Challenge Complete: Where Are You Reading?

Where Are You Reading? 

Hosted at Book Dragon's Lair

This one was all about places. There's one about states but this one counts cities, counties, and fictional locations too. Read a book set in a location for each letter of the alphabet. West Virginia only counts for W, Bowling Green only counts for B, but the Pern series by Anne McCaffrey that is on a fictional planet counts as P ;-) 

I have finally completed my bookish travels--well, at least enough to cover the alphabet. I'm sure I'll be hitting more fictional places before the year is up. Thanks, for hosting! Hope we'll don our traveling clothes for another trip next year.

My List:

A: (Alabama) March: Book One by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin & Nate Powell (1/26/17)

B: (Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo) The Body Missed the Boat by Jack Iams (3/6/17)

C: (Cannes) Murder at the Masque by Amy Myers (1/16/17)

D: (Delphi; Greece) Decision at Delphi by Helen MacInnes (5/28/17)

E: (England) Death at Swaythling Court by J. J. Connington (1/4/17)

F: (France) The Black Count by Tom Reiss (1/21/17)

G: (Granada) Spice Island Mystery by Betty Cavanna (2/10/17)

H: (Harlem) Blind Man with a Pistol by Chester Himes (5/10/17)

I: (Iowa) The Thursday Turkey Murders by Craig Rice (2/13/17)

J: (Jerusalem) Zadok's Treasure by Margot Arnold (2/22/17)

K: (Kenya) Murder at Government House by Elspeth Huxley (3/13/17)

L: (London) The Snake on 99 by Stewart Farrar (1/11/17)

M: (Maine) Murder at Teatime by Stefanie Matteson (5/9/17)

N: (New York City) The 24th Horse by Hugh Pentecost (1/13/17)

O: (Ohio) Publish and Perish by Sally Wright (6/23/17)

P: (Pittsburgh) Episode of the Wandering Knife by Mary Roberts Rinehart (2/17/17)

Q: (Quebec) Petty Theft by Pascal Girard (5/16/17)

R: (Rhode Island) The Ghost & the Dead Deb by Alice Kimberly (6/16/17)

S: (Sleepyside-on-Hudson) Trixie Belden & the Gatehouse Mystery by Julie Campbell (3/16/17)

T: (Tennessee) If Ever I Return Pretty Peggy-O by Sharyn McCrumb (5/29/17)

U: (United States) Deadly Nightshade by Elizabeth Daly (5/19/17)

V: (Venus) Battle on Venus by William F. Temple (1/7/17)

W: (Wales) Death Finds a Foothold by Glyn Carr (6/14/17)

X: (Xi'an China) The Little Red Guard by Wenguang Huang (6/7/17)

Y: (Yugoslavia--the country as it was when book published; Slovenia was just part of it) The Golden Bird: Folk Tales from Slovenia by Vladimir Kavčič (5/16/17)

Z: (Zimbabwe) Alfred & Emily by Doris Lessing (6/14/17)

Publish & Perish: Review

Publish & Perish (1997) is the first book in Sally Wright's series starring Ben Reese. Reese is a World War II veteran, former intelligence officer, and currently works as an archivist at a small private Ohio college. The time period is 1960. We first meet Reese at two o'clock in the morning. He is on a research trip in England when his friend Richard West, current chair of the English Department, calls him and is quite upset. He tells Reese that he has "uncovered an act of treachery which demands some form of retribution." Before he can explain further, someone comes to his office door and he says, "The culprit has just put in an appearance and I'll have to call you tomorrow." Culprit would seem to be prophetic, for the next message Reese gets from the States is a telegram informing him that West has died from an apparent heart attack.

Reese, who is West's executor, heads home for his friend's funeral and to take care of the estate. He also can't resist asking questions about his friend's final hours. He soon finds that West's conservative views and adherence to old-fashioned values (like honesty...) pitted him against someone who would do anything to prevent the secret lies of the past from being exposed in the present. Professional jealousy and academic integrity lie at the heart of the matter and Ben's life will be in danger as well once he discovers the reasons why West had to die.

A decent academic mystery and a fair start to a new series--and, from what I can tell, a fair debut novel of any sort. Ben Reese is an interesting character with a background that would be worth fleshing out. The mystery was fairly obvious (suspects aren't exactly thick on the ground), so hopefully future installments in the series will make improvements in this area. [Side-note, I was disappointed to find that future installments are not necessarily academically-tied.] A quick and entertaining read for those who like their mysteries with an academic flavor (as do I). ★★★

*************************
Fulfills the "Set at Work" category on the Reporter's Challenge.

The Ghost & the Dead Deb: Review

Penelope Thornton-McClure, co-owener of the Buy the Book bookstore, has a ghost. Not just any ghost. Hers is a P.I. by the name of Jack Shepard who was murdered on the spot nearly fifty years ago. In The Ghost & the Dead Deb, the second in Alice Kimberly's Haunted Bookshop series, the Buy the Book bookstore is hosting an author reading and book-signing with Angel Stark. Angel has just written a true crime novel about a recent unsolved mystery among the young and upper-class. When Angel starts taking questions after the reading, it becomes clear that not everyone in the audience is a fan. There is a particularly nasty confrontation with a young woman who claims the book is full of lies. And who knew there'd be so many connections to "cornpone" Quindicott, Rhode Island? But when Angel is killed and the sister of the "Dead Deb" featured in the book's murder case disappears, Penelope finds more connections than she is comfortable with--including a forgotten cousin in her deceased husband's family. Penelope and Jack are soon on the case looking to see if someone wanted to keep Angel from discovering the real killer of the Dead Deb or if there is another motive hidden the quiet Rhode Island town.

