Sophie Hannah has developed a reputation as the inheritor of Agatha Christie’s best known character. Christie’s estate gave Hannah the go ahead to write the new stories that feature Poirot and Inspector Catchpool. I think that many have enjoyed these novels. The Last Death of the Year is the sixth of these mysteries.
This time, Poirot and Catchpool are on a Greek Island (better December weather) with a group of characters that have come to live with a man with a vision. With such noble purpose, could something as dastardly as a murder occur? No spoiler…of course.
All who live on the dilapidated Nash Athanasiou’s estate agree to a set of rules, among which the most important is forgiveness for wrongs. The group who come to live here and to (supposedly) abide by this dictum is varied and complex. There are many backstories and interconnections among this group. When murder strikes, will Poirot be able to solve the case? No spoiler…yes, but I think that it will be very difficult for the reader to do so. Kirkus Reviews states:
Fans hoping to beat Poirot to the mind-bogglingly ingenious solution are well-advised to concede the competition in advance.
Those who want more Christie stories, those who like crime fiction set at the holiday period, those who want a clever story and those who want a fictional escape to a warmer climate in winter will want to pick this up.
Overall, I did enjoy this book. That said, it took a moment or two for me to get all of the characters straight in my mind and to decide if I cared enough about them.
Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this title. All opinions are my own.
I listened to this author’s class on Jane Austen last year and very much enjoyed it. Looser was a wonderful guide to Austen, her world and her novels.
I was intrigued to see what Looser would have to say in this book that is focused on “wildness” and if it would feel fresh. It did indeed.
This title is divided into three main sections, Wild Writings and Wild Family, followed by Shambolic Afterlives. In the first, Looser looks at each of the novels. Read about them all or pick a favorite. Either way, gain some insight.
The second section of the book delves into Jane’s relatives. Learn how one of Austen’s relatives was arrested for shoplifting and more.
Section 3, for example, has a chapter title Sense and Sensibility Goes to Court. Why?
Those interested in spending some time in Austen’s world will want to give this title a look.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 02 September 2025
Description:
From the publisher:
Incisive, funny, and deeply-researched insights into the life, writing, and legacy of Jane Austen, by the preeminent scholar Devoney Looser.
Thieves! Spies! Abolitionists! Ghosts! If we ever truly believed Jane Austen to be a quiet spinster, scholar Devoney Looser puts that myth to rest at last in Wild for Austen. These, and many other events and characters, come to life throughout this rollicking book. Austen, we learn, was far wilder in her time than we’ve given her credit for, and Looser traces the fascinating and fantastical journey her legacy has taken over the past 250 years.
All six of Austen’s completed novels are examined here, and Looser uncovers striking new gems therein, as well as in Austen’s juvenilia, unfinished fiction, and even essays and poetry. Looser also takes on entirely new scholarship, writing about Austen’s relationship to the abolitionist movement and women’s suffrage. In examining the legacy of Austen’s works, Looser reveals the film adaptations that might have changed Hollywood history had they come to fruition, and tells extraordinary stories of ghost-sightings, Austen novels cited in courts of law, and the eclectic members of the Austen extended family whose own outrageous lives seem wilder than fiction.
Written with warmth, humor, and remarkable details never before published, Wild for Austen is the ultimate tribute to Jane Austen.
About the author:
From Amazon:
Devoney Looser, Regents Professor of English at Arizona State University, is author or editor of twelve books, most recently Wild for Austen: A Rebellious, Subversive, and Untamed Jane (2025). Her previous books include Sister Novelists (2022) and The Making of Jane Austen (2017). Looser has published essays in The Atlantic, New York Times, Salon, Slate, The TLS, and the Washington Post, and her series of 24 30-minute lectures on Austen is available through The Great Courses and Audible. In addition to being a quirky Janeite book nerd, Looser has played roller derby under the name Stone Cold Jane Austen.
