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melissa_who_reads's review
4.0
Will read more books by Rhys Bowen, and more of the Molly Murphy series. Found it engaging. A little slow in parts. I read a hardback version, and was occasionally irritated by clear typos - words that were not quite right, tenses that were just off - but other than that, found it engaging. Was occasionally annoyed by the very period-correct behavior of Molly's husband (it's set in 1905), who wants her home safe, taking care of home and child - but that behavior was interspersed with him appreciating some of her insights. It felt like she did much more to solve the case than he did, though he was presumably working on it day and night with the full resources of the NYPD, and she was definitely not able to be full-time on the case ...
kenzee06's review
2.0
*I won this book in a GoodReads First Reads Giveaway*
This book was painful for me. I'm actually blown away that this is the 14th book in the series. Perhaps the author has ran out of ideas and the writing has gotten progressively worse. That is all I can come up with. Molly is obnoxious, arrogant, and plain rude. She talked about how every clue found was "all thanks to her" so many times, I almost put the book down and walked away. The way she continually rubbed her husband's failure in his face drove me insane. To be fair, her husband was also a complete jerk. I wouldn't put up with someone treating my friends that way.
The mystery itself was moderately interesting, but I could have done without the "what do dreams mean" side plot. I'm personally a big fan of dream interpretation, but I felt in the story it was used as a convenient way to help Molly solve the mystery. Overall, this book was disappointing. Plenty of potential, but terrible execution.
This book was painful for me. I'm actually blown away that this is the 14th book in the series. Perhaps the author has ran out of ideas and the writing has gotten progressively worse. That is all I can come up with. Molly is obnoxious, arrogant, and plain rude. She talked about how every clue found was "all thanks to her" so many times, I almost put the book down and walked away. The way she continually rubbed her husband's failure in his face drove me insane. To be fair, her husband was also a complete jerk. I wouldn't put up with someone treating my friends that way.
The mystery itself was moderately interesting, but I could have done without the "what do dreams mean" side plot. I'm personally a big fan of dream interpretation, but I felt in the story it was used as a convenient way to help Molly solve the mystery. Overall, this book was disappointing. Plenty of potential, but terrible execution.
krobart's review
2.0
See my review here:
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2018/09/20/day-1265-the-edge-of-dreams/
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2018/09/20/day-1265-the-edge-of-dreams/
sjgrodsky's review
3.0
There are many characters, several murders, and what should be a colorful setting. All that’s missing is prose that brings these elements to life.
I’ve read books that were irritating or ill-written or boring. This one was just unsatisfying. It was like eating plain spaghetti cooked in salt-free water. Sustained life, but no flavor, no texture, no fun to consume.
All the best to you Molly, but we won’t be meeting again.
I’ve read books that were irritating or ill-written or boring. This one was just unsatisfying. It was like eating plain spaghetti cooked in salt-free water. Sustained life, but no flavor, no texture, no fun to consume.
All the best to you Molly, but we won’t be meeting again.
kbranfield's review against another edition
4.0
The Edge of Dreams by Rhys Bowen is a very intriguing mystery. Set in the early 1900s, it is a historically accurate and compelling novel starring the very charming and intrepid Molly Murphy Sullivan. Although it is part of Molly Murphy Mysteries series, it can easily be read as a standalone story.
Molly Sullivan's husband Daniel is investigating a perplexing string of murders when she and her young son are involved in a train accident. A note sent by the killer takes claim for the crash and Daniel is afraid Molly was the intended target. Molly escapes with mostly minor injuries and during her recuperation, she investigates the killings.
Molly is a former private detective who finds it difficult to leave her sleuthing days behind. During a time when women are expected to be nothing more than wives and mothers, she runs into some interference from her well-meaning mother-in-law who makes no effort to hide her disapproval of Molly's interest in the case. While Daniel appreciates the information Molly uncovers, she has to keep her activities hidden from Daniel's superiors.
