Fan Fiction

 Fan Fiction (2021) by Brent Spiner (with Jeanne Darst)

Brent Spiner spins a tale loosely based on real events to show what happens when fans become fiendishly obsessed with celebrities. It's 1991 and Star Trek The Next Generation is beginning to take off. Spiner and his TNG colleagues are getting bags and buckets full of fan mail. It's all very pleasant to have people like your character so much...until one day a rather odiferous package arrives at Spiner's trailer. It's got a pig's penis (yes, you read that correctly) in blood and message that indicates that Data's days are numbered. More nasty notes follow and soon everyone from lot security to the FBI are interested in Spiner's stalker. He winds up hiring a body guard (who takes her job of sticking close to her employer very seriously). Other weird mail also shows up...from a woman in Minnesota who thinks Spiner is calling her up late at night to talk dirty. Is she the stalker? The entire cast get involved in trying to save their favorite android--Patrick Stewart offers to teach Spiner self-defense, Jonathan Frakes offers his home as sanctuary, and Michael Dorn offers well-meaning advice (with some corny jokes thrown in for good measure). But it's good, old-fashioned detective work that saves the day when our stalker forgets that wearing gloves while writing threatening notes might be a good idea.

So...I really wanted to read this because it's Star Trek related and it sounded like a lot of fun. It wound up being okay. Some good bits of humor, but they're overshadowed by the outlandish pair Cindy Lou (FBI agent) and her twin sister Candy (Spiner's bodyguard). I just really didn't buy into their characters and they way they behave when on the job. I understand that this fiction (and, perhaps, a bit of fantasy/wish fulfillment for Spiner) but this didn't connect with my inner Trekkie the way I hoped it might. I  understand that the audio is really good with all the Trek actors contributing, I might have to give it a whirl to see if that version is better at meeting my expectations. 

The mystery of the stalker's identity is well-done and I do like Spiner's style. The plot moves quickly and it's a fast read. And I think he represents his fellow cast members well on the page. A little more believability in the extra characters would have gone a long way to increasing my enjoyment. ★★★

First line: When I was twenty-two years old, I left home for the first time and departed for New York City along with a meager cache of savings and a dream of being an actor.

Last lines: ...there is one absolute truth for all so-called celebrities That finally, finally, where would we be without the fans?

The Man Who Died Twice

 The Man Who Died Twice (2021) by Richard Osman

The septuagenarians of Cooper's Chase retirement home are off on another murderous adventure...or perhaps I should say adventures. Elizabeth, the self-appointed leader of the Thursday Murder Club and an ex-MI5 agent, receives a message asking her if she remembers Marcus Carmichael and asking her to come round for drinks at his new flat at Cooper's Chase. Does she remember Carmichael? You bet. The last time she saw a man named Marcus Carmichael, he was found dead under a bridge in one of her spying escapades. Is she going to accept the invitation? You bet. 'Cause she knows that the man who sent the invite is really her ex-husband, a still-active MI5 agent. 

It winds up that Douglas is hiding out from the mafia. It seems that while on an assignment that had him and his partner waltzing through an underworld banker's* home looking for goodies a bagful of diamonds worth 20 million pounds disappeared. At least that's what the banker, Martin Lomax says. Douglas wants Elizabeth, who he knows was the best and whom he still trusts, to help keep him safe. Elizabeth figures it will be a nice adventure and, besides, she knows Douglas. There's diamonds somewhere that she just might be able to find. And she's sure her friends in the Thursday Murder Club will want in on the action

Meanwhile, Ibrahim, one of the other three club members has been mugged and beaten. He recovers physically pretty quickly, but he's shaken and his friends are afraid he'll never leave the retirement home again. The perpetrator is pretty slick and the police know they won't be able to hold him. So the club puts seeking a little revenge...er, justice...on their to-do list as well. As with the first book, the bodies start piling up, and soon our merry band of retirees are trying to figure out who killed whom,  who is really dead, and just whose side some of these people are on anyway. Not to mention playing hunt the diamonds and dishing up a tidy plate of just desserts for that nasty mugger. 

I'll just say up front that this one requires an even bigger suspension of disbelief than the first book. In The Thursday Club Murders, Elizabeth, Ibrahim, Ron, and Joyce were pretty busy for a group of senior citizens--but at least the murders they were solving were home-grown, more related to their community. This time round, they are outsmarting MI5 agents, mafia henchmen, cocaine dealers, and small-time crooks right and left. They manage to hand DCI Chris Hudson and his partner Donna De Freitas a nice bunch of criminals on a silver platter. They whisk the diamonds out from under the noses of everyone. And they do it while trading innocent comments and friendly banter.

This isn't a look for all the clues and red herrings puzzler. But--if you're looking for a rollicking good time, plenty of action, and an argument for life after your sixties, then here you go. This is just plain fun and it was nice to see Joyce make a couple of good deductions that put her ahead of Elizabeth for once. I like Elizabeth--but it is nice when someone else gets to be right. I also enjoyed the twist upon twist upon twist (of course, when one is twenty pages from the end, one knows there must be something else up the author's sleeve...). There is a great deal of humor and also, more soberly, small doses of reflections on friendship, loyalty, growing older, and what death might be all about. A very enjoyable read. ★★★★

*the underworld banker holds collateral for various parties who are working out deals--everything from diamonds to cash and precious art to expensive race horses. 

