MYSTERIES in PARADISE

Review: THE DEPTHS, Yrsa Sigurdadottir

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 27 Sep 2026 00:14:25 +0000

this edition supplied by my local library
first published in Icelandic in 2023
Translated from Icelandic to English by Victoria Cribb
Published by Hodder & Stoughton UK 2026
ISBN 9-781399-722964
363 pages
Black Ice #3

Just how low do people sink to get away with murder?

A human skull unearthed on the outskirts of Reykjavík.
A neighbourhood dispute turned deadly.
A daughter, trapped at sea, looking for answers.

What police officers Týr and Karó don’t know is that these events are all linked through a terrible tragedy, many years ago, when a trawler caught fire on the waves, the crew trapped inside.

The answers lie buried at the bottom of the cold Icelandic Sea.

My Take

You always know that these three separate stories will coincide but part of the cleverness of the plot is that it is almost impossible until the last act to see how. And meanwhile the stories develop, get lives of their own. And you hang in there because you know somehow IT will happen.

Highly recommended.

My Rating: 4.7

I've also read

4.8, SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME

5.0, THE SILENCE OF THE SEA

4.8, WHY DID YOU LIE?

4.9, THE PREY

4.5, THE DAY IS DARK

4.8, CAN'T RUN, CAN'T HIDE - Black Ice #1

4.8, THE WAKE - Black Ice #2

Review: TRUTH TRUTH LIE, Claire McGowan

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 03:04:25 +0000

this edition published by Thomas & Mercer 2024 (an imprint of Amazon Publishing)
supplied by my local library
ISBN-13: 9781662513862
330 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

Everyone here has killed someone.

There is no way off this island.

You will all either kill or be killed here.

One of these statements is a lie. But which one?

Amira’s less than thrilled to be spending the weekend with her husband’s university friends. Two of them are hosting a joint fortieth on a private Scottish island, with vintage champagne, expensive gifts, and soaks in the wood-fired hot tub. Despite the luxury, Amira knows she’s going to feel left out, not to mention freezing cold and cut off.

When they decide to play ‘two truths and a lie’, anonymously posting three statements about themselves into a box, years of resentment start bubbling to the surface. And then an extra slip of paper emerges, scrawled with three chilling threats. Who wrote it? And are two of the statements really true—have they all been responsible for someone’s death?

With no phone reception and no way off the island, the group are trapped here until the end of the weekend. And as tension rises and secrets are spilled, they can’t shake the feeling that they’re not the only ones here. Is someone watching them? Someone who wants them dead? Or is it one of them who has murder in mind?

My Take

A variant of a plot used by Agatha Christie, and more recently a number of others. A group of people dropped on an island supposedly to enjoy themselves but right on the first night things begin to go wrong, plans backfire, and one dies. And then things get even worse.

A rather chilling thriller which has the reader guessing. For the record, I got most of it right but there was one little bit that I didn't "see".

My rating: 4.6

About the author
Born in Northern Ireland, Claire published her first novel in 2012, and has followed it up with many others in the crime fiction genre and also in women’s fiction (writing as Eva Woods). Writing thrillers for Thomas & Mercer, she has sold over a million books and has had several number-one bestsellers. She ran the UK’s first MA in crime writing for five years, and regularly teaches and talks about writing. Her first non-fiction project, the true crime book The Vanishing Triangle, was released in 2021. She also writes scripts and has several original projects in development for TV, as well as having four radio dramas broadcast. Several of her novels are in development as television series. She lives in London and would love to hear from readers via her website (www.clairemcgowan.co.uk) or on Twitter (@inkstainsclaire), Instagram (@clairemcgowanwriter) or Facebook (www.facebook.com/ClaireMcGowanAuthor)

Review: A DISORGANISED DEATH, Simon Brett

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 20 Sep 2026 19:28:55 +0000

this edition from my local library
published by Severn House 2026
#5 in the Decluttering series
ISBN 987-1-4483-1469-0
178 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

Ellen Curtis – professional declutterer, amateur sleuth and woman of a certain age – hunts for a missing will with a killer bequest in this gripping mystery from the original king of British cosy crime, Simon Brett.

Professional declutterer Ellen Curtis doesn’t do house clearances. So when Tamara Nicklin, owner of a local gastropub, asks Ellen to clear her late father’s house, she’s not interested . . . even when Tamara admits that the real reason she wants to hire Ellen is to find his missing will.

Then Ellen discovers Tamara’s husband has plans for the house. Plans Tamara doesn’t know about. And it’s clear to Ellen that this is the right job for her, after all.

Ellen dives in, and what she finds in the dead man’s house soon makes her wonder if Tamara’s father really fell down the stairs, or if he was pushed. Can she sort through the secrets and lies to find not just the missing will – but the truth?

My Take

This is another book that takes the reader into a world with which they are probably not all that familiar, but a scenario that is becoming more common in today's culture, where most of us have simply accumulated and accumulated. Many resort to a mini-skip on the front lawn, but for others willing to pay, the services of a declutterer are required to ensure that nothing important is lost.

There are two stories in this novel, both dealing with a search for a will, and then making sure the right will is actioned.

Perhaps once again I have come into this series from the wrong end. This is #5. My own advice to readers is always to start at #1 and to allow the author to share their character development with you. I didn't particularly "take to" the main character Ellen nor to the members of her immediate family. I can see where the author is laying ground for more in the series, so I should go back and read earlier titles some time.