Unable to find a link between the previous murders, Daniel has little to go on so Molly begins her investigation by re-interviewing the victims' family members. She uncovers a few puzzling clues but she still cannot find a common denominator in the cases. Molly is also assisting her rather unconventional friends Elena "Sid" Goldfarb and Augusta "Gus" Walcott as they try to help a young girl whose family recently perished in tragic house fire. The pair have recently returned from Vienna where they studied with Freud and they hope their (somewhat limited) knowledge about dream interpretation can help unlock the truth about what caused the fire that took the girl's parents' lives. Eventually, these two investigations converge but will Molly discover the killer's identity before it is too late?
The Edge of Dreams is a fascinating mystery and Rhys Bowen expertly weaves historical events from the era into the storyline. The characters are well-developed and their behavior and reactions are true to the time period. The perpetrator's identity and motive for the crime remain obscured for much of the story. The novel's conclusion is quite dramatic and all of the loose ends and various storylines are neatly wrapped up. All in all, a well-written and engaging novel that fans of genre are sure to enjoy.
Molly Sullivan's husband Daniel is investigating a perplexing string of murders when she and her young son are involved in a train accident. A note sent by the killer takes claim for the crash and Daniel is afraid Molly was the intended target. Molly escapes with mostly minor injuries and during her recuperation, she investigates the killings.
Molly is a former private detective who finds it difficult to leave her sleuthing days behind. During a time when women are expected to be nothing more than wives and mothers, she runs into some interference from her well-meaning mother-in-law who makes no effort to hide her disapproval of Molly's interest in the case. While Daniel appreciates the information Molly uncovers, she has to keep her activities hidden from Daniel's superiors.
Unable to find a link between the previous murders, Daniel has little to go on so Molly begins her investigation by re-interviewing the victims' family members. She uncovers a few puzzling clues but she still cannot find a common denominator in the cases. Molly is also assisting her rather unconventional friends Elena "Sid" Goldfarb and Augusta "Gus" Walcott as they try to help a young girl whose family recently perished in tragic house fire. The pair have recently returned from Vienna where they studied with Freud and they hope their (somewhat limited) knowledge about dream interpretation can help unlock the truth about what caused the fire that took the girl's parents' lives. Eventually, these two investigations converge but will Molly discover the killer's identity before it is too late?
The Edge of Dreams is a fascinating mystery and Rhys Bowen expertly weaves historical events from the era into the storyline. The characters are well-developed and their behavior and reactions are true to the time period. The perpetrator's identity and motive for the crime remain obscured for much of the story. The novel's conclusion is quite dramatic and all of the loose ends and various storylines are neatly wrapped up. All in all, a well-written and engaging novel that fans of genre are sure to enjoy.
wayfaring_witch's review
4.0
I feel Rhys Bowen is still figuring out a Molly who is as a wife and mother, and half of the book is her struggling to fulfilling those roles properly. I wish Molly wasn't just trying to charge into her husband's career and could keep her sleuthing separate. I was enjoying the two mysteries, but in the end they tied together.
The mystery did pull me in, but I did figure out the answer before Molly even suspected it through some generic foreshadowing.
I hope Molly's chemistry with others in the series improves in the future! It seems the same interactions happen with the same people happen over and over again.
The mystery did pull me in, but I did figure out the answer before Molly even suspected it through some generic foreshadowing.
I hope Molly's chemistry with others in the series improves in the future! It seems the same interactions happen with the same people happen over and over again.
thebrownbookloft's review against another edition
4.0
Shortly after Captain Daniel Sullivan receives another threatening note, his wife, Molly, and their one-year-old son, Liam, are involved in a horrific elevated train accident. Several people were killed and many more were injured. Luckily, Liam wasn’t wounded and Molly came away with only cracked ribs and a bump on her head.
A weird incident just before she boarded the train causes Molly to wonder if she was the intended target. The Sullivan family are still recovering from having their house firebombed by a gang. No wonder they’re edgy!
Daniel finally tells Molly that the note is part of a series that he receives each time a murder occurs. Every murder is different; there are no discernible patterns. Daniel is getting a lot of political pressure to solve these murders. His job may be on the line. Despite her cracked ribs, Molly begins her own investigation, aided by her friends, Sid and Gus.
