Verses for the Dead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

March 19, 2020

Verses for the Dead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Early in the morning, an elderly Florida woman and her dog visit the local cemetery where the dog finds an unusual object on a grave, which turns out to be a human heart.  The FBI is called in to investigate the gruesome discovery, more hearts are discovered on graves (all old suicides), and it soon becomes evident that a serial killer, who calls himself Mr. Brokenhearts, is at work.

There has been a reorganization at the FBI and Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast finds himself with (gasp!) a partner.  It’s that, or leave the FBI (or maybe get shipped to a remote FBI office out west).  Agent Coldmoon is a Native American junior agent who is the polar opposite of Pendergast, specifically chosen by Pendergast’s boss Pickett to be Pendergast’s partner and keep an eye on him.  Pendergast follows a hunch that the new murders are somehow connected to the graves where the hearts are found.  His hunch leads him and his new partner from Florida to Maine. 

Agent Pendergast is the main character in one of my favorite mystery series.  This is a strong entry in the series which could be read as a stand-alone title, although I missed hearing more about some of the regulars like Constance and Vincent.  Agent Coldmoon is quite an interesting character on his own, and I hope we see  more of him.  It was interesting that the late William Smithback’s brother Roger Smithback makes an appearance as a whiny Miami journalist.

Preston and Child write other books together in addition to the Agent Pendergast series, and for some reason, their other books are never as good.  I don’t know if that’s because they put so much into the Pendergast series that they just use leftover ideas for the other books or what. 

The library is still open but will be limiting hours next week.  Stay well and keep reading!

Dublin Noir edited by Ken Bruen

March 17, 2020

Dublin Noir edited by Ken Bruen

A collection of short stories by noir and mystery writers all centered around the city of Dublin.  The quality of the stories varies, but tend to be of higher quality than many collections.  Part of the noir series from Akashic Books.

This is a short review because it's not possible to review each individual story.  Because it's noir, the overall flavor tends to be darker than the average mystery collection.  Many of the stories deal with revenge for a past misdeed, but some are just about psychopaths who like to murder people (go figure).  There is some black humor (which is very Irish), particularly in the first story by Eoin Colfer.

I hope anyone who is reading this is staying well and taking precautions.  I'm at work but I know a lot of people are working from home or their places of employment have been closed by executive order.

Happy St. Patrick's Day, and stay healthy!

I Stopped Time by Jane Davis

March 14, 2020

I Stopped Time by Jane Davis

Sir James Hastings grew up without a mother – she abandoned their family when he was a baby.  So imagine his surprise when dozens of boxes of photographs are delivered to his house, his mother’s legacy of a lifetime of photography.  With the help of a local woman who is an art student, Sir James starts to go through the boxes and unravel the true story of his mother’s life.  Lottie, James’ mother, was a very modern woman for her time.  She not only abandoned her family to pursue a career of her own as a photographer, she also moved in with a man she was not married to and lived with him for over 50 years.  As James goes through his mother's photographs, he slowly realizes that they had more in common than he thought, and that the villain of his life wasn't so evil after all.

Jane Davis has written a remarkable piece of historical fiction that includes not only memorable characters, but wonderful descriptions that really evoke the time and place for the reader.  The story moves between two points of view and two eras, but since chapters are clearly labeled with the date and character, it is easy to follow and the two personal narratives are entwined seamlessly, right up to the satisfying conclusion.  Commonalities gradually emerge between the two main characters, such as not knowing much about their mothers, having unconventional lifestyles for their time, and unrelenting pigheadedness.

“Stopping time” refers to capturing a moment in time with a camera.  This is good escape fiction for the turbulent times that we are living through.  If you are interested in fiction about photographers, you might also like Feast Your Eyes by Myla Goldberg.

The 39 Steps by John Buchan

March 9, 2020

The 39 Steps by John Buchan

Richard Hannay has just returned from working in South Africa and is finding London life dull and boring.  He encounters Scudder, his American neighbor, outside his flat, who invites himself in and tells Hannay a wild tale of an assassination plot and how he faked his own death.  He implores Hannay to let him stay in his apartment until he can get away from London.  The deception works well for a few days, until Hannay comes home from a dinner engagement to find Scudder murdered in his smoking room.  Hannay feels obligated to take over Scudder’s mission, and there begins his adventure of espionage and narrow escapes.  Be careful what you wish for.

This is the second of the twelve classics that I am planning to read this year.  I intended to do one per month, but February got away from me due to doctor appointments and medical tests.  I do love books set or written in the early decades of the 20^th century!  This is a classic old-fashioned spy thriller about an innocent man being hunted, like a precursor to Ian Fleming and John Le Carre.  International intrigue, proper British gentlemen, disguises, Scotland, exciting train journeys, shady German villains, wild coincidences, unbelievable escapes – this very short novel is fast-paced and reflects the POV of the wealthy British gentleman of the early 20^th century – at various points, I found myself wanting to have a cigarette and a whiskey (I don’t smoke or drink).  Some of the attitudes and stereotypes are outdated, but this book was written in 1915 and reflects the attitudes of the time.

