Review: Murder on Bedford Street

Murder on Bedford Street by Victoria Thompson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It is with sadness that this review is written. 27 installments of the life of Sarah Brandt Malloy and her husband, Frank Malloy and the series is coming to an end. Not ending as did the Irish stories of Patrick Taylor who decided to retire from its writing, but rather curtailed by the death of Victoria Thompson. I've always written her note when finishing the latest episode to share with her my memories of my mother's and grandmother's stories of their lives in turn of the century New York City. I will miss that short but sweet flurry of notes.

I don't remember any mention of Ward's Island and its mental asylum so perhaps our notes would be much shorter. It does not come as a great surprise, however, that committal into such a place by a vengeful husband would be a tool used against women at that time, they had so very few rights. What was even more surprising was the fact that once placed there being released was such an involved process. And yet, as shown here, money talks and so in some circumstances, if the bribe is big enough, short cuts are available. No matter, the determination of sanity was a very fluid diagnosis. Some patients really were insane or at least a danger to themselves and/or others.

The problem in this tale to to determine if that is the case with the young wife of a prominent and very private member of society, who has had Julia sent to Ward's Island. Her Uncle and Aunt do not believe she is insane and have hired Frank to prove her perfectly fine so that they can get her released. They are mostly concerned about the scandal if her placement were to become public knowledge. They have a daughter soon to have her debut and such a situation would surely destroy any chance she might have to gain a suitable husband. Ah, yes, as always in society, reputation is all.

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Review: Shamed

Shamed by Linda Castillo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Each time I read another Kate Burkholder case I learn more about the Amish community. By now I know that there are several levels of practice of the tenets of the religion but one thing that is true, no matter how strict the family, the Bishop is to be obeyed unconditionally. He is the arbitor of all things Amish and will determine what is right according to God's will and cannot be questioned under pain of excommunication--banning and shunning by all others,including one's family.

Imagine then a case in which two Bishops and a Midwife determine the fate of a newborn. Seven years later their decision will lead to tragedy and anguish and grief for many. Despite the events, however, the Amish keep secrets and refuse to allow the Englische police to know what has transpired. Although Kate is former Amish she is still and outsider and only the Bishops are arbiters of the Ordnung and its rules.

Now, there is a missing child and the case goes nowhere with the Amish either unknowing or unwilling to share what they know with the police.

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Review: Acqua Alta

Acqua Alta by Donna Leon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Interesting case involving art theft and art fakes. It must be so challenging at times to recognize a piece that is not original. Even more fascinating are the methods used to smuggle art works throughout the world and the types of people that will go to any lengths to own a masterpiece,even if they are unable to allow it to be seen my anyone other than themselves. Makes me wonder, once more, where are the painting stolen from the Gardner in Boston.

On another theme, the city that is Venice. I've read about the stench of the city and know that the Plaza in front of St Mark's is often swamped but never realized the depths to which the water rises at times and the necessity to wear waders to navigate one's way through the city. There must be incredible mold damage and growth in those buildings! Wasn't interested in seeing it before reading this book, certainly don't want to go now that I know just how musty and damp it must be.

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Review: Retreat from Nuala

Retreat from Nuala by Harriet Steel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As time has gone on, Shanti de Silva, the police chief of Nuala has found that his two officers are quite capable of running the office on their own. Jane, his wife, is always interested in new ideas and travel. When the local parish hosts a Buddhist monk, Soma, to speak of his belief and his mountain monastery home, she is sufficiently curious to ask Shanti if they might visit there for a short vacation.

Checking first with his British superior, Archie, Shanti takes leave and they head to the lofty place in the mountains. She is looking forward to exploring the practices of meditation and yoga and he is looking forward to rest and relaxation with a few hikes in the cool mountain air.

Upon their arrival, after a challenging hour's hike they meet their fellow guests--a retired clergyman, Arthur, a flamboyant romance novelist, Madelaine and a young couple, Alec a student of Buddhist history and his wife, Belinda. Two monks are assigned to provide them all with whatever they may require, Anwan and Chatura, neither of which have much to do in the story but provide the dahl and water that appears to make up all the meals the visitors receive. The last person they meet is the older monk and head of the monastery, Gunananda.

Despite Janes purported interests in monastic life, very little is mentioned or described in the book, which is rather disappointing. The days are spent hiking to the lake farther up the mountain, sitting in the garden reading or doing crossword puzzles, eating their meals and interacting with each other the way traveling strangers do. Once, Shanti and Jane did attend one of the prayer times of the monks. This rather relaxed and almost boring time passes uneventfully until one morning when the librarian notices that an ancient and, perhaps valuable, manuscript disappears from its locked and hidden box.

At last, a mystery to liven things up and so Shanti and Jane start their search for the manuscript and its thief. So many possibilities, so much nefarious activity--which are true leads and which red herrings? Happily, this crime, unlike others that have taken place in this series, seems to be devoid of a bloody death or two along the way--well, seems may be the key word here. Still, it is an interesting story since the manuscript deals with some interesting questions--where did Christ spend his years between 12 and his 30's? Was he in Britain? Did Joseph of Arimathea spend time in Britain working among the miners of tin in Cornwall? Did he bring Jesus with him back and forth on his business trips? And what about that Virgin Birth of Mary's? Could she have gotten pregnant from a British Prince while she visited Britain with her uncle, Joseph? Hmmm, seems the manuscript would cause a bit of a stir were it to reach the outside world. So what does the thief intend to do with it?

As always, the culprit it found about twenty pages short of the book's ending and the character's stories are all sorted by then, too. And as always, getting to the solution is as much fun as one of Jane's crossword puzzles!

