Cold Earth by Ann Cleeves is Book 7 of the Shetland series, featuring Jimmy Perez. All of the books in the series are atmospheric, reflecting the northern setting in the Shetland Islands. These are procedural crime stories, slow-moving plots with a methodical unravelling of the who, what, where, and how. The characters are well-drawn and have complex lives and have … Continue reading →
The Running Grave is an investigation/detective crime novel, the 7th book in the C.B. Strike series by Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling). This has been a very good series with strong characters and varied plots. All of the books feature Cormoran Strike, an amputee war veteran now turned detective and his new-to-investigation partner, Robin Ellacott. Strike’s agency is asked to find … Continue reading →
Dolores Claiborne is an unusual novel, even by Stephen King standards. There are no chapters and there is no dialogue – just a long tale told by the narrator/protagonist. The whole book is a transcript of a police interview of Dolores, who is suspected of killing her employer. She tells her story in a single, long sitting. Dolores is a … Continue reading →
Inspector Singh Investigates is a crime series written by Shamini Flint, a Malaysian author. The first book is subtitled A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder. Inspector Singh is an overweight detective from Singapore who does not fit into the police culture of his home nation, so he is sent to other locations whenever possible. He arrives in Kuala Lumpur to ensure … Continue reading →
The Scar is a science fiction – fantasy novel set on Bas -Lag, a world of many alien creatures. The first book in the series, Perdido Street Station takes place in the principal city New Crobuzon. It is a mesmerizing story, strange and unsettling, but is also the winner of several awards. The Scar starts in the city, but the … Continue reading →
A Lesson in Dying is the first book in the Inspector Ramsay series by Ann Cleeves. Thus series is less well known, as compared to the Shetland or the Vera series. Ramsay is not as engaging a protagonist, but the story is still a good one – a cozy murder mystery in a small town in northern England. It is … Continue reading →
All the Sinners Bleed is a crime-thriller novel that uses a police procedural point of view. The setting is in small rural town in the Southern states. The protagonist (Titus Crown)is a black sheriff in a community where the divide between whites and blacks has a long, troubled history. The strongest part of the book is the depiction of the … Continue reading →
A Mind to Murder is a detective/crime novel by P.D. James. It is the second book of fourteen in the popular Adam Dalgliesh series (1962 – 2008). All of the books are skilfully written, following a classic British mystery style. In this case, the murder takes place in the Steen Psychiatric Clinic and because of locked doors, the murderer must … Continue reading →
The Witch Elm is a mystery/psychological thriller by Tana French. It is told in the first person (Toby), but the narrator is not always reliable since it is told by a character who has been damaged both physically and mentally and looking back, some of the memories are unclear. As the story progresses, we read about trauma and recovery, but … Continue reading →
Resurrection Walk is a crime novel which combines two characters – Micky Haller from the Lincoln Lawyer series (7 books) and Bosch from the Harry Bosch series (25 books). The main story is a legal procedural story where Mickey Haller pursues a case of a woman imprisoned for killing her husband, a policeman. Mickey has been open to habeas … Continue reading →
Too Good to be True is a detective story in the Shetland Series. It is sometimes described as a “Quick Read” since it is short and an easy read. Jimmy Perez travels to Scottish border town (Stonebridge) to help his ex-wife find out more about an apparent suicide by the local schoolteacher. He finds there are many secrets and there … Continue reading →
Emily St. John Mandel is a Canadian author who has written 6 novels, the last three to wide success. Station Eleven won the Arthur C. Clarke award and was made into a mini-series. Sea of Tranquility is a science fiction/speculative fiction novel written with a non-linear plot line. It is located in Canada, the US, and on the moon, with … Continue reading →
The Summer that Never Was is a crime/mystery story by Canadian – English author Peter Robinson. There are 28 books (1987 – 2023) in the Inspector Banks series and there were 5 seasons of adaptations (32 episodes), most still available for streaming. All are set in Yorkshire and the books fit best into procedural detective (crime) category. In this book, … Continue reading →
Endless Night is a crime novel, written by Agatha Christie. When it was published in 1967 it was received well and she had listed it herself as one of her favorite books. It is unlike most of her many novels. It is narrated by the main character, telling the story from a later time. It moves along almost like an … Continue reading →
Streets of Laredo is the sequel to Lonesome Dove, set 20 years later. The characters who have survived are older and the borderlands are less wild, that is until a nineteen year old bandit (Joey Garza) holds up trains and kills many people. Woodrow Call is now older, but he still takes on bounty hunter work, and at this time … Continue reading →
Tree of Hands is a psychological thriller about three people, each with his/her own story, but there is a small connection between them that results in an unpredictable ending. The main story is about a child kidnapping, an act by an unstable grandmother to help her own daughter who lost a child to illness. In Ruth Rendell’s books there are … Continue reading →
