Tag: mystery (Page 3 of 4)

Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson

December 21, 2022 / Monique

Get ready to step into the grittiness of London and the glam (and gangs) of Soho clubs during the period between the World Wars.

Our cast of characters includes:

Nellie Coker who is newly released from prison and back to managing her infamous nightclubs.
Chief Inspector Frobisher who’s cleaning up corruption on the streets and in his own force.
Gwendolyn Kelling who’s in London from York and looking for two runaway girls who are hoping to make their fame on the stage–and are likely to end up at one of Coker’s clubs as a dance hostess.
Nellie’s children: Niven (the eldest and most put together), Edith (the brains of the operation), the twins Betty and Shirley, the youngest girl Kitty, and the youngest boy Ramsey (coke addict and aspiring novelist).

It’s an all-star cast. They are each great in their own way and their lives are woven together like a braid. The storytelling is amazing and I cheered for each of them. The basic rivalry is between the Cokers and Frobisher, with Miss Kelling caught in the middle. But actually they all face another nemesis and that’s what lets readers cheer for them all.

The dialogue is wonderful. The quality of word choice is top notch. The quick wits and pacing of the novel is superb. I can’t say enough. I loved this book.

Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson is available from Penguin Random House.

Who Is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht

December 1, 2022 / Monique

Who Is Vera Kelly? is a quick witted spy novel set in 1960s Buenos Aries. Vera is newly recruited to the CIA and soon enough finds herself wiretapping congressmen and infiltrating a group of student activists.

Vera is smart, a fast learner, a lesbian, and about to find out what it’s like to be caught up in Cold War politics during a coup.

Vera Kelly Is Not A Mystery is the follow-up story. Vera is back in New York and loses her job and her girlfriend in a single day. But Vera is feisty and sets up shop as a female detective. Suddenly she’s on hot on the trail of a Dominican exile who’s wanted by Dominican Republic President Balaguer (and his goon squad). Vera can’t depend on the CIA (although could she ever). So it’s just her and her wits. And I must say, Vera is witty.

Rosalie Knecht has crafted a tight Cold War spy series. A bit of a nod to the character driven Le Carré style of writing but more modern. If you liked Ben MacIntyre’s The Spy and the Traitor or David Benioff’s City of Thieves, then you’ll like the dark, slow burn of these novels.

A Trace of Deceit by Karen Odden

November 3, 2022 / Monique

A Trace of Deceit is a great whodonit and peak into the world of art auctions. Miss Annabel Rowe is a young painter who’s studying at the Slade in London. She’s set to meet her brother Edwin for their regular Tuesday dinner but he never shows. Went she goes to his apartment, she finds two inspectors investigating his murder.

Annabel isn’t your usual Victorian lady who will demure and defer. She marches down to Scotland yard and demands to speak to Inspector Matthew Hallam. She has a plan and a plea that leads to her job shadowing Matthew.

They have a lovely romance that blooms out of their efforts to solve the mystery of Edwin’s death, recover a stolen valuable painting, and catch the culprits.

The behind-the-scenes look at the art work, auction houses, and the underworld of politics and the shipping industry are highly entertaining. Author Karen Odden draws on some of her personal experience from working at Christie’s auction house in the mid-1990s.

My favourite moments were the descriptions of various paintings throughout the novel. It was a short course in art history and painting techniques.

Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day

February 22, 2022 / Monique

Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day is a classic Agatha Christie style mystery. Indeed the novel is set during World War II at Agatha Christie’s real-life country home, Greenway.

In real life, the home hosted a war nursery—children who were evacuated from London. In the novel, the children are managed by a couple—the Arbuthnots—and two hospital nurses. The thing is, neither of the nurses is certified. Gigi is some sort of spy or at least on the run, and Bridget Kelly is a disgraced nurse-in-training. She’s been sent on the assignment as a favour by the hospital Matron.

What transpires is not one murder, but two! And it is Bridget Kelly who manages to do the sleuthing.

Greenway is home to the Scaldwells, who are butler and cook, The Hannafords, gardener and chauffeur, and a colourful cast of village folks who are not keen on evacuees. Mrs. Mallowan (Agatha Christie) makes a brief cameo.

I found this novel thoroughly enjoyable. It’s historical fiction meets murder mystery. Think Poirot, but solved by the new girl.

The True Confessions of a London Spy by Katherine Cowley

February 6, 2022 / Monique

I absolutely LOVE Katherine Cowley’s The Secret Life of Mary Bennet Series. The books are smart and witty, and a wonderful nod to Jane Austen.

The True Confessions of a London Spy is the second novel in this trilogy. Our heroine, Mary Bennet of Pride and Prejudice, finds herself acting as a spy for the British government. She must juggle the expectations of a lady (extravagant balls, chaperones, and asking her brother-in-law permission to leave the house) along with solving the murder of a government messenger, spying on members of parliament, and avoiding harm.

If you’re an Austen fan then you know that Mary Bennet is the lesser known of the Bennet sisters. Elizabeth (Darcy) is often the star of the show. Mary is the middle child, with Jane and Elizabeth as her older sisters and Kitty and Lydia as her younger sisters. Being overlooked is quite familiar to Mary. It’s also what helps her.

Mary could admire Elizabeth. She could aspire to some of Elizabeth’s attributes, and she could use her knowledge of how Elizabeth acted in particular situations to help her take the best possible actions as a spy. But she would not let herself be consumed by envy. She could set it aside, and not let it be a focus of her attention. It was better to become one’s fullest self than to attempt to become someone else.
chapter 8

You don’t have to be a Jane Austen fan to love and appreciate these books, but if you are then I think you will come to adore Mary Bennet the way I do. She’s vain and pedantic and actually quite as beautiful as her older sisters and just as quick and mischievous as her younger sisters.

