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The House on Tradd Street (Tradd Street, #1)

Karen White

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Sep 24, 2009 Mir rated it it was ok

Shelves: mystery, unfinished

The opening of the book caused me to fear that White had aspirations toward Literature:

Pewter reflections of scarlet hibiscus colored the dirt-smudged windows of the old house, like happy memories of youth trapped inside the shell of an old man. The broken pediments... And there are immediate intimations of Dark Family Secrets, parental abandonment, etc that have left our protagonists alone, rootless, approaching middle age.

But this fear was unfounded. Literary pretensions exhausted, White quic The opening of the book caused me to fear that White had aspirations toward Literature:

Pewter reflections of scarlet hibiscus colored the dirt-smudged windows of the old house, like happy memories of youth trapped inside the shell of an old man. The broken pediments... And there are immediate intimations of Dark Family Secrets, parental abandonment, etc that have left our protagonists alone, rootless, approaching middle age.

But this fear was unfounded. Literary pretensions exhausted, White quickly took a turn for the chick-lit-ish. And I do mean that in a bad way. Despite being on the verge of 40, Melanie is cute! and thin! despite eating doughnuts and lattes every morning! And she cares about clothes! And has an annoying new-agey arty Best Friend! Most chick-lit-ish of all (and this is why I seldom read chick lit) she is a twit. As is far too common in this genre, we are told that Melanie is a successful Realtor (the author capitalizes this, so I will too), competent and independant. But this is not what we are shown. What we see is a woman who forgets to set her alarm, is always off-balance, doesn't speak up or assert herself when the situation warrants it, can't manage her secretary, and blushes and stutters like a teenager when she talks with attractive men. The male lead so far seems like the typical arrogant jerk. He makes inappropriately sexual comments to strange women with whom he should have a professional relationship. "But he's so hot!" Is this really how most adult women interact with the opposite sex? From the first he calls Melanie by a diminutive, and when she finally, weakly, tries to protest, he responds, "But you look like a Mellie." What the hell does that mean? You look like someone I can talk down to? I guess jerk-off is right about that.

Also, if you have to use a riddle in your book, don't for the love of Oedypus use take the Riddle of the Sphinx! Anyone who can read complete sentences knows this riddle, and having your characters pretend to have never heard it before just makes them look dumb.

I did want to know about the ghost and the Secret of the Old House but not badly enough to keep reading this. ...more

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Jan 14, 2014 Lorie rated it liked it

Shelves: southern, mystery, paranormal-psychic, contemporary-fiction, audiobook

This was a very enjoyable book with an intriguing mystery. I love historical mysteries, and this fit the bill perfectly. I figured out bits and pieces of it, and might have figured out more if I had been reading rather than listening. The use of ciphers was fun, and I would have been scribbling along with them towards the end of the book, trying to figure out the key words. I am looking forward to the continuation of Melanie's story. I enjoyed the ghost story parts for the most part, too; althou ...more

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Jul 14, 2020 Cheryl rated it really liked it

I thought this was quite a fun beach read - - -just the right touch of spooky and a pretty decent mystery. I agreed with many other readers, however, that the male/female interactions were pretty doggone predictable. Still, this was good fun and I would recommend it, particularly if you like Charleston, as the author clearly knows this city.

One quick error that most Midwesterners will catch - - -the Mayo Clinic is NOT in Rochester, New York, but IS located in Rochester, Minnesota.

Still - - a fu ...more

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Oct 30, 2012 Laurie rated it liked it

Shelves: 2012

I went back and forth on this book while reading it. I have some issues with the writing style, but for the most part liked the mystery and the Charleston setting. I'm a sucker for series so I'll probably read the next as well. ...more

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