Cold As Ice

Stone Cold Heart: A Novel by Caz Frear (Harper, $26.99, 328 pages)

Detective Constable Cat Kinsella stars in this, the second British police procedural mystery from author Caz Frear.  For many readers it’s the second novel that’s the true test of a writer’s skill.  Rest assured readers of this genre – fans of writers such as Peter Robinson, Jane Casey, and Peter James – I could go on.  Ms. Frear has another success in Stone Cold Heart.  After reading this novel, I’m looking forward to reading the first in the series, Sweet Little Lies.

Predictably, the opening page features a stream of consciousness statement from an unknown person.  The requisite references to killing and death are assurances that this read will not be tame or boring.  DC Kinsella begins her narrative in August 2017 with a rather ordinary trip to a coffee shop.  Well, the coffee is not ordinary nor is the barista.

Fast forward to November of the same year, a Tuesday to be specific.  We’re introduced to Luigi Parnell, Kinsella’s partner, as well as their boss, Detective Inspector Kate Steele.  Murder Investigation Team 4, as they are called, is considering a scene with a 22-year-old murder victim, Naomi Lockhart.  Kinsella’s remembrance of past visits to this neighborhood is a head’s up to the reader that there will be a blend of her past and the present.  She encounters many triggers to her memory during the tale.

Author Frear provides the usual banter among the members of the MIT4.  Moreover, throughout the book she takes time to thoughtfully describe the various aspects of each scene and the thoughts and actions of her characters.  Perhaps it is the cinematic feel of her writing that sets these characters and their profession apart from an ordinary British police mystery.  In fact, the DC Kinsella novels are now being made into a television series.

The underlying issues that move the story forward are trust and truth.  As one would expect, the tale is advanced as MIT4 searches for the answer to the age old question, who done it?

The book is highly recommended for mystery/thriller readers and especially those who are dedicated readers of British police procedurals featuring a female detective as the main character.

Ruta Arellano

Stone Cold Heart was published on July 2, 2019.  A review copy was received from the publisher.

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Obsession Most Fatal

A Fatal Obsession: A McCabe & Savage Thriller by James Hayman (Witness Impulse, $11.99, 368 pages)

A Fatal Obsession marks James Hayman’s sixth book in his McCabe & Savage series.  Once again, author Hayman provides his readers with a well-crafted thriller.  His mastery of language and plot lines smoothly intertwines the musings and actions of deranged killer Tyler Bradshaw with the advancement of the romantic relationship between Detective Sargent Michael McCabe and Investigator Maggie Savage, both of the Portland, Maine Police Department’s Crimes Against People unit.

Faithful readers of Hayman’s series will be sure to see the sharp contrast between a strong family that looks after its own and an abusive one that created a killing machine.  This time around McCabe employs his skill as a seasoned investigator and team builder to track down his brilliant, budding actress niece, Zoe McCabe, who has disappeared following the final performance of Othello at a New York City Lower East Side community theater.

The riveting prologue captures the reader’s attention and, if you’ll excuse the trite puns, sets the stage for a very bumpy ride.  McCabe and Savage complement each other’s styles in devising the hunt for Zoe.  Bradshaw cleverly demands unwavering attention through his brilliant deceptions as he spins a fantasy that escalates a killing spree of artistic young women.

Having nearly unlimited funds can lead to disaster.  Those who wish for such a life may not want to have paid the high price that cost Bradshaw a “normal” one.  Although he has a few redeeming qualities, they’re not enough by a large measure.

This is a highly recommended for mystery and thriller fans of all ages who enjoy reading stand-alones and series.

Ruta Arellano

A review copy was provided by the publisher.

A Fatal Obsession was released on August 21, 2018.

The Decommissioned

Presumption of Guilt: A Joe Gunther Novel (Minotaur Books, $16.99, 304 pages)

Presumption of Guilt is Familiar, Solid

When you have a good thing going, why change?  Archie Mayor’s Presumption of Guilt is the 27th in the Joe Gunther series that began in 1988, and its familiarity is pleasing.  Gunther is an agent with the Vermont Bureau of Investigation (VBI).  His brazen and unorthodox ways get results, and the reader easily and immediately accesses the setting and characters while the plot unfolds.

Mayor’s background as a medical examiner allows for insider commentary when bodies turn up, which some will no doubt find interesting.  His chapters are somewhat longer than most suspense novels, which is due in part to the fact that much of the story is told in dialogue.  In this addition to the Gunther catalog, Gunther’s daughter joins him and considers following in his footsteps with the VBI.