Observations:
--The initial attraction of the book was its interesting hook: the relationship between the ghostly Private Eye Jack Shepard and the amateur detective and bookstore owner Penelope Thornton-McClure (on purely the detective-duo portion of the relationship--see comments on "romance" below). It was also its weakness. After all, Jack was supposedly firmly attached to the bookstore, the site of his own murder. That idea was apparently sold in the first novel and continued to be to mode of operation through about half of this one. Then...I guess Kimberly figured out that there wasn't much scope for a detective partnership that couldn't roam far from the bookstore and we discover that Jack has some supernatural connection to a buffalo nickel and if Penelope carries that about with her she can also take Jack along for the ride. Mmmmkay. Way to dream up something to get yourself out of the corner you painted yourself into...instant magic carpet.

--The "romance" which seems to be hinted at between Jack and Penelope is just plain weird. He's dead. It has no future unless all she wants is a mental/emotional turn-on. 

--Quite honestly, I was much more interested in Jack and what happened in the forties. I think I'd rather that Alice Kimberly wrote about his earthly life as a P.I. than his after-life.

--If Penelope really pauses to have the internal dialogues with Jack while others are around as often and for as long as some of the conversations seem to last, why aren't her friends, neighbors, and/or customers noticing that she seems to be zoning out and wondering if she's okay? I mean, seriously. My husband occasionally has a tendency to go into "daydream mode" while I'm talking to him--some word or phrase or whatever will trigger a memory or another thought and he glazes over. It doesn't take me long to notice and say "Hey!" You can't tell me that those closest to her don't notice that Penelope is no longer in the real-life conversation.

Final Analysis: Really had potential. Jack is an interesting character that I wish were featured in his own book about his own investigations. Except for the hints of romantic interest, I do like the exchanges between Jack and Penelope. It would be nice if they could just operate as friends and co-investigators and leave out the romantic tone. The mystery plot is so-so. I prefer it when all of the clues are readily available and the reader has a fair chance of figuring things out for themselves. ★★ and a half. 

Alfred & Emily: Review

Alfred & Emily by Doris Lessing is two stories in one. She combines a fictional tale of what the lives of her parents, Alfred and Emily, might have been if World War One had never happened--if her father had not come home wounded both physically and emotionally and if her mother had not be damaged as well through caring for a wounded man who suffered from shell shock and who took her from England to a farm in Zimbabwe. The novella which begins the book gives her parents their ideal life. Her father becomes the farmer in England he always dreamed he could be, successful with a wife who enjoyed living on the farm and with two brawny sons. Her mother still becomes a nurse, but after marriage to a doctor who dies in middle-age and leaves her well-off she is able to fund schools and then a refuge for women in trouble. Through her fiction, she allows her parents to become what she imagines might have been their best selves.

The second half of the book tells the real-life story of her parents' struggles with life after the Great War. It shows in detail just how devastating that war was not only for those who lost loved ones, but for those who came home and those who loved them. The despair and depression the parents fought deeply affected Doris and her brother. Doris grew up hating her mother--in part because she pitied her and didn't know how to deal with those emotions as a young girl. Processing her emotions and reactions to her parents' plight may have sent her into therapy later in life, but it also fueled her fiction. It's likely that Alfred and Emily may have been happier if the war had never happened, but would Doris Lessing have been the author she became had she grown up in England? Of course, we'll never know for sure--but it certainly seems like the struggles she experienced in dealing with her parents molded her in ways that shaped her writing.

Each section of the book is interesting in its own right. But I'm not entirely sold on the combination in one volume. The transition between the two sections is inadequate and doesn't quite make a smooth connection. There are hints in reality towards the fictional biography Lessing writes for Alfred and Emily, but she doesn't fully explain some of the choices she made for them. ★★★

Death Finds a Foothold: Review

Death Finds a Foothold (1961) is the 14th mystery in Glyn Carr's [Frank Stowell Styes] Sir Abercrombie Lewker series. Lewker is a former commando, celebrated Shakespearean actor, and accomplished mountain climber. He's sortof the Jessica Fletcher of the mountaineering crowd, though--where he goes death seems to follow. On this particular outing, Lewker heads to Snowdonia, Wales for the annual dinner meet of the Foothold Club at the Pen-y-Pass Hotel. The Club has over 400 hundred members--all of whom are welcome at the general annual dinner, but only the current president, past presidents, the original founding members of the club, and their invited guests are allowed at the dinner meet. Lewker extends his invitation to his old friend Detective Inspector George Grimmett, knowing that Grimmett has long been curious, as a student of human nature, to study the mountaineering fraternity (and sorority) in their natural habitat. He also plans to talk the Inspector into climbing a bit himself.

They have just settled in their room with plans to change for dinner, when the current president, Mark Stoner comes in to consult Lewker--known for his abilities as an amateur sleuth--and finds that he has the added bonus of a detective inspector. Stoner has received a threatening letter

You thought youd got away with it but its catching up with you you dirty skunk your not fit to live and wont if you persist in taking the job so watch out.

The president is baffled and yet frightened. He can't think what "job" the anonymous letter writer is referring to and he can't think of anyone who might have animus against him. But he feels the threat nonetheless.

