Month: September 2015

P.J. Parrish: She’s Not There

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shes-not-thereWe all know how masterfully P.J. Parrish (actually the sisters Kristy Montee and Kelly Nichols) can create suspense. What is amazing to me—considering that my sister and I can hardly write a joint grocery list without getting all Cain and Abel—is how seamlessly all the elements of a great mystery come together in a satisfying whole in their collaboration. Their new book, She’s Not There, a departure from the Louis Kincaid series, hits the ground running, with a set-up reminiscent of the great noir thrillers of the past. read more

Sophie Hannah: Woman with a Secret

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WomanWithASecretAs with Tana French, I have a love/hate relationship with Sophie Hannah, an extremely talented writer who nevertheless (like Tana French) tends to dilly-dally a bit in the middle of her books. Hannah’s books are a series but the series characters are merely a very loose binder for the truly spectacular set-ups Hannah comes up with. She’s one of the best in the biz when it comes to setting up a story, and I imagine that’s why she was chosen to continue writing Christie’s Poirot books. read more

G.M. Malliet: The Haunted Season

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TheHauntedSeasonThe fifth novel in G.M. Malliet’s charming and intelligent Max Tudor series is a delight. The book finds Max happily married to the lovely Awena, and they are the now doting parents of Owen. They seem to share child care almost effortlessly, with the exception of Max falling asleep in church during a sermon given by his new curate, Destiny. While Destiny is not in the novel for large chunks, she still plays a large part, as before heading to Nether Monkslip to report for duty, she overhears a seemingly incriminating conversation in the steam bath at her women’s club. Problem: every woman looks the same wrapped in a towel, and she has no idea who they are. read more

Ellen Hart: The Grave Soul

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TheGraveSoulEllen Hart is simply one of the very best traditional mystery writers in the business, and if you like a well crafted, thoughtful, traditional mystery and you don’t read Ellen Hart’s Jane Lawless series, you are really missing a bet. Jane, a Minneapolis restauranteur who also holds a P.I. license, is always the calm center of the storm. Except when she’s not.

One of Hart’s gifts is to slightly change things up with each book (and as this is her 23rd Jane Lawless outing, I imagine that’s not such an easy task) and in this one the opening sequence is nothing short of spectacular. We are introduced to a woman who has been beaten, finds brief sanctuary, and is thrust back into the snow. We’re given a Wisconsin setting, so we know it’s cold. read more

Tasha Alexander: The Adventuress

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TheAdventuressThis is a terrific entry in Tasha Alexander’s fabulously entertaining Lady Emily series. In this outing, Lady Emily and her husband are in Cannes for the insanely extravagant celebration of their long time friend Jeremy’s engagement to an American heiress, Amity. As Alexander fills in the reader’s knowledge of Amity by going back in time to India where Amity and her friend Christobel met Jeremy’s brother Jack (and later Jeremy), it seems destiny that the beautiful Amity will become the future Duchess of Bainbridge. read more