There Goes the Bride by M.C. Beaton

Agatha Raisin mystery

Now in her 20th mystery, Agatha Raisin is overrun with cases for her new detective agency. Overworked and needing a rest, Agatha takes a holiday visiting several of Europe's most famous battlefields. She goes to Istanbul to see the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimea War. However, Agatha is horrified to see her former husband, James Lacey, and his much younger fiancée Felicity Bross-Tilkingtonare. She jumps into a taxi hoping to escape notice but James sees her and assumes that she is stalking him as he also sees her again.

Back in England, Agatha ignores his accusations and but it's difficult since she and her entire detective agency and most of the village have been invited to his wedding. Per usual Agatha buries herself in her work until the wedding. After a disasterous pre-wedding party, James confides in Agatha that he is making a terrible mistake. But as a gentleman he is going throgh with the wedding. On the wedding day as James waits for his bride to walk down the aisle; his bride is found shot dead in her wedding dress. The police suspect Agatha in a crime of passion, but fortunately she has witnesses that place her elsewhere. Olivia Bross-Tilkingtonare, Felicity's stunned distraught mother, hires Agatha to find out who killed her daughter as she distrusts the cops to do an adequate job. However, this case is much more complicated as her investigations seem to stir up more trouble than actual find the murderer.

Agatha becomes enamoured with her new love interest, Sylvan Dubois, a friend of Felicity's father; as she suspects both of them in some dubious activities. But Agatha's confidence is shaken to its core when it seems every new person she meets wants to kill her. She even starts to doubt her own ability to be a detective.

Per usual, I await for the latest Agatha Raisin book to come out. But this one was much more complicated than any I've read so far. She travels more, falls in love with several different men, manages to retire from her own detective agency. Interestingly enough Charles shows himself to be more useful and in a much more positive light in this book than ever which shows promise. All the usual suspects are in the story and Agatha finally seems to finally have some closure with James as at one point describes their relationship as "old friends". So I enjoyed this new addition and appreciate the complexity that Beaton is now giving Agatha so hopefully we'll have many more mysteries to come.

Alone by Lisa Gardner

As a sniper with the elite Massachusetts State Police SWAT Team, Bobby Dakota saved a woman and her young son by shooting her armed husband. But vicious rumors begin to circulate the next morning and then Bobby loses his gun and his privileges. It turns out the dead man was the son of a prominent Boston judge and had accused his wife of poisoning their son. Facing awkward stares and a crippling wrongful death lawsuit, Bobby begins his own investigation into the fateful shooting-and a fight to reclaim the life he holds dear. As the trail takes him into a twisted minefield of sordid wealth and family secrets, he is learning that nothing - and no one - is what they seem.

I listened to this on CD and did find myself rolling my eyes during the scenes focusing on Catherine when she would work herself up into a frenzy. It was hard to feel sorry for her when so much of her problems were self made. Some of the best parts of the book were when Bobby was talking to his shrink - mandated by his forced time off. She really helped him delve into himself to find out what motivates him to helping Catherine. He is forced to explore his own painful childhood and his relationship with his parents.

It was interesting to me that this book was written by a woman as she really made the female characters either very weak or manipulative. It was a good story and honestly I'm still not sure after I finished it how much of this was arranged by Catherine or just happenstance.

Whiteout: Melt by Greg Rucka & Steve Lieber

Sequel to the Graphic Novel Whiteout.

U.S. Deputy Marshal Carrie Stetko is on much needed vacation in New Zealand, but still stuck in professional exile in McMurdo Station in the South Pole. When a Russian base blows up suspiciously, her bosses promise to bring her back to civilization if she'll cut her vacation short to go poke around the debris.

Although Article I of the Antarctic Treaty prohibits any military use of the continent, the Russians are suspected of using their base as a weapons cache and her bosses want her to see if she can find anything out. Soon, Stetko finds herself pursing a team of elite Spetznaz troops gone mercenary who are fleeing across the ice with stolen nukes. Upping the ante, Stetko teams up with a Russian GRU agent to track the rogue Spetznaz and recover the nukes.

There's even some sexual action about midway through the story that helps connect Carrie with the Russian agent and of course complicates the story. Carrie has to decide what is right for the overall good and what is just right for her. It's always a dilemma.

This story wasn't as complicated as most of it took place on the chase across the ice to catch the Spetznaz troops. But as always the black and white illustrations are haunting as we see the desolation of Antarctica and the people who live there.

Gallows View by Peter Robinson

Inspector Banks Mystery

Introduces Inspector Alan Banks, a police detective who left London to work in Eastvale, a town in Yorkshire, where he lives with his wife and two children. Women are being terrorized in the small English town of Eastvale by a peeping tom who likes to stare at women while they undress. There has also been a series of robberies affecting this small town but the police start taking notice when they find the body of Alice Matlock. The police cannot help themselves to wander if this was the work of outsiders or if the peeping tom passion has gotten to be deadly. Inspector Banks is in charge of the case and is working together with Dr. Jennifer Fuller to try to help him understand the mind of the voyeur and to see if there is possibility that he could be dangerous.

In case you wonder how all these various cases are tied together, it really is all down to Banks as he puzzles about these random cases. He has found a new passion of Opera and listens to his tapes in the car or on his Walkman. He admits that he finds new passions every 6 months and wonders if this new one will stick. He smokes too much and while tempted by a beautiful woman he remains faithful to his wife and family. But most of all he is a dedicated policeman who strives to do the right thing.

While this was a bit more graphic than I liked, it was still an intriguing police procedural. I'll definitely try more of these down the road.

Dog on It: A Chet and Bernie Mystery by Spencer Quinn

Chet the "Jet" is a dog with one white ear and one black who failed K-9 school (cats in the open country played a role in his demise), but now he is a dedicated PI and works with Bernie, owner of the Little Detective Agency. The story is told entirely from Chet’s point of view, which gives us an interesting twist on the traditional PI mystery, and it is definitely fun to read.

Wealthy divorcée Cynthia Chambliss hires Bernie, a former cop, to find her missing 15-year-old daughter, Madison, whose father is a real estate developer who smells suspiciously of cat. (Chet's keen sense of smell comes in handy.) When Madison reappears and disappears again, her dad says she's just a runaway, though Bernie thinks otherwise.

Chet may not understand things like maps (he doesn’t need them, as he can sniff his way home), but he is a great sleuth who finds the girl and solves the case. The always upbeat Chet makes us cheer for him and realize that dogs can be detectives too. Bernie is a good detective too but sometimes you need a nose to sniff out the truth.

This was a fun read from start to finish. I now have a new favorite duo to look for next year as I'm sure there are more books to come. The only thing I wish the author would do is actually name where the characters live. It is a generic "Valley" in the desert with former ranches and open land that are now city. I guess since I live in a valley in the desert I'm curious to where this is.

Brimstone by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Pendergast mystery series

Jeremy Grove, a notorious art critic, has been found dead. Burned from the inside out, with a demonic hoof print burned into the floor, and his crucifix melted. The work of the devil? Or a sign of the Second coming?

Enter in former NYPD cop Vincent D'Agosta and then FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast, a wealthy, refined and ruthless. The relationship reminds me of Holmes and Watson. Obviously Pendergast is Holmes but D'Agosta while rough and tumble is no slouch in the brains department. When another burned corpse is discovered in NYC, New York Police Captain Laura Hayward, is introduced to the case and has connections to Pendergast & D'Agosta. D'Agosta who used to work for NYPD but after retiring from the police force to write novels he's back in New York state but now working for a suberb where the first murder is discovered.

But their investigation soon takes them from the luxury estates of Long Island and penthouses of New York City to the crumbling, legend-shrouded castles of the Italian countryside, where thirty years ago four men conjured up something unspeakable. There are several storylines as a homeless man from New Mexico reads about the burned coprse and decides he needs to go to NYC to spread the word of the 2nd coming.

This was quite the "sit on the edge of your seat" reading but I found the actual resolution a bit contrived. A lot of superficial characters are briefly in the story and then never really seen again. Maybe it's because I haven't read any of the previous books so need to go and try the first one that introduces the characters. But it was definitely a fun read so will look for the earlier books in the future.

City and the City by China Mieville

A modern crime/detective story set in a unique urban fantasy setting. Two cites that exist in the same space, and overlap at areas of "crosshatching". Citizens in Ul Qoma and Bes hold on to their identities as separate nations by unseeing and unsensing citizens from the other city. To notice in areas of crosshatching is to move over to that city and to breach. Breaching is a major crime and involves the mysterious oversight policing force known as Breach. They have more power than either city's police force but only deal with crime involving the illegal travel between cities. If you breach, you disappear. Trained from birth to ignore the other city, the citizens of either city can live their entire lives in one city without ever truly seeing anything from the other one.

A blend of near-future science fiction and police procedural. Told from the point of view of Inspector Tyador Borlú of the Extreme Crime Squad roams through the intertwined but separate cultures as he investigates the murder of Mahalia Geary, who believed that a third city, Orciny, hides in the blind spots between Beszel and Ul Qoma. As Mahalia's friends disappear and revolution brews, Tyador is forced to consider the idea that someone in unseen Orciny is manipulating the other cities.

I have read several reviews so when it came out on CD thought I would give it a try. Honestly it was hard to just listen to especially with the almost Eastern European sounding names and places. Also I had no idea how the cities or names were spelled until I saw the book. I did enjoy the mix of mystery with science fiction elements. Now that I've listened to it on CD I want to re-read it in print to see how it works for me.

