C.K.'s book reviews

Mystery

2011-05-23T15:13:00.000-07:00

FOOLS RUSH IN (1st in the Christy Bristol Astrology series)

WHERE ANGELS FEAR (2nd in the Christy Bristol Astrology series)

Sunny Frazier

Oak Tree Press

I devoured both books and loved every word. Frazier's heroine, Christy Bristol, works for the sheriff's office and does astrology readings on the side. In FOOLS RUSH IN, when she's asked to make a chart on a drug dealer, she ends up being kidnapped and fighting for her life. Lots of tension in this one. I'd call it a thriller rather than a mystery, and I guarantee you won't want to put it down.

WHERE ANGELS FEAR, on the other hand, is a mystery, one that revolves not only around astrology, but sex clubs. This one will keep you guessing to the very end. Lots of great characters--Christy's friend Lennie is well developed in this one, and a real charmer.

What I particularly like about Frasier's writing is her characterization. Her criminals are as well developed as her heros, and the situations seem ripped from the headlines. Good stuff.

Science Fiction/Steampunk

2011-05-23T13:09:00.000-07:00

THE CLOCKWORK MAN

by William Jablonsky

Medallion Press

I'm into Steampunk lately, so I had to pick up this book from the library and I'm very glad I did. The Clockwork Man is presented as the diary of Ernst Gruber, a mechanical man built by master clockmaker Karl Gruber. Somehow, he is so finely detailed as to be sentient. The diary begins in October, 1893, stops not long after the clockmaker's daughter is murdered in December, 1893 then resumes in 2005. As the story develops, any reader's heart is apt to be wrung. In the story, one finds an innocent being persecuted for what he is, so the tale has depth way beyond what one might imagine of Steampunk Science Fiction. A wonderful story.

OUT OF THE DUST

2011-05-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

Karen Hesse

This is an old book published by Scholastic and meant for the YA market. It's the winner of a Newberry Medal, copyright dated 1997. My cousin loaned it to me because I'm interested in history and this is a story that takes place during the dust bowl days. Specifically, from January, 1934 to December, 1935. I must say I was a little leery, since it's styled as free form poetry--or something. I don't read poetry, have never studied it, so I really can't say.

If you know anything about the frightful drought affecting much of the mid-west during the 30s, you know this was a terrible time in our history. People were displaced from their homes after losing everything. They were ill from breathing the unrelenting dust, literally suffocating. The most direly affected were farmers. For years, no rain fell, no crops grew, livestock died. Many people died, too, shocking deaths. No governmental safety nets were available for these people. Watch the history channel. Occasionally they show a film taken then that'll curdle your innards.

But this little book is about fourteen-year-old Billie Jo, who wants to travel and play the piano. Her mother is expecting a baby and her father keeps trying to bring in a crop as the dust covers everything, even the food as they're eating it. When a horrible accident kills Billie Jo's mother and unborn child, it seems nothing will ever be the same again. And, without sugarcoating, nothing is. This story relates how people survive, overcome adversity, and move on.

It is so beautifully written that I swear I could taste the dust. Some passages brought tears to my eyes. Sometimes I knew exactly how Billie Jo felt. An excellent, excellent book.

STICKY FINGERS

2011-05-13T12:17:00.000-07:00

Nancy Martin, Minotaur Books, ISBN 978-0-312-57373-7

Contacted by her uncle, elderly head of a mob family, to kidnap a woman Roxy went to school with, Roxy goes to warn the woman instead, finding her as unpleasant as ever. Turns out the woman is kidnapped anyway, and then turns up dead. With the discovery the woman is a bigamist, the list of potential murderers grows. But Roxy can't get over a feeling of guilt that she didn't prevent the kidnapping, and when the finger seems to point at her, she's out to clear herself.

This is the second book in the Roxy Abruzzo series, and I love it. Roxy is a great character, as a single mother trying to do the right thing for her daughter, while often working on the edge of lawlessness. Must be hell, having old mob members for relatives! I'm glad to see Roxy cleaning up her act when it comes to indiscriminate sex--a great character arc. And really, tough as she is, sometimes the woman is pure mush. Love it.

MERCY KILL

2011-05-13T12:06:00.000-07:00

Lori Anderson, Touchstone Books, ISBN 978-1-4165-9097-2

A former army sniper, Mercy Gunderson has retired from the service after dying (for a few minutes) in an explosion. Suffering from PTSD, she's been wallowing in alcohol, estranged from her family and most everyone else, but when the man who brought her back to life is murdered outside the bar where Mercy works, she's determined to bring the killer to justice. Even if it means going head-to-head with the Sheriff.

Mercy Kill is the second book in the Mercy Gunderson series, but its the first I've read. I'll have to go back and find the first because Mercy is a fascinating protagonist. She's got problems up the ying yang, but such is her character that she overcomes them, even admitting to being wrong in her judgment of others part of the time. The supporting cast is excellent, while even the bad guys have their moments. I love strong women, and Mercy is right up there with a select few.

UNBROKEN by Laura Hillenbrand

2011-03-20T19:04:00.000-07:00

I don't read a lot of non-fiction unless I'm actively doing research for a book, but I loved Seabiscuit and had head the accolades for Unbroken. For those who don't know, this is Louis Zamperini's story. He was an Olympic athlete, a runner, who performed in the 1936 Olympics, the last before WWII. In the furor of the war effort, Louis went into the Army Air Force as a. Barely escaping being shot down over one of the Pacific islands, on another mission, that of searching for a downed plane, he, along with the rest of the crew also went down. Louis, the captain, Allen Phillips, and one other man, were the only ones to survive the wreck. After floating in the Pacific for forty-seven days, they were picked up by the Japanese. The story of Louis and other prisoners of war is horrifying. How any lived through the experience is mind boggling.

If one needs the strength of the human spirit to be proved, this is the story to read. Laura Hillenbrand is a fabulous writer, and she sets forth Zamperini's struggles, before, during, and after the war in this most compelling of reads. Here's history from the horse's mouth. Learn from it.

The Parisian Prodigal

2010-06-22T10:11:00.001-07:00

The Parisian Prodigal, by Alan Gordon, is set in 1205, and features the jesters (fools) Theo, Giles, Helga, and the mime, Pelardit. Snappy dialogue, interesting in that the book is carried forward with a larger proportion of the dialogue than most. I do feel a jolt, however, at the change from first person Theo, to first person Giles. At least the chapters change at the same time. I'll read more by Mr. Gordon. but what strikes me as a strange coincidence is that I happened upon an audition for "America's Got Talent" sometime this week. (Jeez. I don't even remember the day.) One of the auditionees was a man done up in white-face and court dress (as from the days of Louis the somethingteenth) who called himself a jester. I could see the talent judges thought him a joke as he walked out, until he sang a marvelous operatic song. Really, how often do fools cross your path? Oh. Did I just say that?

Blood Harvest

2010-06-22T10:04:00.000-07:00

by
S.J. Bolton
In the library you find Bolton's books on the mystery aisle, but I think they belong with Dean Koontz and some Stephen Kings--more of thriller horror stories. Why? Because Ms. Bolton certainly turns a creepy tale. The reader always learns something new in a Bolton book, too. This times we are informed about cretins. Who knew? Well, I suppose some of you did, but not me. Now I do. Excellent story, although I thought the character Evie's motivation and actions somewhat weak. Call me a cynic, but...

A Bad Day for Pretty

2010-06-22T09:58:00.000-07:00

Sophie Littlefield has become one of my hot new authors. I adore her character, Stella Hardesty, who is a fiftish kick butt heroine, along with the supporting cast of quirky secondaries. Her newest book, A Bad Day for Pretty, may not be quite as strong an entry as Littlefield's first book, A Bad Day for Sorry, but it's still a sassy, entertaining read.

UNDER THE DOME

2010-05-27T12:34:00.001-07:00

Stephen King

This is a great big--I mean BIG--book, coming in at 1172 pages. There's no denying King holds your interest with his prose, and his ability to write villians is unsurpassed. So is his imagination when it comes to weird plots. Even the research for this tome, according to his author's notes, is meticulous. But there comes a point when as a reader, I've got to say, "All right already. I've got it. Second Councilman Rennie is a bad guy, a really bad guy. You don't have to keep rubbing my nose in it. And so is Junior, and Carter, and Randolph and all his other adherents." But Mr. King, with all due respect, enough finally becomes enough. This book, in my opinion, would've been better if at least a quarter of it had been cut. I, for one, would have enjoyed the story more had I not become impatient with the repetition.

Speculative Fiction

2010-05-19T18:47:00.000-07:00

BREATHLESS
Dean Koontz
Bantam

I don’t always get around to reading the latest Koontz, but I’m glad I didn’t miss this one. IMHO, Breathless is his best book in some time. I’d grown weary of his stories with kids who sound like fifty-year-olds, always so much more intelligent and brave than anyone else. Well, good deal. This time there are no children. There are dogs, of course. An Irish Wolfhound and, also of course, a mention of golden retrievers. But what makes this book so good is Koontz’s concept of a new species. Loved them. In my mind’s eye I could see them cavorting about, playing with Merlin the wolfhound. The two main characters are appealing people, though with troubled backgrounds, and I enjoyed the message of hope for them and the rest of the world in this book. This one is good enough I didn't want to put it down.

MYSTERY/THRILLER

2010-05-19T18:46:00.000-07:00

THE FIRST RULE: A Joe Pike Novel
Robert Crais
Putnam

While more accustomed to Joe Pike as a secondary character, and Elvis Cole in a starring position, this book turns the pair around. I like it. Pike is a ruthless opponent when crossed, and when one of his men from his old sniper unit is murdered, along with his whole family including small children, Joe is bound to find out who did it and why. Then we find Joe is just an old softy when it comes to babies—what a twist.

Crais always puts out a good book. While not on my required reading list, I enjoyed this offering.

Horror

2010-05-19T18:45:00.000-07:00

DAWN OF THE DEAD
Steve Hockensmith
Quirk books

While browsing through the new books on the library shelf, author Steve Hockensmith’s name caught my eye. He writes western mysteries with always amusing twists and turns, and I haven’t missed reading one of them yet. Consequently, I couldn’t resist seeing how he fashioned a tale starring a family of female zombie-fighting ninjas in a work set in Regency England. Zombies, I might add, are not high on my list of required reading. This story, however, is a real kick, and includes a gathering of the quirkiest characters you’ll ever meet. I’m sorry to say I laughed my head off at Captain Cuthbert, and what that says about me is worrisome. Oh, well. If you care for this kind of book at all, be sure to pick this one up.

