An Expert in Murder / Nicola Upson

 

3.5 out of 5 stars 

This isn't a vintage mystery, but it does feature Golden Age author Josephine Tey as a main character. I went into the novel expecting the author to write Tey as the primary (amateur) investigator. I was very mistaken. Instead, Upson has created DI Archie Penrose, close friend of Josphine's deceased lover. The two men were in the Great War together.

The war, although it is over, remains as a great influence in this mystery. The first murder, of a young woman who is a theatre enthusiast, seems to be completely unrelated. She is an adopted child, orphaned by the conflict, but how could that be blamed for her demise?

Archie and Josephine use their wartime experiences to inform the murder investigation. I admired how Upson structured the plot, dealing out clues gradually and distracting me with facts. She has obviously studied those Golden Age authors and learned a thing or two. If you are a devotee of Josephine Tey, you may be put off by her depiction (I have discovered that vintage mystery enthusiasts rarely appreciate a modern author using their darlings as characters). I have read a couple of Tey's novels, but I am not fan-girl enough to resent this. I enjoyed the novel.

Bound/Unbound / Ali Hazelwood

 

3.5 out of 5 stars 

Halloween Bingo 2026

I read this for the Romantic Suspense square of my 2026 Halloween Bingo card.

I am teetering on the edge of a reading slump and, strangely, romance novels (mostly paranormal romance novels) seem to be the antidote for me these days. I really enjoyed Hazelwood's Bride, so I happily put a hold on this volume of two novellas at my library.

They were good, light fun. Not on par with Bride IMO, but still entertaining. I would recommend reading Bound first, as characters from this novella have roles in Unbound. I am a big fan of vampire novels, although these beings prefer the term revenant in this fiction. There is enough of a plot beside the romance to keep things interesting (because let's face it, you know how a romance will end).

Thanks to Ms. Hazelwood for a slump busting book.

Certain Dark Things / Silvia Moreno-Garcia

 

2 out of 5 stars 

Halloween Bingo 2026

I read this for The Carpathians square of my 2026 Halloween Bingo card.

In every genre of books there is an unspoken contract between the writer and the reader. I go into a vampire story with certain expectations. This book felt like Moreno-Garcia was trying to mess with the contract, to give it a literary fiction version. Some genres are difficult to mix and in my opinion vampires and lit fic are like oil and water--it's very unlikely that they will coexist easily.

In this alternate Mexico, there are ten species of vampires and only one of them is the native Aztec version. The others have come to Mexico to avoid problems in their home countries and they have apparently formed gangs. Like gangs everywhere, they are violent and hostile. And, yes, I know most fiction shows vamps in families or clans, but these gangs feel altogether too human to me. Especially because they're all about the drugs. Okay, I get it—the drug cartels are like vampires, sucking the life out of Mexico. SMG slugged me over the head with it.

Two stars. It was okay.

The Story of Birds / Steve Brusatte

 

4.5 out of 5 stars 

I enjoyed Steve Brusatte's books about dinosaurs and mammals, but I got excited when I realized he had written about birds. This book melds two of my lifelong passions, birds and dinosaurs. My father used to tell me stories about my toddler years, when I vibrated with excitement when we heard owls calling and when I knew the names of “all the dinosaurs” by the time I was three.

Brusatte traces the evolution of the small coelurosaurs as they grew feathers and shrank, eventually morphing into what we now call birds. I haven't been concentrating on dinosaur research for the last decade, so there was a lot of new-to-me information. I used to teach the dinosaur section of docent training at our local zoo and really enjoyed keeping up to date. I hope to return to this habit.

Brand new to me was the section on fossil birds following the big extinction event that wiped out the non-avian dinosaurs. This is a rapidly changing field of study and I am smitten. I haven't read Nature or The Journal of Evolutionary Biology for ages, but I plan to pay attention again.

Then there are the fossil birds that are more recent: the Elephant Birds, the Moas, the Terror Birds, etc. Plus birds like the Dodo which went extinct during historical times. I loved the chapter on flightless birds, especially the DNA studies and their classification. Penguins are a favourite bird family of mine, so I share an interest with the author's five year old son. Here, too, there was new information.

I can see where I will want to read this book again in the future to cement the new data into my aging brain. I will also pursue some of these topics with other books. I am so glad that I read this and remembered the pleasure of these pursuits. And of course I will continue to enjoy watching our surviving dinosaurs, our feathery bird friends.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd / Agatha Christie

 

4 out of 5 stars 

Halloween Bingo 2026

I read this for the Village Villainy square of my 2026 Halloween Bingo card.

My third time reading this mystery and it is still enjoyable, even though I remembered who the murderer was. However I had fun watching Christie introduce all the clues and craft her special sort of confusion. The exact details had escaped my memory, so I had the joy of Poirot's grand reveal at novel's end.

Dr. Sheppard is very similar to Hastings in his account of the case. His tale is shaped by the things he knows and those he doesn't. Like several other characters, he assumes that Poirot is past his prime and is obsessing over irrelevant details. He fails to realize just how attentive to detail the little Belgian is. As an aside, I am kind of horrified/glad that men get underestimated as they age too. In a misery loves company kind of way.

If Books Could Kill / Kate Eberle

 

Halloween Bingo 2026

I read this for the Magical Realism square of my 2026 Halloween Bingo card.

3.5  out of 5 stars

A book which was both fun and frustrating. Roxie is talking to her best friend and wishes to be the main character in her favourite author's next novel. She is close to a mysterious panhandler and drops some money in his hat. And then she is approached by an extremely handsome man at the library. It dawns on her that she is indeed caught up in a romance novel and she meets Jack for a romantic date, whereupon he attempts to murder her. A quick check of the author's social media shows that she is trying out a new genre, the thriller.

There are mixed characteristics of the mystery/thriller and romance genres throughout the book. I hadn't consulted the book description before starting to read and I was as startled as Roxie when Jack pulled a knife on her while kissing her passionately. Whiplash! That was actually fun, but the many, many tropes from both genres were a bit tiring after a while. Having said that, there were several laugh out loud moments that I appreciated.

It's a debut novel and I hope Ms. Eberle continues to write. She has good ideas, a pleasing writing style, and an excellent sense of humour. I'd be willing to try any future books, although I would love it if she would pick only one genre for them.

Unpredictable Magic / Faith Hunter

 

4.3 out of 5 stars 

Halloween Bingo 2026

I read this for the Spellbound square of my 2026 Halloween Bingo card.

This is a spinoff from Faith Hunter's Jane Yellowrock series, featuring the brother and sister duo of Angelina and Evan Everhart-Trueblood. They were children beloved by Jane (Angie Baby and Little Evan). Now they are all grown up, running their own investigation business, and struggling to retain some autonomy from the Dark Queen's court and politics.

Hunter has taken them in an entertaining direction, using their witchy talents and hiding their own secrets. The Witch War is alluded to, the results of which impinge on both young people and the formal vampire government under Jane Yellowrock. I don't know why I was initially reluctant to read this book, but I didn't expect to be interested in Angie and EJ. Boy, was I wrong!

I was also interested to read in the acknowledgements that Faith Hunter thought she was done writing when she finished the Soulwood series. She was encouraged to write for fun, producing this novel. Indications are that she intends to write more adventures for the siblings. I'm happy about that and will be eagerly awaiting the next installment. I began a reread of Jane Yellowrock and Soulwood this summer and will finish that as I'm able. That will help fill my thirst for the Yellowrock universe until the next Everhart Investigations book.