MYSTERIES in PARADISE

Review: A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD, Alan Bradley

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 07:22:00 +0000

published by Orion Books 2011
ISBN 978-0-7528-9715-8
389 pages
Source: my local library
#3 in the Flavia de Luce series

Book Description (Amazon)

Award-winning author Alan Bradley returns with another beguiling novel starring the insidiously clever and unflappable eleven-year-old sleuth Flavia de Luce. The precocious chemist with a passion for poisons uncovers a fresh slew of misdeeds in the hamlet of Bishop’s Lacey—mysteries involving a missing tot, a fortune-teller, and a corpse in Flavia’s own backyard.

Flavia had asked the old Gypsy woman to tell her fortune, but never expected to stumble across the poor soul, bludgeoned in the wee hours in her own caravan. Was this an act of retribution by those convinced that the soothsayer had abducted a local child years ago? Certainly Flavia understands the bliss of settling scores; revenge is a delightful pastime when one has two odious older sisters. But how could this crime be connected to the missing baby? Had it something to do with the weird sect who met at the river to practice their secret rites? While still pondering the possibilities, Flavia stumbles upon another corpse—that of a notorious layabout who had been caught prowling about the de Luce’s drawing room.

Pedaling Gladys, her faithful bicycle, across the countryside in search of clues to both crimes, Flavia uncovers some odd new twists. Most intriguing is her introduction to an elegant artist with a very special object in her possession—a portrait that sheds light on the biggest mystery of all: Who is Flavia?

As the red herrings pile up, Flavia must sort through clues fishy and foul to untangle dark deeds and dangerous secrets.

My take

I discovered today on Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce website that there are another three titles planned for this series, and I'm delighted.

I think it isn't just Flavia that I like but also the cast of characters that populate the novels. Even her bicycle Gladys is imbued with character. There are some people like Mrs Mullet, Dogger, the vicar, and the police inspector who persist from novel to novel, and then new characters that are very creatively draw.

There are those such as her older sisters who treat her appallingly, but perhaps little different to the way adolescent girls treat their younger sisters. Flavia is precocious at the same time as being ingenuous and incorrigible. She knows how to wheedle information out of older people, and even from members of the household and the family. And from title to title Flavia learns a little more about her dead mother and her own place in the little community of Bishop's Lacey.

The plot of A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD in a way seems a bit more complex than those of the earlier two titles, but the plotting is tight, and there are enough puzzles to keep the reader thinking.

These are cozies worth reading in order, in fact, make sure that you read them in order.

My rating: 4.5

Other reviews to check

My reviews of earlier novels:
4.8, THE SWEETNESS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PIE
4.5, THE WEED THAT STRINGS THE HANGMAN'S BAG

Forgotten Book: COLOUR SCHEME, Ngaio Marsh

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:49:00 +0000

For my contribution this year to Pattinase's Friday's Forgotten Books I am going to focus on the books I read 30 years ago in 1992. By then my reading diet was almost exclusively crime fiction.

COLOUR SCHEME was the first book on my list in 1992 .

The synopsis from Fantastic Fiction:

Often regarded as her most interesting book and set on New Zealand's North Island, Ngaio Marsh herself considered this to be her best-written novel.

It was a horrible death -- Maurice Questing was lured into a pool of boiling mud and left there to die. Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn, far from home on a wartime quest for German agents, knew that any number of people could have killed him: the English exiles he'd hated, the New Zealanders he'd despised or the Maoris he'd insulted. Even the spies he'd thwarted -- if he wasn't a spy himself...

Published in 1943 this was #12 in Ngaio Marsh's already very successful Roderick Alleyn series.

More recently the Ngaio Marsh award, established in 2010 for the best in New Zealand crime fiction, has ensured her name will be perpetuated.

Review: THE MISSING, Jane Casey

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 02:16:00 +0000

Published by Ebury Press (Random House) 2010
ISBN 978-0-09193-599-3
485 pages
Source: My local library

Synopsis (Random House Australia)

Jenny Shepherd is twelve years old and missing…Her teacher, Sarah Finch, knows better than most that the chances of finding her alive are diminishing with every day she is gone. As a little girl her older brother had gone out to play one day and never returned. The strain of never knowing what has happened to Charlie had ripped Sarah’s family apart.

Now in her early twenties, she is back living at home, trapped with a mother who drinks too much and keeps her brother’s bedroom as a shrine to his memory. Then, horrifically, it is Sarah who finds Jenny’s body, beaten and abandoned in the woods near her home. As she’s drawn into the police investigation and the heart of a media storm, Sarah’s presence arouses suspicion too. But it not just the police who are watching her...

My take

As if losing her twelve year old brother when he went missing 16 years before wasn't enough, life deals Sarah Finch a cruel blow when one of her twelve year old female pupils goes missing. And then Sarah discovers the body when she is running in the woods.

From that point the novel takes on an interesting structure. Chapters about the modern day investigation are interspersed with ones beginning 16 years before. Through those interspersed chapters we learn what happened to Sarah and her family as a result of Charlie's disappearance; how the police failed to discover what happened to Charlie; how having attempted to lead an independent life Sarah is drawn back home to teach at a local school and to look after her mother.

Just as Sarah is drawn inexorably into the investigation into Jenny's murder, so she also wants to know more about Charlie and what happened to him. These double strands give the plot a really satisfying complexity, although the final denouement seemed rather gruesome, even unlikely, and a little out of character for Sarah. It also allows the author to explore issues such as the impact of the disappearance or murder of a child on those family members left behind.

THE MISSING was Jane Casey's debut novel, perhaps just a little too long, but well told.

My rating: 4.6

Reviews to check

My review of THE BURNING

Review: Some Agatha Christie short stories

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 23:30:00 +0000

I recently discovered that Amazon had 14 Agatha Christie short stories available free here, so I "bought" them, but when I checked yesterday they had gone up to $6.14 each which is pretty pricey for 40 pages!

Then of course, when I checked them against the 131 stories I have listed at Agatha Christie Short Stories I discovered there were only 4 that I hadn't read, and even 1 of them was a re-written version of an earlier published story.
The four all feature Hercule Poirot, and in a sense each focusses on a murder committed in the name of love. In two at least there is a siren, a femme fatale.

Here they are:

The Dream
First published in October 1937.

Hercule Poirot is summoned to Northway House, residence of eccentric Benedict Farley who tells HP that he is worried by a recurrent dream in which he kills himself at a particular time in the afternoon. Poirot is disappointed - he thinks he is going to meet a great man but his impression is of a mountebank. A few weeks later Poirot is contacted by the police. It appears that Farley has indeed killed himself, at the the time his dream predicted, but on closer investigation, Poirot finds out he is the only one who knows about the dream.

The Mystery of the Spanish Chest
Originally published as the Mystery of the Baghdad Chest in 1932, and then expanded and republished as The Mystery of the Spanish Chest also in 1932.

What I really liked about this one was not the plot (in which the body of a superfluous husband is discovered in a wooden chest the morning after a supper party) but the description of Miss Lemon, Poirot's assistant.

But Miss Lemon he had never considered as a woman. She was a human machine - an instrument of precision. Her efficiency was terrific. She was forty-eighty years of age, and was fortunate enough to have no imagination whatever.