Gus has just returned from Europe, studying the interpretation of dreams under the renowned Doctor Sigmund Freud. The young daughter of two of the murder victims is having baffling, dark nightmares. The police think she killed her parents. Molly is also having disturbing, recurrent dreams that appear to be prophetic. While Molly interviews victims’ family members, Gus urgently seeks a professional to help interpret the dreams to help Molly and save the young girl.
This is a fun series that takes place in turn of the century New York. In the earliest books, Molly is an Irish immigrant who works as a detective to make a living. She gives up her career after she marries Captain Daniel Sullivan, but she just can’t suppress her inner sleuth. In the early days of their marriage, Daniel absolutely forbids her from detecting and I honestly couldn’t stand him. Their relationship ruined the series for me and I stopped reading it for a couple of years. But Daniel is finally coming around. He still wishes his wife would just keep house and have babies, but he grudgingly admits that she’s good at seeing things the police miss. The fact that she’s a woman gives her an advantage when interviewing some witnesses.
Daniel’s misogyny aside, The Edge of Dreams is a particularly good entry into the Molly Murphy series. The author incorporates an historic event, along with the rise of psychoanalysis, to create a thrilling mystery.
My Rating: 4.25 Stars, Grade B+
A weird incident just before she boarded the train causes Molly to wonder if she was the intended target. The Sullivan family are still recovering from having their house firebombed by a gang. No wonder they’re edgy!
Daniel finally tells Molly that the note is part of a series that he receives each time a murder occurs. Every murder is different; there are no discernible patterns. Daniel is getting a lot of political pressure to solve these murders. His job may be on the line. Despite her cracked ribs, Molly begins her own investigation, aided by her friends, Sid and Gus.
Gus has just returned from Europe, studying the interpretation of dreams under the renowned Doctor Sigmund Freud. The young daughter of two of the murder victims is having baffling, dark nightmares. The police think she killed her parents. Molly is also having disturbing, recurrent dreams that appear to be prophetic. While Molly interviews victims’ family members, Gus urgently seeks a professional to help interpret the dreams to help Molly and save the young girl.
This is a fun series that takes place in turn of the century New York. In the earliest books, Molly is an Irish immigrant who works as a detective to make a living. She gives up her career after she marries Captain Daniel Sullivan, but she just can’t suppress her inner sleuth. In the early days of their marriage, Daniel absolutely forbids her from detecting and I honestly couldn’t stand him. Their relationship ruined the series for me and I stopped reading it for a couple of years. But Daniel is finally coming around. He still wishes his wife would just keep house and have babies, but he grudgingly admits that she’s good at seeing things the police miss. The fact that she’s a woman gives her an advantage when interviewing some witnesses.
Daniel’s misogyny aside, The Edge of Dreams is a particularly good entry into the Molly Murphy series. The author incorporates an historic event, along with the rise of psychoanalysis, to create a thrilling mystery.
My Rating: 4.25 Stars, Grade B+
sheltzer's review against another edition
3.0
Joy of all joys, Daniel didn't spend the entire book trying to sideline Molly! If this trend continues, I can continue reading the series!
I enjoyed the mystery and finding out how each murder linked together. I was a bit disappointed in the end game, hence three stars instead of four.
I enjoyed the mystery and finding out how each murder linked together. I was a bit disappointed in the end game, hence three stars instead of four.
bookwyrm_lark's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve been a fan of Rhys Bowen since I first stumbled across one of her Constable Evans books in a library about 15 years ago. So it’s a mystery to me why I’ve never read any of her Molly Murphy books – especially since I love historical mysteries and the Victorian/Edwardian era as well. Luckily for me, I was given the chance to read the most recent book in the series, The Edge of Dreams, for a tour. Now I’m well and truly hooked.
