The Twist of a Knife by Anthony Horowitz

November 30, 2023

The Twist of a Knife by Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz is having his first play produced in London's West End theatre district. It's a crime comedy (think Deathtrap) set in a psychiatric hospital. Although it has a good cast and did well outside of London, on opening night, the Times theatre critic pans the play. The next morning, she is stabbed to death at her home. The police arrest Anthony because his fingerprints were on the weapon, a souvenir dagger. After his detective friend Hawthorne bails him out of jail, they have 48 hours to figure out who killed the critic.

This is the fourth book in Horowitz's Hawthorne mystery series, in which the author himself is a character. This one has a definite Agatha Christie vibe: there are interviews with the suspects which reveal a surprising number of people who had a motive, seemingly irrelevant clues and information, and a final grand reveal at the end with all of the suspects gathered together. These are fun literary mysteries with Horowitz playing Watson to Hawthorne's Holmes. Recommended for readers who enjoy clever mysteries.

London's West End theatre district, where much of the action is set

The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

November 29, 2023

The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

In 1972, just before Hurricane Agnes sweeps through, the Pennsylvania State Police find a skeleton at the bottom of an old well in the Chicken Hill district of Pottstown, PA. They question Malachi, an old Jewish man who lives near the site and has lived in the area since the 1930s, because some Jewish artefacts are found with the bones, but he claims to know nothing about it. After the hurricane destroys most of the neighborhood, Malachi is gone and the police never learn who the skeleton is.

Loved the author's two previous novels The Good Lord Bird and Deacon King Kong, and I greatly enjoyed this novel as well. Set between the two world wars, the story focuses on the residents of the Chicken Hill neighborhood, a low-income area populated mainly by Jews and African Americans but with a recent influx of Italian immigrants, and how they manage to co-exist and interact, helping each other out. The story reads almost like a collection of short stories, where a character is the main actor in one story, but may be a peripheral character in another (think Olive Kitteredge). It's the neighborhood of Chicken Hill that is the connecting factor that brings them all together. Some readers have complained about the large number of characters, but that didn't bother me at all. Be advised, the mystery of the skeleton plays very little part in the story (although you do find out at the end who it is) - I had a good idea about halfway through. One of the best books of 2023. Highly recommended for readers of literary fiction.

Pottstown, PA - I couldn't find a good picture of Chicken Hill, although there are some online archives

The Museum of Failures by Thrity Umrigar

November 24, 2023

The Museum of Failures by Thrity Umrigar

Remy Wadia has traveled back to India, the country he left a decade earlier, to adopt a baby. He plans to meet the baby's mother, visit his estranged mother briefly, and then return home to the United States. But things take a sudden turn when he learns among other things that his mother is seriously ill and in the hospital.

I love Umrigar's fiction. She writes about universal topics from a new angle (not necessarily an Indian angle). Beautiful language. Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys literary fiction.

A Mumbai street market/shopping district (the author still refers to Mumbai as Bombay)

Murder Most Royal by SJ Bennett

November 18, 2023

Murder Most Royal by SJ Bennett

December 2016. The Queen and Prince Philip have just arrived at their home in Sandringham to celebrate Christmas with their family, when news arrives that a severed hand has washed up on a nearby beach. Not wanting to spoil the holiday, the Queen asks Rozie Oshodi, one of her private secretaries, to quietly monitor the situation and keep her updated.

I really enjoy this charming cozy mystery series featuring the late queen and Rozie. This third installment was a little disappointing, partly because Rozie isn't in it that much, and partly because the who aristocracy and inheritance thing is complicated and quite honestly archaic. But it's central to the mystery so it has to be explained to those of us outside of that realm. I also figured out who the killer was about halfway through the story but kept reading to make sure I was right. Hoping for better on the next book.

Sandringham Estate in Norfolk - to quote the Three Stooges, reminds me of the reform school

Picasso's Lovers by Jeanne Mackin

November 16, 2023

Picasso's Lovers by Jeanne Mackin

Pablo Picasso changed women like some men change their clothes. Nobody was off limits, and he didn't care if he hurt his wife Olga or whoever was his current mistress. He looked upon these women as his muses, his inspiration, and if he was going to paint a woman, he was also going to have sex with her. When aspiring journalist Alan Olsen receives an assignment from an art magazine to write something new about Picasso, she gets more than she bargained for.