More From the Publisher
Editorial Reviews:
Review
“Jane the prim and proper is laid to rest here, so that Jane the satirist, Jane the subversive, Jane the wild can rise and make her trouble. This reading of all her work, some of her biography and family history, and many of the reactions―as criticism, as movies, as fandom―gallops along, as exhilarating as it is illuminating. Devoney Looser is a superb interpreter and astonishingly erudite scholar of all things Austen, and she brings her expertise to bear deftly, amusingly, informatively, leaving us with an Austen who’s ready to roll.” – Rebecca Solnit, author of Men Explain Things to Me
“Wild for Austen is the ultimate collection of essays about the beloved Jane and her place in history, literature, and even Hollywood. Devoney Looser places Jane in the pantheon, with her canon of novels, poems, stories, and unfinished works. Looser expertly chronicles how Jane Austen influences the adaptations of her own work after her death and inspires new storytelling through her characters, settings and style. Surprising and new facts unveiled and secrets revealed. I couldn’t put it down!” – Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Shoemaker’s Wife and The View From Lake Como
“By examining the people and events around Jane Austen, Looser makes a vivid and inviting case in Wild for Austen as to why Austen matters in ways both unconventional and challenging. From controversial relatives and acquaintances (accused shoplifters! International spies!) to Austen’s brothers’ abolitionist efforts, Looser unearths, sometimes single-handedly, enough fascinating personal histories to prove the famous line from Pride and Prejudice: ‘people themselves alter so much, that there is something new to be observed in them forever.’ The very same can be said about Austen’s legacy over the centuries, and the essays collected here are a joyful, thought-provoking exploration of why we continue to debate, defend, or debunk the Victorian-era persona of a sheltered spinster who lived behind her quill pen. The reader will come away from this collection not only with new and enriching ways of looking at Austen and her books, but with an appreciation for the limits of biography, the histories that still remain hidden, and the compass that great writing can provide to move forward through it all.” – Natalie Jenner, internationally bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society, The Bloomsbury Girls, and Austen at Sea
“I’m wild about Devoney Looser. No one else wears such deep Austen scholarship so lightly. A brilliant book!” – Lucy Worsley, internationally bestselling author of Jane
I read and enjoyed this author’s earlier book about Carrie Soto but loved this one even more! I underlined a number of passages as I read, something that I don’t always do, because there were some very moving paragraphs (for example when Joan talks about god and the universe).
This is a story about a group of astronauts in the 1980s. Some women are in the group but they are still a rarity. The training of all is well depicted with attention paid to what was at stake for the early classes of females in the field.
Readers also get to know those around these astronauts. Many have families who come into the story.
Three characters in this book kind of melted my heart. They are Joan, Vanessa and Frances. Joan and Vanessa are astronauts while Frances is Joan’s niece.
SPOILER:
Joan and Vanessa are in a relationship. This occurs at a time when it was not considered acceptable. Joan’s awakening to her orientation and sexuality are beautifully evoked.
BACK FROM SPOILER:
Early in the book, readers learn about something that is going on with one of the missions. The suspense of this was so convincingly described that I could hardly bear it. Readers will understand this if they read the book, I think.
All in all, kudos to TJR for a masterful work. Five stars from me.
The new cozy crime novel from the bestselling author of The Marlow Murder Club, soon to be a major TV series on PBS Masterpiece
Verity Beresford is worried about her husband. Oliver didn’t come home last night, so of course Verity goes straight to Judith Potts, Marlow’s resident amateur sleuth, for help. Oliver, founder of the Marlow Amateur Dramatic Society, had rented The Marlow Belle, a private pleasure cruiser, to host an exclusive party for the society, but no one remembers seeing him disembark. And when Oliver’s body washes up on the Thames with two bullet holes in him, it’s time for the Marlow Murder Club to leap into action.
Oliver was, by all accounts, a rather complicated fellow, with a reputation for bullying children during nativity play rehearsals, and he wasn’t short of enemies. Judith, Suzie, and Becks are convinced they’ll find his killer in no time. But things are not as they seem in the Marlow Amateur Dramatic Society, and this case is not so clear-cut after all. The gang will need to keep their wits about them to solve this case… otherwise a killer will walk free.
