Homicide in Hardcover / Kate Carlisle

 

E

4 out of 5 stars 

I am always on the lookout for a good cozy mystery series. Being a recent convert to this sub-genre, I am still figuring out what makes a book good for me. For me, this first volume has all the hallmarks for a good series.

Brooklyn Wainwright is a professional bookbinder and restoration specialist. Having worked in a library with special collections, I was immediately interested in her work. She has just been reunited with her mentor, Abraham, after an estrangement when he is murdered at a big social event. As per usual in this genre, Brooklyn finds him and immediately becomes a suspect. She wants to get justice for Abraham, but her investigation of the matter is pretty minimal. Often authors will depict their main character distrustful of the police, but Brooklyn finds herself in the murderer’s sights, so she is reliant on police for their expertise. So she is not trying to usurp the investigation, but she finds herself more involved by default. I appreciate this approach as I don't find it realistic to think that an amateur is going to have more success than the professionals.

I also enjoyed Brooklyn's family—her hippie parents, the commune where they live, and her geographically named siblings. Her BFF Robin provides more comic relief as she tries to get Brooklyn to care about stylish clothing and her image. I could also appreciate Brooklyn's love of eating. Too often female characters are depicted as worried about their weight and/or restricting their food intake. To hell with that! Let women eat like normal people!

Of course a cozy mystery rarely lacks a love interest, but that aspect doesn't dominate this book. The issue of why a British operative is involved in the situation is never addressed, but I knew from the first moment, when Brooklyn locked eyes with Derek Stone at the original gala event, that he would be filling that role. As love interests go, he is better than many.

The second book in the series is available through my public library and I will be reading it.

This is book number 26 in my 2024 Read Your Hoard Challenge.

Busman's Honeymoon / Dorothy L. Sayers

 

5 out of 5 stars 

My favourite Sayers so far. Unlike so many mysteries, it takes quite a long time before the author produces a corpse. The first 100+ pages give us the hot goss about the wedding, namely that of Lord Peter and Harriet Vane. They are not youngsters and they are used to being on their own, so we get to witness them finding their way towards a comfortable life together. We become acquainted with more of the Wimsey family and their quirks. Harriet learns that she has an accomplice in Peter's mother, the Dowager Duchess.

Harriet realizes that she is marrying a rich man who desperately wants to give her a substantial gift, so she suggests a house in her old environs which she has always fancied. The best laid plans o' mice and men oft go astray. On the first night of the honeymoon, the newlyweds find themselves locked out of their new home. There is much ado until keys are located, the house opened, and everything is prepared for the wedding night. Not until the next day is the former owner's body discovered in a storage room.

Of course Peter has been detecting for years and Harriet writes mysteries, so you know they will get involved. Hence the title—as when a bus driver uses their holiday to take a coach tour, this couple uses their honeymoon to figure out who dunnit. Sayers has created a fabulous cast of characters as neighbours to the new residence, entertaining this reader immensely while the investigation progresses. Sayers gives Harriet very good sense and intelligence—she is quite the equal partner and acknowledged as such. Thank you, Ms. Sayers. (Incidentally, Sayers fine education and high intelligence are also on full display. Brava!)

Fun and funny, this novel is a perfect balance between mystery and romance. I will be definitely be enjoying it again in the future.

This is book number 25 of my Read Your Hoard Challenge.

Intruder / C.J. Cherryh

 

4 out of 5 stars

Book number 531 of my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project

What a change of pace in this volume of the Foreigner series! Was Bren shot at even once? Despite heading into a potentially volatile negotiation in pursuit of a peaceful solution, there seems to be a meeting of minds regarding politics and economics. It's not over until everyone signs on the dotted line, but the dowager trusts Bren to get everyone to the table.

Meanwhile, young Cajeiri must parse his man'chi and figure out just where his loyalties lie. He is going to have a sibling and is feeling threatened. Having grown a lot while in space with his great-grandmother, he feels somewhat detached from his parents, especially his mother. For an eight year old (almost nine, as he reminds everyone frequently) he is a very political animal, calculating what ties he has to whom.

Tabini speaks far more frankly than ever before to Bren regarding the boy and the state of the leader's household. It is rather terrifying to be so trusted, especially when Bren's body guards, members of the Assassin's Guild, also reveal startling secrets.

So, no shooting, no cross country chases, but plenty of political intrigue and complicated relationships.

