Category Archives: Currently Reading

Currently Reading

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I read another of Marcia Talley’s Hannah Ives mysteries, Mile High Murder, this past week and I started Final Heir by Faith Hunter.

In Mile High Murder, Hannah joins her friend Claire on a trip to Denver to research legalized marijuana.

Claire, a cancer patient, has a prescription for medical marijuana. She is trying to see marijuana legalized in Maryland. Claire and Hannah are put up in a B and B that provides recreational cannabis in all forms.

Then one of the other guests is murdered and the safe is broken into. Are both crimes linked? Don’t worry, Hannah is on the case.

Regular readers know that I love the Hannah Ives mysteries. I did not care for this one, however. I did not find the characters engaging and the identity of the thieves was easy to guess. I am still looking forward to the newest Hannah Ives, however. Circles of Death will be released March 5.

I am about halfway through Hunter’s Final Heir. The story engages the reader immediately – but these books are long.

Jane and her crew are anticipating the arrival of Mainet Pellisier, grandfather of Leo. Leo, three times dead and reborn, can’t help Jane. Mainet has bound Leo and although he wants to help, he can’t.

Mainet brings the battle to Jane’s house and her friends, the Trueheart witches, come to help. They are almost destroyed as the plane lands.

Besides the non-stop action, one of the features that I admire in this series is the layers. Hunter has thought about the politics of the vampires, the witches, and the humans and of course the baddies whose nefarious aims drive the plot. Although Jane herself is not political, Hunter has clearly thought about the different goals of the various species and how those goals interlock.

Return next week for the full review once I’ve finished the entire novel.

Currently Reading

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This week I read books by an old favorite author and a new favorite author.

First up, Tangled Roots by Marcia Talley.

Regular Readers know how much I enjoy these Hannah Ives mysteries. Somehow I missed this one and I took advantage of the holiday to backtrack.

Hannah’s sister Georgina discovers through DNA testing that she is 25% Native American. When Hannah tests as well, the results are the same. Through her subscriptions to the various DNA/ancestry sites, she sends out a request for matches. No one should be surprised that the she finds far more than she bargains for.

While Hannah is tracking down the Indian connection, Julie, her niece, follows some of the other matches. This search leads to many other matches and a big secret that culminates in a murder. Scott, Georgina’s husband, is struck down in his gardening shed.

Meanwhile, Hannah and Julie continue researching the Lakota Sioux – and meet another branch of the family – and discover the story of a long ago love and murder. Excellent as usual.

The second book was from a new author for me. Down a Dark River by Karen Odden is the first in a new series.

Michael Corrovan escaped the slums of Whitechapel when barely more than a boy. Now a senior Inspector in Scotland Yard, one of the few remaining after a corruption scandal, he is charged with investigating the murder of a young woman found floating in a rowboat. The daughter of a wealthy and respected judge, Rose seemed to have no enemies.

Then another young woman is found murdered and sent floating in a rowboat on the Thames. Then a third. Corravan can find no link between these young women.

At the same time, he is investigating the disappearance of Mrs. Beckford. When he finds her, she is so terrified of returning home he hides her in a hospital until he can investigate further.

Gradually, he discovers the two cases are linked and the murders are the result of a terrible injustice.

Highly Recommended.

Currently Reading

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With this busy season, I Only managed one book this week. I thought I was finishing the Bucket List mysteries: Number four is Murder in the Tattoo Parlor.

I thought I was finishing this series, only to reach the end and a To Be Continued.

In this outing, our older, but still intrepid detectives become involved in a murder in a tattoo parlor. What are they doing there? Well, Joy, who is engaged to a local sheriff, wants to get his name tattooed on her shoulder. When Charlotte, Francine and Joy arrive at the tattoo parlor, they discover the artist dead. Joy leaves, not wishing anyone to know she was there, but Charlotte and Francine are filmed leaving.

Charlotte’s accident on her motorcycle and Francine’s new job lead to a solution – and the unveiling of several big secrets. Lots of fun. I look forward to the next installment.

Currently Reading – and Current Events

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If you are a writer, especially an unpublished one, add the following program to your calendar. The panel will be discussing our differing paths to publication. This is not to be missed.

Maven of Mayhem Program

My Path to Publication

Mally Becker, Jacqueline Boulden, Chris Keefer, Robert Knightly, Eleanor Kuhns, AmyPatricia Meade, and Lida Sideris.
Join us for an inside look at the many paths to publication.

Register Here for Zoom link: https://upperhudsonsinc.com/event/mavens-roundtable-my-road-to-publication/

Business meeting for members only at 10:30 am Eastern.

