Tag: book-review

Spend time with: The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict-Audio Book narrated by Bessie Carter

As far as I know, this favorite author of mine has not written a mystery like this one before. Well, here is yet another tour de force by Ms. Benedict. It feels like she is skilled at writing both a detective story and historical fiction. I recommend it highly.

Many know who the Queens of Crime were. This group included Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Baroness Orczy, and Margery Allingham. They all have prominent roles in this enjoyable story that is narrated by Dorothy Sayers.

At the time that the story was set, a number of male writers of detective fiction decided to band together in a society. Well, the women wanted a part of this too and pushed their way into the Detection Club.

In this story, these women want to prove their worth by solving a real case. They become involved in figuring out what happened to a British nurse who was murdered in France. They are intrepid in following clues, making hypotheses, and working to bring matters to a resolution.

Along with the crime story, readers are given insight into who these women of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction were. I enjoyed these parts of the story and also what was shared about the creation of their novels.

All in all, this is a most engaging read that fans of historical crime fiction and Benedict will enjoy. I think that Benedict will find some new enthused readers as well.

Note: I am a fan of toggling between the audio and reading editions of titles. They complement one another and add to my enjoyment. In this instance, the audio book narrator did a wonderful job of speaking in the voices of each of the main characters. This added to my pleasure in this title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this title. Also, thank you to Macmillan Audio for the audio book. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 11 February 2025

Another forthcoming title featuring these characters:

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The Killings at Kingfisher Hill

#TheKillingsatKingfisherHill #NetGalley

by Sophie Hannah is an e book bargain

#TheKillingsatKingfisherHill #NetGalley

The Killings at Kinfisher Hill is the fourth mystery that Sophie Hannah has written with the permission of the Agatha Christie estate. The books feature Hercule Poirot. They are stand alones so can be read in any order.

This book, along with the others in the series, have an old fashioned feel. They have some Christie trademarks with traditional settings, intricate plots and some interesting characters. Readers know that with the help of his “little grey cells,” Poirot will solve the case.

There are a number of threads to the story. In one, a young woman refuses to initially board a coach because she has been told that she will be murdered if she sits in seat seven. What will happen to her whether she sits there or not?

Poirot has a conversation with a mysterious woman on this same coach. She tells him that she has murdered someone and regales him with the tale while remaining anonymous. Who is she? Did she do what she said? How will Poirot find out?

Then there is Helen. She has confessed to a murder but it is not clear that she actually killed the victim. Did she? Why if she did, and why confess if she did not?

And…who is the second murder victim? Why were they murdered? HOw does this connect with the first murder in the story?

Thank goodness that Poirot is around to bring order to the case and the reader’s world. Fans of traditional mysteries and/or Agatha Christie will enjoy this case. Can your “little grey cells” figure it out?

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

An e book bargain: Death in a Lonely Place

by Stig Abell

This is Stig Abell’s second title; it follows on Death Under a Little Sky. While it is not necessary to have read the first book to enjoy this one, anyone who likes Death in a Lonely Place will want to read the origin story.

Here are many of the characters from the first book starting with Jake. He is a former detective who has chosen to live largely off the grid in a remote home that he was left by a relative (although he has many go arounds). Readers should take a look at the map of the estate that is in the front of the book. Jake has charmingly named the various spots for well-known detective fiction people and characters. There are other mysteries and authors mentioned in the text as well.

Jake is in a relationship with a local vet, Livia, who has a young daughter named Diana. He wants this relationship to succeed. He and Livia are in different spots as an old case surfaces and Jake becomes involved while Livia’s main wish is to keep Diana safe.

No Taboo-it is a dark organization that offers people the unthinkable. In investigating it Jake has to think about a very dark place. Readers will wonder how the events unfold. Will Diana’s newest and very wealthy client put her and/or Diana in danger?

This book offers an interesting mix between Jake’s rather cozy domestic life and some very nasty business. Abell manages both of these story aspects well.

I recommend this title to those who enjoy crime stories. I look forward to whatever Abell writes next.

Many thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 11 April 2024

Praise for Death in a Lonely Place

‘Loved this. Multiple layers of delight for crime fiction fans’ Lee Child, creator of Jack Reacher

‘Abell is a skilled storyteller and it’s easy to fall into the pages of Death in a Lonely Place. Highly recommend’ Karin Slaughter, creator of Will Trent

‘An immersive, intelligent delight with huge atmosphere and heart. My favourite new crime series’ Lucy Foley, author of The Paris Apartment

‘Utterly beautiful descriptive prose that brings Jake Jackson’s world to life’ Jane Casey, author of the Maeve Kerrigan series

‘A darkly elegant, thrilling, escapist slice of countryside crime’ Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End

What could be better than: A Recipe for Christmas

by Jo Thomas

#ARecipeforChristmas #NetGalley

I found myself constantly reading “just one more” chapter every time I picked up this book. It is light (yet with some depth) and a very enjoyable novel. That said, it does require some suspension of disbelief, I think.