First lines: "I was talking to a woman in Ruskin Court, and she said she's on a diet," said Joyce, finishing her glass of wine. "She's eighty-two!"

Revenge is not a straight line, it's a circle. It's a grenade that goes off while you're still in the room, and you can't help but be caught in the blast. (p. 72)

"It is fine to say 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.' It is admirable. But it no longer applies when you're eighty. When you are eighty, whatever doesn't kill you, just ushers you through the next door, and the next door and the next, and all those doors lock behind you." (Ibrahim; p. 116)

Last line: I'm ever so sorry to interrupt, she says, but I don't suppose anyone here knows anything about 20 million pounds from Antwerp?*

***************

Deaths: six shot 

 *Thanks to Scott for providing the quote that I neglected to write down before sending the book back to the library.

Reprint of the Year: It's time to vote!!

 *******

Voting Booths Are Now Open!! Go HERE to cast your votes. You may submit up to three selections. Please make sure at least one of them is for a Reader's Block choice!

If you need a refresher, you may find the Kendrick and Hultman nominations by clicking their names.

********

Murder at Kensington Gardens

 Murder at Kensington Gardens (2018) by Lee Strauss

Lady Ginger Gold takes her dog "Boss" (short for Boston) for a walk in Kensington Gardens only to discover the body of woman under one of the bushes. The woman wasn't dressed for the weather (in fact, wasn't dressed quite up to standards) and Ginger is appalled to see that body is that of Emelia Reed--the estranged wife of Chief Inspector Basil Reed. Emelia has what looks like a snake bite on her neck and it winds up that she did, indeed, die from snake venom. Basil and Ginger barely get started investigating the murder before Superintendent Morris, Basil's dimwitted, slightly envious superior, decides that Basil, as the victim's husband, is the obvious suspect.

Before Basil was arrested, he and Ginger had discovered that Emelia had been working as a burlesque dancer in one of the less reputable clubs. In order to find the real killer and clear Basil's name, Ginger goes undercover at the club--assuming a French identity which served her well in her secret service work during the war. "Antoinette" becomes popular with her French maid routine and manages to dig up evidence that several people might have had motive to eliminate "Destiny" (Emelia's pseudonym at the club). There's the fact that she was blackmailing a few of the club workers, as well as an American ambassador. There's also the rivalry between her and her fellow dancers--for the best position in the dance line-up as well as for the attentions of certain members of the regular audience. But when some of the suspects also wind up dead from snake bites, it begins to look like Ginger has been following the wrong leads. What clues has she missed?

Things are beginning to wear a bit thin in this series...the on again/off again nature of the relationship between Ginger and Basil for one thing. In the last book, Basil's wife had once again had an affair and Basil had decided to finally divorce her--he'd given her a second chance and tried to make things work, but Emelia let him down again. He and Ginger started seeing one another more seriously and it looked like the course of true love was straightening out. And then Emelia gets murdered and we're back to square one--Ginger doubting that Basil really loves her. Not understanding that the man could honestly be upset and mourn the death of a wife he'd decided to divorce. To doubt that he ever had feelings for Ginger at all. Honestly? It doesn't help that Basil goes all distant and then declares at the end of the book that he's been put on leave and so he's going to go to South Africa and "find himself" (my words, not his). I'm getting a bit tired of it all.

In addition to my exasperation with the romance on the agenda, there's Strauss's insistence that there simply must be a chattering,  immature young woman in Ginger's life to make things difficult. We had Felicia (Ginger's sister-in-law), but just when we get Felicia settled down a bit and showing some maturity Strauss decides to thrust Ginger's half-sister Louisa on us. Louisa is your stereotypical brash American--loud, blurting out everything that pops into her head, and she makes Felicia at her most annoying look like a saint. And Louisa was only in evidence in the last few pages of the book. I can't wait until the next book where she's bound to be more prominent.... [sarcasm font on full]

The mystery is decent (though I'm not sure I'm completely on board with the logic of making Emelia a burlesque dancer and a blackmailer--but once you accept that's just the way it is...). I did spot the villain of the piece (there were a couple of clues dropped that I actually spotted), but I missed what the motive was. Perhaps it was explained and I just wasn't paying proper attention to the audio novel at the right moment...Anyway, not the best of the series, but I will keep going to see if we ever get Basil and Ginger together and leave them together. ★★ and 3/4.

First line: "Your wife isn't being unfaithful, Mr. Patterson."

Last lines: "I'm getting married." Ginger gulped. "To whom?"

****************

Deaths =  three poisoned

Reprint of the Year: Murder in the French Room

 For the last several years, Kate at Cross Examining Crime has been rounding up the vintage mystery bloggers and having us perpetuate her brilliant brainstorm (one of many that she has had). In the wake of various publishing houses recognizing the virtues of Golden Age (and more recent) vintage crime novels through reprint editions of both well-known and more obscure titles, Kate thought those of us who love those vintage mysteries would like the chance to feature the year's reprints and make a pitch for our favorites to be voted Reprint of the Year (ROY). We loved the idea so much that we keep coming back for more.