To begin with, I really like Molly. She’s an independent and strong-willed young woman, adjusting with some difficulty to the social confines of married life. Although she has given up her career as a private detective, old habits die hard, and her husband’s job as a police detective keeps her in touch and involved – not always with Daniel’s approval. Molly has a touch of the Sight, too, but it doesn’t play a big role in her mystery solving, at least in this book.
I like Daniel, too; he’s not terribly happy about Molly pursuing her inquiries, especially if it’s dangerous or involves his case(s), but he loves her and he’s honest enough to respect her abilities. Their marriage, like society at large, is finding its way between the expectations of the past century (the book takes place in 1905) and the changes of the present – including women’s growing push for independence and equal rights.
There are several well-drawn supporting character, ranging from Molly’s friends and neighbors, the unconventional Sid and Gus, to her young son and mother-in-law. It’s an engaging milieu, with realistic affection and tension between Molly’s mother-in-law and Molly. Even suspects and minor characters ring true; no one feels flat or caricatured.
The mystery itself is well-plotted and satisfyingly difficult to solve: a string of seemingly motiveless and unrelated deaths, tied together only by the notes the murderer sends to Daniel. It was ages before I began to have even a glimmer of who the culprit might be. This isn’t one of those books where you know all the suspects up front (or nearly so); it’s more like a real investigation, in which the clues are slowly uncovered through persistence and, sometimes, luck. Bowen also weaves in the new science of psychology (alienism), particularly dream analysis, and the dreams of both Molly and a young girl, adding both atmosphere and perhaps clues to the mystery.
The overall tone of the Molly Murphy novels is more series than Georgie’s delightfully madcap adventures in Bowen’s other series, Her Royal Spyness. That’s not to say there aren’t moments of humor in the Molly books, but if you prefer your mysteries to be on the realistic side, this series definitely delivers. Personally, I enjoy both, so I will happily continue reading the Royal Spyness books while I catch up on the Molly Murphy series!
Review originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
FTC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher/author/publicist. All opinions are my own.
To begin with, I really like Molly. She’s an independent and strong-willed young woman, adjusting with some difficulty to the social confines of married life. Although she has given up her career as a private detective, old habits die hard, and her husband’s job as a police detective keeps her in touch and involved – not always with Daniel’s approval. Molly has a touch of the Sight, too, but it doesn’t play a big role in her mystery solving, at least in this book.
I like Daniel, too; he’s not terribly happy about Molly pursuing her inquiries, especially if it’s dangerous or involves his case(s), but he loves her and he’s honest enough to respect her abilities. Their marriage, like society at large, is finding its way between the expectations of the past century (the book takes place in 1905) and the changes of the present – including women’s growing push for independence and equal rights.
There are several well-drawn supporting character, ranging from Molly’s friends and neighbors, the unconventional Sid and Gus, to her young son and mother-in-law. It’s an engaging milieu, with realistic affection and tension between Molly’s mother-in-law and Molly. Even suspects and minor characters ring true; no one feels flat or caricatured.
The mystery itself is well-plotted and satisfyingly difficult to solve: a string of seemingly motiveless and unrelated deaths, tied together only by the notes the murderer sends to Daniel. It was ages before I began to have even a glimmer of who the culprit might be. This isn’t one of those books where you know all the suspects up front (or nearly so); it’s more like a real investigation, in which the clues are slowly uncovered through persistence and, sometimes, luck. Bowen also weaves in the new science of psychology (alienism), particularly dream analysis, and the dreams of both Molly and a young girl, adding both atmosphere and perhaps clues to the mystery.
The overall tone of the Molly Murphy novels is more series than Georgie’s delightfully madcap adventures in Bowen’s other series, Her Royal Spyness. That’s not to say there aren’t moments of humor in the Molly books, but if you prefer your mysteries to be on the realistic side, this series definitely delivers. Personally, I enjoy both, so I will happily continue reading the Royal Spyness books while I catch up on the Molly Murphy series!
Review originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
FTC disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher/author/publicist. All opinions are my own.
sheribeth's review against another edition
5.0
Always wonderful ti visit the world of Molly Murphy Sullivan!