Poirot points out that it is Miss Lemon's job to deal with files, telephone calls, and letters while he deals not only with documents but human beings.

Triangle at Rhodes
Published in USA 1936, and then in UK later in 1936 as Poirot and the Triangle at Rhodes.

Hercule Poirot is holidaying on the island of Rhodes and is watching a woman, recently married for the fifth time to a rather taciturn naval type, work her charms on another's husband. When murder happens Poirot reveals he has had his eye on another eternal triangle all together.

Four-And-Twenty Blackbirds
First published in the USA in 1940 as Four and Twenty Blackbirds and then in the UK in 1941 as Poirot and the Regular Customer.

Although this was the shortest of all the stories, it also felt to me the most muddled, as if it really needed more text.
Hercule Poirot is dining with an old friend Henry Bonnington who trumpets that he prefers plain English food, "not a lot of made up messes". The conversation gets around to cases of accidental death in men over the age of sixty. Bonnington says he thinks Poirot is beginning to see crime where there is none, he is looking for it rather than waiting for crime to come to him.

The waitress is of the opinion that men nearly always choose the same item from a menu, whereas the ladies like variety. But then she points out the case of a customer nicknamed Old Father Time who always comes in on Tuesdays and Thursday nights and has the same food. But last week he came in on Monday and chose entirely different items from the menu.

Three weeks later Poirot and Bonnington meet by accident on the Underground (I found that rather strange, the idea of HP travelling by Tube) and Bonnington reports that Old Father Time has not been putting in an appearance at all. Of course it turns out that the old man has died and that's when the plot of this story very nearly unravels itself. I think Christie must have been struggling for a title, wanted to make the nursery rhyme connection work, but in my opinion Poirot and the Regular Customer was probably much better.

These four stories are all quite entertaining, and certainly quick, reads.
I haven't discovered yet whether they were published in collections or not.
I am maintaining a list of the stories I've read on Agatha Christie Short Stories
These four bring my count to 135.

Celebrating Australia Day, 26 January 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:00:00 +0000

Nice and hot here today in Adelaide.
Staying inside in the cool..
Watching the tennis, the cricket, and reading crime fiction.

Fair Dinkum Crime is celebrating Australia Day with a competition to win a book by an Australian crime fiction author - a warning - you'll have to do some research for it!

Here are the Australian crime fiction titles I read in 2011

Why don't you join the Aussie author challenge for 2012 and try some Aussie authors for yourself?
Click on the image to the right to be transported to the challenge site.

Today's Google logo

Agatha Christie Blog Carnival January 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 00:33:00 +0000

The first Agatha Christie Blog Carnival for 2012 is now posted.
There are 10 contributions from 8 participants.

The Blog Carnival now has over 60 people signed up, some who have pledged themselves to reading titles in order of publication (as I do) and others reading books as they come to hand.

I recently discovered that Amazon had 14 Agatha Christie short stories available free here, so I "bought" them, but when I checked today they had gone up to $6.14 each which is pretty pricey for 40 pages!

Review: THE BROTHERHOOD, Y.A. Erskine

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:19:00 +0000

Published Bantam, Random House 2011
ISBN 978-1-74275-015-6
379 pages
source: my local library

Synopsis (Booktopia)

One dead cop, one small island and an impact that will last a lifetime.

When Sergeant John White, mentor, saviour and all-round good guy, is murdered during a routine call-out, the tight-knit world of Tasmania Police is rocked to the core.

An already difficult investigation into the death of one of their own becomes steeped in political complexities when the main suspect is identified as Aboriginal and the case, courtesy of the ever-hostile local media, looks set to make Palm Island resemble a Sunday afternoon picnic in comparison. And as the investigation unfolds through the eyes of the sergeant's colleagues, friends, family, enemies and the suspect himself, it becomes clear that there was a great deal more to John White - and the squeaky-clean reputation of the nation's smallest state police service - than ever met the eye.

The Brotherhood is a novel about violence, preconceptions, loyalties, corruption, betrayal and the question a copper should never need to ask: just who can you trust?

About the Author

Y.A. Erskine spent eleven years in the Tasmania Police Service. She was active in front-line policing and served as a detective in the CIB. She is also an historian with an honours degree in early modern history. Y.A. Erskine lives in Melbourne and is happily married with two dogs.

My take

Hobart, small city, big town, capital of Tasmania. TASPol, a small police force where everyone knows everyone else personally, working out of Hobart, in a state where about a third of the population gets some sort of government assistance, and another quarter works for the government.

I loved the innovative structure of this book. It reminded me of clock solitaire. The story is carefully layered. We start with a hook. The officer in charge of the investigation into the death of a fellow police officer is going through the deceased's possessions and finds some items that puzzle the reader but for the investigator seem to have only one interpretation.

And then the reader is dealt a series of "cards", the story as seen by a range of connected participants. We learn who the police officer was and how he was killed and through each chapter we see him through the eyes of another. Each chapter adds a layer to our knowledge until eventually we come back to where the book started.

And interlaced into the story are various strands: an Aboriginal population, the remnants of Australia's original inhabitants, now welfare dependent, and in some cases only too willing to cry victimisation and brutality; an under resourced police force with more than usual difficulties in recruiting and retaining good officers; corruption in all professions, even among those responsible for managing the legal system; and an island state with significant social prejudices. It's a heady mix.

THE BROTHERHOOD is certainly an Australian police procedural with a difference and worthy of attention.

My rating: 5.0

Places you might like to visit

Bernadette's review on Fair Dinkum Crime
YA Erskine: the question behind THE BROTHERHOOD
YA Erskine: writing THE BROTHERHOOD
Y. A. Erskine, author of The Brotherhood, answers Ten Terrifying Questions (Booktopia)
Interview on Australian Radio National
Read an extract (pdf)

Review: STEPS TO HEAVEN, Wendy Cartmell

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 00:01:00 +0000

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 400 KB
Print Length: 200 pages
Publisher: Wendy Cartmell (October 9, 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B005U9T20A
Source: I bought it

Synopsis (Amazon)

Sergeant Major Crane, a Special Investigations Branch Investigator, in the Armed Forces, is a proud, dedicated and experienced soldier, constrained by the Army structure, but adept at manipulating the system. He and his young team of Staff Sergeant Billy Williams and Sergeant Kim Weston, based at Aldershot Garrison, have to investigate one of the most horrific cases they have ever taken on. A soldier who has deliberately murdered his wife and 6 year old son and then committed suicide.

Crane wants to know what is behind this horrific act, but has to battle against cynical opposition from his Officer Commanding, Captain James Edwards who makes him investigate a different crime. But Crane is vindicated when a second copy cat murder suicide by a soldier in Colchester is followed by a third in Catterick. Paralleling these investigations, Crane's wife Tina wants a decision on whether they should start a family. A decision Crane is unable to make, haunted as he is by the deaths of three young boys.

[there was more on the Amazon page, but I felt it gave too much away]

My take

The reader is quickly introduced to the case that will be central to this book. A prologue gives us a birds-eye view of the events immediately before the first murder/suicide so that we have an inkling of what Sergeant Major Tom Crane from the Armed Forces Special Investigations Branch at Aldershot Garrison will see when he arrives on the crime scene.

