Aunty Lee's Deadly Specials / Ovidia Yu

 

4 out of 5 stars 

I recently read Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers and really enjoyed it and it reminded me of Aunty Lee. I read Aunty Lee's Delights for a Halloween Bingo a while ago and this seemed to be a good time to visit Singapore again. I had forgotten what an unstoppable force Rosie Lee can be!

It seems that everyone knows Aunty Lee, by reputation if not personally. And she is interested in other people, analyzing them via food: what do they like and how do they eat it? She sees Edmond Yong sneaking the more expensive food items from her buffet and know that he's cheap, but he also eats as much as he can, revealing that he's short of money.

Rosie is willing to go visit people she barely knows, people she knows a bit, old friends, whoever might have the information she craves. She always packs up a selection of delicious food to grease the wheels of social interaction and give a reason for her visit. As the police inspector observes, trying to stop her is like attempting to prevent ice from melting in the sunshine.

When everyone else is satisfied with the simple answer, Aunty Lee wants the correct answer. She's like a dog with a bone, unwilling to let go of a problem until she's sure she's found the truth. I love her determination and willingness to go after the information. Like Miss Marple, she's willing to act like a dotty old lady to disguise her purposes. I will be happy to read more of her adventures.

Shards of Hope / Nalini Singh

 

3.75 out of 5 stars

The last several books in this series have largely focused on the Psy world, which is very much in flux. Silence, the suppression of all emotion, has been broken. Psy who experience emotion are no longer sent for rehabilitation, but that doesn't mean that they know how to handle it. The return of sexual desire is especially confusing and Singh's characters often wish for a manual (and are quite excited when they realize there are such things). They share tips and files and watch online porn as training videos. Adorable!

The personal is political and while the new Council is finding its way a shadowy Consortium has decided to seize power. They are sneaky and determined to sow discord between humans, Changelings and Psy. Even between various groups within those main divisions. The elite Psy force, the Arrows, have their hands full. Their leader, Aden, is determined to provide a supportive training program, rather than the brutal regime of the past. He wants a family structure for these men, women, and children who must learn to control their dangerous psychic abilities. There have been kidnappings of marine Changelings to be dealt with, in addition to the Consortium's meddling (assassination attempts, financial shenanigans, etc.)

Since the Psy are my favourites among the three populations, these books have been a great deal of fun for me. I love watching them relearn how to love and be compassionate to their children and each other. My Psy are thawing, leaving behind the icy state of Silence.

An Ice Cold Grave / Charlaine Harris

 

4 out of 5 stars

Well, there is quite the twist in this book, as foreshadowed in Grave Surprise. Nothing to do with the mystery and everything to do with Harper. If you've read the series, you know what I'm talking about and if you haven't, I'm not going to spoil it for you.

This crime is a bit more gruesome than is usual in Harris' books. Plus Harper gets physically damaged to a greater extent. But the author keeps the tension well, right to the end. Once again Xylda and Manfred Bernardo are instrumental to the plot, reminding me that I want to get back to Midnight, Texas again soon. Plus, I've wondered how Harris names her characters. Her choices seem quirky to me, but I've not spent much time in the southern states so I'm not familiar with their naming customs.

There's only one book left in this series, which is kind of a shame. I really like Harper and Harris has given her such an unusual talent. At least I have one left to enjoy plus rereading the Midnight books. Maybe I'll even revisit the Lily Bard series. I find this author to be very binge-able.

The Sign of Four Spirits / Vicki Delany

 

3.3 out of 5 stars

Just when I think that Gemma Doyle has improved as a human being, Vicki Delany returns to writing her as an annoying know-it-all. I dislike the way Gemma takes advantage of her friend Jayne to do her dirty work and sneaks behind her detective boyfriend Ryan's back to “investigate." It's a variation on my least favourite theme in cozy mysteries, the assumption that the police need the assistance of a nosy amateur.

And yet, Delany writes a good mystery. She managed to distract me from the true identity of the killer (not that it's dreadfully difficult to do, mind you). There were good red herrings and convincing circumstances. And I confess that I requested that my library purchase this book and I waited in a queue to read it. So, even if Gemma irritates the hell out of me, I'll be waiting for the next installment.

Witch King / Martha Wells

 

4 out of 5 stars

I discovered Martha Wells through All Systems Red, the first Murderbot Diary and acquired an unholy love of her anxious construct. I've also been aware since then that she writes fantasy fiction as well and I've been meaning to try it. It seemed sensible to start with her most recent fantasy novel.

