Best International Mystery & Crime
Germany, 1660: When a dying boy is pulled from the river with a mark crudely tattooed on his shoulder, hangman Jakob Kuisl is called upon to investigate whether witchcraft is at. play in his small Bavarian town. Amazon Exclusive: A Q&A with Author Oliver PötzschQuestion: What initially inspired you to write this story? But I also look up to many authors of the fantasy genre such as Tolkien, Terry Pratchett, and the almost forgotten Fritz Leiber. In his life he built an enormous archive of information about my ancestors and the hangman profession, and I have been allowed free use of this resource. Also, during my career as a journalist I made several radio programs on this topic, talking to herb women and guardians of cultural heritage and searching in many archives of Bavarian cities for my ancestors. Oliver Pötzsch: After the thriller about Ludwig II, I am writing the fourth novel in the Hangman series. "A brilliantly-researched and exciting story of a formative era of history when witches were hunted and the inquisitors had little belief in their methods beyond their effect in pacifying superstitious townspeople . Pötzsch, actually descended from a line of hangmen, delivers a fantastically fast-paced read, rife with details on the social and power structures in the town as well as dichotomy between university medicine and the traditional remedies, which are skillfully communicated through character interactions, particularly that of Magdalena and Simon. The shocking motivations from unlikely players provide for a twist that will leave readers admiring this complex tale from a talented new voice."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I liked the start of this story, the basic idea of the tale, a hangman searching for the truth. The title of this story suggests this daughter has a major role, but quite frankly she doesn't. In fact, the hangman's daughter is such a minor character, she could be removed completely from the story and the novel would be virtually the same. She has a scene towards the end of the book where she's captured as a hostage, but it's so forced and unnecessary, it's more like a "women in refrigerators" moment. In the meantime, if you're a minor character living in this historical world, it seems like your only purpose is to be to chased, tortured, threatened with rape, or face being burnt alive as a witch. Yes, the hangman's daughter manages to escape, but the scene adds nothing to the novel. The second woman, the hangman's daughter, captured and threatened, was an unnecessary cliché. Instead of tying up loose ends, there's more drama, then everything is miraculously solved behind the scenes. The female characters could be replaced with potted plants, so I can't see myself recommending it to any of the women in my life."
"The main character of the hangman and his friend the young physician were terrific, both very likable and believable."
"Good book."
"The first of the hangman series and the one I liked the most, probably because everything was new and interesting without. all the continual repitition in the later series."
"To have this review be as helpful as possible I just wanted to mention that Oliver Potzsch named, as far as I know, this series of books he is writing The Hangman's Daughter - this is the first in the series. I personally hope Amazon translates the rest of Oliver's books into English."
"Once the action started and the mystery began to unravel I couldn't put the book down!"
"When a child dies, cries of witchcraft leave an innocent woman in jail, and Kusil, Simon, the village doctor, and Kusil's daughter to search for the real culprit."
"The deputies used more information about this and other stuff to get the latest version of the time."
After getting a note demanding his presence, Federal Agent Aaron Falk arrives in his hometown for the first time in decades to attend the funeral of his best friend, Luke. Falk and his father fled under a cloud of suspicion, saved from prosecution only because of Luke’s steadfast claim that the boys had been together at the time of the crime. Federal Agent, Aaron Faulk, returns to his hometown in Australia to mourn, and inevitably investigate, his best friend's apparent suicide. The story builds like a wave seeking the purchase of earth before it crashes down and wipes out everything you might have thought about this enthralling tale. "It’s extremely rare and exciting to read a debut that enthralls from the very first page and then absolutely sticks the landing. That's what Jane Harper has given us with The Dry , a story so true to setting and tone it seemed I fell asleep in Virginia only to wake in Australian heat. The Dry is a wonderful crime novel that shines a light into the darkest corner of a sunburnt country.” —Michael Robotham, New York Times bestselling author of Life or Death.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Jane Harper - The Dry. Overnight I finished Jane Harper’s novel - a story I found difficult to put down until I reached the last page. The author writes in beautiful, descriptive language and, at the same time, keeps socking the reader between the eyes with the revelations that unfold in this terrible story of a brutal family murder in an outback country town - a town that seeps with anger, bitterness, violence, oppressive heat and blow-flies."