Have you ever felt that you were in a rut? Doing a job that you know well but which feels unsatisfying? Have you ever hoped for the rush of a new romance and the chance to make a spontaneous life change? These are aspects of Clare’s life so when the opportunity to live in Switzerland with her new romance is a possibility, she does the unexpected and goes.

Clare wants to take a course while there and chooses chocolate making. Through a bit of an error, Clare has enrolled herself in a class with those who have much more experience than she. Not everyone is nice to this beginner. Despite doubts, Clare stays.

Readers get to know a lot about the making of chocolate. I enjoyed this aspect of the book. They also get to know the other students in Clare’s class and those who work at the school.

The boyfriend turns out to be a maybe. Read the book to see if Clare is with him at the end or with a well-known chocolatier whom readers learn is facing his own challenge.

Recommended to those who like fiction, women’s fiction, romance, stories of growth, Switzerland and chocolate. That certainly means many readers who will enjoy this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK-Transworld for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 10 October 2024

An author to watch: Jo Callaghan

The author’s first book:

I had seen this book on a British bookstore’s website and was quite intrigued. I was delighted when it became available in the U.S. and thrilled to get an early review copy of this series starter.

Jo Callaghan has already received awards and praise for her debut. She is the Winner of the Crime Writers’ Association’s John Creasy New Blood Dagger Award and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. These are huge accomplishments and, in my opinion, well deserved.

Readers will not forget Kat and Aide. Kat is a detective who has been paired with an artificial intelligence device. It is an experiment to see if and how AI might be useful in investigations. Aide can assume bodily form as a hologram, at times causing much consternation. He also can be rather outspoken. There is much interplay between Kat’s intelligence and emotions as compared with Aide’s brilliance and lack of tact.

Kat, Aide, her team and the creator of Aide Lock are tasked with the investigation of two (cold) missing persons cases, both young men. One is a Black student missing from Uni. The other is a white theater graduate who is from a well to do family. Are these situations independent or linked?

In this novel, there is an excellent mystery plot and added to this are the AI elements of the story. Both kept me turning the pages and sad to reach the end of the story. Luckily the sequel, which is out in the UK, will be coming to the U.S. before too long.

The other aspect of the story that I enjoyed was the characters. Each had enough back story to keep them interesting. In the case of Kat, she is widowed and has a teenage son. One of her investigators has a sister who had a bad experience at university while another, Debbie, seemingly lacks confidence. The relatives of the missing young men and others also very much come to life.

This book is easily one of my favorites of the year. I hope Callaghan writes many more titles.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this one. All opinions are my own.

Jo Callaghan’s new book!

#LeaveNoTrace #NetGalley

Jo Callaghan’s first novel was easily one of my favorite crime stories of 2024. All of the elements that made me love that book are back in Leave No Trace, the second in this series. These include characters with depth (and backstory), a plot that keeps the pages turning, and the use of a unique sidekick to detective Kat Frank.

AIDE is an AI created detective. Through a hologram, he looks very real. His thoughts, although at times concrete because of a lack of understanding of nuance, are often key to the case. It has been enjoyable to watch the “relationship” between Kat and AIDE evolve. That is just one of the joys of the series.

This time, Kat has asked for a “live” as compared to historical case. The one that she is given is rather grim. A man has been found at the top of a local landmark and he has been gruesomely murdered. The case will lead to fear and warnings to young men.

Readers know that the case will be solved. The enjoyment is in watching how the team accomplishes this.

Kudos to the author. I am already eager for book three.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 07 January 2025

The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry

Patti Callahan Henry is one of my absolute favorite authors. Ever since reading Becoming Mrs. Lewis I have been a fan. The Secret Book of Flora Lea was one of the most enjoyable books that I read last year. And now, there will be (in March 2025), The Story She Left Behind. It is another triumph of emotional storytelling.

The novel opens in the U.S. in the 1950s and takes place between there and England. Readers meet Clara Harrington and her daughter Wynnie. They are very close as was Clara to her own mother before she disappeared. What happened to her is a central theme in the novel.

Clara’s mother (based on a real person), Bronwyn, was a writer with a vivid imagination. In fact, she created not only her own fictional world but a language. Her famous novel was published when she was very young. The dictionary that will decode the language has been missing ever since Bronwyn went away.

The author makes clear that Bronwyn had struggles. However, there was no indication that she would vanish. The loss has been pivotal in Clara’s life.

Out of nowhere, Clara hears from Charlie (in London) who has found some belongings of Bronwyn among his father’s papers. The story is set when Clara and Wynnie travel to meet Charlie and are immediately enveloped in the devastating fog of 1952.

No spoilers so no more plot. I will just say that this novel has everything I want in a book. The characters, the vividly described settings and the story all kept me both wanting to turn the pages and not wanting to as I did not want to finish the book. I recommend this title most highly. I am already wishing for Henry’s next book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is an e book bargain

by joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews

This is a wonderful historical novel based upon the Book Women who delivered library materials to those in the out of the way sections of Kentucky.  The book women were part of a program started by President Roosevelt under the WPA.