Criminal Vol 1 - Coward by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips

Coward is the story of Leo, a professional pickpocket known as a legendary heist-planner and thief. But there's a catch with Leo, he won't work any job that he doesn't call all the shots on, he won't allow guns, and the minute things turn south, he's looking for any exit that won't land him in prison. We see one of his past heists in which everyone is killed except him as he knows when to leave a situation before the shooting starts. But is he just lucky or is he really a coward? He has to live with that guilt.

Cut to the present, he's lured into a risky heist by the widow of one of the guys killed in a the past heist. She brings on the guilt, saying he owes her for her husband's life. So he agrees to the heist even though his gut is telling him to run. He comes up with a plan but others keep changing the rules. After the heist goes wrong, all his rules go out the window, and he ends up on the run from the cops and the bad men who double-crossed him. Now Leo must come face-to-face with the violence he's kept bottled up inside for 20 years, and nothing will ever be the same for him again. Everyone seems to die around him but he can't even do that right. Is he really a coward or just a survivor?

Interesting GN. I had read about it in an online article about the Parker GN that just came out. So I thought I'd give it a try. It's gritty and shocking and definitely not happy but thought provoking. What would you do when everything seems against you and there seems like no way out but the wrong way? The illustrations are dark and sinister and the shadows show more than the light. I had to read this in small batches as the melancholy was hard to take, as I knew there wasn't going to be a happy ending. But now that I'm done I keep thinking about it.

War for the Oaks by Emma Bull

Guitarist and singer Eddi McCandry has just left a floundering band and her boyfriend when a Phouka, a man who at times is a talking dog, becomes her guardian at the behest of the Faerie Folk. Eddi soon finds herself involved with warring Faerie groups, the Seelie Court and its noble queen versus the Unseelie Court, ruled by the evil Queen of Air and Darkness. The Seelie Court has chosen Eddi because there's "power in a mortal soul that all of Faerie cannot muster." The Faerie need a mortal to give them the mortality on the warring field as it is the only way to have casualties.

In between the battles and conflicts Eddi assembles a new band composed of her close friend Carla on drums, Dan Rochelle on keyboards, mumbling Hedge on bass and Willy Silver on lead guitar. Together they become part of the magic and form the base for Eddi's own powers, which she has acquired from her new place in Faerie. She decides to name the new band "Eddi and the Feys" as a kind of inside joke to her new life. But it will take all the band's power, all that the Seelie court has to offer, and a bit of pure luck besides to win the battle for Minneapolis. Especially when nothing is quite what it seems, for if the Fay never lie, they still can twist the truth to the quick.

The real strength of the story is pure knowledge of rock music and the field, the contribute to the climax, a struggle between Eddi and the dark queen at a concert.

I read this book several years ago and was really pleased to get to read it again for my bookclub. What fun, as it is still as fresh and innovative as the first time I read it. It reminds me why I enjoy urban fantasy and need to read more again.

Bootlegger's Daughter by Margaret Maron

Deborah Knott series

This book introduces attorney Deborah Knott, the daughter of an infamous North Carolina bootlegger, a local girl who is now running for a district court judgeship. 18-year-old Gayle Whitehead (whom Deb babysat) asks her to investigate the unsolved murder of her mother, Janie, which took place when Gayle was an infant. The girl wants Deb, who knows the locals of Cotton Grove, to ask around and see if she can find clues the police might have missed. Deb visits Michael Vickery, the gay son of Cotton Grove's retired doctor and owner of the property where Janie's body was found.

During the visit they are shot at by an unknown person who Deb suspects is Michael's partner Den. The next day Deb receives a call from an employee of Pot Shop who says neither man has shown up for work that day - she also says Den had called Deb and left her a message to meet him at the theater as he had something to give her. Realizing that she had missed his message Deb goes to the theater only to discover a dead boy - shot in the face- assumed to be Den, in the parking lot. After the initial autopsy it is found to be Michael instead.

Den comes to her asking for her legal advice. But is what he is telling her the truth or just a game he is playing? So while trying to win her judgeship she is doing her best to find the truth. Along the way she discovers long-kept secrets, learning that Janie had a roving eye and that her best friend had made overtures to Janie a week before the murder. But as is often the case, the answer is not obvious or easy.

I had read about this series so finally decided to try it out. I'm not a big fan of legal mysteries but do enjoy a good Southern story. I was happy to discover that the legal aspect was not the primary one so was able to enjoy it. I did find the main character's way of almost having conversations with herself to be somewhat distracting as it didn't really fit the rest of the story. But I enjoyed the characters and the politics you have to play to get the vote. I'll definitely read another one.

Agnes and the Hitman by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer

Agnes Crandall is a feisty food writer and cookbook author on her third fiancé, Taylor Beaufort. Though their future looks bright, their romance is curdling, partly due to their deal with widowed mob wife Brenda Fortunato (who is selling them her old house) to hold a Fortunato family wedding at their house in exchange for three months of payments.

While making dinner an armed thug tries to kidnap Agnes's dog so after Agnes bonks him on the head a few times with a frying pan he falls to his death through a false door to the basement (that Agnes didn't even know was there). Agnes calls the police but her friend Joey, a Fortunato family friend (and mobster) asks hit man Shane to keep an eye on Agnes. Cue the romantic interest. After many more head bashings with the frying pan and shootouts that call for the clean up expertise of Mr. Carpenter, Shane starts to wonder who is behind all this.

Meanwhile the wedding must go on or Agnes will lose the house to Brenda. But now she is starting to wonder if maybe Brenda is trying to screw Agnes out of the house as she seems to be sabotaging the wedding right and left. Many more cast of characters from the very bridizilla, Maria, and the groom who might be getting cold feet.

It is an interesting mix of the South meets New York gangsters. There are laugh out loud moment but not as many as I had hoped as this became quite the complicated story - primarily because of all the characters.

Late, Lamented Molly Marx by Sally Koslow

The book opens with a funeral. Molly Marx is 35 when she dies in an unexplained bicycle accident, and she is watching her own funeral. She chooses to watch her loved ones after her death. Molly's life is cut short during a bicycle ride in Riverside Park on a rainy day, and she suddenly finds herself in a place called the Duration.

Molly was married to a successful plastic surgeon (who has cheated on her since their wedding day and comes equipped with a stereotypical over protective Jewish mother), has a four year-old daughter she loves with all her heart, close relationships with her family, good friends, a fulfilling and creative career, and a handsome, secret lover who might just be her soulmate.

After her death when she wakes up in the Duration, she discovers that she is equipped with a fully functioning bull*&$ meter, and Molly watches as life goes on without her. Each chapter starts with important events that occurred before Molly's death, so the reader is given clues to perspectives of Molly's life from her memories, current events, the thoughts of her loved ones, and even an NYC detective who is trying to discover how Molly died.

But in the end, how Molly died is less important than how she lived, and how pieces of Molly lived on in others, long after she was gone.

This book reminded me of Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold kind of merging with Sex and the City. But I did really enjoy it. The ending was a bit contrived and really tried to tie up everything. I think I enjoyed the chapters that dealt with her relationships as she realizes that she really didn't value herself until after she saw how it affected her family and friends and even her husband who seemed more focused on apperances rather than just being.

Flood by Andrew Vachss

The main character a private detective known as Burke, comes to the assistance of a young woman named Flood. She is searching for a psychotic freak known as the Cobra, a child molester who has murdered her closest friend's child. After much fighting and chasing her down Burke finally accepts the job. Not necessarily a hitman, Burke is more of an avenging angel for hire, if he can be convinced the cause is worthy, and his dog Pansy doesn't rip a prospective client to shreds. His existence consists of an odd assortment of hookers, restaurant owners, gambling, and Max the Silent, his spiritual brother, and possibly the most dangerous man on Earth.

This is not a quick or easy or clean read. It makes you stop and think really shudder a bit as the story revolves around an underworld of S&M, perversion, and snuff films. Unfortunately we know from watching the news these things really do exist. Vachss is a lawyer specializing in child abuse cases and bases his stories on many true life situations he had found himself involved in.

The characters are interesting and intriguing and I'll probably read more but it will be awhile before my brain can really take another one.

Comforts of a Muddy Saturday by Alexander McCall Smith

Isabel Dalhousie Mystery

Edinburgh moral philosopher Isabel Dalhousie is living her life as best she can. She's recently assumed ownership of the obscure journal she's edited for many years, the Review of Applied Ethics. While this seems straightforward she has the dilemma of a former member of the board who submitted a paper for publication.

She is approached by a woman she meets at a dinner to investigate her husband, Marcus Moncrieff a doctor accused of scientific fraud. Did Dr. Moncrieff manipulate the data for a drug developed by the same company that funded his research? But as often is the case it is much more complicated than it first appears. It turns out that Dr. Moncrieff’s nephew, who is also his assistant, might have had good reason to exact revenge on his uncle. (At issue is the inheritance of a large farm on Scotland’s Black Isle.)

Meanwhile, Isabel’s much younger boyfriend, Jamie, continues to dote on Isabel and their infant son, Charlie. (Alas, Jamie’s extraordinary good looks have Isabel forever worrying that he will lose interest in her.) There are other moral dilemmas, too. Isabel suspects that Eddie, the vulnerable young man who works at Isabel’s niece’s deli, lied about the reason he needs to borrow money. And Grace, Isabel’s very assertive housekeeper, has been telling local residents that her adorable Charlie is her own.

