This debut novel is set in 1959 Sunnylakes California, starting with the disappearance of housewife Joyce Haney who is found by the help Ruby Wright, a young black woman. The plot centres around Joyce's disappearance and Mick, the detective trying to solve the case.

I enjoyed reading this book and Vesper definitely kept me guessing and suspecting many of the characters. Vesper writes chapters from multiple characters points of view, including the detective, Ruby and Joyce giving more of an insight into each of their lives. I would say I found Joyce a slightly unreliable narrator which added to the mystery around her disappearance. I liked the ending and raced through the last part of the book however, I did find some parts slightly rushed.

Vesper captures 1959 California very well and I felt transported into this time period almost immediately. Vesper incorporates the injustice and contrasts between the white middle class and the struggles of black people which is both prominent and important to the plot.

This is a good crime thriller that is pretty easy to follow and I would recommend people to give this book a read. A huge thank you to Netgalley and Bonnier Books UK for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest, unedited review.

Wow!!! Utterly captivating and just brilliantly sharp. I loved all the characters for how complex they are written. It’s filled with that particular 1950s world view of misogynistic views and that awakening of racial disturbances that threatened the peace of some American “ideal small town views”. I loved Ruby, a snippy and gutsy girl trying to make her own way and to make her mark in the world. I also had sympathy for both Joyce (the victim?) and other characters you come across. Mrs Crane is just fabulous. This is one to watch out for next year.. an absolute cracker. I am so buying this book loved it.

A wonderful page turner. I couldn’t put this book down. I had so many questions I needed answering I just had to keep reading. Realistic, yet mind blowing, I didn’t guess how this story would pan out.

Its the summer of 1959. A hot afternoon when Ruby turns up at her cleaning job to find two distraught children and a kitchen full of blood. Where is their mother, Joyce Haney. What has happened to her. The police arrest Ruby just because she is black. But the detective in charge isn't convinced and soon they are working together.
But how does that affect Ruby and her family and will they find out what happened to Joyce.

This book was a real treat. The atmosphere and period were set beautifully, and I was transported to the 50’s America of the old Hollywood movies. Although the suspect was a little obvious from about halfway through, the storytelling stole the show. The protagonist, Ruby, was a feisty young woman of her time, desperate to better herself and not be the dogsbody of the rich, white folk. The police were obnoxious if a little stereotypical of the era, and the Mick Blanke character was described perfectly; a good cop, but weak around women. A real page turner, a great read. Thank you NetGalley for the arc

Sublime!
A triumph!
I adored this novel from the very first page. The setting screamed from the pages and I could see, smell and taste all the nostalgia. It had me hooked from the get go and I loved rooting for Ruby and Detective Blanke. It was the perfect ode to the time, with everything you could wish for from a domestic, atmospheric mystery. Secrets, lies and dirty charm await. Highly recommended.

I found the crime was quite easy to solve from about half way through the book but I really enjoyed the immersion into 1950s housewives, segregation and the way life was lived. I thought Ruby was a fantastic character and really brought the novel to life. I didn’t much like her partner but I could ignore him!!!

A great novel a not what I normally read but I really enjoyed it

So good she named it twice, I found it difficult to remember this was a debut novel it was so accomplished. Set in a hot, steamy America in the late 50’s, the period was brilliantly depicted — suburbia with all its secrets and overt racism. The characters tears are well drawn in their hopes, fears and everyday lives, particularly Ruby the ‘hired help’. Ruby is colored, intelligent and wants to better herself. There are echoes of ‘The Help’ but this is also an excellent mystery with plenty of twists and turns. There is a fallible detective, aided by Ruby towards the unexpected conclusion. I shall definitely be recommending this and I hope it has the success it deserves. Thanks to Bonnier Books and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

The Long, Long Afternoon is set in 1950's American suburbia, where the wives are compliant, the husbands work hard, and the help are tolerated.
The afternoon in question is the afternoon in Sunnylakes when Joyce Haney, housewife, wife, mother, goes missing leaving nothing but a pool of blood on the kitchen floor. Though, as it happens, she leaves rather a lot more, a trail of clues that are followed by a disgraced detective, who needs to prove his mettle and Ruby, the Haney's help.
I am not aficionado of crime or mystery novels, but I found this one compelling and raced through, keen to unravel the masterful plotting and find the truth behind Joyce's disappearance.
Having the story told from three perspectives really helped to build a 3-D world of 1950's America and made this more than a crime/mystery novel but a social commentary that reflects on issues still relevant now, and really echoed Black Lives Matter issues as well as themes central to feminist debate.
I so enjoyed it and will be recommending people pre-order.

