Category Archives: Currently Reading

Currently Reading – April 17

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Although I spent this past weekend in North Bethesda, MD for Malice Domestic, I still managed to read two books. The first was Ninja’s Blade by Tori Eldridge, the second in her Lily Wong series. The second was a book I bought at Malice. Murder in First Position, by Lori Robbins, features a ballerina as the main protagonist/detective.

Ninja’s Blade is even more exciting than Ninja’s Daughter.

Lily Wong is hired to find a young woman, Emma, who was rescued from the streets and prostitution. While Lily is searching, she becomes aware of the trafficking of minors. Dolla is a recruiter for Manolo, a really terrifying pimp. Lily struggles to find out what she needs to know and finally goes undercover as a streetwalker to rescue the girls. Exciting and gritty. Highly recommended but Not for the faint of heart.

The second mystery was Murder in First Position.

Leah Siderova is coming back from a serious knee injury. She is in competition for a lead role but when her rival is found stabbed with a pair of scissors, she goes from ballerina to murder suspect. Former friends and fellow dancers treat her like a pariah. When the police are poised to arrest her, Leah goes on the run. She finds new friends in a band of ladies on their way to Atlantic City. Leah’s sister plays decoy and in a final scene at the theater the murderer is finally revealed.

What an interesting, albeit disheartening, view of the ballet world. Rivalry, backstabbing, out and out cruelty. And the ballerina’s struggles to stay at ninety pounds certainly put my diet struggles in perspective. Recommended.

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Week of April 5

Now that I have completed reading the books for my Malice Domestic panel, I am branching out. This week I read the newest book by an old and favorite author (Ann Cleeves – The Heron’s Cry), and a book by a new author, to me at least (Nancy Allen – the Code of the Hills).

Cleeves’s new book is the second in her Matthew Venn series.

Venn is called to an artist’s colony. Dr. Nigel Yeo has been stabbed to death by a shard of glass from one of his daughter’s glass creations. Dr Yeo is an unexpected victim. A good man, and very concerned about the treatment of mental health patients, he has been investigating the suicide of young man.

Then the owner of the artist’s colony is found murdered in exactly the same way. Since Matthew’s husband Jonathan is connected to this colony, he must tread carefully.

Although the Vera and Jimmy Perez mysteries are my favorites, the Matthew Venn books are very enjoyable as well.

The second of the two is The Code of the Hills by Nancy Allen.

Although she is probably more well – known as a co-writer with James Patterson, this mystery that she wrote alone is great as well. Elsie Arnold is a state prosecutor tasked with trying an incest case. Kris Taney has been accused of the rape of his two oldest daughters.

Everyone lies to Elsie, including Kris’s wife and the two daughters. Then a Evangelical group becomes involved – and Elsie is targeted. Her car is vandalized in some particularly horrible ways.

Elsie herself is not entirely admirable. She drinks too much and her choice of men leaves a lot to be desired. But she works on the case to the best of her ability.

The author, who spoke to my Sisters in Crime group via Zoom, referred to her early series as ‘Hillbilly noir” and noir it is.

Absolutely fascinating!

Currently Reading – week of April 4

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This week I finished the final two books that my panel authors will be discussion at Malice Domestic. I always enjoy finding new authors.

The first book I read was The Murderess Must Die by Marlie Wasserman.

This is a fictionalized account of a true crime. Martha Place was accused of the murder of her stepdaughter Ida and the attack with an axe on her husband William, She was poorly represented by counsel and became the first woman to be executed via the electric chair. Horrifying and Thought provoking.

The second book is one that I read when it was first released: Death at the Emerald by R.J. Koreto.

This is the third in the Lady Frances Folks Edwardian mysteries. Frances Is asked by Lady Torrance to look for her daughter Louisa, who ran away to become an actress. I really hope the author pens a few more in this series. Beautiful written and charming.

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Week of March 28.

This week I read two of the five books we will be discussing at Malice Domestic. I previously read Front Page Murder.

Cry of the Innocent, by Julie Bates, takes place right before the American Revolution begins. Widow Faith Clarke runs a tavern in Williamsburg.

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She is far more worried about her tavern and inn than about the rumblings of revolt among the citizens. Then a wealthy and influential man, widely reputed to engage in the slave trade, is murdered in her spare room. A young slave, Stella, is accused of the crime. Faith is sure the slim young woman is not guilty and embarks on an investigation of her own.

So many of the themes raised in this mystery are relevant to today. The characters are wonderfully drawn. Recommended.

The second book I read is Death on the Homefront, by Frances McNamara. This is another war book, although the war in this book is World War I.

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Tensions rise as the threat of the United States involvement in World War I increase. Emotions against Germans rise and those who fight for peace are considered traitors.

Emily Cabot is present when a young woman about to make a brilliant society marriage is murdered. Hazel is Emily’s daughter’s best friend. A waiter with a German surname is arrested; public emotion against the Germans is rising. A civilian run force is trying to find spies and saboteurs, and attacking anyone they feel are treasonous. At the same time, violent worker protests are threatening bombings.

Emily watches with fear and trepidation as her adult children are caught up in the events, making dangerous choices.

Recommended.

