The Tarnished Eye

by Judith Guest

Book Overview

A novel inspired by a baffling true-life crime, Judith Guest's "finely tuned page-turner" "(Publishers Weekly)" melds heart-pounding suspense with an emotionally charged family drama. The community of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743486153
• ISBN13: 9780743486156
• Release Date: December 2005
• Publisher: Pocket Star Books
• Length: 332 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Couldn't stop reading it

The principal crime under investigation in Judith Guest's 2004 police procedural is a gruesome mass murder: a family of six is found slaughtered in their vacation home, deep in the woods of a sleepy Michigan town. The discovery of the bodies is preceded by a number of chapters introducing the family--Edward, the type A executive, who runs his family like a business; his wife and children responding to the pressure of his obsession with control in various ways. We also meet Hugh DeWitt, competent small-town sheriff and family man, whose world view has been darkened by the death of his only son in infancy. The novel follows the sheriff's investigation as he interviews anyone who knew the reclusive family, both in his own precinct and in Ann Arbor, where Edward worked and his family lived most of the year. Unfortunately, help from the big city police department is hard to come by since the city is dealing with sensational crimes of its own, a string of women found raped and murdered. It's hard to say why Guest's book works so well. It doesn't call attention to itself. The writing is smooth but transparent. The plot isn't gasp-inducing, and yet I couldn't stop reading. Somehow, Guest makes writing look easy. Reading the book, it's clear that you're in the hands of an author who has complete control of the story. Give this one a whirl: it won't take you long! -- Debra Hamel

A page turner

This book is about an unsolved murder that took place in Michigan during the 1960's. It was very fast paced and was well written. An excellent book for a plane, train, the beach or poolside.

Continues to be a good read

I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Guest at a book signing in the fall of 2004 after the hardcover version of this book came out. She was friendly and approachable and the audience enjoyed her visit a great deal. In attendance were fourteen of her sorority sisters from her college days. What a special night it was for them. The overall turnout was excellent, and the audience appreciated Ms. Guest's comments, her discussion of the real stories behind this novel, and her revelation of some of her own life issues. She also shared her thought processes behind certain fictional characters in this book, particularly that of the depressive Sheriff Hugh DeWitt. DeWitt has a difficult time seeing the positive side of anything. That does not change during the course of the story. Ms. Guest's writing is easygoing and fluid. The book is made up of short, fast-moving chapters. The concept is a little different than the usual mystery novel as Guest includes chapters about the Norbois victims at the time they were alive. Each member of the family has his/her own chapter. Being from Petoskey, Michigan, and very much aware of the Robison murders (Norbois) and a student at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan, during the time of John Norman Collins, I was interested in reading this book from the instant I first heard about it (one of Collins's victims was murdered two blocks from where we lived on campus). When you've been there, a story based on real events looks very different to you than to someone who knows nothing about these events. The Robison murders have never been solved. John Norman Collins remains in prison. Judith Guest shared with us some of the fears she had about writing this story while the possibility exists that the Robison killer is still out there somewhere (even though she believes there's a connection between the Norbois murders and JNC). She also talked about some of the people still very interested in solving this horrendous crime. Hopefully, this fictionalized version of the real story will lead to that end. A good read. Carolyn Rowe Hill

The Real Deal

I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Guest at a book signing last fall. In attendance were fourteen of her sorority sisters from her college days. What a special night it was for them. The overall turnout was excellent, and the audience appreciated Ms. Guest's comments, her discussion of the real stories behind this novel, her revelation of some of her own life issues, and her thought processes behind certain fictional characters in this book, particularly that of the depressive Sheriff Hugh DeWitt. DeWitt has a difficult time seeing the positive side of anything. That does not change during the course of the story. Ms. Guest's writing is easygoing and fluid. The book is made up of short, fast-moving chapters. The concept is a little different than the usual mystery novel as Guest includes chapters about the Norbois victims at the time they were alive. Each member of the family has his/her own chapter. Being from Petoskey, Michigan, and very much aware of the Robison murders (Norbois) and a student at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan, during the time of John Norman Collins, I was interested in reading this book from the instant I first heard about it (one of Collins's victims was murdered two blocks from where we lived on campus). When you've been there, a story based on real events looks very different to you than to someone who knows nothing about these events. The Robison murders have never been solved. John Norman Collins remains in prison. Judith Guest shared with us some of the fears she had about writing this story while the possibility exists that the Robison killer is still out there somewhere (even though she believes there's a connection between the Norbois murders and JNC). She also talked about some of the people still very interested in solving this horrendous crime. Hopefully, this fictionalized version of the real story will lead to that end. A good read. Carolyn Rowe Hill

Far above standard genre fare...

Guest's book transcends the standard thriller/whodunit...thankfully it did not have a some stupid action scene or the usual scene where the cops explain the entire "whys" of the crime. One of the cool things about this book is that Guest never fully explains the whys of the murders. The whodunit is not completely impossible to figure, but as you read it, you might well be surprised along the way. The characters are people you are care about (however Karen might be a bit too perfect) and Hugh is wonderful. It reads fast, but not because it lightweight. It is welcome addition to the genre and well worth your time.