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Review: Going Home

Going Home by Tom Lamont
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a review of an ARC provided by BookBrowse for that purpose.
Lia is gone but she's left a 21/2 year old toddler behind. Teo was babysitting Joel when Lia was discovered and so by default he becomes his temporary guardian. But what does a 30 year old bachelor know about taking care of a kid in diapers who speaks his own private toddler language? Not much, as it turns out. What does Teo want to learn about taking care of said child? Not much, either. No one seems to know who Joel's father is so therefore finding him is problematic. For the time being child services think Joel is in good hands--Lia trusted Teo to baby sit after all, Teo is stable with a good job from which he can get leave, and has a home with his father, Vic, for the duration. He can go back to his London flat when either Joel's family or a foster family can be found for him. Preferably, Jewish since Joel and Lia were Jewish. Teo doesn't practice but his father a Scot Catholic, widowed from a Jewish wife, has been active in the local synagogue.
Teo is surrounded by his old group of school friends to which Lia belonged -the only female. His best friend, Ben, is rich, unemployed and lives in a mansion that has been his since his 18th birthday. Whenever Teo came home he fell right back into the care-free card playing, drinking, partying, clubbing lifestyle they've shared since they emerged from childhood. Their relationship is old and fraught with the stresses that familiarity and established roles that over time have developed. Ben is the star, the leader, the jock and Teo is the shorter, quieter, steadier follower. He is also the one of the group that has broken free of the hometown--he's moved to London and only comes home once a month to visit his sick father, Vic. A toddler certainly changes the dynamic.
I loved the book because, despite the circumstances, a child alters everything about the life led by its caretaker before its arrival. It is funny, having had a child, to see the situation from the aspect of a male in charge. Though people think women are born knowing exactly how to raise children that isn't true. What is true, however, is that women from early on are more involved with children--younger siblings, cousins, and as teens babies for whom we babysit, then as we get older our friends' or older siblings new babies--we just are around them all the time and usually are interested in them even in their earliest stages. Men just don't pay that much attention and so if they find themselves in charge, they are really at sea. To see Vic attempt to make up for what he sees as shortcomings in his role as Teo's father, and Teo try to determine how much TV is acceptable and Ben try to avoid the whole situation is fun but serious, too.
In the end, since everyone cares about Joel and wants him to be safe and happy all three of them figure it out and somehow a new life develops for them all.
Interwoven with the questions of parenting are also the concepts of faith, jew vs jewishness and the process of maturing from our foot in adulthood 20's into 30 year olds with a touch of awareness of one's future.
One of the characters, new to the community,is the young rabbi, Sybil. Her affluent family considers themselves to have assimilated in the English community and are upset at her choice of career. This was only mentioned in passing but it was an idea that was a bit jarring, especially in the present time with the worldwide problems in nations finding themselves dealing with an influx of immigrants. She, too, as the religious leader becomes involved in the question of what to do with Joel. Also, being close in age to both Teo and Ben, she becomes involved in their relationship as well.
Closing the book brings with it a sense of satisfaction that the characters are on a path of success leading to lives filled with possibility.

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Review: The Redbreast

The Redbreast by Jo Nesbø
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not only Harry Hole was running around in circles trying to figure this one out. Frustrating, confusing and yet, at the end, startling clear. All the clues were scattered throughout--but that scattering made it terribly hard to pull the characters together. Love a mystery that is a mystery and makes you think but that at the end makes perfect sense. Don't think of Scandinavia often, which is why this book is so interesting. The way Norway and Norwegians handled Nazi occupation both during and after the war is fascinating and totally new to me.

Harry Hole is Dirty Harry and Bosch mixed together. His appearance in my mind never fits the flashes of description in the book so it is always a shock to return to the Scandinavian blond/blue-eyed ness of him or his size but it is pleasant, too. It makes the book that much more foreign to my experience in real life. I like him though he can be rather irritating and smug at times but he is so vulnerable at othertimes, which also is a jolt when it appears. Jo Nesbo is a one of a kind writer and refreshing.

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Review: A Gathering of Secrets

A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Is murder ever justified? Should the character of the victim be taken into consideration? Should the damage the victim has done to others be motive enough to ignore the murder--is it even a crime? Sometimes it is a hard call but is it really??

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Review: Mortal Causes

Mortal Causes by Ian Rankin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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Review: The Beautiful Mystery

The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Normally I love this series and run right through the story but this book was very unsettling. I'm not really sure why it was but it took me forever to get through it. The monastery made me feel claustrophobic, the monks made me uncomfortable.--Their other worldliness and strange serenity without any expression of emotion other than the ecstasy they appeared to derive from the sounds of and the singing of Gregorian chants was too difficult for me. Apparently for Beauvoir it was hard to accept as well. Though the action seems to have only been over a couple of days, it seemed interminable with a great deal of repetition and focus on the series of religious devotions in the monks' day interspersed with duties and meals. These were used to mark off the days but became too much of a focus.

Beauvoir's inability, still, to deal with the failed raid that almost resulted in his death, his dependency on Oxy, the uncomfortable relationship of Gamache with Francoeur were interesting aspects of the story,however, and once the first 200 pages were complete and these plot points took over the story moved much more quickly...aided ..., of course, by the appearance of Brother Sebastien of the Inquisition--loved that part. The ending was terrific and sad at the same time. The motive and its revelation was worth the on again, off again method I used to get through to it.

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Review: Malibu Burning

Malibu Burning by Lee Goldberg
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love Goldberg's writing--it is so vibrant and alive--the characters step right off the page as though in a movie or TV program. The dialogue is snappy and real. And sometimes, as in this case, his villain is not all bad and actually likeable. But then, Danny Cole is a con man so I guess he'd have to be somewhat appealing to succeed. Still, it is his foolish sensitivity that gets him every time. Can't wait for the next installment --Sharpe, who looks like a wrinkle-faced dog and is dogged in his investigations of fires and their causes, Walker, who is supposed to have left his dangerous police job behind but who is always the hunter, aiming for the culprit with a incurable lack of self preservation. What a team!

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Review: Rich Blood

Rich Blood by Robert Bailey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love reading books set in places I've been and this one takes place around Lake Guntersville in Alabama. Well, let me just say, things around the Lodge in the State Park were quite sedate in comparison with the activities taking place on the Island and in town. While there may have been some alcoholics and drug users at the Lodge they were not noticeable. Certainly, one of them wasn't an alcoholic attorney ( Jason Rich ) in town to defend his druggie sister,( Jana Rich Winters), who has been accused of paying a drifter felon to murder her husband, a local physician.

Jason is that attorney that you see on billboards all over the South, particularly in Alabama and Louisiana in my experience. He has a big smile, uses lots of toothpaste, impecable hair cut, well cut clothes with a snappy catchprase: In an accident? GET RICH Personally, one of those guys would be the last one I'd call but Jason seems to be doing quite well, although he's never been to court or defended a client in a capital murder trial. Did I mention, he's an alcoholic pretty much being watched very closely by the Alabama Law Board.

Jana is his older sister--two daughters, a husband who was about to divorce her and leave her penniless and oh, yes, a drug addict---meth is high on her list of treats. The local drug czar is often a bedmate, primarily because she owes him lots of money, which she doesn't have.

Another of her bedmates is a guy who does odd jobs on the Island and who has confessed to shooting the deceased Dr Winters three times in the head. But, more than that, Mr Pike claims Jana paid him $15,000 to do it. Just so happens Jana withdrew exactly that much from her joint account on July 3 and the Doctor was murdered July 4. Jana claims the money is stashed in her car, but nope, can't be found.

All info seems to point right at her. She had motive--Dr dearest was playing around on her and divorcing her, she had the means taken out of the bank and she had the method, a felon willing to do the job!

How is jason going to get her out of this mess? Bailey has us going and there are plenty of pitfalls and curveballs all of which are great fun. I really like this guy--this is the fourth book of his I've read. He's as good as Grisham. But wait until you get to the end--Whammo--didn't see that coming.

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Review: The Story Collector

The Story Collector by Evie Gaughan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

BookBrowse sent me an Advanced Readers' Edition to discuss. I found this book a true delight.

Sometimes when a book has alternateing time lines the story becomes confusing and the reader loses track of where they are in time. Woods handles the switching very well and smoothly.

In 2011 a young woman grieving her failed marriage impetuously boards a plane for Ireland instead of heading home to her parents for rest, recovery and reevaluation. What she finds there is a small village of caring and interesting people. And, in one of her walking excursions a diary of a young girl, who 100 years ago dwelt in the same cottage in which she is staying.