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week of March 21.

The first book I read this week was The Bluff by John Dedakis.

Another in the Lark Chadwick series. Lark in invited to anchor a news show at the local television station at the same time one of the students in her journalism class is hired by editor Lionel. They are assigned a land scam story in which a large number of senior have been defrauded of plots of land.

As they investigate, Lark begins to read the diary left by Lionel’s daughter Holly. Both Lionel and his wife Muriel were devastated by Holly’s death in a climbing accident.

But Lark begins to suspect the accident was really murderer.

The characters are well drawn and the mysteries are captivating. Recommended.

The second book I read is Betrayal at Ravenswick.

Fiona Figg works for British Intelligence during World War I. She is sent to Ravenswick in disguise as a man, Dr Vogel, to confirm whether a man staying there is actually a German spy. Shortly after his/her arrival, a murder occurs at the ‘Big House”. Fiona can’t help herself. Despite being told not to involve herself in local matters, she begins to investigate.

Because of her interference, she becomes a suspect and has to be extracted by way of a phony arrest.

Glad to return to her woman’s role, she continues her volunteer work at the hospital. Captain Clifford, on the scene at Ravenswyck and now also assigned to British intelligence, displays an interest in Fiona. She is able to manipulate him into finding evidence and clearing the accused innocent man.

My main problem is that the mystery at Ravenswyck disappears when Fiona returns to London and is only reintroduced towards the end. It felt like another book was sandwiched into the middle.

Next week, I will be discussing the books of my panelists. I will be moderating a panel: Historical; the Rapture of Research, at Malice Domestic on April 22. The conference, the first in=person since 2019, will run from April 21 through April 25. I am looking forward to it. I always love finding new authors and what could be better than talking about books?

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Week of March 12. This week I read two books. Oddly enough, both were historical fiction that take place during World War II.

The first, Front Page Murder, involves a young woman serving as the editor of the local paper. Her father had signed up and left her in charge. Needless to say, this causes friction with some of the men who resent a woman being in charge.

Other changes abound. Women flood into town to work in the local factory. Irene’s mother takes in one of those women, Katherine.

But all is not rosy. One of Irene’s best reporters is found dead in his house. Although the police chief thinks it was an accident, Irene is convinced it was murder.

Swaztikas and other anti-Semitic slogans appear on the doors of the Jewish shop owners in town. Then the janitor at the factory is seriously hurt. What is going on?

The light touches, Irene’s younger sister’s crush on Frank Sinatra, are interspersed with some of the dark.

Highly recommended.

The second book I read, Return to Afton Square, has a wonderful premise. Two strangers meet in Cradock, Virginia, both investigating past family who lived in the town. An initial dislike gradually warms into something else

The B&B where they are staying is reputed to be haunted and sure enough they begin experiencing supernatural events of their own. Some old keepsakes found in an attic and a visit to a ninety year old woman in a nursing home bring Heidi and Marcus into the story of Addie and Tobias, a young German sailor. He is stationed on a German ship being held in Cradock. (The United States had not entered the war yet.)

The characters of Addie and Tobias, the friends and family shine brightly. I found them more engaging than the modern day characters.

There are at least three stories going on at the same time. (This novel is connected to the author’s other series.) It is not a mystery but more of a supernatural love story.

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Week of March 6.

Murder at the Mena House, by Erica Ruth Neubauer, is a charming mystery set in 1920’s Egypt. Besides the mystery, there is romance and a wonderful setting.

Jane Wunderly, widowed in ‘The Great War’, is on holiday with her Aunt Millie. (She is a real eccentric.) But the vacation has hardly begun when the body of a beautiful young girl is found shot to death in her room.

Since Jane is the one who finds the body, and everyone knows there was friction between her and the victim, she is instantly suspect. Deciding she needs to investigate, Jane teams up with Redvers, a handsome fellow who claims to be a banker, to solve the mystery.

Another murder occurs, and Jane begins to suspect someone is smuggling Egyptian artifacts from the country.

As in every good mystery, everyone has secrets and there are plenty of suspects. My only caveat is that, as is common with romantic suspense, Jane rushes heedlessly into danger at the drop of a hat. Still, lots of fun.

The second book for this week is Murder in the Lincoln White House by C.M. Gleason.

Another historical mystery, but quite different from the former.

At Lincoln’s inaugural ball, attended by both Union supporters and secessionists, a body is discovered in the hall outside the ballroom. Adam Quinn, a Kansas frontiersman hired to be a general assistant to the new President, is tasked with discovering the murderer.

At first Quinn wonders if Lincoln was the target but, since the victim was a passionate abolitionist, that doesn’t make sense. Emotions between the abolitionists and the secessionists run high. Seven states had already seceded from the union before Lincoln’s inauguration.

Quinn begins to wonder if the target was Mr, Lemagne, a secessionist with a beautiful daughter, who Quinn has met at the ball. The animus between the victim and Mr Lemagne was known.

Then another murder occurs; this time of one of the witnesses. Had he seen more than he at first admitted to? Have these deaths anything to do with the Baltimore plot to assassinate Lincoln, foiled at the last minute by his decision to take another route? And is the new president, reviled by most of the slave states as ‘that rail-splitter’, at the center of the murders?

