The Stolen Blue

3.5
31 Reviews
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Introduction:
Claire Reynier is thrilled when her old friend Burke Lovell donates his collection of valuable books to the university where she works as a librarian. But the morning after she arrives at his ranch in the remote region known as "the Blue" to collect the bequest, Burke is found dead. His daughter Mariah--recently discovered--admits to helping the ailing man commit suicide. Mariah has also been named his principal heir, much to the shock of his other children. Upon Claire's return to work, a box of valuable titles from Burke's collection is stolen, and Claire realizes that the theft may hold clues to a much more sinister mystery…
Added on:
July 04 2023
Author:
Judith Van Gieson
Status:
OnGoing
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The Stolen Blue Reviews (31)

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H

Howard

December 25 2019

3.5 Stars for The Stolen Blue: A Claire Reynier Series Book 1 (audiobook) by Judith Van Gieson read by Meredith Mitchell. This is interesting cozy. My wife recommend it to me manly because it takes place in New Mexico. We live in Arizona and we have driven through several of the cities that are mentioned in the book. It nice when you’re familiar with the setting. That said, the narrator miss pronounced the word javelina early in the story. Doing that really pulls me out of the story. But it still is nice hearing a story take place close to home.

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Stuart

October 10 2014

I quite enjoyed this, the first Claire Reynier mystery. It was certainly an easy read, and interestingly, was really a mystery, not a murder story, as one might expect. I did find it a little dated; it's from 2000 (I'm reading it in 2014), and the author was, I think, trying to be very up-to-date in her sleuth, who spent time on AOL, explained how emails could be sent anonymously , and bemoaned the coming day when book texts would be available via the Internet. <br /><br /><br />Claire is the curator of rare books / librarian for the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, feeling a little under siege at the University, feeling that she is not held in the esteem that her predecessor was, and having to prove her worth to the administrator, who seems to be interested only in cutting costs and acquiring prestige. An opportunity to prove her worth arises when an old mentor, in ill health, calls to ask her to visit, as he is planning to donate his large collection of rare South-Western-related books to the University. He lives in a old ranch in a secluded area called "the Blue", where attitudes are firmly Western. Claire goes out to visit - it's a 200-mile drive - to collect the books, and is asked to be the executor of his will, which is then witnessed and signed in front of her. Well, it's a mystery story, so of course he winds up dead in the snow the next morning. <br /> <br />But, unusually for a mystery story, there is no real doubt about the cause of death. The old mentor (Burke) was dying and had decided to go out his own way, and crawled off into the snow to die of exposure overnight. He was assisted by his recently discovered daughter Mariah, who turns out to be the main beneficiary of Burke's will. <br /><br /><br />And this is where the story really starts. Two of the other three children sue to have the will overturned, as the ranch is worth $2M, and they are getting a "paltry" @200K each. The case will turn on whether Mariah really is Burke's daughter, or an imposter and whether Burke was in his right mind when the will was made. Claire, as the executor and a witness to the signing, is landed right in the middle of this case. <br /><br /><br />At the same time, when Claire transports the books back to the University, she leaves them in her truck, and naturally the carton containing the most valuable ones (marked "valuable") is stolen. Now we have two mysteries to solve - are they related? Well, of course they are, but to tell you how would be to spoil the story! <br /><br /><br />The book was quite good, and was easy to read. I enjoyed the whole book collector vibe, and the location in New Mexico. Claire did a lot of driving about the state, describing it to us, the audience. But I did find the dated technology distracting, rather than charming period detail.

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Shirley

December 12 2015

Didn't finish this book--though plot started well for me, got bogged down in a lot of extra descriptions about the Southwest, and even though I live in this area, for me the plot kept getting lost in all the background information.

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Sharon Mensing

June 06 2010

Western setting, librarian protag, generally had good bones. However, the writing was rather pedestrian and I didn’t find the characters very sympathetic. Somewhat bland, but a good diversion.

D

Donna

March 11 2013

This was not complicated. The plot was simple, character development a little bland, but surprisingly I enjoyed the Sunday aft. diversion and read it cover to cover

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Sue Star

January 30 2015

I especially loved the great sense of place. It made me want to go back to New Mexico! An interesting plot and subplots, dealing with rare book collectors.

K

Kate

March 11 2023

"MISSING BOOKS. FOUND HEIRS.<br />"Claire is thrilled when her old friend Burke Lovell donates his collection of valuable books to the university where she works. But the morning after she arrives at his ranch in the remote region known as 'the Blue' to collect the bequest, Burke is found dead. His daughter Mariah -- recently discovered -- admits to helping the ailing man commit suicide. Mariah has also been named his principal heir, much to the shock of his other children.<br /><br />"Upon Claire's return to work. a box of valuable titles from Burke's collection is stolen, and Claire realizes that the theft may hold clues to a much more sinister mystery."<br />~~back flap<br /><br />A nice little mystery: books and New Mexico. Lovely descriptions of the landscape. Not as harrowing as many mysterys, still the plot holds the reader's interest throughout.

L

Lif Strand

January 24 2019

I enjoyed the book, but the dated feel -- which has been commented on by other reviewers -- didn't have to be. Sometimes you want details to firmly anchor a book, sometimes not. This book would have benefited from "not". <br /><br />My only other quibble about this book is the location of The Blue. It isn't in Catron County, New Mexico -- it's across the border in Greenlee County, Arizona. Possibly this could just be passed off as poetic license, so to speak, but given such detail in the book about access and distances (I've been down that twisty road many times!) this translocation seems odd. Personally, I think the author just seized an opportunity to take cheap shots at Catron County, which, at the time she wrote <i>The Stolen Blue</i>, was a popular thing to do in certain circles.

A

Arizonagirl

June 20 2019

Claire Reynier series, book #1. I like to play a game when reading where if a book is mentioned in the book I'm reading, I'll add it to my to-read list if I haven't read it already. That would be pretty difficult with this book, since the plot revolves around a box of first edition novels of the southwest that are stolen. All of the Tony Hillermans, Edward Abbey, Bless Me, Ultima, Death Comes for the Archbishop, Red Sky at Morning, etc. I loved that the story took place in Blue and parts of New Mexico. I have been to Blue and can imagine the settings very well. It was refreshing to read a light cozy with no rapes, no gore, and actually no murder.

J

Jan

July 13 2017

Might be an interesting series<br />