"The story is set in a small rural town in Australia (wonderfully described....feels like you are there), Federal Agent Falk returns from his job in Melbourne to his hometown for the funeral of his childhood best friend, now dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after killing his wife and young child (leaving their infant alive, though). So it's with considerable trepidation that Falk agrees to a request from the deceased's parents to look a little closer into the deaths. This present-day mystery is cleverly woven with the last questionable death that occurred in the community decades earlier, one that Falk was suspected of contributing to. I deducted one star simply because in 3 or 4 months, I probably won't remember the plot or characters."
"What an excellent first novel set in a small Australian country town."
"Vivid opening pulls you in and you'll find it harder and harder to put down - who did it?"
"Absolutely stunning writing with an obsessive page-turner of a plot."
"This mystery pulls you in from the very beginning."
"A page turning who done it with full character development (not plot driven)."
"I enjoyed the writing style very much and I think Ms. Harper developed her characters well but I feel like she rushed the ending a little bit."
Decker and his team can find absolutely no connection between the shooter--a family man with a successful consulting business--and his victim, a schoolteacher. Forced into an uneasy alliance with Agent Brown, Decker remains laser focused on only one goal: solving the case before it's too late. "― Associated Press "The set-up for THE FIX is one of the best this master of the thriller has ever come up with, and there is no letdown as Amos and his associates dig into an increasingly bizarre case ...[Baldacci's] plotting is more masterful than ever, and THE FIX is nothing less than terrific from start to finish. "Crackling with tension...Reads at a breakneck pace...Bestselling author David Baldacci delivers a thrill ride, as always. "Perennial bestseller Baldacci unveils an offbeat hero with an unusual skill set and tragic past who takes on the evil mastermind behind a devastating school shooting..[Decker] proves a quirky, original antihero with a definite method to his madness...Readers will want to see Decker back on the printed page again and again. "Baldacci's novels always have an emotional component...But MEMORY MAN stands out among his thrillers for its deeply felt - and earned - sense of catharsis and healing...Baldacci's last few books have been among his best, and it's a pleasure to see him produce emotionally and dramatically intense work at the height of his maturity as a novelist. David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world's favorite storytellers.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I like Baldacci. I really like protagonists Puller, Decker, and Robie, but I'm not sure I really like this offering in the Amos Decker series."
"Then, "each man realized that by loafing or shirking, he was paying the full cost of such behavior in the form of lost profits. CALCULATION PROBLEM. In capitalism, business owners make decisions on goods and labor based on actual market prices. Therefore, decisions are inevitably wrong: "Under socialism, where government owns all the means of production and capital “markets” are nonexistent, and resources are allocated by bureaucrats to meet 'plans' that might have no basis in economic reality." For example, the latest health care law in the U.S. will "have the same effect on American society whether it was imposed by democratic politics or by a dictator." When things begin to go south, a statesman can either admit failure, or switch methods, and forcefully continue the failed approach: "The democratic statesman who sets out to plan economic life will soon be confronted with the alternative of either assuming dictatorial powers or abandoning his plans and admitting failure." There is a LOT to mull over here; the issues are not trivial "soundbites" ready for the news, but rather, they are arguments worthy of serious consideration and study."
"When I learned that Tom DiLorenzo had written a new book titled THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM, for release on July 18, 2016 I pre-ordered a copy on Amazon. Three problems plague socialism, he writes: incentive, knowledge, and economic calculation problems. Dance on socialism’s grave by reading this book.” [italics his]. To answer our son’s assertion on Sweden, DiLorenzo shows, in Chapter 7, that Sweden doing well is not a result of its having adopted socialism. Sweden is now “poorer than Mississippi, the lowest income state in the United States,” and it has begun “privatizing portions of its socialized healthcare, social security, and education sectors.”. A promotional statement on an inner leaf of the book’s dust jacket reads: “Provocative, timely, essential reading, Thomas J. DiLorenzo’s THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM is an instant classic comparable to Henry Hazlitt’s ECONOMICS IN ONE LESSON.”. I agree. THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM will stand alongside Hazlitt’s classic 1946 introduction to free market economics. 696 “The Problem with Socialism: Tom DiLorenzo Educates Socialist Millennials.” That he does! One thing that stimulated him to tackle and write THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM Tom DiLorenzo says, was seeing an opinion poll which showed that 59 percent of Millennial Generation folks polled think it is OKAY, even a good idea to have a socialist as president. People in the Millennial Generation, however, Americans now age 16-34 especially need to read THE PROBLEM WITH SOCIALISM before they wind up finding themselves living in a world that has become like Venezuela."
