Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - The Fig Eater

The Fig Eater
The Fig Eater
Author: Jody Shields
"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 cafis and Biedermeier furniture--hov...  more »
Info icon
ISBN-13: 9780316785648
ISBN-10: 0316785644
Publication Date: 3/2000
Pages: 311
Rating:
  • Currently 3.2/5 Stars.
 25

3.2 stars, based on 25 ratings
Publisher: Little Brown and Company
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

gsisk avatar reviewed The Fig Eater on + 192 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 10
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.
reviewed The Fig Eater on
Helpful Score: 9
Very very very very very very boooorrrrinnngg. Sweet God. Skip this snoozefest and read Caleb Carr instead. Blah!
reviewed The Fig Eater on + 45 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8
Vienna 1910--This book feels like it was written in the early 20th century. Mystery, romance, Sigmund Freud--what more could you ask for?
reviewed The Fig Eater on + 149 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
A very unusual and original book about a murdered woman and the hunt for her killer. I enjoyed it immensely.
MyLikeIt avatar reviewed The Fig Eater on + 450 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
Here's a fascinating historical mystery. Fiction, but populated by real and composite figures from 1910 Vienna. A smart, enjoyable read.
Read All 30 Book Reviews of "The Fig Eater"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

reviewed The Fig Eater on + 628 more book reviews
a historical murder mystery based on Dora, one of Freud's most infamous patients. Set in Vienna. Loaded down with investigative tools, superstition, and a disappointing ending.
reviewed The Fig Eater on + 88 more book reviews
Good read
reviewed The Fig Eater on + 69 more book reviews
Another kind of book that I wouldn't usually red but I like it a lot, nevertheless.
reviewed The Fig Eater on + 7 more book reviews
From the back 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 insp;ired 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.
deniseann avatar reviewed The Fig Eater on + 19 more book reviews
I'd heard this was a great book, and I did get pulled in to the story; however, I have to agree that it did fall apart at the end. What started out as a good period mystery, fell apart towards the end with a sudden leap into the paranormal that wasn't really explained. Probably wouldn't recommend.


Genres: