Tag: 3 1/2 Stars Page 10 of 41

DETAILS:
Series: Sunny Randall, #10
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Publication Date: May 2, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 319 pg.
Read Date: May 9-10

What’s Revenge Tour About?

Back in book 3, Shrink Rap,* Sunny Randall helped protect best-selling author Melanie Joan Hall from her stalker ex-husband. He ended up in prison by the end and Melanie Joan and Sunny have remained close—Sunny has spent a few years living in her home, in fact, as Melanie Joan’s now based in California.

* Thanks to the magic of Fiction, that was 2002. I’m not exactly sure how few years are supposed to have passed between books 3 and 10, but I know it’s not 20.

Now she’s back in Boston, preparing to shoot a Netflix series based on her Romance series. She’s been wildly successful already, but this is set to make Melanie Joan Hall huge. Naturally, this kind of attention is bringing out enemies—including one who claims that the novel that started it all was plagiarized. Sunny needs to track down this anonymous accuser, quickly and quietly.

Meanwhile, Sunny’s dad, Phil, could use a little help. Years before he retired, he arrested the son of a prominent defense lawyer and helped ensure he served a long sentence. That son was just killed in prison, and the lawyer is harassing and threatening Phil. Sunny and Lee Farrell team up to help Phil.

Sunny gets some evidence that causes her to give credence to the claims against Melanie Joan, and their relationship is strained. Then people close to Melanie Joan start being murdered because Sunny doesn’t have enough going on. So, she has to clear Melanie Joan (or definitively establish her guilt), keep her safe, find out who is behind the plagiarism and/or murders, and keep her father alive while stopping this lawyer. Sunny’s going to need all her allies—and get a few new ones—to accomplish this To-Do list and get out of this alive.

The Two Exes

One of the people with the biggest grudges against Melanie Joan is her ex-husband, serving a life sentence for his crimes against Melanie Joan, Sunny, and Richie. Sunny travels to the prison to see if he might behind this all. In fact, he knows a disturbing amount about Melanie Joan, Sunny, Richie, Jesse Stone(!), and the threats against her father. I should probably mention that recently, Melvin was represented by the same lawyer currently harassing Phil.

I remember less than nothing about John Melvin—it’s probably been 15+ years since I re-read Shrink Rap last. But based on what Lupica does with him he’s easily in the top 5 creepiest characters in the Parkerverse. And Lupica uses him as much as he can in this book. (but wisely not over-much) Why is it psychologists make the best bad guys? (see also Thomas Harris, Dennis Lehane, and a couple of other examples that will pop into my mind about 30 seconds after I publish this but that I can’t think of now)

But before John Melvin, Melanie Joan had another husband—he was her writing professor in college (feel free to cringe at that, Sunny does). Melanie Joan credited Dr. Charles Hall with helping her get her first novel into shape. So if anyone’s going to be able to clear her from these charges—or condemn her—it’s going to be him. Sadly, he’s in poor health and suffering from some sort of dementia. His current spouse (another former student) can give Sunny some information, however.

I’ve Got a Beef

I think that Lupica makes a giant misstep in this book, but to talk about them would involve spoilers. If you’re curious, I’m going to post something separately about it so I can keep this post spoiler-free. If you’re not curious, I’m not sure I blame you.

So, what did I think about Revenge Tour?

Lupica threw everything he had into this last go-round with Sunny. Almost every character he’s used makes an appearance or gets their name used a couple of times—plus a few others from the Parkerverse. The story is more intricate than anything he’s given us thus far, too.

Aside from the spoiler stuff, I don’t have much to quibble with. I think I could’ve lived with fewer TV references, they seem out of place in this universe. One would be okay, but there are more than a few. I also think the Phil Randall story resolved too easily—but it helped set up the rest of the novel, so I can see why Lupica made the choice.

At the end of the day, I was really impressed with this one. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—I think Lupica did a better job with Sunny than Robert B. Parker did, and this novel solidifies that. I’d be content with him writing this series for a decade, but I have high hopes for Alison Gaylin as she takes the reins.

If you’re even a casual reader of the Sunny Randall novels, this is one not to miss.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Face to Face with God: A Biblical Theology of Christ as Priest and Mediator by T. Desmond Alexander: A Biblical Theology of Hebrews

By HCNewton

On May 1, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Face to Face with God:
A Biblical Theology of
Christ as Priest
and Mediator

by T. Desmond Alexander

DETAILS:
Series: Essential Studies in Biblical Theology 
Publisher: IVP Academic
Publication Date: March 22, 2022
Format: Paperback
Length: 138 pg.
Read Date: April 17-24

A study of Jesus Christ’s high priestly ministry takes us on a journey through paths that have largely become overgrown through lack of travelers. At times our journey will require perseverance as we familiarize ourselves with new terrain. Ultimately, we shall be rewarded as new vistas will come into view as we orientate ourselves toward the throne of grace in the heavenly sanctuary. Most important of all, as we follow the ascended Christ to the right hand of the Father in heaven, we shall hopefully discover afresh the magnitude of God’s forgiveness and the generosity of his love as he invites us to share in a kingdom that can never be shaken.

