Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
This novel takes place in Lochdubh, a village in the Scottish highlands. Hamish Macbeth is perfectly happy with his life just the way it is right now. He likes working at his police station, loves animals and does not worry about promotions because he would have to move. He is set in his own ways and is an eligible bachelor. Hamish has had a couple of girlfriends and has come close to marriage but is content with his life.
Enters Josie McSween, the new constable, who has one thing in mind. She would like to settle down and get Hamish Macbeth to marry her. She comes up with several ideas to try and get Macbeth to at least show some interest in her.
On Valentine’s Day, Lammas festival queen, Annie Fleming received a gift. When opened, it exploded killing Fleming. Hamish Macbeth is begins the investigation along with his constable, Josie McSween. Hamish would be happy to do the investigation without McSween but it does not work that way.
The investigation does bring Hamish and Josie closer together but is it enough to make him want to marry her?
Once the investigation begins, Hamish discovers many things that surprise him about the victim. He ends up with plenty of suspects. Other murders start to occur. Are they related?
Are Hamish and Josie able to solve this crime?
One of the things I like best about this series is M.C. Beaton’s picturesque description of Lochdubh. He makes you feel like you are one of the residents as you read the novel. There are many twists in this story to keep the reader interested and you will enjoy the romantic subplot. This is the 25th Hamish MacBeth mystery and just might be the best one yet! If you enjoy a mystery with a touch of romance and humor, you will love Death of a Valentine.
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
If you like suspense mixed with a good deal of humor, you will be in for a treat when you read this book.
Charles “Shake” Bouchon is released from prison after serving time for grand theft auto. He wants to change his life and follow his dream to one day own a restaurant. His last few days at the prison are filled with action and he is trying his best to be on good behavior. It doesn’t take long for him to find trouble again. Shake runs into his former boss, Alexandria, who wants to hire him to run an “errand” for her. He didn’t have to think too long about what to do because he wanted the money for the restaurant – just one more job and he will be able to do just that.
Shake is totally shocked when he discovers the “delivery” errand he is about to make for Alexandria. Does he decide to go ahead and complete this job or go against Alexandra?
When I first sat down to begin reading Gutshot Straight, I thought this would be one of those run–of-the-mill crime capers like many others. Talk about one getting a wrong first impression! This is one of the best books I have read. I really looked forward to reading each chapter to see what was going to happen next. Gutshot Straight is full of interesting, unique and memorable characters and the reader gets taken on many adventures throughout the story that will take them from Las Vegas to Panama. Shake is a very believable character who tries his best to go straight but something always gets in his way. This is a well-written book with many quirky characters, suspense, comedy, and plenty of bad guys. Gutshot Straight is highly recommended by this reviewer.
Reviewed by Patricia Reid
A killer who calls himself “The Teacher” is on a rampage. He kills in broad daylight in front of witnesses but somehow manages to escape. Detective Michael Bennett of the New York City Police Department is puzzled but determined to catch the killer.
“The Teacher” has an agenda but exactly what that is or how he picks his victims is something that Detective Bennett has a hard time figuring out. The killer strikes and moves on to the next victim. There are eye witnesses but the descriptions of the killer vary from one crime scene to the next.
Detective Bennett is a widower with ten children. The children are currently suffering from a bout of stomach flu. Bennett alternates between chasing the killer and trying to cope with the trials of ten sick children.
There is excitement between the pages of “Run For Your Life” but overall came off as unbelievable. This is the second installment in the Michael Bennett series.
Disclosure in Accordance with FTC Guidelines 16 CFR Part 255
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
Faith and her family are spending the holidays at their cottage in Sanpere Island in Maine. Her husband, Reverend Thomas Fairchild, is recuperating from surgery. The couple really looked forward to this time in Sanpere Island because it was not too often they got to spend some family time together. What a place to be for the holidays. There were plenty of enjoyable winter sports to keep them busy.
It did not take long for this nice, relaxing holiday to turn into something frightening. On a trip to the Sanpere Historical Society, Faith discovers a body in an antique sleigh that is decorated for the Christmas holidays. The victim, Norah, was a teen drug addict. What happened to the young girl? Did she die of a drug overdose? Was she murdered?
Things do not get dull as a local resident, Mary Bethany, who raises goats, finds a newborn baby in a manger in her barn on Christmas Eve. There was a note asking her to take care of the baby. A large amount of cash was left with the baby also. How did the baby get there? Is there any relation to the body found in the sleigh?
Mary asks Faith to help her find the identity of the baby’s mother. What they discover is more than they imagined.