I liked what I read a great deal. In the beginning, it reveals itself to be a rescue mission. Ziede's wife, Tahren, is missing and Ziede obviously wants to find her. But this is only determined by the reader as we unravel the first chapters, as Kaiisteron (the Witch King of the title) is extracting himself from his own captivity and then releasing Ziede. As I started to learn the basics of this complex world and all its various peoples, it became apparent that there were forces working against their mission.

There are a lot of moving pieces—many political factions, many population groups, lots of history. Wells manages to fill us in without pages of info dumps. She just shows us what's going on and trusts that we'll be able to keep up. As seems to be usual for her main characters, Kai and Ziede start to gather strays right away, showing them to be compassionate people as well as skilled. One of the things that I liked best was that although there was conflict with the Hierarchs, we aren't subjected to a long series of battlefield scenes. The conflicts are smaller and more personal. Although I adore fantasy, I grow weary of unending wars, battles, and strategy sessions. I absolutely loved that the bad guys are the Hierarchs. Yup, arrogant, bad men. Down with the patriarchy!

The story alternates between the past and the present. It effectively creates tension at the end of each chapter, as you have to leave that time line just as things are getting interesting. Often when an author uses this technique I'll have a favourite, but I was equally engaged with both in this book. Here it just kept me reading steadily.

Having sampled her fantasy fiction, I'll definitely be reading more of it.

Grave Surprise / Charlaine Harris

 

4 out of 5 stars

This was an impulse read, because I enjoyed reacquainting myself with Charlaine Harris’ version of the South. I really like Harper Connelly as a main character with her ability to sense the dead and her pragmatic approach to life. Harris is also very good at thinking up complex problems for Harper to solve. An unexpected body in an old cemetery plot puts the cat among the pigeons. Then a third body gets deposited there, stirring the pot even further.

Harris also likes to have characters from other series make appearances in her fiction, so I was only mildly surprised when Manfred Bernardo and Xylda wandered into this one. There seem to be cross-links between all of her various series. (This also makes me want to go back and reread her Midnight, Texas series).

The next two books in this series are available as ebooks and it is going to take all of my rotten will power not to binge them immediately.

Grave Sight / Charlaine Harris

 

4 out of 5 stars

Book 7 of the 2024 Read Your Hoard Challenge

I shouldn't be as surprised as I am at how much I enjoyed this novel. I've read a lot of Charlaine Harris’ books and found them entertaining. But I started another book based on a very similar premise and it bored me to tears. I'd spent a ridiculous amount on it and I couldn't get past maybe page 15. So this was a very pleasant discovery. I think I picked it up at a charity book sale because of the Harris name.

Charlaine Harris writes what she does so well. She knows small town life and she knows human nature and she can combine those two things in interesting ways. Sookie Stackhouse was a telepathic small town waitress and Harper Connelly is an itinerant locator of the dead. Both women have hardship in their past and currently making a living as best they can. They have unusual talents and people dislike them for their differences. Harris writes about being disliked with such authority. It makes me wonder if she too felt like an outsider somewhere along the way.

Harper and her step-brother Tolliver are a tight team. They survived their family situation and cared for younger siblings for as long as they could. Now people look at them askance and wonder what their relationship consists of. A classic case of being judged without any knowledge of their circumstances. We can never know what really goes on in other people's homes and we should always interpret things kindly, at least until proven wrong. Harper is much more vulnerable than Sookie and Tolliver is much more loyal and reliable than Sookie's brother Jason. So this is not just a variation on a theme.

I'm keeping this book and I plan to read further in the series. It was worth the cash I paid for it, unlike the other one that nearly made me skip this volume.

Singled Out / Virginia Nicholson

 

4 out of 5 stars

In recent years, I've discovered a delight in fiction set in the interwar years written by women of that era. I have been trying to determine why I like this time period so much and I think that this book has clarified things for me. The so-called surplus women who gained prominence as a societal worry started the changes necessary for my happy life now.

Many young men were killed in WWI, leaving a preponderance of single women with no hope of marriage. Up to this point, marriage, being a governess or a lady's companion were pretty much the only “career choices" available to “respectable” women. With the demographic imbalance of the sexes, things had to shift. Women had entered the workforce during the war and had developed a taste for self sufficiency. As time went by, they also saw the benefits of travel, education, and escape from the duties of wife and mother. I had previously been of the view that the 1960s and 70s were the decades when women's lives changed, but I realize now that this post-war period laid the foundation for modern feminism. Here was the beginnings of women's suffrage, education, careers, and reliable birth control. Women had escaped from the house and they weren't going to be returned to captivity quietly.

