A Fountain Filled with Blood

by Julia Spencer-Fleming Narrated by Suzanne Toren

Overview

Nestled in the heart of the Adirondacks, Miller's Kill, New York is about as safe as it gets. That's why Episcopal minister Clare Fergusson is shocked when the Fourth of July weekend brings a rash of vicious assaults to the scenic town. Even Clare's good friend, police chief Russ Van Alstyne, is shaken by the brutality of the crimes-especially when it appears that the victims were chosen because they are gay. But when a third assault of an out-of-town developer ends in murder, Clare and Russ wonder if the recent crime wave is connected to the victim's controversial plan to open an upscale spa in Miller's Kill. But not all things in the tiny town are what they seem-and soon, Clare and Russ are left to fight their unspoken attraction to one another even as they uncover a labyrinthine conspiracy that threatens to turn deadly for them both ...

Editorial Reviews

The New York Times

The plot is complicated, and the ethical issues are even thornier. Wisely, Spencer-Fleming treats them with the same delicacy that she extends to Clare's forbidden love. — Marilyn Stasio

The Washington Post

This is the second installment of Spencer-Fleming's series featuring Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson. She is a quietly gutsy former military chaplain and chopper pilot who, unmarried at 35 and not crazy about it, has an aching crush on the local police chief, Russ Van Alstyne. While committed to his marriage, the chief goes weak-kneed despite himself whenever he is around Fergusson. — Richard Lipez

Kirkus Reviews

One gay-bashing could be a prank, and two hardly constitute a pattern worth making a public announcement that may only encourage more of the same. But when a third victim is savagely killed, Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson ignores the wishes of Millers Kill (NY) police chief Russ Van Alstyne and leaks the connection to the press. Russ is furious, not just because he doesn’t want to lose control of his case to a woman he’s obviously drawn to (never mind his wife Linda, who remains oblivious at home), but because the late Bill Ingraham’s sexual orientation was perhaps his least controversial feature. His company, BWI Development, had signed a deal with local landowner Peggy Landry to bring a glitzy resort to this quiet corner of the Adirondacks. Environmentalists are up in arms at BWI’s likely impact on the region and the rumor that the Landry parcel is already contaminated with PCB. The case is a minefield for the chief, but it’s nothing compared to his deepening love/hate relation to Clare, who’s capable of segueing from a private sermon on chastity to getting drunk, flirting, spying without authorization on a suspect in the gay-bashing, and leaping out a window to be rescued by Russ, who’s constantly losing his temper, swearing, and muttering, "Scuse my French." Even more action, more plot twists, and more unconsummated romance than in Clare and Russ’s notable debut (In the Bleak Midwinter, 2002). As Russ demands of the former Army pilot who’s about to save his life: "What kind of priest are you anyway?" Agent: Jimmy Vines/Vines Agency

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169632378
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	02/01/2009
Series:	Clare Fergusson & Russ Van Alstyne Series , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged

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