But when tragedy strikes the next day, it's not the president who dies. Professor Julius Wiernick, who is a particularly odious man with few, if any, friends, but a brilliant climber falls to his death in what appears to be an accident. Wiernick was climbing with another seasoned mountaineer, Donald Ferguson, and Ferguson's niece Flora Massey. The Professor was lead on the team and had decided to take an alternate route on what should have been a fairly moderate climb--just to add a bit of challenge. The route took him out of sight of his fellow climbers and that's when he fell. Neither Lewker nor Inspector Grimmett are inclined to believe that this was an accident. And when a note just like the one Stoner received is found in Wiernick's pocket, it seems they are right. But tracking down who had a motive as well as the opportunity to kill a man on a fairly tricky bit of rock face will take some doing. And what did the man's cry of "Jack!" right before his fall mean?

At first, it seems that the detective duo has an impossible crime on their hands. Those with motive either have alibis or would have been hard pressed to get themselves into position to kill the professor in the time allowed. When another death occurs, it becomes apparent that the past event mentioned is at the heart of the mystery and they will have to unearth the details before they can catch their man...or woman.

Just a few thoughts on this one--possible spoiler in next paragraph. First, Sir Abercrombie makes it plain that those who know him well and whom he considers friends don't call him "Filthy" (although apparently someone, somewhere does--otherwise, why bring it up?). In fact, nobody in the whole book calls him by that name. So why on earth do we even bring that name up; why does the back of the book insist on calling him "Filthy" Lewker; and why is the series known under that name on various sites? I mean, sure, it's an obvious play on his name--but it'd work better if Carr had actually made something of the play on words.

Second, once the reader knows that the professor's death was murder, it becomes obvious who did it. Might not know exactly how, might not know the details on why--but definitely who. And speaking of how--I'm not sure exactly how that trick was worked. There's no way on earth I can see that you, as murderer, could have been sure that the rope would catch in the way it had to and would leave Wiernick's body dangling (sorry for the image) in the way it was found. 

But, those two quibbles aside, this is very interesting mystery. I'm quite taken with Sir Abercrombie (who, admittedly, is a bit taken with himself) even though he does lecture Inspector Grimmett a bit much on his own job. Carr manages to deliver necessary mountain-climbing details to the uninitiated in a manner that is absorbing rather than overwhelming or boring and his descriptions of the area in Wales is delightful. Once the denouement arrives, the readers also finds that Carr has played fair--displaying his clues and even allowing Sir Abercrombie to recite most of them to us. I still didn't pick up on the meaning of a couple of them. An entertaining read...earning ★★★ and a half.

*********
This fulfills the "Snow/Snowy Scene" category on the Silver Scavenger Hunt card.

The Little Red Guard: Review

The Little Red Guard (2012) by Wenguang Huang recounts the the author's life in Communist China from 1973 on. The story is held together by his grandmother's obsession with death and her burial. She is a product of the old ways--having had her feet bound and growing up with the rituals and superstitions of the past. Even though the Party has outlawed extravagant burials and now requires everyone to be cremated, Grandma makes Wenguang's father promise that he will not burn her up when she dies--that he will take her from the city of Xi'an, where they live now, back to her home in the Henan Province to bury her beside her husband. And she doesn't just want him to sneak her body back home; she wants the traditional funeral ceremony. 

This causes great tension between her son and his wife and also puts the entire family on pins and needles for years. Wenguang's father spends a great deal of time and money making friends and doing favors for people who will be able to help him when his mother dies--from finding a the wood and the carpenter to build the coffin to securing a truck and driver to transport Grandma to Henan to making sure that members of Grandma's family will be prepared to help get her into the right grave. Meanwhile, Wenguang's father is doing all the right things within the Party to make sure his family's fortunes will prosper while he keeps his mother's wishes secret and Wenguang and his siblings are studying to be proper little Communists who will bring glory to the Party and honor to their family.

Wenguang is very close to his Grandma and at first he sides with her and his father in the struggle to fulfill his grandmother's wishes and protect her (and the family) from Party displeasure. But as he grows older, attends college, and becomes exposed to more Western thinking, he becomes disdainful of his father's kowtowing--both to tradition and to the Communist way of life. He behaves disrespectfully at his father's funeral (who winds up preceding the grandmother in death) and it isn't until Wenguang moves to the United States and reaches middle age that he realizes how arrogant he was and how unappreciative he was of his father's struggle to be a dutiful son, and devoted husband & father all while maintaining the position that would allow him to support his family. It was quite a juggling act--and sometimes he couldn't keep all the balls in the air.

This was a touching family memoir which revealed a great deal about Chinese traditions and the struggles under Chairman Mao's rule. It was very interesting to compare Wenguang's childhood to my own growing up in the 1970s and early 80s. There was a lot--from the variety of food on the table to the freedom of thought in the classroom to the entertainment available--that I took for granted which Wenguang never experienced as a child in China. There were also a number of things that were the same--particularly the devotion to family. Growing up close to my dad's family--I knew that family always came first. His mom exemplified that and Dad (and his siblings) followed her example. A compelling story of a family trying to reconcile the old ways with the new and which tells of the failures as well as the successes. ★★★★

If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O: Review

Sharyn McCrumb's If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O (1990) is set in the small Appalachian town of Hamelin, Tennessee where Spencer Arrowood is the Sheriff who keeps the peace. It's not a difficult job most of the time--an occasional run-away or teenage boy with excess energy stepping out of line; a few drunk and disorderlies...that's pretty much it. Then Peggy Muryan purchases the old Dandridge home. The moderately popular folksinger from the '60s is looking for a quiet place to compose new songs and set the stage for a comeback.