What’s Face to Face with God About?

A/The* central theme of the Epistle to the Hebrews is the Priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Face to Face with God looks at the themes of priesthood—in general, and Christ’s specifically—in Hebrews and by examining the passages and teachings from the Old Testament that the Epistle is building on.

Amongst the themes Alexander explores are The Tabernacle (and Temple), Moses and Aaron’s relationship with God (prefiguring Christ’s), the role of the High Priest as Intercessor as well as in presenting the sacrifice, and the Priesthood of Melchizedek. He looks at the texts we get these ideas from as well as how the author of Hebrews deals with them as he develops his arguments, ending with a consideration of how believers are to live as a result of his priestly work—something that ought not to be ignored.

* Depending on who you ask.

So, what did I think about Face to Face with God?

This is an introductory survey, as are all the books in this series, so Alexander doesn’t dig too deeply into any of these ideas. But he does explore them with enough depth that the reader gets the complete picture.

This reads differently than the others in the series due to the way Alexander uses the book of Hebrews as his focal point and examines the texts and themes that the author of Hebrews cites in order to understand them. It’s not better or worse than the organization of the others, it’s simply a feeling of freshness that benefits the series.

I learned a lot, Alexander’s framing of the question of when Christ’s work as priest began was incredibly helpful. Not because of the answer (although that was great), but because of the thought process that went into the answer—reframing the way I thought of priesthood in general and Christ’s in particular. I had a similar reaction to his material involving Melchizedek. The other chapters had similarly helpful material, and I don’t want to take anything away from them, but those are the two that clicked the most with me.

This is a very helpful book, an interesting read, and a great example of what Biblical Theology can bring to the table.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by K.J. Parker: A Curmudgeon to the Rescue?

By HCNewton

On April 29, 2022

In Fantasy, Fiction

Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City

by K.J. Parker

DETAILS:
Series: The Siege, #1
Publisher: Orbit
Publication Date: April 8, 2019
Format: Paperback
Length:  350 pg.
Read Date: April 20-25, 2022

According to the books (there’s an extensive literature on the subject) there are fifteen ways to defend a walled city. You can try one of them, and if that doesn’t work—

Indeed. But the books were written for generals, kings, emperors; better luck next time, and we have plenty more cities where that one came from. And, to be fair, each of the fifteen ways is practical and sensible, provided you’ve got an adequate garrison, and sufficient supplies and materiel, and a competent staff of trained officers making up a properly constituted chain of command.

What the books don’t tell you is, there’s a sixteenth way. You can use it when you’ve got nothing; no stuff, no men and nobody to lead them. Apart from that, it’s got nothing to recommend it whatsoever.

Fine, I thought. Let’s give it a go.

What’s Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City About?

Orhan is a colonel in charge of a company of engineers—and a very good one. He knows what it takes to work the system to equip his engineers with what they need (and if it takes forgery of official documents and bribery to get people to do their jobs, so be it). Then in the field, he gets his men to do what they need to do.

As his company returns from some bridge building and repair work, they start to suspect something is afoot (okay, more than that, but I’m trying to keep it vague) and they hustle back to “the City.” Once there, they discover that one mistake after another has been made and upon the engineers’ return, Orhan is the highest-ranking military officer in the City—and therefore, he’s solely responsible for defending the capital of the Robur empire.

Whoops.

Now, Orhan may not be the hero that the City deserves (although he might be), but is he the hero the City needs?

Orhan

This is one of those books where your enjoyment of the book is going to be wholly dependent on your opinion of the narrator/protagonist. If you enjoy his voice and are entertained by the idiomatic way he goes about his work, you’re going to have a good time reading this. If you read a few pages of this book and aren’t taken with him—do yourself a favor and move on.

He has almost no social skills and seems to thrive on offending those in power and authority (when he bothers to care about his social skills, that is). He’s confident-bordering-on-arrogant, misogynistic (although I think it’s more applied misanthropy than anything else), quick thinking, decisive, and too clever for his own good. This will strike some readers as off-putting, and would be in a real person, but it works in this fictional world.

Really, at the end of the day, it’s all about solving problems—give him a problem and he’ll come up with a solution, and everything else isn’t that important. It leaves a few bruised egos and ruffled feathers in his wake—but he gets the job done.

But man, the way he tells a story and his attitude throughout really works for me—I read those first few pages and knew we were going to be friends.

A Series?

I don’t see how this functions as the beginning of a trilogy without hurting the last couple of pages—I don’t know if this was intended to be the start of a series, or if that came later. If it was supposed to spawn a sequel all along, I misread the last chapter or two.

I really don’t think Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City needs more books to tell this story, but what do I know? Parker (and his alter-ego) have written so many books that they clearly understand story, so I assume that I’m wrong on this point—and he’s very likely doing something I don’t expect.

While I want to see how wrong I am, the fact that this works so well as a stand-alone makes me disinclined to jump on the sequel. I don’t need more in this story, as fun as it probably is.

So, what did I think about Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City?