THRILLER

2010-04-01T15:41:00.000-07:00

STRONG JUSTICE: A Caitlin Strong Novel.
by Jon Land
Forge. Hardcover
ISBN 978-0-7653-2336-1

In this second novel featuring Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong, her story continues with the fight against crime along the Mexican/Texas border. A puzzling mystery about polluted water draws her into danger, while at the same time, Caitlin and her lover, Cort Wesley are pursued by Mexican cartels out for vengence. In the first book. Caitlin and Cort, with help from the strangely compelling Paz, a Venezuelan assassin turned moralist, wiped out one of their strongholds. Now the cartel, deep in the transportation of young girls across the border to be sold into the “entertainment” industry, has carelessly let one escape. Fortuitously, Cort’s eldest son is on hand to help rescue her. The action is non-stop as a few Rangers are pitted against the cartels, the big money interests, and officials on the take. But Caitlin and Cort are not alone in their determination to stop the sex slavery trade. Eager to help out are retired Rangers, a social worker or two, and most importantly, mysterious Guillermo Paz, who has vowed to keep Caitlin Strong alive no matter what it takes. Adding to the story are fascinating details from Caitlin’s father’s and grandfather’s time in the Rangers, all with tie-ins to the present day trouble.

Mr. Land writes a page-turner of a story. Excellent plotting and tightly drawn characters to cheer for help one ignore a rapidly growing body count. And if the good guys work outside the boundaries of their jobs, what the heck? This is rip-roaring fiction for your enjoyment.

SPRING NEWSLETTER

2010-04-01T15:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring, everyone. Seems like it's been a long time getting here.

The hubster and I got to talking about how we miss the spring wild flowers, buttercups, bluebells, and what we used to call Easter lilies, but which I think are a kind of wood violet. Anyway, after seeing an article in the paper about swans and mallards out at the Turnbull Wildlife Refuge, we piled in the 'Ru and drove out there. No swans or ducks, or even a measely deer, but we did find buttercups and bluebells. Did our hearts good. I've attached a couple of pictures in case you might like to see them.

Last newsletter I had a little health tip that brought a good response. Here's one on strokes that some of you may not have seen, and if you have seen it before, a reminder never hurts. I keep a Post-it on the side of my computer tower so I don't forget.Three years ago this month Gary had an episode, although the docs said his was a TIA. Whatever, the symptoms were nearly the same, except he lost consciousness. Anyway, here are the STROKE IDENTIFICATION SIGNS:
1. Can the affected person smile?
2. Can s/he talk and say a simple sentence?
3. Can s/he raise both arms?
4. Can s/he stick her/his tongue straight out without it falling to one side or the other?
The good news is that even with these symptoms, provided the person gets help within three hours, a total reverse of damage is possible.

My western novel, THE WINNING HAND, went out of print from the publisher, so a few weeks ago I asked for and got a reversion of rights. I tried my hand at reformatting to Amazon Kindle specifications, and now the book is available as a Kindle E-book on Amazon. The url is http://tinyurl.com/ygvd2hn. As it happens, I have a box of the print copies from Behler Publishing yet to sell. Anyway, I've had an historical novel, suitable for age twelve through adult, stuck away for years and intend on putting that one on Kindle too. I'll have to concoct a cover for it first, a chore for an artistically challenged old broad like me.

No Kindle? Well, me either, although I'd love one, but Amazon conveniently gives away reading software to download onto your computer, your iPhone, or Blackberry.

Also, after a year and a half, the Western Writers of American anthology is promised for May. The title is still Roundup! Great Stories of the West, but it'll be for 2010 instead of 2009. My story is called LEFT BEHIND. The book will be available through any bookstore.

I've worked up a new presentation that I think libraries, service clubs, readers groups and even schools might enjoy. It's a group workshop that will guide participants through plotting a novel, developing characters, and writing a query to hook agents, editors, and readers. Should be fun even for non-writers. Contact me if you have a group interested.

Here are the titles of a few books I've read lately that really struck my fancy. TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOG by Connie Willis, an innovative time-travel with a murderless mystery that'll have you laughing out loud. (Of course I'm fond of time-travels. I'm working on the fifth Boothenay Irons Gunsmith book right now.) WHAT REMAINS OF HEAVEN by C.S. Harris, a Regency mystery with excellent characters. A BAD DAY FOR SORRY by Sophie Littlefield, a funny but serious...hmmm...not sure what to call it, suspense novel comes closest, I guess, but the middle-aged woman protag is someone I sure wish I'd invented. WHISKEY KILLS by Johnny D. Boggs, one of the new kind of westerns that everyone should enjoy. This is his second book using a reservation policeman back in the bad old days. Just won a Spur Award, and well-deserved.

I don't want to keep you too long, so will bring this to an end.

Enjoy the blue skies (when we have them), the green grass, and the spring flowers.

Until next time,

Carol
www.ckcrigger.com

MYSTERY/SCIENCE FICTION

2010-03-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

To Say Nothing of the Dog
Connie Willis

Here's a book published in 1998, and I'm wondering what took me so long to pick it up. Connie Willis is a fabulous writer, as I knew from reading her Doomsday Book several years ago. To Say Nothing of the Dog is entirely different in tone, being much lighterhearted. Parts of the story are laugh-out-loud funny, a farce in Victorian manners. This is a time-travel story, (which I write myself, though not like this) wonderfully plotted, full of twists and turns and puzzles, and yes, it's also a mystery. No murders, no bodies, just puzzles galore for an endearing hero and heroine to solve. If at times I scanned some parts that got a little repetitious, don't think for a minute I'm not recommending this to everyone who wants to settle in for a lengthy read. I loved it.

Mystery

2010-03-08T13:55:00.000-08:00

WHAT REMAINS OF HEAVEN
C.S. Harris
978-0-451-22802-4
Regency Mystery

This is the fifth book in the Sebastian St. Cyr regency mystery series, and it’s a keeper. The well-plotted puzzle aside, the relationship between Sebastian and not only his family, but Hero Jarvis, daughter of his worst enemy, keeps the action flowing. I wish this couple well, indeed I do. The sensibilities of the period in which the books are set (1810ish) are a strong reminder of Georgette Heyer at her best (and her best was terrific), but are a bit grittier, which suits readers from our time period.

I’m not even going to do a run-down of the plot. Suffice it to say lovers of the historical mystery genre will be mesmerized. Who knew about Benjamin Franklin and his family. Fascinating!

MYSTERY

2010-02-25T15:00:00.001-08:00

A CHRISTMAS PROMISE
Anne Perry

A little late in the year to read this one, I guess, but, seasonal or not, I still enjoyed this little tale of two young English girls, Gracie and Minnie Maude, trying to find MM's murdered uncle's donkey. Though I'm not usually a fan of an author using--and forcing a reader to decipher--dialect, in this case it worked perfectly. I'll give the story an A.

ROLLING THUNDER

2010-01-28T18:46:00.000-08:00

ROLLING THUNDER
Chris Grabenstein
978-1-60598-089-8, Pegasus Books
Mystery (release date May, 2010)

On a day my luck was in, I won an ARC of Chris Grabenstein’s latest New Jersey shore mystery, ROLLING THUNDER. In case you haven’t read any of Chris’ previous fast-paced mysteries, all are named for thrill rides in an amusement park. This is book #6, and the Rolling Thunder of the title refers to a brand new roller coaster built on an Atlantic Ocean pier. On the ride’s opening run, a woman dies in the VIP car. Deemed a heart attack, apparently the poor woman was scared to death. Then a young woman, a beach bunny, is murdered and clues seem to link the two deaths to one man with ties to both women. But there are several good (or bad) suspects, and the heroes of Grabenstein’s series, John Ceepak, the straightest arrow ever seen on the Jersey shore police force, and his sidekick, Danny Boyle, a young man learning the ropes, must figure out which it is before someone else gets hurt.

This series recently found a new publisher, and readers everywhere are relieved not to have lost Ceepak and Boyle. Mr. Grabenstein has created two winning characters, and paired them with exciting plots. As a westerner, I appreciate reading about the Jersey shore, an area I probably will never visit except in books. Grabenstein’s stories help me do that, so real I can hear the rumble of the roller coaster, smell the deep-fried candy bars, the greasy pizza, and the Stromboli (or something like that) sandwiches, and imagine myself trudging over the sandy beach. Recommended reading.

Mystery

2009-10-11T13:15:00.000-07:00

CHARLOTTE HINGER
Deadly Descent
Poisoned Pen Press
ISBN 978-1-59058-645-7

In what looks to be the first of a series featuring Carlton County, Kansas historian Lottie Albright, we find Lottie inviting old county families to submit their family stories to the Historical Society for publication. As it turns out, more than a few are willing to air their dirty laundry in public, no matter who gets hurts, and in a case that begins with an old murder and ends with a couple new ones, this is exactly what happens. Complicating matters, Senate candidate Brian Hadley may be at the center of the trouble. His aunt’s story has sent his mother’s temper raging, and no one knows why. Lottie is the local campaign chairperson for Brian, and feels her expertise in research may help clear the matter up, but when first the aunt is murdered, and then Brian’s cousin Judy, it appears Lottie may be in over her head. At least, that’s what Lottie’s twin sister, a clinical psychologist tells her when Lottie begins receiving threatening letters. And don’t even mention the tension that builds between Lottie and her husband as their marriage comes to a crossroad.

Hinger has developed an intelligent, sympathetic character in Lottie Albright, with a nice group of secondary players. The mystery in this book is intriguing and as the tension ramps up, you won’t want to put the book down until the final page.

2009-09-03T18:39:00.000-07:00

Twenties Girl
By Sophie Kinsella
Dial Press 2009
Hardcover, 435 pages
ISBN 978-0-385-34202-5

Lara Lington (related to the Bill Lington of the story) is a twenty-something professional on the fast track to success. Oh, there are problems along the way. Her partner in a newly founded head-hunting agency has taken an extended vacation, leaving Lara in the lurch, for one thing. Her perfect boy friend has just dumped her. And she’s begun seeing her Aunt Sadie’s ghost. 105-year-old Sadie has just passed, but now is stuck in 1920s mode. She can’t rest or move on until her favorite necklace is found and given back to her. Unfortunately, it seems to have disappeared, and since Lara is the only one who can see her, it’s up to her to help Sadie while managing her own chaotic life.

Set in modern London, this is a story that has a little of everything. I’m torn on how to describe it. Hmm. Chick-lit/mystery/comedic romance? That’ll do for starters. Then include excellent, snappy dialogue, great characters, humor, more twists than you can shake a stick at, and a wonderful character arc. I liked Sadie being a twenties girl, loving to dance the Charleston, drink cocktails, and smoke gaspers, while teaching her great niece to be a twenties girl, too.

Being a little beyond “chick” age, I didn’t expect to like this book, but the premise sounded fun. I didn’t read Kinsella’s Shopaholic books because I don’t willingly shop, and can’t understand people who do. Anyway, I couldn’t put Twenties Girl down. I found Uncle Bill a little one-dimensional and the ex-boyfriend a drag. Cut the boy friend problems in half and I would’ve enjoyed the book even more. That said, this is one that goes on my recommended list.

Historical Mystery

2009-07-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

Jacqueline Winspear, Among the Mad, Henry Holt & Co., Hardcover, 303 pages, $25.00, 2009. ISBN 978-0-8050-8216-6

1931 is drawing to a close when psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs is caught up in the suicide of man on a London street. Not too much is made of the man’s death—thousands of soldiers wounded both physically and mentally in the Great War chose death before pain and starvation. The government has, during this depression, more or less abandoned their veterans. But when letters threatening horrible deaths begin arriving at the home office, Maisie is drawn into the mystery of who this man was and his connection to the letter writer. First to die are dogs and birds, but the case soon turns into a race to stop a madman from dropping chemical death upon the citizenry of London.

I’m not always a fan of Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs. This book, however, I found fascinating, though not a comfortable read. One finds the world hasn’t really changed an awful lot in the last 90+ years. The politics of the day finds a parallel in the here and now. I found the section about the experimentation on animals hard to read, but the whole story has the ring of truth. Excellent book.

Science Fiction

2009-07-22T10:51:00.000-07:00

Bruce Sterling, The Caryatids, Del Rey/Ballentine, Hardcover, 295 pages, $25.00, 2009. ISBN 978-0-345-46062-2

This one was a bust and a Did Not Finish. I didn’t like the writing with endless repetition of names, the atmosphere or anything about it. Whew! Now that’s harsh.

July Newsletter--Free Book

2009-07-16T11:40:00.000-07:00

July Greetings…

To celebrate summer, my favorite season, (I’m a Leo, so of course it is) I’m giving away a couple copies of my new historical suspense, ONE FOOT ON THE EDGE. Simply e-mail me with EDGE in the subject line and I’ll enter you in the drawing. Entry time runs from July 15 – August 15. Jing, my bichon frise on whom the dog in the story is based, will set her paw on the winning names. And while I’m hoping for a short review, I certainly don’t demand one. The first chapter is up on my website at www.ckcrigger.com and click on excerpts.

I’ll soon be updating my website, with info on a couple Internet radio shows I’ll be doing this month. Maybe you can tune in.

Also, if any readers/women’s/library/service groups in my area (you know who you are) are in need of a speaker, contact me via email and we’ll set something up. I do talks on Turning Fact into Fiction, Talking Western, Nuts and Bolts of Preparing Your MS for Publication, and Every Book Needs a Dog.

Until next month…

Good luck on the drawing.

P.S. I haven’t found a great new cake recipe lately, but I made a heck of a good Blueberry Cream Pie from a combination of a couple old receipts. That’s old-timey talk for recipes, but you probably knew that.
.
Carol

DUMA KEY

2009-06-21T16:35:00.000-07:00

Duma Key
Stephen King

I'm not going to give a synopsis of DUMA KEY here. If you haven't read the book already, blurbs are all over for you to get the general story idea. My thought is that
I’ve just invested the time in reading a 770+ horror novel, when horror isn’t my thing. I figure life has enough trials without out scaring myself with someone else’s nightmares. I’ll ride my own, thank you very much.

So why did I finish this book? Be damned if I know. Must be because King is very good at what he does. Twists and turns and breath-catching description and spates of terrific action. And yet, there is a lot of repetition, to the point where I say, “Enough already. I’ve got the picture—got the picture—got the picture.” Still, I read almost every word. Don’t want to miss a salient point, you know.
Did I read this book for the characters? Must have. I like characters, although with a 770 + page novel some are simply walk-ons that I can’t invest much in. But for the three guys, the tres amigos of this story, they’re all great individuals. The women, not so much. Sometimes it seemed they’re in the book to provide victims. Ah, well.

Will I read another King horror novel soon? Probably not, even though King is a terrific writer with an imagination few can equal. Thank God.

THE OUTLANDER

2009-06-11T11:02:00.000-07:00

The Outlander
By Gil Adamson
HarperCollins 2008
Hardcover, 390 pages
ISBN 978-0-06-149125-2

This is a story that, from the blurb, I expected to belong in the western mystery genre. And it does. Sort of. Yet it’s not really genre fiction at all, but rather a weird combination of literary novel, western, suspense (I wouldn’t call it mystery), romance, with a study of mental illness and a lesson in the healing power of love thrown in for good measure. Did I say weird? Well it is. But the whole thing works in a story that grew on me until I was completely mesmerized. Adamson is certainly an author who deserves the accolades that come her way.

Briefly, the plot is thus: A bewildered young woman is running away from a murder—and she is the murderess. The brothers of the man she killed are following her, determined to bring her back to hang. The widow (as she is named throughout the book although we do finally discover her name is Mary) flees into the wilderness, stealing just enough supplies (and a horse) to stay alive. She hears voices and sees things that aren’t there, doesn’t know what’s real and what is not. The people she meets along the way are, for the most part, as confused about their own existence as she is. Most are kind to this poor muddled woman, certainly eccentrics with an unexpected generosity of spirit. The man she killed? Her husband. I think he had it coming.

You may want to read The Outlander more than once. I know it's going on my keeper shelf.

MYSTERY

2009-05-19T16:05:00.000-07:00

ANGEL'S FLIGHT
by Alice Duncan
July, 2009 release
Five Star/Cenage
Hardcover, 256 pages, $25.99
ISBN 978-1-59414-783-8

Boston socialite Mercedes Louise Allcutt (Mercy, as her friends call her) escaped her mother's iron hand and joined her married sister in Los Angeles, California. Mercy has found a secretarial position with ex-cop, P.I. Ernie Templeton, and for the first time in her life has a sense of freedom and self-worth--until she opens the door one morning and discovers her mother on the front step. From there, her day only grows worse. It's hard telling who is the most shocked, Mercy, when she learns her mother is contemplating a divorce, or Mrs. Allcutt at hearing her daughter has an actual, for pay, job. Like any good 1920s era liberated woman, Mercy isn't about to quit working, and all too soon she's involved in murder, seances held by fraudulent spiritualists, and movie (call them flickers) stars. However, Mrs. Allcutt may have a point in her fierce opposition to Mercy's employment, especially when Mercy puts her trust in the wrong person--one who just might be setting her up for murder.

This is the second of Alice Duncan's Mercy Allcutt mysteries. The local and historical period is intriguing, set as it is on the scene of the early days of movie making. The title comes from the name of a tiny railroad that zipped from downtown Los Angeles to the hills where the upper crust lived. Mercy has just the right amount of naivety, which sometimes gets in the way of her good sense. She's a well-rounded character well able to carry these lighthearted tales. The supporting cast is full of colorful characters. A fund read.

THE DARK HORSE

2009-04-15T19:12:00.000-07:00

CRAIG JOHNSON, The Dark Horse, Viking, Hardcover, 320 pages, $24.95.
ISBN 978-0-670-02087-4

If you’ve read the previous Walt Longmire mysteries (Johnson is the 2009 Spur Winner for Another Man’s Moccasins), you may already have your copy of the next book, The Dark Horse on pre-order. If Craig Johnson’s series is new to you, you’re in for a treat. If these western mysteries are already on your “must read” list, you know Walt is the sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming. You also know he’s a tough, fair-minded law officer who won’t quit until he solves a case, no matter what the odds. This time the mystery involves a woman who has confessed to a murder many, including the sheriff of the neighboring county, don’t believe she committed—not that the victim, her husband, didn’t deserve it. He did, after all, set the barn on fire with her prized horses inside it. Walt has agreed to go undercover to discover the truth, and he’s lacking the back-up of his trusted deputies.

But Longmire’s not without resources. There’s the little bandit, who has an endearing habit of chewing on his hat’s stampede strings; there’s an illegal alien named Juana with two years of law enforcement training and a yen to use it; an old cowboy who may himself be involved in the murder; and of course, Henry Standing Bear, also known as “The Cheyenne Nation.” And then there’s Wahoo Sue, a prominent player as Walt and his crew unravel events and outrun a ticking clock in a race against death.

Johnson has created a wonderful cast of characters in his Walt Longmire series. Each individual springs to life and fills an important role in the story. Walt is a protagonist who is wearing well even after five books, a law enforcement officer who truly realizes he’s there to serve and protect. Johnson nails the Wyoming setting, and includes just enough landscape details to put the reader in the picture.

The Dark Horse is a book you won’t want—no, you won’t be able—to put down until the final page.

LEADEN SKIES

2009-03-15T14:23:00.000-07:00

ANN PARKER, Leaden Skies, Poisoned Pen Press, Hardcover, 298 pps., $24.98.
ISBN 978-1-59058-577-1

Leadville, Colorado is celebrating the arrival of former President Ulysses S. Grant, along with most of Colorado’s dignitaries. Investment in Leadville’s silver mine is at stake; the movers-and-shaker’s politics and money providing a backdrop for arson and murder in the town’s red-light district. This third book in Ann Parker’s series returns the reader to the world of Inez Stannert, owner of the Silver Queen Saloon. She runs a clean place, respectable, and now she’d like to expand. That fits well with brothel madam Frisco Flo’s plans to move her house uptown and sell her building to Inez. But when Flo’s place is first set on fire, then one of her girls murdered, Inez has second thoughts. Seems there’s a third party in this deal, whose identity Flo is withholding. While Inez untangles the dealings of some of Grant’s party, she’s also trying to discover Lizzie’s murderer as she strives to keep herself alive.

Although the mystery isn’t especially strong in this book, the murderer being pretty easy to spot, it didn’t distract much from the over-all story. Filled with history, action, and emotional realism, it’s a story that will leave you feeling you’ve made contact with the folks who live in Leadville. There’s never a dull moment; somebody is always trying to take advantage of someone else. Some folks are moral, some not. All are interesting. And the book ends with a darn good cliffhanger, making sure to leave you wanting more.