*******Voting Booths Are Now Open!! Go HERE to cast your votes. You may submit up to three selections. Please make sure at least one of them is for a Reader's Block choice!*******

My second choice is Murder in the French Room by Helen Joan Hultman. This 1931 mystery was reprinted by Coachwhip Publications in an edition which also includes Death at Windward Hill. I own the Mystery League's edition (pictured below)--so I can't tell you anything about that second title. I picked it primarily because it's been sitting on my TBR stacks for a while and the chance to use it for the ROY Award nomination gave me a good reason to read and review it. So, this nomination is more a leap of faith than last week's entry.

It winds up that the French Room is the posh section of the Line and Hollis department store in Buckeye Heights an urban setting in Ohio that seems to be trying to give New York's fashion row a run for its money. One wouldn't expect to find a "Madame" anybody managing a high-class ladies department in a store in a Cincinnati-type town during the 1930s, but Buckeye Heights certainly seems to imply that connection. And the murder that happens takes place in the dressing room. Joyce Terry leaves her customer alone just long enough to retrieve her order book...and be detained by the floor manager. When she returns to dressing room E to finalize the sale, she finds her customer stabbed to death. Madame Nordhoff, the ladieswear manager and buyer, is first on the scene, followed quickly by Jessica Brooke the store detective and then police detective Dan Bratton.

Unfortunately, Joyce didn't get her customer's name before running off for the order book and someone (the murderer or someone else?) has taken the woman's purse. She wasn't a regular customer at Line and Hollis and no one seems to know who she was.

Once the victim is finally identified as Vivian Agnew Thayer, second wife of the wealthy Rupert Thayer, things begin to get interesting. Bratton soon learns that many people with connections to Vivian were in the store that day...it's just a matter of discovering if any of them had motives and, if so, whose was the strongest. There are many false trails and false clues and, to be honest, a few too many characters running around for this reader to keep track of without a scorecard. While there are several things to like about this story from setting to strong female characters in both Jessica Brooke and a reporter named PaulaPringle, it does become a bit difficult to keep all the players straight. 

If you like puzzles that require keeping track of who was where when and could character X have made it to the scene of the crime and back again with nobody noticing, then this is definitely right up your alley and you should vote for Hultman for the ROY Award. If you like mysteries with an interesting setting, then this will also be for you. I'm afraid that if the department store setting makes you think that there will be lots of descriptive bits about ladies' outfits (Moira), then you'll be a bit disappointed, but don't let that deter you from choosing Hultman when it's time to cast your vote. And--you'll be happy to know that fashion does work it's way into the solution of the mystery. But...if you don't think I'm selling Murder in the French Room hard enough as a big ROY contender, then go back to last week's nominee--The Odor of Violets. Baynard Kendrick definitely deserves your vote!

**Note of interest: my Murder League edition contains the second of three Baffle Cases. These were short stories published at the end of three Murder League mysteries and set up as contests. The story was published without a solution and readers were encouraged to solve the crime themselves and submit answers in an effort to win prizes. Solutions to the Baffle Cases were supposed to be published in subsequent volumes--but this happened for only the first case. Murder in the French Room includes the story "The Crime at Laurel Lodge." I think I've figured out the solution, but I guess I'll never know for certain.

First line: Joyce Terry scuttled from the cashier's desk across the taupe-carpetted expanse of the women's ready-to-wear department of Line and Hollis's and into the more secluded quarters of the French Room.

Last lines: "It was a great case, Galway, but, believe me, it's the last time I ever want to have to run down murder in a department store. I'm not that kind of ladies' man..."

************ 

Deaths = 2 (one stabbed; one carbon monoxide poisoning)

The Pig on the Hill

 The Pig on the Hill (2013) by John Kelly

Pig is a very precise pig. He likes things just so--nice and quiet so he can enjoy his hobbies. No one else around and he has a beautiful view with no neighbors to block the scenery. And then Duck discovers the little hill nearby, builds a house, and everything changes. I just listened to/watched Pierce Brosnan read this over on YouTube (I went down one of those YouTube rabbit holes that led me to Pierce reading). It's a cute little story about learning to be friends with someone who is totally different and (quite literally) building bridges in relationships. A delightful book. But...let's be honest...Pierce Brosnan could read the telephone book to me and I'd probably give it five stars.

A Surprise for Christmas

 A Surprise for Christmas (2020) by Martin Edwards (ed)

Another fine collection of mysterious Christmas tidings put together by Edwards and the British Library Crime Classics series. We have everything from jewel robberies, to killer radio sets to Christmas ghosts who solve modern murders. The best of the stories are "The Hole in the Wall" by Chesterton, "Death on the Air" by Marsh, and " A Surprise for Christmas" by Hare. Even though I'd read the Marsh story previously, I still find it a nicely put-together little piece and the ending of Hare's story is well-done and leaves the reader considering what will happen next. ★★★ and 3/4

"The Black Bag Left on a Doorstep" ~Catherine Louisa Pirkis: Craigen Court is burgled and 30,000 pounds worth of jewels have disappeared. Loveday Brooke, first female professional detective, is called to take up the case--she is also interested in a black bag containing clerical garments and a strange note which has been left on a spinster's doorstep. Are the two connected?