Just as the reader know things about this incident and similar ones that occur later, because we are there, that Tom Crane doesn't know, so there are occasionally events that Tom Crane takes part in that he only relates to us, even though for the most part we are right at his shoulder. We piece together the evidence just as he does, although there are a couple of surprises at the end.

STEPS TO HEAVEN raises interesting questions about the mental vulnerability of soldiers who have returned from tough conditions in Afghanistan and are expected to just pick up "normal" life. We are given insights of what life is like on the army bases for them and their families.

The author has chosen to write this e-novel entirely in the present tense and it took me time to get used to that. While this does give the action a sense of immediacy it does cause its own problems with establishing chronology. For example the events actually take place over a period of August to November, but I didn't really get that sense of the passage of time. There's a rather complex relationship between the dates too that left me a bit cold.

STEPS TO HEAVEN is a self-published e-book, the debut title in a series that already has a second title. In some ways it is a classic police procedural in a modern setting, although set in the British Army rather than the police force. I liked Tom Crane's focus on why, what has led these soldiers to these abnormal acts. The author also establishes a personal background for us about Tom Crane which gives room for later development.

This was a nice solid relatively quick read and I'll certainly read the next, 40 DAYS 40 NIGHTS set in the leadup to the 2012 Olympics.

My rating: 4.2

About the author
Wendy Cartmell is a former teacher, PR Manager and Editor of a large corporate Newspaper, who has always written either for her work or stories for her children. She turned her hand to crime writing in 2010 resulting in a new crime series featuring Sgt Major Crane of the Special Investigations Branch, drawing on her husband's 22 years service in the British Army.

Forgotten Book: A BOX OF TRICKS, Simon Brett

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

This is my contribution this week to Pattinase's Friday's Forgotten Books

My delight in the novels of Simon Brett began early and in particular I have enjoyed the Charles Paris and Fethering series. The record for A BOX OF TRICKS appears in my little green book early in 1994.

As the cover says, this was Brett's first collection of short stories, published in 1985.

12 stories including one featuring the boozy actor-detective Charles Paris, have the common theme of murder in its many guises, from the simply bizarre to the downright nasty.
Listen to a short excerpt here.

Review: THE ANATOMY OF GHOSTS, Andrew Taylor

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:10:00 +0000

published by Penguin 2010
469 pages
ISBN 978-0-718-15659-6
source: local library

Synopsis (Fantastic Fiction)

1786, Jerusalem College Cambridge. The ghost of Sylvia Whichcote is rumoured to be haunting Jerusalem since disturbed fellow-commoner, Frank Oldershaw, claims to have seen the dead woman prowling the grounds. Desperate to salvage her son's reputation, Lady Anne Oldershaw employs John Holdsworth to investigate.

Subtitled: An Inquiry into the distressing circumstances surrounding an alleged apparition lately recorded in Cambridge. Set Down for the Curious in the Form of a Novel.

My take:

The novel is set against background of a fictional college, the Jerusalem College, in Cambridge. In an author's note Andrew Taylor admits "remarkable similarities [that extend only to its layout and aspects of its early history] between the fictional Jerusalem College and the entirely real Emmanuel College".

The novel opens with a meeting of the Holy Ghost Club in Jerusalem College. The club is part of the social fabric of the college, designed to introduce a group of select members to the rather more dissolute habits. The club is a focal point in John Holdsworth's investigation into the derangement of College fellow Frank Oldershaw.

The original The Anatomy of Ghosts is a pamphlet that Holdsworth wrote to help him come to terms with the deaths of his son and then his wife by drowning and his feeling that they are haunting him. While she was still alive his wife had been preyed upon by some unscrupulous people. Holdsworth was keen to show that they had been instrumental in bringing about the suicide of his wife who had been convinced she was being visited by their son's ghost. His book brings him to the notice of Lady Anne Oldershaw who commissions him to investigate the madness of her son which has apparently been caused by the appearance of a ghost.

Jerusalem College is a close knit and closed community with the usual power rivalries at the top and distinct social strata. Lady Anne Oldershaw is a patron of the college and so Holdsworth will be staying in the Master's house under the pretext of organising the college library. He is also charged with trying to bring Frank Oldershaw back to health.

At the same time as being a detective story that follows a trail of clues to a final denouement THE ANATOMY OF GHOSTS provides an interesting insight into academic and social life in a Cambridge university college in the late eighteenth century. The novel won't be everybody's cup of tea, but it has the feeling of a scholarly work, with attention to authentic historical detail.

My rating: 4.2

Other reviews to check:

Other reviews of Andrew Taylor titles on MiP:
THE BARRED WINDOW
4.5, THE FOUR LAST THINGS
4.4, THE JUDGEMENT OF STRANGERS

Crime Fiction Pick of the Month 2012 - a meme

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:27:00 +0000

Many crime fiction bloggers write a summary post at the end of each month listing what they've read, and some, like me, even go as far as naming their pick of the month.

This meme is an attempt to aggregate those summary posts.
It is an invitation to you to write your own summary post at the end of the month, identify your crime fiction best read of the month, and then visit MYSTERIES in PARADISE on the first day of the next month and add your post's URL to the Mr Linky that will be provided.

You can list all the books you've read in the past month on your post, even if some of them are not crime fiction, but I'd like you to nominate your crime fiction pick of the month.

That will be what you will list in Mr Linky too -
e.g. if we had run the meme last month my entry would look like this
ROSEANNA, Maj Sjowall & Per Wahloo - MiP (or Kerrie)

There is no need to sign up, but you might like to let me know in a comment whether you think you will participate.
You are welcome to use the image on your post and it would be great if you could link your post back to the post on MYSTERIES in PARADISE.

So much choice....

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 02:51:00 +0000

I was struck this week at the amount of crime fiction there is to choose from.
In the Best Crime Fiction Reads of 2011, 35 contributors mainly suggesting their best 10 reads suggested 364 titles.

Some focussed on books published in 2010 and 2011, some mentioned books published earlier than that.
In any case the 10 books from each is just the tip of the iceberg.
And yet many of us can agree on what is "quality". Titles that will make it into other people's top 10 will be near the top of my list and in the top 20 or so.

Last year I read 160 crime fiction titles, which is quite a lot by most readers' standards. And yet I was nowhere near the number of "best reads" individual titles suggested by just 35 contributors.

That's what makes these reading lists so valuable. Find reviewers whose judgement you trust, whose crime fiction tastes coincide with yours, read their reviews carefully, and then decide whether you will put that book on your lists.
I do know some people won't read the reviews before they read the book - sometimes the fact that a title is getting mentioned by a number of reviewers is enough to have you put it on your list.

If you look at my reading lists for the past 4 years (see the links in the header to this page), you will see that the vast majority have got a rating from me of 4 and above. What is happening is that my choices have already been through a sort of pre-selection process. Even though a number of the titles are the work of new-to-me authors (last year 60 of the 160 were written by new-to-me authors), I still think about whether I am likely to like the book or not.

My overall impression is that while many of the authors I enjoy have become quite prolific, many of them producing a new title annually, so there are new writers joining those ranks, as well as translations of work by international writers already popular in their own country. The end result is an ever expanding smorgasbord which ensures that I am never lost for something to read.

If you are looking for some bloggers who write about crime fiction check out Crime Fiction Journeys which features the home pages of about 100 crime fiction readers.