STRONG ENOUGH TO DIE

2009-03-12T15:19:00.000-07:00

JON LAND, Strong Enough to Die, Forge, $24.95 Hardcover. ISBN 978-0-7653-1258-7

Caitlin Strong, widowed when her husband, part of an team of civilian computer technicians, is killed in Iraq, has taken up a new profession. The former Texas Ranger has applied for a job as counselor in the Survivor Center for Victims of Torture. The first patient she meets is her husband, barely alive, his mind wiped of everything, including his sense of self. Meanwhile, Cort Wesley Masters, convicted via blood evidence left at the scene of Caitlin’s last Ranger mission, has been exonerated by new DNA testing and released from prison. Vowing vengeance, he goes after Caitlin, only to save her and her husband’s life when the Survivor Center is attacked and everyone in the building but they are killed. She, in a weird twist, rescues Cort’s kids when they are attacked by the same man, a huge, foul man named Guillermo Paz. But why? Uneasy partners, Caitlin and Cort set out to discover what ties them together, and what happened to Caitlin’s husband. The answers are buried, and to unearth them means almost certain death.

Strong Enough to Die is a great title with meaning on more than one level. The body count piles up to an almost unimaginable height, so if you’re squeamish, you might need to wall off the horror. The degree of violence sometimes makes it hard to distinguish the good guys from the bad, although Guillermo Paz turns into the most intriguing character in the book. The cause of all this mayhem is enough to scare the pants off you, incurring belief in the “black helicopter” line of thought. Non-stop action carries the day in this excellent thriller. A real page-turner.

SACRIFICE

2009-02-15T13:58:00.000-08:00

Sorry. It's been a long time since I've posted a new review, but here's one on a book I reccommend.

THRILLER

S.J.BOLTON, Sacrifice, St.Martins Minotaur, Hardcover, 379 pages, $24.95, 2008.
ISBN 978-0-312-38113-4

Tora Hamilton, an obstetrics surgeon, is practicing in a hospital on one of the most remote Shetland Islands off the coast of Scotland. She joined her husband, Duncan, who was born there, upon his sudden desire to “go home.” But he is often away on business, so Tora works and rides her horses, very much an outsider. When one of her horses dies, Tora, wishing to bury the animal on her own land, bulldozes a hole only to discover the body of a young woman who was cremated years ago. The woman’s heart has been torn from her body, which shows signs of recently bearing a child. Viking runes have been carved into her flesh. When the police investigate, they try to pass the body off as ancient, having been preserved by the peat in which it was buried. That premise doesn’t hold up long, and then Tora finds this woman may not be the only one buried on her land. What does it all mean? Who are these women, and why does everyone on the island, from her father-in-law, the local police, and even the head of the hospital where she works, discourage her questions? Worse, Duncan shows signs of being involved. Persistent, Tora keeps digging into the mystery, only to find she may very well be the next to die.

Tora’s at times irritating, constant preoccupation with having a child, ties in with her determination to find the killers. Plural killers, because she soon learns the women’s deaths have to be part of a conspiracy. With those she can fully trust numbered on one hand, she goes against all advice and breaks all the rules in her quest for the truth. Scenes on the island, as well as those at sea, are well-written and evocative; medical procedures seem very real and graphic. The book has a great sense of place. Although the situations Tora puts herself in often depict her as the TSTL (too stupid to live), if the reader can suspend disbelief for long enough, this is a fascinating thriller that moves at breakneck speed. New surprises await on every page right up to the end. Reccommended.

ANOTHER MAN'S MOCCASINS

2008-07-21T14:49:00.000-07:00

CRAIG JOHNSON, Viking, 290 pages, Hardcover, $24.95. ISBN 978-0-670-01861-1

The body of a Vietnamese girl found lying beside the road leads Walt Longmire, sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming, into a convoluted investigation. The truth of her murder is especially obscure since a giant named Virgil White Buffalo, found hiding in a culvert only steps away from the girl’s corpse, seems to be the only suspect. But Walt, whom Virgil attacks early on with nearly lethal results, doesn’t believe the Vietnam veteran is her killer. In a case complicated with several suspects beyond the obvious, Walt discovers an unexpected link to a murder committed forty years ago during his own Vietnam War days. The case really heats up when solving the mystery becomes time-critical.

This is the fourth book in author Craig Johnson’s series about Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire, and every book just gets better. Walt, a sheriff with a compassionate heart beating within his tough exterior, has captured this reader from the first book, The Cold Dish. With a character like Walt Longmire as his hero, Johnson has also created some of the best, and occasionally, wackiest side-kicks around. Henry Standing Bear, a friend from their Vietnam days, is never afraid to tell Walt the truth. He brings balance to Walt’s investigations, and is Walt’s “go to guy” when he need someone to watch his back. Although given less time and importance, Sancho, the basque deputy, and Ruby, the dispatcher, among others, are also important recurring players. Then there’s Victoria Morelli, the tough-talking deputy out of Phillie. A relationship is heating up between Walt and Vic, and it’ll be interesting to see where that goes. Personally, I don't see that Vic and Walt go together. In the last book, Kindness Goes Unpunished, there was a certain rapport between Vic's mother and Walt that I found more intriguing. C'mon, Craig. Can you do something with that?

Characters, combined with a strong sense of place and deft dialogue makes this a book you don’t want to miss. Truly, start with the first book and work your way through all four. Enjoy yourself. Maybe by then it'll be time for the next installment.

LITTLE BROTHER

2008-07-13T18:59:00.000-07:00

This blog entry is part book review, part social commentary. I think this novel is brilliant, and even if I don't buy into all the hacking as either possible or good--read on about my privacy issues--the idea of a different kind of rebellion is fascinating. I just hope it never becomes necessary.

DOCTOROW,CORY, Little Brother, Tom Doherty/Tor
On the day terrorists attack San Francisco, seventeen-year-old Marcus Yallow and three friends skip school to play a game. Picked up by the Department of Homeland Security in the aftermath, they are accused of being part of the terrorist network. Terrified and brutalized by DHS, and with Marcus’ friend Darryl lost somewhere in the system, he vows to fight against the injustice. Already an accomplished computer hacker, Marcus hones his skills as he and his friends build a network even DHS can’t stop. If he’s caught, his freedom, indeed, his very life is at stake. This is a riveting story about what it means to be American.

This is one of those books you can’t put down. It’s marketed as young adult, but is as much or more for adults. Thank God we live in America where a book like this one can still be published, because it points sharply at the inroads being made against our constitution. One day soon this book or others like it could be banned, which is why every young person should read it while they can. And it won’t hurt older persons to also read it and think on the freedoms that up until lately we’ve taken for granted. With governmental surveillance everywhere nowadays, where our phones can be tapped on a whim, our computers open to anyone in authority, and cameras in every doorway, a story like “Little Brother” is not to be taken lightly. You think it can’t really happen? If under a little less dramatic circumstances, it is happening now, we’re letting it, and it’ll only get worse.

In this story, DHS is able to do what it does in the name of safety. Everyone wants to be safe, right? Of course. But personally, and rather than let government run amok, I’d rather be a little less safe and keep my business my own. Privacy should be paramount. If I have a problem with this book, it’s that the kids in the story keep saying to trust no one under twenty-five. I’m well over twenty-five, and I don’t see age as a factor when you’re talking about freedom. Our constitution was written by a bunch of old guys who had a lot to lose, but they did it because it was the right thing to do. If you want to clarify your thinking and really have your heart grabbed, Little Brother is darn good reading.

Mystery

2008-05-20T11:10:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I won a copy of Marilyn Meredith’s Deadly Omen, the first book in her Tempe Crabtree mystery series. Tempe is a single mother, recently married, and the resident deputy in a small community near the Yanduchi Indian Reservation in California. She’s coming to terms with the discovery she, too, is part Indian, and in this book, she’s attending a Pow Wow in two capacities, both as observer of her heritage, and as a working deputy. Before long Tempe stumbles across a murder victim, a young woman about to be crowned Pow Wow Princess. The detectives on the case seem to be overlooking vital clues, so it is up to Tempe to investigate beyond the obvious suspect. That she puts her own life on the line—displeasing her new husband—only adds to the suspense.

As a Pow Wow aficionado myself, I especially enjoyed the parts of the book dealing with the Pow Wow. Readers new to this culture are sure to appreciate learning about these Native American get-togethers. Tempe is an intriguing character, and the mystery will keep you guessing until the end.

SUSPENSE

2008-02-24T14:39:00.000-08:00

C.J. BOX, Blue Heaven, St. Martin’s Minotaur, 344 pages, Hardcover, $24.95.
ISBN 978-0-312-36570-7

Set in the North Idaho woods around Lake Pend Oreille, C.J. Box has fashioned a thriller that nails the attitudes of both the long-time residents and the newcomers of this comparatively remote area. Many of the newcomers truly are retired Los Angeles Police officers, and the author has used them to propel this brutal, fast-paced story.

Twelve-year-old Annie Taylor and her younger brother William, in an act of defiance over their mother’s latest boyfriend, are on a fishing foray when they witness a murder. Pursued by the murderers, they have no safe place to hide. One man they trust turns out to be in with the murderers; if they return home their mother will be in danger; and the sheriff is under the influence of the men. It seems they have no good choices.

It is old-time resident Jess Rawlins, himself laboring under the fear of foreclosure on his ranch and with personal problems of his own, who comes to Annie and William’s rescue. His military service, though long in the past, will serve this tough old rancher well as he sets a trap to wipe out the four former policemen who’ve become the most ruthless and terrifying of criminals. Allied with a new friend, as well as an old friend, death may be his only reward.

Peopled with memorable characters and with a heart-pounding plot, this is Box’s best book yet. The ending, though not what you might expect, is both real and satisfying. If you want excitement, Blue Heaven is definitely a book to savor.

WESTERN MYSTERY

2008-01-07T11:12:00.000-08:00

Steve Hockensmith, The Black Dove, St. Martin's Minotaur, Hardcover, $23.95. ISBN 978-0-34782-6 Due out February, 2008.

In this, the third in the "Holmes on the Range" series, Gustav "Old Red", and Otto "Big Red" Amlingmeyer are once again busy "detectifying," with Old Red's methods patterned after the great English detective, Sherlock Holmes. Big Red play the part of Dr. Watson, both as a sounding board for his brother's greater wit, and as the chronicler of events. He's also pretty good at providing a bit of muscle when needed, as well as plenty of comic relief.

