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Search - The Fig Eater
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The Fig Eater Author: |
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Book Information
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Other Versions of this Book: Hardcover, Hardcover, Audio Cassette (Unabridged)
Book Description:
"It is hot, unusually hot for the end of August. Someone has murdered a young woman. -- They find no objects, no obvious clues around her. -- They'll search the area again tomorrow during the day, when there is better light."
Vienna, 1910 -- Freud's Vienna, a city of horse-drawn carriages and masked balls, gaslit cafes and Biedermeier furniture -- hovers on the threshold between darkness and light, superstition and science. The murder of Dora, the haunted daughter of a respectable bourgeois family, is being investigated by the Inspector, newly schooled in rationalist criminology. Almost every aspect of the case remains hidden, untouchable. He recognizes uncertainty as part of solving the crime and knows that -- what is unspoken remains most powerful. He is trying to find the "error in the situation" -- that small link that will lead him to the truth.
His wife, Erszbet, a Hungarian steeped in intuition and the lore of Gypsy mysticism, becomes obsessed with the murder and launches her own parallel, secret investigation. She is sure that the figs found in Doras stomach are the clue to the identity of the murderer -- for there are no fresh figs in Vienna at this time of the year. With the help of a young British governess, she unmasks an entirely other face of the crime, and of the society that would prefer it to be repressed forever. In her brooding, atmospheric, and meticulously researched debut thriller, Jody Shields resurrects turn-of-the-century Vienna with luscious details about food, botany, and fashion, descriptions of perverse medical practices, and hints at sexual secrets. The Fig Eater is a great suspense puzzle in which each piece gathered challenges our perceptions and leads us to the novel's shocking climax."
Vienna, 1910 -- Freud's Vienna, a city of horse-drawn carriages and masked balls, gaslit cafes and Biedermeier furniture -- hovers on the threshold between darkness and light, superstition and science. The murder of Dora, the haunted daughter of a respectable bourgeois family, is being investigated by the Inspector, newly schooled in rationalist criminology. Almost every aspect of the case remains hidden, untouchable. He recognizes uncertainty as part of solving the crime and knows that -- what is unspoken remains most powerful. He is trying to find the "error in the situation" -- that small link that will lead him to the truth.
His wife, Erszbet, a Hungarian steeped in intuition and the lore of Gypsy mysticism, becomes obsessed with the murder and launches her own parallel, secret investigation. She is sure that the figs found in Doras stomach are the clue to the identity of the murderer -- for there are no fresh figs in Vienna at this time of the year. With the help of a young British governess, she unmasks an entirely other face of the crime, and of the society that would prefer it to be repressed forever. In her brooding, atmospheric, and meticulously researched debut thriller, Jody Shields resurrects turn-of-the-century Vienna with luscious details about food, botany, and fashion, descriptions of perverse medical practices, and hints at sexual secrets. The Fig Eater is a great suspense puzzle in which each piece gathered challenges our perceptions and leads us to the novel's shocking climax."
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Top Member Book Reviews
Gabriele J. (
8 member(s) found this review helpful.
Dora, a young woman (based on Sigmund Freud's famous patient), is found murdered in one of Vienna's parks. The inspector pursues the murderer using logic and observing the witnesses; his wife, together with her friend Wally, also embarks on solving the crime, but using opposite methods.
This is a great read, Vienna in 1910 really comes to life.
Note: If you've been to Vienna and have visited the famous cafes, don't read this on an empty stomach! The inspector's wife and her friend frequently meet in coffeehouses, ordering fabulous desserts.
6 member(s) found this review helpful.
Very very very very very very boooorrrrinnngg. Sweet God. Skip this snoozefest and read Caleb Carr instead. Blah!
5 member(s) found this review helpful.
Vienna 1910--This book feels like it was written in the early 20th century. Mystery, romance, Sigmund Freud--what more could you ask for?
Jennie B. (
3 member(s) found this review helpful.
Here's a fascinating historical mystery. Fiction, but populated by real and composite figures from 1910 Vienna. A smart, enjoyable read.
3 member(s) found this review helpful.
A very unusual and original book about a murdered woman and the hunt for her killer. I enjoyed it immensely.
3 member(s) found this review helpful.
An unexpected murder story in historic Vienna. Also strong pschoanalytical and feminist themes. Described the the Chicago Tribune as "stylish and compelling" - I couldn't agree more! Excellent book.
3 member(s) found this review helpful.
The author's writing kept me reading, creating a fascination with the unusual characters and turn of events. The novel takes place in 1910, in Vienna, where the murder of a young girl captures the hearts and minds of a police detective and his wife.
2 member(s) found this review helpful.
I read this book for our book club, and found it somewhat confusing and difficult to understand all of the inferences between the husband and his wife. Many deviant subtlies, I defiantly see the "Fraud" in this book and I am not one of his fans. I would not recommend this book.
2 member(s) found this review helpful.
This Book has been compared to the Alienist. It's a thriller-murder mystery that offers real suspense colorfully set in late imperial Vienna.
2 member(s) found this review helpful.
Well written, intriguing book. I was a little disapointed at the ending though.
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Please Rate these Book Reviews
This book got rave reviews before I hunted it down and read it. It comes up with a story of a young girl who supposedly treated by Sigmund Freud in Vienna. The review I read made it sound fascinating, but I am sorry to say that it was quite a let-down. Nothing exciting at all. I read it over a year ago and I barely remember the book. That is my way of know if a book is good -- whether I remember the story over time.
The story does describe an interesting time and place. I haven't read much about old Vienna and that was good. But the mystery and detective story were not engaging.
Good luck with the read. It could be to other people's liking.
Just read the first 30 pages and the last 30 pages, the rest is immaterial.
My book may be the PBC edition. It has the picture that was on the hardcover version.
From the cover . . . "Vienna, 1910. The hunt for a killer begins in the darkness of a hot August night, when an eighteen-year-old girl named Dora (loosely inspired by Freud's famous patient) is found brutally murdered near the Imperial Palace . . .
"Hailed as one of the most remarkable literary debuts of recent years, The Fig Eater is at once a page-turning tale of murder, sleuthing, and sexual secrets and a rich, glittering evocation of a city and a culture in fateful transition."
Read All Book Reviews of "The Fig Eater"
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