No Urn for the Ashes: A Novel

Alison Sawyer Current
Bayfire Press (2008)
ISBN 9780981546445
Reviewed by Danielle Feliciano for Reader Views (9/08)


“No Urn for the Ashes” is a gripping thriller about a woman who loses her husband and daughter in a fire. The husband was murdered by a former partner who wants access to his completed scientific research.  This research would provide the world with alternatives to using fossil fuels for energy but the researcher does not feel the world is ready for it.

While the initial premise may sound like that of a sci-fi novel, don’t let that stop you. The actual “science” takes up very little of this book.  The book revolves around Taylor, the scientist’s widow, and her small but strong group of friends. It has been eight years since the fire and Taylor still mourns her loss, especially that of the one-year-old daughter that perished in the fire.  When evidence comes about that the baby may have survived, Taylor’s friend Ruby seeks to find the truth about what happened that day. With the help of new friend Diane, Ruby searches out every last clue and follows the path of the woman believed to be raising Taylor’s daughter. 

The book was well written and very descriptive. It was easy to picture the surrounding as if I were actually there. I did have some trouble with the characters.  I thought the way Diane entered the fray was unbelievable, and the characters overall were not well developed.  It was hard to connect with them since they each seemed like more of a sketch rather than a real person.  Taylor was just slightly short of crazy in my opinion and while I understand the profound effects that losing a child has on a person, for her to be so out of touch with reality eight years later was frustrating.

Overall, “No Urn for the Ashes” by Alison Sawyer Current was a good book. There were times when I found it difficult to put down.  It was interesting to watch the each of the characters grow in their own way and make their way forward after such a traumatic event.

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