Program (free and open to the public) begins at 11:15 am Eastern.
Bethlehem Library, 451 Delaware Ave, Delmar, NY 12054

And now for Currently Reading

I read two more Bucket List mysteries this past week. These are very light and, although not Holiday themed, perfect for this busy season. The skinny dipping Grandmas are mixed up in murder once again

In Murder under the Covered Bridge, the ladies are planning a racy calendar. As Francine and her husband, suitably costumed in Victorian clothing, are acting out the illicit relationship between Francine’s ancestor and coachman, gunshots pepper the covered bridge. When the shooting stops, Jonathan goes out to investigate and discovered a severely wounded man who turns out to be Francine’s cousin William. Why did he crash the photo shoot and what secrets does he hold? A series of misadventures, including a fire and a seance, abound as the ladies stumble their way to the solution.

In Murder at the Male Revue, a male strippers troupe offers the chance for one of the ladies to cross off another item on her bucket list. But at the first performance, Camille is found stabbed to death. The first suspect – her nephew Eric who is the owner of the Male Revue. But as our intrepid women investigate, they discover their neighbors had many secrets and some the murderer was willing to kill for.

Currently Reading

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This week I read two cozies. The first, Disco Dead by Marcia Talley, is one of my favorite series.

So far, this one is my favorite.

Hannah is asked by a group of retired cops to help solve a cold case involving what they think is a serial killer. Using her skills on Ancestry.com and other family tracking websites, Hannah dives in. Her familiarity with the Navy is also a plus, thanks to husband Paul, and Hannah provides the critical piece to finding the man who has raped and killed young women for decades. Excellent.

I discovered to my dismay that I read these out of order and missed a few so I will have to go back and pick them up.

I began a new series this week with Murder on the Bucket List.

A group of senior citizens, all with sixty items on their bucket lists, are planning to go skinny dipping – one of the items. But their plans are disrupted when one of the ladies smells something funny. A quick investigation reveals a dead body in the gardening shed.

The investigation quickly centers on the husband of one of the ladies and two local celebrities – car racers. Laugh out loud scenes sprinkle the mystery. Lots of fun.

Currently Reading

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In my quest to read the entire Marcia Talley series, I finished Done Gone this week.

Hannah and her husband are alarmed when their neighbors disappear, with dinner still on the counter, and the cat unfed. Then Hannah receives a phone call from Trish. She sounds scared but promises to tell Hannah everything and arranges to meet in the parking lot of the local mall. As Trish is explaining. a gunshot shatters the window and hits Trish in the head.

She is brought to the hospital, still alive but barely. Hannah, using the few clues Trish has given her, begins to investigate. Georgina’s new man (her husband died in a previous book) assists. Another excellent read.

I also read Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood, the new Phryne Fisher mystery.

I am a long time fan of these mysteries but I had mixed feelings about this one.

Phryne’s adopted daughters, as part of a school program, volunteer at the local institute for the blind. Jane, who is good with numbers, is asked to look at the accounts. When she does, she finds a pattern of embezzlement. Phryne becomes involved. This case takes up a significant part of the first half.

On a date in Williamstown, Phryne finds an opium pipe. Lin, her long time lover, advises her to let this alone. Then a Westerner who loves all things Chinese, is murdered and a group of men prevent Phryne from pursuing him. The Lin’s wife asks Phryne to search for her missing sister. This was by far the most interesting mystery in the book.

Finally, Phryne is dealing with a stalker.

The focus was diffuse and the more interesting mystery involving drug smuggling and the missing girl did not, in my opinion, receive the attention it deserved. So, a mixed review from me.

Currently Reading

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This past week I read the most recent book in a series I love: the Sebastian St. Cyr series. Who cries for the lost.


When hostilities flare up in Europe with Napoleon’s escape from Elba, Sebastian frets at being kept home. He is convalescing from a wound that occurred in the previous title. A headless, handless body is pulled from the Thames and the evidence leads to Alexi Sauvage, Paul Gibson’s lover. Fearing that Gibson will be pulled into the accusations against Alexi, Sebastian begins looking into Sedgwick’s life. Sebastian quickly discovered that there are many who would have wanted the cruel and faithless man dead, including his wife, his mistress, the governess he seduced and many others.

Another excellent mystery. I did not see the twist at the end.

The second title, although completely different, was equally as good. Murder at the Jubilee Rally by Terry Shames is the latest in the Samuel Craddock series.

A motorcycle rally has come to town, upsetting the locals with the possibility of mayhem. Sure enough, a body is found behind the stage. The body turns out to be that of a local convenience store owner. Who would have wanted to murder a pillar of the community?

At the same time Samuel is investigating, he is hosting (and dealing with) defiant and rambunctious teenager who tests his patience to the utmost.

Another delightful mystery.

Currently Reading

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This week I read two books, and they couldn’t be more different.

Jane Harper’s The Dry is the first using Aaron Fulk as the protagonist (followed by Exiles.) I read them out of order but it didn’t matter.