This adventure finds the cowboy detectives fed up with cows and trains, and looking for jobs as Pinkerton detectives. The Panic of 1893 has tightened the job market into non-existence and the Amlingmeyer boys are getting hard-up when they stumble onto their old friend, a Chinese doctor named Gee Woo Chan, whom they met in their previous adventure. After a get-together in which Chan almost shoots Otto, the Amlingmeyer brothers deduce he's in trouble with the tongs in San Francisco's Chinatown. Strangely enough, it seems they aren't through with old acquaintances, because when they get back to their hotel, they're met by the beautiful Diana Corvus, former Southern Pacific Railroad detective, who is also an old friend--to Big Red, at least. She has questions to ask Dr. Chan, but when the Amlingmeyers escort her to Chan's Chinatown office, they find him murdered, with the S.F. police trying to cover it up as suicide. They soon learn the murder hinges on a young Chinese prostitute named the Black Dove who has disappeared.

From there the chase is on. It seems everybody in S.F. is after the girl; detectives, tongs, police, madams, and maybe even Ms. Corvus. Non-stop adventure and mayhem--along with Old Red's deducifying--adds up to an exciting tale.

Ignore any anachronisms--this is pure entertainment, full of humorous dialogue and lots of action. As always, the closeness of these brothers is heartwarming, even as they cuss each other out. Edgar, Shamus, and Anthony award nominee Steve Hockensmith has given us another winner with The Black Dove.

2007-11-07T13:39:00.001-08:00

I'm sorry to say I've been slacking off posting here. It isn't because I haven't been reading--and enjoying--as many books as usual. My excuse if that I'm judging short western novels for the 2008 Western Writers of America Spur Awards, as well as reviewing books (which I don't post here) for the WWA to be published in Roundup magazine.
Really...I've read some good ones lately. Harley Jane Kozak has become a favorite, as has Elaine Viets, Harley Coben, and many more. And of course, I can hardly wait for the next Craig Johnson when I'll be able to read his next contemporary western mystery. Next spring, I'm told. Meanwhile, I purchased, but not yet read the latest Stephen Hockensmith Sherlock Holmes mystery, set in the old west and filled with humor. I'm looking forward to it.

MYSTERY

2007-11-07T13:25:00.000-08:00

Blood and Circuses, by Kerry Greenwood.
In this book from the Phryne Fisher mystery series, our heroine gets drawn into the circus world circa 1928 when a man friend from the carnival asks her to look into some dangerous events that are proving ruinous for the circus. At the same time, Phryne's friend, Inspector Robinson of the Australian police, is hot on the trail of a killer. When these two events dovetail, Phryne must go undercover and save the day. That her heart is taken by TWO men from the circus is another complication.
Lovely details about trick riding, trapeze flying, and animal training in this story--not to mention the curious rules and traditions regarding the hierarchy of the performers. For my enjoyment, this is the best Phryne Fisher I've read, and I've enjoyed them all.
Grade A

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

2007-09-21T11:44:00.000-07:00

I finally got hold of the last Harry Potter, and over a period of about ten days, finished it last night. I know. I know. Practically everyone has said they sat down and read the book straight through, but I'm judging a category for the Western Writers of America Spur Awards, as well as doing WWA reviews, so I have to divide my reading time.

My opinion? Frankly, it dragged in several places. I think a cut of 50 - 100 pages would have tightened the story and heightened the tension, and I know it would have kept me more involved. Even with that large a cut, the book would've been satisfyingly huge. That said, the ends are tied up; the characters we most loved survived; the world is saved from evil forces.
What more could anyone ask?

As for the conclusion of the series, I'm sorry to see it go. Rowling's contribution to youth (adults, too) literature is beyond measure. She's single-handedly created thousands upon thousands of readers. I'm glad she's made the money she has--she deserves every penny of it. I can hardly imagine conceiving such a magnificent saga of warring magicians and children growing up to shape their world. Absolutely marvelous. Anne McCaffery with her dragonrider series is the only other author I can think of who's come close.

MYSTERY

2007-09-14T18:51:00.000-07:00

M.J.ROSE, The Reincarnationist, September, 2007

Photographer Josh Ryder is in Rome when a terrorist’s bomb goes off in front of him. As he recovers, he finds his mind being taken over by memories not his own. Old memories, reaching far back in time, that speak of pagan sacrifice and death, violence and murder. Josh is baffled by episodes where he is wafted back in time and sees—no—lives the life of a pagan priest named Julius, fighting for his lover’s—a Vestal Virgin—life. At other times he is a young man named Percy, being slowly poisoned by his uncle. These episodes are so real to him, he makes contact with the prestigious Phoenix Foundation, hoping the researchers there, whose main interest is the study of reincarnation, can help him figure out what’s gone wrong. Instead, Josh is led into danger and a dramatic struggle for his present day life.

M.J. Rose presents both the interesting concept of reincarnation, as well as an enthralling mystery. There are several story lines in the book, but all the ends are neatly connected and tied-up at the end. If I felt at times a little distanced from the characters, it may have been my fault. This book is well worth reading.
Grade B

Mystery Review

2007-07-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

BOX, C.J., Free Fire, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 352 pp., cloth, $24.95.
ISBN 978-0-399-15427-0

This, the seventh Joe Pickett novel, finds the Wyoming game warden fired from his job, and working for his father-in-law—rather a dead-end proposition. Incredibly, given Joe’s record with his superiors in the WY Fish & Game Department, the governor pays him a secret visit, promising him his old job back if Joe will investigate the four execution style murders that have taken place in Yellowstone Park. Authorities know the killer. He’s confessed, but due to a strange loophole in the law governing the park, he can’t be prosecuted. Joe jumps at the chance to be reinstated in as a game warden, but he never expected his investigation to carry all the way back to the governor’s mansion.

Free Fire is the strongest Joe Pickett novel to come forth in recent years, fulfilling the promise of the first two or three. It’s gritty, fast-paced, with a great sense of place. Set Yellowstone Park, Box’s descriptions bring the natural wonders of the park to life. Within the story, he smoothly informs the reader of the many scientific discoveries now being utilized and makes them the center of his plot. The same week I read the book, an article out of the Associated Press announced Yellowstone has yielded yet another new marvel, a bacterium that converts light to energy. This enhanced my enjoyment of the novel.

In this book, Joe’s family life seems finally to have taken a turn for the better, alleviating what I found previously to be a somewhat annoying distraction, Pickett's wife being a bit of a shrew.

All in all, Free Fire is a winner. I'll give it an A-

Notes on bookselling

2007-06-27T10:49:00.000-07:00

Not a book review, but an interesting article nonetheless--something for all of us who are published by small presses to push for. This excerpt is, in my opinion, the most pertinent part of the article, but I've included the link to the whole thing.

>>Store Pre-Sells Local Author's NovelBack Pages bookstore in Waltham, MA is trying to pre-sell the 1,000-copy first printing of local author Jon Papernick's first novel WHO BY FIRE, WHO BY BLOOD from Canadian publisher, Exile Editions. The store has exclusive US sales rights until the book is picked up by an American publisher. Since May 21, they have presold over 230 copies. The book will be published in late September. Store owner Alex Green tells the Boston Globe, "If I can prove to a publisher that a 1,000-square-foot bookstore in a suburb of Boston can presell an entire print run before it's released, then maybe American publishers will take a second look." <<

And here is the link to the whole story
Adventures in old-time bookselling - The Boston Globe

2007-05-03T14:15:00.000-07:00

MYSTERY

JOANNE FLUKE, Key Lime Pie Murder, 2007, Kensington Publishing

Cookie Shop owner and master baker Hannah Swensen has volunteered to judge the baking contest at the county fair. That she, along with the duo of men competing for her romantic favors, becomes involved in the murder of another baking contest judge is a foregone conclusion. With the help of her many friends and loving family, all is bound to come out right.

IMHO, there’s not much meat to these stories—but lots of calories in the enticing recipes that pepper the pages. Cookie shop—recipes—get it? I may even try one or two of them. However, I probably won’t be reading another of this series whilst munching the cookies. Oh, sure, the stories are pleasant enough, but too cutesy and bland, bland, bland. Could’ve been punched out with a cookie cutter.

Grade C

2007-04-20T18:47:00.000-07:00

MYSTERY

CRAIG JOHNSON, The Cold Dish, 2005, Viking

The Cold Dish, the first book of a series by Craig Johnson, introduces Walt Longmire, the sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming. This is an out-of-the-way corner of the world, and the death of a young man previously in trouble with the law is assumed to be a hunting accident--until Walt and his chief deputy, Victoria Moretti, discover a few things don’t add up. Cody Pritchard, the victim, had previously been convicted of the brutal rape of a young, mentally challenged Cheyenne girl. He and three other boys were let off with suspended sentences, and the bullet used to kill Cody seems to have come from an antique Sharps buffalo gun. It’s known a few such rifles remain on the reservation and the evidence soon points toward a revenge killing. Are the other three boys next in line? Is the revenge for the Cheyenne girl or for someone else? Longmire, his life-long friend, Henry Standing Bear, Vic Moretti and a cast of Walt’s loyal friends and followers, are soon to find out, but only at a terrible cost.

This book blew me away. I’m a fan of C.J.Box who is also a writer of modern mysteries in a Wyoming (western) setting, but I’ve found a new favorite. Tragedy, humor, a philosophic bent, a tremendous sense of place…Johnson nails them all in a compelling mystery with unforgettable characters.

Definitely a grade A.

2007-04-04T13:33:00.000-07:00

As a little addition to the previous two reviews, The Saddlemaker’s Wife, and The Virgin of Small Plains have what might be similar plots: 1) A mysterious death from decades previous, 2) A woman hurt by the old history, determined to find answers, 3) Said woman learning to trust again.
From there, the books are as different as lettuce and cheese. If you can read only one, make it The Virgin of Small Plains.

2007-04-04T13:30:00.000-07:00

MYSTERY

The Virgin of Small Plains, Nancy Pickard, 2006, Ballantine Books.

On January 23, 1987, the body of a young woman was found frozen in the Shellenberger’s cow pasture. A storm is sweeping across the Kansas plains which wipes out any evidence. No one seems to know who the woman is as her features have been beaten beyond recognition. Buried as an “unknown,” over the years she becomes known as the Virgin of Small Plains. Medical miracles are credited to her account. But someone out there knows her, with her identity kept secret for seventeen years—until Mitch Newquist returns home from an exile imposed upon him by his parents. Rushed away on the night the girl died, he never even got a chance to tell his sweetheart goodbye. Abby Reynolds, Mitch’s sweetheart, has worried and wondered and carried a torch for him all these years. Why, she wonders, did he abandon her without a word?

