February 2006.
JANE ADAMS - Cast the
First Stone (Macmillan, UK, 1996; Police Procedural; England;
Contemporary; 2nd in series)
Detective Inspector Mike Croft is involved in the
legal appeal of Fletcher, a convicted child abuser who alleges the
existence of a journal identifying other abusers including a JP and
others in very high places. Eric Pearson, who also had once been
accused of child abuse, now lives in a quiet neighborhood but has
quickly become a target of violence. Of interest to Croft is that
he also claims to have the journal written by Fletcher.
*** I had problems with this book. It seemed choppy and
took a long time for the parts of the story to merge into a cohesive
plot. I also felt that, unless you had read the first book of the
series, The Greenway, you
would not have had any idea who the characters were or how they fit
together.
There was next to no independent character
development in this book. The story does finally pull together
and become quite interesting in the last third, but it took a bit of an
effort to stay with it and get that far. I’m not giving up on Ms.
Adams yet, as I did enjoy The
Greenway, but I do hope subsequent books are far better than
this. OK
KEN BRUEN - Priest
(Scorpion Press, Hardcover, UK, 2006; Private Investigator; Ireland;
Contemporary; 5th in series)
Troubled Irish private eye Jack Taylor is out of the
madhouse, sober and trying to give up smoking. Jack is also
suffering from guilt over the death of his friends’ daughter and its
result on them. Jack’s one friend from the the Garda Siochana,
Ireland’s national police force, is being stalked, and a priest with a
history of pedophilia has been found decapitated in his
confessional. Perhaps to Jack’s assistance is a young man who
wants to be his partner and the son Jack never had.
*** Bruen is a brilliant writer. Priest is dark, profane,
disturbing, haunting and yet I don’t consider it noir as it is somehow
hopeful. Perhaps it’s just that somehow, through it all, Jack
survives both physically and emotionally.
Present day Ireland, both good and bad, comes to
life with an awareness of the past, the hold of the Church and its
strides into the future. The description of the impact of
pedophilia on its victims is powerful. Bruen’s style is spare and
sharp; it resonates and stays with you long after you’ve finished the
book. The story is compelling and the ending, as with each of the
books in the series, is like a punch in the stomach, but at also
immediately makes me want the next book. Priest and Ken Bruen are not for
everyone, but I found this to be
excellent. EX
MARK de CASTRIQUE -
Foolish Undertaking (Poisoned Pen Press, Hardcover, 2006; Amateur
Sleuth/Former Cop; North Carolina; Contemporary; 3rd in series)
Here is the most recent adventure of
mortician-sleuth Barry Clayton, who has left the Charlotte NC police
force and returned home to run the family funeral parlor. Dead
is Y’Grok Eban, a Montagnard, and a hero to the US troops he
helped during the Vietnam War. En route to the funeral are
a U.S. Senator, a three-star general, and a famous Hollywood movie
star. But the night before the service, Barry is knocked
unconscious and Y’Grok’s body is stolen. Will the tattoos Y’Grok
recently put on his body be the clues to finding him and to uncovering
a secret from the past?
*** What a good series this is. Berry is a terrific main
character, a former cop – a patrolman, not a detective – who has a
strong relationship with his family and friends. I continued to
enjoy the secondary characters in this book, but a weakness I found was
that his girlfriend Susan seemed rather unsympathetic, making the
ending difficult to understand.
The sense of place is well done, there’s good
tension and a couple twists along the way. I particularly enjoyed
learning about the Montagnards of Viet Nam. I had known nothing
about them before. This is a very good series, well written
series and is perfect for those who like some action but nothing overly
dark. VG
PHILLIP DePOY - A
Minister’s Ghost (St. Martin’s Press, Hardcover, 2006; Amateur
Sleuth/Folklorist; Georgia; Contemporary; 3rd in series)
Fever Devilin is the son of carnival owners, an
ex-professor and folklorist who in this series has returned to his
small hometown of Blue Mountain GA. In this latest case he learns
from his girl friend, Lucinda, that her two nieces have been killed;
they were in their car, sitting on the railroad tracks when it was hit
by a train. But Lucinda is certain there is something suspicious
about their death and asks Fever to investigate.