Aaron returns to his small Australian town for the funeral of his childhood friend, Luke. When young teens, their good friend was found drowned – murdered and Aaron has always been blamed for the murder. Some of the townspeople, in fact, still blame him.

Aaron plans to leave immediately after the funeral, but he is sucked into investigating Luke’s murder. As he does so, he slowly unwinds the events of that long ago summer, and the identity of his friend’s murderer.

Amazing!

The second book is Joanne Fluke’s Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder.

When Mayor Bascombe is murdered, Hannah’s sister Andrea is the primary suspect. She was involved in a very public argument with the mayor that ended with Andrea slapping the Mayor and knocking him to the floor.

Since the Mayor is unlikeable, Hannah is sure there are other suspects in town.

Hannah’s investigation is interspersed with meals, recipes included.

The mystery is very light but the recipes look interesting and fun, as usual.

Currently Reading

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I read three wonderful books this past week

I picked up No Comfort for the Undertaker at the Albany Book Festival.

This debut novel by Chris Keeper is really good. It follows a recently widowed Carrie Lisbon, a female undertaker in a time when women simply did not take on such jobs. She has moved in with her uncle in upstate New York. Before she unpacks her things, a bereaved family asks her to lay out their daughter, a child who drowned.

Soon after, she is asked to lay out the body of a young woman whose injuries are not consistent with her husband’s explanation of the death.

The characters are well drawn and there are several side stories happening at the same time as the mystery.

This does not have the macabre elements of Christine Trent’s Lady of Ashes, a great book (and series) itself but is a straight mystery. Highly Recommended.

I also read number 26 in Victoria Thompson’s Gaslight series: Murder on Bedford Street.

Hugh Breedlove approaches Frank Malloy for help in getting his niece, Julia, released from an insane asylum where she has been wrongfully committed by her husband Chet Longley. Although Breedlove seems more committed to promoting his daughter’s entry into society than protecting his niece, Frank and Sarah agree to help him for the sake of Julia and the young son she left behind.

They soon discover there were several mysterious deaths at the Longley home.

These gaslight mysteries are always enjoyable and fun and this one is no exception.

Lastly, I read The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey.

Heather, Brenda and Victoria have been friends since childhood but Heather feels everything is changing. Victoria and Brenda are different, interested in boys and clothes and with a secret Heather doesn’t share.

Then Victoria disappears and her body is pulled out of the quarry. Soon after, Brenda’s body is also discovered in the quarry. No one seems interested in finding the murderer, not the cops or the FBI.

Heather, who has seem something terrible in the tunnels below the town, can’t help but ask questions. She uncovers long dormant secrets that lay bare the corruption in the small town and put her own life in danger.

I couldn’t put this down and read it in one sitting.

Currently Reading

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I missed a few Mondays because I went on a vacation to Europe. I always find it interesting to walk the streets of France, Germany, or any of the Scandinavian countries. Houses built 500 or even 1000 years ago are still in use. Humbling. Because of my passion for history, I take many excursions. (Although I admit I quickly tire of the plethora of churches).

But I digress. I read three books while traveling. On the plane to Amsterdam, I read Storm Watch by C.J. Box.

On the trail of a wounded animal, Joe Pickett comes upon a small nondescript building in the middle of the woods. The building is humming with fans and, stuck into one of them, is a man with the top of his head sheared off. Joe takes pictures and then heads home, to avoid the blizzard settling down on the mountains. But when he shares the photos with the Sheriff and they investigate, they do not find the dead man. Murder mixes with cryptocurrency, Chinese spies, and political corruption. Another winner!

I also read Murder off Stage by Mary Miley.

This is the fifth Jessie Beckett Roaring Twenties mystery. Jessie has gone from a vaudeville actor to a movie script girl who works with Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford. In this offering, Jesse and her good friend Adele Astaire attend a play. Unfortunately, when the actress shoots the actor, he falls down dead. The actress is immediately assumed to have murdered her colleague, but Jesse isn’t convinced. She just can’t figure out how this murder, and several others as well, were committed. Jessie is almost murdered herself before she solves the case.

I’ve read all five and enjoyed them. Miley says this one will be the last – sadly. I thought this one was the best so far and I wish she would continue the series.

Finally, I read Footprints to Murder by Marcia Talley.

To help out a friend, Hannah attends a Big Foot convention, populated by true believers. The descriptions of the characters are captivating even before the body of the murder victim is discovered. There are no shortage of suspects, the victim is nasty to all and has humiliated several of the attendees.

Is there really such a thing a Big Foot? Certainly some people firmly believe. Even without the mystery, this would be a charming novel. I have only a few left in this series and I will be very sorry when it ends. I feel I know Hannah and her family.