Etched in Sand by Regina Calcaterra - I'm always amazed at the cruelty of some parents toward their children and of the resilience of those same children. Regina is one of 5 children. She escaped her mother by declaring emancipation when she was 14. She has gone on to become a lawyer and political advocate, especially for older foster children.
4 stars
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The Divorce Horse
Christmas in Absaroka County - both by Craig Johnson - these are very short e-books. Divorce Horse covers a gap between two books and obviously the other is 4 short stories taking place around Christmas.
3 stars
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W is For Wasted by Sue Grafton - Kinsey gets involved trying to find the identity of a homeless man and is surprised by connections to herself. Part of the story is told from another viewpoint.
3 stars
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Quiet Dell: A Novel by Jayne Anne Phillips - based on a true story from the 1930's, this is a highly fictionalized account of the murder of a mother and her three children. While the true part was interesting, the fiction portion was too modernized.Too much sex, all of it irrelevant to the story.
2 stars
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Critical Mass by Sara Paretsky - finally, an author I've been reading for years still has it. V.I. Warshawski originally is looking for the daughter of a friend of her mentor's. That becomes a search for a grandson, missing documents and national secrets.
4 stars
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Tatiana by Martin Cruz Smith - I have no idea if the Russia portrayed in this book is accurate since Mr. Smith doesn't live there. However, I always enjoy his books. This time Arkady becomes involved in the death of a mob boss and the suicide of a journalist. I like the terse way this author writes.
3 stars
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The Fourth Sacrifice by Peter May - Margaret Campbell, the forensic pathologist from the previous book, is getting ready to leave China when once again she's asked to help the Chinese police investigate a murder that seems to be a part of the series. I find her a little whiny and easily annoyed. The mystery part was good though. A gratuitous sex scene, easily skipped.
3 stars
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Nov 10-16, 2013
Thankless in Death by J.D. Robb - Eve Dallas is on the trail of a killer fueled by revenge on anyone who has crossed him. We know who the killer is almost right away and this time it's a matter of trying to figure out who he will go after next. The violence in this one bothered me, probably because it was more personal. Also the usual couple of obligatory sex scenes.
3 stars
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Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason - a skeleton is found when foundations are being built for new houses and Erlander's team is called in. Since the skeleton is about 50 years old, it takes lots of police work to figure it out. The story is also told from the past. I find it irritating that the first two books in this series have not been translated yet.
3 stars
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Just One Evil Act by Elizabeth George - reading this 720 page book was like watching a 3 hour movie that should have been 1 1/2 hours. Way too long and convoluted. And not really an Inspector Lynley book as much as a Det Barbara Havers. Her young friend Hadiyyah has been kidnapped and she becomes much too involved. There were moments of excitement but there were lots of words in between. A disappointing book from one of my favorite authors.
2 stars
3 stars
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Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason - a skeleton is found when foundations are being built for new houses and Erlander's team is called in. Since the skeleton is about 50 years old, it takes lots of police work to figure it out. The story is also told from the past. I find it irritating that the first two books in this series have not been translated yet.
3 stars
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Just One Evil Act by Elizabeth George - reading this 720 page book was like watching a 3 hour movie that should have been 1 1/2 hours. Way too long and convoluted. And not really an Inspector Lynley book as much as a Det Barbara Havers. Her young friend Hadiyyah has been kidnapped and she becomes much too involved. There were moments of excitement but there were lots of words in between. A disappointing book from one of my favorite authors.
2 stars
Friday, November 8, 2013
Nov 3-9, 2013
The Sound and the Furry by Spencer Quinn - a Chet and Bernie mystery. The mystery is almost secondary to the pleasure of being in a dog's mind. I get such a kick out of the way Chet thinks. This time the pair are in Louisiana to find a missing person and get caught up in big oil hijinks.
3 stars
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Jar City by Arnaldur Indridason - part of what's called the Reykjavik series, featuring three detectives. A man is found murdered in his flat and the detectives discover that many years ago he was accused of a crime. How do the death of a 4 year old girl and the current murder connect? This is the best in the series I've read so far. If you're interested, try to read this series in order. I haven't and it's been somewhat confusing.