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

BLOOD AT THE BOOKIES
THE POISONING IN THE PUB
4.4, THE SHOOTING IN THE SHOP
4.3, SO MUCH BLOOD
4.2, A DECENT INTERVAL
4.5, BONES UNDER THE BEACH HUT
4.2, GUNS IN THE GALLERY
4.6, THE CORPSE ON THE COURT
4.3, THE STRANGLING ON THE STAGE
4.2, THE CINDERELLA KILLER
4.5, THE TOMB IN TURKEY
4.4, CHARLES PARIS: MURDER UNPROMPTED
4.2, CHARLES PARIS: CORPORATE BODIES
4.4, THE KILLING IN THE CAFE
4.4, THE LIAR IN THE LIBRARY

Major Bricket series

Review: HOW TO KILL A CLIENT, Joanna Jenkins

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 20 Sep 2026 18:57:26 +0000

this edition a paperback from my local library
published 2025 ( first published 2023)
Allen & Unwin
ISBN 978-1-76147-137-7
384 pages
2023 Ned Kelly Award for Best Debut Crime Novel (nominee) : How to Kill a Client

Synopsis (publisher)

'Everyone is going to say what a great guy and a great lawyer he was. He wasn't. He was a prick … And a shithouse lawyer.'

Gavin Jones is dead at thirty-nine. As an in-house lawyer who controlled millions of dollars in fees per year, he was legal firm Howard Greene's biggest client and wielded that power with manipulative contempt. But he saved his worst behaviour for women, at work and at home.

The partners of Howard Greene relied on his favour to fund their lavish lifestyles. If sycophantic admiration of the man was all it took to secure work from Gavin, that's what they delivered.

But no one liked Gavin. The list of those who suffered from his cruelty was long enough to include pretty much everyone who had contact with him. So who actually killed him?

A fast-paced and wickedly funny thriller about power and revenge set in the pristine towers of capitalism, How to Kill a Client is a scorching debut straight out of tomorrow's headlines.

My Take

I am reading these books all out of order, having read #3 in the series first.

This novel is quite a heavy, almost academic read, the setting a world with which most of us are not familiar. Ruth Dawson is a founding member of a law firm Howard Greene, recently returned to work after the death of her husband when he is hit on the road while cycling.

Ruth agrees to move to Brisbane to the branch of the law firm, where some big projects will bring in millions. One of their clients is Gavin Jones, a mysogynist, who is not above appropriating the work of others and presenting it as his own. When he belittles the work of one of the newish female partners of Howard Greene she fantasises about a way to kill him and then shortly afterwards he dies. When the police investigators identify his death as murder, it becomes obvious that there are many who had a motive.

I can see that, having read #3 in the series first, I am going to have some problems in keeping Ruth's timeline straight.

There is no doubt that the author is one to add to my "watch" list.

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

4.7, BAD NEIGHBOURS - #3

Review: THE WATER'S EDGE, Karin Fossum

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 16 Sep 2026 07:17:11 +0000

This title made available as an e-book by my local library on Libby
#8 in the Inspector Sejer series
Published in 2009 by Random House
Translated into English from Norwegian by Charlotte Barslund

Synopsis (Fantastic Fiction)
A married couple, Reinhardt and Kristine Ris, are out for a Sunday walk when they discover the body of a boy and see the figure of a man limping away. They alert the police, but not before Reinhardt, to Kristine's horror, kneels down and takes photographs of the dead child with his cell phone.

Inspectors Konrad Sejer and Jakob Skarre begin to make inquiries in the little town of Solberglia. But then another boy disappears, and an explanation seems more remote than ever. Meanwhile, the Ris's marriage starts to unravel as Reinhardt becomes obsessed with the tragic events and his own part in them.

My Take

It is nearly 10 years since I have read a book by this author and I had forgotten how good they are. It was almost meeting up again with old friends.

Karin Fossum is a Norwegian author and her novels owe a lot to the atmospheric setting. In many ways the novels are police procedurals but they also are related to themes of modern times: in this case paedophilia, and what leads some men to target children. Sejer and Skarr are methodical and sensitive. In a side-theme Kristine Ris is trapped in a loveless marriage to a man she has come to both fear and hate.

My rating: 4.6

I've also read

Review: DEAD MED, Freida McFadden

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 05:11:17 +0000

this title from my local library
published by AmazonAu 2024
460 pages
originally published Suicide Med

Synopsis (AmazonAu)

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden comes an electrifying medical thriller, Dead Med, originally published as Suicide Med.

"All I can think about is how pathetic it would be to die in the anatomy lab. The last thing I want is to become one of the dead bodies."

When Heather McKinley dreamed of becoming a doctor, she imagined curing sick kids and sporting pink stethoscopes. She never anticipated the sleepless nights, grueling exams, and endless labs. And she certainly never knew that her medical school earned the nickname Dead Med thanks to the tragic history of students overdosing on illegal drugs.

But Heather would never consider doing anything like that. That is, until her longtime boyfriend dumps her, she finds herself failing anatomy, and her world starts to crumble.

Everyone has a breaking point.

Then, on the night before the final exam in anatomy, a shot rings out through the hallways of Dead Med.

The school has claimed yet another casualty. One of Heather's classmates has done the unthinkable, and before her desperate 911 call even connects, it will happen again.

And the night is just beginning.

My Take

The story follows the lives and interactions of students studying a year of anatomy at the DeWitt Medical School. Five students are thrown together working on one cadaver. The school has the reputation of being riddled with drug abuse and stress brought on by the demands of their studies. We see the same events from a number of points of view.

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

4.5, THE TENANT

4.5, DO NOT DISTURB

4.5, WANT TO KNOW A SECRET?