Most of the story is Isabel contimplating how to best approach situations she is uncomfortable with. I enjoy her musings but find myself getting a bit tired of her fears about Jamie leaving her. Plus I really cannot stand her niece Cat who thankfully is not around much during this book. It is always like a quick vacation to Edinburgh and this is a much cheaper option.

Whiteout by Greg Rucka & Steve Lieber

Graphic novel set in Antarctica on a station with nothing but ice and snow for miles and miles. It is cold and desolete and the black and white drawings illustrate the starkness and almost depressive state of it all. Carrie Stetko is a U.S. Marshal, and though she's been exiled there she's made The Ice her home. Because she is one of the few year round women who live there she has to be cold and mean and hard to survive it. But she has also found a place where she can forget her troubled past and feel at peace. Then someone commits a murder in her jurisdiction and that peace is shattered. The murderer is one of five men scattered across the continent, and he has more reason to hide than just the slaying. Several ice samples were taken from the area around the body, and the depth of the drilling signifies something particular was removed. Enter Lily Sharpe, a British intellegence agent or spook, who wants to know what was so important another man's life had to be taken for it.

Just saw a movie trailer for a movie Whiteout based on this GN. This was a gritty and intense GN, I had to go back and reread sections as there is a lot packed into what originally looks like a simple story. It will be interesting to see how this translates on the big screen. There is one amazing sequence as Stetko and Sharpe are tied to a line and go out during a Whiteout to hunt down the killer. You see why the book is called the name as both are blind in their quest for the truth and finding the killer. Because of the harsh conditions everyone looks the same as they all wear the same gear so while you assume you know who the killer is you cannot be exactly sure.

Star Trek Archives Volume 1: Best of Peter David
Includes 5 original comics in one collection
Star Trek Annual #3 - Retrospect
Star Trek #13-15 - Return of the Worthy series - co-written by Bill Mumy
Star Trek #19 - Once a Hero

Great fun. I am a big fan of Peter David - I've read most of his earlier work and was not aware he had written Star Trek comics. So when I saw this in my local comic book store on Thursday I had to buy it. All of these focus on the original Star Trek crew and seem to be after ST2. All of these have a definite nostalgic feel as the various ST crew deal with loss.

Retrospect focuses on Scotty, it beings as he receives a package from home we see him grieve for the woman whom he loved. The story is told in reverse and ends with the first time they meet as young children in Scotland. Very sweet and always nice to see a story revolve around Scotty.

Worthy is a trio of comics that focus on the legend of the Worthy that are discovered by the Enterprise when they are exploring the planet before they set up the Lamver Unit, which is an inter-planetary device which is scheduled to be tested on the planet. During their exploration they are attached by a flying robot and discover a small space vessel which houses several humanoids in suspended animation. As they wake up the humanoids they find out that they are the Worthy who are legendary beings who go from world to world saving them. The storyline goes from the crew of the Enterprise getting to know the Worthy to deciding not to use the planet as a test sight as it is now a burial ground for the fallen Worthy to taking them home and finding it destroyed. In the end the Worthy decide to take back up their mission and save planets from a fate their planet suffered.

Once a Hero - is mostly about Kirk trying to come to terms that a member of his crew, Ensign Lee died to save Kirk's life but no one including Kirk knows anything about Lee except his name and rank. The storyline focuses on Kirk interviewing various members of the crew who interacted with Lee to see what they know about him as well as re-living the mission that ends Lee's life. It ends with a eulogy in which Kirk challenges everyone to get to know their fellow crew members no matter how insignificant they might be.

Now unless you are a Star Trek fan these comics won't do much for you. But Peter David has written so many novels for Star Trek that it really shows in these comics plus he writes really excellent dialog. I so enjoyed it.

Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon

Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

When legendary German conductor Helmut Wellauer is found dead in his dressing room two acts into a performance of La Traviata , police commissario Guido Brunetti is called in. Among those who might have provided the cyanide poison that killed the maestro, immediate suspects include the much younger wife and many in the music industry who are offended by his homophobia. Methodically probing into the victim's past, Brunetti also uncovers Wellauer's Nazi sympathies and a lead to a trio of singing sisters from yesteryear--one now destitute, one dead and the other missing.

You truly feel like you are wondering around Venice in this book. But what I enjoyed even more than exploring Venice was observing Guido interact with his family; his moody teenage son, mathematically driven sure-footed pre-teen daughter, and his independent English Professor wife who he truly does love and desire even when his eye is drawn to other women. Plus he has an almost love/hate relationship with his very wealthy in-laws. I felt like I was there watching over his shoulder as he interviewed the various suspects and tried to unravel who killed the conductor and most of all why. They mystery is finally resolved at the end with a surprising twist but satisfactory conclusion. I am intrigued enough to read more.

How to Live with a Neurotic Cat by Stephen Baker

Full of little stories, one liners and cartoons about cats and what they do, all very tongue in cheek. Illustrations are all in black and white and remind me of cartoons from the New Yorker. A friend recommended that I read this book so I found it at my local PL. I laughed a lot and quickly finished and returned it. This is not a book where one can actually learn anything about cats but rather makes you nod you head in agreement. I loved the segments on teaching cats tricks - basically the cat sleeps while you move it around. Hilarious!

I believe there is a dog counterpart but have not read it. It would be fun to read though I am more of a cat fan than dog.

Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell

1st book in the Kurt Wallender mystery series

Set in Sweden these books are now being translated into English. Also some of the novels have been an adapted for Masterpiece Mystery series on PBS starring Kenneth Branagh

The story opens with a horrific murder scene on the Lovgren farm in rural Sweden. An elderly farmer discovers that his neighbors, also elderly, have been attacked. The husband, Johannes Lovgren, was gruesomely tortured and killed while his wife, Maria, left for dead with a noose around her neck. Rydberg, a police force old-timer, says the noose's unusual knot and the word foreigner, which old woman uttered before she died, are important. Wallender puts those clues on the back burner when he learns that Johannes, ostensibly a simple farmer, had a secret life involving wealth and connections unknown to his wife. However, a leak to the press complicates the investigation by arousing anti-immigrant feelings, some of which are expressed in anonymous threats.

There is a lot of immigration tension in Sweden and refugee camps are being targeted - making the small police force even more stretched to the breaking point. When a Somali refugee is shot, the clues point to a retired former policeman of another town Wallander and his fellow police detectives are torn how to deal with it.

Kurt Wallender, a middle-aged cop in the small town of Lenarp. His wife has recently left him and he is drowning his sorrows in opera and far too much liquor. He is also dealing with the guilt he feels with his father who's mental health is failing. He tries to visit but gets caught up in the drama of the new case. Only after a neighbor calls after finding his father wandering along the roadside carrying a suitcase of dirty underwear and paint supplies. Wallender's father is a famous painter who has only paints one scene with or without a grouse. Wallender often wonders what his father wanted him to be as he is constantly berating him for being a policeman. Wallender feels estranged from his wife, his daughter, Linda and most of all real life.

You really feel the hopelessness he feels, the despair he feels his life has become. But he also has this way of finding the truth. This is a true police procedural and the cases take months to solve versus a few days. Plus I have a whole new appreciation to cold weather! brrrr.... A good book to read in Phoenix when it is 115+ degrees.

Dead Boys Detectives by Ed Brubaker

Featured in Sandman Comics - this collected one storyline. Neil Gaiman created the characters and Ed Brubaker wrote this comic.

The Dead Boy Detectives are Charles Rowland and Edwin Paine, two British schoolboys from different eras who are now ghosts. They take on a case of missing homeless teens who are later discovered shriveled and horribly dead. Since no one is taking this seriously one of the homeless teens find the detectives in their tree house and asks for their help. So in typical young boy fashion they both jump in feet first to the fray of witches, immortality and the occult. Not bad for a couple hours of reading.

So long and thanks for all the laughs....

Get Real by Donald E. Westlake

Final book in the Dortmunder series

It was with great trepidation that I started reading this book. Donald E. Westlake passed away on New Years Eve, and when I heard the news I burst into tears thinking, no more Dortmunder! Then I read about this book coming out and while I was happy to at least have one more Dortmunder novel to read, my heart is heavy.

During a taxi ride - Murch's mom talks to a fare about her son and his friends who steal for a living. The fare, Doug Fairkeep, is a producer for reality-show company, Get Real, and is always looking for a new concept. He tracks down Murch who recruits Dortmunder for a heist /aka reality TV show. Kelp, Tiny and the Kid are brought in too as you have to have 5 guys to make a crew. Doug throws his own people into the mix by adding actors to the crew - Roger, fulltime actor who also can climb walls like Spiderman and Darlene - who was brought in from another reality show as a possible love interest. There is Marcy who "writes what is going to happen" and Babe - Doug's boss, who every time he comes on set says "I'm shutting this down!".

Naturally, the gang has to make this gig pay more than what's offered, as much for the fun of it as for the extra cash. While Get Real helps them map out a robbery, the boys are mapping out the real robbery—of some of the company's hidden assets. See Get Real is owned by Monopole that is owned by TUI and so on and so on. So the building that Get Real uses has other purposes that make Dortmunder nad the gang real curious. There is money somewhere in the building and they are going to get it. The thinking is that Get Real can hardly come after them to retrieve cash that it can't admit that it has. The game plan changes nearly hourly, and the outcome is anything but certain.

