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Book Reviews

 

The Pot Thief who Studied Escoffier by J. Michael Orenduff

The interesting world of Hubie Schuze is once again on display in this latest installment of the series. This time, however, Hubie must move his workshop out of town in order to take a lucrative assignment. His work will be used in the opening of a new restaurant and once he gets his shop set up, he also gets more than a few lessons about the restaurant business. Unfortunately, Schuze finds a corpse in the works and the new restaurant is finished before it really gets started. Schuze , however, manages to make something out of the fallen soufflé and helps reopen the eatery. Except, there are other forces at work which promise to have Schuze doing his sleuthing thing once again. The fourth novel in the series has lots of local flavor, good writing, and memorable characters.

 

No Evidence of a Crime  by Susan Connell Vondrak

The years spent on the Illinois State Police force working in forensics, stands the author in good stead in her debut novel. In it, Washington, D.C. detectives investigate the murder of a young congressional aide. As you might imagine, with a forensic specialist on the job, evidence is one of the stars of the plot. And subtle factors make a big difference. When the forensic specialist enters the picture, so does the supposition that evidence tampering is at the heart of the case. Now all they have to do is find out who would do the tampering. The detectives a flesh and blood characters and the plot of filled with surprises. As with any novel that takes place in D.C., the thrills and chills are always high stakes business.

 

Inhuman Condition by Kate Thornton

This highly imaginative collection of stories will have the reader asking himself or herself a lot of questions. The very definitions of things we take for granted are called into question here. Thornton’s take on things may surprise you but will certainly have you wanting more. Criminal activity is at the core of her stories but that’s just the starting point. Or, is it? Thornton’s tales, whether science fiction or pure crime fiction, will delight you and make you think twice about who or what that might be just over your shoulder.

 

Bad Moon Rising  by L.F. Crawford

Paranormal mysteries are always loads of fun and excitement. Nothing is ever easy. Detective Art Murray knows this all to well and consoles himself by taking a cruise along with his brother and his partner on the force. Unfortunately, a murderer has also bought passage on the boat and Art’s partner is accused of the crime since the victim was last seen with him. Art now must put his badge back on and get to the bottom of this mystery. With supernatural twist and turns and a fast-paced plot, this well-written book will keep you entertained and make you a fan.

 

Among The Departed by Vicki Delany

British Columbia is once again the setting for a Delaney tale which will grab you and not let go until a solution is found. This time the case is a cold one but one which destroyed the lives of the remaining members of the family involved. Delaney’s taut writing, beautiful scene setting, and delightful characters will keep you reading and looking for other books in the series.

 

The Truth Sleuth  by Jacqueline Seewald

Ready for another paranormal mystery? Ever think your local reference librarian’s skills were a little too good? This book will help you understand that some librarians know lots more than you might like to think. Librarian Reynolds is facing unemployment but boyfriend Det. Gardner connects her with a job as an English Teacher. Should be good. Except it isn’t. It’s the school from hell and when one of her students is murdered, the flames start to lick at her feet. Add to this complications brought by Mike’s ex (or so he thought) and an more-than-flirtatious Principal, Reynolds has her hands full. Her psychic abilities do come to the rescue but not before complications are compounded. Readers will be kept guessing, unless they’re also psychic.

 

Demon’s Parchment by Jeri Westerson (interviewed in this issue)

This is Westersson’s third installment in her medieval series featuring Crispin Guest. A knight who has had just about everything taken from him, Guest has become The Tracker, a man who gets to the root of problems, solves cases, and generally bring justice where there is none. Westerson is masterful at bringing the Fourteenth Century alive. You can almost smell the peat fires and the generally unwashed citizenry. This book takes place in winter and London is not known for a temperate climate. Young boys are being murdered and mutilated and Crispin Guest gets drawn into the case not just because he’s being paid and the Sheriffs want a solution but because he is morally outraged and wants to bring the killer to justice. But there’s more to the tale. The plight of Jews in England at the time, is another facet in this work along with court politics and more. Readers get a good look at life in that era and it’s not very pretty. But the novel is a page turner with lots of historical background woven in without being the least bit intrusive. This is a noir tale that is well written, peopled with characters that will stick in your memory, and beautifully realized.

