Herbert Cargate is a very unpleasant man. He is also soon to be poisoned on a train in the English countryside in Excellent Intentions. Starting a murder case at the end, in the courtroom trying to prove a mysterious person’s guilt, is an unusual plot structure. Published in 1938, fifteenContinue Reading
Medallion of Murder is another excellent entry in the young adult mystery series, Nefertari Hughes. Terry, a female high school senior, has many balls in the air. She is still getting used to her leg prosthesis, deciding what to make her career after high school, and dealing with her widowedContinue Reading
The Way of All Flesh emphasizes the historical while leaving the mystery almost as an afterthought. In 1847 Edinburgh, medicine is rudimentary and painkillers were thought to be against God’s will. When Will becomes the apprentice of Dr. Simpson, an obstetrician, he sees some horrific things. In the mystery, WillContinue Reading
Marvelous psychological thriller that totally got Under My Skin. Poppy, a former travel photojournalist, now owns a boutique agency representing other photojournalists. Her husband, Jack, died a year earlier—attacked early one morning while running in a local park. After his death, Poppy had a nervous breakdown with a two-day blackout.Continue Reading
A beguiling mystery, unique romance and dynamic characters make the Hollow of Fear a perfect readcation for female Sherlock Holmes fans. Set in Victorian England, the Hollow of Fear follows Charlotte Holmes and Mrs. Watson. Looking for her half-brother, Charlotte runs into Moriarty’s handiwork. Also, when Lady Ingram turns upContinue Reading
Dead Ringer is another perfect cozy mystery featuring Agatha Raisin! A group of eight bell ringers is planning a song to welcome the handsome and single bishop to their small village, Thirk Magna. The village church is full of secrets. Bishop Peter’s girlfriend disappeared without a trace a few yearsContinue Reading
The Christmas Cake Murder turns the clock back to before Hannah opened her bakery, The Cookie Jar. In a short prequel set before the rest of the books in the series, Hannah returns home from college to attend her father’s funeral. Her mother, Delores, is understandably depressed so she isContinue Reading
Another murder for Bailey to solve in the excellent cozy mystery, Premeditated Peppermint, the third entry in the Amish Candy Shop series. Bailey works with her Amish grandmother and cousin in her deceased grandfather’s candy shop, Swissmen Sweets in rural Ohio. When Bailey’s NYC ex-boyfriend hits town, he asks herContinue Reading
There are two mysteries in the Silver Anniversary Murder. The first is the death of Lucy’s old friend Beth. Beth’s jump from her penthouse’s balcony is ruled a suicide. But Lucy, a reporter in small town Maine, doesn’t believe it. After all, Beth has three ex-husbands and one almost exContinue Reading
“Your eyes are bigger than a hooch hound at a hop joint” says Jack in the Ghost and the Bogus Bestseller. That perfectly describes my feelings when I saw this delightful series return after a ten year long Big Sleep. Penelope runs a bookstore with her aunt Sadie in Quindicott,Continue Reading
Dr. Emma Rose is convinced that there is a Suicide Gene that makes some families, like the Hemingway’s, more likely to kill themselves in this introspective thriller. Emma is a psychiatrist counseling the McKinney family before one of their members commit suicide. Emma struggles with her own marital and psychologicalContinue Reading
A thrilling chase for a secret buried for decades enlivens the Ancient Nine. The Ancient Nine is a rumored fraternity inside a fraternity inside Harvard. Legend states they protect a secret called Harvard’s Holy Grail. Investigating the Grail has already cost one student his life. Spenser Collins receives a mysteriousContinue Reading
Innovative plotting and world building fill the 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. What would make the replay of a day over and over immeasurably worse? How about also waking up as different people each time you fell asleep? The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a clever blendContinue Reading
Everyone Lies in this fast-paced rollercoaster ride of a thriller. Joe and Mel have an ideal life. Happily married for almost ten years with a perfect young son, William. When Joe and William see Mel turn into a hotel garage, they follow. Joe sees her sitting in the hotel restaurantContinue Reading
Malice Aforethought is a great British golden-age mystery with a killer twist. Mrs. Julia Bickleigh was born into wealth and minor aristocracy. When her father blew the family fortunes before his death, Julia was forced to marry a common doctor. She never let her husband, Dr. Edmund Bickleigh, forget heContinue Reading
Where are the haunts in Read and Gone, the second book in the Haunted Library series? Carrie has her life on track. She has a boyfriend, a job as a library events coordinator and a cute cottage where the rent is cheap. So she isn’t happy when her thieving ex-conContinue Reading