I laughed, I cried as I said "goodbye' to one of my favorite mystery writers and realy one of greatest writers of the 20th Century. There is no one like him.

White Hot by Sandra Brown

Sayre Lynch returns to Destiny, La., for her brother Danny's funeral. Estranged from her family for the past 10 years, Sayre arrives in town believing Danny committed suicide, but after a surprise encounter at the cemetery and a disquieting interview with the sheriff's deputy determines that someone murdered her brother. She seaks to find out who would have killed her well liked little brother, the answer may be her own family!

Sayre is the middle child of Huff Hoyle, powerful owner of the local foundary. 10 years ago she left Destiny determined never to return and now lives in San Francisco as a interior decorator. Ater meeting Danny's fiance she decides to stay to investigate her brother's last days, as well as confront her father and big brother, Chris. This dynamic duo run the foundry that provides most of the town's jobs and all its corruption. Everywhere she goes, Sayre crosses paths with Huff's handsome lawyer henchman, Beck Merchant, whom she finds irresistible although he represents everything she despises.

We see several storylines as we learn more about Huff, her father and other people who live in Destiny. This is a romance and it is Sandra Brown so lots of sexual tension between her and Beck. I know that Sandra Brown is a big name in the romance fiction world but this was my first experience actually reading one of her books and it was ok. Nothing earth shattering but I can see why she has a big fan base. She has a way of mixing the family saga up.

Chalk Circle Man by Fred Vargas

Commissaire Adamsberg Mystery

Newly transferred from his home in the Pyrenees to Paris, 45-year-old Adamsberg arrives with a reputation for solving big cases, though his diffident manner doesn't impress his colleague and foil, Adrien Danglard. A solitary man drawing blue chalk circles at night around stray objects in Paris streets manages to create a media sensation, but Adamsberg senses evil behind the act. When the corpse of a woman is found encircled in chalk, he's proven right. Adamsberg's indirect approach, his ability to sense cruelty and to let solutions percolate to the surface make him one of the more intriguing police detectives in a long time.

I really enjoyed this book and am so glad that they finally translated it into English. The rest of the series have been translated except for this one. Go figure!?! This book reminds me of Hercule Poirot in some ways as it is much more cerebral feel than the police procedural it is portrayed. The outside characters are interesting and I found myself thinking about them after I finished the book. Danglard - a single father raising two sets of twins! You get a little bit of his home life and it really intrigued me and made wish there was more info about his life.

Funny story about how I got this book. I read about this series and it mentioned that this was the first book but it was the 6th one translated and came out June 30, 2009. So of course my local library does not own it. Since I was attending the American Library Association in Chicago in July I hunted down the Penguin publisher's book and they had one copy left and let me buy it for $5. Since it is an oversized paperback worth $14, I scored a deal! Then while I was waiting in line to win something at the Demco book they covered the cover with that stiff plastic so it is almost like a hardback now.

Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich

Book 15 in the Stephanie Plum series

It's hot and summertime in Trenton, NJ. Stephanie has recently broken up again with Morelli and is done with men. She's ready to throw herself back into being a bounty hunter. But then Lula inadvertently witnesses the beheading of culinary TV star Stanley Chipotle in a Trenton, N.J., alley. Stephanie convensinces Lula to call Morelli, who reluctantly takes the case. When the Chipotle bar-b-q sauce company offers a reward of 1 million dollors, Lula, with the help of Grandma Mazur, enters the same barbequing competition Chipotle was in town to promote, hoping to lure the murderers out of hiding. Ranger has recruited Stephanie to help solve a series of break-ins at properties under the protection of Rangeman Security.

There are 3 car fires and one house bombing so the stakes are rising. Most of this story focuses on Stephanie and her men. I miss some of the other characters but enjoyed that there were fewer characters this book.

This is a book to read over a weekend of during a plane ride and it still makes me laugh outloud. I'll keep reading a Stephanie Plum book as often as Evanovich keeps writing them.

Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole

The story is set in New Orleans in the early 1960s. The story revolves around Ignatius J. Reilly, an odd, educated but slothful man still living with his mother at age 30 in the city's Uptown neighborhood. During an outing with is mother is almost arrested and during their escape they hide out in a bar/strip club. After a few drinks his mother runs her car into a building. When they get the bill for $20,000 Mrs. Irene Reilly insists Ignatius get a job to help pay for damages. In his quest for employment he has various adventures with colorful French Quarter characters. He nemesis is Mryna Minkoff, who through correspondence both try to impress one another by starting riots and various other altercations with various religious, ethnic and sexual orientation groups.

We see other sides of the story by various characters Ignatius encounters during his quest.

Lana Lee owns the strip club/bar in French Quarter, where Ignatius and his mother hide out in. She hires Burma Jones for under minimum wage and he plans his revenge by enticing Ignatius back into the bar. We meet Jones in the first few chapters when Claude Robichaux meets him in the local jail.

The first job that Ignatius gets is at Levy Pants own by Gus Levy and his wife Mrs. Levy. Gus and his wife live a life in which they absolutely hate each other but love their wealth and status more. Their life is at a totally different level of living, yet are they any better than Ignatius? I love how we get these detail descriptions of the luxury of Levy and his wife. Mrs. Levy has also made it her pet project to protect Miss Trixie, a very elderly senial woman who only wants to retire from Levy Pants.

Some of the funniest scenes are when Ignatius is at the movies and screams out his displeasure of how the acting or storyline is going. It is absolutely hilarious. He also has this habit of screaming "Oh, my God!" when he can't believe what he is hearing and/or seeing.

During the first part of the book, Irene Riley seems like a flat, screechy drunk of a mother. But as she evolves and makes relationships with other she becomes a person who wants her own identity and is tired of living her life for her son who will never leave. She finds herself a boyfriend, Claude Robichaux, a much older Jewish man who is constantly on the look out for communists. Claude is introduced in the first few pages of the book when he is arrested instead of Ignatius by a local policemen, Angelo Mancuso. Poor Angelo, after making several wrong arrests, the sergeant in charge gets fed up with him, and in punishment Angelo is reduced to wearing ridiculous disguises, and spending time in the bus station toilets in order to arrest "suspicious characters". He ends up saving the day by busting a pornography ring.

Sad but interesting side note:
The author, John Kennedy Toole, was born in New Orleans in 1937. He received a master's degree in English from Columbia University and taught at Hunter College and at the University of Southwestern Louisiana. He wrote A Confederacy of Dunces in the early sixties and tried unsuccessfully to get the novel published; depressed, at least in part by his failure to place the book, he committed suicide in 1969. It was only through the tenacity of his mother that her son's book was eventually published and found the audience it deserved. His long-suppressed novel The Neon Bible, written when he was only sixteen, was eventually published as well. A Confederacy of Dunces won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

I actually listened to this on CD while driving around and found myself laughing outloud. I did have to be in the mood for it so it took me awhile to get into it. I did enjoy the reader as he did a good job with all the accents.

A Trouble of Fools by Linda Barnes

Carlotta Carlyle Mysteries

This book introduces us to Carlotta Carlyle, a red-haired, 6 foot-1 inch tall and size 11 shoe wearing ex-cabbie, ex-policewoman, now private investigator in Boston. She has inherited her Aunt's house and rents out the upper floor but hasn't changed much so it still looks like an old lady lives there. Her companions are TC (Thomas C. as in Cat), an inherited parrot named Emma Goldman and her best friend is Paolina, her 10-year-old "Little Sister", who lives in the projects. It is her weekly visits with her and her local volleyball games that help pass the time as she hasn't had much luck as a PI yet.

So she isn't too chosey when an elderly Irish woman hires her to find her brother, Eugene, who has vanished from their home. He left his taxi standing empty weeks before but no one except his sister seem concerned. His cabbie cronies and the police think he has flown the coop to live in the old country aka Ireland. But Carlotta's interest is peaked when she finds the battered body of the sister along with a trashed house. After taking her to the hospital she finds a mysterious cache of $13,000 hidden in the attic. Eugene's cronies, who, like himself, are drivers for a taxi fleet are secret sympathizers with the Irish cause, and seem to be involved with a scheme in support of the IRA. Having once worked for the cab company herself, Carlotta hires on again to monitor their activities, an action that eventually sets her at odds with a major drug ring, the FBI and a certain Mafia-connected former lover.

There are some other subplots that all tie up at the end to make this a very satisfying vacation read. You get this great flavor of Boston as she drives around the city plus she loves to play the blues and read poetry. I'm looking forward to see how this series develops.