“We’ve been ingenious, resourceful and inventive, and we haven’t let ourselves be hindered by outmoded or irrelevant ways of thinking. It’s a shame, really, because nobody will ever know how clever we were.”

The fact that the narrator lives long enough to leave a record suggests that his second-in-command is wrong in his evaluation of their chances—at least some will survive (and Orhan mentions that a few times). But still, you know that a besieged city doesn’t have a lot going for it, and reading about the siege should be grim going. And it is at times, but that doesn’t stop this from being a fun fantasy read—almost all of that is due to the narrative voice, this isn’t a comedy by any means. But it is frequently funny.

This really struck me as similar to what Sand dan Glokta went through in defending the city of Dagoska. However many his faults, Orhan is no Glotka—he’s not as vicious, he really doesn’t torture anyone, and he’s not as limited by his own injuries. But there is something about the two characters that are similar. Orhan also reminds me of R. Wilson Rogers from Zieja’s Epic Failure series—an engineer who knows how to get things done in the Armed Forces (by manipulating the system) who is thrust into a leadership role at a critical time. Orhan really is the overlapping area in the Venn diagram of Glotka and Rogers, the more I think of it.

Several of the characters could be drawn better—but they really don’t need to be, we get enough depth to understand them, but not much more. It fits with Orhan’s character—he sees most of them as tools to use in solving his problems. You don’t spend a lot of time thinking about your hammer’s backstory. He does understand, and helps the readers to understand, the more important figures in the story. In most books, I’d criticize the lack of depth, but in this one, it actually fits.

There are a few battle scenes, but not to the extent you would get in similar books—Orhan and his men aren’t fighters by trade, they’re builders. So even the fight scenes are different than what you’re used to. I’m all for variety—especially variety that fits with the story.

There’s a whole lot going for this book, and little to complain about—for a fun, fairly quick, fantasy read, give Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City a shot.

3.5 Stars
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

20/20 (Audiobook) by Carl Goodman, Louise Brealy: A New DI Finds Herself in a Disturbing Investigation

By HCNewton

On April 14, 2022

In Audiobook, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

20/20

by Carl Goodman, Louise Brealey (Narrator)

DETAILS:
Series: DI Eva Harris, #1
Publisher: Audible Originals
Publication Date: June 4, 2020
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 13 hrs., 4 min.
Read Date: March 30-31, 2022

What’s 20/20 About?

So you know how in most police procedurals, the protagonist detective(s) is helped out by a super-geek (usually, but not always, a female) who befuddles the Luddites/barely-computer literate detectives with what they can do? Well, Carl Goodman’s DI Eva Harris is the super-geek who is also the protagonist detective in the best kind of a 2-for-1 deal.

Harris is driven, she knows she’s good with computers—a real rival (if not a flat-out superior) to all kinds of cyber-criminals. But the only way for her to advance in the police services is to spend time being a non-cyber officer, out on the streets, working with other detectives for two years. Which is both hard to believe, and completely believable (if anyone knows how legitimate that is, please let me know).

On her first day as a DI in the Surrey Police, she’s summoned to a crime scene before she can even introduce herself to anyone. A woman has been murdered—meticulously exsanguinated, with her eyes meticulously removed. I stress the meticulousness there because this is a very clean crime scene that is going to be forensically unhelpful (if not worse).

And then more bodies show up. There’s a similarity here to a serial killer’s M.O., but that killer wasn’t careful about the crime scenes. Is this the same killer, who has taken the time and effort to refine his method? A copycat? Someone who just seems similar to the serial killer? That’s for DI Harris and her new team to ascertain.

If that’s not enough, part of the reason Harris has been assigned to this command is that she’s being forced by the Intelligence Services to look into corruption at her new HQ. And some skeletons from her past are coming back to haunt her.

How’s the Narration?

Brealey nailed this—she captures Harris’ analytical approach, the distance she’s keeping from her team and the assignment—and then how that distance crumbles—and general unease with some aspects of the assignment. She also does a great job portraying the rest of the cast, and the unexpected attitudes from some of the suspects.

I’m seeing a lot of negative reviews of her work on Audible and Goodreads. I don’t get it—I can see where she might be everyone’s cup of tea (who is?), but I don’t get the negativity. I thought she did exactly what this book needed.

So, what did I think about 20/20?

This was an intense, multi-layered, unnerving, and tough-to-predict police procedural with a little something extra going on. Maybe too much—just maybe.

I think I could’ve lived without the whole Harris investigates her own team aspect of the novel (although, that would have cost the novel some great scenes). The novel might have been a little stronger had it stayed focused on the killings with Harris’ past as the only subplot. It’s hard to judge things like that, so I could be completely wrong.

I cannot stress enough that some of these murders are pretty disturbing and that there is no way I ever want Carl Goodman mad at me. The way he describes murder scenes and artwork, in particular, is really impressive—there’s a lot of narrative and description that’s really impressive, but those really jumped out at me. I could “see” those very clearly.