 

Killer instinct by Marilyn Victor and Michael Allan Mallory

“Snake” Jones gets herself into yet another wildlife jam as she and her TV crew scout out locations and try filming material for a show on wolves. Readers will find themselves immersed in the wilderness of Superior National Forest in Minnesota. Seamlessly weaving in material on wolves and their behavior, Victor and Mallory produced a tale that will enchant you and even keep you guessing as to who did it. With tempers flaring all around and with suspects crawling out from under every rock in the forest, readers will find themselves reading until they finish this mystery. Then they’ll go hunting for the first book in the series.

Sweeper by Lew Stowe

You’ve read some of the “Sweepr” stories in the e-pages of Mysterical-E over the years. With this book, you have to opportunity to revisit those tales and read some new ones that Mr. Stowe has written. It may seem like slim volume, but it’s packed with a lot of stories and wisdom. The Sweeper is a character that craves justice and does the best he can within his means to achieve that goal.

He Trots the Air by Marilyn M. Fisher

If you enjoy equine mysteries, this is one for you. Insurance investigator Connie Holt finds herself in the middle of a plot to drug a famous thoroughbred before it has a chance to compete in the Virginia International Gold Cup steeplechase. Desperate to keep the crime from happening, Holt discovers that the plot goes well beyond the stakes a one race. Lots of interesting character intertwine with an intricate plot and lots of equine information to make this a good read. Fisher has produces a satisfying mystery that works well on a number of levels.

Caesar’s Fall: An Elliott Smith Mystery by Dorien Grey

Another delightful entry in Grey’s Elliott Smith series. This time Smith finds himself involved in another mystery and needing his ghostly friend John’s help. When super rich, lottery-winner Bruno Caesar takes a dive from a balcony, even though he feared heights and never used his balcony, Elliott is unable to walk away from the case. As with all of Grey’s well-written mysteries, this one satisfies on many levels. There is the mystery, to be sure, but there’s also Elliott’s private life and his mysterious connection to John’s ghost. Paranormal mysteries are always intriguing and this one is no exception. Grey has put together a cast of characters that are well-drawn and sets the Chicago scene like only a person steeped in that city’s life can do. The pacing is good and there are plenty of clues to follow. This is the third in the series and reading them in order will allow you to see how the character’s develop.

The Shakespeare Conspiracy by Ted Bacino

If you like conspiracy theories, you’ll like this book. If you enjy Shakespeare and conspiracy theories, you’ll really enjoy this book. Though the details are best left of the reader to discover, this book contains some wonderful material that will enlighten as well as entertain. Think you know everything there is to know about the Bard or who might have written his material? This book will show you that you don’t. There’s plenty more to find out and Bacino does yeoman’s work in pulling together history and the details of the conspiracy. There’s a fast moving story, historical figures the reader will recognize, and a conspiracy theory that will give rise to questions.

 

Deadly Reunion by June Shaw

You’ve been avoiding that class reunion for years, right? You tell yourself there’s no reason to go and rehash old times with people you hardly knew then and didn’t really like. But if your reunion turns out anything like this one, you’d be buying a ticket faster than you can whistle your old school song. On a Alaskan Cruise for the reunion, Cealie Gunter is surprised by the feelings this occasion gives rise to in her. She’s also concerned by a competitive streak she thought she’d left behind. But her biggest surprise is all the former classmates who turn up dead. Not from the food or from the effects of meeting old friends. There’s something else going on and Gunter has to get to the bottom of it or there won’t be anyone left when the boat docks. A fun read, nicely done.

 

Death on the Aegean Queen by Maria Hudgins

There’s something about a cruise that says “Murder”! This is the second book this issue in which a cruise setting is used to good effect. This one has an archaeological mystery thrown in for good measure. This is the third in the Dotsy Lamb Travel Mysteries and this time readers find Dotsy and a varied cast of characters on the high seas. Dotsy finds herself chasing after thieves and murderers, making progress with a love interest, and doing anything but relaxing. A smart sleuth, Dotsy gathers clues and eventually puts them together to solve not one murder but two as well as a series of thefts.