Gardens of Covington by Joan A. Medlicott

2nd in the Ladies of Covington series

Amelia, Grace and Hannah are happily living in their beautiful old farmhouse in the foothills of North Carolina, but when developers threaten to turn Cove Road into a condo haven, all 3 worry what will their future will be. Grace and her lover, Bob, are busy preparing to open a tearoom. Both have to deal with Bob's son, Russell, who has fallen in love but not thought about how his young son would react. Amelia's photography talent continues to bloom and in a fender-bender she meets the man of her dreams, but the new romance isn't all sweetness and light. Her housemates quickly determine his mean side while Amelia senses it but allows his smooth ways and glitzy gifts to blind her to his true nature. She starts to neglect her friend Mike and her photography. Hannah has troubles of her own as she trys to rally the community to save the valley, and at first she has their support but when she tries to stop a local from selling his farm to developers "it's Yankee go home!". But during this she befriends an ill and lonely woman at the farm next door. Sadly Mrs. Maxwell dies before all three ladies can meet her. Grace continues her friendship with one of the very elderly local old maids who decides to marry one of the local old men nicknamed "old Man". National News gets involved as they come to cover the wedding, it's never dull ds

Times goes by, Grace loves the tearoom and her relationship with Bob, but worries about what to tell him regarding his request to build a cabin on the women's property. Russell and his son Tyler finally come to terms with his new love and finally decide it's ok for Dad to get married or "hitched" as the locals say. Grace's son Roger and his partner offer to decorate for the wedding and come out a few weeks before the wedding to get everything ready. Grace has to deal with all this plus the bride's mother. Throw in some flooding and you have a grand old read. Entertaining and not terribly taxing to read I enjoy catching up with the Ladies of Covington.

More in the series
From the Heart of Covington
Spirit of Covington
At Home in Covington
Christmas in Covington
Two Days after the Wedding
An Unexpected Family
Promises of Change

Truth or Dare by Jayne Ann Krentz

Book 2 in the Whispering Springs series

Zoe Luce, psychic interior decorator, has finally settled down to domestic life in Whispering Springs, Ariz., with private investigator Ethan Truax. They are now working to create a successful marriage, but events in their pasts keep interfering with their hopes for wedded bliss. Ethan is still haunted by his brother's murder and his own pursuit of justice in that case, so part of him expects Zoe to dump him, just as his previous three wives did. Zoe is plagued by memories of her imprisonment in a private psychiatric sanatorium, as she unexpectedly encounters psychic "spider webs" clinging to several places she has recently visited. As Ethan and Zoe struggle with their pasts, both become caught up in the dilemma of Zoe's friend, Arcadia, who fears that her ex-husband has returned from the dead to settle an old score.

Both have started their businesses - Ethan a private detective agency and Zoe her own interior design business. Since I have not read the previous book I'm assuming that their various friends came with them so they have their gang to hang out with. The characters were a bit flat and the mystery of who is creating the "spider webs" leads to a disappointing conclusion. It was an OK book but sadly does not make we want to read more of these characters. Book 1 is Light in Shadow. I have really enjoyed other books by Jayne Ann Krentz but this just didn't do much for me.

Isn't it Romantic by Ron Hanen

Natalie Clairvaux, a Paris librarian specializing in Americana at the Bibliotheque Nationale, embarks on a grassroots "See America" bus tour of out-of-the-way U.S. landmarks in an effort to escape the unwanted attentions of her philandering fiance, Pierre Smith, scion of a family of French wine sellers. Maddened by her unexplained disappearance, Pierre tracks her down and catches up with her tour group in Omaha. The quarreling couple abandons the tour at a tiny crossroads outside of Seldom, Nebrask, (pop. 395), on Wednesday, agreeing that Natalie will reach a decision about their wedding by noon on Saturday.

The book takes an almost Northern Exposure turn as the townfolk announce that the couple will be elected king and queen of an annual local festival honoring a Frenchman who founded the town. Of course all manner of rather predictable fun and games begins. No hankypanky before marriage so Pierre is quartered with Owen Nelson. Owen is the local mechanic and his penchant for wine making is second only to his obsession with Cornhusker football. Natalie is moved into a women only boarding house. Natalie soon becomes captivated by handsome Dick Tupper, a 50-year-old rancher. And, true to form, womanizing Pierre starts hitting on Iona Christiansen, a comely waitress at the local cafe.

This is a very light book only scattered with sarcastic whitisms of French phrases that the locals think are just too cute. The locals plan a wedding between the couple but each find themselves torn between what is love and what is just new and different. It is quite the contrast as most people go to Paris to find something new and different and here we have these Parisians come to Nebraska to show us it with fresh eyes. I won't say this was the best book I ever read but very sweet.

Live Bait by P.J. Tracy

2nd title in Monkeewrench series.

Elderly Jews are being murdered in Minneapolis, and detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth work to solve the case. On the surface it appears to be some kind of crazy serial killer who is going after old people. But as they delve into the details in the victims lives it becomes apparent that the people who were being killed have more in common than what meets the eye.

We also have the original characters from the Monkeewrench crew in the story but in a much more background mode.

While the mystery was not as good, the storyline and development of the police detectives are excellent as always. Plus we see more develop between Leo and Grace.

Book five comes out in a few months so I'm re-reading this as it's been a few years. Can't wait!

Sewing Circles of Herat: A Personal Voyage Through Afghanistan by Christina Lamb

Former British journalist Christina Lamb return to Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks to observe the land and its people firsthand. Because of her previous experiences in Afghanistan she is able to interview locals, Afghan warlords, former members of the Taliban and other influential personalities ignored by the Western media. Lamb paints a vivid picture of Taliban rule and offers a broader sense of life devastated by two decades of war. Her well-written and moving account also reveals the heroism of the Afghans, who not only survived but also resisted their Soviet occupiers; clandestine literary circles and art preservation techniques, for example, helped Afghans salvage their education and history from total destruction.

It offers a very interesting perspective and one I did not expect to have. I think for the first time there is a face on the people of this wartorn country and I can't help but feel empathy for a country that will never be the same again. The photos are truly amazing as there are photos she took during her time there in the 1990's and post-911. Such destruction and so much history and literature lost forever. Personally I am not a non-fiction reader but I found this book fascinating.

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka

Told from the point of view of the youngest daughter, Nadezhda, this family saga is set in London. During one of their many phone conversations, her 84 year old father announces he intends to marry a blonde, big-breasted 36 year old Ukrainian woman. He met her at the local Ukrainian Social Club in the English town where he lives, just north of London. It is clear to Nadezhda and her sister, Vera, that the femme fatale Valentina is only after Western luxuries—certainly not genuine love of any kind. Smitten with saving two Ukrainian lives, their father forges ahead to help Valentina settle in England, spending what little pension he has buying her cars and household appliances and even financing her cosmetic surgery.

In the meantime, Nadezhda, a socialist, and Vera, a proud capitalist, confront the longstanding ill will between them as they try to save their father from his folly. As time goes Nadezhda, starts to feel differently about Valentina and wants to discover who she is. Nadezhda has never known much about her parents' history, starts asking questions and actually listening to the stories her father tells her. She starts to piece it together with her sister and learns that there is more to her father than she once believed. The story alternates with narrative from her father's book "Short History of Tractors" which she helps him translate into English.

I listened to most of this on CD until I put the final CD in to discover it was a repeat of the previous CD. So I had to finish it in print. I really enjoyed this story but found myself getting fixated on the time frame. Initially I thought it took place in current times but then when Nadezhda talked about her birth being in the 1940's and she was 48 I knew I was a bit off. The conversations between the daughters and their father were fascinating. The fights between Valentina and their father were hysterical as both get their English confused. You get a real feel for the Ukrainian immigrants who settled in the UK during the war. I did skim over the tractor history though, it was a bit much.

Sing Them Home by Stephanie Kallos

Set in the fictional town of Emlyn Springs, a Welsh Town in Southeastern Nebraska. We explore the life of the Jones family. Much of the story is told in the voice of Hope Jones as she meets and falls in love with Llewelyn Jones and after going with him to attend a relative's funeral falls in love with Emlyn Springs his hometown. The couple marry in the early 1960's and settle down in Emlyn Springs. It is a town that honors all their Welsh traditions and has many traditions such as singing for funerals and the Little Miss Emlyn Springs competition in which the winner wins a carved chair. Llwellyn becomes the town Doctor and Hope a stay at home mom, who suffers several miscarriages before giving birth to 3 children. We also discover that she suffers from MS which her husband keeps from her until she becomes pregnant with their 3rd child. While Hope loves Emlyn Springs for it's rich history and tradition she is also stifled of her independence and has trouble making friends. She develops a friendship with her husband's nurse, Alvina "Viney" Closs , a widowed at a very young age many years ago.

Much of the story swings between Hope's diary of her marriage and current day. We see how the 3 children are affected by the death of their mother in the 1978 tornado, especially since her body was never found. Current day brings the Jones children together for their father's funeral after he's killed by a lightning strike. Larken, the oldest, is an overweight professor at University of Nebraska and is beset by fear of flying; son Gaelan, is a television weatherman and focused more on weight lifting than developing relationships and has too many women in his life; while the youngest, Bonnie, who stays in Emlyn Springs working odd jobs - she is almost like the Pied Piper as the children of Emlyn Springs follow her everywhere. Bonnie is also known as "Flying Girl" she survives the tornado that kills her mother - discovered in a tree still atop her bicycle. We learn more about Viney - nurse and eventual lover to Llewelyn. While they were together for over 25 years Viney discovers that she doesn't know Lleweyn at all. Together they have lived in her house under a strict exercise and vegan lifestyle. When she goes to clear out his house (the family house) it is full of junk food, alcohol and meat! This complicated relationship is slowly unveiled through flashbacks and Hope's diary entries.

This is a very complicated story and at times found myself wanting to tell the adult children to snap out of it. All 3 are stuck in some way, Larken with her compulsion to eat, Gaelan with only sleeping around without ever developing a relationship and Bonnie is stuck on nostalgia as she canvas's the town looking for things to collect that might connect her with their mother. None are challenging themselves and just do what needs to be done to get by.