But the peace and quiet doesn't last long. Peggy begins receiving postcards with lyrics from various folksongs which she had once made famous. As Sheriff Arrowood points out to her, the lyrics as printed are scarcely threatening--but Peggy knows the lines that come next and the haunting, ominous nature of the lines not written are worse than those which appear. Then Peggy's dog is killed and marked with an insignia of some sort--butchered in a commando-style that has indications of a link to Vietnam. The dog's death is followed by a sheep--also left with clues referring to Vietnam. 

Things really get serious when a high school girl goes missing and winds up murdered--for Rosemary Winstead bears a striking resemblance to Peggy Muryan at the height of her career. LeDonne, Spencer's Vietnam vet deputy, doubts the Vietnam connection because the clues left behind in each case are too scattered. They point towards several different military units. Peggy, meanwhile, keeps getting those cards, and they seem to implicate her former singing partner, Travis Perdue--except es that Travis was a Vietnam casualty, an MIA. Is it possible he returned to the States after all? Why would he kill nice, young Rosemary? Who else had a motive?

[Possible spoiler ahead!]
I find the ending deeply disturbing and unsatisfying. Which, honestly, is what I believe McCrumb wants. Many of her characters are disturbed--whether they are haunted by a past that never was quite like they remember it or a past that changed them forever or if they are caught up in their interest in a past that was never theirs. Portraying the psychological dilemmas of the various characters is probably McCrumb's strongest gift in her writing. It certainly isn't in the crime plotting itself. I found the motive fairly unbelievable--quite probably because the killer's psychology is the least examined. The character appears regularly, so the fair-play side of me can't holler "No Fair! X isn't even a real suspect." But I can't say that I'm believing in X as the villain. It also doesn't help that Arrowood doesn't really figure anything out and does very little in the investigative line. We find out who the killer is because s/he appears in Peggy's house and spills out a confession in a burst of bragging. Otherwise, I just don't see this crime being solved. 

The setting is grand and the Appalachian background well-done. Most of the characters are well-rounded, interesting, and believable. One just wishes the villain were included in "most." A decent mystery with an intriguing set-up and lead-up to the final chapters. If the promise had been fulfilled, I would have given it a higher rating--as it is...★★★

Decision at Delphi: Review

Innocents Abroad...Kenneth Strang, architectural illustrator, is off another routine assignment--or so he thinks. Lee Preston, editor of Perspectives--a monthly magazine on architecture and the decorative arts, has hired him to sketch Greek classical structures and ruins as they would have been when built. The illustrations will be paired with photographs taken by Strang's regular collaborator Steve (Stefanos) Kladas showing what these buildings currently look like.

But from the moment Strang boards the ocean liner headed for the Mediterranean, nothing goes as planned. A second piece of luggage is added to his baggage...sent along by Kladas and it contains papers and film rolls that Strang needs to keep safe. Then when the architect arrives in Greece, Kladas is behaving oddly. He won't stay at the hotel as planned; he won't even stay put long enough for the two men to discuss their strategy. But Kladas isn't the only one behaving oddly--Strang's old friend Alexander Christophorou is also being secretive while also giving Strang nebulous warnings about other Americans and Englishmen in the city. There's a rich young Greek woman who tried to ward Kladas to stay away from Greece and someone keeps searching Strang's luggage looking for who knows what.

Things really heat up when Kladas disappears and then is reported dead and Strang finds himself a pawn in a murderous game of international international intrigue with an endgame labelled assassination.  He doesn't mind the danger for himself (truth be told he's kind of enjoying the spy in the corner business). But then Preston sends Strang another photographer to take his place. C. L. Hilliard--who not only takes beautiful pictures but is also a beautiful woman disguised behind those masculine-sounding initials. And when they fall in love, Strang finds that he has unwittingly handed the enemy the weapon they needed. How can he keep Kladas's secret safe, rescue the woman he loves, and help prevent the nihilists from wrecking the civilization that has been rebuilding since World War II?

Decision at Delphi (1960) is a gripping espionage thriller with believable characters. Strang served in WWII, so it isn't unexpected that he can handle himself in tight situations. Every character we meet has an interesting backstory that works into the present and MacInnes provides the motives and philosophies of the different factions without making the reader feel like they've sat through a Cold War lecture. There are many historical details necessary to understand the setting and events in late-1950s Greece and MacInnes provides them in a way that keeps the story moving. She also keeps the tension up--making it clear that Strang may well be trusting some of the wrong people, but it is difficult to tell where true loyalties lie is some cases. 