The answer of who the dead girl is, why Mitch went away, and what made three families keep a dark secret for almost two decades makes for a compelling story you won’t be able to put down. The book deserves every bit of hype it’s received, as well as it’s nomination for an Edgar Award. The Virgin of Small Plains is a true winner.
Grade A

2007-04-04T13:28:00.000-07:00

MYSTERY

The Saddlemaker’s Wife, Earlene Fowler, 2006, Berkley Prime Crime.

When Ruby McGavin’s husband, Cole, dies in an automobile accident, she is told he ran his car over a cliff on purpose. Shocked, she discovers most of what he’s told her about himself is a lie. He said his family was dead, but his will gives her his share of a California ranch in partnership with his mother and his brothers. Her world shattered, she goes to the town where he lived, looking for answers, only to find he confessed to killing his father twenty years ago and served time in jail. Meanwhile, Ruby gets sucked into the lives of Cole’s many relatives, and she won’t rest until she discovers the truth behind his lies.

I got this book through the Mystery Book Club, but there isn’t a whole lot mysterious about it. It seems to me more pages are spent talking and describing food preparation than on finding answers to questions. I found this one very so-so.
Grade C

2007-03-29T18:37:00.000-07:00

HORROR
KOONTZ, DEAN, Brother Odd. 2006 In this third book featuring Odd Thomas as protagonist, poor Odd is once again put in the position of fighting off bodachs—entities which gather around sites of impending pain and suffering, and which only he can see—some mind-boggling monsters, and helping Elvis finally cross over to the other side. All at the same time as he's protecting a convent full of disabled children. Yep. Here’s another tale with children—and mentally challenged children at that—who either are full of the wisdom of the ages, or in possession of artistic or musical abilities normal people only dream of. Sometimes both. Enough already. If Koontz weren’t good at snappy dialogue and the building of suspense so fraught the reader is brought to believe in these ridiculous situations, I’d quit reading him. A totally guilty pleasure.

Speaking of Elvis, have any of you read about vampire Elvis in Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse books? If so, who do you prefer? The ghostly Elvis that Dean Koontz has created, or Elvis the vampire who just loves cats?

2007-03-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

Okay. So this isn't a book review, but since my name is on this list of honorees of Western Writers of America, I couldn't help posting this news. Here are the Spur winners and finalists of 2007. Check out the Short Fiction category.

2007 Awards Official List

Best Western Long Novel
Winner:
The Night Journal by Elizabeth Crook, Viking/Penguin Publishing
Finalists:
The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig, Harcourt, Inc.
Augusta Locke by William Henderson, Viking/Penguin Publishing

Best Western Short Novel:
Winner:
The Shape Shifter by Tony Hillerman,Harper Collins Publishers
Finalists:
The Adventures of Johnny Vermillon by Loren D. Estleman, Forge
The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers by Delia Falconer, Soft Skull Press

Best Original Paperback Novel:
Winner:
The Horse Creek Incident by Dusty Richards, Jove Books
Finalists:
Deserter by Paul Bagdon, Dorchester Publishing
The Lawless Frontier by Randy Denmon, Pinnacle Books

Best First Novel:
Winner:
Broken Trailby Alan Geoffrion,Fulcrum Publishing
Finalists:<
Elsie’s Business by Frances Washburn,University of Nebraska Press
The X-Indian Chronicles by Thomas M. Yeahpau, Candlewick Press

Best Western Nonfiction - Historical
Winner:<
Blood and Thunder: An Epic of the American West by Hampton Sides, Doubleday
Finalists:
Jay Cooke’s Gamble by M. John Lubetkin,University of Oklahoma Press
Getting Away With Murder by Bill Neal,Texas Tech University Press

Best Western Nonfiction - Contemporary
Winner:
Copper Chorus: Mining, Politics and the Montana Press, 1889-1959 by Dennis L. Swibold, Montana Historical Society Press
Finalists:
River of Memory: The Everlasting Columbia by William D. Layman, Uni. of Washington Press
Riding Pretty by Renee M. Laegreid, University of Nebraska Press

Best Western Nonfiction - Biography
Winner:
Crazy Horse: A Lakota Life by Kingsley M. Bray, University of Oklahoma Press
Finalists:
John Sutter: A Life< by Albert Hurtado, University of Oklahoma Press
Black Gun, Silver Star by Art T. Burton, University of Nebraska Press

Best Western Short Fiction
Winner:
“Comanche Moon” by Dusty Richards, Amazon Shorts/Amazon.com
Finalists:
“Aldy Neal’s Ghost” by C.K. Crigger, Amazon Shorts/Amazon.com
“Inner View” by Christine Granados in Brides and Sinners in El Chuco, Uni. of Arizona Press

Best Western Short Nonfiction
Winner:
“Forced into the Rockies: The Rise of the Rocky Mountain Rendezvous Era” by Kerry Oman, Annals of Wyoming
Finalists:
“Why is this Man Forgotten” by Paul Hutton, True West
“No More Snowstorms, Tears or Dying” by John D. McDermot, Wild West

Best Western Juvenile Fiction
Winner:
Geronimo by Joseph Bruchac, Scholastic Press
Finalists:
The Hart Brand by Johnny D. Boggs, Thomson Gale
Teresa’s Journey by Josephine Jo Harper, Texas Tech University Press

Best Western Juvenile Nonfiction
Winner:
Bleeding Kansas and the Violent Clash Over Slavery in the Heartland by JeffC.Young, Enslow Publishers
Finalists:
A Brave Boy and a Good Soldier by Mary M. McAllen Amberson, Texas State Historical Association
Sarah Winnemucca by Natalie M. Rosinksy, Compass Point Books

Best Western Drama Script (Fiction)
Winner:
Broken Trail by Alan Geoffrion, AMC
Finalists:
Desolation Canyon by D. Fitzsimons,Hallmark Channel
Wild Heart by D. Martin and M. Gabourie, Hallmark Channel

Best Western Documentary Script (Nonfiction)
Winner:
Gold Rush by Michelle Ferrari, American Experience WGBH/PBS
Finalists:
Jesse James by Mark Zwonitzer, American Experience WGBH/PBS
Annie Oakley by Ken Chowder, American Experience WGBH/PBS

Storyteller
Winner:
Tatanka and the Lakota People by Donald F. Montileaux, South Dakota State Historical Society Press
Finalists:
Frog Brings Rain by Patricia Hruby Powell,Salina Bookshelf, Inc.
Shep: Our Most Loyal Dog by Sneed B. Collard III, Sleeping Bear Press

Poetry
Winner:
Across the High Divide by Laurie Wagner Buyer, Ghost Road Press<
Finalists:
Adobe Odes by Pat Mora, University of Arizona Press
Lessons for Custer by Thomas Madden, Wordcraft of Oregon LLC

Audiobook
Winner:
Healing Shine by Michael Johnson, Season of Harvest
Finalist:
Summer Snow by Stan Lynde, Books in Motion

The office of the Spur Award Chair reports receiving a total of 436 submissions broken down by category as follows:

Short Novel-54
Long Novel-28
Paperback (mass market)-35
First Novel-31
Biography-19
Historical Nonfiction-39
Contemporary Nonfiction-42
Short Fiction-67
Short Nonfiction-41
Juvenile fiction-18
Juvenile Nonfiction-10
Storyteller-17
Drama Films-3
Documentary Films-9
Poetry-18
Audiobook-5

2007-03-01T18:51:00.000-08:00

Historical/Mystery

DALLAS, SANDRA, Tallgrass, St. Martin’s Press, 320 pages, Hardcover, $23.95.
ISBN 0-312-36019-1

Tallgrass is the story of two American cultures, both of which are shattered by the bombing of Pearl Harbor. One faction is American, whose young men join the war effort and go off to fight the aggressor. The country is rife with patriotism. The other culture is that of the Japanese American who, caught in the United States war defenses, are shipped off to internment camps. One such camp is named Tallgrass, and is located near the Colorado farming community where young Rennie Stroud’s father grows sugar beets. Most men of fighting age have already joined the army, which leaves the farmers short of labor. In order to raise a crop, against the wishes of the community Loyal Stroud hires a crew of internment camp detainees. He even enlists a Japanese woman to help his wife—who suffers ill health—in the house. Stroud finds all his workers to be honest and hard-working. However, when a young girl is snatched from her bed and murdered, the finger of guilt is pointed at the Japanese. Town bad-boys stir up racial prejudice, causing trouble for the family who has befriended them. A showdown seems inevitable.

Young Rennie finds it difficult to cope with the animosity against her family. On top of that, her soldier brother is missing in action, her beloved older sister has gone to Denver and won’t come home, and her best friend is being abused by a drug-addicted father. The strength and love of family, and the wisdom of her parents as they avert the unraveling of a whole town teaches Rennie important life lessons in this powerful story. The conclusion is both poignant and surprising.

This is Sandra Dallas’s strongest book yet, and she’s already written some good ones. But Tallgass is more. Tallgrass is an important story that will touch everyone, and should be required reading for all of us. One of the book blurbs compares it to To Kill a Mockingbird—a fair assessment. Buy, beg, or borrow a copy.

Grade A+

2007-02-28T14:00:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY

KIMBERLY, ALICE, The Ghost and Mrs. McClure, Berkley Prime Crime

Accompanied by her son Spencer, Penelope Thornton-McClure flees New York City and her rich, interfering in-laws, where she joins her aunt Sadie in Quindicott, Rhode Island. Aunt Sadie owns a run-down bookstore, in which Pen invests her late husband’s insurance money. She is determined to bring the bookstore up to par. At the bookstore’s very first big signing event, guest author Timothy Brennan collapses—dead within moments of revealing a link between the 1940s murder of P.I.Jack Shepard in this very same bookstore and his best-selling series which hinge on the late Jack’s case files. As if that weren’t enough, Pen is informed that Brennan’s death is murder by no other than Jack Shepard’s ghost. Naturally it takes a while before Pen comes to terms with her ghostly visitor, but after she does, the two make a good team when it comes to solving the mystery of who murdered Timothy Brennen. The next question is, who murdered Jack?

A light, fun book, I gave this one a grade B.

KIMBERLY, ALICE, The Ghost and the Dead Deb, Berkley Prime Crime.