This book moved me in.a way I wasn't expecting. It had so much: a mystery; romance; apartheid; segregation; detective; hope. I was utterly enthralled.in the Long Long.afternoon and would recommend it highly.

The power of this novel comes within the exploration of a woman’s place in a world where attitudes are still informed by racism and sexism- and whilst weaving a compelling and intriguing mystery also shows us how far we have come and how far we still have to go. The reality of the time is presented with razor-sharp precision giving the whole story a thought-provoking undertone that stays with you long after you turn the final page.

The 1950s is very trendy at the moment and the author does a good job at evoking the vivid primary colours and prejudices of the time through her crime drama about the disappearance of a Santa Monica housewife. For me, that was the aspect of the novel I most enjoyed as the outcome was predictable and the characters unconvincing and one-dimensional. I thought I'd really like this novel as it was recommended for fans of 'Gone Girl' and 'Desperate Housewives'. However, I found it lacking in surprise and atmosphere and could not really get into the story. Thank you to NetGalley and Bonnier Books UK for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, especially the characters of Ruby And Detective Blanke. I read it in every spare moment and felt the sticky heat, the 50’s atmosphere, the divide between the rich and the poor and the overt racialism which was just taken for granted.
It was a great whodunnit - or didn’t, and kept my interest all the time as more and more ‘secrets’ were revealed, but I was disappointed with the overblown ending and the keystone cops behaviour of the police. The book loses a star from me for this but it doesn’t take away from the rest of the book which is a great read.

Set in 1950s California, this is a mystery/whodunnit. The opening of the book sets the scene and gets you interested from the off. I found the book a really easy read and read it in 3 binges. What I wasn’t expecting were the other topics the book dealt with such as segregation, racism and elitism, but so topical especially after 2020. I found the ending a little long, but it did tie up all the questions you had!

Overall, I enjoyed this book, I would recommend it.

Absolutely loved the long ,long afternoon .A woman goes missing her help Ruby calls the police and gets arrested !! What follows is just incredible ,everybody will fall in love with Ruby .

I was emailed some marketing material about this book and once I read the blurb I knew it was something I’d enjoy. Thank you to @bonnierbooks_uk and @wekesperos for this advanced copy of The Long, Long Afternoon in return for an honest review. The Long, Long Afternoon is due to be published on 4th February 2021 and you can get a copy here.

Description 🔖

California during the summer of 1959 is stiflingly hot and in the small suburb of Sunnylakes, the community is about to feel the heat even more.

Joyce Haney appears to be a happy housewife with two beautiful daughters and a pristine home. During one long, long afternoon, Joyce vanishes from her perfect home with only her children and a blood stained kitchen left behind. Detective Mick Blanke needs to piece together this mystery and figure out how this long, long afternoon came to an end.

General Thoughts 🤔

Firstly, there was so much more to this book than what the description gives away. Yes, it was a mystery thriller and there was a case that needed to be solved but it wasn’t just that. It covers the struggles of black people, the struggles of women and how those struggles were normalised during that time.

I loved reading about the facade of the “American Dream”. The perfect houses with the picket fences that are spotless (thanks to the help) hide dark secrets that everyone knows about, yet nobody talks about. Nearly all of the women in the neighbourhood were medicated just to get them through the day. It made me so sad to read of a time when a woman’s worth was based on her home making skills and how many children she could provide for her husband. It made me grateful to be reminded that I am able to live my life as I wish, without being suppressed and controlled by a man.

I can’t write this review without talking about race. What I found to be frightening was how little difference there was between treatment of black people by law enforcement in this book set in 1959 and present day. Let’s face it, if asked to believe a poor black woman over a middle class white woman, how do you think that would turn out in 2020? My guess is not too differently from what would have happened in 1959, just not as brazen.