*** This book is not for everyone. As a reader, one must open
oneself to the local culture, atmosphere and old beliefs of hill people
where there is a different definition of reality. The characters
include little people, a ghost, a snake-handling preacher, hobos, a
junk-yard dealer with a unique musical instrument and Fever’s best
friend, the sheriff who is not acting like himself. The mystery
is not the strength of the story. The strength is the unusual,
intriguing characters and atmospheric, lyrical writing.
Personally, I very much enjoyed this book and this
series, and I want to find out more about these fascinating
people. Good Plus
CHRISTOPHER FOWLER -
Seventy-Seven Clocks (Doubleday, Hardcover, UK, 2005; Police
Procedural; London; Setting: 1973; 3rd in series)
Arthur Bryant and John May are members of the
Peculiar Crimes Unit and their newest case is a perfect fit. A
man dies from Cottonmouth snake venom in the lobby of the Savoy;
another is blown up by a bomb make of silver and gold; and a third from
rat poison found in the victim’s face powder. All the deaths
somehow relate back to the wealthy Whitstable family, and the
mysterious Alliance of Eternal Light.
*** I absolutely loved the first two books of this series. The
writing was such that I’d read passages aloud to others. This
didn’t have that same caché, nor did there seem to be as much
interaction between the two protagonists until well into the
book. Fowler loves introducing twists to the plot which is fun,
but the solution to the mystery really strains credibility. There
is a secondary protagonist in Sam Gates, a receptionist at the Savoy,
but the outcome of her fear of the dark really bothered me.
I enjoyed the story, but didn’t feel it was nearly as enjoyable as the
first two books. Good
DAVID FULMER - Rampart
Street (Harcourt, Hardcover, 2006; Private Investigator; New Orleans;
Setting: 1900s; 3rd in series)
After being away for 15 months, Creole Detective
Valerian St. Cyr in back in New Orleans’s red-light district of
Storyville. He has lost weight, no longer exhibits his usual
style, nor has he any interest in life around him. In an effort
to bring him back to himself, his employer, Boss Tom Anderson,
conveniences him to investigate the murder of a wealthy, white
businessman found dead in Storyville. When St. Cyr is warned off
the investigation, the man’s daughter asks him to continue, no matter
where it leads.
*** Fulmer does a wonderful job of conveying the complex and
multilayered social and political structure of life in New Orleans and
Storyville during the early 1900s. His characters are rich and
dimensional, his sense of place exacting. There’s a feeling of
melancholy to the story so that even scenes that take place during the
day feel muted and gritty.
The pace and narrative of the story bring you into
the story and keep you there from the first page to the
last. This is a character-driven mystery and St. Cyr is a
fascinating character; one about whom you care. Rampart Street accentuates
hypocrisy and greed born from power. Fulmer has maintained the
quality of this series with each book and, although this book stands
well alone, I certainly recommend starting from the
beginning. VG
LISA GARDNER - Gone
(Bantam, Hardcover, 2006; Procedural/Suspense; Oregon; Contemporary;
8th book)
Former policewoman Rainie Conner is haunted by
memories of abuse, both to her, the many cases she has handled and the
suspected abuse of a boy she knows, and when the murder of a child is
one too many, it pushes her into alcohol abuse and away from her
husband. Rainie’s husband, former FBI profiler Pierce Quincy,
loves his wife, but hoping to jolt her into sobriety, he moves
out. But when Rainee’s car is found empty by the side of a road,
lights on, engine running – Quincy doesn’t know whether to fear suicide
or kidnapping – until the ransom note arrives.