One of the best quotations in the book is in the first chapter:  “You can always get a body in London if you know where to go for it.”

Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel

March 7, 2020

Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel

For 18 years, Rose Gold Watts believed that she was seriously ill, until an internet search made her suspicious that her that her mother was poisoning and starving her to gain attention.  She testified against her mother in court, and “Poisonous Patty” Watts went to prison for five years.  Patty is about to be released and with nowhere to go, asks Rose Gold if she can stay with her.  Rose Gold reluctantly agrees, since she now has a child of her own and fears what Patty might do to him.  Patty always gets revenge on those who wronged her, but Rose Gold is no longer a helpless child and has her own brand of revenge in mind.  As the saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold.

What a great piece of psychological fiction!  The story alternates between Patty and Rose Gold in the present, and Rose Gold in the past.  Both Patty and Rose Gold have had years to think about revenge, and the pacing of the story really ratchets up the tension as the reader watches Patty and Rose Gold circle around each other like a pair of jungle cats.  They have a lot more in common than they think:  neither one is likable; both are highly manipulative; both women are unreliable narrators telling their own version of the truth.  Fascinating yet disturbing and twisted, this is definitely like a train wreck:  you just can’t look away.  Once you start this book, it’s really hard to put it down.

Loved the cover art!  The plot for Darling Rose Gold sounds a lot like the story of Dee Dee Blanchard and her daughter Gypsy Rose.  Hulu recently did an original series called The Act which was based on Dee Dee and Gypsy Rose.

I have a compressed vertebrae in my back so I have been having a lot of doctors’ appointments and tests over the last ten days.  Somewhere along the way, I lost my print ARC of Darling Rose Gold.  This irritated me almost as much as all the poking and prodding.  Fortunately, NetGalley was gracious enough to provide me with an e-ARC so that I could finish the book and write a review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC in return for a review.

The Big Finish by Brooke Fossey

March 7, 2020

The Big Finish by Brooke Fossey

Duffy Sinclair lives at Centennial, a small assisted living facility.  Although he has a natural rebellious streak, he tries to keep it in check, since he lives in fear of being sent to live at “Simmons,” the local nursing home.  This could happen because he has run out of money, or because his health has deteriorated to the point that the staff at Centennial can no longer care for him, or because he's too much trouble.  But Duffy’s plans to stay under the radar run aground when his roommate’s granddaughter Josie climbs through their bedroom window one night, barefoot, bruised, and drunk.  Duffy decides that providence has given him one last shot at redemption, so he sets out to save Josie from herself.

Ah, curmudgeons.  They seem to be everywhere ever since Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove, especially in the old-person-meets-young-person-and-they-change-each-other’s-lives format.  I really wanted to like this book more than I did, since the cover art made it look like it was going to be a warm, funny read.  And a lot of early readers HAVE found it funny and endearing, and talked about how it made them laugh and cry.  I got to the end and thought, “that’s it?”

Part of my problem was that I didn’t care that much for the characters, especially Josie.  I would have liked fewer descriptions of walkers and shaky hands, and more backstory for Duffy.  And I was really irritated with how simple it was to get Josie off the booze:  just give her some Valium and Antabuse, and all of a sudden, she’s cured.

It. Does. Not. Work. That. Way.

I was married to an alcoholic, and if an alcoholic had trouble dealing with their problems during their drinking days, just because they are no longer abusing alcohol doesn’t mean that they are suddenly going to turn into fully functioning human beings capable of making good decisions.  If getting sober was as simple as giving the addict a few drugs to get them over the worst of withdrawal, addiction would no longer be a problem.

Disappointing overall.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC in return for a review.

Rest Not in Peace by Mel Starr

March 2, 2020

Rest Not in Peace by Mel Starr

When a visiting knight complains of not being able to sleep, surgeon and bailiff Hugh de Singleton prescribes a sleeping draught of crushed lettuce seeds.  When the knight is found dead the next morning, his widow quickly accuses Hugh of murder.  To clear his reputation, Hugh must solve the crime and identify the true killer.  As Hugh begins his investigation, the suspect pool grows rather than shrinks as he learns more about the dead knight's family and personal life.

This is the 6th book in the Hugh de Singleton series set near Oxford in the 14th century.  The books are entertaining, well-researched historical mysteries, with a recurring cast of characters.  Hugh is an accomplished surgeon who gets to do a lot of surgery and doctoring in this one.  The younger son of a knight, he is a thinking man who acts slowly when performing his duties as a bailiff, since it was easy to get the wrong man hanged in the 14th century.  The author does a great job of portraying life in medieval England, from what's for supper to what people are wearing to how a doctor went about his job to the difference among the classes and family life.  I appreciate the glossary of terms no longer in use.  Readers who enjoy a gentler read (no sex, murder takes place off stage) and a well-written, well-thought out mystery will enjoy Hugh's adventures.