Characters 👫👬👭

As a mixed race woman, I gravitated towards Ruby almost immediately. She had ambitions and dreams that probably weren’t too far away from what I wanted from my life when I was younger. Except she would have to work far harder than I to make those hopes attainable. I admired Ruby’s strength and empathised with her predicament of choosing to help an establishment that had little regard for her wellbeing. Despite how society treated Ruby as the help, she remained true to herself and her own integrity.

I really liked Detective Blanke’s character. He wasn’t portrayed as the perfect “has it together” detective and I loved that his flaws; professional and personal were written into the story. The relationship between Blanke and Ruby was so interesting. Blanke was by no means perfect, but didn’t discriminate against Ruby based on the colour of her skin or her standing in life.

Writing Style ✍️

I am in awe of how much subject matter was in this book. As I said, it was more than just a mystery, but the mystery was also written very well. There are curveballs and twists that I didn’t see coming and kept me hooked from the very beginning. Amongst all of that (which is usually enough on it’s own to make me content with a book) the author had me gripped by the racism, sexism and social issues of the time.

The story is told through the perspective of Ruby, Detective Blanke and Joyce Haney. I thought that this worked really well and the choice of characters was perfect. I particularly enjoyed readying Joyce’s perspective as I felt that it helped to keep the story moving.

Conclusion & Scoring 🏅

I got much more than I expected from this book and loved it. I flew through it because once I started, it was impossible for me to put it down. I’ve seen lots of comparisons to The Help from other bloggers and I would agree that if you enjoyed that book, you’ll definitely enjoy The Long, Long Afternoon. I found this to be a fantastic debut novel from Inga Vesper and I look forward to seeing more of her work.

I was attracted by the beautiful cover and am so glad because this book was a treat! The author takes us to hot, sticky 1959 Sunnylakes, California, where things are not as glossy as they seem. There’s a simmering resentment from some of the housewives about their daily lives and soon we’re embroiled in the mystery of a disappearing mother. The two main characters are easy to relate to: Detective Mick, new to the area with a shadow hanging over his career from his last job, and feisty Ruby, ‘the help’, who dreams of going to college. They join forces to discover the truth. The dialogue is often witty and the twists make for a satisfying plot. A very good read!

Santa Monica, summer 1959 and Ruby Wright, ‘the Negroe help’ for women living in Sunnylakes is running behind schedule. Leaving Nancy Ingram’s home for number 47 Roseview Drive where Frank and Joyce Haney reside, Ruby arrives with an immediate sense that all is not well. Finding Barbara outside, she is filled with dread, hearing the cries of baby Lily whose mounting distress hints of something very very wrong. Upon entering the house and comforting the baby, Ruby questions the whereabouts of Joyce, unable and unwilling to believe the woman has simply abandoned her children. However the drama further unfolds when confronting the scene in the blood splattered kitchen, painting a picture of the possible horror to come. With news spreading fast of their neighbours disappearance, the women of Sunnylakes begin the initial search for the missing woman prior to the police investigation in which Ruby plays an integral role.

Appearances can be so deceptive and that’s exactly what’s going on behind closed doors in the Californian enclave that is Sunnylakes. These hard working husbands and stay at home mothers living in their beautiful homes with well manicured lawns are supposedly living the American Dream. Except it’s all a facade in which the men rule the women’s lives, and the women resort to self medication to cope with the monotony of keeping house and looking after the children, waiting for the menfolk to arrive home from their oh so important meetings. Perhaps it’s only the support and friendship of the neighbours and the meetings of the Women’s improvement committee that help keep them sane but I had no trouble conjuring up visions of the likes of Joyce Haney as plastic dummies, robotically going through the motions of everyday life, their hearts and minds someplace far away from their real existence. I totally agree with the synopsis that lures the reader in, foretelling of a storyline that promises to be vivid and atmospheric. The author has not only captured images of these women trapped in this version of hell but also how the heat of these Santa Monica days saps their energy and their spirit, where the simplest of chores can require monumental effort. Yet ironically underneath this atmosphere of perfect sizzling summer days lies an atmosphere that is far more chilling. For behind this white middle class facade, secrets, lies, jealousies and prejudice abound with Ruby Wright (and eventually Mick Blanke) stepping into the lion’s den day after day. Are any of these women content with their lives or do they hanker after something or maybe someone else entirely? Are they willing to submerge their hopes and dreams beneath a lifetime of motherhood and domesticity or will they listen to their inner voices and/or the leader of the improvement committee and break free? These are just some of the questions puzzling me as I sank into the depths of this storyline.