*** Ms. Gardner really knows how to combine great characters, human
emotions, a touch of romance, interesting procedural aspects, and
nail-biting suspense into one very good book. Her dialogue and
sense of place are strong, and she adds enough twists to keep you going
but not frustrate you. It’s a fast-paced,
not-going-to-bed-until-I-finish-it read. I discovered Ms. Gardner
with her first book, The Perfect
Husband, and she’s not let me down
since. VG
SUE GRAFTON - “S” Is for
Silence (Putnam, Hardcover, 2005; Private Investigator; California;
Contemporary; 19th in series)
Private eye Kinsey Millhone is hired by Daisy, now a
woman, but who had been a girl of seven when her mother, Violet
Sullivan, disappeared 34 years ago on the Fourth of July. Did
Violet abandon her family or did something more sinister happen?
*** I enjoy Grafton as a reliably good read although liked this less
then some of her other books. The events in the story are told
from the perspective of numerous characters, and I became tired of the
story being told and re-told. None of the characters were
particularly compelling or sympathetic.
As for Kinsey, she was almost a secondary character,
and I found myself shaking my head at some of the patently dumb things
she did. There was very little suspense – one scene at the end,
but even then you never feel any real threat. Don’t
misunderstand; it wasn’t awful, but it lacked some of the spark of her
other books. Good
MARION MOORE - Deadly
Will (Pemberley Press, Trade Paperback, 2006; Amateur Sleuth;
Philadelphia; Contemporary; 1st in series)
Millie Kirchner is a divorced, single mom working at
a nursing home and just trying to make ends meet, when she receives a
letter from an attorney in Philadelphia advising her of a legacy from
an ancestor she’d never known she had. Moreover, things are not
always as they seem, and one by one, the other heirs are dying.
*** Ms. Hill has created an enjoyable story focusing on Philadelphia,
American history, antiques and greed. There is a classic cross
section of characters with the focus being Millie. The dialogue
could be a bit better and the plot a bit tighter, particularly at the
end, but it’s a pleasant read and, for cozy readers, worth
trying. Good
DAVID KENT - The Black
Jack Conspiracy (Pocket Books, Paperback, 2005; Thriller; US;
Contemporary; 2nd in series)
Department Thirty agent Faith Kelly is given her
first assignment: to help a suspected criminal disappear in exchange
for information. Alex Bridge, seven months pregnant, is accused
of embezzling millions and murdering an FBI agent, but to Faith, the
evidence incriminating Alex just doesn’t hold together. Faith is
determined to find out what’s really going on and uncovers a conspiracy
that reaches all the way to the Supreme Court.
*** I like conspiracy books as well as the next, but this one was just
plain absurd. The basic evidence in the case was so transparent
that even a rookie cop could see through it. I’m no computer
expert, but even I know when you delete an email, it’s not really
gone. None of the characters were well developed, except perhaps
the villain. There was suspense, but the premise was so absurd, I
didn’t care. The only reason I finished it was that it was such
light reading that I got through it in two hours. Otherwise, I
wouldn’t have wasted my time. NR
JONATHON KING - A Visible
Darkness (Dutton, Hardcover, 2003; Unlicensed Investigator/Ex-Cop;
Florida; Contemporary; 2nd in series)
Max Freeman is an ex-Philadelphia cop now living in
an Everglade swamp shack. He occasionally does investigation for
his best friend, attorney Billy Manchester. In this case, Billy
suspects someone is killing elderly black women who had earlier sold
their life insurance policies to investors. Although the police
have declared the deaths to be natural causes, Max soon agrees that
things are not as they seem.
*** There are a couple small weaknesses in this book in that, first,
you know the killer, which does lessen the suspense, and secondly, the
protagonist is physically described by seeing himself in a
mirror. But I forgive those flaws as King has created a story
which builds layer upon layer, showing the motive for the killings and
who is behind them. The book is full of interesting characters,
including Max and Billy, about whom we learn more in this second book;
Det. Sherry Richards; and various drug dealers and gang members.