I sussed out the 2 of the 3 main mysteries early on—that’s fine, it’s not a whodunit kind of read, it’s about Harris getting the answers and what she has to go through for that. As such, it’s a winner—she’s a fish out of water in several ways (geographic, social, vocational, for starters) and that’s the focus of the book. Still doesn’t make it less satisfying when I found out I was right. Also, I really don’t want to live in a world where the motives for the killings are plausible. Sadly, I absolutely believe them.

It’s a gripping listen, and I think you’ll be glad you gave it a shot. There’s a sequel, too—I don’t think it’ll be long before I dive into that.

3.5 Stars

Under Lock & Skeleton Key by Gigi Pandian: A Modern Take on a Classic Mystery

By HCNewton

On April 11, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Under Lock & Skeleton Key

by Gigi Pandian

DETAILS:
Series: Secret Staircase Mysteries, #1
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: March 14, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 333 pg.
Read Date: April 5-6, 2022

What’s Under Lock & Skeleton Key About?

Tempest Raj was an illusionist whose star was on the rise—until a new illusion went awry during a performance. We don’t get a lot of details, but it was bad—injuring people and property. Tempest herself might have died. Her career did.

Her career in tatters, she goes back home to lick her wounds and decide her next steps. Magic’s all she’s known—it’s a family business and has been for generations, but her grandparents and father never wanted her to go into it in the first place, and are hoping that she won’t return to it.

Instead, they’re hoping she’ll join the family business—Secret Staircase Construction. The company makes things like secret staircases, hidden rooms, and treehouses that you can double as residences. Tempest stops by their worksite one day when a large sack is found in the existing wall—inside that sack is a body. Not just anybody, but Tempest’s stage double.

The questions that leap to mind are: Who killed her? How did the body get in the wall (it’s a move worthy of her father’s or Tempest’s skills)? Why hide it there? Was it a case of mistaken identity—was that supposed to be Tempest? The police land on a quick answer, but Tempest doesn’t buy it.

So Tempest looks into things on her own, while she tries to come to terms with her life, rebuild some friendships she abandoned when she left home, and deal with some other personal stuff that we don’t have time to get into.

Illusionist as Detective

A few years ago, didn’t ABC have a series where a stage magician acted as a police/FBI consultant? Sort of a Mentalist/Castle/Instinct thing. I’m pretty sure I watched an episode of it and resented the time lost.

That said, reading this makes me think they were onto something with the Magician-turned-Detective. The way that Tempest thought about some of the aspects of this work because of her background/career is perfect for this kind of thing. She’s better equipped to tackle investigative work than a lot of amateur sleuths.

Oh, the Food…

So, Tempest’s grandfather is spending most of his retirement cooking (or at least that seems to be pretty much what he does). He moved from India to Scotland as a teen and only moved to California a few years before the novel. His food seems to be a combination of traditional Indian flavors and Scottish dishes.

Really, all I know about Scottish cuisine comes from So I Married an Axe Murderer, and I have a beginner’s appreciation for Indian food, but, boy howdy the food in Under Lock & Skeleton Key sounds great. The descriptions of all the food Grandpa Ash puts together just kept making me hungry. Thankfully, there are a couple of recipes at the end of the book that will help with the cravings the text induced (and more on the author’s website).

So, what did I think about Under Lock & Skeleton Key?

The character work—not just with Tempest, but all the characters she comes into contact with–is the best part of the book, I want to spend more time with these people and to get to know them better (even the killer!). They’re a great batch of personalities, backgrounds, and interests—a cast unlike any series I can think of.

The book as a whole is like a course in classic mysteries (think early 20th Century), especially in the vein of locked room/closed circle mysteries. And that’s before one character actually starts lecturing Tempest in classic mystery structure (I loved that section of the book and would’ve willingly suspended the action for a little longer for that section to be 2-3x as long as it was).

I’m not entirely certain that the mystery was as good as the writing and characterization would lead the reader to expect, and the solution was a little bit of a letdown. The reveal of that solution, on the other hand, was exactly what I wanted. Everything else about the novel more than makes up for the slight disappointment I experienced.

I see this is the first of a series, but it feels like a stand-alone to me. Also—how often can you find a body on the premises of a remodel? How many times can an author get away with these characters coming across a murder that’s magic-adjacent? I really don’t think I care. I’ll buy whatever weak excuse Pandian can come up with for at least another one or two of these.

I’d recommend this for die-hard mystery readers or even those who only occasionally pick one up–the premise and characters for this novel/series are fresh, intriguing, and entertaining.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Citizen K-9 by David Rosenfelt: Things Get Personal for the Team with this Cold Case

By HCNewton

On April 6, 2022

In David Rosenfelt, Dogs, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Citizen K-9

by David Rosenfelt

DETAILS:
Series: The K Team, #3
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: March 14, 2022
Format:  Hardcover
Length: 263 pg.
Read Date: April 4-5, 2022

What’s Citizen K-9 About?

Due to budget cuts, Capt. Pete Stanton of Homicide has to be careful how he uses his too-small staff. He does however, have a decent discretionary fund that he can’t use for his staff, but can use on consultants. Seeing the work that The K Team has done in the past gives him the idea to hire them to close a cold case or two.