My thoughts:
I was absolutely delighted to spend time with the gang in this newest entry in the Marlow series. This, like the others, is a traditional mystery with good characters and an interesting plot. Readers will want to see if they can solve the case before the three amateurs and the police.
Anyone who has read others in the series, or who has seen the television adaptations, will I think be happy to pick this one up. It was enjoyable.
Those who are new to the residents of Marlow may want to read this too. They will then pick up all of the others, I think.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title. All thoughts are my own.
I’m the author of THE MARLOW MURDER CLUB books, set in my hometown of Marlow in Buckinghamshire.
The first book in the series has been made into a TV show and can be watched in the UK on the Freeview channel U&Drama and in the USA on PBS/Masterpiece. A second TV series is coming out in 2025 and is based on Death Comes to Marlow, but also includes some brand new murders as well.
Before all of this, I created DEATH IN PARADISE for the BBC and have also written four standalone Richard Poole murder mystery novels. I’m really proud of them, and if you like Death in Paradise, I hope you’ll love the books as well.
This book has been described as “haunting” and I think that I agree. It is the first novel by this author.
Readers will want to know what happened at Coram House when a young boy disappeared. They will also want to know how the past connects to events in the present. Readers will find out along with the true crime reporter who is trying to unravel what happened.
Readers should note that this book was inspired by true events. They should also know that this is a dark read in parts. Just as much was learned about mother-baby homes for unwed mothers, orphanages did not always treat their charges well. This is not new to me but nonetheless makes for an upsetting story.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this title. All thoughts are my own.
Pub date: 15 April 2025
Description:
From the publisher
Sharp Objects meets The Appeal in this “atmospheric and chilling” (Flynn Berry, New York Times bestselling author) novel—based on a shocking true story—about a crime writer who risks everything as she investigates a decades-old mystery at a crumbling orphanage.
On a blistering summer day in 1968, nine-year-old Tommy vanishes without a trace from Coram House, an orphanage on the shores of Lake Champlain. Fifty years later, the opportunity to investigate his disappearance and the orphanage’s eerie lore is just the break that struggling true crime writer Alex Kelley needs.
Arriving in Vermont for research, Alex grows obsessed with Tommy’s disappearance, until her investigation takes a chilling turn with the discovery of a woman’s body in the lake. Alex is convinced this new death is somehow connected to Coram House’s dark past, even if Officer Russell Parker thinks she’s just desperate for a story. As the body count rises, Alex must prove that the key to finding the killer lies in a decades-old murder—or else she risks becoming the next victim herself in this spine-tingling debut that “is not to be missed” (Tessa Wegert, author of The Coldest Case).
From the Publisher
Editorial Reviews
Review
“In Bailey Seybolt’s strong, moody debut novel, Coram House, the husk of a shuttered Catholic orphanage notorious for its legacy of abuse looms on the shores of Lake Champlain. Seybolt maintains high suspense, making even searches through faded papers exciting. Scenes in which Alex learns how the children were disciplined are chilling. Although the Coram House property is being developed into luxury condos, the evil lingers. Seybolt convincingly shows Alex’s growth in regaining her confidence as she works to uncover the truth” —Shelf Awareness
“Seybolt blends true crime and fiction in this absorbing debut. Seybolt skillfully blends points of view. Part Gothic novel (with creepy Coram House playing a role) and part investigative reporting procedural, this will both disturb and fascinate readers.” —Booklist, (starred review)
About the author
From Amazon
Bailey Seybolt grew up in New York City and studied literature at Brown University and creative writing at Concordia University. She now lives with her family in Vermont, not far from Lake Champlain. Coram House is her debut novel. Find out more at BaileySeybolt.com.