"The Hole in the Wall" ~G. K. Chesterton: Lord vanishes from his holiday fancy dress house party. One of the guests heard strange banging noises in the middle of the night and then was awakened at dawn by a cry for help. Murder is soon suspected...but where is the body?

"Death on the Air" ~Ngaio Marsh: It's Christmas Day and Septimus Tonks intended to listen to the Christmas programs on his fancy wireless set. But he's found dead, leaning up against the radio cabinet as if to listen more closely. It appears he's been killed by his favorite hobby...but by whom and how? It's up to Chief Inspector Alleyn and Inspector Fox to answer those questions.

"Person or Things Unknown" ~Carter Dickson: A historical mystery in which the host of a holiday party invites his guests to investigate a supernatural death from the past--which took place, naturally, in a room where no one wants to sleep now.

"Dead Man's Hand" ~E. R. Punshon: A snowstorm gives cover to a man who has robbed and killed his employer. It looks like he might get away with it...but then his wife blurts out a sentence that will likely seal his fate.

"The Christmas Eve Ghost" ~Ernest Dudley: Craig, the detective, is asked to investigate the ghost of a dancing girl and winds up solving a murder.

"Dick Whittington's Cat" ~Victor Canning: The cat in question is an actor playing the part in a pantomime. When he singles out a couple for attention, he has a fall and the lady's bracelet disappears...is the cat the thief or is it her escort who has been attendance when several other bits of jewelry have gone missing?

"A Surprise for Christmas" ~Cyril Hare: When Jimmy Blenkiron's nieces and nephews decide to give him a surprise for Christmas, it turns from a pleasant sugarplum dream into a nightmare--all because they wanted to give him a Christmas tree.

"On Christmas Day in the Morning" ~Margery Allingham: Campion investigates the death of a postman who was hit by a car on Christmas morning. Did it really happen when and where it would seem it had to have happened? No matter which way the police look at it, it seems impossible.

"Give Me a Ring" ~Anthony Gilbert: Gillian is planning a lovely Christmas with her beau when she goes out to pick up a few last minute items. She gets lost in the fog, finds a little shop with a lovely ring she decides she wants, and winds up smack dab in the middle of a drug ring and she and her beau come close to celebrating their last Christmas together...or with anyone. Arthur Crook saves the day.

"Father Christmas Comes to Orbins" ~Julian Symons (same story appeared in The Christmas Card Crime & Other Stories under the title "Twixt the Cup & the Lip"): Mild-mannered bookshop owner, Mr. Rossiter Payne has an odd little hobby--jewel robberies. And when the Russian family jewels are put on display at Orbin's department store can't resist planning the perfect crime. But then things go wrong--if only he hadn't made that one comment to his shoe repair man.

"The Turn-Again Bell" ~Barry Perowne: The rector's son is set to get married on Boxing Day, but there is tension in the air (all three of the rector's sons had admired the fair Iris) and a dark legend attached to the church bells. Not really a mystery, but a dilemma is solved.

First line (first story): "It's a big thing," said Loveday Brooke, addressing Ebenezer Dyer, chief of the well-known detective agency in Lynch Court, Fleet Street.

"He was not there when he did it," explained Fisher. "It's a poor sort of murderer who can't murder people when he isn't there." ("The Hole in the Wall")

"Modern intelligence won't accept anything on authority. But it will accept anything without authority." (Fisher; "The Hole in the Wall")

Last line (last story):So finally, at peace with himself, this one of the many Rectors the parish had known walked on home, and the small, flint-built, eleventh-century church, on the knoll overlooking the common, was left alone in the wide, white silence under the stars.

***************

Deaths = 10 (one drowned; one electrocuted; two stabbed; three shot; one killed in an explosion; one hit by car; one neck broken)

What's in a Name? 2022

 

 

 

Andrea at Carolina Book Nook is back with another round of the What's in a Name Challenge. This has always been a favorite of mine, so of course I'm back for another round as well. The format is the same--six categories and one book required for each one. The prompt must appear in the title of the book. For full details, see the link above.

Here are the categories and my preliminary list:

1. Compound Word: Fadeaway Girl by Martha Grimes (1/2/22)

2. Speed: Cut to the Quick by Kate Ross (1/31/22)

3. Person & Their Description: The Case of the Famished Parson by George Bellairs (1/2/22)

4. Mythical Being: The Price of the Phoenix by Sondra Marshak & Myrna Culbreath (1/4/22)

5. Season: Midsummer Nightmare by Christopher Hale (2/21/22)

6. Color: Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (1/8/22)

 

Reprint of the Year: Odor of Violets

 For the last several years, Kate at Cross Examining Crime has been rounding up the vintage mystery bloggers and having us perpetuate her brilliant brainstorm (one of many that she has had). In the wake of various publishing houses recognizing the virtues of Golden Age (and more recent) vintage crime novels through reprint editions of both well-known and more obscure titles, Kate thought those of us who love those vintage mysteries would like the chance to feature the year's reprints and make a pitch for our favorites to be voted Reprint of the Year. We loved the idea so much that we keep coming back for more.

