Wit’s End: A Novel

by: Karen Joy Fowler

Published by: Plume (division of Penguin Books)

Reviewed by Beth Cummings

Wit’s End is the sixth novel by the author of The Jane Austen Book Club, but this book is quite different in both substance and tone.

Karen Joy Fowler has put together a mystery within a mystery – as Rima Lansill, a twenty-nine-year-old teacher arrives at her godmother’s home, called the Wit’s End, to rest and recover from the recent death of her father and the cumulative effect of finding herself to be an orphan, Her mother died when she was fourteen and her younger brother was killed in a car accident when she was twenty-five. Her godmother, Addison Early, is a mystery writer and had been a close friend of her father’s before a sudden and complete falling out. The disagreement came about when Addison used Rima’s father’s name as a character in one of her books – a character that kills his wife.

The plot revolves around Rima’s determination to find out more about her father, more about the falling out, and to somehow come to terms with her own life. Author Fowler uses some conventions of detective stories as Rima searches for clues, some conventions of gothic tales as Rima meets peculiar people and even searches a deserted house, and also very modern ideas of Internet searches, e-mail, text messaging and cell phones.

The characters in the book are quite literally characters – quirkiness abounds. Addison keeps miniature dollhouses for each of her mystery novels – except the one that Rima wants to know more about. Why is that one missing? Rima, in part due to her grief-stricken depression, can’t bring herself to just ask. Instead, she conducts her own detective plot to find out.

I enjoyed this book a great deal. I would recommend it to book groups because there are many nuances that could make for good discussion points. However, at this time there are not discussion questions attached to the book.

Armchair Interviews agrees that this is a 5-star read.

Author’s Web site: http://www.KarenJoyFowler.com