Review: THE BUTLER, Clare Mackintosh

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 04:39:02 +0000

This edition from my local library
Published in 2026 by Podium Publishing
ISBN 979-8-3470-0926-8
199 pages

Synopsis (Amazon)

The South of France is stunning, though not without its imperfections, from pickpockets to burglars to the occasional cold-blooded killer. But in his twenty-five years of service, Baxter—with a spotless reputation as a polished, well-mannered butler—has never run into any issues catering to the ultrawealthy. Until now.

Baxter’s latest assignment is at Villa Sérénité, where Alec Prescott is hosting a colorful cast of characters, including his ex-wife, his much younger lady friend, and some Hollywood hotshots, after the Cannes Film Festival. But it doesn’t take long for a week of sun, wine, and a family birthday celebration to devolve into bickering and backstabbing. And soon, secrets aren’t the only thing floating to the surface . . .

When one of the guests is found dead in the villa’s glittering pool, the unflappable Baxter must assist the gendarmes in determining who’s responsible. With some standing to gain and others motivated to take it away, fingers are pointed in all directions. A good butler is expected to see everything and say nothing—but what if he too becomes a target?

My Take

The family from hell is celebrating a 21st birthday until one of them ends up on the bottom of the pool. The local police don't have much time to solve the murder but they tell the remaining members of the family they can't leave until the murderer is nabbed. There is a touch of humour when Baxter the butler enlists a local pickpocket to help him work out who committed the murder.

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

Review: SOFTLY CALLS THE DEVIL, Chris Blake

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 04:08:05 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on Libby through my local library
Publisher: Bonnier Books UK, 352 pages
Release date: November 4, 2025
Formats: OverDrive Read
ISBN: 9781786585417

Synopsis (publisher)

Things are going well for Matt Buchanan. After some hard times, life is peaceful as sole-charge constable for the small, isolated settlement of Haast on New Zealand's wild West Coast. He's made friends among the locals, won their trust. He keeps their little world safe. And he's working in spectacular surroundings - the fierce Tasman Sea, the dense beech forest, the dark, cold swamps, the snowy Southern Alps.

But then his much-loved predecessor, Gus, is discovered beside a river with a bullet through his head. He'd been looking into a disturbing murder-suicide from 1978: the parents' bodies were found, but not their daughter's. Suspecting a darker truth, Matt is certain the answers can't be too far away in this close-knit community.

How does former forest service ranger Liam, with his gang links, fit into the story? What about Joe, the alcoholic hermit whose knowledge and intelligence seem so at odds with his appearance and lifestyle?

Tensions rise, there are more deaths, people are threatened, memories surface of a cult that went horribly wrong ... Even when support arrives, Matt finds himself pursuing a case that's well outside his remit and is taking him to places he'd sooner not revisit. Also part of an increasingly terrifying situation are an over-curious journalist and a woman who could be someone special.

Matt has managed to shun his own demons, and is desperate not to face them again, but when confronted by the devil himself, he must take action, rediscover something of the person he was - for his own sake and to save those he loves.
This is the work of an award-winning master storyteller. Fast-moving, spare, compelling and rich in laconic humour, Softly Calls the Devil will grab you from the first page and refuse to let go.

My Take

This is basically a police procedural with a distinctive rural New Zealand flavour. Matt Buchanan has been a metropolitan CIB detective but is now a sole-charge constable in an isolated rural community.

His predecessor has been found dead and Matt discovers the case he was looking into was a cold case from 25 years earlier: a murder suicide where a young girl went missing and was never found. The case appears to have been linked to a nearby hippy community but the police investigation got nowhere.

The rural setting and the time frame of the original case provide tantalising elements which reach out into the present.

My rating: 4.6

About the author

Chris Blake was born and raised in Auckland. He served briefly in the New Zealand Army's Reserve Force before joining the New Zealand Police in 2006.

His debut novel, The Sound of Her Voice (published under the pseudonym Nathan Blackwell), was a double finalist in the 2018 Ngaio Marsh Awards for best novel and best first novel. Chris was an assistant storyboarder for season two of the crime drama television series, The Gulf, released in 2021.

Review: DARK DESERT ROAD, Tim Ayliffe

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Mon, 07 Sep 2026 23:43:42 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on Libby through my local library
Pub Date: 6 January 2026, Echo Publishing Australia
Extent: 400 pages
Ebook ISBN: 9781786587220

Synopsis (publisher)

A fugitive sister. A dangerous father. A terror cell hiding in plain sight.

Kit McCarthy hasn't seen her identical twin sister, Billie, in more than a decade.

The sisters don't see eye to eye, which is understandable, considering Kit's a police officer and Billie followed their violent father into a life of crime.

Kit is no angel. Burnt out by years working in child protection, she has been accused of using excessive force in the arrest of a violent drunk. Kit has just been ordered to take time off work when she gets a frantic message from Billie, telling her she has a young son and that somebody is trying to kill her.

And then Billie disappears.

Determined to find her estranged sister, Kit's only lead comes after visiting their father in prison. Malcolm McCarthy claims Billie married a former United States Marine and has been living with a group of sovereign citizens in the desert country of the New South Wales Riverina.

Kit's journey to find Billie takes her through shuttered towns destroyed by drought, where everybody owns guns, nobody talks to cops, and people get lost for a reason.

Out here a war is brewing between a ruthless bikie gang and a separatist community that is re-engaging with society in the most violent way.

Kit will risk everything to find her sister and the nephew she never knew she had.

But does Billie really want to be saved?