I have been finding the descriptions of small town life fascinating as all 3 have to come to terms with loss and find their place in the world. Since I grew up in Omaha, NE I was intrigued to see how the author wrote about this region. There are two tornado sequences and are portrayed more romantically than what really happens but made for a good story. I had to suspend some sense of disbelief during these sequences.

Pyramid and and four other Kurt Wallander mysteries by Henning Mankell

Includes:
Wallander’s First Case
Man with the Mask
Man on the Beach
Death of the Photography
Pyramid

The five stories feature early versions of Kurt Wallander's early life as a policeman as well as paint evocative portraits of contemporary Swedish society. We get the background of how Wallander becomes a homicide detective when his neighbour is found dead in Wallander's First Case. In Man with the Mask, Wallander checks on an store on Christmas eve disrupting an attempted burglary. An unremarkable businessman is poisoned in The Man on the Beach but—in typical Mankell fashion—the case is larger, more complex and more interesting than it first appears. In, The Death of the Photographer, Simon Lamberg takes studio portraits of weddings and children, but a couple of nights each week, he uses his darkroom to distort published photographs of politicians and newsworthy people for a macabre personal scrapbook. It's a bizarre hobby, but the cause of Lamberg's brutal, apparently senseless death is an even stranger puzzle. We also see development between Wallander and his father in the Pyramid, more of a novella and the final part of the collection. All of these story help establish the melancholy Wallander seems to suffer from.

This was my first exposure to the series but I did watch some of the PBS Masterpiece Theater starring Kenneth Branagh. These are not light mysteries but I definitely enjoyed getting a taste of this series and look forward to reading more.

Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together


Book 4 in the Scott Pilgrim Graphic novel series.


It's summertime, but who can relax? Scott and Ramona continue to evolve as they wrestle with the L word (Love not lesbian - though Scott keeps hoping). Plus Ramona starts invading his dreams. Scott's band gets a chance to record their music but Scott isn't even really aware or even involved with it. Scott does notice that he is being stalked by a mysterious swordsman but he seems a bit old to be one of the Evil Exes. Plus their is Ramona's mysterious college roommate.

In typical Scott confusion, he comes home to discover that he doesn't have a place to live so if he crashes with Ramona will that change their relationship? The main complication in Scott's life is Julie, a high school might-have-been-girlfriend. Cute Julie keeps showering him with attention, forcing him to deal with his feelings for Ramona. Typical slacker humor, though it is certainly fun to see Scott get a job and become responsible.

It makes for a fun, casual read.

Paper Marriage by Susan Kay Law


Twelve years ago, John McCrary was in a terrible car accident that left him comatose. His wife Ann had him placed in Cedar Ridge where he has lived ever since in a vegetative state. Ann believes in her wedding vows, for better and for worse. Since John's life has been placed on pause so has hers. But she still visits him every evening bringing her therapy dog Cleo and homemade goodies for the staff to insure he receives proper care at the nursing home. Her mother-in-law Mary is there diligently everyday waiting for a miracle to occur. While Ann has this constant reminder of her life that might have been she still lives in their house and keeps their business going. Cooking is what keeps her going as she suffers from insomnia and often cooking is the only way she can feel like she has a place in the world. Her world is on hold while everyone keeps living.


Meanwhile Ann's neighbor Mrs. Hillerman is moved into assisted living, and overnight her house was sold to former baseball star Tom Nash. He moves in almost immediately to get ready for his angry purple haired sixteen years old daughter Mer to come live with him. He's hired an interior decorator to create the perfect suburban home. He is clueless about life in the suburban jungle and what to do with a teen girl, whose has basically raised herself. Tom never married Mer's mother and has never really spent any time with her. So he has some years to make up for. He wants to do the right thing but is at a loss as to how to develop a relationship with his daughter.

Tom decides to get Mer a dog who promptly digs under the fence and gets Ann's dog pregnant. Ann befriends Mer and starts teaching her how to cook. Ann is definitely attracted to Tom but takes her vows to her husband seriously. Maybe too seriously if she listens to her mom or not seriously enough if she listens to her mother-in-law. But circumstances force Ann to look inside herself to find the right path.


I read about this on an email update I receive from Phoenix PL, this book was one of the 2008's best romances of the year. I can see why as the storyline is unique and not your typical romance. Yes there is sex but it is not graphically described and there are serious consequences because of it. This is a very believable story and offers a fun storyline to make this a good book for a vacation or something to read over a long weekend.

Deal Breaker by Harlan Coben

Introduces Myron Bolitar.

Myron Bolitar is a former basketball player who worked briefly (in an undefined capacity) for the FBI before becoming a sports agent. He is also a third degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. His secretary/ assistant Esperanza is an ex-pro wrestler. Partner and best friend is Win (short for Windsor Horne Lockwood III) who is hard to figure out as Myron keeps refering to Win as the accountant yet he is also a cold-blooded killer who uses dimdims bullets in his gun. He shoots first before even thinking of asking questions. So it was a bit disconcerting when that part of his character was introduced.

Myron has just landed his first big client, top rookie prospect quarterback Christian Steele. Everything is going fine until Kathy, Christian's assumed-to-be-murdered ex-girlfriend, calls him on the phone. It's all downhill from there, as Myron and his associates are thrust into the dark world of the sports business. We see lots of mafia influence and while Myron seems to be in the thick of it himself he is in it for the players.

I enjoyed aspects of this book but other parts were kind of convenient and crazy and I kept saying "What?". I will try the next one to see if we get a bit more depth to the characters as so far all are pretty flat. So at this point I'm pretty ambiviant about this series so far but am willing to read another before I say I like or dislike it.

Tourist by Olen Steinhauer

Milo Weaver used to be a tourist, one of the CIA's special field agents without a home or a name. Six years after leaving that career, Milo has found a certain amount of satisfaction as a husband and a father and with a desk job at the CIA's New York headquarters. The arrest of an international hit man and a meeting with a former colleague yank Milo back into his old role, from which retirement is never really possible.

We see a man who has been driven by paranoia, and secrecy his entire life. There are numerous flashbacks which help explain his current delimmas as he learns to keep secrets from his mother as a young child to only telling some of the truth to get by. It was a really facinating read as I love spy novels and enjoyed experiencing this other side to it.

Looking at the author's website it appears that this will be 1st in a trilogy and George Clooney has purchased the movie rights to make and star in the movie based on this book. Hmmm....

Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith

Book 10 in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series

Mma Ramotswe, is in mourning over her old tiny white van. The beloved vehicle is making terrible noises and is probably headed for the junk heap. The idea of parting from the van that has been an important part of her life for so long is breaking Mma Ramotswe's heart.

Meanwhile, the prickly and outspoken Grace Makutsi, Mma Ramotswe's assistant, has troubles of her own. Her arch enemy, the glamorous and scheming Violet Sephotho, has landed a sales job in the Double Comfort Furniture Shop, whose owner is Phuti Radiphuti, Grace's fiancé. It is obvious to the furious Mma Makutsi that Violet is determined to steal Phuti away from her.

While this book doesn't have as many mysteries to solve there is the case they are hired for by Mr. Leungo Molofololo, the owner of a losing football team, to find out why his formerly successful Kalahari Swoopers are suddenly doing so badly. So there is much time spent, traveling around and having tea and interviewing the various team members. Mma Ramotswe even goes to her first football game, taking her foster son, Puso who ends up helping her solve the case in the end. This book has a much more nostalgic feel as she tries to imagine her life without her white van, her husband and their foster children and even with out Grace and the apprentices.

It is such a satisfying read that I'm sad now that I've finished it. Perhaps this summer I'll go back and re-read all again. It's like visiting old friends. I've just started watching the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency on HBO and really enjoying it as well.

Keeping It Real by Justina Robson
Quantum Gravity, Book 1


The world changed in 2015, when the Quantum Bomb tore a hole in the fabric of reality and opened doors to other dimensions, Otopia (Earth) including Alfheim and several other dimensions where there are elves, fairies, demons, the dead, and elementals. Jump ahead to 2021 to where the story starts, when undercover agent Lila Black, part human and part combat machine, is hired as a bodyguard for an elven rock star. She finds herself getting emotionally involved with the lead singer, Zal, who is like no elf she has ever met. She discovers that he has gone over to the demons and there is a price on his head as the Elves want him dead.

I've been reading reviews about this series and thought it sounded intriguing. Maybe I'm getting too old but I found myself skipping ahead as I got kind of bored once she entered the Alfheim world. I enjoyed parts of the book especially the sections on how she became a cyborg and her relationships with the elves. I found some parts so vague that I didn't know what was happening, I think that there is potential here but it was just flittery for me that I just couldn't concentrate on it to appreciate the story.

In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming
A Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery

Clare Ferguson is the newly ordained priest of St. Alban's Episcopal Church in the small upstate New York town of Millers Kill. (Kill is a Dutch derivative meaning a stream that runs into a river, in this case, Millers Kill runs into the Hudson.) She is faced with not only an early December snowstorm and the bitter cold of her first Northern winter but also a conservative vestry, who apparently expended all their daring on hiring her, a female priest. When a baby is left on the church doorstep with a note designating that he be given to two of her parishioners, Clare calls in police chief Russ Van Alstyne. The foundling case quickly becomes an investigation into murder that will shatter the lives of members of her congregation, challenge her own feelings and faith and threaten her life. With her background as an army helicopter pilot, Clare is not a typical priest. Smart, courageous and tough, she is also caring, kindhearted and blessed with a refreshing personality.