The first case the team picks centers on a High School Reunion that Corey attended and Laurie crashed. Marcus has no connection to the case but doesn’t care, he’s in. Two attendees, who really didn’t seem to know each other during High School, left early together and were never seen again. For seven years now, there’s been occasional speculation (following the initial, inconclusive investigation) about what happened to the pair, ranging from running off to start new lives under new identities to lying in a cold grave. Corey and Laurie have been curious about it, as they were there, but have never had reason to do anything about it until now.

Due to a combination of luck, skill, and a willingness for a witness to say something they withheld before, it doesn’t take long for the cold case to heat up. Once one of the victim’s connection to drug dealers and organized crime comes to light, it gets really hot, and legitimate threats are leveled at Corey and his girlfriend.

Second Verse, Same as the First…

I never do this, but I glanced at what I said about The K Team #2, Animal Instinct before I wrote this, and two of the sections are basically what I’d planned on writing for this post. Now I realize that most readers of this blog aren’t going to remember what I posted on March 31, 2021—but still, I feel awkward about it.

It’s not going to stop me, because I still think it should be covered (and I’m not creative/energetic enough to come up with something new). I just thought I should say that I’m aware that I’m in danger of going back to the well too many times.

Trying to find the silver lining here, if I’m being consistent in my comments about the series, I guess that means that the author is being consistent in writing the series. And since I like the books, that promises good things for the future.

Simon Garfunkel

We need more Simon Garfunkel in these books.

I’m not looking for Corey to become Bernie Little, I really don’t want that. But, if you’re going to name your Detective Agency after the retired K-9 member of your team, the dog had better be around more. I get that sometimes you need to leave the dog at home (and at least for one point, Corey’s narration explains why Simon isn’t around). It’s not enough to have him around occasionally, Simon needs to be by Corey’s side almost all of the time.

This goes for the author, too—If you’re going to refer to the dog in the name of your series, use him. Especially if he’s going to be on the cover of each novel.

Dani

Dani, Corey’s significant other, gets more time in this novel than she has in the previous ones—but not too much. Her increased presence fits plot-wise—and, even if she was just around for the sake of Corey’s character development, that’d be enough justification.

The challenges for Dani and their relationship are significant and needed to happen—it leads to some needed conversations between the two. This aspect of the novel is the best part about it—even more than the Team’s case.

A good deal about this series is what’s changing for Corey in his retirement from the Police Department—his attitudes towards legal processes, his ability to/interest in a committed relationship, his ability to put up with a particular defense attorney, and so on. His relationship with Dani is the biggest change to his way of living/thinking.

It’s a steady and believable change with him—this old dog (if you’ll forgive the expression—is learning some new, and needed, tricks.

The K Team

Over the course of the three novels of this series, their jobs in the three or four Andy Carpenter books that have used The K Team, and whatever things they’ve done in the meantime, a real camaraderie has developed between Laurie, Corey, and Marcus. It’s great to see—it’s not the same feel that exists between the characters in the Andy Carpenter books.

One way this shows up is that Rosenfelt takes a long-running joke from the Carpenter books (I’m going to guess it’s been around for at least 23 books) and tweaks it—adding a new layer to it. I laughed out loud at this (something I haven’t done for at least 20 books).

This book, more than the others, is not a thinly-disguised Andy Carpenter book, and I’m glad to see it.

So, what did I think about Citizen K-9?

I really enjoyed this. David Rosenfelt has been a long-time (since before I started this blog) consistent source of entertaining reads and I’m glad to see that even with an increased output from him over the last couple of years, that hasn’t changed. I actually think this might be helping the books improve somehow.

Citizen K-9 features a clever mystery, some great character moments, some good slow-but-steady character development, a nice (if under-used) dog, who isn’t just around for window dressing, and a strong narrative voice. That’s pretty much everything I need to recommend a book, which I do. The sweet ending is a cherry on top.

This’d be a decent jumping-on point to either The K Team series or a sideways way of getting on-board with the Andy Carpenter series. If you like the spin-off, you’ll like the original. Check them out.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Death in the Sunshine by Steph Broadribb: Detectives Hitting “Pause” on their Retirement

By HCNewton

On March 21, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Steph Broadribb/Stephanie Marland

Death in the Sunshine

by Steph Broadribb

DETAILS:
Series: The Retired Detectives Club, #1
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication Date: February 28, 2022
Format: Kindle Edition
Length: 319 pg.
Read Date: March 16-18, 2022

Moira takes one last look towards the park and feels a pang of . . . something. She remembers how it felt when she saw the body, and how she switched from retired lady of leisure, Moira Flynn, back into her old, original skin. It’d felt like she was on autopilot– confident, professional, and knowing exactly what to do and what to say– and it had felt good. So good. Like she was useful again. Like there was a point to her. Like she still had purpose.

What’s Death in the Sunshine About?

Moira retired as a DCI doing undercover work, moved into a retirement community in Florida, adopted three dogs, and started on the next stage of her life—and tried to put everything that happened before retirement behind her. That was her goal, she was done with all that. Until early one morning when she finds a murdered woman floating in the swimming pool.