My Take

A very confronting story, revealing to the reader a section of the Australian population that I am not familiar with.

Issues: extremism, sovereign citizens, social fracture, anti-government conspiracies.

Tightly plotted. Most of the characters you would hope never to meet. It felt very credible. An author I have never read before.

My rating: 4.7

About the author

Tim Ayliffe is an award-winning author whose thriller novels have been informed by his 25-year global career as a journalist. He writes about crime, espionage, extremism and the global power games at play in the 21st Century. He has been the Managing Editor of Television and Video for ABC News and also Executive Producer of News Breakfast. He is the author of the ‘John Bailey’ series including The Greater Good, State of Fear, The Enemy Within, Killer Traitor Spy – which won the People’s Choice Award at the 2024 Danger Awards – and The Wrong Man. Tim's thrillers are also in development for TV. He lives in Sydney.

REview: WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS, Agatha Christie

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 06 Sep 2026 02:38:54 +0000

This edition read as an e-book
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0046A9MZO (AmazonAU)
Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 14 October 2010
Originally published 1934, (aka THE BOOMERANG CLUE)
Print length ‏ : ‎ 305 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007422906
my earlier review

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

When a man plunges down a cliff, two adventurous young friends decide to find his killer…

While playing an erratic round of golf, Bobby Jones slices his ball over the edge of a cliff. His ball is lost, but on the rocks below he finds the crumpled body of a dying man. With his final breath the man opens his eyes and says, ‘Why didn’t they ask Evans?’

Haunted by these words, Bobby and his vivacious companion, Frankie, set out to solve a mystery that will bring them into mortal danger…

My Take

I have read this story for the umpteenth time for discussion with my U3A Agatha Christie discussion group. I think I covered the main discussion points in my earlier review on this blog which I posted over 15 years ago.

The story has a large cast of characters and the plot gets quite complicated and messy.

The Wikipedia account is helpful.

Here are the discussion points which I intend to raise:

the rather obvious class differences between the characters
the fact that both Bobby and Frankie are rather gullible in the way they react to other characters
and the fact that eventually they owe their lives to the person they both have a pretty low opinion of.
the romantic element - more than one romance.
the irony that the character "Evans" is actually a person that Bobby should have thought of first (although, to be fair, she had changed her name)
what was the motive for the murder?
What did you think of the murderer getting away with it? Was justice done?
When the book was first published what would readers have liked or not liked?

After our discussion we will watch a television version which introduced Miss Marple (portrayed by Julia McKenzie) into the story.

My rating: 4.4

All my Agatha Christie reviews.

Review: PAPER CAGE, Tom Baragwanath

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 05 Sep 2026 06:59:08 +0000

This edition an e-book from Borrowbox through my local library
Published 30 August 2022, Text Publishing
ISBN 9781922791023
Extent 320pp

Synopsis (publisher)

Winner of the 2021 Michael Gifkins Prize, this thrilling debut unravels a series of mysterious child abductions in a small New Zealand town.

Masterton isn’t a big town. The community’s tight, if not always harmonious. So when a child goes missing it’s a big deal for everyone. And when a second kid disappears, the whole town’s holding their own children that little bit tighter.

Lorraine doesn’t have kids, but she has a nephew. She’s holding him a bit tighter, too, because she works for the police, and she knows they don’t have any idea.

Lo’s not a cop, she’s a records clerk. She sits out back among the piles of paper, making connections, remembering things. Working things out that the actual cops don’t want to hear about.

Until the new investigator, Hayes, arrives from Wellington, and realises Lo’s the only person there with answers to any of his questions. Which is just as well—because the clock is running down for the children of the town.

Both a nail-biting thriller and a beautifully written, acutely observed portrait of a community, Paper Cage is the prize-winning debut from young New Zealand novelist Tom Baragwanath.

My Take

Always difficult to write crime fiction set in your home town. The community is concerned with the disappearance of three children and Lorraine knows the clock is ticking.

Themes covered: low socio-economic effects, simmering race relations, gang-related violence and drug and alcohol-fuelled suburban culture. The abducted children are from fragmented families and haven't had the best start in life, but they are loved. Their families are bewildered by what has happened, and the police seem to think their abduction is the result of gang warfare.

Sections of the story are narrated by different points of view, and the style and the language, particularly local idioms, were at times a challenge for the reader.

Lucky Thing by Tom Baragwanath (Text Publishing) is on the longlist for best novel 2026 Ngaio Marsh Awards.

My rating: 4.6

About the author

Tom Baragwanath is originally from Masterton, New Zealand, and now lives in Paris with his young family. His first novel, Paper Cage, was published by Text to international acclaim.

Review: MAJOR BRICKET AND THE BODY IN THE BELL TOWER, Simon Brett

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 05:48:12 +0000

this edition from my local library
published by Constable in 2026
ISBN 978-1-40872-133-9
242 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

For Major Bricket, attending church in his village of Stunston Peveril in Suffolk is a good way to keep up with the village gossip. Having only recently retired from a career where he was privy to many international secrets, the Major likes to stay in the know.

Events take a turn one Sunday though when, after the morning service, Major Bricket notices the door to the bell tower open... and finds a body at the bottom of the stairs.

The dead man is dressed in a suit and dog collar. But who is he? And could someone in Stunston Peveril have killed him?

Perhaps predictably, most of the village residents seem more concerned with the Parish Council flower arranging rota than the mysterious corpse.

Major Bricket will have to rely on his long-nurtured detection skills, and his trusted friends Nga Luong and Rod, to solve the case.