Best Crime Fiction Reads 2008 -2011

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:37:00 +0000

I have collected best crime fiction reads for the past 4 years now from a range of participants.
In that time 154 contributors have suggested 1521 titles

2008, 40 contributors 396 titles
2009, 56 contributors 541 titles
2010, 23 contributors 220 titles
2011, 35 contributors 364 titles

If you'd like to check previous years, here they are. Just click on the image.

2008

I've chosen the top reads from each year and aggregated them. There are 24 books on the list.
The number at the end of the line is the number of votes the book got.
Stieg Larsson was not mentioned by 2011 contributors, there is no doubt in my mind he would still be there if he was alive and writing.
I'm pleased to see some Australian authors making it into this list too. ***
Interesting too to see some names other than Larsson repeated: Johan Theorin, Megan Abbott, Arnaldur Indridason.
Translated titles abound too ++ (nearly half the list)

So what have you missed out on reading? - as you can see I have 3 to go.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson    16 ++
THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE by Stieg Larsson    15 ++
GUNSHOT ROAD by Adrian Hyland    9 ***
HYPOTHERMIA by Arnaldur Indridason    9 ++
CROOKED LETTER, CROOKED LETTER by Tom Franklin    7
SHATTER by Michael Robotham    7 ***
KEEPER OF LOST CAUSES (aka MERCY) by Jussi Adler-Olsen    7 ++
THE DARKEST ROOM by Johan Theorin    6 ++
THE END OF EVERYTHING by Megan Abbott    6
WHERE WILL THERE BE GOOD NEWS? by Kate Atkinson    6
A TRICK OF THE LIGHT by Louise Penny    5
BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP by    S.J. Watson    5
FIELD GRAY by Philip Kerr    5
THE COLD DISH by Craig Johnson    5
THE END OF THE WASP SEASON by Denise Mina    5
A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO DIE by Malla Nunn     4 ***
ARCTIC CHILL by Arnaldur Indridason     4 ++
BURY ME DEEP by Megan Abbott     4
ECHOES FROM THE DEAD by Johann Theorin     4 ++
SILENT IN THE GRAVE by Deanna Raybourn     4
SKELETON HILL by Peter Lovesey     4
TRUTH by Peter Temple    4 ***
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET'S NEST by Stieg Larsson    3 ++
THIRTEEN HOURS by Deon Meyer    3 ++

Review: TOWARDS ZERO, Agatha Christie

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 01:52:00 +0000

This edition part of the Hamlyn Agatha Christie Crime Collection
dedicated to Robert Graves
144 pages
first published in 1944
aka COME AND BE HANGED
Superintendent Battle

Synopsis (from Christie.com)

What is the connection between a failed suicide attempt, a wrongful accusation of theft against a schoolgirl, and the romantic life of a tennis player? To the casual observer, apparently nothing. When a houseparty gathers at Gull's Point, the seaside home of an elderly widow, earlier events come to a dramatic head.
Robert Graves, author of I Claudius, was a neighbour of Agatha Christie’s in Devon during the Second World War and the two became friends. Christie dedicated this book to Graves.

My take

The last time Superintendent Battle made an appearance was in 1939 in MURDER IS EASY (aka EASY TO KILL).

TOWARDS ZERO opens with a Prologue which introduces the concept of characters converging towards Zero Hour.

The book is broken up into sections, a feature that the reader barely notices.
'OPEN THE DOOR AND HERE ARE THE PEOPLE' introduces the cast of characters: Angus MacWhirter in hospital after attempting to throw himself off a cliff and failing; an unknown person plotting a murder; Superintendent Battle called to his daughter's school because she has admitted to pilfering, Nevile Strange, his wife Kay and his ex-wife Audrey; Lady Tressilian and Mary Aldin at Gull's Point which all the Stranges will visit for two weeks in September; Thomas Royde returning home to Gull's Point from Malaya; Mr Treves (whom we met in the Prologue) looking for somewhere to spend his holidays; and Ted Latimer, a friend of the Kay Strange.

The novel progresses, bringing the characters together at Salt Creek, closer and closer to Zero Hour.
And then two murders take place and Superintendent Battle staying with his nephew Jim Leach is pulled into the investigation.

Superintendent Battle comes over as a pretty stodgy sort of policeman who does things by the book. In fact I think Agatha Christie fans may well have been disappointed that the author didn't choose one of her other sleuths for the role. (The Agatha Christie site reveals that it was adapted for TV in 2007 with Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple.)
Battle's plodding methods and determination to get irrefutable evidence win the day and eventually the right person is apprehended.

For much of the book TOWARDS ZERO feels rather like a romance, with eternal triangles, jealousies, and thwarted desires. And then it gathers pace, with only twenty or so pages to go, and we hear a point made before, by Treves and then by Battle, who makes a statement worthy of Poirot himself:

When you read the account of a murder - or say, a fiction story based on murder, you usually begin with the murder itself. That's all wrong. The murder begins a long time beforehand. A murder is the culmination of a lot of different circumstances, all converging into it from different parts of the globe and unforeseen reasons..... The murder itself is the end of the story. It's Zero Hour.

And then Battle goes on to nail the murderer and prevent another murder. The plot of the book is quite a clever one, but there were a couple of things that hung: Angus MacWhirter's role for instance: it almost felt as if Christie wanted to include another element of romance. Mr Treves' story of a child who kills another with an bow and arrow is never fully explained which was frustrating. The murder that takes place at Gull's Point has a clumsy explanation depending on the difference in left and right hand swings and I had great difficulty in imagining the murder weapon.

This is the last novel in which Superintendent Battle makes an appearance. With Inspector Japp as a foil in many of the Poirot titles Superintendent Battle outlived his usefulness.

He appeared in

The Secret of Chimneys (1925)
The Seven Dials Mystery (1929 - including some of the same characters, notably Lady Eileen "Bundle" Brent)
Cards on the Table (1936, with Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver and Colonel Race)
Murder is Easy (1939)
Towards Zero (1944)

My rating: 4.2

Review: THE HANGMAN, Louise Penny

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:29:00 +0000

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 208 KB
Publisher: Grass Roots Press (October 24, 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B005ZI33HE
Source: I bought it ($2.99)

Synopsis (Amazon)

On a cold November morning, a jogger runs through the woods in the peaceful Quebec village of Three Pines. On his run, he finds a dead man hanging from a tree.
The dead man was a guest at the local Inn and Spa. He might have been looking for peace and quiet, but something else found him. Something horrible.
Did the man take his own life? Or was he murdered? Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is called to the crime scene. As Gamache follows the trail of clues, he opens a door into the past. And he learns the true reason why the man came to Three Pines.
This book is a quick and easy read for people on the go.

My take

The (Good Reads) label was the clue that this novella was written as part of the Canadian Government's Literacy Project.

Louise Penny says

It's written as part of a programme called GoodReads Canada, which was created by national literacy organizations to publish books aimed at emerging adult readers. THE HANGMAN is written at a grade 3 level, for adults. Very clear, very simple. Not really the most complex plot or style, for obvious reasons.

Nevertheless, despite the lack of detail and the limited vocabulary level of the book, it was a quick and enjoyable read. There was nothing wrong with the plot construction. It is still a mystery with red herrings and a trail of clues.
It really only featured 3 of the usual residents of Three Pines, one of whom is a suspect for the murder.
It really didn't add to my knowledge of the village, and it did feel different to Penny's usual well thought out writing style.

