Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too!

Below is the summary of this novel from Goodreads.  It very clearly gives the sense of what this book is about.  I listened to the audio book which I found delightful, especially because of the combination of British and French accents.  This is a good, light mystery.  There will be a second in the series next year.  The author’s name here is a pen name.  The book is written by a husband and wife.

The first entry in a clever, lighthearted mystery series set in modern Provence—a delightful blend of Agatha Christie and Peter Mayle—featuring the irrepressible Penelope Kite, a young-at-heart divorcee with a knack for stumbling across dead bodies.

It’s love at first sight when Penelope Kite sees Le Chant d’Eau—The Song of Water—the stone farmhouse tucked high in the hills above the Luberon valley, complete with a garden, swimming pool, and sweeping mountain vistas. For years, Penelope put her unfaithful ex-husband and her ungrateful stepchildren first. Since taking early retirement from her job in forensics at the Home Office in England, she’s been an unpaid babysitter and chauffeur for her grandchildren. Now, she’s going to start living for herself. Though her dream house needs major renovations, Penelope impulsively buys the property and moves to St. Merlot.

But Penelope’s daydreams of an adventurous life in Provence didn’t include finding a corpse floating face down in her swimming pool. The discovery of the dead man plunges her headlong into a Provençal stew of intrigue and lingering resentments simmering beneath the deceptively sunny village. Having worked in the forensics office, Penelope knows a thing or two about murder investigations. To find answers, she must carefully navigate between her seemingly ubiquitous, supercilious (and enviably chic) estate agent, the disdainful chief of police, and the devilishly handsome mayor—even as she finds herself tempted by all the delicacies the region has to offer. Thank goodness her old friend Frankie is just a flight away . . . and that Penelope is not quite as naïve as her new neighbors in St. Merlot believe.

Set against the exquisite backdrop of Provence, steeped in history, atmosphere, and secrets, Death in Provence introduces an irresistible heroine and a delightful new mystery series.

A fine mix of mystery, suspense and literary fiction.  Enjoy!

This fun book is geared to three to six-year-olds. While reading, young children will visit many spots in DC including the National Gallery, the Natural History Museum, the Air and Space Museum and the National Zoo among others. On each two page spread, there is information on the location along with the number of monsters who are hiding in the picture. Young children can enjoyably both learn and play as they look at this short book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this cute read. All opinions are my own.

The Forgotten Guide to Happiness looks like a “nice” read and is only $.99.  Circling the Sun is by the author of The Paris Wife.  This one is about Beryl Markham.

This book is related to the author’s earlier novel, The Bookshop on the Corner.  Some characters from that book are present as is the book van book shop, which I love.

While I enjoyed The Bookshop on the Corner, I did not find this novel to be nearly as good.  The premise is there; young mom with a mute child wants to find a new life.  So, Zoe moves to Scotland to work with Nina, the protagonist of the earlier title.  Zoe’s trials caring for three children plus her own and her experiences on the book van are central to the plot.  Of course, there is also a romance. In addition, readers who enjoyed Nina from the last book, will get to see how her pregnancy goes.  There just might be a surprise!

This book may be best for true lovers of this author.  I found it to be a bit slow and surprisingly, for the first time, I did not find myself fully enjoying a book by this author.

I will still read Jenny Colgan’s novels in the future.  I hope that the next one will be as good as I know that she can be.  Let me know what you think if you read this one.  I am interested to know.

Some real variety today.  Several mysteries, an historical fiction and some women’s fiction.  Mysteries are The Dream Stalker, Murder Out of Turn and Murder at Chateau du Mer.  Historical fiction is House of Shadows.  Celia Imrie and Barbara Delinsky are women’s fiction.  I also include Wiley Cash.  While I have not read this book, it has excellent reviews.

This week in class we discussed In the Last Analysis, the first book in the Kate Fansler series of mysteries.  The book was written under a pseudonym with the author, Carolyn Heilbrun being a feminist scholar and professor at Columbia.

The author’s protagonist is herself an English professor at Columbia.  A student of hers asks for a recommendation to a psychoanalyst.  Kate refers the student, Janet, to Emmanuel Bauer.  Emmanuel is a Freudian analyst which leads to some interesting asides in the book.  He is also a past lover of Kate’s.

Janet is murdered.  Kate is invested in learning what happened both because she is the one who referred Janet to Emmanuel and because Kate and Emmanuel have been good friends, even though their affair ended. She is concerned that he not be found guilty if he did not commit the crime.  From this point, Kate uses her resources and delegation skills to gather the pertinent facts.  The solution to the mystery, in my opinion, is less interesting than other aspects of this novel.

Kate is perhaps one of the first feminist detectives.  She is very urban, does not seemingly want to marry, supports herself, smokes, drinks and is a curious, intelligent woman.

By the end of the story, which is improbable in spots, the case is solved.  In accord with mystery traditions going back many years, order is restored as the perpetrator is caught.  Along the way, there are references to classes that Kate teaches,  other literary references (one of which is important), life on campus and psychoanalysis.

This book was written about 50 years ago but seems contemporary in terms of the issues that are still important.  If you have not read the series, it is worth a try.

I read and enjoyed this author’s first novel, The Postmistress, so was thrilled to receive an e galley of her second novel, The Guest Book. The Guest Book was chosen as a Barnes and Noble book club read and it is easy to see why. This is the sort of novel that the reader wants to talk about with others who spent time getting to know the Miltons, their circle, and those who are on the outside of it.

The story covers three generations in a narrative that moves back and forth in time, beginning with Ogden and Kitty. They appear to literally own all that they could ever want, even including an island in Maine that is central to the book. The next generation includes Moss, Evelyn and Joan. Children who grew up with so much and who each make decisions about how they want to live in the world. Their children form the book’s third generation. Other important characters are Leonard, who is Jewish and Reg who is African American.

The world of these characters resembles the dance on the island late in the book. People dance with “their own” and occasionally with “others.” These interactions fuel the plot and thinking of the novel.

This is a story about those with power who casually dislike those who are not like them. So…can Leonard, who is Jewish, ever truly be with Joan? Is there a reason that Reg, who is African American does not sign the guest book of the title?

The reader spends much time with Kitty. No spoilers but several of her decisions, one casual and without awareness of the tragedy that will befall and one with knowledge of that but still a particular decision. The reader will be immersed in Kitty’s thoughts about the choices that she has made.

It can be easy to dislike some of the characters for their choices. The author tries to show that life and decisions are complex, made for reasons that are not always clear and may or may not be regretted. Ms. Blake has a message that she would like readers to take away. Around it, she creates a novel of considerable depth.

I highly recommend this one. Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an e galley in exchange for an honest review.