Sarah finds herself engrossed in the tale of Anna, the daughter of the farmer who lived in the small cottage Sarah is now inhabiting. Anna too is suffering a grief of her own that she finds herself not sharing but that is a driving force in her life. Both women become involved with the men who will help them start to sort the pain and move forward through it. For Sarah, it is the local conservation officer, Oran. He and his wife and daughter had once lived in the cottage, too. But his wife died young and he could not remain there once she was gone. He has a daughter, Hazel, a young teen who is quite fascinated by Sarah, the American from New York by way of Boston.

For Anna, it is a young American, as well. Harold Griffin-Krauss has come to Thornwood Village from Oxford where he is studying. He wishes to research the Celtic culture, particularly as it applies to magic, the little folk, superstition. He asks Anna to introduce him to the locals so he can gather their stories and experiences. For Anna, his interest helps her deal with her anxiety to contact the sister she has lost. For Sarah, the story of their exploits helps her to open her mind to the possibility of a future without guilt or sadness.

Hazel at one point quotes Raold Dahl--"Those who don't believe in magic will never find it." In their own ways both Sarah and Anna find magic. And while their future is not truly known at the end of the book, there is at least the promise of happiness and contentment.

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Review: The Girl in the Manor

The Girl in the Manor by A.J. Rivers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Emma is on leave but naturally that doesn't mean she's sitting on her butt relaxing! Nope, there is a bus terminal explosion and her ex-boyfriend, Greg, appears in the video feed from the security cameras. Eric, her buddy back in the FBI home office lets her know that the boss has allowed him to send her a clip--just to make sure it is really Greg. It is, so Emma is requested to come look at all the video and give her imput on what Greg may have been doing in the site.

Sam, her new/old boyfriend, and the local sheriff is not happy that she is taking off to do FBI stuff when she's to be resting. He, of course, doesn't mind her helping out on a little mystery back there in the hometown. A little girl has died in an apparent accident--she slipped running on a marble floor in her billionaire Dad's home, hit her head and died. Her mother isn't sure it was an accident and so the new wife is being scrutinized a bit more closely, since she was the only one with the child when she fell. However, this woman has been found hanging in the mansion with all the windows and doors closed and locked from the inside. Suicide. Case closed on the child's death. Not so fast--Mother and her boyfriend aren't happy that there will be no more investigation into that death. Meanwhile, Dad has disappeared and no one knows where he is. Add to that the fact that the knots on the suicide's rope could not have been tied by her. So that one looks like murder.

Emma has her hands full but wait, there's more. Another Manor all together and a cult connection. AND there appears to be a stalker watching Emma and when she notices him she thinks it is her missing father--but you needed to read the first two books to understand that whole plot point.

Pretty convoluted tales this series but interesting enough that I keep right on reading them

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Review: Fatal Blow

Fatal Blow by James L. Thane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Hell hath no fury..... clever book! A woman whose husband has cheated on her decides to get even by disappearing and making it look as though he is somehow involved in her disappearance. In the first chapter this plan is laid out quite clearly. Becky Miller is dissatisfied with her college sweetheart who was a jock and she a cheerleader when they met and fell in love and married. As the time went on, Walter Miller allowed himself to grow a bit flabby and otherwise unattractive. They've moved into separate bedrooms and Becky, who has bank-rolled his businesses, has cut off all physical contact. Walter has found a cocktail waitress to satisfy his needs, both physical and ego. So the two of them continue to live a congenial if bland relationship. Then, Becky finds an email from Cathy Stanton that totally rocks her equilibrium. Hence the plot!

Second chapter, Sean Richardson and his partner, Maggie catch a case. The torso of a woman has been found in the CAP canal near Phoenix. Around the same time, Walter has reported his wife missing to the police. Fairly soon the evidence appears to indicate the body is that of Becky Miller!

From then on, the chapters alternate between Becky carrying out her plans until her disappeance and the investigation into her death. This plotting keeps the story moving and interesting. But halfway through the book, a sudden twist takes everyone down a totally different path. As to the ending--well, let's just say, life goes on.

The best of the series thus far--On to the next installment.

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Review: A Trick of the Light

A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: The Word is Murder

The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you love Foyle's War and Midsomers Murders; if you enjoyed Magpie Murders on Masterpiece, then you will love this mystery written by the author of those programs. The most interesting thing about this book is that Anthony Horowitz is himself a character in the book! But there is much besides the murders to keep the reader interested--a look into the development of such filmed offerings, the writer's process and the production of the piece. There are also glimpses of the publishing of a book and again the writer's process in its composition.
Yet, for all that information, this book, The Word is Murder--not its original title--Detective Horowitz wished it to be called something else--is not a full-fledged product of Horowitz's mind, Oh, no, Daniel Hawthorne, fired from Scotland Yard but used by them as an investigator, has approached Horowitz to write a murder mystery that Hawthorne is currently investigating. He wants Horowitz to tag along throughout and then once the mystery is solved to organize the events leading up to the solution into a book starring Hawthorne. The deal is that Horowitz has no creative license but must adhere strictly to events and places and people precisely as they are. When the book is published the two will share the profits 50/50.
The murder mystery is intriguing--though I figured out the murderer about 3/4 of the way through. Could not for the life of me understand the motive, however. The interaction between the author and investigator is hilarious in many ways though in no way is this a comedy. As a matter of fact, it was sometimes difficult, even at the end, to determine if this is a Murder Mystery or a Detective Story. And at times, whether this is a true crime book or a fictional tale.

Horowitz is just incredible and the next book is on my shelf to read next.

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Review: Mystery at Apple Tree Cottage

Mystery at Apple Tree Cottage by Clare Chase
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sometimes a mystery without a lot of blood and guns is relaxing and entertaining and this series with its lady of a certain age finding herself in the midst of it does just that. In this one, a native son who was a terror as a teenager and now a ladies man entrepreneur with a horticulture business returns to town and gets himself killed. Why? Does someone hold a grudge from years ago? Maybe his mother's boyfriend with whom he has had a strained relationship has had enough. Or did he go to far with his arrogance and manipulating charm? Eve and Viv will just have to go on running the bakery and cafe and compare notes. As a free lance obituary writer Eve is perfectly placed to get some background info on the victim. Especially, since he was interested in getting her to write a short bio on him in Icon magazine and the editor is still keen on the idea.The busybody shop keeper across the Green will have her info too And then there is the mysterious gardener about town, a former policeman, who has a connection with one of the coppers investigating the killing and shares info with Eve as well. Lots of red herrings in this one and a nice surprising solution.