The first of my two choices is Odor of Violets (1940) by Baynard Kendrick and reprinted this year by American Mystery Classics. It is the third in his series featuring Captain Duncan Maclain and the first of those books that I ever read. When I saw it on the list of 2021 reprints, I knew I wanted to revisit it. Maclain is a private detective who lost his sight due to gassing in the First World War. He has gone through extensive training to help him enhance his other senses--especially hearing and smell. He also depends on two German Shepherd dogs--one acting as his guide dog in unfamiliar settings and the other serving as protection, having been trained to attack at the sight of weapons or threatening movements on the part of others.

This book finds Maclain working for the US Secret Service in the early days of WWII prior to America's entry into the war. Germany isn't taking the American neutrality for granted and has spies at work preparing to sabotage vital cities. They just need to get their hands on vital information about vulnerable points (the location of the city's power shut-off points, for example)--information that has been delivered to Maclain in a coded Braille message. But that's not all! Nazi spies are also trying to get information on a brand-new bomb sight that has been developed by Gilbert Tredwell. Life gets interesting when an actor-turned Secret Serviceman is killed with a poker (a man who just happened to have been the ex-husband of Mrs. Tredwell); Barbara Tredwell (daughter of the house) disappears--possibly kidnapped; and Bella Slater, the Tredwell's upstairs maid who isn't exactly what she seems, is killed with a very sharp battle axe. Maclain will have to follow the scent of violets if he is going to find the spies responsible for the deaths and who are behind the plot against America's cities.

my copy

Loved this mystery thriller starring a blind private eye the first time I read it (2018). His heightened abilities (other senses) are much more believable than those of Max Carrados (a blind detective who first appeared in 1914) and I like him better. Where Carrados's ability to smell spirit gum and to read newsprint by touch seem more like parlor tricks, Maclain's abilities are explained through careful training and his reliance on his guide dogs. The book is an interesting combination of spy thriller and classic mystery. There are definitely clues to be followed and the sharp reader will spot those that identify the killer. Unlike many classic detective stories, the motive is never an issue--the motive is simply spycraft. The spies are Nazis and out to do their worst. 

This was a great choice for a reread and for my first entry in the reprint award stakes. Maclain is a terrific character and I like the way he interacts with his assistants--both human and canine. And Kendrick absolutely makes the reader believe that Maclain can do all things it says he can do without feeling like she is reading about someone with superpowers.  Please be sure to vote for Kendrick!

First line: The Crags was built high up on an eminence above the little town of Tredwill Village, west of Hartford, in the Connecticut hills.

When a clever killer has started to work the end is never in sight. (Captain Maclain; p. 125)

Last line: Where I heard it, or where I got it, I can't tell you, Colonel, but the odor of violets is that madman's favorite perfume!

************

Deaths = one hit on head; 5 suffocated [Sandy, Slim, Denny, Cupie, & Mac plus others unnamed]; one decapitated

Still Life with Murder--slightly spoilerish

 Still Life with Murder (2003) by P. B. Ryan

Set in Boston, 1800s. The Hewitt family is one of the wealthy elite who have lost sons to the Civil War. Nell Sweeney is an Irish immigrant who has known great hardship and now works as an assistant to Dr. Greaves. When Nell Sweeney assists the doctor at a particularly difficult birth for one of the Hewitt's maids and Viola Hewitt decides to adopt the girl's baby, she asks Nell to take on the role of nursery governess. Three years later, after Nell has proved herself as a governess and won Viola's confidence in many other ways, the Hewitts are dealt a blow. Their eldest son, William, thought to have died at Andersonville in the war has appeared in Boston--as the prime suspect in a murder.

Viola is certain that Will is innocent, but her rigid, upright husband is sure he's guilty and washes his hands of his son. Having no one to turn to and recognizing that Nell has a street sense and good observational skills, she begs her to help find a way to prove that Will, a former surgeon, did not kill. Nell isn't sure how she will do it, but she promises the woman who gave her a chance to make something of herself that she will try. Her investigation will take her from the prison to a cheap pub to an opium den.Will insists he did it...even though he has refused to plead guilty. Nell knows he's hiding something, but what? And why? 

I wanted to like this one a lot more than I did. It didn't even help that I like Nell. She's an intelligent young woman who takes on a task that's really too big for her. She makes mistakes and that makes her realistic--instead of making her the super-brilliant, always right amateur. She stumbles into situations that she's not prepared for and makes assumptions about clues in her rush to do what Viola asks. She also becomes very drawn to Will and wants to help him for his own sake. Will is exasperating--not willing to give her any help. It becomes quite obvious that he is innocent and is covering for someone. I'm disappointed that Nell didn't figure that out sooner.

Unfortunately, the mystery plot itself did not draw me in at all. Even though the motive behind the murder is compelling (and even understandable), it just did not work for me. I have two more of this series on my TBR mountainscape and I honestly don't know that I'll be compelled to read them.  ★★

First line: "It's going to be a bad one."

Last line: He turned and walked away, into the morning sunshine.

