SJ Bennett

Best of 2023

by

I was unable to limit my list to ten and present twelve titles this year, and the “also notables” at the end are excellent too.  My criteria is always a book that stayed with me and moved me throughout the year.  When I cast my mind back to reading these books the feeling of being captured by prose returns to my mind.  It’s such a magical experience – I think one hoped for by every reader – and sharing the books that provide that kind of reading experience is a real joy.  As will be obvious I have a real love for traditional detective work (Crombie, Cleeves, Griffiths, Stewart Taylor).  I also love the odd and memorable (Cotterill, Bennett) and I have a fondness for kick ass women (Allen, Lillie, Khan). I love a good gothic mystery (Goodman) and there are a couple of outstanding debuts: Danielle Arceneaux’s Glory Be and Michael Bennett’s Better the Blood.  Mysteries are finding a glorious diversity lately as illustrated here, with Muslim, Cherokee,  African American and Maori sleuths finding a voice. Full reviews can be found by searching the site, though with a few exceptions they are only to be found at Deadly Pleasures. read more

SJ Bennett: Murder Most Royal

by

Her Majesty the Queen Investigates #3

I love this series.  When I tell people about it, that the books have Queen Elizabeth II as the detective, there are many skeptical raised eyebrows.  The wonder of the books: the plots are wonderful; there’s diversity in the characters – the Queen’s foil is her aide, Rozie, a London born Nigerian – and the respect for the Queen, by all accounts a practical and dutiful woman, shines on every page in the nicest possible way.  The books allow you to imagine that it might have gone this way if the Queen really was a secret detective, guiding the police and Scotland Yard to solutions she’s already figured out, with Rozie’s help.  There’s also a shining thread of feminism underneath all the stories, celebrating women’s strength in the many forms that strength takes. read more

Best of 2022

by

I had a really, really hard time keeping this to 10 books – hence my lengthy honorable mention list this year.  This is the first year this list is all women!  That was my goal when I closed the store – to cover new series and books by women and it looks like that’s what’s happening organically.  These are the books that stuck with me all year, books that when I read them, I was entranced and transported. They appeared in different ways. Mariah Fredericks pressed an early advance copy of The Lindbergh Nanny into my eager hands at Malice Domestic last spring – it was a book I was very excited to read and I was not disappointed.  I saw the cover of Blackwater Falls and it called to me – again, I was not disappointed.  I was interested to see Deanna Raybourn doing something so different – again, no disappointment.  It’s such a fun journey of discovery. Some on this list are veterans turning in great books, some are new series or standalones – all have that great, memorable sparkle.  What a wonderful year to be a reader. I did include one reference book this year, one so exceptional it would be criminal not to give it a shout out. read more

SJ Bennett: The Windsor Knot

by

This book is adorable in the best possible way.  I usually hate it when real people are used as the detective, and in the case of this novel “the detective” is one of the most famous people on the planet, Queen Elizabeth II.  But SJ Bennett has real affection and reverence – in the nicest way – for her majesty and the actual detecting is mostly done by the Queen’s Assistant Private Secretary, Rozie Oshodi, a British Nigerian who shares the Queen’s affection for horses and would do anything for the “boss.” read more