In Presumption, the body of Hank Mitchell is found in a slab of concrete on the property of a recently decommissioned nuclear power plant.  Initially, there is no obvious motive for this 40-year-old cold case.  But during the investigation a police officer is attacked, gagged and left on the side of the road.  A suspect in the old Mitchell case is soon found murdered.

Several people take it upon themselves to solve the initial murder and the related case, and no one seems to be above suspicion.  Joe, of course, gets to the bottom of things but not before taking a bullet, and not without several unanticipated turns.  These turns keep the reader fully engaged until the very last page.

Well recommended.

Dave Moyer

A review copy was provided by the publisher.  Presumption of Guilt is now available in a trade paperback version.

Dave Moyer is the author of Life and Life Only: A Novel of baseball, life and Bob Dylan.  He is a public school superintendent in Illinois.

Heaven Help Us All

The Heavens May Fall: A Novel by Allen Eskins (Seventh Street Books, $15.95, 270 pages)

Relative newcomer Allen Eskins has come into his own with The Heavens Must Fall.  It is the third in a series of books that take place in Minnesota, following his highly acclaimed debut, The Life We Bury, and the follow up, The Guise of Another.  In Heavens, detective Max Rupert takes a more prominent role.

Eskins writes lines for Rupert with complete ease.  The other main characters, partner Niki Vang and defense attorney Broady Sanden, are well defined and the pacing of the story is perfect.  The dialogue between and among the characters is natural and feels real.  Nothing is forced and the reader is eager to find out what will happen next.

Jennavieve Pruitt is murdered, presumably by her husband, Ben, a former law partner of Sanden.  But is he guilty or is the District Attorney rushing for a conviction to further his pursuit of a judgeship?  Rupert and Vang are meticulous in their investigation; however, Sanden is steadfast in his defense of Pruitt, his former partner.

In the meantime, the mystery of Rupert’s wife’s death/murder, which haunts the detective from the outset, teases and unexpectedly comes closer to being solved.  Max’s moral center drives this book, and – with a twist or two, the ending satisfies.  All of this fairly screams for a fourth book.  Based on the positive quality of Heavens, this series is far from being tired or retired.

A future romance is not out of the question as Max avenges his wife’s death.  It would not be a stretch to assume that Sanden and the current D.A./future judge, Frank Dovey, will play a role somehow as Rupert’s adventures continue.  Eskens is worth paying attention to, and Rupert is prominent as a fictional, favorite crime fighting hero.

Highly recommended.

Dave Moyer

A review copy was provided by the publisher.

Dave Moyer is the superintendent of a public school district north of Chicago. He is the author of Life and Life Only: A Novel.

 

 

Three for the Read

Fallout: A V.I. Warshawski Novel by Sara Paretsky (William Morrow, $27.99, 448 pages)

The latest V.I. Warshawski mystery (the 21st in the series) moves away from V.I.’s usual stomping grounds in and around Chicago to Lawrence, Kansas in the heart of the Midwest.   As the tale begins, V.I. has been hired to find two missing persons, a former movie star and a trainer at the local gym who also happens to be a videographer.   Emerald Ferring and August Veriden disappeared the week prior without leaving an itinerary or contact information.   August’s cousin, Angela Creedy, and V.I.’s young friend, Bernardine Fouchard, are adamant that something awful has happened.

Author Paretsky explores the racial and regional biases within the area surrounding Lawrence.   She takes a 360-degree view that includes the clergy, the military, university cell biologists, and private industry.   There are flashbacks to the mid 1980s when protest by local militants included encampments at a Minuteman missile silo.   Paretsky lets fly with her views on the cruel actions taken to cover up the serious harm inflicted on innocent civilians.   V.I. and Paretsky are on the case!

Well recommended.

Fallout will be released on April 18, 2017.

No Place to Die: A Novel by Clare Donoghue (Minotaur Books, $27.99, 372 pages)

Clare Donoghue has developed a relatively new mystery series featuring London police officers Jane Bennett and Mike Lockyer.   No Place to Die is the second installment in this classic British police procedural set in present day London.   Bennett is the featured character in this tale.   The way she is portrayed brings to mind Maeve Kerrigan in Jane Casey’s crime novels.   The diabolical nature of the crimes to be solved by Bennett is reminiscent of Peter James’ Roy Grace series.   There are the typical British words and phrases liberally used throughout the text – bottom of the garden, fringe (hair bangs), etc.

No Place to Die includes victims buried alive that need rescuing in very short order.   Each chapter examines the action from various characters’ viewpoints.   Jane Bennett is dealing with her absentee boss, Mike Lockyer, who was traumatized by their prior case.   Jane’s son, Peter, is autistic.   Jane must rely on the assistance of her somewhat helpful mother who steps in to care for Peter when casework calls Jane away after school hours.   Life is not easy!

