Category: Mystery

The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny (Mystery / Thriller)

Writing: 4/5 Characters: 3/5 Plot: 3/5

If you have liked every Louise Penny book so far, you will probably like this one, too. Gamache gets pulled into a mystery that smacks of domestic terrorism and calls into question everything (and almost everyone) he thought he could trust.

Penny writes taut, suspense-filled crime fiction with very accessible prose — this was an easy read for me — but I did not find myself enjoying it, and I’m not sure I will keep reading the series (despite the fact that I’ve read them all and pre-ordered this book in my enthusiasm!).

As the series has progressed (this is book 19), the stakes have gotten higher — too high. I preferred the highly psychological, small-scale, surprisingly twisted murder mysteries to these large-scale, conspiracy oriented, thrillers. At the same time, this book had a lot of filler. I love Three Pines (the town) and the many interesting characters we have come to love over the past two decades, but there were far too many filler scenes emphasizing the bounty of their lives: Many (too, too, many) food and wine descriptions, children bouncing around doing cute things, the love between our aging inspector and his (too) saintly wife. Somehow in this book this filler simply became too repetitive and too content-free to keep my interest during the many pages they occupied. Lastly, I honestly had a hard time believing that there could be a conspiracy to do something as deadly as planned, without any motive other than (apparently) power, that managed to attract so many previously decent people.

So in summary — second half a good crime thriller, characters had far less depth than they had in the earlier works; writing a little less polished — but an entertaining enough read.

Where Serpents Sleep by C. S. Harris (Historical Mystery — Audio Book)

This is the fourth book in the Sebastian St. Cyr mystery series. I listen to them on audio book because the reader — Davina Porter — is the absolute best, with convincing “voices” for characters of all backgrounds, genders, professions, and place of origin accents. I highly recommend listening to, rather than reading, this series, despite the fact that I am primarily a book reader. The series starts in 1811; this fourth book starts in 1812. The Napoleonic Wars are in full swing and the upstart Americans are giving the British trouble (think “the War of 1812”). This book concerns itself with the killing of eight prostitutes who were sheltering in a Quaker house of refuge.

So why do I love this series so much? The characters — even those who appear in only one book — are fully fleshed out with time and place appropriate personalities. They run the gamut from nobility (both the utterly self obsessed and the more humane) to street urchins, with each novel bringing to light the experiences and behaviors of those in professions we don’t often hear about: for example, the chimney sweep boys or young prostitutes. The historical setting comprises all manner of detail from political power struggles, foreign policy and entanglements, the class system, and quite often the roles allowed or foisted upon women. Some wonderful strong female characters, along with those portraying more negative female stereotypes of the time. And always convoluted plot lines that introduce the reader to more of the time period — (often ridiculous) laws, the constabulary, power machinations, diplomacy, etc.

The main character is Sebastian St. Cyr — heir to an Earl and with a piercing intelligence. At 29, he has already seen quite a bit of military service and is a very impressive fighter as demonstrated through many action oriented scenes, none of which last longer than my low tolerance for extended action scenes allows. While one description called him an anti-hero (I’m guessing because he has no trouble dispatching people who are in the process of trying to kill him), I think he makes the perfect hero, with his strong regard for justice for all people (not just those with a title), and the ability to correct injustices with the combination of rank, privilege, physical prowess, courage, intelligence, and an unbreakable moral code.

While I started reading this series somewhere in the middle, and bounced about for a while, I’m now going back to the beginning and stepping through all the installments that I missed.

A Slash of Emerald by Patrice Mcdonough (Historical Mystery)

This Victorian London mystery really grew on me with its abundance of female characters pursuing professions and activities still unusual at the time (1867). Julia Lewis is a doctor and medical examiner who is called on to do post-mortems on women and to inspect suspected prostitutes for venereal disease (!) I love the historical note that Julia — trained in the US — is able to practice medicine in Britain (where medical schools do not admit women) though a loophole: Parliament added doctors with foreign degrees to the medical register in 1858 without specifying that they had to be men. Absolutely delightful piece of (real world) trivia! She is paired with the rather open-minded Inspector Tennant in this second installment of the Dr. Julia Lewis Mysteries.

This episode centers on the art world of Victorian England, the narrative flowing between competition for the Royal Academy’s annual exhibition and the frustrations of the female artists who wish to pursue art as a profession, rather than a genteel pastime. I enjoyed the fully fleshed out setting which opened an entire world of models, studios, galleries, technique, and inspiration with just enough well-researched detail. I particularly enjoyed the comment of one artist who pointed out that the best models were actresses who were able to channel the painter’s intention while posing.