Another haunted bookshop mystery (see above) in which P.I. Jack Shepard and bookstore owner Penelope McClure are forced to join forces in order to trap the killer of true-crime writer Angel Stark. Angel is murdered shortly after a promotional appearance in Pen’s Buy the Book events room, and although the evidence points one way, she is sure the direction is wrong. Jack, the bookstore’s resident ghost, says he’ll help get at the truth if Pen will work on discovering who killed him way back in the 1940s. In this story, they discover Jack is able to get out the bookstore as long as Pen carries a lucky buffalo nickel along with her.

Another fun read graded a B-.

MYSTERY

2007-02-24T12:11:00.000-08:00

DAMSGAARD, SHIRLEY, Witch Way to Murder, Avon
Ophelia Jensen has psychic powers, and her grandmother Abby is a witch. Sounds like a good combination when there's a murder to be solved. Unfortunately, for various reasons this story didn't grab me and I gave up on it. Guess I'm getting way picky in my old age.
DNF

2007-02-24T12:05:00.000-08:00

GREENWOOD, KERRY, Death At Victoria Dock, Poisoned Pen Press

Here is yet another Phryne Fisher (intrepid Australian flapper) detective story. I confess I’m hooked on the darn things, although some are better than others. This is a good one that starts out with Phryne driving her Hispano-Suiza in a seedy part of town. Without warning, her windshield shatters, shot out by anarchists afraid she has witnessed them murder a young man who almost immediately dies in her arms. His blood ruins her very expensive and fashionable clothing, which just won’t do. Phryne sets out to discover the culprits whom in truth, she can’t identify. Of course, with help from her many friends and loyal employees she gets to the bottom of things and even manages to thwart a bank robbery, but not without putting herself in danger. Along the way, she climbs in the sack with a very attractive, though scarred member of a rival anarchist group who is also out for revenge. I'm a little worried about Phryne acquiring a STD, what with her sexual experimentation with many partners, but so far she’s good to go.
Grade B

2007-02-17T10:10:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY

KERRY GREENWOOD, Ruddy Gore, Poisoned Pen Press

Ah, shoot. Maybe I'm just cranky today, but for me, this is Ms. Greenwood's least interesting offering. The best part of the story is that it tells how Phryne meets Lin Young. The mystery, however, misses. Too many people, too many quotes from G & S light operas, too many rather unappealing characters, and too much talk with too little action. I'll keep reading the Phryne Fisher tales, though, since this is the first that hasn't worked for me. Everyone is allowed to falter once in a while.

Mystery

2007-02-17T10:03:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY

ENTOMBED
Linda Fairstein

Although not a new book--Ms. Fairstein has several out since this one--I probably won't try her again. I plowed my way through the first 35 pages and gave up. Talking heads just don't hold my interest. Sorry. I freely admit others may not feel this way since the writer is often mentioned as one of the top authors.

DNF

2007-01-09T18:46:00.000-08:00

Mystery

EMERSON, EARL, Firetrap, Ballantine Books, 2006, ISBN 0-345-46090-0

Captain Trey Brown of the Seattle Fire Department, after a disastrous night club fire in which fourteen people died, has been paired with ambitious television reporter Jamie Estevez in an effort to discover why there were so many fatalities. Since the fourteen were black, riots are breaking out on the Seattle streets. The SFD is being blamed of racial motivation in the failure to save these people. Since Trey is black, his superiors, including Seattle mayor Stone Carmichael, believe his investigation will help quiet the rumors.

What Carmichael doesn’t know is that Trey is his half-brother, adopted into the white family as a child. At seventeen, Trey was accused of raping a girl and was shunned by his parents and family. In nineteen years, he’s never contacted, or been contacted by, any of the Carmichaels. But with this investigation, they’re thrown together again, and this time Trey is determined to get to the bottom of that nineteen-year-old mystery. Who did rape the girl? At the same time he is uncovering the truth of the night club fire, he is also unraveling the older mystery and finding a scandalous—and dangerous—connection. Complicating matters, he’s falling in love with Jamie Estevez. Will he survive the next fire, or will he become another fatality?

Emerson gets right to the story and sweeps you away. The suspense is non-stop; the conclusion can’t be other than what it is. Firetrap kept me up into the wee hours until I turned the last page.

In my book, this one deserves an A.

2007-01-07T13:46:00.000-08:00

Mystery

FRANCIS, DICK, Under Orders, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2006, ISBN 0-399-15400-0

Former champion jockey Sid Halley can’t let go of the racing world. After losing the use of one hand in a racing mishap some years ago, almost accidentally he became involved in sleuthing. The fearlessness that made him a champion on the race track also made him a formidable adversary when it came to tracking down criminals—until one actually cost him the hand. Its loss only made him stronger, and now he has a reputation to uphold. You can’t scare Sid Halley, they say.

In Under Orders, a simple inquiry into why Lord Enstone’s horses are losing more often than they should leads Halley into a world of murder, race fixing, and online betting scams. Big money and fancied revenge are at stake, and so is the life of Halley’s new love. It’s one thing to risk his own life in his chosen profession, but what is he to do when his new love is threatened? Is he scared now?

Welcome back, Sid Halley. Author Dick Francis has proven once again that he is the master of mysteries set in the British horse racing world. Are they a little dated? Perhaps, although that never keeps them from being darn good stories, and Sid has always been one of his best heroes. Stoic, thoughtful, a man driven to ignore his own fear, finally, Sid is paired with a woman who is almost his match.

I gave this one a B

2006-12-22T13:22:00.000-08:00

SCIENCE FICTION

McCARTHY, CORMAC, The Road, Alfred A Knopf, 2006 ISBN 978-0-307-26543-2

The Road is a post-apocalyptic love story—only it is the story of a father’s love for his child, a son born just as the world as we know it came to an end. We meet these two several years later. Earth is a dark and ravaged place, where snow and ash fall on a burned out earth every day. The sun never shines. There is no food, no clothes, no civilization. The few who live will kill for a pair of shoes or a can of food. Forever wandering, never finding one place any better than the rest, they follow the old highway hoping something better lies at the end. There seems to be no humanity left, and yet this father strives against all odds to keep the fire alive in his son.

For all the brutality, this is a tender story. It’s a story that will burn its way into your soul, too compelling to forget.

That said, although I looked forward to reading The Road, I had to force myself past the first chapter or so. I have no argument with the plot, although it brought questions to this reader’s mind that were left unanswered. This is Mr. McCarthy’s story and he wrote his visualization. I didn’t mind that the characters were never graced with a name. “The man” and “the boy” identified the characters and I got used to that. What I do quarrel with is the lack of writing conventions. There are no commas in the book. There are no apostrophes, no quotation marks. I guess we were lucky to get a period at the end of a sentence. Was I able to read the story without these things? Yes. But it was distracting—I was jerked out of the story more than once—and to my mind, arrogance on the author’s part that doesn’t sit well.

Post-apocalyptic stories fascinate me—I’m writing one myself. But I’m just a writer. I have a different vision of the post-apocalyptic world, and when I tell my story, I’ll make it as seamless for the reader as possible.

Grade B (Would’ve been an A except for the stylistic problems. I may end up remembering The Road more for that than for the story. Yes. I grumped about Cold Mountain, too. )

2006-11-30T12:31:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY
GREENWOOD, KERRY, Flying Too High, Poisoned Pen Press, 2006
ISBN 1-59058-237-3

Following right behind Cocaine Blues, in this book 1920’s private investigator Phryne Fisher reveals even more of her heroic talents, including stunt flying and wing walking—and tying herself to the outside of a Bentley’s rumble seat.

When Phryne is engaged first to prevent a murder and then to solve it, when the murder happens anyway, she becomes involved in post-WWI flying, as well as the Bohemian art world in an effort to clear an innocent man. Or is he innocent? With the help of her cab-driving friends, Bert and Cec, (and aided by endless cups of tea, cocktails, and gaspers) she’s soon on the right track. But just as one problem clears up, another begins, and now she must rescue a kidnapped child. Once again, Phryne’s many friends provide back-up in an exciting and amusing adventure. And of course, a Phryne Fisher wouldn’t be complete without at least one or two bedroom scenes.

I love the historical aspects of this series, however in this book, the end seemed to go on and on, as though padded for a few extra pages. For that reason, I’m giving this one a Grade C+

2006-11-28T10:07:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY
GREENWOOD, KERRY, Cocaine Blues, Poisoned Pen Press, 2006
ISBN 1-59058-236-5

Cocaine Blues introduces the reader to heroine the Honorable Phryne Fisher, and tells how she evolves into the intrepid investigator subsequent books have proven her to be.

Sick of boring society life, a dinner party provides Phryne with the opportunity to publically solve the theft of a diamond necklace, and in so doing, embark upon her career as a lady detective.

Phryne then casts off the old world and moves to Australia where she becomes entangled in murder, corruption, the drug trade, and political chicanery. But when all this also entails the seduction of a sexy young Russian dancer, flapper Phryne Fisher is at her best.

Greenwood does a wonderful job with 1920’s style—from clothing, to transportation, (mark Phryne’s Hispano-Suiza motor car) to vocabulary. A fascinating look back in time.
Grade B

2006-11-24T14:52:00.000-08:00

FANTASY

BULJOLD, LOIS McMASTER, The Sharing Knife: Beguilement, EOS, an imprint of Harper, Collins Publishers, 2006, ISBN 978-0-06-113758-7

Pregnant and unmarried, young Fawn Bluefield flees her family’s farm. On the way to the city of Glassforge, she meets—and avoids—a Lakewalkers patrol, the soldier-sorcerers who are charged with protecting the world from magical creatures called malices. Malices are so named because they suck the life out of every living thing, leaving only dead dirt. Lakewalkers, on the other hand, are both feared and revered.

Dag, a senior Lakewalker, is weighed by past sorrows, including the loss of his left hand. Aware of Fawn as she hides from him, he is content to ignore her. That soon changes as Fawn is kidnapped by the local malice’s created beings and carried off for both her and her unborn child to be sacrificed. It is Dag who, drastically outnumbered, comes to her rescue. Accidentally, his unprimed sharing knife is imbued with the life sense of Fawn’s child, which links Dag and Fawn together. Uncertain of what to do, Dag convinces Fawn that they must confer with the Lakewalker elders. He just hadn’t counted on falling in love…

Lois McMaster Bujold couldn’t write a bad book if she tried. That said, I felt there were a few inconsistencies in this one. For instance, Dag is supposed to be much older than he seems, and even given that his kind ages slower than most, it came across as odd. And while the fantasy elements were quite strong, the story is still a romance—and I’m not generally a romance reader. Oh, well. I’m still looking forward to the next segment of this couple’s story
Grade A

2006-11-13T14:20:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY
GREENWOOD, KERRY, Murder on the Ballarat Train, Poisoned Pen Press,
ISBN 1-59058-241-1

That Phryne Fisher! She can out-flapper the best whether she’s solving crimes, seducing lovely young men, or saving waifs. Moreover, she can out drink, out shoot, and out fight the average bad guy, all while wearing designer clothes. Afterwards, she climbs into her big red Hispano-Suiza racing car and roars away. What's more, she does it in fun stories loaded with atmosphere that give us a peek into the roaring twenties, Aussie style.