"this book is accessible to the average reader."
"Should be required reading in schools."
"You want a way to debunk myths of socialism and collectivism easily, this book is for you."
"Usually I van predict the outcome of a story but not this one had to read to the very last word."
Best Historical Mystery
Twenty years before, amid strange staff disappearances and allegations of fraud, panicked investors sold Cleveland’s largest bank in the middle of the night, locking out customers and employees, and thwarting a looming federal investigation. Iris, a young engineer working her first job out of the office, finds herself assigned to map out a floor plan for the bank building which has been empty for two decades. Just as Beatrice did 20 years before her, Iris quickly recognizes that there’s something not quite right at the bank and she soon learns that the building is not as empty as everyone thinks.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"When I was a regular shopper at my local bookstores, my initial selection was based off thickness (how I discovered Robert Jordon and Terry Goodkind and others of that epic length writing). THE DEAD KEY, however, is largely one single, long wind-up, the pacing not really picking up till well past the last quarter. moments rolling, the suspense tight with wonderment and discovery, simply an exquisite plotline that has made the game a cult classic. And the ending... well, a completion within the same emotional level as Arturo Pérez-Reverte's 1993 novel, THE CLUB DUMAS had concluded with (the novel may be recognized by more as the later movie, THE NINTH GATE). All in all, enjoyable, yet I do have to wonder how even more fantastic these elements would be if the book was the same 477 pages but made tauter in pacing, richer in action, and, yes, even more deeply layered."
"I left off one star because the main characters are too much alike, in fact all the women especially but the men as well seemed like slight variations of the same personality."
"Several low-level female employees at the bank discover that something is awry (in both time periods), and their attempts to solve the mystery puts them in serious danger."
"The story concept is interesting: an important bank mysteriously closes overnight. When I was about 1/3 into the story it seemed that n.o.t.h.i.n.g. Reading the early reviews, I was sure I was reading a different book. For example, in most instances, we don't read about the secretary's workday, we read about her thinking about her workday or thinking about the personalities of the people she works with, or wondering where her friend is, or wondering about the significance of papers she sees. For example, the engineer meets her boss at the building and explains to him some of the work she has done, but (from the reader perspective) this is merely retelling what the engineer already mused about in the previous pages: she went to the eighth floor, to the room on the left; it was dusty; she made some measurements; she went to the next room; she saw papers on the floor; she wondered why the papers were left behind; she made some measurements; she looked at some of the papers; she wondered what the papers meant; she decided to take some of the papers with her to look at later; she went to the next room; she made some measurements. I second that thought."
Best Crime, Thriller & Mystery in French
De quels trésors enfouis dans les méandres de la Seine sont-ils à la recherche ? Les quais de Rouen, le cimetière de Villequier, les rues médiévales de Rouen, le marais Vernier… deviennent autant de scènes de cette enquête défiant l’imagination. Le timide soleil du matin commençait à rougir l’horizon de la baie de Seine. De part et d’autre du chemin s’étendaient d’étranges parcelles cultivées en lanières, planes et longues, de la route à la Seine. J'ai retrouvé dans M. ourir sur Seine le sens du suspense, du mystère et des fausses pistes, de celles qui mènent le lecteur sur des voies sans issue ou des culs de sac. Michel Bussi est l’un des auteurs de romans policiers les plus lus et les plus primés en France (il est notamment l'auteur de Un avion sans elle et Les nymphéas noirs ). Ses romans, des page-turner sans surenchère de détails macabres, parviennent à faire la synthèse entre le meilleur de l’atmosphère des romans policiers populaires français et le rythme des romans à suspense américains.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Lots of enjoyment here: a fast-moving plot with intriguing historical background."
"Loved the atmosphere and descriptions of the area...as well as the historical references."
"Fun read."
"Many characters and relationships to keep you guessing and a mystery within a mystery."
"Well written with an interesting historical background and geographical accuricies."
"A murder mystery that keeps you guessing till the end."
"Very engaging, keeps on your toes, even by knowing that it is a fiction."
"Excellent book!"