Decent writing, strong women characters, and full marks for an historical setting that is detailed, interesting, and accurate. I’m going back to read book number one!

Thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on February 25th, 2025.

Two Times Murder by Adam Oyebanji (Mystery)

Writing: 4/5 Plot: 4.5/5 Characters: 4.5/5

Greg Abimbola is a multi-racial Russian with British citizenship who is trying to stay under the radar by teaching Russian at a small private school in Pittsburgh. But the book would be pretty dull if he managed to achieve that goal! He’s got an interesting and twisted history that unwinds slowly in response to the events brought to his doorstep despite his reluctance to accept them. There are several independent but connected plot lines — an apparent suicide, an unidentified body tossed in the river, and a DEI triggered clash at a neighboring elite school — all leading down some pretty engrossing paths. The writing is clean, the characters are diverse (in more than color) and have depth that is both quirky and sometimes inspiring, and I appreciated the (fairly) unbiased inclusion of a specific instantiation of the DEI/woke culture war.

This is the second book in the “Quiet Teacher” series. I look forward to reading future installments and will try to go back and catch up on whatever I have missed. I’ve seen the series labeled as “Agatha Christie meets John le Carre” and that’s not a bad tag line!

Thank you to Severn House and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on November 5th, 2024.

A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke (Mystery)

A nicely written and engaging murder mystery starring an unusual detection team: Cordelia Graves — a recently deceased woman coming to terms with navigating the world in her new state — and her new “roommate,” 20-year old Ruby Young — an annoyingly perky young woman who is hell on (Cordelia’s beloved) houseplants. When the body of the neighbor across the hall turns up in the snow wearing pajama bottoms and fuzzy socks, both women are concerned that the police just don’t seem terribly interested. In order to team up, however, Ruby needs to know that Cordelia exists and then they need to work out some way of communicating as ghostly Cordelia is invisible and silent to live ears.

The pacing could have been tighter, and the “ghostly” ideas were not terribly original but they were executed quite well. I liked the alternating POVs between the two leads and their engagement and developing friendship under such unusual circumstances. It was easy to read and I was satisfied with the resolution, though it did get a bit repetitive at times. A little cliffhanger at the end ensures there will be a second in the series. All told a light, fun read.

Don’t be confused by the author — in all honesty I selected this book because I thought it was by Olivie Blake of the Atlas series, but it is instead by Olivia Blacke. Looks very similar at a glance!

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on October 29th, 2025.

Fog City by Claire M Johnson (Historical Mystery)

I loved this first episode of a new crime noir series starring a hard boiled detective’s equally hard boiled secretary who takes over for her boss when he goes on an extended bender. 1930s San Francisco where a wealthy elite doesn’t even give a nod to Prohibition, and absolutely everyone seems to be running their own con. A banker’s (second) wife comes to the agency to ask for help in locating her errant stepson. In no time we’re whirling about in opium dens, speakeasies, fancy restaurants, and police cells trying to get to the bottom of a widely expanding set of dead bodies. I loved the supporting cast (many of whom I look forward to meeting again in future books) — all fully fleshed out, non dull, people with distinct and intriguing personalities, and I loved that there were plenty of opportunities for philosophical discussions on evil vs “regular” sin and morality in general. The style (and environs) reminded me of Dashiell Hammett at his best — with the clever substitution of the substituting secretary. Plenty of great male characters, by the way, and full acceptance of what women were able (allowed) to do at the time. I always like stories where some group has difficulty getting things done because of social conventions but they get on and do it anyway without bothering to whine about it 🙂
A great surprise read for me!

Thank you to Level Best Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on July 30th, 2024

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman (Mystery)

A “humorous” thriller, if there is such a thing. Full of grand scale money laundering, kick-ass private security, and jetting about from Santa Lucia to Dubai to any other place sporting dead bodies somehow linked together. Clearly designed to launch another series, I didn’t fall in love with it the way I immediately did “The Thursday Murder Club.” Mostly because I didn’t fall in love with the characters — yet. The three primary characters are Amy Wheeler — the aforementioned kick-ass private security person, Rosie D’Antonio — the over-the-top flamboyant and very wealthy best selling author, and Amy’s father-in-law Steve — widowed ex-cop who was by far my favorite character (the other two seeming oddly personality-less). The bad guys are cartoonish but kind of funny, and there is a humorous depiction of a nefarious usage of ChatGPT as well as a subtly searing portrayal of the new breed of influencers (who provide some of dead bodies mentioned above). The plot relied on more stupidity than I enjoy, but by the last quarter of the book I was hooked and found the ending pretty satisfying. I’m a big Osman fan, so I’m hoping book two fleshes of the personalities a little more and gets off to a slightly more engaging start.

