Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton. This is the first in a series featuring Alex McKnight, ex-Detroit cop in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, answers a cry for help from wealthy Edwin Fulton--only to find the man--a compulsive gambler who had gone to meet with a bookmaker--in his motel room with his throat cut. But as he investigates he finds that the murders are not as simple as it first appears. It made for an interesting read, will read more of this series.

Posted to Death by Dean James features Simon Kirby-Jones, an american, gay, vampire living in England. He discovers that he is not the only vampire living in the small town but thanks to modern medicine they can walk around in the sunlight, not need to drink blood and blend in with society. The characters are quirky and lots of flirations develop as it seems that most of the men in Snupperton Mumsley are gay. A light cozy read made for a good read. I got a little tired of the flirtations but it helped the character move along with his day.

Corpse de Ballet by Ellen Pall features Juliet Bodine, a successful writer of Regency novels and ex-professor of English literature at Barnard, puts aside her own deadlines to give literary advice to her longtime friend, Ruth Renswick, choreographer for the Jansch Ballet Company of New York, who is creating a new ballet based on Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. When the principal dancer dies during a rehersal, Juliet is convienced that it is murder. Unfortunately the police do not agree, so Juliet tries to ignore her gutt instinct but when another dancer almost dies during another rehersal can she convience the police that foul play is afoot? An entertaining read, I enjoyed the descriptions of the various ballet dancers and of the dance itself. I did get annoyed with Juliet and her odd and rather flat relationships with Ruth and her assistant and most of all the conflict between love internet Would read more by this author.

Oracle by Katherine Greyle is a futuristic fantasy novel with a slight romantic twist. Jane Deerfield is a computer tech at a university and is sucked into what she thinks if the past but finds that she is now two centuries in the future after a cataclysmic nuclear event obliterates most of the planet. Now she is in a time where magic is real and animals, trees and streams house old souls. Only she knows what the key is to open the room of knowledge but will she unlock it only to see history repeat itself. I found it an interesting fantasy as she meets all the characters who were spirits who merged with the water, trees, and animals. Where magic is the norm but even that is fading. Will she destroy or be the savoir of this fragile world?

MYSTERY WEB SITES

Mystery Readers International is site for mystery fans of all types. Has a search engine for mystery bookstores, reading groups and lots of reviews and recommended titles.

Mysterious Strands is an excellent source for mystery fans. I can find almost anything I want regarding mystery authors, reference sources, other web links, and more.

Local Bookstores



Coffee, Tea and Mystery is an independent bookstore in Southern California.



Book Baron is a used bookstore in Orange County and Long Beach.



Mysterious Galaxy is an awesome bookstore in San Diego that features mysteries, science fiction, fantasy and horror genres. All the books are new but they have a lot of author signings and are able to get books from different sources.

Uncle Boris in the Yukon by Daniel Pinkwater is by one of my favorite children's authors. He is so entertaining and funny. This book is a delightful collection about a boy and his dogs. I just couldn't stop laughing.

Olivia Kidney by Ellen Potter - Olivia Kidney's building superintendent father has just moved them to yet another new apartment building in New York City. One day, 12-year-old Olivia loses her key, and in her efforts to gain entrance to the building she meets a number of the strange residents. During the course of the day, Olivia meets a ghost who is a friendly boy her own age, a woman whose floors are made entirely of glass so that she can spy unnoticed on neighbors below, two intense and unpleasant girls, a sinister ex-pirate and an elderly siren to whom he is in servitude who live in an apartment resembling a tropical rainforest. Olivia is invited into their homes, and they tell her their stories. Olivia reveals the fact that she is lonely and unhappy since her brother died of cancer and her mother left the family. A visiting psychic named Madame Brenda tells Olivia that if she listens carefully enough, she will hear her brother speaking to her.

We are introduced to so many characters that I can see sequels being produced to find out what happens to everyone. We only see the outcome of one. It is an excellent if sad read but so interesting to view Olivia's world.

Reptile Room by Lemony Snicket - book 2 of a Series of Unfortunate Events. Read by Tim Curry. What a delightful book on tape. Curry was fabulous reading the various characters. You need to approach this with a sense of humor and not take it seriously and you'll be fine. I laughed quite a bit.

Caught Dead in Philadelphia by Gillian Roberts, featuring Philadelphia school teacher, Amanda Pepper. When the body of a colleague is found dead in Amanda's living room, she has to clear herself of suspicion—and make sure she isn't the next victim as well. This made for enjoyable read. It is first in the series and I will look for others. Kind of like the East coast version of Maggody.