Here is the latest edition of this FREE resource for mystery fans. Inside are six featured titles. For each, there is information on the book, a generous excerpt and a chance to find out about the author. I often find new reads from this. I know that I will want to read several of these including Lori Rader-Day’s latest.
Recommended to mystery fans.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Books/Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.
Evans is a versatile author. To me, this new book seemed different from her earlier, The Physicist’s Daughter though both have WWII backgrounds. Here is a more Gothic feeling story but one that is also absorbing.
The setting of the novel includes a home called Rockfall House. To me that was not a name to inspire confidence but rather one that seems rather dark. And, what about that library? Readers will want to know, just as they will want to know about Estella’s family; exactly what has happened to her mother? That is just one issue impacting Estella. Read the book to find out more.
Those who enjoy a story with a bit of an unsettling, darker vibe may want to give this one a look.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title. All thoughts are my own.
Pub date: 24 June 2025
From the publisher:
Can a family’s dark history repeat itself?
Estella Ecker has returned to Rockfall House, the last place on earth she wants to be. Years after she ran away from her overbearing father, she has been forced back home to walk in his footsteps, teaching at the college he dominated and living in the fabulous home where he entertained artists and scholars for decades—and perhaps she owns it now, because her mercurial mother has disappeared. At the center of everything—the whispers, the rumors, the secrets—is her father’s library of rare books, which she had been forbidden to touch while he was alive to stop her.
Everyone in town is watching Estella, with her dead father’s name on their lips, and no one seems to care about her missing mother. Who were her parents, really, and is the answer hidden somewhere in the depths of Rockfall House? And who will Estella be, if she gathers enough courage to find that answer? What she will discover is that no one can escape the secrets hidden in this dark library.
Suspenseful and unsettling but ultimately triumphant, The Dark Library by acclaimed author Mary Anna Evans is a compelling tale of mystery, family secrets, and the quest for truth.
About the author:
From Amazon
About the Author
Mary Anna Evans is the author of the Faye Longchamp archaeological mysteries, which have received recognition including the Benjamin Franklin Award, the Mississippi Author Award, and three Florida Book Awards bronze medals. She is an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, where she teaches fiction and nonfiction writing. Winner of the 2018 Sisters in Crime (SinC) Academic Research Grant
Comments:
“Evans uses suspense, gothic themes, and well-timed twists and turns to deftly push E forward in her search for answers.”―Booklist
“Murder, espionage, romance, and a surprising denouement.”―Kirkus Reviews
The beginning of this novel asks that readers suspend disbelief. Why were these five characters mysteriously invited to attend a society whose mission was not known? The author implies that something higher than the fictional Gilda brought them together. After all, this is a book that is published by a Christian publisher. So…the five are the heir to a cosmetic company, a widower grieving for his wife, a divorced man wanting to see his children, an executive assistant who would feels qualified to be a CEO, and her former husband, an academic who is contemplating a difficult career decision. The story of each of these characters, Coral, Ed, Chuck, Lexa and Jett is told in a way that keeps readers turning the pages. There are romance, secrets revealed and healed, and deep friendships formed over the course of the novel. SPOILER: One of these characters makes a major life decision based on beling called to become an active Christian. I won’t tell you who but in the context of the story, this felt slightly forced to me. Otherwise, I found this novel to be an enjoyable, easy read . Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.
Fresh Water for Flowers is the first book by Valerie Perrin to be published in English. The writer’s native language is French.
Fresh Water is a beautiful book that is told in a unique voice. Protagonist, Violette, was abandoned by her mother and grew up in care. She was a loner until she becomes involved with Phillipe Toussaint. Together they have a child but Phillipe eventually disappears.
Phillipe and Violette worked at a railroad crossing although Violette did most of the work; they later go on to become cemetery keepers. Violette remains there after Phillipe leaves.
The story is told from Violette’s point of view. She tells it all, her hard times, her hopes, the things that she learned and taught herself, the people she sees and cares for and those with whom she works. All this within the background of the cemetery and many sayings from gravestones.