There are many book women in Troublesome Creek, Kentucky but the protagonist of the novel is the unforgettable Cussy.  Cussy speaks in dialect which helps the reader to fully enter into her world.  Cussy faces special challenges because she is the last of the ‘blues.’  There really were blue-skinned people in America as a supplement at the back of the novel attests.  They were objects of curiosity and also of prejudice, just as was the case for the African American population.

Cussy wants to be independent both before and after her disastrous short term marriage.  And yet, what will happen with patron Jackson who is one of the few to call Cussy by name, rather than the derogatory Bluet?

Cussy’s love of books flows through the novel.  There are references to books that were popular at the time, including those by Steinbeck and Rex Stout.  Cussy’s inventiveness in making books and delivering what her patrons need is impressive.

The landscape of rural Kentucky, the small towns, the mines, the mountains are all well described.  Each patron that Cussy visits has a back story and readers will even come to learn more about the mule who transports her.

If you are a reader who enjoys historical fiction set in the U.S., consider this one.  Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Sourcebooks, for this book in exchange for an honest review.

Welcome back, Molly: The Mistletoe Mystery

A Maid Novella

by Nita Prose

#TheMistletoeMystery #NetGalley

This holiday themed novella in The Maid series makes a perfect stocking stuffer or gift for someone this holiday season-it could even be you. Anyone who has read the first two books in the series (a third will come next year), knows that Molly is unique and well-suited to her work as a hotel maid.

This time it is the Christmas season. Will all go well for Molly and Juan, the man who has come into her life? There are some challenges. Still, this is a Christmas book so readers can hope/trust that all will be well.

Enjoy this holiday read. It is fun to spend time with Molly and those around her. I recommend this title and the series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 01 October 2024

From the Publisher

“Love is the greatest mystery of all.”
“The most interesting and endearing character in a long time,” says Stephen King

Earlier titles:

Molly is back: The Mystery Guest (by Nina Prose)

I enjoyed getting to know: The Maid by Nita Prose

Try for some: Mindfulness in Reading

Meditations on Words & Wisdom

by Ella Berthoud

#MindfulnessinReading #NetGalley

This title is part of a series on mindfulness. Previous titles have included Mindfulness in Gardening, Mindfulness in Knitting and, Mindfulness in Wild Swimming, among others. The wide range of subject matters shows that mindfulness can be approached/practiced in many ways.

The world feels so shaky at times that mindfulness may become more popular than ever. Those who already enjoy reading will, I think, find that if mindfulness is needed, here is one way to embrace it. This book has chapters on topics like losing yourself in a book, ways to read, reading like a child, sharing the joy of reading, finding one’s self in a book, and putting down books. There are also helpful resources at the end of the title.

Note that the reader’s guide through this book is a true bibliophile. I enjoyed what she had to say from the very beginning when she writes about how she taught herself to read at age five. She has not stopped since and is a bibliotherapist who takes her work seriously.

I liked that this book encouraged me to think about how I read. Mindfulness in the process will add to my approach and enjoyment.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 05 November 2024

Others in the series

Now out: Mindfulness in Knitting

Now out: Mindfulness in Gardening

Now out: Mindfulness in Swimming

Now out: Mindfulness in Baking

Now out: Mindfulness in Drawing

Death in a Lonely Place

by Stig Abell

This is Stig Abell’s second title; it follows on Death Under a Little Sky. While it is not necessary to have read the first book to enjoy this one, anyone who likes Death in a Lonely Place will want to read the origin story.

Here are many of the characters from the first book starting with Jake. He is a former detective who has chosen to live largely off the grid in a remote home that he was left by a relative (although he has many go arounds). Readers should take a look at the map of the estate that is in the front of the book. Jake has charmingly named the various spots for well-known detective fiction people and characters. There are other mysteries and authors mentioned in the text as well.

Jake is in a relationship with a local vet, Livia, who has a young daughter named Diana. He wants this relationship to succeed. He and Livia are in different spots as an old case surfaces and Jake becomes involved while Livia’s main wish is to keep Diana safe.

No Taboo-it is a dark organization that offers people the unthinkable. In investigating it Jake has to think about a very dark place. Readers will wonder how the events unfold. Will Diana’s newest and very wealthy client put her and/or Diana in danger?

This book offers an interesting mix between Jake’s rather cozy domestic life and some very nasty business. Abell manages both of these story aspects well.

I recommend this title to those who enjoy crime stories. I look forward to whatever Abell writes next.

Many thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 11 April 2024

Praise for Death in a Lonely Place

‘Loved this. Multiple layers of delight for crime fiction fans’ Lee Child, creator of Jack Reacher

‘Abell is a skilled storyteller and it’s easy to fall into the pages of Death in a Lonely Place. Highly recommend’ Karin Slaughter, creator of Will Trent

‘An immersive, intelligent delight with huge atmosphere and heart. My favourite new crime series’ Lucy Foley, author of The Paris Apartment

‘Utterly beautiful descriptive prose that brings Jake Jackson’s world to life’ Jane Casey, author of the Maeve Kerrigan series

‘A darkly elegant, thrilling, escapist slice of countryside crime’ Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End