I really liked Mackin's previous book The Last Collection, about Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel. I didn't find this one quite so compelling, probably because I'm not a huge Picasso fan. I found the last third of the book to be predictable, no surprises here, and I found myself doing a lot of skimming. If you're a big Picasso fan or read only historical fiction, you'll probably enjoy this one. If you're a woman, you'll probably think Picasso was a real jerk who used women and then tossed them aside. Just saying.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Irene Lagut, an artist who was a contemporary of Picasso and also one of his lovers

The House is on Fire by Rachel Beanland

November 9, 2023

The House is on Fire by Rachel Beanland

On December 26, 1811, a packed house watches a play followed by a pantomime at the Richmond Theatre in Richmond, VA. Sally Campbell and her sister-in-law are watching the entertainment from a crowded third floor box, when someone shouts "the house is on fire!" A stampede to exit the building ensues with men trampling women to escape. When the staircase down from the third floor collapses, the women are trapped.

Based on the true story of the Richmond Theatre fire in 1811. There are four narrators: Sally, a white society lady; Cecily, a slave attending the play with her mistress Maria; Gilbert, a slave who helps rescue people from the theater; and Jack, a stagehand with the theatre company. During the pantomime, a lit chandelier was raised to the ceiling above the stage and the cords holding the fixture caught fire, which spread to the scenery and the hangings. The structure was essentially a large wooden barn and it went up like dry tinder. 72 people died in the fire, with about 2/3 of them being women and girls. Many died when they jumped from the second or third floors. The Richmond Theater fire remains one of the worst fire disasters in U.S. history. Well-researched, will appeal to readers of history as well as historical fiction.

Etching of the Richmond Theatre fire

The Coworker by Freida McFadden

November 7, 2023

Dawn Schiff and Natalie Farrell both work for Vixed, a nutritional supplement company. Natalie is their top sales associate, while Dawn works as an accountant. Dawn is a bit eccentric, adhering to a very strict schedule, eating monochromatic meals, and obsessing over turtles, but an excellent employee. When she doesn't show up for work one day and doesn't call in, Natalie is concerned, particularly since Dawn scheduled two meetings and didn't show up for either one. She stops at Dawn's house to do a wellness check and is even more concerned when she finds a huge blood stain on the floor. 

Remember that saying about revenge being a dish best served cold? Keep that in mind when reading this novel. Dawn is definitely on the spectrum, possibly has Asperger's. Fast paced psychological fiction with good plot twists and no one is who they seem. Should appeal to readers who enjoyed Gone Girl, The Maid's Diary, and the fiction of Rachel Hawkins and Lucy Foley.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Madame Pommery, Creator of Brut Champagne by Rebecca Rosenberg

November 4, 2023

Madame Pommery, Creator of Brut Champagne by Rebecca Rosenberg

After her husband's sudden death, Madame Alexandrine Pommery discovered that they were seriously in debt. To support her family, she decided to sell off her husband's wool business and focus on the winery that he owned as a side business. But instead of making the blended red wine he always sold, she decided she would focus on making a new type of champagne, a vintage that was less sweet and more refreshing, that could be consumed anytime rather than only with dessert.

Fascinating look at a lesser known historical figure, a woman who changed the world of champagne making and how we enjoy champagne today. Before Madame Pommery began her winery, the champagne of her day was more like what we call asti spumanti today. I really enjoy sparking wines like pro secco and champagne, so I found this fictional biography quite interesting. On the cover of the book, note that she is leaning against a champagne coupe - today we usually drink sparkling wine from flutes.

The real Jeanne Alexandrine Pommery

The Pommery Winery in Reims in the Champagne region of France - Madame Pommery wanted a building that looked like a Scottish castle

Pommery champagne - technically only sparkling wine bottled in the Champagne region can legally be called champagne (American vineyards don't pay much attention to this)

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djeli Clark

October 31, 2023

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djeli Clark

Eveen is a member of the Dead Cat Tail Assassins guild, and an undead contract killer. During the annual Festival of the Clockwork King, she accepts a commission from an anonymous patron to ship (read: kill) a target in a wealthy district. Expecting some old mobster or shady businessman, Eveen infiltrates the building with no difficulty, but when she reaches the bedchamber, she finds a young woman who looks suspiciously familiar. Realizing that she has been set up, Eveen has until dawn to figure out how to beat her enemy and save herself. And her doppelganger.

I love P. Djeli Clark's fantastical fiction, and this novella does not disappoint. I especially enjoy his female characters: strong, smart and snarky. The ending is open enough that there could be a sequel (I hope, I hope!).

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Dark goddesses