But there's some humour for those of us who are regular crime fiction readers. Watch out for Arthur Ellis!

I like to see authors involved in literacy projects. It shows me that they are in touch with the real world.

My rating: 4.5

My other Louise Penny reviews:
4.8, THE CRUELLEST MONTH
4.9, A RULE AGAINST MURDER
4.9, THE BRUTAL TELLING
5.0, BURY YOUR DEAD
5.0, A TRICK OF THE LIGHT

Best crime fiction reads 2011 - all the authors

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

Today my post lists all the authors. (there are nearly 230 of them)

Ace Atkins
Adrian Hyland
Adrian Magson
Adrian McKinty
Agatha Christie
Alan Bradley
Alan Glynn
Alan Hunter
Alice LaPlante
Aly Monroe
Amanda Kyle Williams
Andrea Camilleri
Andrew Gross
Ann Cleeves
Ann Holt
Anna Katherine Green
Anthony Horowitz
Ariana Franklin
Arnaldur Indridason
Arne Dahl
Arthur Upfield
Asa Larsson
Barry Grant
Belinda Bauer
Benjamin Black
Blaize Clement
C.J. Box
C.J. Sansom
C.S. Challinor
C.S. Forester
Camilla Lackberg
Cara Black
Cara Hoffmann
Carlo Lucarelli
Carol K. Carr
Carolyn Morwood
Carston Morton
Carter Dickson
Catherine O'Flynn
Catriona McPherson
Charles Cumming
Charlie Huston
Chevy Stevens
Chris Bohjalian
Chris Brookmyre
Chris Nickson
Colin Cotterill
Colin Dexter
Conor Fitzgerald
Craig Johnson
Craig MacDonald
Craig Smith
Daniel Stashower
Danny Miller
David Downing
David Hosp

David Ignatius
Deborah Lawrenson
Declan Burke
Denise Mina
Deon Meyer
Domenic Stansberry
Domingo Vilar
Don Winslow
Donna Leon
Dorothy L. Sayers
Duane Swierczynski
E.C.R. Lorac
Ed McBain
Edward Conlon
Elizabeth Haines
Elizabeth Ironside
Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli
Ellery Queen
Elly Griffiths
Elmore Leonard
Emlyn Rees
Eric Keith
Erle Stanley Gardner
Esi Edugyan
Frances Fyfield
Frank Bill
Fred Vargas
G.M. Malliet
Garry Disher
George Pelecanos
Gianrico Carofiglio
Graham Moore
Hakan Nesser
Harlen Coben
Heather Gudenkauf
Helen FitzGerald
Henning Mankell
Henry Chang
Honey Brown
Ian Rankin
Inge Ash Wolfe
J.A. Jance
J.D. Robb
James Anderson
James Patterson
James Sallis
James Thompson
Jane Adams
Jane Casey
Janet Evanovich
Jassy Mackenzie
Jeanne Dams
Jeff Lindsay
Jeffery Deaver
Jo Nesbo
Johan Theorin
Johan Theorin

John Ajvide Lindqvist
John Hart
John Lawton
John Sandford
John Verdon
Julia Crouch
Jussi Adler-Olsen
Karen E. Olsen
Karin Fossum
Karin Slaughter
Kate Atkinson
Katherine Howell
Kathryn Fox
Kelli Stanley
Kim Westwood
L.B. Greenwood
L.C. Tyler
Larry Millett
Laura Lippman
Laurie R. King
Lawrence Block
Layton Green
Lee Child
Lee Vance
Leigh Russell
Leighton Gage
Lena Kaaberol & Agnete Friis
Lin Anderson
Linda Castillo
Lindsay Ashford
Lisa Gardner
Lori Roy
Lou Manfredo
Louise Penny
M.J. McGrath
M.M. Kaye
Maj Sjowal & Per Wahloo
Malla Nunn
Marcia Clark
Margaret Cole
Margaret Yorke
Margery Allingham
Margie Orford
Martin Edwards
Matthew Dunn
Megan Abbott
Michael Connelly
Michael Koryta
Michael Robotham
Michael Stanley
Neal Stephenson
Neil White
Nick Quantrill
Nicola Upson
Nicole Watson
P.D. Jamees
Pamela Beason
Paula Morantz Cohen
Peter Corris

Peter James
Peter Lovesey
Peter Robinson
Peter Spiegelman
Peter Temple
Philip Kerr
R.J. Ellory
Ray Banks
Reavis Z. Wortham
Reed Farrell Coleman
Reginald Hill
Rex Stout
Ricardo Piglia
Richard Castle
Richard Stark
Rob Kitchin
Robert Rotenberg
Roger Smith
Ron Hansen
Rory Clements
Rosamund Lupton
Roslund & Hellstrom
Russel McLean
Ruth Rendell
S.J. Bolton
S.J. Watson
Sally Spencer
Sam Hayes
Sara Gran
Sarah Caudwell
Scott Phillips
Sebastian Rotella
Simon Beckett
Simon Brett
Simon Lelic
Simon Tolkien
Sophie Hanna
Spencer Quinn
Stephen King
Steve Mosby
Sue Grafton
Sulari Gentil
Sylvia Johnson
Tana French
Tess Gerritsen
Thomas Perry
Todd Borg
Tom Bale
Tom Franklin
Val McDermid
Victor Gischler
W.J. Burley
Wallace Stroby
William Ryan
Y.A. Erskine
Zoe Sharp

Best crime fiction reads 2011 - authors with multiple mentions

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

Review: MURDER AT THE SAVOY, Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö - audio

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:44:00 +0000

audio book available from Audible.com
length 6 hrs 32 mins
Narrated by Tom Weiner
#6 in the Martin Beck series
first published in 2970
source: I bought it

Synopsis (from Audible)

When Viktor Palmgren, a powerful Swedish industrialist, is shot during his after-dinner speech in the luxurious Hotel Savoy, it sends a shiver down the spine of the international money markets and puts the tiny town of Malmö on edge.
No one can identify the gunman when Martin Beck takes over the scene and finds a web so despicable that it's hard to imagine who wouldn't want Palmgren dead.

My take

The introduction to this audio book (and the Kindle version) was written by Michael Carlson, book reviewer and film critic. In it he talks about what ground breakers Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö were, how they paved the way not only for today's Scandinavian writers but how they changed the conventions and direction of crime fiction forever, particularly that of the police procedural.

The thing that strikes you about MURDER AT THE SAVOY is how much detail there is, whether it is description of the main players, police procedures, settings, and interview transcripts.

In the introduction Carlson alerts you to look out for reflection of the authors' socialist views as well as how Sweden's economy is being manipulated by industrialists and magnates. Martin Beck is told to tread carefully in this case because Viktor Palmgren is so powerful, influential with members of the government. There is pressure on Beck and his team to not only catch the murderer quickly but also to avoid releasing any details that might reflect badly on the Swedish government.

In the long run, when the murderer is charged Beck feels that while justice appears to have been served the real criminals have remained free.