As a youngster, I looked around at my mother, aunts, and female neighbours and knew that I wanted something different. I never dreamed of weddings or babies. The pioneering surplus women helped to set up the world that allowed me to support myself, get two degrees, own my own home, traipse all over the world in pursuit of birds, and generally do my own thing. All without having to consult another adult or share my closet. Don't misunderstand, there's still pressure to conform, but I've always thought that marriage isn't a big achievement. But building your own life to your own standards? That's a big deal.

A Superior Death / Nevada Barr

 

3.5 out of 5 stars

Anna Pigeon has her problems: grief for her late husband, very few close relationships, a drinking problem, a job that requires a lot of energy and skill, but doesn't pay very much. Despite all of that, I couldn't help rooting for her.

The worst parts of the novel for me were Anna's two dives, deep into freezing cold Lake Superior. I could barely keep my eyes on the page, I was so freaked out. I'm a non-swimmer and the thought of diving scares me shitless. A dangerous dive for Anna, who is relatively new to diving, made my blood run cold and scrambled my emotions. Thank goodness that (having peeked ahead at the blurb of book 3) Anna will be headed back to a warmer, drier park next.

Barr wrote a pretty convoluted plot in this volume. There were an awful lot of oddities. A couple of the red herrings were quite unusual. But as the old saying goes, the truth is stranger than fiction. A park employee is reading Peyton Place at one point, and that book seems highly appropriate with all the strange things that Anna runs into. Unsurprisingly, Anna is okay in the end, ready to head on to Mesa Verde. I'll be glad to follow along.

Heart of Obsidian / Nalini Singh

 

3.5 out of 5 stars

I have been tearing through this series of late. I really admire Singh's ability to follow a complex narrative arc, while shifting the focus of each book to different characters. Many series stick to one person or couple as the central heart of the action, but Singh manages to teach us about all the various populations that inhabit this world. We spend time with Psy, Changelings, and the Forgotten (Psy who went feral). This offering centered on the deadly former Psy councillor Kaleb Krychek and the lost-but-not-forgotten Sahara of the NightStar Psyclan. 

Unless something drastic happens, war is coming to the Psy-Changeling world. Silence is no longer working for many Psy, who definitely do not want to be reconditioned and must conceal their emotion. The radical group Pure Psy are trying to blow up the PsyNet in order to start over with perfect Silence discipline. Can Kaleb contain this conflict? Does he want to? Should he lead it? While contemplating all of these options, he finds and rescues his only friend, Sahara, who disappeared as a teen. Can her sanity be restored? Will she ever trust him? Does she remember how she was spirited away?

Singh manages to tease us along, gradually revealing bits and pieces as Sahara regains her mind and her life. Will she still be loyal to Kaleb when her memories are restored? Can humans, Changelings and Psy work together to prevent disaster? I love the icy, ultra-rational Psy, especially when they have to cope with those pesky emotions. I loved that Singh managed to give me sympathy for a man who, up to this point, has been depicted as a stone-cold killer. Not easily done, but effective. A very satisfying installment. 

Ice Planet Barbarians / Ruby Dixon

 

3.5 out of 5 stars

Book 6 of the 2024 Read Your Hoard Challenge

What's the perfect book for Valentine's Day? Why, human-alien smut, of course.

It's a pretty rough start to this novel: Georgie Carruthers is abducted by aliens who are truly running a human trafficking operation. The spaceship experiences technical difficulties and the women are temporarily abandoned on an ice planet. But they know they've been chipped like pets and their captors will be back for them. They're cold, hungry, injured and scared. And it seems like Georgie has been nominated to see if she can find a safe place for them.

Vektal is 7 feet tall, blue skinned, and has horns like a big horn sheep. He can't believe his eyes when he finds Georgie, because he immediately begins to resonate with her. This is a function of a symbiont necessary to survive on this planet, which also chooses who is mated to whom. Vektal's people are few in number and desperately short on women. The prospect of a bunch of Earth women that the boys may resonate with is highly motivating.

This story is surprisingly erotic! I think it goes to show how flexible humans are—they can adapt to a lot. When faced with the necessity of acquiring a symbiont, mating with a huge blue dude, and living in caveman conditions, the majority of the women decide it's better than waiting for the little green men to reclaim them.