Hot Enough to Kill by Paula Boyd features Jolene Jackson, born in Texas but lives in Colorado. Jolene's back in her hometown of Kickapoo, Texas, bailing her 72-year-old mother out of jail and trying to stay one step ahead of a killer. Reminds me of Maggody in a lot of ways with more romance. A good fast paced read.

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells. With all the new previews of the movie I decided that I should read the book and then go see the movie. I enjoyed every page of it. When Siddalee Walker gives a less than flattering view of her mother in the New York Times article her mother disowns her and Siddalee goes into a depression. She cancels her engagement and retreats to a friend's cabin outside of Seattle. The Ya-Ya's (childhood friends of her mother) convience Vivi ( Siddalee's mother) to send a scrapbook about the Ya-Ya's. This brings more questions than answers are we go back and forth in time reliving these memories. Reminiscent of Fried Green Tomatoes by Fannie Flagg, this will keep you reading until the end.

On Mystic Lake by Kristin Hannah. As her 18 year old daughter flies to England for the summer Anne Colwater is told by her husband that he has been having a long term affair, no longer loves her and wants a divorce. Anne retreats to her childhood home in Mystic, Washington, where she encounters her old friend Nick, a widower with an emotionally scarred young daughter. She cuts her hair, falls in love with Nick and finds out she is pregnant by her soon to be ex-husband. Her husband wants her back so she tries but really only loves Nick. So she leaves her husband and goes back to Nick to start a new life. Very similiar to Maeve Binchy's, Tara Road, but I really never felt any connect for any of the characters as everyone felt flat.

Agnes Parker ... Girl in Progress by Kathleen O'Dell - is very similiar to the Alice series by Naylor. Agnes is a 6th grader trying to copy with life's changes and new glasses and a class bully. It was ok, but I just couldn't finish it.

Not All Tarts are Apple by Pip Granger gives a nostalgic view of England Soho in the Fifties through the eyes of a seven year old waif named Rosie living her aunt and uncle above their London café. Rosis is a very mature seven year old who gives us child's view on adult topics. The story starts with her discovering that she is not the child of her aunt and uncle and that her mum is a tart from a classmate. She responds by punching her in the nose but later become best chums. An interesting array of drunks, tarts and thieves are sprinkled throughout this fast paced story. There is no real mystery though Rosie is kidnapped towards the end with an obvious conclusion. I enjoyed this historical look at Soho.

Shadow Game by Christine Feehan - Dr. Lily Whitney is the daughter of Dr. Peter Whitney who is working with the military to create a covert group of men that work as 'GhostWalkers'. Each man in the unit has his own powers, whether they are telepathic, telekinetic, clairvoyant, etc. The experiment begins to go horribly wrong and after the death of her father, Lily is the only one that can save the remaining GhostWalkers from death. Lily feels drawn to the commander of the group, Ryland Miller, but is her attraction real or the result of experimentation by her father? An ok thriller but more erotic than anything else.

Redwall by Brian Jacques - the book that started the series. When the peaceful life of ancient Redwall Abbey is shattered by the arrival of the evil rat Cluny and his villainous hordes, Matthias, a young mouse, determines to find the legendary sword of Martin the Warrior which, he is convinced, will help Redwall's inhabitants destroy the enemy. I've been recommending this series for years and never read it. So I got it on CD and really enjoyed the story. It is definitely good vs. evil. Looking forward to reading more in the series.

Possession by A. S. Byatt was a Booker Prize winning novel in 1990.

I remember reading this when Iived in Houston for our staff Library reading program in which we had to read an award book for adults. But I no memory of what it was about. So I decided to re-read it and found it on tape. So I've been enjoying it read to me. What a joy.

Roland is an academic researcher who discovers some important letters written by a famous Victorian poet, Randolph Henry Ash. Ash was presumed to have been totally devoted to his wife, but Roland finds letters written to another unnamed woman, and soon determines that the intended recipient was another, less well-known poet, Christabel LaMotte. Roland contacts Maud, an expert on LaMotte's life and work. Despite her skepticism, the two begin to investigate, and uncover a wealth of information about the affair between the two poets. But now there are others who know about it and the race is on to see who can discover the truth about this long over affair between two poets. And how will it affect each one.