Rae ( Afterward , St. Martin's, 1992) crams plenty of history and intrigue into her brief chronicle of three generations of a New York family. When Philip Mesner steals the family's heirloom clock and flees from Hamburg in 1810, he brings down the curse of his tyrannical father on him and his future sons. Reaching America, he assumes a new identity and cuts himself off from his family, who think he died at sea. As John Ferguson, he initially prospers, but he cannot escape his past and replicates his father's bitterness and despotism with his own children. Told by multiple narrators, the plot revolves around John's secret, which torments him and alienates his children. Only after his death can the burden of the ship's clock be lifted from its owners. Rae's deft handling of a broad array of characters, combined with a well-paced plot and a sustained air of suspense, will please readers of both historical fiction and of mysteries.
- Kathy Piehl, Mankato State Univ., Minn.
- Kathy Piehl, Mankato State Univ., Minn.