The story of Max’s father’s death and the friendship
between his and Billy’s mother is almost a mystery within the
mystery. King’s description of Florida, particularly the contrast
between being in the city or on the water, is particularly
effective. This is starting off as a very good series and
I’m pleased to see there are more books waiting for
me. VG
EDWARD MARSTON - The
Parliament House (Allison & Busby, Hardcover, UK, 2006; Amateur
Sleuth/Architect; London; Setting: 1670; 5th in series)
Architect Christopher Redmayne is attending the
party celebrating the completion of the house and wine shop he has just
designed, but as the guests are leaving, one is shot dead by a
sniper. Because the victim was the friend of Sir Julius Cheever,
MP, the father of Christopher’s sweetheart, Christopher feels he must
assist his friend, Constable Jonathan Bales, in finding the killer.
*** I had not read Marston before, and I admit to not being a
huge fan of the amateur sleuth. However, I did find this a very
enjoyable book with a wonderful range of interesting characters.
The period details didn’t always ring true to me, although they may
well have been, and there was nothing to cause me great distress.
There was some good suspense; the dialogue was well done and seemed
appropriate to the period. To the negative, there were a couple
coincidences on which the plot depended, and I did suspect (correctly)
one of the characters part way through. All-in-all, it was a
fairly quick, enjoyable read. Good
ROBERT B. PARKER - Sea
Change (Putnam, Hardcover, 2006; Police Procedural;
Massachusetts/Florida; Contemporary; 5th in series)
Police Chief Jesse Stone, dry for one year and
working on his relationship with his ex-wife, has a Jane Doe on his
hands, a young woman whose body has been found in the harbor.
Once Jesse learns her name and that she’s from Florida from a local
boat rental owner, he looks particularly at two yachts from Florida in
Paradise, Mass., for Race Week. With the help of Ft.
Lauderdale Detective Kelly Cruz, Jesse finds he’s dealing with drugs,
underage sex and sexual abuse.
*** This is classic Parker: tight plot, crisp dialogue, light banter,
and a character who believes in working on his personal problems and
dealing in justice. His female characters are as strong as the
males in his books. Personally, I would like more procedural and
less personal story. Still, it’s hard to beat Parker for an
engaging, guaranteed-enjoyable read. Good
Plus
ZOE SHARP - Hard Knocks
(Piatkus, Hardcover, UK, 2003; Thriller; England; Contemporary; 3rd in
series)
Charlie Fox is asked by her former Special Forces
instructor, and former lover, Sean, to investigate the death of a man
who had betrayed her friendship and ruined her military career.
Although she doesn’t care that he’s dead, she can’t refuse the request
and goes undercover at a bodyguard training school in Germany. It
soon becomes clear there’s something much darker and more deadly going
on at the school, and it’s up to Charlie to uncover the secrets and
stay alive.
*** Sharp really knows how to write an engrossing, action-packed story.
I’ve read the first two in the series and love Charlie. She is a
wonderful protagonist: smart, tough, skilled, yet has her
vulnerabilities. The plot is tight and fast moving with very good
action scenes, and the tension and suspense really keep you
going. I have the next two books on my shelf, and I am looking
forward to more exciting times with
Charlie. VG
DANA STABENOW - Blindfold
Game (St. Martin’s, Hardcover, 2006; Thriller; Alaska, mostly;
Contemporary; Standalone)
CIA analyst Hugh Rincon is alerted by one of his
operatives that two men she feels were responsible for a bombing in
Thailand are now planning a major attack, via a dirty bomb, on
Alaska. Although Hugh’s superiors won’t take it seriously, Hugh
commandeers the help of his wife and her superior, officers aboard the
Coast Guard cutter Sojourner Truth. Together can they stop the
terrorists before millions in Alaska are affected?