A neighbor and acquaintance—and leader of the community watch—comes upon the crime scene after the police arrive, sees Moira, and brings her back to his house to find out what’s going on. His wife was a CSI officer back in the UK, and Philip was also a DCI—he and Moira never crossed paths in England, just once she moved in. Philips’s friend, Rick, is a retired DEA agent and is also involved in the community watch.

Philip and Rick see this murder as an opportunity to get back into their old lives and bring some peace of mind to their neighbors—there’d been a string of burglaries recently, and now a murder, in their supposedly incredibly safe and secure community. They take it upon themselves to drag Moira and Lizzie into their impromptu investigation into the murder.

The police have no interest in, or patience with, what these four are discovering. They’ve got a quick and easy theory and solution in mind and are pursuing that—no matter how off-base they might be.

In addition to this murder (and possibly the string of burglaries that have gotten more than a few residents on edge), there are other mysteries bubbling under the surface—some involving the retired detectives, and others around their new home. We’re not going to get a resolution to them all in this book, maybe the sequel. Broadribb gives us just enough to get really invested in them without the reader feeling cheated that we didn’t get a resolution while making sure we’re coming back to see if we get to uncover the answer.

Un-likeable Leads

I’m not one who thinks you need to like all the protagonists in a book as people—but it helps if you like them as fictional characters. Death in the Sunshine gives a prime example of how it’s not necessary to like all the protagonists for a book to work.

I’m going to withhold the names, but I only liked two of these four as people—but all four made compelling characters. One of those I didn’t like, I might end up liking, once I decide how much I can trust them. But the fourth just rubbed me the wrong way all the time.

I can’t believe how many times I grumbled about Character X in my notes. I understood a lot of what made X act in the ways that made me dislike them so much, but that doesn’t excuse the choices they make throughout—that could have easily put the kibosh on their whole investigation.

Is it possible that Broadribb will change my mind about X in the next book? Absolutely. But I kind of hope she doesn’t, as long as I can keep liking the other two.

Pet Peeve

It’s been a bit since I’ve grumbled about this, but if a UK-based writer is going to write American characters, they really should get an American Beta reader to focus solely on making sure they sound like people who grew up and live here. I assume the experience for me is similar to someone from London listening to Dick Van Dyke’s Mary Poppins accent.

Now, I will say that it’s not that bad in this book, it’d take me only a little browsing through my archives to find worse offenders. But I expect a bit more out of Broadribb. She did make a wise move, I think, by having three of her four leads be from the UK, though.

So, what did I think about Death in the Sunshine?

Is that what this investigation is about? Is he trying to rekindle his old life? He misses it bad; misses it like a piece of him was amputated on the day he retired. If he’s honest about it he misses it as much, and maybe even a bit more, than he does his own children.

You start this thing having read the description, and you think this is going to be The Thursday Murder Club with different accents and a less amatuer-ish feel. This assumption lasts maybe two chapters before crashing headlong into the sharp rocks of reality.

It’s a wholly different setup, wholly different tone, with wholly different kinds of characters, and a wholly different relationship to the local police. This is a grittier kind of feel, with characters that feel like they could’ve stepped from the pages of other series right into this one.

Broadribb does a pretty good job of balancing the point-of-view characters, but I thought we could’ve gotten a little more of Rick, the ex-DEA agent, but that might just be me. Some of the supporting characters were a lot of fun, too—hopefully, they’re around in the sequel(s).

I particularly enjoyed the way Broadribb had these four reflect on what got them into investigating this case, and what it brought back for them. I’m years away from having to think about what life’ll be like when I leave the workforce, but there’s something about their reactions that spoke to me.

Strong characters and settings that we don’t see a lot of in Crime/Detective Fiction, some voices/perspectives that we could use more of, neck-deep in a case that should satisfy most genre fans. Now that Broadribb has established this world and characters, I’m expecting things to get better from here (and they’re pretty good where they are).

Jump on board this train while you can, readers.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Bullet Points about Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith: A Clever Mystery Hidden in a Bloated and Problematic Novel

By HCNewton

On March 11, 2022

In Cormoran Strike, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Robert Galbraith

Troubled Blood

by Robert Galbraith

DETAILS:
Series: Cormoran Strike, #5
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Publication Date: September 14, 2020
Format: Hardcover
Length: 927 pg.
Read Date: February 23-March 2, 2022

I’ve jumped on each book in this series, but this book sat on my shelf for 16 months after its release. Now that I’ve finally tackled it, I’m afraid that it’ll take me 16 months to write this up the way I normally would.

So, I’m just going to offer some brief thoughts about the book. But first, let’s start with:

The Offical Description

Private Detective Cormoran Strike is visiting his family in Cornwall when he is approached by a woman asking for help finding her mother, Margot Bamborough – who went missing in mysterious circumstances in 1974.

Strike has never tackled a cold case before, let alone one forty years old. But despite the slim chance of success, he is intrigued and takes it on; adding to the long list of cases that he and his partner in the agency, Robin Ellacott, are currently working on. And Robin herself is also juggling a messy divorce and unwanted male attention, as well as battling her own feelings about Strike.

