[bksvol-discuss] Fw: Mystery June 2008
- From: "Amber Wallenstein" <amber.wallens@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 23 Jun 2008 23:09:58 -0400
Mystery June 2008
"The Jazz Age was wicked and monstrous and silly. Unfortunately, I had a good
time."
~ Heywood Broun (1888-1939), American journalist
New and Recently Released!
Master of the Delta - by Thomas H. Cook
Publisher: Harcourt
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 6/2/2008
ISBN: 9780151012541
ISBN-10: 0151012547
Mystery. A teacher finds out that the road to hell really is paved with good
intentions. At Lakeland High School in 1954, Eddie, the son of the now-deceased
"Coed Killer," is a student in Jack Branch's class on historical evil. Jack,
the 24-year-old son of one of the small Mississippi town's most prominent
men, feels oddly compelled to help the teenager. He does so by encouraging the
boy to write a paper on his father--but this is one assignment that comes
back to haunt the teacher, because what Eddie uncovers reverberates throughout
the entire town...and especially impacts Jack. If you enjoy suspenseful,
well-written tales, Master of the Delta should be on your to-be-read list.
Cheating at Solitaire: A Gregor Demarkian Novel - by Jane Haddam
Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/15/2008
ISBN: 9780312343088
ISBN-10: 0312343086
Mystery. Are you confused/fascinated by the antics of rich, young,
underwearless celebrities? If so, pick up Cheating at Solitaire, which peers at
this
exclusive subgroup and ponders why its troubled members do the things they
do--and why we care. Former FBI agent Gregor Demarkian gets out of helping to
plan his upcoming wedding when he's called to Margaret's Harbor, an island off
the coast of Massachusetts, to investigate the murder of a pop star's boyfriend.
The pop star, Arrow Normand, is the prime suspect--but did she do it? The
critics love this 23rd novel in the Demarkian series: Publishers Weekly calls
it "stellar" and Library Journal says that "Haddam is at her best."
First Chapter
Hangman's Corner: A Ned Parker Hansom Cab Mystery - by Peter King
Publisher: Five Star
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/16/2008
ISBN: 9781594146459
ISBN-10: 1594146454
Historical Mystery. A hansom cab driver in 1870 London, Ned Parker travels all
over the city and sees lots of intriguing things. His job soon proves useful
to the police when one of his fares--who was dressed as a clergyman but may
have been a thief--is found dead in the Thames River. Ned identifies the
man...and
agrees to aid the authorities (something his cabby dad, who died under strange
circumstances, had done on a regular basis). To help solve the case and
clear a fellow driver who's been arrested, Ned rallies London's 6,000 other
cabbies, and he visits the British Museum, music halls, and a closed underground
station beneath the Thames. This fast-paced mystery, the 1st in a planned
series, will please fans who like fun, adventure-filled reads.
The Miracle at Speedy Motors - by Alexander McCall Smith
Publisher: Pantheon Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/15/2008
ISBN: 9780375424489
ISBN-10: 0375424482
Mystery. Enjoy a relaxing trip to Botswana in Alexander McCall Smith's latest
novel featuring likeable detective Precious Ramotswe. This time out, Precious
receives threatening letters and tries to find the birth family of a woman who
thinks she was adopted. Though this is the 9th book in the engaging series,
newcomers who like richly drawn characters and lyrical prose can start here.
Fans who quickly finish reading The Miracle at Speedy Motors or who find
themselves
on the hold list for it should pick up one of Agatha Christie's novels--she is,
after all, Precious Ramotswe's inspiration and role model.
First Chapter
If you like James Lee Burke, try one of these...
Exploring the evil that men do and the possibility for redemption, James Lee
Burke's haunting novels often linger in the minds of readers long after they've
read them. In Burke's complex, lyrically written, action-filled stories, his
two detectives--Louisiana's Dave Robicheaux and Texas' Billy Bob Holland--face
provocative moral and social issues as they struggle for justice in a violent
world. Burke's newest Dave Robicheaux novel, Swan Peak, is due to be released
in early July. If you find yourself longing for similar books, check out the
following.
The Sins of the Fathers: A Matthew Scudder Novel - by Lawrence Block
Publisher: Avon Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 7/1/1994
ISBN: 9780380763634
ISBN-10: 038076363X
Mystery. Hard-drinking but good-hearted, unlicensed New York detective Matthew
Scudder takes on an unusual case: the father of a murdered young prostitute
doesn't want to know who killed his estranged daughter (the police supposedly
have figured that out), but he does want to know who she had become and why
she was murdered. Though the girl's blood-covered roommate was charged with the
crime and then committed suicide, Scudder realizes he didn't kill her.
Originally published in the 1970s, The Sins of the Fathers, the 1st of the
Matthew Scudder novels, is "spare and lean and full of dark insights into
lonesomeness
and anguish" (Publishers Weekly).
Bad Luck and Trouble: A Jack Reacher Novel - by Lee Child
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/15/2007
ISBN: 9780385340557
ISBN-10: 0385340559
Suspense. Jack Reacher is a Vietnam vet and an off-the-grid wanderer. He's also
a bit of a lone wolf...but that doesn't mean he wouldn't risk his life for--or
kill to avenge the deaths of--former members of his MP group. In his fast-paced
11th outing (the 12th, Nothing to Lose is just out), Jack is contacted
by one of his ex-teammates via code and learns that someone is targeting his
old friends--several are missing and one was killed by being thrown from a
helicopter high over the California desert. Reunited with the surviving members
of the team, Jack tries to figure out what is going on. Like James Lee
Burke's heroes, Reacher has his own moral code.
