On the Street Where You Live, Mary Higgins Clark, 2001
My favorite quote: “If you want to be happy for a year, win the lottery. If you want to be happy for life, love what you do.”
Notable characters: Emily Graham, a criminal defense attorney; Madeline, her ancestor; and a whole bunch of other people who weren’t interesting enough to bother keeping track of
Most memorable scene: When the bodies are dug up in Emily’s yard. I hope it gave her nightmares for years to come
Greatest strengths: On the Street Where You Live has a pretty cover. I like red books
Standout achievements: Well, it certainly wasn’t Mary Higgins Clark’s ability to conceal the identity of the killer …
Fun Facts: This is Mary Higgins Clark’s 24th book. Whee.
Other media: N/A. And I don’t think I’ll be watching any Mary Higgins Clark movies. I can’t even imagine what that must look like
What it taught me: That if you’re going to use a dizzying amount of characters and side stories in a book, they need to be well-developed and distinguishable if you want your readers to be able to follow along. It also taught me that I’m not a fan of Mary Higgins Clark — a valuable lesson in a world of great books out there just waiting to be read
How it inspired me: It didn’t. Not even a little. On the Street Where You Live reads like an especially weak episode of Murder, She Wrote. Except I like Murder, She Wrote a lot more than I liked On the Street Where You Live. Or anything by Mary Higgins Clark
Additional thoughts: On The Street Where You Live is one of several books I’ve read by Mary Higgins Clark and at the risk of sounding insulting, she always comes off to me as a dumbed-down Agatha Christie for folks who don’t like getting their hands dirty. I don’t see the appeal. I’ve tried and tried. This one is especially flat, even for Mary Higgins Clark. I can’t even understand how a book that has murderers, stalkers, cheating spouses, broken marriages, hidden bodies, and reincarnation can be dull … but in On the Street Where You Live, she somehow pulls it off.
Hit or miss: On the Street Where You Live is yet another miss for me from the so-called Queen of Suspense
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Alistair Cross 