Katherine Hall Page has won several awards for her cozy mysteries. The Body in the Sleigh is one of her best to date. This storyline has more of a deeper plot compared to your normal cozy mystery. It’s one that will keep you reading late into the night to find out what will happen next. Also, there are some really “yummy” recipes at the end of the book.
A copy of this book was supplied to the reviewer by the publisher.
Reviewed by Mary Ebert
Alexis has the feel of a Sam Spade novel even though it has the tech and characterizations of today’s PI novels. It just feels like Bogart is the narrator. The fuzzy feeling of being wrapped in a warm blanket drinking something old fashioned and smoothly alcoholic just pours right off the page. All this and you don’t feel like you have to go 12 step meeting after finishing it.
Perhaps what creates this feeling is that most modern PI novels end up being more buddy-type books then actual PI novels. Does Dan have help with his case, yeah! But each person has their own life and it doesn’t feel like they are waiting for Dan to need them. There is his lover who is an erotic dancer at his favorite gentleman’s club. He shares, office space and a secretary with his friend, who is also his accountant. His secretary is a little moony over him and won’t be getting the time of day from him any time soon.
On his way back from an out-of-town job he does what any hardboiled PI would, stop by the club to enjoy the scenery and have a few drinks. And that, my friends is when things start to get interesting. He picks up a job from the owner of the club. It seems one of the new girls lives in a neighborhood that the owner isn’t fond of and he wants Dan to spend a few days just checking things over. This should be nothing but a babysitting job. That is until the baby turns up missing. But wait Dan’s problems don’t stop there.
Dan is hired by a lawyer to follow a spouse. She wants to find out what really happens on her husband’s “boy’s night on the town.” Shockingly boy’s night ends with him alone with a beautiful young lady in her house. Isn’t that where all boys’ nights are supposed to end? Anyway getting back to the lawyer, two days after Dan hands in his findings his subject is killed by the lady he spent the evening with. That just doesn’t sit well with him.
What I like about this book is that it kept me confused. It’s hard for a book to do that when you read for a living. No one in the book is simple. Everyone has a flaw or three in this book and they hit you when you least expect it. After all who would expect high class business men to hang out in the neighborhood this club is in? Who would think that the owner of a strip joint would care what his girls did after work? And most of all, who would think that a hard PI would give a damn about any of it? They all do and it makes them people you actually care about.
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A review copy of this book was supplied to the reviewer by the author.
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
Andrea Kane is one of my favorite authors and it is always a treat to read her latest book.
Agent Slone Burbank’s mother is attacked in her Manhattan apartment. The apartment is ransacked. It soon becomes apparent that this is no random robbery.
Thirteen years ago Matthew Burbank and his partners were witnesses to a crime that took place overseas. He now realizes that being a witness to this crime has come back to bring danger into life.
Matthew Burbank tells the whole story to his daughter, Sloane, but he does not want her to tell to anyone else. This makes it very difficult for Sloane because the man on the case is FBI Special Agent Derek Parker who is the man she is in love with. What does she do? She knows she must talk to Derek and tell him what happened but how can she do this to her father?
Danger prevails and there are so many things happening at the same time you will need a scorecard to help you keep straight.
Andrea Kane is a master at writing a suspense novel. She will keep the reader on the edge of their seat through the entire book making one wonder what is going to happen next. The story gets more exciting with the turn of each page. I have read all of Andrea Kane’s books. They are all excellent but I think this one is the best yet!
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
Kimberly McDaniels, a supermodel, is kidnapped after a photo shoot in Hawaii. Henri Benoit, the person who kidnapped Kimberly, works for a group of wealthy people, known as The Alliance, who enjoy a very strange and sick sort of entertainment. Everything the man did to Kimberly was videotaped for the group to view. When I say everything I mean the act of violence also included decapitation. After Benoit does one job the group is ready for something even sicker the next time.
Kimberly’s parents receive a phone call informing them their daughter is in danger. They board a plane and fly to Hawaii to try and find Kim. They soon meet Ben Hawkins an ex-cop who is now a reporter. Kimberly’s parents believe that having Ben on their side would be a plus since he works as a reporter.
Benoit had his own plans for Hawkins. He hired him to write all about the killings he had done in his life. Just to make sure Hawkins did a good job of writing his life story, Benoit let him know that he knew exactly where to locate Ben’s girlfriend.
Is Ben able to keep himself and his girlfriend alive?