I absolutely cannot wait for the third book in this series. Full applause to Katherine Cowley for such a fun read.

Find the books at your local bookstore, check out the author’s site, or see my review of book 1 The Secret Life of Miss Mary Bennet.

The Maid by Nita Prose

January 24, 2022 / Monique

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time meets The Thursday Night Murder Club.

Molly the maid is the perfect scapegoat for a murder. She’s innocent to the world and befriends some bad eggs. But people shouldn’t underestimate Molly. She sees and remembers everything, yet she’s invisible to most. Just a maid.

Nita Prose’s debut novel is a great twist of a story. It has all the quirks of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. We see the world from Molly’s point of view. “The truth is, I often have trouble with social situations; it’s as though everyone is playing an elaborate game with complex rules they all know, but I’m always playing for the first time.” And it has the fun twists and turns of the best cozy mysteries. Yes there’s a murder, but it’s not a blood and gore, spine-tingling thriller. It’s a mental puzzle. And like Richard Osman’s The Thursday Night Murder Club, Nita Prose has given her readers many splendid characters.

I was on the third floor, cleaning my rooms. Sunshine was cleaning one half of the floor and I was tackling the other. I entered Room 305, which was not on my roster for that shift, but the front desk had told me it was vacant and needed to be cleaned. I didn’t even bother knocking since I’d been told it was empty, but when I pushed through the door with my trolley. I came face-to-face with two very imposing men.
Gran taught me to judge people by their actions rather than by their appearances, so when I looked upon these two behemoths with shaved heads and perplexing facial tattoos, I immediately assumed the best of them rather than the worst. Maybe these guests were a famous rock duo I’d never head of? Or perhaps they were trendy tattoo artists? Or world-renowned wrestlers? Since I prefer antiques to pop culture, how would I know?
Chapter 7, The Maid

“A smart, riveting, and deliciously refreshing debut.” —Lisa Jewell

Find The Maid at your favourite bookstore or learn more at NitaProse.com or the publisher site.

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

December 7, 2021 / Monique

The second book in A Thursday Murder Club Mystery

Could this book be any more hilarious!

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim are back in action as the Thursday Murder Club. They meet in the puzzle room of their luxury retirement home to solve mysteries and cold cases. Well, this time the case isn’t cold.

Elizabeth’s ex-husband shows up at Coopers Chase as its newest resident. The thing is he is MI5, has bungled an operation, and is now being protected—but not very well. He needs Elizabeth’s help, and of course Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim are involved.

There are many dead bodies in this story, some 20 million pounds of missing diamonds, and all the beloved characters from book 1. It’s a real caper.

Richard Osman’s writing is so funny. Yes, there’s a mystery and several murders, but this is a “cozy”

Joyce
I do wish something exciting would happen again. I don’t mind what.
Perhaps a fire, but where no one gets hurt? Just flames and fire engines. We can all stand around watching, with flasks, and Ron can shout advice to the firefighters. Or an affair, that would be fun. Preferably mine, but I’m not greedy, so long as there’s a bit of scandal, like a big age difference, or someone suddenly needed a replacement hip.
chapter 3

Perfect read for fans of The Thursday Murder Club—this one is even better—or The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg and A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

State of Terror by Louise Penny and Hillary Rodham Clinton

November 16, 2021 / Monique

The perfect title. Louise Penny is the author of the beloved Inspector Gamache series, and Hillary is the former US Secretary of State. Could there be any better writing duo for a nail-biter about tumultuous American politics, civil wars, international terrorist attacks, and the threat of nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands? It’s a great page turner.

I heard an interview with Louise Penny and Hillary Clinton. Penny said she asked Clinton what kept her up at night and then they built the book around that. Chilling.

Summary: The new president of the US and his Secretary of State Ellen Adams are already at odds, but they are forced to work together when a series of terrorist attacks rock Europe and the next are planned for the US.

This is a horrifying scenario for a novel and all too real. The cheeky, carefully constructed mystery is 100% Louise Penny and the conspiracy and political turmoil 100% Hillary Clinton. I loved it.

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

July 13, 2021 / Monique

I’m so glad there are going to be more of these!

Summary: Assisted-living homes will never look the same to you after reading this book. Four quirky British neighbours, all living in Coopers Chase Retirement Village, gather regularly in the puzzle room to work on unsolved crimes.

Elizabeth is a former … well we don’t know but spy is suggested. Joyce is the newcomer and most of the narration comes from her perspective. Ron is the father of a once-famous boxer and he himself is quite feisty. Ibrahim is bookish, and the driver. They get up to trouble.

After the main characters are introduced, the plot picks up the pace quickly when one of the developers at Coopers Chase is found dead, and Ron’s son is a suspect, and the other developer drops dead in a confrontation with residents.

This is a cozy, armchair mystery with a cast of crazy characters.

Perfect for fans of The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules and A Man Called Ove.

Edith’s Diary by Patricia Highsmith

January 30, 2021 / Monique

Edith’s Diary was published in 1977 and is billed a psychological thriller. You may be familiar with the author Patricia Highsmith, who published 22 novels, including The Talented Mr. Ripley and Strangers on a Train.

There is no crime that occurs, well maybe but it’s hard to prove and there’s no real evidence. The true crime is that Edith has to raise a selfish, drip of a son on her own because her husband runs off with his secretary. Not only does he leave Edith to the parenting, he also leaves his bedridden uncle in her care. What a guy.

Overall I kept expecting more. I thought there would be some psychological twist at the end, or that the crimes would be bigger (not the small slights and misdemeanours). This is a sad story about a woman who doesn’t give up but doesn’t give herself a chance either.

If you enjoyed The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn, then give this one a go.