Category: Mystery

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.

Murder at the White Palace by Allison Montclair (Mystery)

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

Book six of the Sparks and Bainbridge historical mystery series. These books are just fun — a combination of novel, historical interest, and always an interesting body or two that unravel into quirks and twists and plenty of opportunity for the two women to evolve personally. Set in post-WWII London, the two have started the Right Sort Marriage Bureau. Iris Sparks, with a mysterious past in British Intelligence, and Gwendolyn Bainbridge, a genteel war widow who has recently been pronounced “sane” after an extensive engagement with the lunacy courts. I’ve only read book five so I’ll have to go back and start from the beginning to get all the details, but the author does a decent job of giving you enough background to make sense of the present.
In this episode, Gwen has fun with some bad boys and turns out to be a snooker shark (I’m afraid I skimmed over the snooker scenes — all I got was that it is played on a table with some balls) and has the uncanny ability to tell when someone is lying. Iris is dating a charming man whom we love instantly along with her, though he has ties to the underworld that should be unattractive. A body is found that ties back to history and an old bank robbery, and both women take some pretty interesting twists in their love life. They don’t actually match anyone in this story so (as a fellow reviewer pointed out) we have to hope that they manage to stay in business and nobody is paying them to solve mysteries!

Very entertaining and just the right amount of “cozy” for me.

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 July 30th, 2024.

City of Secrets by P. J. Tracy (Mystery / Crime)

Book four of Tracy’s Los Angeles based, Detective Margaret Nolan crime series. I wait for these books — for me they are a perfect combination of pacing, surprises, and just the right amount of tension (i.e. not too much because I don’t enjoy being anxious, but just enough that I’m not bored reading about tea parties while someone is murdered offstage).

In this episode, what appears to be “just” another fatal car jacking, turns out to be a far more complex crime involving big business, cartels, and some pretty crazy people. I love Margaret Nolan as a detective. She has the same qualities you would appreciate in a male detective — strong, competent, honest, determined — and manages to be simultaneously female without having to introduce any “traditionally feminine” traits. No shopping scenes! No whining with girlfriends about men! No struggling with single motherhood while trying to have a career! She’s just a consummate cop who happens to be a woman. Thank goodness. She’s a great character and I’m happy to read more about her. Other strong characters populate the series — her cynical and somewhat world-weary partner Al Crawford, Sam Easton — a friend recovering from Afghanistan induced PTSD, and Remy Boudreau, fellow homicide detective and a more serious than planned lover.

One of my favorite mystery / crime writers. I really like her writing — a few quotes:

“They were victims of a rotting culture of violence — domestic terrorism, really, — that wouldn’t go away, no matter how many gangsters the LAPD locked up.”

“He was wearing a foul weather windbreaker and his frowny, pissed-off face. Maybe it was because his tiny umbrella had unicorns on it.”

“From a young age, her mother had always told her that her rare combination of strawberry-blonde hair and pale skin made her a genetic tinderbox and her temper should be managed early.”

“Consorting with evil to exterminate greater evil was an existential conflict of the job — hell, of the world — but it was getting more difficult to justify.”

“Interviewing witnesses was like slowly unwrapping a gift, hoping there was a gold nugget inside instead of a lump of coal.”

“Nolan was always amazed by the sullen indifference of criminals, like they were ordinary citizens who’d just gotten a bogus speeding ticket.”

“The job was slowly corroding him from the inside, like poison that didn’t kill you right away. So was Los Angeles. It had a shrill, dangerous hum that hadn’t existed five years ago, and it scared him.”

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 August 20th, 2024.

A Scandal in Mayfair by Katherine Schellman

I quite enjoy this cozy mystery series set in Regency era London (this is number 5 and they are arriving yearly). Socialite and war widow, Lily Adler, is approached by a young woman who feels her Uncle is robbing her of her inheritance. Of course, nothing is as simple as it seems, and missing wills, a body or two, and some mysterious illnesses combine into a real threat for Lily (who of course would never give up!).

A little romance, character development across the series, and some very good twists. I was quite pleased that I figured things out just pages before they were revealed — the mark of a mystery perfectly tuned to my taste — ie not obvious but directly related to the clues presented. Plenty of cozy style filler but I enjoyed the filler (and it wasn’t stupid) so that was just fine. The characters tended to be on the slightly non-conforming / diverse side which gave the London society setting a bit more flavor as various levels of snootiness struggle to apply the “correct” respect.

Fun!

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on August 20th, 2024.

So Far and Good by John Straley (Mystery – Audio Book)

My first John Straley novel, and it turns out to be the 8th in his Alaska based Cecil Younger investigator series. I found it fascinating — now I just have to see how much I like the main character when I start back at book #1

The story in brief: Cecil’s daughter’s friend George (for Georgina) does a surprise DNA test for herself and her unaware mother. The results are not what she expected, and the book takes off from there — and I mean really takes off. Meanwhile, Cecil is in jail serving time for murder of a man who had done something terrible to his daughter. I don’t know what that was and I’m guessing it took place in one of the previous books I haven’t read yet, but I have to say that his experiences in prison and the way he participated in the story from there were deeply interesting from both an action and a psychological / philosophical perspective.

I loved the characters — from Cecil himself, to his possibly autistic best friend, to his research scientist wife, to the personalities in prison, to the long bearded survivalist defense attorney, to the Tlingit parents, and to the teenagers at the center of it all. I think what I liked best about the characters is that they all have a strong sense of morality and principles and they stick to them. The morality may or may not not be the same as yours or mine — but it exists and is consistent. Loved the Alaska setting and the various relevant discussions of prison life including gender fluidity and the psychology of the relationships between inmates and parole boards, men and women, black and white.

I’ve already gone back and started the first in the series…