Weaving together a commentary on the prejudices of the day, through Ruby’s eyes, as well as a crime element, this storyline unites Joyce Haney and Ruby Wright beyond the role of employer and employee. The creation of detective Mick Blanke whose past hints of a character who had been less than a wonderful husband and police officer adds yet another layer to the storytelling in which every individual character flaw is scrutinised and the majority are found wanting. There is a laid back vibe to the narrative in which the detective is continually hampered by the heat and plenty of dead ends, that is until Ruby comes to his assistance, an unlikely partner if ever there was one owing to the colour of her skin. However who better to see beyond the fixed smiles and the glamorous clothes of these women than ‘the help’? Someone who may be banned from wearing shoes in the house or touching the children but who has eyes and ears to understand the kind of relationships these women really have with their husbands and children?

There’s no escaping from the thought that The Long Long Afternoon is reminiscent of the Stepford Wives and The Help, due to the treatment of the likes of Ruby Wright and the falseness of these women’s lives. Having read and enjoyed The Help many years ago, it came as no surprise to me that Ruby,or Whoobie as Barbara affectionately call her, is my favourite character. Despite the way the majority of the Sunnylakes residents and the rest of society treat ‘the help’ she remains a woman of integrity, a woman who clearly loves little Barbara and baby Lily, mindful of the fact Joyce Haney is the only white woman who has ever treated her remotely like a real person. So I could understand Ruby’s determination to assist the detective in his investigation even though it threatens to cost her her freedom and happiness in her personal life. I finished this novel really wanting to know what happens to this feisty young woman after events of this summer of 1959 have concluded.

As for the crime aspect of this novel, I always had an inkling regarding who was responsible for Joyce Haney’s disappearance, although the author makes a concerted effort to pull the wool over her readers eyes and I was never 100% sure. There are plenty of avenues to explore, potential suspects and theories to contemplate as Mick and Ruby endeavour to solve this mystery, which is what you’d be hoping for. Plus I appreciated this more literary approach to crime writing, enjoying the disparity between the lives on show and the actual truth, wondering how the author would chose to bring a full stop to this suburban mystery. Right up until the ending which disappointed me I’d been enjoying this debut immensely hence my rating of 4 stars but overall this is an impressive debut that I highly recommend. My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read.

The Long, Long Afternoon did not take a long, long time to read - rather it really was very interesting. I loved the time period that was chosen and the social issues that were touched upon within the story. I found myself practically biting my knuckles towards the end, desperately hoping the black characters wouldn't be killed, as it was even more common and dangerous in that time period and I had also come to genuinely care for one of them (no spoilers as to what does happen, you'll have to read the book to find out!). I'm not black but this book definitely gave me greater insight into the issues of systematic discrimination that was more blatant in those days.

As for the actual story, it was engaging, but unfortunately, it wasn't anything new for me. The time period and the issues touched on were unique, but the actual plot didn't stand out to me a great deal, and I feel like certain characters could have been more developed, and I would have liked to know more about the main character's back story. At one point specifically, I really felt like a certain character was doing things which were very convenient to get the plot going and to keep the mystery rolling, when all she had to do was tell a certain person whatever she knew. She would say 90% and then withhold the 10% - this was explained away at the end of the story as, essentially, because she just felt like withholding it. This is a mark of lazy story telling for me.

Overall, it was a good read, and I would recommend it for anyone who likes a good mystery/thriller.

How exciting! I enjoyed reading about America in 1959 and discovering just how sexist and racist people were. I didn’t guess who the baddies were until almost the end.
I think Ruby was my favourite character, such a proud girl.