This novel is filled with humanity. I recommend it.
I am reviewing the audio version. It was a beautiful listen and I was sorry when the story ended.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
The cover of this book gave me the feeling that it would be a fun read and it was.
Here is the second in an enjoyable series that offers both mystery and comedy. It is a good combination.
This time mayhem again comes into Eleanor Dash’s life. The events unfurl around a wedding. There is murder and a group of guests all staying on Catalina Island who are suspects. Will Eleanor be able to fix things? What will happen along the way? Read this one to find out. Then wait for the next in the series.
As a side note: Eleanor Dash is quite similar to Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility while Emma is an eponymous Austen heroine.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for this title. All thoughts are my own.
A USA Today Bestseller An Indie Next List Pick (May 2025) An Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense (May 2025)
One of Zibby’s “Most-Anticipated Books of 2025” One of Goodreads’s “Most Anticipated Spring Mysteries and Thrillers” One of Publishers Weekly’s Summer 2025 Reads One of She Reads’s “For The Girlies Who Love Drama in Their Fiction Not Their Life” One of Library Journal’s “Book Pulse: Top Books Of the Week” One of Sacramento Bee’s “ California Island-Set Novels Take the Locked Room Mystery to Splashy New Levels”
“Fast and funny… Mack complements the twisty plot with Eleanor’s brisk and biting first-person narration, chock-full of amusing asides (often in footnotes) that examine the movie business and the craft of mystery writing. This one goes down smooth.”―Publishers Weekly
“Eleanor continues to be a sarcastic narrator who uses footnotes to speak to the reader. The novel is again full of pop references, romance, and a mix of suspects. It is an easy read that will keep you interested . . . to find out who did it.”―Booklist
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for this title. All thoughts are my own.
Pub date: 13 May 2025
From the publisher:
The second in a witty, USA Today bestselling series following author Eleanor Dash as she goes from wedding guest to murder mystery investigator at her best friend’s wedding on Catalina Island.
Attending your best friend’s wedding should be a piece of (wedding) cake, but not for Eleanor Dash, bestselling author of the Vacation Mysteries series. Because murder seems to follow her every time she goes on vacation and is definitely her uninvited plus-one to the special occasion.
Emma Wood, Eleanor’s best friend since childhood, is starring in the movie adaptation of When in Rome, Eleanor’s first novel. Emma is also marrying Fred Winters, a major movie star and Emma’s co-star, who just happens to be playing Connor Smith, Eleanor’s ex and leading man of the series.
Filming wraps and they invite the whole cast and crew to their wedding at nearby Catalina Island. There may be a storm headed their way—because of course there is—but nothing will stop their nuptials . . . that is until Emma receives a note that says “Someone is going to die at the wedding.”
Eleanor is a professional at this point, and she’ll do everything she can to uncover the murderer so true love can prevail . . . before it’s too late for her and the rest of the storm-trapped wedding party
Editorial Reviews
Review
A USA Today Bestseller An Indie Next List Pick (May 2025) An Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense (May 2025)
One of Zibby’s “Most-Anticipated Books of 2025” One of Goodreads’s “Most Anticipated Spring Mysteries and Thrillers” One of Publishers Weekly’s Summer 2025 Reads One of She Reads’s “For The Girlies Who Love Drama in Their Fiction Not Their Life” One of Library Journal’s “Book Pulse: Top Books Of the Week” One of Sacramento Bee’s “ California Island-Set Novels Take the Locked Room Mystery to Splashy New Levels”
“Fast and funny… Mack complements the twisty plot with Eleanor’s brisk and biting first-person narration, chock-full of amusing asides (often in footnotes) that examine the movie business and the craft of mystery writing. This one goes down smooth.”―Publishers Weekly
“Eleanor continues to be a sarcastic narrator who uses footnotes to speak to the reader. The novel is again full of pop references, romance, and a mix of suspects. It is an easy read that will keep you interested . . . to find out who did it.”―Booklist
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 