My Take

Not quite so cozy as the first in the series: a little more violence occurs when Major Bricket is hunted down by an old Eastern European opponent. Bricket's partnership with local restaurant owner Nga Luong and teenager Rod Enright is developing nicely as are the local characters added into the story. This is a series you will need to read from the beginning. I am enjoying the quirky nature of the story.

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

Major Bricket series

4.4, MAJOR BRICKET AND THE CIRCUS CORPSE -#1

Review: MAJOR BRICKET AND THE CIRCUS CORPSE, Simon Brett

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 05:25:16 +0000

this edition supplied by my local library
published Constable 2025
ISBN 978-1-40872-130-8
232 pages
#1 Major Bricket Mystery

Synopsis (publisher)

Introducing a new, but not-so-amateur, sleuth from another peaceful English village with an alarmingly high death rate! The first mystery in a new cosy series from one of the world's favourite crime writers - perfect for fans of Richard Osman, Janice Hallett, Robert Thorogood and M. C. Beaton.
_______________________

Meet Major Bricket, an infrequent resident of Highfield House in Stunston Peveril, Suffolk. In the past the Major's work assignments, frequently in foreign countries, have prevented him from spending much time there and a result, there is an air of mystery around him while everyone in the village speculates on the nature of his occupation.

But now the Major has retired and has come home for good in his open-topped little red sports car... and what a homecoming it is, for lying spreadeagled on his lawn in the summer sunshine is the corpse of a clown.

The circus is in Stunston Peveril for the annual village fair, yet none of their quota of clowns is missing - or at least, nobody is saying. Could the body be that of an unfortunate early guest at the village's highlight of the social calendar, the Fincham Abbey Costume Ball?

Fortunately Major Bricket's past clandestine career means that he is now very well placed to solve the mystery of the dead clown on his camomile lawn . . .

My Take

The beginning of a new series of cozies, with a couple of characters who have had a history in espionage, but are now apparently retired. As always with Simon Brett: interesting characters, and mysteries that are sufficiently engaging without being over the top or too noir, plus slightly quirky humour.

Not as good in my books as the Fethering Mysteries, but it is early days yet.

My rating: 4.4

Review: EVIL IN HIGH PLACES, Rory Clements

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 28 Aug 2026 11:26:37 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on BorrowBox through my local library
Published: 25 November 2025, by Viking Fiction
ISBN: 9780241728178
Pages: 416

Synopsis (Publisher)

THE CLOSER YOU GET, THE FURTHER YOU HAVE TO FALL.

Munich, 1936. All eyes are on the Bavarian capital for the upcoming Olympic games. As athletes fight for gold and the Nazis fight for power, Detective Sebastian Wolff faces a battle of his own.

A famous actress has disappeared and Wolff has been ordered to find her, fast. But Elena Lang is no ordinary film-star: she is the mistress of Joseph Goebbels - Hitler's right-hand-man in the party that Wolff despises.

But corruption runs deep in Munich and Elena is just the first to go missing. In a search that will take him from high society to the city's darkest corners, Wolff is about to learn just how easily the hunter becomes the hunted: this is a city on the brink of war, and some enemies are better left alone.

Walking the tightrope between justice and jeopardy, Evil in High Places is the gripping new historical thriller from the million-copy-bestseller, Rory Clements.

My Take

An excellent historical crime fiction set in 1936, Munich, in the lead up to and during the Olympics. Hitler has given orders that nothing is to detract from the image that Germany is attempting to display to the world of the success of Nazism: no violence, and particularly no crime or murders.

So Detective Seb Wolff is faced with problems when first of all a famous actress goes missing, and then a body is discovered, brutally murdered in the nearby forest. His superiors re-iterate that no-one can learn of either events: nothing must contravene Hitler's orders.

There is a mixture of real and fictional characters, real and fictional events, but we come away with the feeling that we better understand how things were in 1936.

My rating: 4.8

About the author
Rory Clements writes full time in a quiet corner of Norfolk. He was raised all over the world while his father served in the Royal Navy, an experience that went on to inspire Rory's beloved historical thrillers.

Previously a journalist for various papers, he is now a Sunday Times bestselling author, two-time winner and three-time nominee of the CWA Historical Dagger Award. His books have sold over 1 million copies to date.

Review: COLD RIVER, Margaret Hickey

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 00:12:27 +0000

this edition from my local library
published by Penguin Random House Australia 2026
ISBN 978-1-76135-111-2
353 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

Deep in the mountains, secrets grow deadly . . .

Senior Constable Sally White knows how easily hikers can go missing in Victoria’s High Country. But there’s something about the disappearance of Louis Taylor, a young man lost up Mount Viking, that’s not sitting right with her.

Louis was an aspiring journalist, researching the illegal tobacco trade – also known as chop chop – that was once so prevalent in the area. And the last person he interviewed before his hike has just met a gruesome end . . .

But with no other leads, and with the search winding down, Sally is forced to accept the young man died in a tragic accident.

Until she learns of another missing persons case that bears striking similarities. Astrid Marlowe, a young lawyer, vanished in the same mountains two years earlier.

Were Louis and Astrid simply unlucky hikers lost in the treacherous terrain? Or did they both stumble into something – or someone – they shouldn’t have?

My Take

This author was a "discovery" just four years ago and now her books are in the "not to be missed" category. This book is a stand-alone, set in the Victorian High Country, and I wouldn't be surprised if it eventually becomes the first in the series.

It hits on themes seen elsewhere: corruption in the Victorian police, the drug trade, and the close-connectedness of rural communities.