Good historical background, beautiful descriptions of the countryside in Greece and the area surrounding Delphi in particular, and compelling characters all combine in an exciting adventure. ★★★★



[Finished 5/28/17] ********
It's a little difficult to see, but the young woman on the cover (Miss Hilliard, I presume) has a camera around her neck. So, this fulfills the "Camera" category on the Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

Petty Theft: Mini Review

Petty Theft (2014) by Pascal Girard 

Awkward. If I had to sum this book up in one word, that's what I'd go with. Pascal (the character) is awkward. The whole set-up winds up being awkward. And the simple line-drawing panels are awkwardly far afield from the usual graphic novel fare offered up these days. The tag line on Goodreads "A hilarious romantic comedy about kleptomania and booklovers" caught my attention and the plot--Pascal notices a young woman in a bookshop stealing his book, so he decides to play amateur detective and figure out who she is and see if he can catch her in the act...falling for her in the process--sounded original and intriguing. But the story just isn't. Intriguing, that is. It isn't hilarious either. Pascal is so awkward it's painful, but he is also not at all compelling, so one doesn't really sympathize with him.

And you can't tell me that Pascal went with his bad back and worked in construction for more than one day without re-injuring and worsening his condition. Yeah--it happens, but it should have happened immediately.

I still think the plot was a good concept. I wish it had been rendered more effectively. ★★

[Finished on 5/16/17]

The Golden Bird: Review

The Golden Bird: Folk Tales from Slovenia (1969) by Vladimir Kavčič contains eighteen folktales from the heart of Slovenia/Yugoslavia. Those who are familiar with folk tales and fairy tales will recognize common themes that bear great resemblance to such stories as Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White & Rose Red (the original and now Disney's version of Snow White), Bluebeard, Jack and the Beanstalk, and The Brave Little Tailor. There is also a short version of the Tom Thumb story. It is interesting to see that various themes appear across a broad spectrum of cultures--whether because certain experiences are common to all people or because the original oral stories were spread by traveling story tellers who left their stories with different cultures. 

As with all story collections, the folk tales vary in strength. The weakest is a story about a boy who misinterprets his mother's instructions all the time. It is just a series of examples of such behavior, but there doesn't seem to be any moral or conclusion--such as the stories where the youngest, weakest, least regarded brother/sister winds up winning out and marrying the princess/prince. The examples just end with nothing really happening. Overall, an interesting and engaging collection. ★★★

[Finished on 5/16/17]

Blind Man with a Pistol: Review

Blind Man with a Pistol (1969) is the first Grave Digger Jones and Coffin Ed Johnson novel I've read and the last in the series published before Chester Himes's death in 1984. It tells the story of one night and a day in Harlem. A period in which Detectives Jones and Johnson are tasked with finding the person responsible for a spate of organized race riots while weaving their way through murders, Black Muslims, Black Power movements, organized crime, and terrible violence everywhere. 

They get sidetracked from their primary assignment (the race riots) when a pantsless white man with his throat cut falls dead at their feet.  A trail of blood leads back to a cramped apartment building where apartments full of people neither saw nor heard anything. Another murder (of a key witness) follows and the police seem powerless to stop the murderer or the riots. The story ends with a regular shoot-em-up featuring the titular Blind Man and his pistol. 

I have to admit that I really didn't follow what was going on throughout most of this. Plot does not seem to be a major point of interest for Himes. I think I know who was behind the riots, but I wouldn't bet anything too valuable on that and I haven't the faintest idea about who killed the pantsless man and the witness. Jones and Johnson (and the white policemen on the force) haven't solved that crime by the end of the book and I doubt that they were going to. There is a lot of gratuitous violence and if you have any qualms about language (both racial and vulgar), then I'd suggest you steer clear. Definitely not a mystery story in the traditional sense.

I recognize that Himes was using the crime novel as a vehicle to make statements about violence and conditions in Harlem as well as to highlight the racial tensions of the time period. This is valuable for those interested in the late 60s/early 70s in New York. And, perhaps, the chaotic nature of the book--which jumped around from scene to scene and from viewpoint to viewpoint--was meant to reflect the chaotic atmosphere of the time and place--but it makes things difficult on the reader. Interesting as a snapshot of the time period, but not a typical mystery novel and it was difficult for me to enjoy it from that standpoint. The ending is well-done. Himes does seem to have a gift for describing the crowd mentality and giving the full flavor of the people's reactions without over-doing it. ★★★

**********
This fulfills the "Revolver" category on the Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

Murder at Teatime: Review

Murder at Teatime (1991) by Stefanie Matteson is a cozy mystery series starring Charlotte Graham, Oscar-award winning actress and belle of Broadway with a nose for clues. After more than forty years on stage and screen, Charlotte finds herself without a play and without a hint of a script. So, she decides to take a vacation at the Maine island home of her dear friends Stan and Kitty Saunders. Gilley Island is beautiful and restful...at least that's what she's been promised. But Charlotte feels like she's walked in to the middle of a melodrama.

The residents are all up in arms over a proposed development project that will bring an exclusive resort to the coastal island. Most are in favor of the project--with the promise of jobs to replace those that have been lost when factories and other industries have moved out of the area. But Dr. Franklin Thornhill, who owns a large parcel of land smack dab in the middle of the area the resort folk want to buy, is one of those steadfastly against the idea and refuses to sell. A harassment campaign has been in force--from letting the air out of Thornhill's tires to crude, child-like drawings with threatening notes--and then, on the day Charlotte arrives, Thornhill's dog is poisoned.