This book has a super hook in that we get to see how Phryne acquired her adopted daughters. Along the way, Phryne has to figure out how an old woman could be hanged at the same time as she’s being thrown out the window of a moving train.

Since being brought to the U.S. by Poisoned Pen Press, the books don’t seem to be appearing in original order, but that’s okay. They read just fine as standalones.
Grade B

2006-11-13T14:19:00.000-08:00

MYSTERY
HARRIS, CHARLAINE, Grave Surprise, Berkley Prime Crime, 2006
ISBN 0-425-21203-3

In this second book of author Charlaine Harris’s Grave series, Harper Connelly and her step-brother Tolliver Lang are back finding dead people and, sometimes more importantly, determining the COD (cause of death). Harper wasn’t born a body finder; she acquired her talent when she was struck by lightning and lived through the experience. Harper and her brother make their living now by hiring out Harper’s services, and since her ability is extremely debilitating, Tolliver takes care of her.

Eighteen months ago, Harper had been hired to find the body of a missing child and failed to do so. Now, as part of a college experiment, Harper is going through an ancient cemetery and identifying the COD from the buried bones. The course instructor knows who is buried where and what they purportedly died of, but he’s the only one until Harper does her thing. As she reaches the final grave, she receives mixed signals. There is more than one body buried in the plot, one old, and one very new. She's horrified when she recognized the newer one. It is the child she failed to find a year and a half earlier and it follows that Harper and Tolliver are accused of skulduggery.

So begins a convoluted tale of murder both old and new, which stars a cast of fascinating characters. If you’re new to the Grave series and look forward to a light and funny story like the Sookie Stackhouse’s, you’ll might be disappointed--although I doubt it. This series is as good; just of a completely different bent. Harper and her brother are survivors of a horrific youth, and it marks everything they do. Harris is an excellent writer, and this is a book I read straight through.
Grade A

2006-11-06T18:59:00.000-08:00

SCIENCE FICTION:
STIRLING,S.M., A Meeting in Corvallis, Roc Books, an imprint of NAL.
ISBN 978-0-451-46111-7

This is the third book of Stirling’s apocalyptic series about a mysterious flash that knocks out all the technological advances known to mankind. Even basic physics no longer behaves as it should. When everything stopped, millions of people died, if not in the first fire-filled days, then in the starvation and disease times that followed. This book picks up in the ninth year of the ‘change’, and again, the Mackenzies and the Bearkillers are fighting the Lord Protector of Portland in a battle of good against evil.

These stories are a bit of a guilty pleasure. They’re terribly repetitive, so that I find myself doing a lot of scanning. Edit the books down to about half and I think Mr. Stirling would have a stronger story. After all, how many ways can you fit an arrow in a bow? And how much description of the Willamette Valley of Oregon do we need? All the women who have major parts to play sound alike, whether they’re heroines or villainesses. Ditto the guys. The bad guys are so very bad, they lose credence. Even the kids are just short adults which, given their privileged status, seems a little unlikely. In this book, half the women are lesbians—not my cup of tea.

A Meeting in Corvallis does have a rip-roaring ending. This time, I think the story is done. Sometimes, given my investment in reading time, I’ve wondered why I stuck with them (hence the scanning mentioned above) and yet… Yep. Guilty pleasures.
Grade C

2006-10-29T13:54:00.000-08:00

DePOY, PHILLIP,
A Minister’s Ghost, St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2006
ISBN 0-312-33934-8

A Minister’s Ghost continues the adventures of Fever Devlin, professor and folklorist, who has returned to his ancestral home in the Appalachians. Fever’s serene existence is broken when his lady friend asks him to look into the deaths of her two young nieces whose car has been demolished by a train. It seems the girls made no attempt to escape the car and apparently died laughing. These were girls who had everything to live for, were happy and well-adjusted and not suicidal which makes Fever believe they were murdered. High on Fever’s list of suspects is a psychotic wanderer, a former preacher on the run during the last seventeen years for murdering his wife. He is a ghostlike character with a notorious scam that could be the reason the girls died. Or there are the local drug dealers, as well an albino dwarf with his own agenda, both of whom had reason to be one the scene when the girls were killed. Fever is himself in danger before he straightens everything out.

The book is less a whodunit than a howdunit, but the suspense is just as good.

Filled with brooding atmosphere, Mr. DePoy writes beautifully of the countryside and its people. He knows when to lighten the story with a humorous break, and gives his characters well-developed lives.
Grade B+

2006-10-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

Mystery

HOCKENSMITH, STEVE, Holmes on the Range, St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2006
ISBN 0-312-34780-4

Who says the Old West didn’t have its mysteries? Who says it didn’t have thieves and murderers and a class conscious upper crust? Who says all fights were settled man-to-man with a six-gun. Certainly not Steve Hockensmith who has put all of that and more into a story that includes cowboys, an outlaw with a taste for human flesh, British landowners, and a load of assorted crooks.

The story starts with brothers Otto (Big Red) and Gustav (Old Red) Amlingmeyer hiring on to the Bar VR cattle ranch. The whole setup is a puzzle, as they’re cowboys forbidden to ride the range. However, after a stampede, they come across an unidentifiable body, which they assume to be their boss, who is missing. There’s something about the circumstances that rouses Old Red’s suspicions, whereupon he takes it upon himself to do some “deducifying” in the manner of Sherlock Holmes, his hero. And although Old Red can’t read, Big Red can, with many an evening spent reading the Holmes stories out loud for his brother’s edification. Together, like Holmes and Watson, they put together clues enough to solve a mystery in which the only good guys seem to be the Amlingmyer boys.

Hockensmith writes laugh out loud dialogue that is entirely suitable for the story. At times I had to take the book and read parts of it to my husband, just to share the fun. Even the boys’ name seems to me a setup. And yet, I found within the book a basic American concept, one that warns against underestimating a poor, untutored working man. This is one of those books that goes on my A list. Loved it.
Grade A

2006-10-10T18:50:00.000-07:00

MYSTERY REVIEW
CRAIG, PHILIP R., Dead in Vineyard Sand, Scribner, 2006. ISBN 0-7432-7044-4

This is my second J.W. Jackson mystery, and what’s not to like? As a westerner, to me the setting on Martha’s Vineyard is fascinating, the characters are interesting, the style is easy, and the action is well-paced.

In this story, J.W.’s introduction to Henry Highsmith is decidedly unfriendly. Highsmith accuses J.W. of parking his old SUV too close to Highsmith’s expensive bicycle, and somehow they get into a shoving match. Bewildered by it all, J.W. puts the incident out of his mind until, as a favor to a friend, he makes up a golfing foursome and they find Highsmith’s body buried in a sand pit on the local golf course. Because of the public altercation, J.W. seems the most likely culprit. When Highsmith’s wife is also attacked, the situation becomes critical. As a former cop, J.W. likes to take charge of his own investigation, and while cooperating with the local police, he sets out to discover the real killer. His search uncovers more killings and a history of family madness before he clears himself. And then, for J.W., it’s back to lazy summer days on the ocean beach and building his children a tree house.

The story was a little predictable—I had the solution pegged from the first introduction of the guilty party—but enjoyable for all that.
Grade B-

2006-10-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

Mysteries:
BOWEN, RHYS, Oh Danny Boy, St. Martin’s Press, 2006. ISBN 0-312-32817-6
Turn-of-the-20th Century sleuth and Irish immigrant Molly Murphy is swept into her
most action-filled and dangerous case yet in the fifth book of this series.

Molly’s sometime sweetheart, NYPD captain Daniel Sullivan is in deep trouble. He’s been caught taking a bribe right under Police Commissioner John Partridge’s nose. He claims he was set up, and when his colleagues in the police department turn against him, he’s forced to beg Molly’s help. Molly, who’s vowed never to see him again because of his involvement with another woman, has to be kidnapped before she’ll visit him in prison.

Once they’re face-to-face, Daniel convinces her to help him, and as a first step, Molly intends to get to the bottom of the cases he’s been working on. One of them, it turns out, is a series of Jack the Ripper style murders targeting prostitutes. It isn’t long before Molly discovers the girls aren’t prostitutes at all, but nice girls sacrificed to obscure a single, important murder. Molly, before she can close the case and obtain Daniel’s freedom, barely escapes the same fate.

Ms. Bowen has, as always, set us down on the mean streets of New York City where we hear the accents and touch the cultures of the masses coming through Ellis Island. My feet ached in sympathy from all the walking Molly had to do during the course of her investigation, while she was feeling so poorly, too. In this story, we are introduced to true personage Sabella Goodwin, one of the first women investigators hired by the NYPD. I hope to see her again in the next Molly Murphy book, which I’ll be looking for.
Graded B

HAINES, CAROLYN, Bones to Pick, Kensington Books, 2006.
ISBN 978-0-7582-1090-6

Sunflower County, with its steel magnolias and DGs (Daddy’s Girls), is a bad place to be if you’ve gotten on the wrong side of the social arbitrators. And someone seems to be picking on those who step out of line. Writer Quentin McGee ends up dead just hours after inheriting a fortune. The question is, was she murdered because of the money, or because of her tell-all book? One thing certain, there’s a plethora of suspects. It’s Quentin’s lover who is arrested, but her loyal brother hires southern belle P.I. Sarah Booth Delaney and her DG partner Tinkie Richmond to discover the truth. Soon they're hot on the real murderer's trail in this intriguing who-dunit. Imagine their surprise when they find it isn’t just one murder they’re investigating, but several, and they’re slated to be the next victims.

This cozy series, which along with such great characters as Sarah Booth and Tinkie, also features a haint, a red-bone hound, and a whole county full of “characters.” The stories suck you in to the southern lifestyle. If I have one nit-pick, it’s Sarah Booth’s obsession/attraction with/to Sheriff Coleman Peters. He carries too much baggage for my taste, and I find some of Sarah Booth’s other beaus a whole lot more interesting and fun. But that’s just me. That said, I always look forward to another Bones story from Ms. Haines.
Grade B