My rating: 4.5

Other reviews on this blog

4.7, ROSEANNA
4.7, THE MAN WHO WENT UP IN SMOKE
4.5, THE FIRE ENGINE THAT DISAPPEARED

The Martin Beck series (courtesy Fantastic Fiction)
I have now read *
1. Roseanna (1965) *
2. The Man Who Went Up in Smoke (1966) *
3. The Man on the Balcony (1967) *
4. The Laughing Policeman (1968) *
aka Investigation of Murder
5. The Fire Engine That Disappeared (1969) *
6. Murder at the Savoy (1970) *
7. The Abominable Man (1971)
8. The Locked Room (1972)
9. The Cop Killer (1974)
10. The Terrorists (1975)

Review: A TRICK OF THE LIGHT, Louise Penny

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:40:00 +0000

Published by Sphere 2011
404 pages
ISBN 978-1-84744-426-4
source: my local library
#7 in the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series

Synopsis (author's site)

“Hearts are broken,” Lillian Dyson carefully underlined in a book. “Sweet relationships are dead.”
But now Lillian herself is dead. Found among the bleeding hearts and lilacs of Clara Morrow's garden in Three Pines, shattering the celebrations of Clara's solo show at the famed Musée in Montreal. Chief Inspector Gamache, the head of homicide at the Sûreté du Québec, is called to the tiny Quebec village and there he finds the art world gathered, and with it a world of shading and nuance, a world of shadow and light. Where nothing is as it seems. Behind every smile there lurks a sneer. Inside every sweet relationship there hides a broken heart. And even when facts are slowly exposed, it is no longer clear to Gamache and his team if what they've found is the truth, or simply a trick of the light.

My take

The tranquillity of the little Canadian village of Three Pines is again shattered by murder. The artist Clara Morrow is celebrating her successful art exhibition with a party but others in the village and the investigative team are recovering from cataclysmic events, detailed in earlier books, that have changed their relationships forever. The threads of continuity that come from earlier titles in the series do mean that, if you are new to the series, you should read them in order. But if someone gave you A TRICK OF THE LIGHT for Christmas do read it now. But I guarantee you'll want to go looking for the first in the series and then read them in order.

What I love about the Penny books is the way that while the murder mystery central to the story is being explored and investigated, background material and evidence researched and assembled, other questions are posed for us to think about. There is the meaning of the title for example, but I won't discuss that here because it is introduced quite early in the book. Another question is whether someone can change in character or is a nasty vindictive person always nasty and vindictive?

The brilliantly drawn characters are part of what attracts me to this series too, and the nature of the relationships between them. As you read the series different characters are explored and embellished novel by novel. Six months have elapsed since BURY YOUR DEAD in which both Armand Gamache and his assistant Jean Guy Beauvoir were critically wounded and lost four young colleagues. Gamache appears to have made a complete recovery but Jean Guy is not doing so well. The relationships between Gamache and his team and the residents of Three Pines provide great tension points in the novels too. Gamache has visited the village of Three Pines so often that he regards most of them as friends, and they him, and so when another murder occurs the issue of whether friendship will obscure good judgement in a police investigation comes to the surface again.

You can probably gather that I really enjoyed A TRICK OF THE LIGHT.
My rating 5.0

Other reviews to follow up:

A TRICK OF THE LIGHT was recently shortlisted in the Mystery category of the Indie Literary Awards.

Other reviews on MiP of Louise Penny books
4.8, THE CRUELLEST MONTH
4.9, A RULE AGAINST MURDER
4.9, THE BRUTAL TELLING
5.0, BURY YOUR DEAD

Chief Inspector Gamache (list per Fantastic Fiction)
1. Still Life (2005)
2. Dead Cold (2006)
aka A Fatal Grace
3. The Cruellest Month (2007)
4. The Murder Stone (2008)
aka A Rule Against Murder
5. The Brutal Telling (2009)
6. Bury Your Dead (2010)
7. A Trick of the Light (2011)
The Hangman (2011)

Louise Penny's blog

Best crime fiction reads for 2011 - titles mentioned once

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

I have been collecting lists of best crime fiction reads for 2011 for a couple of weeks now. You will see the majority of the links in my post here but they also came in as comments on posts and by emails. In the long run there were 35 contributors and 364 titles.

Note that they are a mixture of mysteries and thrillers, and also include titles that have been published pre-2011: some in fact would qualify as vintage publications.

Yesterday I published a list of titles with multiple mentions.
Here are those that got just one mention.