As Strike and Robin investigate Margot’s disappearance, they come up against a fiendishly complex case with leads that include tarot cards, a psychopathic serial killer and witnesses who cannot all be trusted. And they learn that even cases decades old can prove to be deadly . . .

Things I’m Not Going to Develop into Paragraphs:

bullet The Acknowledgments start with, “My thanks, as ever, to my superb editor David Shelley…” Why? What did Shelley do? I cannot be expected to believe that anything was cut, trimmed, or compressed. 900 pages is too long for a P.I. novel.

There’s very little that I can think of that Shelley or Galbraith should’ve cut, but that’s not my job, I’m just the reader. Those two get paid to eliminate the wasteful portions of this book.

bullet Two things that I think could’ve been slimmed down, if not eliminated were: the cases non-Bamborough cases that Strike, Robin, and their contractors were on. We could’ve just used passing references to them, we didn’t need all the space devoted to them.

bullet There’s a storyline involving Robin and a contractor that took too long, and I get why Galbraith included it…but I have to keep arguing myself into accepting it.

bullet A lot has been made of the way that the serial killer suspected of Bamborough’s killing sometimes disguised himself as a woman. Given the public stances that Galbraith’s alter-ego has taken lately, this aspect of the character has come under fire. Which is understandable, and likely justified.

However, had Rowling not been embroiled in this controversy, or had anyone else written this character, I don’t think this character’s practice would’ve been controversial—it really comes across as his way of muddling witnesses and gaining the trust of a victim.

But she is the one who wrote this, and she is the one out there making those statements, and it’s hard to believe there’s no connection.

bullet I learned about a new philia while reading this book, and I really wish I hadn’t. It’s part of one of Strike and Robin’s other cases. I hope I don’t come across another reference to this in fiction or reality anytime soon so I’ll forget about it.

bullet Troubled Blood contains the only Matthew storyline that I liked in this series And it took until the end of it (or maybe Robin’s thoughts about it after the end of it) for me to reach that conclusion. He’s really one of the worst characters I’ve endured in the last decade.

bullet Similarly, we got another Charlotte Campbell story. I could barely put up with that story. I did like Strike’s actions at the end of it (I’m only now seeing the parallel, which makes me realize that I hadn’t organized my thoughts too well before this), but I wish Strike had gotten there a book or two ago. Or that Galbraith had used less space for it here.

bullet On the other hand, the story about Strike’s family (not his father and half-siblings, the family he was raised with) was fantastic.

bullet Outside of a few scenes in each previous novel, this was the best display and development of the friendship between Robin and Strike. It’s also the most extended, which helps (this is actually not a reference to the length of the book).

bullet The Bamborough mystery was just great. The strengths and weaknesses it showed in both Strike and Robin were worth the effort getting through it all. Seeing them make mistakes and recovering from them—and seeing them make breakthroughs—this is the kind of thing that attracted me to the series in the first place, they’re both works-in-progress and it’s great to see them grow as investigators.

You cut out everything else in the book and just give us this? I’m raving about it. Period.

bullet Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know…you need subplots, character growth, etc. But really…

bullet Did I mention this was too long?

bullet This ultimately worked for me. But there are so many qualifications, disclaimers, bet-hedging, allowances, and so on to that evaluation, I’m not sure it’s worth much. Die-hard fans of the series will find reasons to like this. I don’t think this would bring on new fans—it’s definitely not a place for people to jump on to this series.

bullet I said it last time, I’ll say it again, I hope the next book is leaner. But I doubt it will be.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Dead Man in a Ditch (Audiobook) by Luke Arnold: A Murdered Elf, An Old Friend, and a Hint of Magic

By HCNewton

On February 21, 2022

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Dead Man in a Ditch

by Luke Arnold

DETAILS:
Series: The Fetch Phillips Archives, #2
Publisher: Orbit
Publication Date: October 9, 2020
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length:  11 hrs., 51 min.
Read Date: February 11-15, 2022

What’s Dead Man in a Ditch About?

Fetch, Man for Hire, has two clients/cases this time out.

First, the police want his help—they have a corpse that appears to have been killed by magic. They’re not broadcasting this idea, but that’s the best theory they have. They figure this is more up Fetch’s alley than theirs, they can’t officially hire him, but they’ll make sure that there’s a solid reward ready for him if he can bring them answers.

The other case involves an older elf—her husband is missing, and is probably dead. She wants Fetch to figure out who killed him—even better, if Fetch can tell her why there are debt collectors from the wrong side of the tracks sniffing around…

There’s not a lot of overlap in these cases, beyond the suggestion that there’s still a little magic in the world, despite what everyone knows/assumes. Maybe this time Fetch will find the thing everyone wants.

Too On the Nose

There’s a lot of material that’s a commentary on the presence, use, and abuse of guns in the real world. Arnold was not subtle at all—I’m not saying he should’ve been, but it would’ve been a bit easier to take if he had. I really don’t like authors taking a moment to do a PSA for whatever their cause is in the middle of a book.