Well recommended.

Poisonous: A Novel by Allison Brennan (Minotaur Books, $25.99, 354 pages)

Back in the USA on the west coast we meet Maxine Revere, an investigative reporter who is contacted by an 18-year-old developmentally disabled boy named Tommy.   His half-sister died as the result of a fall from a cliff in Corte Madera, California more than a year ago.   Ms. Revere, or Max as she is known, becomes entangled in the issues of a very dysfunctional family.   There are the usual matters of jealousy and bickering that happen among teens.   When you add divorce and remarriage by the dad to a woman who has her own teenager, there’s bound to be trouble.

Allison Brennan has had over 20 novels published since 2005.   Poisonous is her latest.   Clearly, Ms. Brennan is very good at character development as well as weaving plot threads.   The book is engaging if not a bit challenging.   Perhaps the array of relationships that sometimes confused this reviewer could have been simplified with a chart of the characters.   That aside, I’m unable to resist enumerating the parallels between Ms. Brennan and myself.   They are threefold: we both reside in the same community; each of us has worked in government; and we share an astrological sign.

I look forward to reading more of her books.

Well recommended.

Ruta Arellano

Review copies were provided by the publishers.

(Not Quite) By The Numbers

Crooked Numbers: A Raymond Donne Mystery (Minotaur Books, $25.99, 320 pages)

Tim O’Mara’s Crooked Numbers, the second in the Raymond Donne mystery series, follows a very familiar – perhaps too familiar – path for those who read his debut novel Sacrifice Fly.

Donne is a former police officer turned public school teacher in Brooklyn. He had to leave the force when injured in the line of duty but just can’t get the cop out of him.

In Crooked Numbers, a young kid with a promising future, Doug Lee, is killed. Lee’s mother approaches Donne for help, and soon thereafter another teenager turns up dead and yet another end up in the hospital. Donne can’t fight his instincts and springs into action. Similar to the storyline in Sacrifice Fly, he becomes more valuable than the actual police in solving the mystery and catching the bad guys.

Well known characters permeate the scene – Uncle Ray, also a former cop; Allison, the love-interest newspaper reporter; and Muscles, the physical therapist who pushes Donne to return to normal functioning all reappear.

O’Mara’s writing is solid, and Donne is generally an interesting fellow. But there isn’t a lot of intrigue in this story that would move it into the page turner category. It is good, but perhaps a bit of a sophomore slump. Odds are that the third installment will bounce back with a little more needed oomph.

Recommended.

Dave Moyer

A review copy was provided by the publisher. Oddly, none of Tim O’Mara’s books are available in trade paperback form.

Dave Moyer is a public school superintendent in Illinois, and the author of Life and Life Only: A Novel.

Black Is Black

Wendell Black, MD: A Novel by Gerald Imber (Bourbon Street Books, $14.99, 412 pages)

Fans of medical-themed stories will be happy to find this one written by famed plastic surgeon Gerald Imber. Dr. Wendell Black, the central character, narrates an often-dark and sinister tale. Black is a New York City police surgeon. His credentials allow him access to crime scenes even though he’s not a sworn officer who carries a weapon.

Circumstances that seem quite ordinary place Black at the center of an international crime syndicate. His first encounter with the mayhem created by the criminals occurs on a flight to New York. A call over the public address system for a doctor on board to provide assistance brings Black to the side of an ailing passenger.

The story centers on the theme of connections, mostly centered around human friendships. The in-flight medical emergency becomes more than a one-time event. Black seeks out the help of a Central Intelligence Agency staffer who’s well placed in the organization when he realizes there’s trouble that far exceeds Black’s problem solving capabilities.

Imber provides the reader with just enough medical information to be plausible but not in an egotistical and heavy-handed way like one finds in the Kay Scarpetta novels. In this post-9/11 era tale, an awareness of terror threats forms a basic thread in the plot’s fabric.

Highly recommended.

Ruta Arellano

A review copy was provided by the publisher.

“Imber’s debut is a fast-paced thriller with plenty of twists.” Booklist

The Stranger

The Stranger: A Novel by Camilla Lackberg (Pegasus Crime, $25.95, 384 pages)

This police procedural featuring Detective Patric Hedstrom picks up right where Ms. Lackberg’s third crime novel, The Stonecutter, abruptly concluded. A newcomer, pretty blonde Officer Hanna Kruse, becomes the second female on the Fjallbacka, Sweden police force. Her presence shifts the dynamics among the officers and provides an opportunity to delve into their feelings. Patric must defend his intuition and work around the nearly-useless Police Chief Bertil Mellberg and the pompous town mayor Enling W. Larson who has recruited a reality show to his town to promote tourism.