11/22/63 by Stephen King
61 HOURS by Lee Child
A BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO DIE by Malla Nunn
A BRUTAL TELLING by Louise Penny
A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT by Jeanne Dams
A DEATH IN SUMMER by Benjamin Black
A DECLINE IN PROPHETS by Sulari Gentil
A DROP OF THE HARD STUFF by Lawrence Block
A GRAVEYARD TO LET by Carter Dickson
A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD by Alan Bradley
A SIMPLE ACT OF VIOLENCE by R.J. Ellory
A VINE IN THE BLOOD by Leighton Gage
A WILD SURGE OF GUILTY PASSION by Ron Hansen
ABSOLUTE ZERO COOL by Declan Burke
ALMOST BLUE by Carlo Lucarelli
AN AUTHOR BITES THE DUST by Arthur Upfield
AN UNCERTAIN PLACE by Fred Vargas
AWAKENING by S.J. Bolton
BACK OF BEYOND by C.J. Box
BACKLASH by Sally Spencer
BAD INTENTIONS by Karin Fossum
BEFORE THE POISON by Peter Robinson
BENT ROAD by Lori Roy
BETRAYAL OF TRUST by J.A. Jance
BLACK FLOWERS by Steve Mosby
BLOOD FALLS by Tom Bale
BLOOD HARVEST by S.J. Bolton
BLOODMONEY by David Ignatius
BLUE LIGHTNING by Ann Cleeves
BOX 21 by Roslund & Hellstrom
BREAKING SILENCE by Linda Castillo
BROKEN DREAMS by Nick Quantrill
BURIED PREY by John Sandford
BUTCHER'S MOON by Richard Stark
CAT SITTER AMONG THE PIGEONS by Blaize Clement
CAUGHT STEALING by Charlie Huston
CHRISTMAS IS MURDER by C.S. Challinor
COLD CRUEL WINTER by Chris Nickson
COLD KILL by Neil White
COLD RAIN by Craig Smith
COLD SHOT TO THE HEART by Wallace Stroby
COP HATER by Ed McBain
CORDIALLY INVITED TO MEET DEATH by Rex Stout
CRIMES IN SOUTHERN INDIANA by Frank Bill
CUCKOO by Julia Crouch
DAED END by Leigh Russell
DANCERS IN THE MORNING by Margery Allingham
DANNY GILVER AND THE PROPER TREATMENT OF BLOODSTAINS by Catriona McPherson
DEAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN by Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli
DEAD MONEY by Ray Banks
DEATH AND THE SPANISH LADY by Carolyn Morwood
DEATH COMES TO PEMBERLEY by P.D. James
DEATH IN KASHMIR by M.M. Kaye
DEATH IN THE GARDEN by Elizabeth Ironside
DEATH MASK by Kathryn Fox
DEATH OF THE MANTIS by Michael Stanley
DEATH ON THE MARAIS by Adrian Magson
DIAMOND DOVE (aka MOONLIGHT DOWNS) by Adrian Hyland
DJIBOUTI by Elmore Leonard
DOUBLE DEXTER by Jeff Lindsay
DUMB WITNESS by Agatha Christie
ECHOES FROM THE DEAD by Johan Theorin
ECHOES OF THE DEAD by Sally Spencer
ENDANGERED by Pamela Beason
EXCURSION TO TINDARI by Andrea Camilleri
EXIT LINES by Reginald Hill
EYES WIDE OPEN by Andrew Gross
FAITHFUL PLACE by Tana French
FALLING GLASS by Adrian McKinty
FEAR NOT by Ann Holt
FEAST DAY OF FOOLS by James Lee Burke
FIFTH VICTIM by Zoe Sharp
FIFTH WITNESS by Michael Connelly
FUN & GAMES by Duane Swierczynski
GAUDY NIGHT by Dorothy L. Sayers
GENTLY DOES IT by Alan Hunter
GUILT BY ASSOCIATION by Marcia Clark
HALF BLOOD BLUES by Esi Edugyan
HARBOUR by John Ajvide Lindqvist
HEARTSTONE by C.J. Sansom
HEAT RISES by Richard Castle
HELL & GONE by Duane Swierczynski
HELL IS EMPTY by Craig Johnson
HELL IS EMPTY by Craig Johnson
HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS by Agatha Christie
HIDDEN DEPTHS by Ann Cleeves
HUNTED by Emlyn Rees
HYPOTHERMIA by Arnaldur Indridason
ICELIGHT by Aly Monroe
IN A DRY SEASON by Peter Robinson
INDIA BLACK & THE WIDOW OF WINDSOR by Carol K. Carr
INK FLAMINGOS by Karen E. Olsen
INTIMATE KILL by Margaret Yorke
INTO THE DARKEST CORNER by Elizabeth Haines
IRON HOUSE by John Hart
IRON HOUSE by John Hart
KILLED AT THE WHIM OF A HAT by Colin Cotterill
KISS ME QUICK by Danny Miller
LASTING DAMAGE by Sophie Hanna
LIVEWIRE by Harlen Coben
LOVE YOU MORE by Lisa Gardner
LUCIFER'S TEARS by James Thompson
MANIFESTO OF THE DEAD by Domenic Stansberry
MISTRESS OF THE ART OF DEATH by Ariana Franklin
MIXED BLOOD by Roger Smith
MURDER IN PASSY by Cara Black
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS by Agatha Christie
NEMESIS by Jo Nesbo
NEVER KNOWING by Chevy Steevens
NEW YORK TO DALLAS by J.D. Robb
NEXT OF KIN by David Hosp
NINE MAN'S MURDER by Eric Keith
NOCTURNAL TARGET by Ricardo Piglia
NOW YOU SEE HER by James Patterson
OLD CITY HALL by Robert Rotenberg
ONE TRUE SENTENCE by Craig MacDonald
OUTRAGE by Arnaldur Indridason
PANDEMONIUM by Chris Brookmyre
PICTURE HER DEAD by Lin Anderson
POTSDAM STATION by David Downing
PRAY FOR SILENCE by Linda Castillo
RAVEN BLACK by Ann Cleeves
RED JADE by Henry Chang
RED ON RED by Edward Conlon
REVENGER by Rory Clements
RIZZO'S FIRE by Lou Manfredo
ROSEANNA by Maj Sjowal & Per Wahloo
SECRET DEAD MEN by Duane Swierczynski
SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF SABINA HALL by L.B. Greenwood
SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SHAKESPEARE LETTER by Barry Grant
SHOCKWAVE by John Sandford
SHROUD OF DARKNESS by E.C.R. Lorac
SHUT YOUR EYES TIGHT by John Verdon
SISTER by Rosamund Lupton
SMOKIN' SEVENTEEN by Janet Evanovich
SO MUCH PRETTY by Cara Hoffmann
SOMEONE ELSE'S SON by Sam Hayes
SPYCATCHER by Matthew Dunn
STOLEN LIVES by Jassy Mackenzie
SWORN TO SILENCE by Linda Castillo
TAHOE HIJACK by Todd Borg
TEMPORARY PERFECTIONS by Gianrico Carofiglio
TEN LITTLE HERRINGS by L.C. Tyler
THE ADJUSTMENT by Scott Phillips
THE AFFAIR OF THE MUTILATED MINK by James Anderson
THE ART OF DROWNING by Frances Fyfield
THE BOUNDARY by Nicole Watson
THE BRUTAL TELLING by Louise Penny
THE BURNING by Jane Casey
THE BURNING WIRE by Jeffery Deaver
THE CALLING by Inge Ash Wolfe
THE CASE OF THE LAME CANARY by Erle Stanley Gardner
THE CHALK CIRCLE MAN by Fred Vargas
THE CHINESE ORNAGE MYSTERY by Ellery Queen
THE COMPLAINTS by Ian Rankin
THE COURIER'S NEW BICYCLE by Kim Westwood
THE CROSSING PLACES by Elly Griffiths
THE CYPRESS HOUSE by Michael Koryta
THE DARK SIDE by Belinda Bauer
THE DARKEST ROOM by Johan Theorin
THE DEAD OF WINTER by Jane Adams
THE DEPUTY by Victor Gischler
THE DIME MUSEUM MURDERS by Daniel Stashower
THE DOG WHO KNEW TOO MUCH by Spencer Quinn
THE DONOR by Helen FitzGerald
THE DOORBELL RANG by Rex Stout
THE DROP by Michael Connelly
THE DYING TRADE by Peter Corris
THE FATAL TOUCH by Conor Fitzgerald
THE GARDEN OF BETRAYAL by Lee Vance
THE GENTLEMEN’S HOUR by Don Winslow
THE GIRL IN THE GREEN RAINCOAT by Laura Lippman
THE GOOD DAUGHTER by Honey Brown
THE HANGING WOOD by Martin Edwards
THE HOLY THIEF by William Ryan
THE ICE PRINCESS by Camilla Lackberg
THE INFORMANT by Thomas Perry
THE INFORMANT by Thomas Perry
THE JANUS STONE by Elly Griffiths
THE JANUS STONE by Elly Griffiths
THE KILLER IS DYING by James Sallis
THE KILLER IS DYING by James Sallis
THE KING OF DIAMONDS by Simon Tolkien
THE LANTERN by Deborah Lawrenson
THE LEAVENWORTH CASE by Anna Katherine Green
THE LOCKED ROOM by Maj Sjowal & Per Wahloo
THE LOST SISTER by Russel McLean
THE MAGIC BULLET by Larry Millett
THE MAN ON THE BALCONY by Maj Sjowal & Per Wahloo
THE MAN WHO WENT UP IN SMOKE by Maj Sjowal & Per Wahloo
THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF JANE AUSTEN by Lindsay Ashford
THE NIGHT STRANGERS by Chris Bohjalian
THE ONE FROM THE OTHER by Philip Kerr
THE PERFECT SUSPECT by Margaret Cole
THE PURSUED by C.S. Forester
THE RANGER by Ace Atkins
THE RETRIBUTION by Val McDermid
THE RETURN by Hakan Nesser
THE ROCK HOLE by Reavis Z. Wortham
THE RULE BOOK by Rob Kitchin
THE SECOND CONFESSION by Rex Stout
THE SHORTEST WAY TO HADES by Sarah Caudwell
THE SILENT GIRL by Tess Gerritsen
THE SILENT WORLD OF NICHOLAS QUINN by Colin Dexter
THE STABBING IN THE STABLES by Simon Brett
THE STONE CUTTER by Camilla Lackberg
THE STRANGER YOU SEEK by Amanda Kyle Williams
THE SUMMONER by Layton Green
THE TRINITY SIX by Charles Cumming
THE UNLUCKY LOTTERY by Hakan Nesser
THE VAULT by Ruth Rendell
THE VAULT by Roslund & Hellstrom
THE WOODCUTTER by Reginald Hill
THESE HIDDEN THINGS by Heather Gudenkauf
THINK OF A NUMBER by John Verdon
THREE SECONDS by Roslund & Hellstrom
TRACKERS by Deon Meyer
TRACKERS by Deon Meyer
TWO FOR SORROW by Nicola Upson
V is for VENGEANCE by Sue Grafton
VIOLENT EXPOSURE by Katherine Howell
VOICES by Arnaldur Indridason
WATCH OUT FOR ME by Sylvia Johnson
WATER-BLUE EYES by Domingo Vilar
WHAT ALICE KNEW: A MOST CURIOUS TALE ABOUT HENRY JAMES AND JACK THE RIPPER by Paula Morantz Cohen
WHAT WAS LOST by Catherine O'Flynn
WHERE THE BODIES ARE BURIED by Chris Brookmyre
WHITE DOG by Peter Temple
WICKED AUTUMN by G.M. Malliet
WINTERLAND by Alan Glynn
WRITTEN IN BONE by Simon Beckett
WYATT by Garry Disher
WYCLIFFE AND THE LAST RITES by W.J. Burley

