Crooked Lane Books

S.J. Bennett: Death on the Royal Yacht

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Her Majesty the Queen Investigates #6

To read this book, I had to violate one of my “rules” – no circuses, no ships, no fairs (state or world).  This is one of my favorite series, however, so I was forced to make an exception. Along with Allison Montclair, Bennett writes one of the smartest, most tightly plotted series around.  If you love the golden age schematic but welcome an update, these are the books for you.  Set on the Royal Yacht in 1966, we follow the Queen’s tour of the Caribbean. As always the central character is the Queen’s personal assistant, Joan McGraw, but also as always, when a dead body crops up, it’s the united efforts of the Queen and Joan that solve the crime. read more

Michelle L. Cullen: A Field Guide to Death and Deceit

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Harry & Emma #2

It’s always tricky when a second book in a new series is released the same year as the first one, for a couple reasons, but a big reason is that the first one is still fresh in your mind, so you won’t be able to help comparing the two.  Cullen’s first book, A Field Guide to Murder, was released last January. It’s one of my favorite debuts of this year.  I’m happy to report that book two might be even stronger than book one.  (Where this lands Cullen during award season is another story).  This nascent series has a great set up: retired anthropologist Harry meets young caregiver Emma in book one.  He’s grieving his wife, but as he and Emma investigate a murder in the neighborhood together, they both find friendship and a new purpose. read more

Jon St. Denis: Killer Art

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This is a fun excursion into the world of AI art theft (quite relevant at the moment) as well as a cozyish look into the world of academia, complete, of course, with a few murders.  This is a book I’d call “cozy adjacent” but it has many, many cozy elements: the main characters, Vika and Sam, are refugees from a fast paced life in New York City and are taking up new jobs as professors at a small California college.  Their new jobs are a world away from Vika’s as a curator at MOMA, and Sam’s as a crime reporter for The New York Times. Vika will be a professor of art, Sam a prof of journalism, giving both (they hope) time to work on, respectively, her painting and his writing. read more

Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier: The Bush Tea Murder

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Debut

Short story writer Ashley-Ruth Bernier’s debut proclaims those roots – this sweetly moving novel is told via short episodes.  The episodes connect, and are longer than the typical short story, packing more of a punch, and by the end of the novel, the ends are neatly tied up.  Our heroine is culinary TV star Naomi Sinclair, who tells stories through her reporting on, and love, of food.

Naomi is from the island of St. Thomas, and it’s her Crucian heritage that shines through on every page of this novel.  As the book opens, she and a fellow host on EAT TV are pitching their true crime-food episodes, and Naomi is leaving her audience in suspense.  She has a great story to tell and her audience of TV producers are hanging on her every word to find out the solution to the long ago murder of Ursula Merchant, a well known island chef and entrepreneur. read more

Lucy Connelly: The Curious Case of the Poisoned Professor

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Series debut

You can’t help devouring Lucy Connolly’s yummy books like a really good bar of chocolate.   This first installment of her new series finds the central character, former journalist Dr. Gwen Griffiths, returning to Wales to become a professor at the very place where she attended university.  After the layoffs and contractions endured by newspaper staff everywhere, she’s certain she’s found a secure berth at a new place when her old friend Carolyn, now the dean, recruits Gwen to run the journalism department with a real-world edge. read more

Victoria Houston: The Wolves are Watching

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Lew Ferris #4

I forget about these books in between reads, but I’m a fan.  Whenever I pick one up I’m always drawn in by a great read, and what’s better than that?  Lew – or Llewellyn – Ferris is the sheriff of Loon Lake, Wisconsin, and she’s an avid fisherwoman, something that’s woven through all the books.  She’s been dating the town dentist for awhile, sharing a cozy trading off houses type relationship with him.  Doc also enjoys fly fishing.  So far, so cozy, but these books aren’t quite cozy, though they have many, many cozy elements to them. read more

Mollie Ann Cox: The Widow Hamilton

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Eliza Hamilton #2

I had never given much thought to what became of Alexander Hamilton’s widow, but Mollie Ann Cox is here to provide readers with the details of this remarkable woman’s life.  Though she wasn’t actually a sleuth as posited here, she did live a long life with her many children, founded a large orphanage, and dedicated much of her life to preserving her husband’s legacy, organizing his papers and keeping him in the public eye. Along with Dolley Madison and Louisa Adams, she raised the funds for the Washington Monument. read more

Michelle L. Cullen: A Field Guide to Murder

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Debut

This is a perfectly charming novel with enough quirky characters to make it a standout debut.  Roughly following the “Thursday Murder Club” scenario in which retirees in a closed community solve crimes, it features widower Harry Lancaster, who has recently suffered a hip injury. He’s forced to temporarily hire a younger in-home caregiver, Emma, who, having burned out on critical care nursing, sees helping people like Harry as her next step.  The setting is a small community of mostly retirees, and, with many hours to kill, Harry spends many of them looking out his large front window at the comings and goings in the neighborhood. read more

Connie Berry: A Grave Deception

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Kate Hamilton #6

To me this series is an absolute bingeable dream.  If your taste runs to a gentle British police mystery featuring an antiques specialist, these are the books for you.  In the first book in the series (A Dream of Death), 40 something heroine Kate Hamilton, an American antiques dealer, is in the UK to repair her relationship with her dead husband’s sister and she gets more than she bargained for.  In the course of the series she meets her new husband (by book six they are happily married newlyweds).  In each novel, there’s an unusual antiquity or archaeological find that holds the threads of the plot together. read more

S.J. Bennett: The Queen Who Came in from the Cold

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Her Majesty the Queen Investigates #5

I flat out love this series, as it combines two of my favorite things: the Queen and a good mystery.  The unexpected bonus is Ms. Bennett’s skillful writing – she’s excellent at plotting and character development, and her portrayal of the Queen – chef’s kiss!  The Queen, as portrayed here, is dutiful, intelligent, and possessed of a full measure of curiosity and humor.  My reading about the Queen suggests these things were true.  This series installment is set in 1961, during the space race, the cold war, and the popularity of James Bond. read more