*** Once again, Ms. Stabenow has created strong, interesting characters
and excellent dialogue. Her characters are all people with
histories, even the terrorists. Her sense of place is
always good and here particularly, it played a strong role. I
enjoyed the red herrings, and her research really showed in providing
us a look at the work of the Coast Guard and the environmental
activists.
The relationship between the two main characters was
effective, even the “Awww” moment. I particularly
appreciated her giving us a follow-up on all the
characters. I found it a wonderfully interesting, exciting,
enjoyable, straight-through read. VG
ALINE TEMPLETON - The
Trumpet Shall Sound (Constable, Hardcover, UK, 1997; Police
Procedural/Traditional Mystery; England; Contemporary; 4th book)
Anna Hartington, daughter of late conductor Eden
Harrington, is determined that the Hartington Music Festival go on as a
tribute to her father. In the process, she has made a lot of
enemies. When she is found murdered, the police have more than
enough suspects, including the current conductor. Detective
Sergeant Diane Braithwaite is removed from the case when it is claimed
she is personal friends with the accused conductor’s wife, but that
doesn’t stop her from investigating a case she feels is off track.
*** I have only recently found Ms. Templeton and am I glad I did.
This book is a combination traditional mystery/police procedural with
interesting characters, all very real and human, particularly Diane
Braithwaite. The plot is tight and keeps you guessing.
There are lots of suspects, some good tension, and excellent
dialogue. The book is worth searching out, and I look forward to
reading more by this author. VG
VICTORIA THOMPSON -
Murder on Lenox HilL (Berkley Prime Crime, Hardcover, 2005; Mystery;
New York City; Setting: 1800s; 7th in series)
Midwife Sarah Brandt has been asked to look at the
daughter of a wealthy couple. Grace, although a teenager, is
mentally still a child, never goes out on her own, and yetshe is
pregnant. Once Sarah determines she has not been abused by her
father, she is determined to learn who is responsible. Meanwhile,
Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy has been asked by Sarah’s wealthy
father to find out who murdered Sarah’s husband four years ago.
There is an ulterior motive at work here. Mr. Brandt believes if
Sarah finds out unsavory things about her husband’s past and Frank is
the one to disillusion her, she will return to her “proper” place in
society. But Sara also needs Frank to help her uncover who took
advantage of Grace and stop that person before someone else is hurt.
*** Ms. Thompson does a wonderful job of presenting turn of the century
life and the social structure of the time. At the same time, the
story resonates with incidents in today’s news. Her characters
are well developed, even if you has not read the previous books in this
series – you feel the emotions of the characters, and the situations
are realistically handled.
There are a couple of twists that enhance the story,
but the characters are the main focus. I have only two
criticisms: the dust jacket gives away way too much of the story – not
the author’s fault – and I’d like to see Sarah and Frank’s relationship
progress, but understandably the author is handling it in a way very
appropriate to the period. This is a very good book in a well
done series. Good Plus
CHARLES TODD - A Long
Shadow (William Morrow, Hardcover, 2006; Police Procedural; England;
Setting: 1919; 8th in series)
Inspector Ian Rutledge, still haunted by his past
and the spirit of Hamish, the soldier he was forced to execute for
dereliction of duty, keeps finding cartridge shells, etched with
poppies and left for him, first in London and then again after he is
sent to a remote country village where local Constable Hensley has been
shot in the back with an arrow and left in a wood shunned by the
locals. But Rutledge wonders whether the attack is revenge and is
associated with the disappearance of Emma Mason, a young local woman.
*** This is not a slap-bang procedural, but dogged, follow-the-clues
investigation by Rutledge who stands for the dead. He is a
complex, realistically drawn character whose past and the impact of WWI
plays a major role in his present. The supporting characters are
just as strong, each with their own history woven together into an
atmospheric story with an excellent sense of place, very good suspense
and unexpected twists at the end. Highly recommended, but please
start with the first book. VG
Happy
Reading,
LJ
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