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Review: Dead Man's Wake

Dead Man's Wake by Paul Doiron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Doiron is the master of fore-shadowing! Ora's gut feelings have weight. Stacy's observations at the airport in Massachusetts should have given her pause. And at least one other, early in the book, which gave me the answer immediately as to who the murderer was. How the boating accident fit into the plot was problematic and once the operator was found the punishment was sadly lacking. Still, unraveling the two crimes was interesting and thank goodness ole Mike and Charley insisted on being in on the crime that was not theirs to solve. Otherwise, the reader would have had a very short book to read. In the end, the only thing lacking was a viable motive--thought it was pretty shaky myself. Still, whatever the reason, the captive was at least partially responsible for the deaths. If nothing else Doiron always gives several strands to follow and keeps his Warden and family busy. Interesting, now that Mike is in his 30's he is all of a sudden a font of wisdom and some self control--lol

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Review: A Venetian Reckoning

A Venetian Reckoning by Donna Leon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A tragic tale of sex trafficking in Europe, especially Italy, especially Venice and Padua. It is heart-breaking and sad but the saddest part of this book is the ending. Tragedy upon tragedy.

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Review: Until Death

Until Death by James L. Thane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Well, by page 2 I was very happy that we did not build a garage when we built our house. Second one of Thane's books I've read and in both within seconds someone gets killed in the garage! By page 9 I was annoyed by Sean's opinion that Maggie " at 38 ( 38!!!!!!!) remained extraordinarily attractive,"!
Give me a break--I guess at 38 a woman is normally an unattractive old bag. But by page 65, when Gina is sent a copy of Klute, starring Donald Sutherland who died that very morning, I was struck by the coincidence and was only slightly amused that Sean, only a couple years older than Maggs, knew both the movie and the star, when Maggs had no clue.

Also by Page 65 these little nits lost their importance as the murders increased and the poiice were totally at sea as to why these men were being killed, despite their connection to Gina, a physical trainer who, as Jennifer, was also a high end prostitute. Even more of a mystery was the murderer.

Two old sayings come to mind having read the book to its conclusion. I will not share them since they would give the plot away. However, the police followed using one of them as their theory for motive. Too bad, because it is the second that would have given them the solution. I kick myself for not remembering it before the murderer was revealed. Maybe because my mind doesn't work that way in such a situation. Hah!

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Review: No Place to Die

No Place to Die by James L. Thane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The book opens with a jolt--Beverly Thompson pulls into her garage, expecting to have a lovely dinner with her husband. But as the garage door begins to descend a man runs under it and she is trapped in her car. Immediately, she locks her doors and lays on the horn.The stranger forces her to stop the noise and pointing a gun at her forces her to open the car. Husband and dog immediately open the house door to investigate, the man shoots both. He then pulls her from the car, covers her face with a cloth soaked in probably chloroform and, as she fades from conciousness, greets her as an old friend.

Who are these people? What connects them and why did this guy kill her husband and dog and abduct Beverly Thompson? Within a few pages these questions continue to puzzle Beverly and the reader. As the story unfolds more people are murdered and Beverly finds herself trying to ingratiate her man who is obviously going to kill her as well. Her only hope she feels is to convince him that she is no threat and make him become careless enough to allow her escape.

Even as the initial questions are finally answered the game she plays and the attempts of police to solve the puzzle of seemingly unrelated murders keep the reader involved until the very last pages with an ending as explosive and the beginning. Headed to the next case involving Sean Richardson and his very competent partner, Maggie.

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Review: Stardust in Nuala

Stardust in Nuala by Harriet Steel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Leaving Nuala for awhile but must say the most recent stay at The Crown was quite an experience. First the excitement of having a new film being made in little Nuala. Archie was beside himself with excitement at the prospect of Nuala becoming famous and the subsequent influx of tourist dollars once the War is over. Unfortunately, Nuala will probably be more infamous for the fact that the star, a famous Pakistani actor, died while filming. Not just died , but was murdered!!
No lack of possibilities for the perp--one of his two stepsons, perhaps or maybe is personal assistant, who appears to be in love with his daughter. Not likely such a star would condone that relationship. Or, perhaps, his much younger wife with whom he seemed always at odds and with whom he was often heard arguing.
Shanti is totally flummoxed. Dev was killed using a syringe filled with the medicine he was taking for his heart condition. The injection caused an overdose which killed him. Could he have committed suicide--the production company was in financial straits. Did his nurse kill him--or at least provide the medicine to the murderer?
Each day, Shanti finds himself discussing the case with Jane, seeking her opinion about any new info he gleans. But, even Jane, who quite frequently is able to untangle the clues, is at a loss.
And just to make life more interesting, Archie's dog doesn't want to leave the Residence and seems quite frightened to venture out, even into the garden. Florence has lost her spectacles and teaspoons keep disappearing--what is going on??
Well, in the end, all was sorted and things settled back into normal. As for me, I'm on my way to Phoenix where a man and his dog have been found shot dead in his garage. Also his wife seems to be missing. Danger all over the world it seems--sigh

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Review: Long Odds in Nuala

Long Odds in Nuala by Harriet Steel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It has been awhile since I've visited Shanti and Jane in Nuala but when I heard the Nuala Cup horse race was happening at the same time as our Kentucky Derby and Preakness I thought it was time to return. Unfortunately, there seems to be some concern that the winning horse and the one who placed, from the same stable,may have been doped. Testing shows they have not but the tests are not always definitive so doubt remains. As if this weren't enough to dampen the day, one of the stableboys, a quiet but slightly slow young man, has died. Upon closer investigation, the ladder from which he seems to have fallen was actually deliberately damaged. The rung which gave way under his weight was sawn through to weaken it.

So, why was this young man murdered? Who had reason to eliminate such an innocuous fellow who by all reports seems to have been concientious in his care of the horses, friendly to all, non-drinking and living with his parents. What could this man have seen that required his removal? Were the horses doped after all? And who would do that? Who would benefit the most? Mystery upon mystery and a British society not at all willing to be cooperative with a police Inspector who is Ceylonese. Nevertheless, de Silva, his two subordinates and his wife are all determined to solve this seemingly unsolveable mystery!!

Glad to be back for a visit -- sad the circumstances--but satisfying, too. For against all odds, the culprit is apprehended. Unfortunately, not before one more person is killed and others placed in threatening situations.

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Review: Mystery at the Old Mill

Mystery at the Old Mill by Clare Chase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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Review: Memory in Death

Memory in Death by J.D. Robb
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Eve Dallas, NYPD Homicide Lieutenant, had a really tough childhood, one that culminated in her murder of her father and subsequent placement in the foster system. Her years there added to the trauma that still gives her nightmares. With the help of her handsome, billionaire adoring Irish husband she has learned to handle them. For the most part she is a hard-nosed, no nonsense investigator , whose own past is a none issue in her work. That is until one of her foster mothers makes an appearance at her office. Tracy Lombard was one of the most abusive of the adults with whom Dallas was placed.

Her she is, in Dallas' domain, feigning happiness at reconnecting with one of her charges--a favorite, one much beloved, according to Tracy. Not quite the way Dallas remembers the events. In no uncertain terms she makes clear to Tracy that she does not want to join her and her family for dinner, nor does she ever want to lay eyes on Lombard again.