Thornhill's death from a poisoned cup of tea follows after his niece, a white witch who lives with him a Ledge House, holds a Midsummer's Night (Summer Solstice) celebration with plenty of odd...and sometimes poisonous...herbs and concoctions. Did someone mistake monkshood for a bit of tea leaves or was the doctor deliberately done away with? His rivals in the land project aren't the only suspects for hustling the doctor off this mortal coil. His daughter and son-in-law stand to inherit, his niece may have wanted to stop an impending marriage that would have left her homeless, and a book seller may have needed the commission from an estate sale sooner than a natural death would have allowed. Howard Tracey, the local chief of police who has never dealt with a murder before, has heard of Graham's penchant for solving mysteries and asks her help him with his investigation. She'll have to sift the good herbs from the bad to find the right potion to reveal a callous murderer.

A fairly solid cozy mystery. Several motives to work through and a decent attempt at fair play. The characters are mildly interesting but could have been given a bit more depth to spice things up a bit. Enjoyable enough for a quick read, but not necessarily a series that I will deliberately seek out. ★★★

*******
Fulfills "Holiday" category for the Cruisin' Thru the Cozies Challenge. The murder takes place after a Midsummer's Night (Summer Solstice) celebration and the villain is caught by the light of the fireworks on Independence Day.

Trixie Belden & the Gatehouse Mystery: Review

Trixie Belden is one of the many young detectives who adventures I followed when I was young. My first taste of "girl detectives" was Nancy Drew and I read as many of those I could get my hands. When a new Nancy Drew mystery wasn't available, I cast about for others.Trixie, whose first book was published in 1948, was in many ways a more realistic character for a middle-class girl to relate to. I might have wanted to be Nancy with her roadster and the ability to travel just about anywhere at the drop of a hat, but it was far easier to see myself as Trixie--the tomboyish girl with a quick temper. Nancy is well-to-do and has a wealthy father to support her in all the travels she does--from ski lodges to Hawaii to Scotland to the jungles of Africa. Trixie has to work hard at her chores to earn spending money and is often struggling with her schoolwork and spends most of her time in her fictional hometown of Sleepyside-on-Hudson. Her trips are usually to visit her own family or friends or those of members of the Bobwhites (a club consisting of her brothers and friends). She seems to face more of the ups and downs of teenage life than Nancy does--everything from squabbles with her brothers to dealing with her own insecurities. But the one thing she does share with Nancy is her knack for solving mysteries. 

In our many trips to Route 66, my husband & like to stop and the various flea markets and antique malls along the way. In just such a one last spring, I found the pictured 1951 edition of Trixie Belden & the Gatehouse Mystery by Julie Campbell and decided I needed to revisit the series. When I needed a book involving a building for a couple of my reading challenges, I decided I needed to read it this year.

The Gatehouse Mystery is the third in the Trixie Belden series. She has made friends with Honey Wheeler and she and her new friend have helped Jim Frayne solve a few mysteries regarding his heritage and inheritance and Honey acquired a new brother when her parents adopt Jim. It is now the end of summer vacation and while waiting for Trixie's brothers, Brian and Mart, to come home from their summer of serving as counselors at camp she and Honey decide to investigate the run-down gatehouse hidden on a corner of the Wheelers' property. They've barely entered the building before Trixie's six-year-old brother Bobby trips and skins his knee on something in the hard dirt floor. Upon closer inspection, what she thinks is just a pebble turns out to be a diamond. How did a shiny diamond wind up in the cobwebby abandoned building? 

Trixie begins to imagine jewel thieves fighting over their loot--with a diamond being lost in the shuffle. Is it possible that jewel thieves have chosen the small New York town as the perfect hiding place from authorities? There are clues to be found in the gatehouse including two sets of footprints--rubber soles and leather toes--as well as the question of a certain man's letter of recommendation. When a prowler sneaks into Honey's bedroom while she and Trixie are having a sleepover, Trixie is sure it's the jewel thief looking for the diamond which is now hidden a secret compartment of Honey's jewel box. When the boys come home from camp, they, along with Jim, help Trixie and Honey solve the mystery of the diamond in the gatehouse.


This was just as much fun to read as when I was young. It's really a pretty sophisticated mystery for young people--there's real danger for both Trixie and Jim and, although Trixie does jump to a few conclusions here and there, on the whole she makes deductions based on her observations and the clues at hand. A quite enjoyable walk down memory lane.
★★★★

 [Finished on 3/16/17--still catching up on reviews.]
 **********
This fulfills the "Blonde" category on the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

Murder at Government House

Murder at Government House (1937) by Elspeth Huxley is the first of her Inspector Vachell stories set in the fictional colony of Chania (corresponding to Kenya, Africa). Vachell has come to Africa from Canada and has a much more forthright, almost brash manner than many of the colonials are used to. The inspector is called to investigate when Sir Malcolm MacLeod, Chania's Governor, is found strangled to death in his office in the late hours after a dinner party. It first looks like a locked room murder--guards at the doors, the connecting office door was locked, and Olivia Brandeis, a young anthropologist, was outside the Governor's window smoking and talking with another guest during the crucial time. And Vachell must discover how the murderer got in and out of the office without being seen. There are many among the guests who had a motive to kill the Governor--from those opposed to a proposed merger with a neighboring colony to ambitious government officials who could benefit from the Governor's removal.There are also many clues and red herrings for the inspector to sift through. Olivia Brandeis, having an alibi for the time of the murder, provides much-needed insight on her fellow dinner guests and brings Vachell an obscure, but important clue from a local witch doctor. An official-napping by plane and a high-speed chase--complete with an armed suspect and narrow escapes for our hero and heroine provide an exciting wrap-up.