Thank you to Pamela Dorman Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on Sept. 17th, 2024.

What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley (Mystery)

Flavia De Luce is back! Joined (against her wishes) by her obnoxious (but very similar IMHO) cousin Undine and the always welcome, long-time family retainer Dogger, Flavia sets out to defend the family’s cook against a murder charge. Major Grayleigh — a genial but private man — was found dead after eating the mushrooms picked and cooked by Mrs. Mullet. Obviously nothing is what it seems on the surface, and there are some big surprises that unfold with the mystery. All told in Bradley’s irreverent style and populated with arcane bits of history that I can’t believe are real. The Neck Verse and clergy indemnity? Timycha, a pregnant Pythagorean philosopher, who bit off her own tongue to prevent her disclosing secret information during torture? Look them up!

I always like the characters — some new, some old. Max — a retired concert pianist of “diminished verticality” (his words) — is a favorite of mine. In all, plenty of fun. I had wondered if Bradley had stopped writing as it’s been five years since the last volume, and they had been coming annually so I’m happy to see that it’s not over yet! I’m not actually sure how old Flavia is any more — she was 11 at the start of the series but that was nine books ago …

Thank you to Bantam and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on Sept. 3rd, 2024.

The Examiner by Janice Halett (Mystery)

A kind of a cozy thriller, if that makes sense. Six diverse students are part of a new art master’s program but things go weirdly wrong amidst the standard types of exercises mixed with a “real world” final project installation at a local tech company. The entire book is composed of emails, text messages, online assignments, essays, and assessments, giving the book a kind of forensic feel as events (and the ensuing panic) are slowly revealed. No dialog, no internal ponderings, no real time action.

Unfortunately, this is not my kind of book. It’s very slow paced and is largely composed of “filler” with way too much detail on the arts program (not the art) and interacting with the tech company. It was repetitive, full of bureaucracy, and that particularly irritating mode of interacting with others which is false in every possible way. By the second half of the book there were some big twists and surprises, but honestly they didn’t pass my “not stupid” test. I can deal with “stupid” in my plots if the book is very funny or the characters so interesting that I get to think about how they would react in these improbable situations, but this book is not funny and the characters are not depicted in depth. They aren’t even likable. Perhaps I’m lucky in that I never had a work environment (or school environment) that was populated by such unpleasant and incompetent people! Most of them seemed like absolute prats (British slang for someone who is foolish or stupid, or has little ability — this is a British book, after all!).

There was one good line: “That’s something they don’t tell you about teamwork. It can normalize the horrific.” Never thought about teamwork that way but I get it.

This is my first Janice Hallett book and I know she is popular. I can see that some people would enjoy the text based story, the crazy activists, the shallow and negative depiction of corporations and academic institutions that we can all rally around and groan about but … not for me.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on Sept. 10th, 2024.

What Cannot Be Said by C.S. Harris (Historical Mystery — audio book)

The latest (number 19!) of the early 19th century series centered around Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, who has a calling to help Bow Street untangle tricky murder cases, particularly when the upper classes are involved.

This episode takes place in July, 1815 — just as Napoleon is captured for the second time, his fate left to the British to determine (exile was chosen because nobody wanted to create a precedent for murdering heads of state, regardless of their crimes). Sebastian is brought in to investigate the brutal murder of a Baronet’s wife and her 16 year old daughter, their bodies posed in the exact same positions as those in a prior crime fourteen years earlier. Through an investigation tangled with possibilities, we are led to a dark conclusion that I admit I never would have suspected (though all the clues were there).

Harris excels at the successive unfolding of layer after layer of intrigue, suspects, and background stories. From lunatic asylums to the work houses to neglectful baby fostering to Dickensian apprenticeships and cruel taskmasters for the unfortunate orphans to soldiers returning from war along with the ever present sniping, posturing, and opportunities for outrage of the upper classes, the story gets richer and richer as it progresses.

The audio book reader was new for me — the first 16 books were narrated by Davina Porter who is one of my absolute favorites. I have no complaints at all about Amy Scanlon but I do miss Ms Porter’s voice.