But Tracy Lombard has ulterior motives for tracking down Dallas. Dollar signs that dance in her head when she thinks about Rourke, Dallas' husband and in short order she makes her way to his office to shake him down. For 2 million dollars she will not reveal Dallas' unsavory background to the press and thereby to the Police Department and to the people of the city Dallas serves. If she thought the shaken Dallas was adamant in her refusal to reconnect, she hasn't heard anything until Rourke lets her have it with both guns. No money and get thee back to Texas or he will see to it she finds her way out of the city and maybe off the planet.

Problem handled? Well, no. Dallas wants to confront Lombard at her hotel to make sure she understands just where she stands. Rourke goes with her to the hotel the next day and a whole new problem rears its ugly head. Tracy Lombard is dead, a bloody mess on the floor of her hotel room, dead! And though Dallas feels absolutely nothing in the face of it, she knows that she must find out how Tracy lost her life--and if it was murder, who caused it.

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Review: The Silent Patient

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Alicia Berenson murdered her husband; she shot him in the head multiple times with a shotgun. That was six years ago and she has resided at a Home for mental patients, The Grove, ever since the trial. Alicia was found covered in blood standing in front of a strange painting she'd completed after the murder. She was an artist and the painting was to be the last " word " she'd spoken. She said nothing when arrested, nothing during the trial that resulted in a plea of diminished responsibility and her confinement at the Grove, and nothing since that commitment.

A young psychotherapist, Theo Faber, was fascinated by the press coverage of the murder and even went to the gallery in which her final painting was exhibited. The story and the painting haunted him and he wished he could meet its artist but he was working at another institution. But as chance would have it, a position opened at The Grove and Theo applied and was hired. At last, he would have an opportunity to try to treat the silent Alicia. Her background resonated with him, since his childhood and hers had some similarities that he wished to explore.

And so begins the interaction between patient and therapist, which becomes ever more intense and personal. Disturbing really and I felt a nagging feeling that there was more than this random connection between the two. When the twist is revealed, it is a shock on the one hand and somehow not surprising on another. The revelations of Alicia's background and her relationships as well as the story of Theo's life both keep the reader going, trying to figure out whether or not Alicia killed Gabriel. If she did, why? He was the love of her life and that life seemed so perfect. If she didn't, then who did and why? But even more confounding, why isn't Alicia Berenson speaking??

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Review: The Bandit Queens

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Having thought the caste system has been outlawed in India, it was surprising to find this tale set in current time. Still, the system is so very confusing, not the basis necessarily, but the strange differences in economic situations that can exist in the various levels--a Brahmin, the highest caste can grow up with no money, starving, dependent upon others, while a Dalit, an untouchable can be quite affluent.

Besides the caste system there are differences in the culture of Muslim Indians and Hindu Indians that are very significant. A Hindu widow for example cannot remarry, is excluded from all celebrations etc while a Muslim woman has great freedom as a widow.

Both of these conditions are significant in the story but of greater importance is the position of women in society. Although they are eligible for loans that men are not, their husbands can steal those funds or the monies the women earn from any small business they might set up with the loans. The men are not to be punished for women and their funds are the possessions of the husbands. Wives can be sexually molested or beaten--if by their husbands there is no punishment and not a great deal of punishment of men not their husbands. Needless to say many women are not content living this way. And sometimes these women take matters into their own hands..

One such woman is Geeta, whose husband disappeared five years before the book begins. His body has never been found but the villagers assume Geeta killed him. In general, she is a loner and is friendless. She does have some leadership qualities and so she has been allowed into one of the loan groups which meets once a month to pay the loan man. It is this group of women who are the focus of the story. As with any group, especially of women, there is jealousy, gossip, cliquish behavior, and in time murder and blackmail. At times, convoluted and dangerous, at others hilariously inept, these women struggle to have a voice and self-determination that the culture and traditions of thousands of years has denied them. In the end, old resentments and past degradations and cruelty are sorted. The village is changed in most cases for the better and the women become a wonderful group of bonobos!

This review is of a copy provided by BookBrowse for discussion on their website.

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Review: Violeta

Violeta by Isabel Allende
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

While not being one of those readers who decides to read books that follow the theme of the month, this one fits March, womens' month, perfectly. Violeta is born in Chile to wealthy parents during the 1920 influenza pandemic. She is pampered and surrounded by loving family, parents, a brother, aunts and a governess whom she adores. There are older siblings as well but they are so much older they are out of the home and not particularly close to her or Jose Antonio, her brother. When the Depression strikes the Del Valle family and her father commits suicide, the rest of them move to a rural area and the home of Miss Taylor's lover's family, the Rivas. Although Jose Antonio is madly in love with Josephine Taylor she is in a relationship with Theresa Rivas. Through the many years covered in this book Jose retains the engagement ring he bought for Miss Taylor.

Which brings us to the length of the story. It covers Violeta life until her death at 100 in 2020, the beginning, as she points out, of yet another pandemic! It is written in the form of a memoir that in time is revealed to be a long letter to Violeta's grandson. Her life as a business woman at a time when women were to be wives and mothers, housekeepers not independently wealthy individuals. She is headstrong and emotional and passionate. Married to a non-Chilean, a German , at a fairly young age. Fabian is madly in love with her but is stoic and unemotional. She is content and expects to be with him until death. That is until julian Bravo comes along and she leaves him for the wild and daring pilot who sweeps her off her feet at first sight.

Theirs is a long involvement, tempetuous, damaging, at times physically abusive which produces two children, a girl, Nieves and a boy, Juan Martin. It is during this time that Violeta becomes more aware of the events occuring in her country and the world. The military juntas of South America, the poverty of her fellow Chileans, the abusive conditions under which some women live, the corruption of government and the rise of organized crime. All of these things we see and hear through the eyes of Violeta, the narrator.

How she reacts to these events. How her children's lives develop and the affects those developments have on her. The birth of her grandson, the evolution of her relationship with Bravo, the new lovers who enter her life as she ages--all of these are revealed. And in the end her loss as time goes on of her family members and friends, her development of a fund for abused women, her philanthropy and her devotion to Camilo, her grandson to whom this letter is written. It is a long letter about a long life but it is a wonderful life, a typical life--there is love, hate, loss, mistakes, revenge, devotion, success and failure--and the longer it goes on the more is lost until in the end, there is just Violeta on her deathbed, Camilo tending her along with one last member of the Rivas household,, the granddaughter of the original housekeeper.

Loved it all--the history, the characters, and Violeta, only 20 years older than me. I felt as though I'd moved into her skin there was so much of her I could relate to. At times I wanted to pull the reins and stop her taking a path I knew would be dangerous or foolhardy, but I could not. I had to let the story go, shaking my head either in sorrow or else with laughter because I'd been as foolish as she at times. The book is wonderful for anyone to read but, I think, will be most appealing to women of a certain age because it will not be so much history of another time as a story of a time through which they have lived.

Theirs is

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Review: G is for Gumshoe

G is for Gumshoe by Sue Grafton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While being a PI can be fun it can also be quite dangerous, especially when one of your investigations results in jail time for the subject and he puts out a hit on you. While working on her new case, finding the elderly mother of her client, the hitman comes uncomfortably close to fulfilling his contract. Though it isn't her style, Kinsey is sufficiently cowed that she contacts another PI, with whom she's worked in the past, to be her bodyguard.