Huxley gives her readers an interesting look at colonial life in Africa during the 1930s with an excellent look at the tensions experienced by the indigenous people trying to adapt to the ways of the British while experiencing the pull of their African heritage. There is also hints of the tensions breaking in the world with discussions of how the Japanese would love to get a foothold through a concession of some farmland. There is no overt references to the storms of war which are brewing, but the reader's historical hindsight can read between the lines. 

Vachell is a competent investigator (much more so than in Murder on Safari--my previous experience with Huxley's work), but still not a captivating character. I've been most remiss in my review-writing and, having finished six days ago, I find that he has left very little impression on me. Perhaps that is why Huxley's novels are not nearly as well-know as some of her contemporaries. This was an interesting look at colonial Africa and the mystery itself is fairly good--lots of suspects and clues to sift through. What keeps this from being top-shelf is Vachell's lack of, shall we say, flair and the fact that the solution depends on a rather obscure bit of knowledge that is not introduced to the reader until the inspector explains all. One might put the finger on the correct suspect with the available clues, but one would be hard-pressed to see how s/he could have done it without that key bit of knowledge. Not quite fair play. ★★★ for a solid, entertaining read.

[Finished on 3/14/17]

**********
This fulfills the "Telephone" category on the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt card and is my first entry in Rich's 1937 edition of the Crimes of the Century over at Past Offences. If you've got a 1937 mystery on tap, come join us!

The Body Missed the Boat: Review

In 1947, when The Body Missed the Boat  by Jack Iams was published, the story was set in Brazzaville in French Equatorial Africa [now the Republic of the Congo]. It features the employees at the American Consulate in Brazzaville from the titular Body in the person of the American Consul, Warren Mallory, to our narrator Freddy Benson, the American vice-consul; from Jimmy Beach, the American cipher clerk, to Ma'amselle Yvette Armenois, the luscious Gallic secretary who much prefers taking dictation on Freddy's knees to doing so under the eye of the rigid Mallory. Also in the mix are Hilary Judd, a clever and attractive British woman who has worked for the BBC; Phillippa Darrow, professional big game huntress who is missing one large gorilla by the name of Mama Bu-Bu; Larry Brune, the voice of Radio Brazzaville and although American thinks nothing of making the U.S. State Department look like fools; Hilda Weissman, a harrassed German Jewish refugee, & her devoted boyfriend Boris Chor, a hot-headed young zealot; and Dr. Gailbraith, an elderly missionary with an unrepentant heart when it comes to long-simmering grudges.

Warren Mallory was pretty much universally hated and/or despised. He managed to irritate not only his staff, but the British Consul and British subjects in the area as well as the native inhabitants of French Equatorial Africa. Nobody is really dismayed when he winds up poisoned. They're not even really surprised. But they are surprised that his body has been found stuffed in the cage of Phillipa Darrow's beloved gorilla Mama Bu-Bu. If all had gone according the the murderer's plans, the covered cage would have been loaded onto a boat and been far out to sea by the time Mallory's body was discovered. But the best-laid plans so often go awry and Phillipa Darrow comes to Freddy Benson--breathing fire. She's not the least bit upset that she's got a dead Consul on her hands, but she is incensed that someone let her gorilla loose. And what is Freddy going to do about that?! She's not particularly delighted that Freddy seems more interested in his boss's death than her missing primate. 

The French authorities are called in--in the person of Commissaire Anatole Mauclerc, the "Maigret of Africa." And the hunt is on...for a murderer, not a gorilla. Meanwhile, Freddy has reported the death to his superiors and their answer is not to elevate him to Consul, but to send Ethelbert Stone, Consul to Luanda, to serve as Acting Consul until the matter is cleared up. An FBI man by the name of Flannagan is also rushed out from the States to help Mauclerc clear things up. Flannagan is a big help--ill-prepared for the African climate and soon laid out flat by a good ol' blunt object to the head. It begins to look like someone really doesn't want this murder solved. But everyone contributes a clue here and a tidbit there until Larry Brune provides a surprise radio broadcast to help make all things clear.

This is a fun, light-hearted mystery that is very good for an evening's entertainment. Iams is brilliant at dialogue, characterization, and comedy with a light touch. The setting is unusual and so is the crime. The mystery is intriguing and I might have given the book a full four stars, or possibly more, if there had been more fair play in the solution. If there are clues pointing to the particulars of the whys and wherefores, then I completely missed them. But I don't think so. ★★★ and a half.

*******************
This lovely Dell Mapback counts for the "Map/Chart" category on the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

Zadok's Treasure: Review

When Sir Toby Glendower's long-time colleague and friend disappears from his archaeological dig near Jerusalem, Toby is persuaded by Bill Pearson's wife Valerie to travel to Israel and track down the missing archaeologist. He is especially intrigued when he learns that Bill was on the trail of the legendary treasure of Zadok, high priest to Solomon. The historical stakes are high--but the monetary stakes are even higher and there are rumors that a high-rolling collector may have been dogging Bill's heels. Toby is a prominent archaeologist himself and more than capable of following up any clues his friend might have left behind.