Sally White comes to rural policing with something that should be an advantage: her stepfather is the Assistant Commissioner, and a distinct disadvantage: her father is a criminal who has done time. But she loses on all fronts.

Sally is young, impetuous, and enthusiastic and she loves her job.That often gets her into trouble. Her bosses think she needs watching.

Highly recommended. If you get a chance to hear Margaret talk, make sure you take it.

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

4.7, CUTTER'S END - Mark Ariti #1

4.6, STONE TOWN - Mark Ariti #2

4.5, BROKEN BAY - Mark Ariti #3

4.8, CREEPER

4.6, AN ILL WIND

4.4, RURAL DREAMS - short stories

Review: HOW TO SOLVE YOUR OWN MURDER, Kristen Perrin

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 23 Aug 2026 01:28:07 +0000

this edition a paperback published in 2024 by Quercus
borrowed from my local library
ISBN 978-1-52943-006-6
376 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

FRANCES ALWAYS SAID SHE’D BE MURDERED.
SHE WAS RIGHT.

In 1965, Frances Adams was told by a fortune teller that one day she’d be murdered. Frances spent the next sixty years trying to prevent the crime that would be her eventual demise. Of course, no one took her seriously – until she was dead.

For Frances, being the village busybody was a form of insurance. She’d spent a lifetime compiling dirt on every person she met, just in case they might turn out to be her killer. In the heart of her sprawling country estate lies an eccentric library of detective work, where the right person could step in and use her findings to solve her murder.

When her great-niece Annie arrives from London and discovers that Frances’ worst fear has come true, Annie is thrust into her great-aunt’s last act of revenge against her sceptical friends and family. Frances’ will stipulates that the person who solves her murder will inherit her millions.

Can Annie unravel the mystery and find justice for Frances, or will digging up the past lead her into the path of the killer?

My Take

Set in two time frames, one of them narrated in diary format, this was a challenging novel for the author to pull off well. In my opinion, it could have done with much stricter editing. There were far too many characters for the reader to keep track of, and too many red herrings.

The two time frames are 60 years apart. In the first, in 1965, at the Castle Knoll Country Fair, Frances Adams has her fortune told and we are informed that the fortune will dictate the rest of her life. Sixty years later she calls some of her family together to reveal how her estate will be disposed of. Before they come together she is dead. Her will sets her inheritors against each other in a race to solve her murder.

Sixty years earlier a baby was born, and one of her friends disappeared. In the intervening period some of her contemporaries have of course died and other families have been augmented. This introduces an incredible level of complexity. Annie, her great-niece, does not know who to trust, and neither does the reader.

My rating: 4.0

About the author

Kristen Perrin is originally from Seattle, Washington, where she spent several years working as a bookseller before moving to the UK to do a master’s and a PhD. She lives with her family in Surrey, where she can be found poking around vintage bookstores, stomping in the mud with her two kids, and collecting too many plants. How To Solve Your Own Murder is her debut adult novel.

Review: BAD NEIGHBOURS, Joanna Jenkins

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 16 Aug 2026 04:46:59 +0000

this edition published 2026 by Allen & Unwin
ISBN 978-1-76147-401-9
384 pages

Synopsis (publisher)

From the bestselling author of How to Kill a Client and The Bluff comes a page-turning thriller of fraud and lies, murder and greed.

Ruth Dawson finds her ideal living space in an Art Deco building in Potts Point, The Lumen. A twenty-minute walk from her office in the city, the apartment boasts parquetry flooring, a wall of books and Harbour Bridge views from the sofa.

It's perfect until Ben, the homeless guy, dies under the corrugated iron lean-to in the garden where he lived.

The residents of The Lumen do little to hide their relief. They can cease their half-hearted attempts to find an acceptable solution to 'the Ben problem', and return to more important issues.

They're not happy when Ruth brings in a detective. But she's certain Ben was poisoned, and one of her neighbours knows it too.

My Take

I thoroughly enjoyed this thriller, a murder mystery with a touch of satirical humour. Ruth Dawson makes an interesting if reluctant sleuth, and the variety of characters who inhabit The Lumen keep the brain engaged with possible solutions.

I will certainly be reading more by this author.

My Rating: 4.7

About the author

Joanna Jenkins grew up on a small farm in country Queensland. After graduating from the University of Queensland with degrees in English Literature and Law, she practised as a solicitor, including for many years as a partner of an international law firm. She now writes full-time. Married with three sons, Joanna lives in Brisbane. Her debut novel, How to Kill a Client, was published in 2023. The Bluff, her second novel, was published in 2025.

Review: RESURRECTION BAY, Emma Viskic

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 15 Aug 2026 02:29:36 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on Libby through my local library
first published 2016
my review 2016
Finalist for the CWA (Crime Writers’ Association) Gold Dagger
Finalist for John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger Awards
2016 WINNER OF THREE DAVITT AWARDS: Best Adult Novel, Best Debut Book, Readers’ Choice Award
2016 WINNER OF THE NED KELLY AWARD for Best First Fiction
It was iBooks Australia’s Crime Novel of the Year and shortlisted for the UK’s prestigious Gold Dagger and New Blood Dagger Awards, and the US Barry Award.
Libby Reads ANZ (Zoom discussions August 2026)

Synopsis (publisher)

Caleb Zelic may be deaf, but he knows how to read people better than anyone. When his childhood friend is brutally murdered while helping him on an insurance case, Caleb vows to find the killer. But he can't do it alone. Caleb and his business partner Frankie, an ex-cop, start with one clue: Scott, the last word the victim texted to Caleb.