Dietz is a good bodyguard, but his constant presence and control of her environment and movements drives the independent Kinsey crazy. I doesn't get any easier when the two find themselves attracted to each other in a less than professional way.

There is a H is for Homicide, so everything works out fairly well in the end.

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Review: The 6:20 Man

The 6:20 Man by David Baldacci
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Not sure if I've read any Baldacci before but have wanted to so picked this one up because of its setting rather than anything else. Nothing like a commuter train into the City at an ungodly hour in the morning. Hopefully, not too many of the riders are former Army Rangers who are working in Wall St as a self imposed penance for an act not particularly becoming for an Officer and a Gentleman. More logically than Sex and the City or Friends, Travis Devine, is sharing a townhouse in Mt Kisco rather than a Manhattan roomy apartment and his salary barely covers the rent, food and train fare so his social life is not very exciting.

With the death of an office colleague with whom he had a one night stand, that rather mundane life is going to get much more stimulating. He has received a rather strange email telling him of the woman's death. No one else has gotten such a personal notification and the sender's address is strange looking. Next thing he knows Travis is being personally approached by detectives at his station in Mt Kisco, their interest in him rather intense. Do they suspect him of her murder?

Before long he is further approached by someone who appears to be a Fed and knows all about Travis' military history. Threatened with prosecution and probable jail sentence, Travis agrees to get some information about the financial institution where he and the deceased worked together as analysts. The the background info he uncovers is convoluted and confusing and the deaths keep mounting up. What is going on and how is he going to keep himself from being among the dead?

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Review: The Black Book

The Black Book by Ian Rankin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Loved John Hannah in the series, did not like Stott, his replacement because he was too old for my mental image of Rebus and am looking forward to the new series, though this guy seems too young.

If ever I go to Edinburgh I will forever be thinking of all the nefarious underworld goings on and never feel safe in any pub or restaurant. The place is teeming with horrible people who speak in a dialect I'll never understand. As a matter of fact, Hannah gave me problems in the program--thank goodness for cc or I'd be truly lost. And truly lost is what Ian Rankin keeps his readers. Rebus is constantly running all over town and environs and never seems to get enough pieces to any puzzle he's trying to solve. What he does learn at any turn makes me feel as though I'm doing a jigsaw but it isn't the one this bit belongs to and I hate jigsaw puzzles! But, the characters and places are so intriguing and Rebus, himself so Columbo-like, that I keep subjecting myself to this torture.

In the end, the result is always satisfactory but I feel so exhausted I swear i'm not going to read the next one, until I do. Sigh

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Review: Origin in Death

Origin in Death by J.D. Robb
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

2059 New York City--though only 35 years from now, hoping this book is not what our future holds. Between the threat of AI creating a " reality " difficult to discern, the idea of Quiet Birth is enough to make me happy that I can't last that long at my age. Does make me worry about what the future holds for our children, though. Must admit, I like a lot of the automatic driving vehicles that would allow me to get around more easily than current vehicles do at my age.

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Review: Down a Dark Road

Down a Dark Road by Linda Castillo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What do you do if your pre-teen crush, who's been found guilty of murdering his wife, escapes from prison after two years and takes his five children captive in their farmhouse? Joseph King swears he did not kill his wife, Naomi and wants his old friend, Sheriff Kate Burkholder, to reopen the case and find out the truth. With memories of the young man he once was running through her mind, Katie starts nosing around.

What she does is rile a hornets' nest and almost loses her life in the process. What she finds is that more than one person played a part in the death of Naomi King!

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Review: Hatchet Island: A Novel

Hatchet Island: A Novel by Paul Doiron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not sure if, in each of these 13 installments of the life of Mike Bowditch, Doiron has covered all the biases, perversions and socio-economic statuses that exist in Maine but there are not many I can think of that he hasn't! Will have to wait until June to see what he comes up with in episode 14.

This time around we have the obsessive behavior of some environmentalists who have been granted the exclusive use of a State owned island to protect the nesting grounds of several species of sea birds. The lead researcher is going slightly mad because the number of birds is rapidly diminishing and yet she is willing to do almost anything to retain the donations coming from the rich folks who have moved into several of the other islands, using their money to create their own feudal estates among the lobstermen etc of the area.

Of course, there has to be a law enforcement officer or two who seem less than professional and therefore may, possibly, be part of the crime committed. Oh, yes, the crime--while the lead researcher is mysteriously off the bird sanctuary, someone has brutally murdered two of her interns, and posed them for pictures. The third intern, Black by the way, has disappeared and may have survived. Ah, is he the murderer?? Naturally, one of the investigators with no evidence is sure he is, but naturally too, this is a racist supposition as Mike and Stacy are swift to deduce.

Yes, Stacy and Mike are back together again and this time it seems for good. To the point, that having headed out for a romantic camping trip on one of the other islands, they have stopped off at the bird sanctuary. Stacy's ex-college roommate, Kendra has asked them to drop by and for Mike to bring his gun and badge. Kendra is nervous about Maeve's deteriorating mind and about some fishermen who have begun to stalk around the island. After meeting the other two interns, Garrett and Hillary, the lovebirds head off to a nearby island. During the night, the sound of a gunshot in the vicinity of Baker Island brings them back in the morning to the site of the horrible massacre.f

Soon, the two of them are assistants of sorts in the investigation that soon involves a strange photographer who stages death scenes for his works, his aggressive wife, the photographer's assistant and his family, several lobstermen of varying ages and their families. Making sure all bases of diversity are covered the new State trooper is a Hispanic woman from not Maine. Don't want to give away the specific type of perversion in this one, since it is the motivating factor in all that ensues.

BTW, Shadow who was left at home is doing fine and has allowed Stacy to sit next to him and pet his head without tearing off her arm. Must be she will say yes when Mike asks.

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Review: Dream Town

Dream Town by Lee Goldberg
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One of my favorite authors for characterization and descriptive locations. His books read with as much action and realism as his TV shows. Eve Ronin just cannot help but get on her superiors' nerves but she is thorough and dogged in her determination to solve any crime that comes her way. Duncan, her poor, more experienced, soon to retire partner tries his best to rope her in to no avail. He is so concerned about her survival that he postponed his retirement after their last case and finds himself riding herd on her in Hidden Hills, a gated community of the rich with a Western theme! Apparently, such a place truly exists though Goldberg jazzed it up a bit with a resident deputy sheriff who rides a horse, wears a stetson and has his own little hoosegow on the estate. I instantly disliked and distrusted this character upon his appearance. Even his name, Amos Tatum, annoyed me.

But the most annoying characters were the Kardashian wannabes, the Winslows. Daddy is a retired film cowboy living in his fictional world, his heavily sculpted and endowed wife, and two obnoxious children. His eldest, Kitty, has just been shot in the face in her bedroom in her glamourous guest cottage. And her gazzillion dollar engagement ring has gone missing. When Eve and Duncan show up to investigate, Tatum is there to assure them he has it all in hand in HIS community. Eve will have nothing to do with yet another deputy thinking he'll try riding rough shod over her. And so it begins. Who killed Kitty--the darling of the reality Life with the Winslows reality show? If only hers were the only dead body our heroine will encounter before this saga ends.