A series of vignettes and quick shifts establish the characters and the plot. The eerie switching among character groups — reality TV show and crew, townspeople and the mayor, keeps the reader alert. The main event is the suspicious death of a local shopkeeper. Her death leads to an ever-widening police hunt for a possible murderer.

Ms. Lackberg is a master at building her tale via shocking and troubling events. To her credit, she does not over-use this technique. Rather, the frequent use of coffee, tea and cinnamon bun breaks by all the characters makes for a charming antidote to a very scary book.

Highly recommended.

Ruta Arellano

A review copy was provided by the publisher.

Coming Up Next…

A review of The Stranger: A Novel by Camilla Lackberg.

Still Waters

A Summer Mystery Series Update.

Proof of Guilt: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery by Charles Todd (William Morrow, $12.99, 352 pages)

In a series marked by smooth transitions and character development, this, the 15th Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery is sure to please fans of the writing duo who go by the name, Charles Todd. As is the case with this series, the story is set in post World War II England with all the charm and quaintness expected of the genre. The plot is intricately woven with multiple generations of two families that together founded an upstanding firm. The firm produces and distributes fine Madera wine. The vineyard is located on Madera and the distributorship is headquartered in London.

Rutledge, although an inspector with Scotland Yard, is assigned to a death case where the unidentified victim has been struck down by an automobile and appears to be a man of means – based upon his clothes and a fine old gold pocket watch that was originally sold in Lisbon, Portugal. Motoring fatalities are not Rutledge’s specialty; however, the lack of an ID on the man and his appearance — which includes gentlemanly hands and fingernails — makes him more than some poor devil who was plowed down by an auto.

There are many instances where Rutledge and his fellow law enforcement personnel rely on class distinctions to parse out the relationships among the two families and their employees. Class seems to be a prominent part of daily life in the early 20th century and the lack of modern scientific methodology for solving crimes puts relationships and motives to the forefront in crime solving. Pursuit of truth and uncovering deceit are foremost on Rutledge’s agenda for this assignment.

Of note is the personal progress made by Inspector Rutledge. He has been very close to his sister, Frances, ever since the end of the war. His Post Traumatic Stress Disorder seems to be abating somewhat and his improving mental health bodes well for a shift in his relationship with Frances.

Highly recommended.

Lost: A Novel by S. J. Bolton (Minotaur Books, $25.99, 391 pages)

Fast forward to modern day London, this is where we catch up with Lacey Flint, the beautiful but tortured British detective constable whose life is filled with heroics and victimhood. Lacey is on leave from her job following a brush with death (Dead Scared).

Lacey and a young boy who lives next door become unlikely partners in solving a rash of pre-adolescent kidnappings/murders. Barney, the 11-year-old next-door-neighbor, is forever searching for his mom who disappeared when he was a toddler. Lacey uses Barney’s quest and a need for distraction and escape from her own demons and proclivities to work behind the scenes while her heartthrob, Detective Mark Joesbury, and Detective Dana Tulloch are the assigned investigators on the case.

Of course there are gruesome scenes involving really twisted criminals and perilous situations for all involved. It wouldn’t be an authentic S. J. Bolton mystery without these compelling elements. This one is as good as its predecessors!

Highly recommended.

The Beautiful Mystery: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books, $15.99, 390 pages)

Our next stop is deep in the wilderness of Quebec, Canada behind the massive door of a fortified monastery, Saint-Gilbert-Entre-Les-Loups. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his younger protege Jean-Guy Beauvoir are investigating the murder of the monastery’s choirmaster. The tale is a classic locked door and limited list of suspects mystery. (The book is the eighth in this series.)

Gamache is true to form with his nearly-infinite patience and calm demeanor. The monastery is world-famous for the spectacular Georgian chants performed by the choir. All the monks participate in the singing; it is what they do, along with their daily chores and the creation of chocolate covered blueberries. Gamache is ecstatic because he is the first non-religious person to enter the monastery and he loves the Georgian chants.

The ultimate joy is when a visit to the monastery proves to be literally fruitful — blueberries covered with chocolate! Jean-Guy and Gamache explore the entire building and its walled garden while seeking a murderer among the seemingly-pacifist monks. Still waters run deep and even the motive for the murder is well-hidden.

This reviewer listened to the audio book read by Ralph Cosham. The beautifully pronounced French words made the experience very enjoyable. Reading the words in hard copy has been a challenge!

Well recommended.

Ruta Arellano

Review copies were provided by the publisher. Lost was released on June 4, 2013, and The Beautiful Mystery was released on July 2, 2013.