Love and Other Conspiracies

 

4 out of 5 stars 

OMG, so cute! Hallie needs a great idea for a web series to keep her production career headed the right direction. As she frantically searches for the perfect subject, she runs across a handsome podcaster, Hayden. The subject he's obsessed with? Conspiracy theories of all kinds—Bigfoot, ghosts, Area 51, Mothman, you name it. His appearances on another program show him to be a charming if dorky show host. So why does he freeze up in front of Hallie's camera? As a committed nonbeliever, Hallie questions Hayden, firing him up in order to explain his position. Hallie's manager likes their chemistry and decrees that Hallie will join Hayden in front of the camera.

Can two people with such different worldviews travel and work together successfully? They give it their best shot and their series becomes wildly popular. After all, whether you believe or not, you'll have one of the hosts who represents you. The whole romance would be far too easy if it weren't for Hallie's vindictive ex, Cade. He's the classic controlling, selfish asshole, who's willing to gaslight Hallie and suck up to management. It's not enough that he has a popular series, he's determined to sabotage Hallie's success.

I knew how things would have to turn out. This is a romance, after all, and the HEA or HFN endings are pretty much a requirement. May I add that I sincerely hope there are guys like Hayden out there somewhere. However, I find them to be as elusive as any Bigfoot.

The Beekeeper's Apprentice / Laurie R. King

 

4 out of 5 stars 

2024 Re-Read

I am revisiting this novel because it is the November choice of my mystery book club. It's been about 6 years since I read it the first time and I have continued with several more volumes of the series since then. In fact, while renewing my acquaintance with Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes, I realized that volume 5, O Jerusalem, backtracks to cover their trip to Palestine which occurs in the last half of this book. It is the next step on my journey.

In short, I have more experience with Ms. King's work now and I am willing to bump up my rating from 3 to 4 stars. I like King's writing and I am willing to let her have her way with Holmes. The purists will eschew this series, but I have been reluctantly charmed. I can appreciate the insertion of an intelligent woman into the Holmes story, a story about a comfortably well off white guy by another one. It's a tradition ripe for feminizing. Holmes is a prominent character for sure, but the spotlight is focused squarely on Mary Russell.

I will be very interested to hear what my book club folks have to say about this title. I guess because I had read Conan Doyle’s version, I had definite ideas about what I was expecting. Do others have the same expectations? Some of the younger members seem unfamiliar with authors like Conan Doyle, Christie, or Sayers. Will that lack of familiarity leave them confused or bored? Or will it make them more open to King’s Holmes?

I have one reading friend who considers this series to be comfort reading and another who rejected it, complaining of Watson-bashing. This discussion should be fascinating.

Vision in Silver / Anne Bishop

 

4 out of 5 stars 

These books are like popcorn—irresistible and consumed far too quickly. It's the building of relationships between individuals and between species that captivates me. Especially when set against a high stakes confrontation between humans and the Others.

In our current political climate, when so many countries (including my own) are skewing towards the right and authoritarianism, the problems that Bishop explores here feel extra urgent. She portrays us humans as we often are: selfish, greedy, and xenophobic. There seem to always be manipulative leaders who choose to exploit these tendencies. But the Others are discovering that there are exceptions to that rule. Friendships and trust have snuck up on everyone in the Lakeside courtyard.

How is this series written by the same author as the Black Jewels? I like the Others so much more than all that supposedly dark witchy stuff.

Only Cold Depths / Jennifer Estep

 

3.75 out of 5 stars 

Vesper Quill and Kyrion Calderon are still on the run with a bounty on their heads. Their true-bond has made them the object of Callus Holloway's greed, wanting to capture their psion power. Vesper's friend Asterin has encouraged the couple to come to her home world, where the true-bonded are protected.

However, when they arrive, Vesper and Kyrion quickly learn that Asterin's family is not too thrilled to meet them. Asterin's sister is downright antagonistic. If that wasn't bad enough, a pair of mercenaries with powerful psionic powers are hot on their heels. And then the Zimmer family shows up—do they truly want a family connection with Vesper or do they have an ulterior motive?

As usual, Vesper and Kyrion have multiple problems to solve. They've been warned that their true-bond hasn't yet stabilized and they have no idea how to deal with that either. Can they figure things out? Can they overcome the past and forge a real future for themselves?

Estep continues to write fabulous food scenes. I wonder if those happen when she gets hungry? And why do I suspect that she may have a cocky and annoying brother rather like Zane Zimmer?