Very similar to another alien romance that I recently read (Joran), there is a woman shortage and an immediate bond between each woman and her barbarian, much like the mating bond so popular in urban fantasy. This was fun and there are audiobooks available through my library. I'm not sure how I'll feel about listening to sex scenes, but I'm planning to find out.

Magical Midlife Madness / K.F. Breene

 

4 out of 5 stars

Book 5 of the 2024 Read Your Hoard Challenge

The perfect book for Galentine's Day (the day before Valentine's), especially since I've been on a bit of a romantasy binge lately. Most urban fantasy is inhabited by women in their twenties, looking for love and bad guys’ asses to kick. But does the desire to kick butt end when you're in your forties? You bet your sweet bippy it doesn't!

Jacinta’s husband has requested a divorce and was most disappointed when she was overjoyed. Her son is in college and doesn't need her either. She is free! One thing leads to another, and she ends up as caretaker of magical Ivey House. There, she meets an elderly butler, a sinister gardener, a deranged neighbour, and an attractive bar owner. And you know what's refreshing? There's no romance! Jacinta is quite clear that she's done with that stuff.

First of all, I'm not twenty anymore. I'm not a naïve little chickie who thinks of nothing but love and marriage and consents to “I do" because she's afraid no one else will want her if she says no. Right now, on the other side of the naïve girl, I don't give two craps if no one else wants me. I want me, my friends want me, and that's plenty. So these anonymous magical people can shove their marriage proposals up their butts. I've been to that circus and I've seen all the clowns. I'm in no hurry to go back.

Jacinta does things on her own terms. She's direct and funny. She refuses to be stampeded into anything and negotiates for the things that she wants. I kind of love her.

I wish I'd read this sooner, when I might have bought book 2 for a reasonable price. I'm not willing to pay $30 for it and it's not available for interlibrary loan. Although I'd love to know what happens next, I have enough books on my TBR without pining for this series. I have a hunch that things could go all romantic anyway, and I prefer independent Jacinta, so that's probably for the best.

Death in the Dark Woods / Annelise Ryan

 

4 out of 5 stars

Morgan Carter has an unusual and complicated life. She is still recovering and grieving the deaths of her parents. She has inherited their wealth and the business they established. She has also inherited their penchant for hunting cryptids, those mysterious animals whose existence is hotly debated. The first book was lake monsters, this one it's Bigfoot. Morgan insists on scientific proof but hopes for the miraculous.

It's difficult to gain the trust of the true believers when you regularly play the devil's advocate. But humans aren't the best observers. I've experienced this frustration when non-birders describe birds to me. They fixate on the wrong characteristics and fail to note significant behaviour. They misjudge size and ignore vocalizations. They describe colour in odd ways. I endured a long description of a “beautiful bird" only to figure out eventually that it was a gull. Certainly well adapted for what they do, but pretty boring (to me, anyway). There are lots of gull species that can be tricky to distinguish from each other, causing long, boring discussions among “gull guys."

As with most of my preferred mystery series, there is continuing personal development of the main character, Morgan. We watch her friendships deepen and see her edge gingerly towards a new romance with lawman Jon Flanders. We wonder when the other shoe will drop with the absent ex-fiance. Obviously there will be at least one more book and I will be reading it when it comes out.

Recipes for Murder / Karen Pierce

 

4 out of 5 stars

This book is perfect for people who have at least two of the following interests: Agatha Christie's mysteries, food & cooking, and the social history involved with both of the previous items. I have been reading Christie's novels in publication order with the Appointment with Agatha group and have been enjoying observing the household changes that Christie documents in her fiction.

Dame Agatha was definitely a foodie. She enjoyed good cuisine and grew up in circumstances that afforded her the privilege of indulging in it. (In her autobiography, she revealed her penchant for drinking cream.) She was able to travel and enthusiastically sampled the food of other cultures. Guests at her home did not go hungry!

When I heard this author interviewed on the radio, I knew that I wanted to peruse this cookbook. Pierce is a fellow Canadian, perfectly situated to mediate between the various cultures who may be interested in this subject. Canada has traditional links to Great Britain, having been colonized and eventually peacefully given independence from that government. We still retain the monarch as head of state and traditions, legal similarities, and spelling idiosyncrasies. However, we also live cheek by jowl with the United States (as our PM Pierre Trudeau observed, we are a mouse sharing a bed with an elephant). English and American recipes use different measurement standards and different food terms (eggplant vs aubergine, for example). Pierce navigates these potentially confusing details gracefully, providing alternative details in parentheses.