************

Deaths = 3 (one stabbed; one shot; one gassed/poisoned)

Murder at the Mortuary

 Murder at the Mortuary (2020) by Lee Strauss

The previous book left us with a cliffhanger. Ginger Gold had been investigating two mysteries, one of which involved a missing young actor. Throughout the story, she had no luck tracing the man and then the book ends with Agnes Green's body showing up unannounced at the morgue (no paperwork, etc) among a group of other cadavers. Before long more unregistered bodies have appeared and Ginger and Inspector reed find themselves investigating a series of murders that appear to be work of the Italian mafia--a group that has recently gotten a foothold in England. There are indications of cocaine smuggling and horse doping in addition to murder, but finding the evidence to tie the deaths to Charles Sabini, horse racing enthusiast and Italian mob leader is difficult. They have little luck identifying the middle man (or woman) at the morgue who has been forging the papers for the extra corpses.

This is Ginger's first paid job as an investigator. Angus Green's father and brother hire her to find out what really happed to Angus and help the police bring the culprit to justice. She also feels somewhat responsible because her sister-in-law had asked her to find the man and she had failed. Things get very dangerous--not only for Ginger but for both Hayley, her friend who is studying to be a forensic doctor, and for Inspector Reed as well. And they will find that the mob has a reach that touches some who are very close indeed.

Another good historical mystery. This one is tinged with a bit more danger and action than previous installments. But Strauss continues her efforts to fairly clue her mysteries and create a more classic detective story. There were parts that I figured out fairly easily, but there was enough left to make the mystery intriguing. I thought the design to use the morgue to hide victims in plain sight (if you will) was clever. Not quite up to the standard of the previous story, but still very good. ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: It was unclear how long Angus Green had been dead.

Last line: Ginger wouldn't leave this hospital until she found out.

Deaths =  four shot 

The Christmas Card Crime

 The Christmas Card Crime & Other Stories by Martin Edwards (ed)

A third collection from the British Library's Crime Classics series. Edwards has selected another fine collection of Christmas crimes, holiday horrors, and seasonal slayings to delight every vintage detective fiction lover's heart. I'm pretty sure I've read several of these before, but nearly all were enjoyable--whether it was the first time reading or not. Particular favorites are "By the Sword," "Blind Man's Hood," and "A Bit of Wire-Pulling." While the solution to how the jewel thief is caught in t he Symon's story was pulled off very nicely, it was still one of my least favorites. It didn't quite meet the festive spirit of the collection. And the Paul Temple story is pretty light-weight--hardly a story at all. But--for the collections overall:  ★★★★

"A Christmas Tragedy" by Baroness Orczy: Major Ceely is murdered on Christmas Eve and all circumstantial evidence points to the unsuccessful suitor of Ceely's daughter. It's up to Lady Molly of the Yard to save an innocent man from the gallows.

"By the Sword" by Selwyn Jepson: Alfred Caithness is sure that the world is determined to do him out of what should be justly his--money, his cousin's wife, prestige, you name it. When his cousin refuses to loan him money during the holidays, he plots to get everything due him...he might wind up getting his just desserts. Not plum pudding....

"The Christmas Card Crime" by Donald Stuart: Dramatist Trevor Lowe and his friend Inspector Shadgold are on their way to a country house Christmas when their train is stranded in the deep snow. The passengers set out for a nearby pub to seek food and shelter for the night...but not everyone will live to see Christmas morning. [As a side note...Lowe is the detective here. Shadgold makes a pretty shabby showing for the Yard.]

"The Motive" by Ronald Knox: Sir Leonard Huntercombe tells an elaborate story of defending a man who may or may not have been guilty of murder to entertain holiday travelers on a sleeper train to Aberdeen. An unexpected (possibly unfair) twist at the end.

"Blind Man's Hood" by Carter Dickson: A tale of murder in a country house--told by an oddly pale woman in old-fashioned clothes. Inspired by an unsolved crime from 1902, Dickson gives us the impossible murder of Jane Waycross--killed in a house with the doors locked, surrounded by snow with no footprints that can't be accounted for.

"Paul Temple's White Christmas" by Francis Durbridge: Paul Temple foils a Christmas kidnap plan...aimed at himself!

"Sister Bessie or your Old Leech" by Cyril Hare: A tale of a man and his blackmailer. Just when he thinks he's free of the blackmail...he finds himself drawn more deeply into the web.

"A Bit of Wire-Pulling" by E. C. R. Lorac: Sir Charles Leighton's life has been threatened and Inspector Lang of the Yard is on hand at a holiday party to keep him safe. It doesn't look too good for the Yard man when Leighton is killed right under his nose.

"Pattern of Revenge" by John Bude: Not a whodunnit, a bit of a how-was-it done--a deathbed confession explains the truth about a love triangle murder and sets an innocent man free.

"Crime at Lark Cottage" by John Bigham: When John Bradley's car breaks down in a winter storm, he finds himself at Lark Cottage where a frightened Lucy Shaw expects her escaped convict husband to come and murder her. She begs her visitor to stay the night...and then signs appear that someone is outside the house.

