken marriage. His sad-sack crew members often leave him in the lurch with troubles of their own-- alcoholic, lovelorn--you name it. Neighbors bring Eddie another challenge; brutal 15-year-old Curtis who lives next door unmercifully tortures his 8-year-old brother, Russell. Eddie comes to Russell's rescue, kind of, but it's constantly fraught. The miracle of this book is that Vlautin finds humor amidst the mess, and those messes are peculiarly enjoyable to read about. (At least it's not me...)
It's been a while since I've read one of his formulaic but satisfying mysteries but was ready to revisit this familiar territory and am glad I did. Box takes Joe Pickett, his redoubtable game warden, out of the picture from the get-go; he's been ambushed and lies in a coma, with his librarian wife, Marybeth, at his side. That leaves their three grown daughters to do the sleuthing, since the sheriff is brand new, seemingly clueless, and certainly doesn't know the territory and local conflicts the way they do. Three ranches branch off from one road, and each has tensions and dirty doings galore. The daughters divide up visits to these establishments and come away with a number of prospective suspects. Falconer Nate, a good family friend, lends his considerable skills. I had to suspend disbelief as Joe recovers from the bullet in his brain without serious side effects, but of course he has to keep the series going.
A reworking of Cinderella for adults, with an emphasis on the role of women way back when (and possibly now?) The protagonist--her first name is Etheldreda --was married twice. The first was a love match that produced two daughters but ended with her husband's death. Then she married an unpleasant but prosperous lord who came with a daughter, Elin, frail and spoiled. He died and she was left with no money, a crumbling manse, and the need to make good matches for all three daughters. There's much interplay between doing the dirty work to keep things going and putting on a respectable front. Ethel also has a falcon, Lucy, and their hunting provides much-needed game to add to a meager larder. Yes, there's a ball, and yes, Elin is chosen by Prince Simeon, but there's a sinister backstory. Ethel manages to rescue Elin from what would have been a nightmare marriage, and with great resolve, reshapes their lives. I enjoyed the combination of the sprinkling of archaic vocabulary with a contemporary (timeless) take on feminism.
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