Despite the philosophical differences, Clare and Russ find they are kindred spirits in having shared careers in the Army; Russ in Vietnam, Clare in Desert Storm and Africa. But also have conflicting ideals as Clare is the eternal optimist who looks for the good in everyone and every situation. Russ is the archetype of jaded, world-weary and cynical cop who can't imagine a god who would let such horrible things happen to his creation. There develops the backbone of the story as we see their development from working relationship to friendship hinting at sexual tension. The story finishes up with satisfactory twist and leaves me wanting to see how the future books deal with the sexual tension between the two. Plus I really wanted to curl up with some cocoa and a fire and it's reaching 100 degrees today!

Skim by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki

Written and illustrated by cousins Mariko and Jillian Tamaki.

This graphic novel features pudgy, Asian American, Skim (aka Kimberly Keiko Cameron, a goth girl in an all-girls school in Toronto, in the early 1990s). Skim (who isn't slim) and her best friend Lisa both feel like outsiders looking in and can't help but be affected by the recent suicide of a local boy. At first they are amused by the popular crowd creating this spirit club to support teens who might want to kill themselves. As this kind of drama will never be part of their lifes.

Shown from Skim's diary and point of view we see her sour relationships with her parents and her best friend Lisa who are exploring Wiccan, tarot cards and trying to find themselves. Lisa and Skim spend a lot of time in the forest talking and being one with nature. It also becomes her private space to meet with Ms. Archer, her drama & English teacher. Suddenly Skim starts to fall in low with Ms. Archer, an affection only briefly requited before the teacher leaves without explanation. Skim feels more and more isolated as her friend Lisa seems more interested in finding new friends and not interested in having Skim go with her. The forest starts to represent Skim's deeper depression and sense of isolation.

At first you think that Skim will not survive the depression. But we see Skim find her inner strength to befriend another girl, Katie (exgirlfriend of the boy who killed himself) who is also suffering. Their developing friendship brings Skim out of her depression and helps her find some inner joy. The ending is haunting as while we see Skim moving on with her life, her former friend Lisa is show walking alone back into the forest.

Never Tell a Lie by Hallie Ephron

Ivy and David Rose, happily married high school sweethearts, are trying to clear out the junk the previous owner left in their glorious Victorian in Brush Hills, Mass., before the birth of their first child. They have a huge garage sale and among the bargain hunters shows up Melinda White, a high school classmate who's also pregnant. At first neither Ivy or David remember her but they vague memories come back. But Melinda seems almost desperate to create a connection with Ivy who gets more and more uncomfortable with her. When David offers to show Melinda the inside of their house Ivy is relieved and thinks no more about it.

Then when the police show up to report that Melinda has disappeared and no one can remember seeing her leave the sale, the evidence suggests the couple murdered her. Evidence keeps mounting against them until Ivy is almost convinced that her husband may have actually killed Melinda. We start seeing the cracks develop in their perfect marriage as Ivy alone must figure out what is real and not. Plus the actual reality of the story is much more devious than what first appears to be the mystery.

This book was impossible to put down, I read it in one day as I just had to know how this ended up. The ending really didn't surprise me as I suspected the twist that came but still it was well done. There are many ethical issues that are brought up and not really resolved but then I think that is how life is too. While the book ends - it leaves many unanswered questions - most of all will their marriage survive the truth.

Good book for vacation or business trip.

I discovered these books while exploring online. These came up on the New York Times Best Illustrated Books of 2008


Black book of colors in Braille by Menena Cottin and illustrated by Rosana Faría and translated from Spanish by Elisa Amado


How do you describe the colors of the rainbow to someone who cannot see them? This inventive picture book relates the ways to experience colors—through smell, taste, touch, and hearing. The descriptive, sensory text, which incorporates white type and Braille, combined with an innovative design makes the experience how to look at the world in whole new way. I love how the illustrations are etched on the page forcing you to feel the book. It is truly innovative and original.

Little yellow leaf by Carin Berger

The story focuses on a single leaf that is just not ready to leave the branch of its great oak tree. While other leaves swirl down, this leaf keeps holding on as fall turns to winter. The amazing and inventive collage-based illustrations range from a closeup of the leaf that reveals words and letters on it to an image of the sun that seems to have been formed from a mosaic of bricks. It is not until the leaf spies a scarlet flash high up on an icy branch that it can contemplate the next step. Over the final pages the two leaves soar through the sky, together. The illustrations show landscape by incorporating lined paper, graph paper, newspaper articles, and water bills. It is a truly lovely book about fall and independence. It makes me look at trash in a whole new way.


Wabi Sabi by Mark Reibstein; art by Ed Young


When visitors come to Kyoto, they ask the cat’s owner the meaning of her name; Wabi Sabi. When she hears that it’s hard to explain, Wabi Sabi sets off on a journey to find the answer. Each animal she visits gives a piece of the complicated puzzle. Still, the cat is confused. But the more she looks, feels, and sees, her new affinity for the simplicity of nature and the elegance of what is brings her to her own poetry—and understanding.


Ed Young is one of my favorite illustrators and I'm always interested in what he is doing next. This book was fun yet though provoking and I so enjoyed the journey.

Crack Shot by Sinclair Browning


Trade Ellis series set in Tucson - 4th book

Trade is part cowgirl, part Apache, and part-time private eye. When a friend asks her to meet someone in a bar who has a case it doesn't seem like a very big deal. But then when she meets her actual client a Grandmother who is trying to track down her missing grandson, Eddy Gallegos. Eddy is on the run from a local youth detention center that he broke out with a couple of his compardres. Because Grandmother is a friend of a friend Trade agrees to look into it even though there is no way she can ever be paid for the job.

When one the compadres is killed, the case is now tied to a local Senator as the killed boy is the Senator's stepson. The case gets even more complicated as the Senator's wife was murdered a few weeks before by a break-in gone wrong.

Trade spends a lot of time meeting with several homeless youth who are connected with Eddy. Since I've lived in Tucson and have family there it was interesting to read a story set there. There are side stories of a fellow rancher dying and seeing the funeral march, illegals battling with the other ranchers who own property on the Mexico border. This book was written in the early 2000's and a lot has changed with illegal immigration so I'm curious to see how she encorporates this with her newer books.

A lot happens in this book but I have to say I found her relationships more interesting than the actual mystery. The author is quite the storyteller and obviously loves the Southwest ranches and Tucson. I also did not start at the first book so am looking forward to reading one of the earlier ones to get a better feel for the characters.

Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

"When a dog is finished living his lifetimes as a dog, his next incarnation will be as a man." Enzo, a shepherd-poodle-terrier mix, is ready. Raised from puppyhood with his best friend Denny Swift, a mechanic who's training to race cars, together they watch countless hours of race footage. As he gets older he spends his daytime hours watching TV while Denny is at work. So Enzo knows about the world beyond the Swift home near Seattle. I love all the descriptions of how he relates life to various movies and actors.

The book begins and comes full circle with Enzo old and facing death. The rest of the book is his time to remember. Denny loves Enzo like a son. Denny eventually falls in love with Eve, who becomes his wife and then comes along Zoe, their daughter. Enzo isn't happy about sharing Denny but he becomes dedicated to Eve & Zoe. Then Enzo smells something bad happening in Eve and you know that it can't end well. But I couldn't have anticipated the suffering Denny & Enzo would face together. Bad things do really happen to good people in real life and in this novel, and then worse things, and soon I had to remind myself that this is just a story!

Thankfully there is a happy ending and Enzo's greatest dream comes true. But you'll have to read it to see what it is. But if you don't cry buckets of tears at the end then I don't know what to tell you!

I read this for my book club that I belong to with some other librarian friends. I had heard about this book but it would probably not been one I would have read as I knew it would have a sad ending. So I listened to it on CD during my commute and really did enjoy it, had to sit in the parking lot with tears running down my face at one point. Who wouldn't want to have a dog like Enzo? I know that I have a cat, Tigger, who is right up there.

Watchmen by Alan Moore

This was originally published by DC Comics as a monthly installment. So it does have that serial feel to it as each chapter offers a specific focus on one of the characters, yet advances the overall narrative. Additionally, each chapter is followed by a "non-comic" section that develops more of the backstories.

Set in an alternative American in which Nixon is still president in 1988.

It begins with the Comedian being pushed from his apartment to the street below. With the police having no leads, costumed vigilante Rorschach decides to probe further. Rorschach discovers a plot to kill off and/or discredit costumed adventurers, and sets out to warn four of his retired comrades. Then it seems that someone is killing off or discrediting the former Crimebusters. The remaining members end up coming together to discover the who and the why behind it all, and the payoff to the mystery is most satisfactory. On the surface this seems a basic concept but there is a depth of both the characters and their respective subplots: Dr. Manhattan dealing with his responsibility to humanity given his god-like powers; Nite Owl having trouble leaving his secret identity behind; Rorschach being examined by a psychiatrist after he is put in jail.

The subplots offer many layers to this complicated graphic novel. One is parallel thread of pictures superimposed throughout many chapters of Watchmen from a darkly-violent pirate comic being read by a young man sitting on the ground near the news stand where he borrowed it, drawing the ongoing anger of the stand's owner who nonetheless enjoys the company. This interwoven thread at times mirrors action in real time as the Watchmen find themselves the target of a campaign to kill or force them into hiding.