"Twixt the Cup & the Lip" by Julian Symons: Mild-mannered bookshop owner, Mr. Rossiter Payne has an odd little hobby--jewel robberies. And when the Russian family jewels are put on display at Orbin's department store can't resist planning the perfect crime. But then things go wrong--if only he hadn't made that one comment to his shoe repair man.

First line (1st story): It was a fairly merry Christmas party, although the surliness of our host somewhat marred the festivities.

Last line (next to last story*): "And so did I," said Sergeant Wood. "I was frozen stiff."

*The last line of the last story would give everything away.

*************

Deaths = 9 (four stabbed; one hanged; two shot; two accident...plus more not named or method not revealed)

November Pick of the Month

 

Here we are again for another reading round-up and the much-anticipated Reader's Block P.OM. Award. Even though things remained pretty calm at work, I had a severe slow down in the reading department--less than half what I managed in October. And the books weren't quite as good overall--with the average rating dropping below 3 stars for the first time in memory. Looking round the blogisphere, it seems that my reduced reading experience isn't unique.  Here's what the reading stats look like for November....

Total Books Read: 11
Total Pages: 2,660
Average Rating: 2.80 stars  
Top Rating: 4 stars 
Percentage by Female Authors: 55%

Percentage by Male Authors: 45%

Percentage by both Female & Male Authors: 0%
Percentage by US Authors: 45%
Percentage by non-US/non-British Authors:  9%
Percentage Mystery: 91%

Percentage Fiction: 91%
Percentage written 2000+: 18%
Percentage of Rereads: 27%
Percentage Read for Challenges: 100% {It's easy to have every book count for a challenge when you sign up for as many as I do.}    
Number of Challenges fulfilled so far: 26 (87%)

Spence & the Holiday Murders by Michael Allen (3.5 stars)

Death in High Heels by Christianna Brand (2.75 stars)

Dying Fall by Judith Cutler (3 stars)

Death Among the Stars by Kenneth Giles (1 star)

Death of an Obnoxious Tourist by Maria Hudgins (2.5 stars)

Murder under the Mistletoe by Jennifer Jordan [on TBR since 10/3/19] 

The Secret of Red Gate Farm by Carolyn Keene (3.5 stars)

The Odor of Violets by Baynard Kendrick (4 stars)*

The American Gun Mystery by Ellery Queen (2 stars)

Murder at Feathers & Flair by Lee Strauss (4 stars)

*Read in November--but review scheduled for Reprint of the Year post in December, so no review link yet.

Once again, we have no five-star winners and only two books with four stars. In general, the quality mysteries just weren't on display in November. The Odor of Violets by Baynard Kendrick is an excellent mystery featuring a blind private detective. But this was a reread--done primarily for an entry in the Reprint of the Year Awards sponsored by Kate over at Cross Examining Crime in December. That means that the Reader's block POM Award is going to Lee Strauss for Murder at Feathers & Flair. Strauss has put together an interesting historical series set in the Golden Age and which features Lady Ginger Gold. As I said in my review: I think this was Strauss's best effort at mystifying me. Even though she plainly displayed two clues that should have told me who was responsible, I managed to disregard them. Well, not entirely, I did pay attention to one clue...for about two seconds. It didn't seem to lead anywhere so I promptly forgot about it. I could blame it on listening to an audio version (I don't seem to take things in quite so well if I don't actually read the words), but I don't think that's the reason. I just didn't hang on to it and put it together with the other clue. A nicely done mystery that left me looking forward to the next installment.

Historical Fiction Challenge 2022

Marg at The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader will be hosting the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge again this year. I've still got a couple of historical series to work on and plan to join in for another rounnd.. If historical fiction is your thing (or you'd like to see if it is), take a peek at the details at the link above.

I'm going to sign up for the Victorian Reader level (5 books). I may wind up venturing further, but if I reach my initial goal then I will claim the challenge complete

1. Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (1/8/22)

2. Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James (1/15/22)

3. An Old Betrayal by Charles Finch (1/29/22)

4. Cut to the Quick by Kate Ross (1/31/22)

5. Murder at the Spring Ball by Benedict Brown (2/5/22)

Victorian Reader! Commitment met

6. The Egyptologist by Arthur Phillips (2/6/22)

7. A Broken Vessel by Kate Ross (2/27/22)

8. The Ghost Finders by Adam McOmber (3/2/22)

9. Whom the Gods Love by Kate Ross (3/8/22)

10. The Laws of Murder by Charles Finch (3/9/22)

Renaissance Reader!

11. Home by Nightfall by Charles Finch (3/11/22)

12. The Devil in Music by Kate Ross (3/13/22)

13. The Inheritance by Charles Finch (3/30/21)

14. The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes (4/6/22)

15. The Body in the Fog by Cora Harrison (4/10/22)

Medieval Reader!

16. Luck Be a Lady, Don't Die by Robert J. Randisi (4/16/22)

17. The Black Hand by Will Thomas (4/27/22)

18. Raisins & Almonds by Kerry Greenwood (4/30/22)

19. Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood (5/2/22)

20. The Counterfeit Lady by Kate Parker (5/25/22)

21. When Blood Lies by C. S. Harris (5/29/22)

22. The Woman in the Water by Charles Finch (7/10/22)

23. The Attenbury Emeralds by Jill Paton Walsh (7/12/22)

24. Relative Fortunes by Marlowe Benn (7/14/22)

25. Mycroft Holmes by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Anna Waterhouse (7/16/22)

Ancient History!