 

Pele’s Tears by Sharon K. Garner

Noelani Beecham tries to flee her past which includes a disastrous youthful attempt to find Pele’s Tears, three huge gems. In that adventure, one of three friends is killed. Noelani and Dante, the survivors, grow into adulthood believing the gems to be a myth. Noelani, flees as far away from Hawaii as possible to forget and finds herself in Maine. But The legend of Pele’s Tears follows her and she begins receiving mysterious notes about the treasure. Around the same time, Dante arrives with news that their childhood stomping grounds, a large flower farm, now belongs to them and Dante wants to make something of the business. He and Noelani also realize that what they thought might have been a case of puppy love between them, is much more. In this suspenseful romance, Noelani must discover who it is behind the mysterious notes which keep arriving and threatening violence. At the same time, she and Dante are thrown together and must deal with their blossoming love.

 

Cupcakes, Lies, And Dead Guys by Pamela DuMond

The paranormal mystery is gaining popularity judging from the number of them received at Mysterical-E in the past few months. Cupcakes has a heroine, Annie Graceland, who has been tossed about by the events of her life, the latest of which is her husband’s apparent affair with a popular male self-help guru. When this self-help sleaze is whacked, Annie is under suspicion and must free herself of the police. She’s also got to free herself of the ghost of the sleazy self-help con man who insists that she must find his killer or he won’t leave her alone. She has no choice and tries her best careening from one screwball situation to the next until the clues pile up enough for her to work out the solution.

Deadly Currents by Beth Groundwater

Groundwater has crafted an exciting and deftly written mystery featuring Mandy Tanner, a river ranger on Colorado's Arkansas River. The first in a new series, this one kicks into high gear when two people are swept overboard during a whitewater rafting event. Though Mandy manages to pull both back to shore, one of them dies. Unfortunately, the rafting business is owned by Mandy’s uncle and she finds herself needing to prove that the rafter’s death was not the fault of negligence. When it turns out that the man was actually poisoned, Mandy finds herself on the trail of a killer. There’s lots of suspects, plenty of excitement, and even some time for romance. Groundwater knows her business and has made this not only exciting but also realistic.

 

A Night of Long Knives by Rebecca Cantrell

This novel continues the story begun in A Trace of Smoke in which Hannah Vogel escapes from Germany with her son, fleeing from Ernst Rohm who claims to be the boy’s father.  But her escape is thwarted and she finds herself back in Germany, abducted by brownshirts. She finds that she is to be married by force to Rohm not just so he can take charge of the child but also to quell rumors of his homosexuality (well, they were more than runors if you know your history). Hitler unwittingly intervenes in this plan when he purges the SA during the Night of the Long Knives. Rohm is killed and Hannah manages to escape but her son is lost. This forces Hannah into a long search across Germany. Hannah gets caught in various plots and lots of political intrigue as she tries to find her son. As a journalist, she knows her way around but even she finds some situations daunting. However, she presses on to her goal. This is an exciting tale that is well written and will certainly satisfy those interested in this period.

 

Dead Even by Frank Zafiro

Frank Zafiro’s work is the kind readers won’t soon forget. In this collection Zafiro has placed some of his well-known River City stories. Tales that have thrilled readers for a while now. Filled with a realism and sensitivity that only a master of the genre and the form can achieve. Frank Zafiro’s work strikes deep into a reader’s mind and heart creating people and situations so real, they stick with you long after you’ve read the work. From the details of a crime in progress, to police banter on and off the job, to the gritty particulars of life in River City, Zafiro is a winner. He becomes his characters and you see life and crime and police work through their eyes. It’s impossible to choose a favorite in this collection, they are intertwined and work together in a way that creates a resonance in those who read these tales. Frank Zafiro’s work is powerful and memorable, two things every writer strives for in their work.