Fascinating.

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Week of February 27

I read three very different books this week. I began with The Shadow of the Empire. No, not a Star Wars book but a new series by Qiu Xialong, the first of a series using the Golden Age’s Judge Dee as the protagonist.

Because of a political conflict, over succession, Judge Dee has been posted out of the city. On his travels he receives two mysterious message, one pinned to a post in his room with a dagger, and a message from an opponent asking him to investigate a murder, A famous poetess has been accused.

Naturally, the mystery, and the subsequent deaths, are more complicated than they first appear.

For me, the primary charm is the light it shines on this very exotic culture, so different from out own.

To another culture, although one a little closer to home, I turned to Stargazer by Anne Hillerman. She had taken over for her father, the world famous Tony Hillerman. Although she uses Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn, she had expanded the role of a female character, Bernie Manuelito.

Bernie’s best friend from high school has confessed to the murder of her estranged husband. But, by all accounts, the split was amicable. Did something happen the night Maya and her husband met so Maya could obtain her husbands signature on the divorce papers?

As usual, there are plenty of details about the Navaho culture. A captivating read.

Finally, I read The Corpse at the Crystal Palace by Carola Dunn. This is the 23rd Daisy Dalrymple and the series hasn’t lost any steam.

Daisy, now married to Alec Fletcher, takes her daughter Belinda and some adopted cousins to the Crystal Palace. The children notice some strange behavior by their nanny and follow her – fortunately. They come upon her floating unconscious in a pond but manage to save her.

Once the children have told their story, Daisy embarks on her own investigation and discovers a dead body in the women’s loo (that’s the rest room.) The victim looks familiar but at first Daisy can’t place her. Once that small mystery is cleared up, Daisy begins her investigation into the murder. Charming as always.

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Week of February 21 – I was slowed down this week since I was preparing for both the Suffolk Mystery Festival and the Murderous March Mystery Conference, both Saturday, March 5.

But I managed to get through two books, both of which I enjoyed immensely.

First was Judgment at Santa Monica, by E.J. Copperman.

Our hero is a lawyer, and when we meet her she is defending, and losing, a case of a suburban mon accused of prostitution. To her surprise, famous actor and previous client, Patrick McNabb turns up and wants her to take another murder case. Cynthia Sutton, another actor, is involved in a messy divorce that she blames on her mothering-law. Our reluctant defender has barely gotten started when Cynthia is accused of her mother-in-law’s accused of her mother-in-law’s murder. And lawyer Sandy is shot at and a co-worker is seriously injured. What is going on?

A good mystery and a wonderful wise-cracking protagonist.

The second book, Stargazer, is by Anne Hillerman. She is continuing her father’s mystery series, with the addition of female character Bernie Manuelito.

It looks like an ordinary day: serving a bench warrant, taking care of a herd of escaped cattle and so on. Then the husband of Bernie’s old college friend Maya requests her held. What has happened to Maya? Once closer than sisters, Bernie had lost touch with her old friend when Maya began drinking heavily. Now Maya has been accused of the murder of her estranged husband but something doesn’t seem right. With Chee, Bernie’s love interest, and Joe Leaphorn to help, another murder is solved.

As usual, one of the most captivating parts of these books is the study of the Navaho culture.

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The following books, plus a Summoning of Spirits by Hieber, will be discussed by a panel at Murderous March, March 5, 4:45. The topic: Villains: the Characters we love to hate.

The Ninja Daughter, by Tori Eldrige, introduces Lily Wong, a self-styled female ninja. She has made it her mission to protect women and children, primarily by working with a battered woman’s shelter.

We first meet her as she is being beaten by a thug working for the Ukranian mob. Lily is trying to save the wife and child of one of the mobsters – although Katerina takes her son Ilya home despite Lily’s best efforts.

Several deaths that seem to have no relation to one another, a young woman involved with a married man, and a Korean mob all combine together in an action packed and exciting mystery. The characters are wonderfully drawn, especially Lily. I will definitely read more of these.

It is 1975 and Carmen Valdez, working as a secretary at Triumph Comics as a secretary, is desperate to break into the world of comics. A semi-friend from the office, Harvey, suggests they write a comic together. But then he is found dead, and all the scripts are turned in without her name. Carmen is desperate to discover the murderer, and what happened to her name as co-writer on a comic that becomes a runaway hit?

Another exciting and action packed mystery with an added bonus: the inclusion of the comics in the novel,

Recently widowed, Rebecca Parcell is busy struggling to maintain her farm to care about the War for Independence. But rumors are spreading in the winter of 1780 that she’s a Loyalist sympathizer who betrayed her husband to the British. Her husband was a Patriot, everyone knows. But General Washington knows differently. Rebecca’s husband was a British spy. If she can find out what her husband was doing, Washington will protect her farm.

To figure out what Parcell was doing, Becca must speak to an escaped British prisoner of war: Daniel Alloway. He was the last person to see her husband alive. They join forces – now Becca must fight her growing attraction to this drifter.

A wonderful historical novel about the early days of the Revolutionary War. I hope there is a sequel to this one.