4 stars
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Police by Jo Nesbo - another excellent Harry Hole (pronounced hol-leh) mystery. Someone is killing police officers connected to unsolved murders at the site of the original murder. Many facets to this story and Harry doesn't even appear for quite awhile. This author is not afraid to kill off familiar faces so the suspense and dread build. And as usual, there are a couple of threads left hanging.
This is the 10th books in the series but they have not been published in the US in order. I have yet to read the first five. Past events are sometimes referenced in later novels. I think they're all available now and I have the first on hold at the library.
4 stars
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The Catch by Archer Mayor - a hunt for a cop killer turns into a search for drug runners from Canada.
3 stars
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The Price of Malice by Archer Mayor - a suspected child molester is found murdered in a stranger's apartment. Meantime, Joe's girlfriend is dealing with a revelation from the last book and Joe finds his attention split. I don't usually read two books by the same author in a row but I discovered I had missed the previous book when I started this one.
3 stars
3 stars
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Jar City by Arnaldur Indridason - part of what's called the Reykjavik series, featuring three detectives. A man is found murdered in his flat and the detectives discover that many years ago he was accused of a crime. How do the death of a 4 year old girl and the current murder connect? This is the best in the series I've read so far. If you're interested, try to read this series in order. I haven't and it's been somewhat confusing.
4 stars
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Police by Jo Nesbo - another excellent Harry Hole (pronounced hol-leh) mystery. Someone is killing police officers connected to unsolved murders at the site of the original murder. Many facets to this story and Harry doesn't even appear for quite awhile. This author is not afraid to kill off familiar faces so the suspense and dread build. And as usual, there are a couple of threads left hanging.
This is the 10th books in the series but they have not been published in the US in order. I have yet to read the first five. Past events are sometimes referenced in later novels. I think they're all available now and I have the first on hold at the library.
4 stars
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The Catch by Archer Mayor - a hunt for a cop killer turns into a search for drug runners from Canada.
3 stars
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The Price of Malice by Archer Mayor - a suspected child molester is found murdered in a stranger's apartment. Meantime, Joe's girlfriend is dealing with a revelation from the last book and Joe finds his attention split. I don't usually read two books by the same author in a row but I discovered I had missed the previous book when I started this one.
3 stars
Friday, November 1, 2013
Oct 27-Nov 2, 2013
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton - a very young child is found alone on the dock in Australia in 1913. She is taken in by a young couple and knows nothing of her history. In 2005 her granddaughter continues the search. The story goes back and forth in several times but wasn't hard to follow.
3 stars
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Silken Prey by John Sandford - a Lucas Davenport mystery. A political fixer is missing and may be involved with child porn showing up on a candidate's computer. Lucas is called in to quietly look into things. Too much political scumbaggery for me and I didn't think the characters were very developed.
2 stars
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The Draining Lake by Arnaldur Indriaoson - an Icelandic lake is draining because of an earthquake and a skeleton is found. Unlike tv shows, it takes the police team months of painstaking investigation to solve the case. Also told from the perpetrators viewpoint, which goes back in time to the Cold War.
3 stars
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The Firemaker by Peter May - a forensic pathologist from America goes to China to teach for 5 weeks at a police academy. She becomes involved in 3 seemingly unrelated murders and at the same time becomes attracted to the Chinese detective heading the case. Lots of misunderstanding because of culture. Written in 1999 so it seems a little dated. The first in a series, I think there are 5 more. Some sex.
3 stars
3 stars
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Silken Prey by John Sandford - a Lucas Davenport mystery. A political fixer is missing and may be involved with child porn showing up on a candidate's computer. Lucas is called in to quietly look into things. Too much political scumbaggery for me and I didn't think the characters were very developed.
2 stars
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The Draining Lake by Arnaldur Indriaoson - an Icelandic lake is draining because of an earthquake and a skeleton is found. Unlike tv shows, it takes the police team months of painstaking investigation to solve the case. Also told from the perpetrators viewpoint, which goes back in time to the Cold War.
3 stars
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The Firemaker by Peter May - a forensic pathologist from America goes to China to teach for 5 weeks at a police academy. She becomes involved in 3 seemingly unrelated murders and at the same time becomes attracted to the Chinese detective heading the case. Lots of misunderstanding because of culture. Written in 1999 so it seems a little dated. The first in a series, I think there are 5 more. Some sex.
3 stars
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