Interesting, too, is the behind the scenes of how TV shows are filmed, where they are filmed, who does what behind the scenes and the politics of production. I'll never view a TV program the same again. Neither will you!

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Review: Dead by Dawn

Dead by Dawn by Paul Doiron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the Doiron book that should have won a literary prize! The best, most exciting, fastest reading book in the series so far. Don't usually like books in which the plot moves back and forth between time periods but this time the plot device makes the action move with even more urgency. It takes place in only one day but Mike and Shadow have some day!

Starts out simple enough--taking Shadow to the vet for a check-up and stopping by to visit a woman who's sent him a note asking him to review a closed case. Definitely, not how it ends. But then nothing with Mike Bowditch is simple--from his relationships with women to his obsession with a wolf. And while Rambo may be, in Mike's mind, at a moment of great crises, " a bullshit macho fantasy", he has nothing on old MB!!!

Love Doiron's sense of humor, his style and his way with words--I, too, thought the professor looked like a " pompous ass" ! Just from reading his description.

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Review: Extravagant Death

Extravagant Death by Charles Finch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

At last Charles Lennox has made his way to the colonies and is astounded by the opulence of the monied class! Having seen some of the old world homes of those that preceded the American barons of industry, I'd say they did a good job of emulating them. Even to the point of acquiring all the pieces of those places that were able to be transported across the pond. What is more to the point is the fact that, having fought a war to dissolve an attachment to a monarchy that they found less than democratic, the descendents of the warriors who won that freedom set about establishing a pseudo-royalty along Fifth Avenue and the East coast of the country. Not having any family titles to hand down through the generations many of the nouveau riche went about buying them as well.

Though Charles, himself, seemingly could care less about this societal discrimination on either side of the Atlantic, Lady Jane and Mrs Astor both enjoyed the society it established. But, in the beginning, Lady Jane is left at home with the children, as Charles has embarked upon a Dickensian tour of the States. As he is making his way from New York City to Boston his train is intercepted by the private train of one of the Knickerbocker families of New York, one William Schermerhorn. It would seem that a young lady attending the season at Newport, Rhode Island has been murdered. As Lennox is an internationally well known detective ( and though, not said, a man of some standing in British society ), Schermerhorn has summoned him to Newport to investigate.

Naturally, Charles resents this interference with his mission on behalf of his Queen, but eventually agrees to make the detour for a day or so. And thus ensues Charles' introduction to America's idle rich and naturally, though the invitations are highly prized, obtains entry into Mrs Astor's fabulous party of the season. Oh, and he does manage to identify the murderer among other secrets that even the very rich hide from each other.

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Review: The Litigators

The Litigators by John Grisham
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

David Zinc has had it with the long hours and stress of the high end law firm in which he is one of many minions, so he walks out one morning, goes to a local bar and gets shit-faced and wanders into a store front, ambulance chasing firm made up of two aging lawyers, one who does not much of anything and the other, a recovering drunk, who chases down clients in ways quite seedy.

Welcome to Finley and Figg, a boutique law firm, or so the partners call it. They quickly take David on and he joins them and their secretary, Rochelle in what becomes a rather complex lawsuit against a pharmaceutical company. It is to be heard in Federal court--and none of the three of them have ever appeared in this court. indeed, none of them have any experience in such a suit and they are going to face a battery of high-priced lawyers employed by the drug giant.

While the intricacies of legal maneuvering that takes place in such a situation are mind-boggling, what is really eye opening is the process by which a new drug is the testing it undergoes and the approval process that the FDA uses to allow its use. It makes me very happy that at 81 I take no medications or supplements because I have refused them and, so far, am quite healthy, thank you. Side-effects don't appeal to me and one doctor told me that I'm probably as healthy as I am because I DON"T use any medications. Quite the revelations in this book!!

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Review: The Girl in Cabin 13

The Girl in Cabin 13 by A.J. Rivers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Perp is Easy;Motive is Tough

Within seconds of the character's appearance I had the murderer pegged! Still the investigation for Emma to realize who done it and, more importantly for me,why was worth the read. Would have given the book a five if it had been harder to finger the Who.

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Review: One Last Lie

One Last Lie by Paul Doiron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The books are getting better--more focused and more complex at the same time. Also more devoted to Bowditch and his work as a Warden Inspector, although this time he's not on official business. Charley has gone missing and Ora calls upon Mike to find him.

This time the focus is truly on the Franco-Americans and Native peoples of the Fort Kent area--right on the Canadian border pretty much at the nothernmost point of the Maine border. There are plenty of shady characters for Mike to interview in an effort to find Charley and discover why he has disappeared. Dorion also throws in a couple of Haitians so he can make a point or two about how iCE and Border Patrol activies have increased on this border since 9/11 and just to let everyone know that Mike isn't totally out of the loop of current global affairs, there are are a couple of references to Harry and Meghan!

Love life still in flux--Stacy is back , sorta and Dani is getting distant, sorta. Not too much of that thank goodness. I'm rooting for Stacy, BTW.. Worked with fellow female Customs' inspectors with a chip on the shoulder relative to men. Dani sees them as competitors and has ambition -she also doesn't have a real trust of men--note her remark about the rejection of the Florida pilot's application for the Maine Warden opening. No children, either? Not partner material, at all!IMHO!

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Review: Almost Midnight

Almost Midnight by Paul Doiron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Best one so far--more warden investigator than immature boyfriend. Perhaps the situation with Shadow is what appealed most--two reasons, like wolves and my cat is called Shadow--lol Drugs in prisons and involvement of the so called keepers is nothing new but Billy and Aimee Cronk and the Cronkets are always interesting. The passing involvement with the Amish could have been left out--read Linda Castillo if you want Amish mysteries. And while Zane and Indigo were kind of interesting, again not really essential to the story, although they made for a good solution to one mystery.

Dani is the newest disaster--lol

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Review: Roman Blood

Roman Blood by Steven Saylor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If the author had chosen to simply tell the story without superfluous embellishment it may have been told in less than 401 pages. While the descriptions of Rome, the city, its inhabitants, its customs, its political maneuvering were interesting they were so repetitive that the text became as boring as the ancient words of Cicero hated by many enforced students of Latin classes in the modern world.

Sulla, unfortunately, sounds so much like the dreaded next Republican candidate for our Presidency that it strikes terror in the heart of this voter.

The mystery of whether or not the victim was murdered by his son is intriguing but getting to the heart of it was a long and convoluted journey through a sludge of overwrought prose. The best part of the book was the last chapters in which the trial is described and the later developments following its judgement.

Reader, beware, to read this book requires lengthy days of trudging through the unnecessary length of its words.