Best crime fiction reads 2011 - titles with multiple mentions

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

Best Crime Fiction Reads for 2011 - it's gonna take some time

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:14:00 +0000

Today I have begun the task of aggregating people's lists for their best crime fiction reads for 2011 as per the suggestions made so far.

With more than 40 lists of suggestions I've realised what a task it is going to be, complicated by the fact that some are just for books published in 2011 and others are for books read during 2011 regardless of publication date.

What I will produce eventually is

a list of all titles suggested
a list that shows which titles have been suggested multiple times
a list of all authors
a list that shows which authors have been suggested multiple times

Thank you to all who have submitted your lists. I'm sorry it is going to take so long to come up with a result, but I hope it will be worth the effort when it happens.

Review: OUR KIND OF TRAITOR, John Le Carre - audio book

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:04:00 +0000

published 2010
available from Audible.com
Abridged
Length: 5 hours
Narrator: John Le Carre
Source: part of a prize won at CrimeFest 2010

Synopsis (Fantastic Fiction)

Perry and Gail are idealistic and very much in love when they splurge on a tennis vacation at a posh beach resort in Antigua. But the charm begins to pall when a big-time Russian money launderer enlists their help to defect.
In exchange for amnesty, Dima is ready to rat out his vory (Russian criminal brotherhood) compatriots and expose corruption throughout the so-called legitimate financial and political worlds.
Soon, the guileless couple find themselves pawns in a deadly endgame whose outcome will be determined by the victor of the British Secret Service's ruthless internecine battles.

My rating:

What could possibly go wrong with listening to an audio book read by the author himself?
Well, listening to an abridged version of OUR KIND OF TRAITOR has just about cured me of listening to any more abridged books. My listening companion and I were constantly struggling to make sense of the action.

I've checked the length of this version (5 hours) with the unabridged one read by Michael Jayston in 11 hours 23 mins. That makes the abridged version about 44% of the length of the original. It is pretty obvious that descriptive passages, minor characters, and "minor" events were edited out. That explains the continuity that we felt was missing. Characters turn up whom the listener hasn't heard of before, and we didn't feel that we really got to know the characters we did meet. The details edited out might have helped us make more sense of the action.

"Your fault" you might respond - you were the one who chose to listen to an abridgement. In my defence, I thought the fact that the author himself was narrating was an insurance that it would be ok. Not so. Le Carre does an excellent job (I haven't found other examples of his narration) with a terrific range of voices. The problem clearly lies in what the abridgement left out.

My rating: 3.5

Other reviews to check:

Another John Le Carre audio book reviewed here on MiP

On my library list

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 23:30:00 +0000

I think I have told you before how great my local library is.
It was pretty obvious this week when it re-opened after the Christmas/New Year holidays. The car park was full and there were people everywhere.

Apart from great facilities such as the children's room shown below

it also has access to a great collection via the SWAP network of 7 libraries.
This ensures that even for popular titles don't occasion huge waiting time.

Which means I have access to great crime fiction reads.

Here are the books I have out at present.

A TRICK OF THE LIGHT: [a Chief Inspector Gamache novel] / Louise Penny.

THE ANATOMY OF GHOSTS : an inquiry into the distressing circumstances surrounding an alleged apparition lately recorded in Cambridge ; set down for the curious in the form of a novel / Andrew Taylor.

THE MISSING / Jane Casey.

A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD : a Flavia de Luce novel / Alan Bradley

BLOOD MOON / Garry Disher.

THE VAULT / Ruth Rendell.

I'm currently reading A TRICK OF THE LIGHT. Have you read any of the others?

Books on my request list

BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP : a novel / S.J. Watson.

THE IMPOSSIBLE DEAD / Ian Rankin.

THE BROTHERHOOD / Y.A. Erskine.

THE CROWDED GRAVE : an investigation by Bruno, Chief of Police / Martin Walker.

BACKLASH : a Monika Paniatowski mystery / Sally Spencer.

Reading Challenges for me in 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Kerrie) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 23:25:00 +0000

After quite a bit of deliberation and reflection I have decided that I will more or less go with the challenges that I discovered in 2011.
I found that the challenges between them helped me keep better records for my reading, expanded my horizons, and achieved a bit of a balance.
I also discovered things about my reading habits.

I don't feel at the moment that the challenges force me into a reading strait jacket.
I still basically read what I want to, and then decide which challenge they fit into. Sometimes I have to look for a book for a particular challenge.
Some of the reading challenges last year were more easily achievable than others because they fell into the pattern of what I already read. That doesn't make them any less worthy a challenge though.

I also reserve the right to add challenges as the year progresses.
I allow myself to count a book for more than one challenge (e-book and Nordic for example) and I allow the book to be in any format (apart from film).

So I've come up with 14 reading challenges. If you are interested in the finer details you will find them on 2012 Reading Challenges Update

The reading challenges I've joined

Agatha Christie Reading Challenge 0/12
2012 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge: aiming for 166+ currently: 3
2012 e-book challenge currently 1/75
Nordic Challenge 2012 currently 1/20
Aussie Author Challenge 0/12
2012 Global Reading Challenge currently 2/21
Canadian Book Challenge 2011-2012 7/13
Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge 0/16
Historical Fiction Challenge at Historical Tapestry 0/10
British Books Challenge 0/12

Personal reading challenges

American authors: currently 2/20
translated, currently 1
New Zealand, currently 0/4
new to me: currently 0

Looking for some Challenge Ideas?

You will notice some overlap in the record below, with many books counting in more than one challenge.
If you want to join me on one of the personal challenges, let me know - I could probably be talked into hosting a challenge with a Mr Linky if enough people are interested.