Pierce selects one recipe per novel and has developed a modern version (eg. Cornish hens substituted for Blackbirds). I was entertained by the rationale behind her choice for each chapter. Although I won't be attempting any of the recipes, I have no doubt that I could successfully make any of them. I enjoyed learning about the history of certain foods, the cooking methods, and the household support systems. Now I know the difference between shrimp and prawns! Very enjoyable and recommended for Christie readers with culinary aspirations. Have no fear of spoilers, Pierce avoids spilling the beans.

Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers / Jesse Q. Sutanio

 

4 out of 5 stars

Vera Wong has opinions. Lots of them. And she shares them freely. She knows just how life ought to be lived and urges those around her to follow her example. The trouble is there aren't too many people around her. She is a widow, her business is in steep decline, and she has advised/nagged her only son unmercifully, so he avoids her. Then one morning, everything changes. Vera comes downstairs at 4:30 a.m. as usual and finds a dead man in her tea room.

Vera has watched CSI and the police do not meet her expectations. She decides that the man has been murdered and that is up to her to find the killer. Once the man has been identified and the murder has been publicized, several people show up at the tea room. Vera questions them and informs them that they are suspects. And then she bosses them all around. Miss Marple she is not.

There is gentle humour here, often making me smile as I read. But there are serious undertones. The loneliness of isolated seniors. The difficulty of family relationships. The predatory behaviour that takes advantage of innocent people. Sutanto does is all seamlessly without getting preachy.

If you enjoy this book, I would also recommend Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Yu. Aunty Lee is an older Singaporean lady who also cooks up a storm and investigates, albeit more smoothly than Vera. Both are women of a certain age who have curiosity and the desire to help others.

Bonds of Justice / Nalini Singh

 

3 out of 5 stars

This book and the previous one of the series finally give us a better look into the world of the Psy. Things are not well in the PsyNet. It's those pesky emotions. Can't live with them, can't live without them. Some of the Council realize that protocols are going to have to change. Others advocate complete Silence, discounting the dangers of such a course. Nikita is an interesting window into the Council's inner workings. Could there lurk a bit of motherly feeling under that ice queen exterior?

Meanwhile, we learn about the J Psy (J for Justice). Able to find, record, and project the memories of criminals or witnesses to crime, they are integral to the justice system. They are rare and tend to have weak shielding meaning that their lives usually end young, in the reconditioning centres that all Psy dread. It seems to me that death would be preferable to a vegetative state, so it seems odd to me that the unsentimental Psy would keep these unfortunates alive, except as a warning to the general population I guess.

Sophia Russo, a J Psy, knows she's reached her best-before date. Soon, she won't be able to fool the Med Psy and reconditioning will be the outcome. So she is clinging to life and when Detective Max Shannon offers the possibility of tasting a real relationship and she grasps that chance (and him) with both hands.

These books are addictive when I'm in the right mood. The Psy slant is irresistible.

Winter's Gifts / Ben Aaronovitch

 

3 out of 5 stars

It pains me to give a Rivers of London book less than four stars, but this one just didn't turn my crank the same way. Part of it maybe the setting (Wisconsin rather than London), part may be the main character, Kimberley Reynolds (as opposed to Peter Grant). Peter may have his flaws, but he feels real to me. Kimberley felt strained. I was put off by her religiosity and the lack of desire to learn magic. If she can feel vestigia, magic should be within her grasp. Is her religious persuasion holding her back? Is it the lack of a teacher? Kimberley gives us no clue about that, but we know altogether too much about her mama, a judgmental, right-wing Born Again.

My opinion of this novel might have been improved if I'd had access to a proper paper version. Unfortunately my library chose to acquire it as an audiobook. The narrator, Penelope Rawlins, drove me crazy with her pronunciations of some words. She seemed to omit the first R in library more often than not (and that's a sore point for this former library worker). Then the missing R would reappear on the end of the word parka. Those two words stand out in my memory because they were used so often, but there were others. Rawlins was born in the UK, but grew up in the US, so she should have been ideal for this book.

Although the main character is female, Rawlins ends up having to voice quite a number of male characters. She does a decent job of it, although they all ended up sounding pretty much the same. But by context I was always sure which guy was speaking.

Nevertheless, there's a good plot with a magically plausible problem. Kimberley is brave and protective of those around her. She does some risky things, but comes out okay. Thank goodness for Bill, who backs her up to the best of his ability. His tendency to concentrate on meteorology and other sciences reminded me of Peter's obsession with architecture. I am glad I read this to keep up my Peter Grant knowledge, but I don't feel the need to purchase my own copy.