Ruby Falls
The fist of the Great Depression has hit Chattanooga hard, and it’s just one of the blows Ada Smith has taken on the chin. Widowed and haunted by miscarriages, Ada’s single remaining connection is her friend, Ruby Lambert. Ruby’s husband, Leo, discovers a crowning jewel within the fascinating geology of the caverns inside Lookout Mountain – a 150-foot waterfall he names for his wife. Much money and effort have been spent opening Lookout Mountain Cave to the public, including constructing Ruby Falls Castle with the limestone excavated from the mountain. Ada finds exhilaration and a measure of relief secretly exploring the cave after hours. Economic hardship threatens the venture, and a plan is devised to drum up publicity and sell tickets. A hatpin will be hidden in the cavernous depths, and a renowned psychic will use his powers to locate it. Along for the jaunt are his manager, wife, a Chicago reporter, and two locals – a guide and one of the cave’s investors. Ada, with a second guide, will follow behind, unseen, in case of accident. When one of the party is murdered, Ada knows she’s a sputtering carbide away from being trapped in the dark with a killer.
The mystery often cedes focus to psychological insight and especially Ada’s past experiences, a woman who has no patience “for people who wallow. You can never solve anything if you’re busy wallowing.” Living in nearby Alabama and having made multiple visits to Ruby Falls myself, I’m perhaps authoritative enough to state: with this novel, Phillips has adeptly captured the setting, culture, and people – from landscape to food to perspective. They say to write what you know, Phillips knows what she’s writing about, and she’s accomplished, crafting vivid pictures of characters, relationships, and the caverns below Lookout Mountain. The tension of the well-developed mystery, for me, was just a bonus.