 

Cloak & Dagger 2022

 

The Cloak & Dagger Challenge is back at Carol's Notebook. Those who have participated before will recognize the rules and format--check out the link for full details and to sign up. Since my primary reading genre is mysteries, I will be joining in again at the Sherlock Holmes level of 56+ books in the mystery and crime fields.

1. Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie (1/1/22)

2. Fadeaway Girl by Martha Grimes (1/2/22)

3. The Case of the Famished Parson by George Bellairs (1/2/22)

4. Easy to Kill by Agatha Christie (1/7/22)

5. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (1/9/22)

6. Bodies from the Library by Tony Medawar [ed] (1/13/22)

7. Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James (1/15/22)

8. Best "Thinking Machine" Detective Stories by Jacques Futrelle (1/16/22)

9. What, Me, Mr. Mosley? by John Greenwood (1/17/22)

10. The Ruby Raven by Michael Dahl (1/19/22)

11. Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers (1/20/22)

12. Witness for the Prosecution by Agatha Christie (1/21/22)

13. Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson (1/23/22)

14. And Soon I'll Come to Kill You by Susan Kelly (1/23/22)

15. The Green Island Mystery by Betsy Allen (1/24/22)

16. An Old Betrayal by Charles Finch (1/29/22)

17. Overture to Death by Ngaio Marsh (1/29/22)

18. Cut to the Quick by Kate Ross (1/31/22)

19. Murder at the Spring Ball by Benedict Ball (2/5/22)

20. The Egyptologist by Arthur Phillips (2/6/22)

21. Midnight Sailing by Lawrence G. Blochman (2/8/22)

22. This Club Frowns on Murder by Albert Borowitz (2/10/22)

23. Murder Walks in Marble Halls by Lawrence G. Blochman (2/11/22)

24. The Murderer Who Wanted More by Baynard Kendrick (2/11/22)

25. The Murder Game by Steve Allen (2/12/22)

26. Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers (2/12/22)

27. The Golden Box by Frances Crane (2/14/22)

28. He'd Rather Be Dead by George Bellairs (2/15/22)

29. Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie (2/16/22)

30. Death Stops the Frolic by George Bellairs (2/18/22)

31. Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers (2/19/22)

32. Clutch of Constables by Ngaio Marsh (2/20/22)

33. Midsummer Nightmare by Christopher Hale (2/21/22)

34. Portrait of a Dead Heiress by Thomas B. Dewey (2/22/22)

35. The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L. Sayers (2/24/22)

36. Surfeit of Suspects by George Bellairs (2/24/22)

37. The Dishonest Murderer by Frances & Richard Lockridge (2/25/22)

38. Murder Begins at Home by Delano Ames (2/26/22)

39. A Broken Vessel by Kate Ross (2/27/22)

40. The Ghost Finders by Adam McOmber (3/2/22)

41. Calamity at Harwood by George Bellairs (3/3/22)

42. The Corpse with the Grimy Glove by R. A. J. Walling (3/5/22)

43. Death Treads Softly by George Bellairs (3/7/22)

44. Clue: Candlestick by Dash Shaw (3/7/22)

45. Clue by Paul Allor (3/8/22)

46. Whom the Gods Love by Kate Ross (3/8/22)

47. The Laws of Murder by Charles Finch (3/9/22)

48. Home by Nightfall by Charles Finch (3/11/22)

49. Murder Roundabout by Richard Lockridge (3/12/22)

50. The Devil in Music by Kate Ross (3/13/22)

51. Death of an Angel by Frances & Richard Lockridge (3/14/22)

52. The Mystery of the Talking Skull by Robert Arthur (3/15/22)

53. Inspector's Holiday by Richard Lockridge (3/15/22)

54. The Man in the Moonlight by Helen McCloy (3/16/22)

55. The Castle Island Case by F. Van Wyck Mason (3/20/22)

56. With Option to Die by Richard Lockridge (3/22/22)

57. The Cat Saw Murder by D. B. Olsen [Dolores Hitchens] (3/25/22)

Commitment Met!

58. Murder for Art's Sake by Richard Lockridge (3/26/22)

59. A Plate of Red Herrings by Richard Lockridge (3/28/22)

60. Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers (3/29/22)

61. The Inheritance by Robert Finch (3/30/22)

62. The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot by Robert Arthur (3/30/22)

63. The Sunburned Corpse by Adam Knight (4/4/22)

64. The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes (4/6/22)

65. Always Lock Your Bedroom Door by Roy Winsor (4/10/22)

66. The Body in the Fog by Cora Harrison (4/10/22)

67. Death & the Professor by E. & M. A. Radford (4/12/22)

68. Evan's Gate by Rhys Bowen (4/13/22)

69. The Guest List by Lucy Foley (4/14/22)

70. Nancy Drew Ghost Stories by Carolyn Keene (4/15/22)

71. Luck Be a Lady, Don't Die by Robert J. Randisi (4/16/22)

72. Take Two at Bedtime by Margery Allingham (4/17/22)