James Patterson has included some gruesome acts to this story but after all it is about a psychopath killer. The story moves along at a rapid pace and held my attention. I always love the quick chapters that do not drag on to take up space. This author gets right to the point. There is plenty of suspense to keep the reader busy even if some of the story is predictable. If you are a James Patterson fan, you will enjoy this book.
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
There are not too many books that really grab me from the very first page and will not let go until I have read the entire novel but Fugitive is one of them.
Charlie Marsh, a con man serving time, becomes a hero when he saved the life of a warden of a penitentiary during a prison riot. Once out of prison, it does not take Charlie very long to get into trouble again. This time he is accused of killing a congressman.
Charlie is now on the run and has been living in Batanga, Africa for many years. He is now a confidant of African President Jean Claude Baptiste who is known to be a little strange and power-mad. Charlie, who just cannot behave himself, is having a fling with Baptiste’s wife. He should have known that sooner or later Baptiste would find out. Sure enough Baptiste knows of the affair and Charlie soon figured that out too. Charlie knows he must be on the run again. Where does he go? He cannot stay in Africa so he heads back to the United States to face the murder charges for the congressman.
Criminal lawyer, Amanda Jaffe, has her hands full with Charlie. She has to keep him off death row, protect him from Babtiste’s police who are surely looking for him and something else. What is it? You will have to read the book to find out!
Fugitive is a terrific thriller. You almost have to laugh at Charlie because he is always getting into trouble and does not seem to know any better. I guarantee this book will keep you glued to the pages. It’s an exhilarating read that will take you on a fast, exciting ride as Charlie starts to run. There is not a dull moment within the pages. Phillip Margolin does a masterful job as a storyteller. Be sure to read this book.
Reviewed by Nancy Eaton
In most novels, you don’t know who the killer is until the very end of the book. The Scarecrow is just the opposite. You know whom the killer is from very early on. Michael Connelly then takes the reader on a very thrilling ride as newspaper reporter, Jack McEvoy, tries to catch the killer.
Things have been going downhill for Jack lately. His marriage did not last very long and now he is told that the newspaper is cutting back and he would no longer have a job. As Jack stated, it is not called getting a pink slip anymore but a reduction in force. To make matters worse, Jack is asked to train his own replacement.
Jack is working on his last story involving a sixteen-year-old drug dealer who confesses to the murder of an exotic dancer. Her body was found in the trunk of a car. Jack receives a call from the young man’s mother telling him that her boy is not guilty. Jack soon realizes that the young man could very well be innocent. He then makes a connection between this murder and another one in Las Vegas. This could be one of Jack’s most sensational stories. He heads for Las Vegas. He also has the help of Rachael Walling, an FBI investigator.
There is a problem. What Jack does not realize is that the killer is always one step ahead of him!
Will Jack and Rachael find the killer before it is too late?
Michael Connelly is one of the best at writing mystery novels. With the Scarecrow, he is at the top of his game. I have read many of his books and this one is the best yet. I really liked the character of Jack McEvoy who really fits in so well with the sharp storyline. Michael Connelly is a master at taking the reader back and forth from McEvoy’s thoughts to the killer’s. Don’t pass on The Scarecrow. Read it and you will see why Michael Connelly is one of the greatest writers around today!
Afraid means filled with fear or apprehension and is much too mild a word to describe the feelings of the residents of Safe Haven, Wisconsin when five men invade the town. These five men are members of a Red-Ops group. The five all have backgrounds of violent behavior. The group have been specially trained and programmed to kill. Now the five want an answer to one question.
No one in the town seems to be able to answer the question so the residents die and no one dies an easy death. Safe Haven is shortly reduced to a ghost town.
Fran Stauffer, a single mother, who has just had an encounter with one of the group and escaped, has one thought only. That thought is to reach her son Duncan and take him to safety.
Sheriff Ace Streng knows that the group is looking for his brother but he doesn’t know why. Sheriff Streng is getting old and ready for retirement but all of his training kicks in and he puts up a good fight against the group.
Josh Van Camp is a fire fighter who joins Fran and the Sheriff in an attempt to destroy the five. How can one aging Sheriff, a young fire fighter and a single mom ever hope to survive against such odds? Fran’s son Duncan and his dog Woof help the group more than you would think.
Afraid is not a book for the faint-hearted. It is full of evil and violent acts. Afraid also reveals how ordinary people faced with extraordinary circumstances can find strength they did not know they possessed.
Afraid is definitely not a cozy but if you aren’t afraid pick up a copy for an excellent read. Before you begin to read, be sure your doors are locked and you have candles ready in case the lights go out.
REVIEWED BY PATRICIA REID