Toby convinces his partner in crime-solving, American anthropologist Penny Spring, to join him on his quest. Her job will be to conduct inquiries in Jerusalem and keep tabs on Valerie--who seems more interested in various other men connected to the dig than she does in her husband's fate. When Toby discovers the tortured and mutilated body of his friend hidden a cave far from camp, he also uncovers a cleverly concealed document that, if authentic, may be an even more valuable historic find than any legendary treasure. Penny's researches in Jerusalem mirror Toby's discoveries and she finds that this new artifact may have placed Toby in extreme danger. The normal course of their investigations generally find Penny in danger with Toby snatching her from a villain's clutches just in time. This time, the tables are turned, and it's up to Penny to race against time to save Toby from a murderer who has no problem killing anyone who stands between them and archaeological riches.

Zadok's Treasure (1979) provides the reader with a nearly complete package--high adventure and narrow escapes in the desert, a closed set of suspects, a classic investigation with our two amateur detectives following up clues to discover the culprit, and a dramatic wrap-up scene with Toby confronting the killer from his hospital bed. Arnold does a fair job of producing a fair play mystery although Toby does hold a couple of clues close to his chest in Holmesian fashion. For the most part, however, Arnold gives us an enjoyable academic cozy with well-developed characters--particularly her detectives Toby and Penny. For those of us who are well-acquainted with the pair, it was fun to see Penny riding to the rescue for once. ★★★★


***************
With the water from a cistern on the cover, this fulfills the "Body of Water" category on the Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

All Challenges Fulfilled: Vintage Mystery Challenge, Mount TBR Challenge, How Many Books, Cruisin' Thru the Cozies, Charity Challenge, Craving for Cozies, A-Z Reading Challenge, Wild Goose Chase, Cloak & Dagger, My Kind of Mystery, Where Are You Reading

Episode of the Wandering Knife

Episode of the Wandering Knife (1950) contains three stories--two novellas and a short story--by Mary Roberts Rinehart--the titular "Episode of the Wandering Knife" (1943), "The Man Who Hid His Breakfast" (1949), and "The Secret" (1950). Even though the last two were published later, they both have a war-era feel to them and, in fact, Nurse Adams is turned down in her effort to join the nursing staff for the armed forces at the beginning of "The Secret"--leading many to believe that the story was written earlier, but Rinehart was unable to place it for publication.

In the "Episode of the Wandering Knife" Mrs. Shepard throws one final champagne party before handing her palatial home over to the Government as a convalescent home. Over two hundred people are wandering round the grounds, but, since the Mayor has been invited, there are also policemen at every gate and doorway so no one can get in or out without being seen. When the party comes to an end, her son Larry goes home to the smaller house on the grounds to find his wife (who had pleaded illnesses to avoid the party) stabbed to death. Of course, Mrs. Shepard flies to his side and, not believing her son capable of murder, hides the distinctive hunting knife (his) which has been used to do the deed. As the title might suggest, the knife then plays a merry game of hide and seek--disappearing from Mrs. Shepard's hiding place and popping up here and there until its final appearance in the back of victim number four. Larry's sister Judy and a reporter by the name of Tony try their hand at amateur detecting in an effort to clear him of his wife's murder.

"The Man Who Hid His Breakfast" features Inspector Tom Brent who is looking forward to retirement, but who is assigned to one last case before hanging up his badge--he must solve the case quickly or face demotion. On the face of it, it should be pretty easy. A woman has been found strangled in her own home where the doors and windows were all locked up tight. The only other person in the house is her daughter. It seems it was mighty convenient that mother has died since Joy wanted to marry a man that her mother didn't approve of. But Brent is convinced that the girl and beau are innocent. But how can he prove it and who else could have wanted the women dead? When he hears about the odd action of the man who hid his breakfast before checking out of his hotel room, he plays a hunch and finds the answer.

"The Secret" is the last of five stories featuring Rinehart's recurring character, Nurse Hilda Adams. The story begins with Nurse Adams being turned down by the armed services for having an irregular heartbeat. When Inspector Brent learns that his favorite amateur sleuth will be staying on the homefront, he calls upon her to take up the case of Tony Rowland--a beautiful young woman who has been behaving erratically and...somewhat dangerously. She broke off her engagement--to a man she was obviously in love with and has since tried to shoot her mother and was behind the wheel when she and her mother had an automobile accident. Then her aunt, with whom the two are staying, tumbles down the stairs. The inquisitive nurse soon finds that Tony won't speak to anyone except a mysterious man she meets outside after dark, the mother is kept locked in her bedroom, and she (Nurse Adams) is not allowed to tend to anyone but the aunt. But the aunt apparently knows too much because she is killed--right under the nurse's nose. Nurse Adams finally unearths the secret hanging over the household and saves Tony from an uncertain fate. 

My previous experience with Rinehart has been with full novels. So it was interesting to see what she could do in the abbreviated format. Rinehart does a great job of setting the stage, creating suspense, and giving attention to character in the shortened space of the novella and short story. The titular story is especially good--providing a fair number of twists and turns given the format. Very enjoyable.  ★★★ and 1/2

Just as an aside...I did wonder if the toilet tank was the binding theme of these stories. Mrs. Shepherd hides the knife in the tank of her bathroom toilet. The breakfast was hidden in the toilet tank of a hotel room. So, I kind of expected the "secret" to be found hidden in the toilet tank in the last story. I'm afraid not...no thematic connections of that sort.

*********
This counts for "Knife" on the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

All Challenges Fulfilled: Cloak & Dagger, Follow the Clues, How Many Books, Mount TBR Challenge, My Kind of Mystery, Pick Your Genre, Vintage Mystery Challenge, What's in a Name, A-Z Reading Challenge, 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Mystery Reporter, Where Are You Reading,