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Review: Stay Hidden

Stay Hidden by Paul Doiron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

These books keep bringing me back not so much because of the mystery that Mike finds himself investigating but because of the settings in which he finds himself. Living in Vermont with many stays all over NH and Maine, I find myself recognizing the people, the places , the attitudes. In this installment Mike is on an island off the coast of Bangor. The two days of constant fog is so well described I could smell the air, feel the damp coldness and suffer the almost claustrophic eerieness of the lack of visibility and the distortion of sounds and direction. And, oh, the attitudes--Mike is a native born maniac but on the Island he is an outsider--not to be trusted, not to be included. My husband is a 7th generation Vermonter but when we moved to mid-Vermont from the Canadian borderlands the locals took a long time to accept him as " not away " and the men in the local grocery store only acknowledged me if I was with him, never alone, and i was for years, Bill's wife. Yup, New England and its people are surely like the people in Doiron's books. Very relateable.

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Review: Murder at the Merton Library

Murder at the Merton Library by Andrea Penrose
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This series is so engrossing. In addition to a murder mystery the books always have historical information about the advances in science and engineering that took place in the 19th century and the development of commerce and business that was coupled with it.

Here there are engineers in all the major Western countries attempting to develop a steam engine that would be capable of driving vessels across the wide and wild waters of the oceans. Steam engines in rivers were well known and used in America and parts of Europe. The complexity of an engine sturdy enough to withstand the strength of turbulence during storms and the need for huge amounts of fuel for such long voyages were daunting challenges to those trying to design such an engine. As the competition in the labs progressed the need for funds, ever a need in such endeavors, led in some instances to fraudulent schemes to wrest money from investors knowing there would be no payoff to them.

So, with the murder of a friend of his deceased brother, Wrex and Charlotte, the Weasels and the rest of the inner circle find themselves not only on the trail of his murderer but also embroiled in the larger events surrounding the advances in the age of Steam

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Review: Knife Creek

Knife Creek by Paul Doiron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Yahoo--Bowditch is getting more mature--still a bit impetuous and gets himself in trouble--but more thoughtful and observant. What starts out as a simple morning feral pig hunt with his live-in girlfriend, Stacy, turns into the discovery of a new born infant's body left in a wallow to be eaten by the pigs. In short order, Mike has disobeyed an order from the Maine State Troopers to leave the investigation to them. He approaches a near by home inhabited by a couple of strange women wearing bright red wigs. The younger woman seems familiar to him, somehow but he has no way to insist on entering the home and must leave further investigation to the Troopers after all.

Ah, but when he and the Troopers return the next day, the house has been abandoned and jerry-rigged to explode destroying in and any trace of its inhabitants. By now, Mike is convinced the younger woman is a UNH student who has been missing for the last four years. Further, Mike thinks she is probably the mother of the infant left so inhumanely as food for the feral pigs.

And so the mystery begins with the usual twists and turns and strange rural Maine characters, teams of investigators, including a retired Maine Police detective obsessed with proving the missing girl is dead and prosecuting the young rich guy last known to have seen her as her murderer. His relationships with Stacy and Dani Tate, a former warden who is now a Trooper and who has had a crush on him, also play a part in the story. Fingers crossed Stacy takes a powder--just my opinion--lol

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Review: Hemlock

Hemlock by Susan Wittig Albert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's been a long time since I've read China Bayles--there was a time when I read them as fast as they came out, but got tired of the series and needed a break. This appears to be the last in the series or at least the last published and I decided to go back.
What a refreshing change--China is on her own in North Carolina. She chats with her husband a couple of times and there are references to Caitie and Ruby but the cast of characters is totally new so the geographic location is Eastern Appalachian mountains in place of Texas Hill Country, there is snow and icy roads and small town Southern police and sheriffs.
China has flown in to help out an acquaintance who is the director of a private library, which is in poor shape. The books have no organization, there is no directory of holdings. One tome, however, is missing and the reason that is obvious is because it was kept in a locked, sort of, glass case and it isn't there! A herbal dating back to the 18th Century, incredibly valuable and written, etched and hand colored by a woman. Most unusual. China's friend, Dorothea and her young assistant, Jenna are at the top of the list of suspects. Dorothea has asked her friend to come East to try to locate the book and Jenna is writing a novel based on the life story of the author of The Curious Herbal.
The two plot lines are interesting and the addition of one murder, one suicide and one shooting only enhance the story. Add to that interesting locals, including a slightly ditzy parrot lady and the book just flies along. Glad I came back to finish the series.

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Review: Murder on the Edge

Murder on the Edge by Bruce Beckham
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

For some reason this book was hard to get through--maybe because it was so convoluted and seemingly unsolvable. Still, as the murders piled up and the victims not only did not seem to be rock climbers nor hikers but also seemed unconnected, the mystery was intriguing. When the case finally breaks it is as sudden and surprising to the reader as to the detectives who doggedly investigated it.

I'm not sure what Jones sees in Skelgill but I like her and Leigton. Skelgill gives me a headache.

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Review: An Irish Country Yuletide

An Irish Country Yuletide by Patrick Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've had this book for almost a year but just did not want to read it because Patrick Taylor is not continuing the series. Having read them all, it was hard to face the end of the series. His reasoning is sound--Ballybucklebo is a wonderful country village in which there is no Catholic/Protestant strife. Indeed, the Catholic priest and Presbyterian minister can be found at each other's services at times and they play golf together on Mondays. It is a place with normal gossip, sometimes neighborly disagreements but more often than not a place in which everyone is willing to help and support each other whenever illness, sadness or financial struggles appear.

There is also the wheels of time in which people die, others marry, sometimes romances bomb, and babies are born. The inhabitants are true individuals with three-dimensional development and the reader loves, admires, dislikes, laughs at and laughs with many of them. Dr Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly is the initial focus of the series and we see him as a medical student,a young naval officer, a new husband, a heart-breakingly devastated widower, and a happy man with a woman who was a love of his younger self who becomes his second wife. In the process, he becomes the doctor in Ballybucklebo living at #1 with is dog, kitten and housekeeper, Kinky. She is wonderful--a widow from Cork who keeps him in line cooks incredible meals. In time, she too, gets married but continues taking care of him and his young assistant, Barry Laverty. And, too, we watch Barry mature, adjust to life in a small town, marry, buy a home, have a child and become a partner in the practice.

As you can see, the reader becomes a resident and over 20 to 25 years becomes a member of the fabric and family. So difficult to leave. Yet, as said earlier, Taylor picked a good time to end the story for he did not want to delve into the troubles that raged in Ireland. He did not want to bring them to Ballybucklebo and it could not have been avoided so he ended the stories.

This Yuletide book sat on the table and finally, reluctantly, at this Yuletide I picked it up to read and say goodbye. It is set in 1965--after some books in the series and before some others. Because of this I gave it only 4 stars. Perhaps it deserves 5 since having read the whole series I felt as though, like Kinky, I had the sight--I am fey--I could see into the future of some characters. For example, Fingle's brother, Lars, meets the sister of the Marquis, John MacNeill, for the first time at the O'Reilly's Christmas evening gathering. But, I know what happens to Lars and Myrna in the future--lol



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