But chasing the elusive Scott leads them back to Caleb's hometown of Resurrection Bay. And it's here he learns that everyone – including his murdered friend – is hiding something. And the deeper he digs, the darker the secrets ...

My Take

I originally read this title very soon after it was first published. I am re-reading it so I can sit in on a Zoom meeting being held by Libby Reads ANZ (Zoom discussions August 2026). After re-reading the book, I think that I probably underestimated how good it actually was back in 2016. The plot is quite complex and has a couple of turnings that really nothing warns the reader about. It certainly has won, and been short-listed for, a number of local and even international awards.

One question I would like the author to answer in the Zoom discussion is why she made Caleb deaf.

My rating: 4.6

I've also read

4.3, RESURRECTION BAY
4.3, AND FIRE CAME DOWN
4.2, DARKNESS FOR LIGHT

Review: THE QUIET KILL, Robert Bryndza

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 15 Aug 2026 01:41:24 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on Kindle (AmazonAU)
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0GF8KRSZK
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Raven Street Publishing, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 7 July 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 378 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1914547386
Book 1 of 2 ‏ : ‎ Detective Jamie Day

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

The start of a thrilling new crime series from Robert Bryndza, the multi-million bestselling author of the Detective Erika Foster and P.I. Kate Marshall series.

Winter, 1987. Detective Jamie Day arrives in London determined to prove himself. After years policing a quiet seaside town, his promotion to the Metropolitan Police feels like the opportunity he has been waiting for.

But the capital is a very different world.

On his first day in plain clothes, Jamie makes a grim discovery: the dismembered body of a young man, left in a dark corner of the city. What should have been a routine first shift quickly becomes the beginning of a major murder investigation.

Then another victim is found.

As winter deepens, young men are being killed late at night across London, their bodies discovered in eerily similar circumstances. The detectives soon realise they may be hunting a serial killer.

Working alongside a tough and experienced team, Jamie must prove he belongs while navigating the pressures of a high-profile investigation. But as the case grows darker, the killer’s pattern begins to emerge. And if they don’t stop him soon, another body will be waiting in the shadows.

The Quiet Kill, is the latest page-turner from multi-million bestselling author Robert Bryndza, so gripping it will keep you reading long past bedtime.

My Take

I jumped at the opportunity to begin a new series with this author. In contrast to his earlier two series the central figure is a young male detective, new to London. Detective Constable Jamie Day is dropped into the beginning of a series of grisly murders on his first day on the job. Jamie is raw and inexperienced and anxious to learn.

It is 1987, fear of AIDS is at its height, and the technology revolution is still about to impact: pagers not mobile phones and criminals are a little harder to track. I think the author does a good job of recreating the world of 40 years ago.

My rating: 4.6

I've also read

Erika Foster

Kate Marshall

Review: MURDER IN THE CATHEDRAL, Kerry Greenwood

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 09:22:00 +0000

this edition published by Allen & Unwin 2025
ISBN 978-1-76087-934-1
308 pages
#25 in the Phryne Fisher series

Synopsis (publisher)

The indefatigable Miss Phryne Fisher returns to solve what may be her most puzzling murder.
When Phryne Fisher is invited to Bendigo to witness the investiture of her old friend Lionel, who is being made a Bishop, her expectations of the solemn and dignified ceremony do not include a murder.

Phryne quickly involves herself with perspicacious local Constable Watson and eagle-eyed Detective Inspector Mick Kelly as they identify the murder victim - an overzealous deacon with a nose for trouble.

Applying her quick wits and magnetic charm, Phryne and her expanding team of sleuths discover murky layers of church politics, social scandals and business scams and blackmail. Soon, various suspects begin to populate a long list, each with excellent motives to kill.

Meanwhile the clock is ticking ... Will Phryne be able to bring to light the proof she needs before the murderer strikes again or disappears completely?

My Take

A friend who is about to be inducted as the Bishop of Bendigo asks Phryne to attend his induction because he wants to discuss something with her. His predecessor had some concerns that had been raised by his Dean. But before the ceremony is over the Dean is dead, stabbed in the heart as he sat in his pew. And of course no one saw a thing!

Phryne and Dot become part of the investigation unravelling a number of themes which of course end up being connected.

This the author's last novel, not only the last in the Phryne Fisher series, but is also posted posthumously. Check the article about her on Wikipedia.

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

4.5, A QUESTION OF DEATH - anthology of short stories set in 1928

Review: MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, Agatha Christie

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 05:08:06 +0000

This edition read on my Kindle (AmazonAU)
Book 10 of 38: Hercule Poirot
originally published 1934
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0046H95PO
Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 14 October 2010
Print length ‏ : ‎ 289 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007422579
(aka MURDER IN THE CALAIS COACH)

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

Agatha Christie’s most famous murder mystery.

Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in its tracks. The luxurious train is surprisingly full for the time of the year, but by the morning it is one passenger fewer. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside.

Isolated and with a killer in their midst, detective Hercule Poirot must identify the murderer – in case he or she decides to strike again.

My Take

I have read this story several times before, but this time for discussion with my U3A Agatha Christie Reading Group. We have read several Poirot mysteries now.

In this one, Hercule Poirot carries out an investigation into the murder on the Orient Express of a man who has escaped the penalty for murder himself by bribery. He works with two other people: M. Bouc, the director of the railroad company, and Dr Constantine. At the end of the investigation he propounds two solutions.

I think there must have been considerable outcry amongst readers about the final solution, but to me it also fits in with other solutions Poirot makes in other stories.