Now, if they can work it in subtly? I don’t mind, in fact, I’m frequently impressed by it (whether or not I agree with them). But this was a tad too blatant for me.

The Narration

There’s got to be an advantage in narrating the audiobook for your own novel—you know how the strange names are pronounced already, you know exactly what tone is called for in each scene, and so on. On the other hand, you probably have to resist the impulse to do one more edit on each passage.

If you happen to be a pretty experienced actor, that has to be all the better.

Basically, I’m saying that Arnold is a perfect narrator for this and he did a bang-up job of it.

So, what did I think about Dead Man in a Ditch?

I thought I liked this novel more than the first in the series—I actually still do, but I’m rating this lower (I would like to ask 2020 me a couple of questions). Focusing on the present, even if the past looms large over the present, allows Fetch’s cases to mean more and be developed in a better, fuller sense.

I’m intrigued by the direction that Fetch seemed to be headed at the end here (although, I kind of thought that’s where he was headed already), but let’s never mind that.

I loved Fetch’s inner monologues, the voice is fantastic and I could listen/read it all day. I’m not quite as on board with the story—it’s good, just slow. Still, I’m glad I listened to this, and expect most fantasy/PI fans will be, too—particularly if they’re fans of both genres.

I’m just going to repeat what I said last time, because it still applies (maybe more than last time). Do I recommend this book? Oh yeah. You’ll probably like it more than I did (I’m a little worried about hitting “publish” on this, as I know I’m one of the less enthusiastic readers of this). And even if you don’t, you’ll be just as impressed as I am with Arnold’s imagination and skill.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking (Audiobook) by T. Kingfisher, Patricia Santomasso: If You’ve Ever Wondered How to Weaponize a Sourdough Starter, I’ve Got Just the Book for You

By HCNewton

On February 10, 2022

In Audiobook, Fantasy, YA/MG/Children's Books

A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking

by T. Kingfisher, Patricia Santomasso (Narrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Publication Date: October 11, 2021
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 8 hrs., 30 min.
Read Date: February 2-3, 2022

If you have ever prepared for a siege in two days, then you know what the next few days were like. If you haven’t, then you probably don’t. Well…a big formal wedding is about the same (and because we do cakes, I’ve been on the periphery of a few), except that if things go wrong in a siege you’ll all die horribly, and in formal weddings, the stakes are much higher.

What’s A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking About?

Mona’s a 14-year-old orphan, working in her aunt’s bakery. She’s also a magic-user. Her forte is magic involving baked goods and dough. Sure, that seems like an odd thing to have as a focus of one’s magic abilities, but in this world, it really isn’t. One of Mona’s acquaintances can reanimate dead horses. Nothing else, just dead horses. I guess what I’m saying is that atypical magical specializations are typical for this world.

Mona isn’t exactly a powerhouse either, she possesses enough magic to do a few tricks (making gingerbread men dance) and give a little extra something to her baking—her aunt won’t let her rest on that and actually has to learn to be a good baker while she’s at it.

Despite not being that powerful, Mona finds herself targeted by someone who seems to be killing every mage they can find. One thing leads to another, as they tend to do, and soon Mona finds herself at the forefront of an effort to defend her Duchess and their city-state against an invading army.

Caveat Lector (or Auditor)

The very best thing about being a baker is watching somebody bite into a blueberry muffin or a fresh slice of sourdough dripping with butter and seeing them close their eyes and savor the taste. You’re making their lives better, just a little tiny bit.

You know the rule, never go grocery shopping when you’re hungry? That applies to this book, too. The number of breads, pastries, cookies, and other assorted baked goods described and celebrated in these pages is unusually high for a fantasy novel. But probably about par for a novel with the word “baking” in the title. If you’re hungry—especially if you’ve been restricting carbs for whatever reason—you’re going to be in trouble.

This is not a reason to avoid the book, it’s just a friendly heads up. Eat well before diving in, or have some good snacks on hand.

Patricia Santomasso

This isn’t one of those audiobooks where I’m going to say that the narration elevated the text—Kingfisher’s prose doesn’t need it. But I can easily imagine her doing that for other books.

That said, her narration practically oozes charm. I could’ve listened for twice as long and been just as entertained with her work. She infused Mona with the right combination of timidity, determination, and spunk (and, sure, fear) to bring her to life in the narration.

So, what did I think about A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking?

I’d picked this book up a handful of times over the last year or so, but hadn’t found the time to work it in. Then my library added the audiobook to their digital collection and that took care of that issue. I really should’ve made the time for this last year (or the year before).

In very many ways this was a pretty standard fantasy story, and most of the story beats were just what you’d think they would be. But I didn’t care about that for a second. The execution is what counts—and Kingfisher’s execution won the day. Add in the very different magic system (or at least a very different application of a magic system) and you’ve got yourself a humdinger.

A Wizard’s Guide had heart, charm, and humor—it wasn’t non-stop jokes, but the narrative voice could make you think it was. The moving and affecting parts were moving and affecting, and the rest of the time I was probably grinning. This was a completely entertaining way to spend a few hours, you should check it out.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.