It is interesting to read how each main costumed hero got his/her start and where they finish up. We learn that while the costume or mask may protect their physical identity it does not change who they really are. I am not the biggest fan of graphic novels as I find them hard to follow with dialog overlapping but with all the good reviews about the movie I thought it was important to see what it was all about first and then see the movie. I was surprised by the serious yet subtle undertones. We see race, sexual orientation and just life in general from this point of view. Now I'm ready for the movie.

Ella Minnow Pea: A Novel in Letters by Mark Dunn

Ella Minnow Pea is a girl living happily on the fictional island of Nollop off the coast of South Carolina. Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” One day the letter Z falls from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop and the island's Council takes this as a sign from Nollop himself to no longer us it. At first it seems like no big deal as how often do you use the letter Z but one by one more letters fall. And the Council encroaching totalitarianism's is bringing a more terrifing future to light. You have 3 strikes before you are forced to leave the Island, and take over your property if no family member is left. Ella is one of the few not to say or write the forbidden letters as one after another from the islander is forced to leave the island or face death. She stands alone as she struggles to find a shorter pangram before the deadline given by the Council.

As the letters progressively drop from the statue they also disappear from the novel. It is truly amazing as we read Ella and other's from the island try to communicate without one letter than another until they must resort to using the remaining letters to phonetically sound out the words. We get a rather one sided view as the entire novel is set in stories from character to another. At first it seems so innocent but by the end you feel the pending doom awaiting those left on the island.

I read this several years ago and this book has stayed with me as an example free speech and how quickly government can take over one's life. Plus who doesn't remember with fondness letters written by hand you got in the mail or found in your lunch box from your mom? I just re-read this for my bookclub at work and am interested to see how people responded to it.

Last Place by Laura Lippman


Book 7 in the Tess Monaghan, Baltimore PI series


Tess has a past that haunts her. Her ex-boyfriend was killed years prior (read the 1st book - Baltimore Blues) and she continues to suffer from occasional nightmares, reliving his death. Plus she has issues with anger management, which are portrayed in the opening chapter as she deals with a potential child molester. After beating him unconscious and covering him with depilatory cream, then leaving him in a public place so he'll be too ashamed to do it again. She is arrested and sentenced to court ordered anger management counseling. We see her progress through her weekly sessions as she tries to move on with her life.

Tess's wealthy friend, Whitney, offers her a private investigator assignment which involves reviewing old, unsolved domestic abuse murder cases in order to help bring about lobbying for funding and training for small town cops handling domestic abuse situations. Whitney is part of a group of several non profit foundations that have joined together and are in search of ways to reduce the number of domestic-violence homicides in their state. Though Tess's old archenemy, Luisa O'Neal, is somewhat involved in the group, Tess accepts the assignment with the understanding that Luisa is not an active member of the board.

There is a list of five unsolved cases for Tess to investigate. She was not hired to search for the killer but rather to check into the specifics of the police investigations on each file. Initially, the cases do not seem connected but then Tess begins to question whether or not they are in some way. She always begins to wonder if Luisa O'Neal had more involvement in this project than Tess was told about, or anyone was told, for that matter. Soon Tess is questioning everything and everyone looking for the link.

I really enjoy this series and it is a treat read to this one as it was really different because so little of it took place in Baltimore but rather the small towns around it. After chasing down several of the cases Tess can't figure out why she was brought into investigating these cold cases as there are no simliarities until she meets retired cop, Carl Dewitt, and together they come to the chilling realization that there is a serial killer on their hands. To throw some more excitement into the mix are the alternative chapters from the killer's point of view and we discover way before Tess, that Tess is his latest target.

Where the Bough Breaks by Jonathan Kellerman


Introduces Dr. Alex Delaware


Dr. Alex Delaware is an adolescent psychologist is in a funk. During the first 1/3 of the book we learn his background - by 24 he has his PhD in child Psychology and has been practicing ever since. In the last few months a child molester is arrested and Alex spends his time helping the children and their families deal with the trauma. Just as everyone seems to be getting better he discovers the body of the molester dead in his office. After weeks of apathy Alex knows he's in trouble, but there is really no one to turn to. He can barely function when cop Milo shows up to question him about the suicide. From his own military experiences Milo recognizes Alex's symptoms and does what he can to help. Talking to Milo about the case sparks Alex's interest and he starts finding his way back into an active life.


Then Milo calls for him for help. He has a grisly double murder to solve and a possible witness is a seven year old girl. Milo wants Alex to question her hoping he can get information without further traumatizing the child. Trying to help the child leads Alex to suspect many more children like her are at risk as he investigates the bazarre past of several well respected men who are linked to the crime.

I have have heard a lot over the years about Kellerman's series featuring Alex Delaware but have never read one before. Since I had to wait over 4 hours for my car to be fixed I had a lot of time to quickly read this book. It had many interesting elements but I found it almost exhausting to get through. I found myself saying "What?!?" when the crazy twist came about 3/4 way through the book as all these people were suddenly tied together and made it a convenient way to end the book. But I did enjoy the interactions between Alex & Milo which I would have enjoyed more of. So I'm thinking down the road to try a more recent one in the series.

A Share in Death by Deborah Crombie

First in the series featuring Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and Sergeant Gemma James of Scotland Yard

Kincaid is taking advantage of a vacation at a timeshare in Yorkshire which his cousin has offered him. He is looking forward to the time away from Scotland Yard and it is his first experience at a time-share along with several other guests. But he quickly finds his holiday anything but relaxing, as when he arrives at the elegant estate, he overhears a heated argument between the snobbish caretaker and her sarcastic assistant manager. Later that evening, the assistant is electrocuted in the Jacuzzi. Since Kindcaid is the first on the scene he assumes an active role in the investigation, to the consternation of Yorkshire police. When two more deaths occur it is a race for Kincaid to discover who the murderer is and to figure out how these murders are connected and why the murders are happening.

We are introduced to Sgt. Gemma James, a pragmatic single mother, who works with Kindcaid as he calls upon her to dig for additional clues in London about the other guests. You can sense the chemistry between them even though both are trying to be professional.

I find this series fascinating as the author is from Texas yet gives such an authentic British feel to the series. I have read various books and have kept meaning to re-read this one so I listened to it on CD and really enjoyed it. It's nice to read a British murder mystery that doesn't take place in a country town or in London so it feels very original. Plus we see how a police officer has to deal with death in his own backyard and with people he knows while still trying to keep a professional attitude to getting the job done.

Case of the Missing Library Books by Iam Samson


Mobile Library Mysteries


Israel Armstrong is one of those people who doesn't stand out. He's a bit chubby, nervous, clumsy, headache prone, and very much an underachiever. After only a phone interview he is hired to be a librarian in small, rural Northern Irish town of Tumdrum and boy does he stand out. Maybe it's because he is obviously a city boy from London or that he is half Jewish and half Irish (from his long deseased Father's side) or a vegetarian. After a series of missing connections and miscommunications, he finally arrives to his new town to find no one to pick him up and his housing is really a farm's chicken coup on a working farm. The news just keeps getting worse, as he discovers that the library is closed and his position retitled "Outreach Support Officer" and driver of the decrepit mobile library. But the books he's supposed to fill it with have disappeared. Worse yet, his new boss will accept his resignation only if he finds the missing books first. Between Israel's inept sleuthing and the general unhelpfulness of the locals, it looks as if he'll be in Tumdrum a long, long time.

But as he combs the countryside for overdue library books he begins to connect with the locals and finds some literary souls to talk about books with. Many of the locals have unmet dreams so he begins to connect with them as he wonders trying to find the missing library books. The ending was a bit confusing but satisfactory as Israel finds himself more attached to these people in a strange town. Obviously it is a series as I've seen at least a sequel on Amazon. Not sure at this point if I'll read it but maybe in a year or so as I felt a bit depressed after I finished it.

Running Hot by Jayne Ann Krentz

Book 5 in the Arcane Society series

Ex-cop Luther Malone, lifelong member of the secretive paranormal organization known as the Arcane Society, is waiting to meet Grace Renquist. Hired as an aura-reading consultant in the quest for a murder suspect, she’s got zero field experience. She’s from tiny Eclipse Bay, Oregon. She’s a librarian, for heaven’s sake.As for Grace, she’s not expecting much either from Malone, who walks with a cane and isn’t so good with a gun. Nice résumé for a bodyguard .

But even before they reach their hotel in Maui—where they’ll be posing as honeymooners—Grace and Luther feel the electric charge between them. Problem is, they need to remain vigilant day and night, because it soon becomes clear there’s more going on here. Rogue sensitives—operatives for the underground group Nightshade—are pouring into the luxury resort like there’s a convention. Grace recognizes those dark spikes in their auras. She saw the same pattern in someone else in another life—a life she hasn’t revealed to Luther or anyone else. And she understands how dangerous these people can be . . . especially with those para-hunters at their sides.

While the pair’s employers at Jones & Jones scramble to get them backup, Luther and Grace have to think on their feet. The criminals in their midst aren’t just high-level sensitives: They’ve enhanced their talents with a potent—and unpredictable— drug. And as Grace knows all too well, if you don’t control your powers, your powers will control you.

I enjoy all of Krentz's books and liked how this one incuded some interesting secondary characters that I can see her developing more later.