In a sense Poirot is working against the clock. The train has been stopped by snow on the track, and they must decide whether the murderer is still on the train, and whether any of the passengers are involved in the murder. Against his usual practice Poirot looks for evidence by questioning all the passengers and by looking in their luggage for clues. As he does in a number of other books he makes a list of questions that he needs answers to, and as the answers emerge, he settles for a scenario that satisfies him.

I have reviewed this novel several times: here.

Historical reference: it seems to me that Christie must have had the Lindbergh abduction in mind when she wrote this book. See the Wikipedia entry.

My rating: 4.6

Check my reading of other Christie novels.

Review: THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR OF JUDITH POTTS, Robert Thorogood

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 04:25:24 +0000

This edition read on Libby through my local library
Format: eBook
Imprint: HQ
ISBN: 9780008567408
Pages: 320
Publication Date: 15th January 2026
Series: The Marlow Murder Club Mysteries Book 5

Synopsis (publisher)

A killer is on the loose. The bodies are piling up. And Judith is hiding a deadly secret …

Someone from Judith’s past has turned up in Marlow and is stirring up trouble. With all the murders that the Marlow Murder Club have had to solve and her work setting crosswords, Judith’s been too busy to give her old life much thought. But now it’s knocking on her door and won’t go away.

On top of that, Marlow’s celebrities are getting murdered! When a footballer and a thriller writer are found dead, Judith, Suzie, and Becks must untangle a web of scandal to find the killer. But with Judith keeping secrets, the Marlow Murder Club find themselves drifting apart.

The pressure is on in more ways than one …

Can they find the killer and help Judith in time, or could this be the end of the Marlow Murder Club?

My Take

Judith's past, which has been referred to in previous titles, resurfaces when a young woman turns up on her doorstep claiming to be her step-daughter, and saying that Judith murdered her father.

There are bits of this novel that stretch reader credibility, but at the same time the action moves quickly and retains the interest.

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

4.6, THE MARLOW MURDER CLUB - #1

4.4, THE QUEEN OF POISONS - #3

4.4, MURDER ON THE MARLOW BELLE - #4

Review: THE SECOND WIFE, Ali Lowe

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 07:47:54 +0000

this edition published 2026 by Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN 978-1-399-74218-4
364 PAGES

Synopsis (Publisher)

The Fairchild family have it all. At least that's what anyone watching the family of billionaires board the opulent Titan Pacifica would think.

But as Sydney Harbour Bridge starts to disappear in the rear-view window of the luxury liner, so too does any pretence that this is a happy family.

Unbeknownst to his children, CEO and patriarch Irving had planned to use the cruise to reveal his long-awaited succession plans. As glasses clink and elaborate dinners are served to the most notorious of Sydney's elite, it will soon become all too clear that family loyalty can only take you so far.

And although six embark on the journey of a lifetime, not all of the group will make it back to dry land again . . .

My Take

Tightly plotted with at least 3 shock revelations.

You wouldn't want to meet these people on any cruise you embarked on.

My rating: 4.8

I've also read

4.5, THE TRIVIA NIGHT

4.8, THE SCHOOL RUN

4.6, THE RUNNING CLUB

Review: MURDER MOST ROYAL, S .J. Bennett

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 07:26:11 +0000

this edition read as an e-book on Libby through my local library
ISBN: 9780063051218
Series: Her Majesty the Queen Investigates #3
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release: 26 September 2023
author website

Synopsis (author website)

December 2016 - A severed hand is found washed up on a beach next to the Queen's estate at Sandringham.

Elizabeth has become quite accustomed to solving even the most complex of murders. And though she quickly identifies the 70-year-old victim, Edward St Cyr, from his signet ring, the search for his killer is not so straightforward.

St Cyr led an unconventional, often controversial life, making many enemies along the way in the quiet, rural world of North Norfolk, where everyone knows each other's business.

But when a second man is found dead, and a prominent local woman is nearly killed in a hit-and-run, the mystery takes an even darker turn.

With the Christmas break coming to an end, the Queen and her trusted assistant Rozie must race to discover how the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Or the next victim may be found even closer to home.

A Waterstones Best Crime & Thriller Book of 2022

My Take

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Her Majesty takes a bigger role in the sleuthing than she did in the earlier novel that I read, despite it being Christmas, and the fact that she has a heavy cold. Recommended if you enjoy a cozy.

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

4.4, A THREE DOG PROBLEM - #2

Review: THE WIDOW'S HUSBAND'S SECRET LIE, Freida McFadden

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 07:00:04 +0000

This edition read as an e-book on Kindle (AmazonAU)
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D9FT5G85
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hollywood Upstairs Press, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 12 August 2024
Print length ‏ : ‎ 152 pages

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

My husband is dead.

I attended his funeral. I watched his casket be lowered six feet into the ground. (Actually, it may have been only five feet, but that still seems like more than enough.) And then we ate an array of finger sandwiches and deviled eggs and miniature beef wellingtons that cost more than my first car.

My point is, Grant is gone. And so are all his many, many deep, dark secrets which I never really ever bothered to ask him about. He is never coming back.

So why do I still see his face everywhere I go?

My Take

The author begins this book with an Author's Note: This book is a satire

This is Freida McFadden poking fun at herself, including in the novella a number of the tropes we often see in crime fiction novels. And the solution to why she keeps seeing her dead husband: obvious, but also odd.

As promised a quick read.

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

4.5, THE TENANT

4.5, DO NOT DISTURB

4.5, WANT TO KNOW A SECRET?