First Chapter
The Black Echo - by Michael Connelly
Publisher: Warner Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/1/2002
ISBN: 9780446612739
ISBN-10: 0446612731
Police Procedural. Vietnam veteran (he was a "tunnel rat") and L.A. police
detective (though internal affairs may be looking at him) Hieronymus "Harry"
Bosch is a bit of a maverick. When he answers a drug-overdose call about a dead
body in a drainpipe at Mulholland dam, he discovers it belongs to an old
war buddy, Billy Meadows, also an ex-tunnel rat. Convinced Billy was murdered,
Bosch goes all the way to the FBI for help. Along with a beautiful federal
agent, Bosch discovers a masterful criminal plot. Author Michael Connelly's
intelligent prose, descriptive writing, and dark tone should please James Lee
Burke fans. The Black Echo, Connelly's 1992 Edgar-winning debut novel, is the
1st in a bestselling series.
Darkness, Take My Hand - by Dennis Lehane
Publisher: HarperTorch
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 7/1/1997
ISBN: 9780380726288
ISBN-10: 0380726289
Crime Novel. Boston-based writer Dennis Lehane offers James Lee Burke's fans a
familiar bleak tone, hard-edged moral stories, involved personal relationships,
and cynical humor. In Lehane's Darkness, Take My Hand, private detectives
Patrick Kenzie and Angela Dimassi Gennaro find themselves mixed up in a
dangerous
case after a psychiatrist asks for their help (she's gotten mixed up with
Boston's Irish mafia while trying to help a troubled young woman). Patrick and
Angela know one of the mobsters from their childhood, but there's much more to
this case than just the mob--it appears a violent serial killer is on the
loose. Booklist says the plot is "perfectly crafted" and calls the novel a
"tour de force."
Focus on: The Jazz Age
Rattle His Bones: A Daisy Dalrymple Mystery - by Carola Dunn
Publisher: Kensington
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 3/1/2003
ISBN: 9780758201683
ISBN-10: 0758201680
Historical Cozy Mystery. At London's Museum of Natural History, a death most
unnatural occurs. It's 1923 and the Honorable Daisy Dalrymple, a titled member
of the aristocracy who earns a living as a journalist, is at the museum working
on a series of stories about London cultural institutions when Dr. Pettigrew,
the Keeper of Mineralogy, is killed. Amateur sleuth Daisy can't help sifting
through the intriguing clues herself, though her fiancé, Scotland Yard DCI
Alec Fletcher, isn't exactly happy that she's stumbled over yet another dead
body. Brew a pot of Darjeeling and enjoy the 8th book in this charming series
set in the 1920s.
First Chapter
Raisins and Almonds: A Phryne Fisher Mystery - by Kerry Greenwood
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 11/15/2007
ISBN: 9781590581681
ISBN-10: 1590581687
Historical Mystery. The delightfully uninhibited Phryne Fisher has taken a
young Jewish man as her latest lover. She's also taken on his father, Benjamin
Abrahams, as a client (though she's an Australian socialite, Phryne also looks
into murders and such on the side). One of Benjamin's tenants, well-liked
bookseller Sylvia Lee, has been arrested for murdering a Jewish scholar in her
bookshop, and Benjamin doesn't think she did it. Phryne is soon learning
about Jewish life, searching for coded Hebrew messages, and becoming involved
in a political situation. Phryne's 9th case should please fans who like their
heroines strong and witty and their 1920s roaring.
Locked Rooms: A Mary Russell Novel - by Laurie R. King
Publisher: Bantam Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 3/28/2006
ISBN: 9780553583410
ISBN-10: 0553583417
Historical Mystery. In May of 1924, young Mary Russell and her much-older
husband, Sherlock Holmes, are on a ship headed for Mary's hometown of San
Francisco
in order to settle her family's estate. But the closer they get to port, the
more anxious Mary becomes as she's hounded by strange dreams. Once there,
an attempt on Mary's life leads the detecting couple to hire
detective-turned-novelist Dash Hammett and to wonder if the decade-old car
accident that killed
Mary's family was actually murder. Locked Rooms, the 8th in Laurie R. King's
popular series (the 1st is The Beekeeper's Apprentice), "brims with lively
1920s color and verve" (The Seattle Times).
First Chapter
A Test of Wills - by Charles Todd
Publisher: Bantam Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 8/1/1998
ISBN: 9780553577594
ISBN-10: 055357759X
Historical Mystery. World War I veteran Ian Rutledge--suffering from shell
shock and secretly tormented by a dead Scottish soldier's voice--has just
returned
to duty as a Scotland Yard Inspector in 1919, hoping his job will help him
recover. But a jealous colleague has discovered Rutledge's secret and has him
assigned to a hot-potato case that could push him over the edge. In the village
of Warwickshire, a retired colonel has been murdered and the prime suspect
is a decorated war hero, who's also a friend of the Prince of Wales. Rutledge
must maneuver his way through several figurative minefields in order to solve
the murder and hold on to his sanity. The 1st in a series, A Test of Wills is a
well-crafted whodunnit.
First Chapter
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