Best Vampire Mysteries
When Ainsley and her team at MAGIC, Inc. beg Lily for her help, she agrees, taking on a load of problems that pile up faster than she can say Abracadabra . A new revolution in black magic stumps the island’s burgeoning Mixologist, while a haunted house, a surprise birthday party, and rising familial troubles back on The Isle compete for her already-limited time and attention.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Her potions can do anything from curing the odd ache- heart,limb,loves , turning you pink, or into your costumed self of innermost desire ( strictly for a party purpose)-pirate, fairy,dolphin anyone? With one simple wish, the clearly defined new life Lily has carved for herself is thrown into chaos, and the twists of the Isle continue to reveal themselves."
"From Lily’s relationship with Ranger X to investigating the haunted house to her fighting The Faction, this book just blew me away!"
"Being a Mixologist, Lily can help bring more fun to any party...if she gets it right.When some of the people from the Islanders start disappearing, Lily needs to up her game."
"She meets her father for the first time and she finds out more about herself and her family history as some things have still remained a mystery."
"This is the 4th book in this wonderful series and it is the best one yet."
"This series becomes better & better with each book!"
"I know somewhat predictable but fun light interesting characters you want to hear about."
"This book was a little longer than the first 3 books in the series and I loved it."
Best Witch & Wizard Mysteries
Germany, 1660: When a dying boy is pulled from the river with a mark crudely tattooed on his shoulder, hangman Jakob Kuisl is called upon to investigate whether witchcraft is at. play in his small Bavarian town. Amazon Exclusive: A Q&A with Author Oliver PötzschQuestion: What initially inspired you to write this story? But I also look up to many authors of the fantasy genre such as Tolkien, Terry Pratchett, and the almost forgotten Fritz Leiber. In his life he built an enormous archive of information about my ancestors and the hangman profession, and I have been allowed free use of this resource. Also, during my career as a journalist I made several radio programs on this topic, talking to herb women and guardians of cultural heritage and searching in many archives of Bavarian cities for my ancestors. Oliver Pötzsch: After the thriller about Ludwig II, I am writing the fourth novel in the Hangman series. "A brilliantly-researched and exciting story of a formative era of history when witches were hunted and the inquisitors had little belief in their methods beyond their effect in pacifying superstitious townspeople . Pötzsch, actually descended from a line of hangmen, delivers a fantastically fast-paced read, rife with details on the social and power structures in the town as well as dichotomy between university medicine and the traditional remedies, which are skillfully communicated through character interactions, particularly that of Magdalena and Simon. The shocking motivations from unlikely players provide for a twist that will leave readers admiring this complex tale from a talented new voice."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I liked the start of this story, the basic idea of the tale, a hangman searching for the truth. The title of this story suggests this daughter has a major role, but quite frankly she doesn't. In fact, the hangman's daughter is such a minor character, she could be removed completely from the story and the novel would be virtually the same. She has a scene towards the end of the book where she's captured as a hostage, but it's so forced and unnecessary, it's more like a "women in refrigerators" moment. In the meantime, if you're a minor character living in this historical world, it seems like your only purpose is to be to chased, tortured, threatened with rape, or face being burnt alive as a witch. Yes, the hangman's daughter manages to escape, but the scene adds nothing to the novel. The second woman, the hangman's daughter, captured and threatened, was an unnecessary cliché. Instead of tying up loose ends, there's more drama, then everything is miraculously solved behind the scenes. The female characters could be replaced with potted plants, so I can't see myself recommending it to any of the women in my life."
"I loved the history in this book and fell in love with Jakob, Magdalena and Simon."
"Memorable characters and interesting insight into historical Germany."
"I would definitely recommend this book to everyone ."
"After a child is found dead with a strange symbol scratched into his shoulder, the hangman Jakob Kuisl, actually an ancestor of the author, is required to torture and seek a confession out of the town midwife presumed a witch and responsible for the death. Without a speedy confession the whole town is in danger of a "witch trials" type scenario that will cause finger pointing and screaming confessions to more "witches" and in turn many more women of the town will end up dead. Jakob and Simon work together to find and catch "the devil" who has orchestrated the chaos is the town, and then work to convince the town leaders of the truth."
Best German Literature
Germany, 1660: When a dying boy is pulled from the river with a mark crudely tattooed on his shoulder, hangman Jakob Kuisl is called upon to investigate whether witchcraft is at. play in his small Bavarian town. Amazon Exclusive: A Q&A with Author Oliver PötzschQuestion: What initially inspired you to write this story? But I also look up to many authors of the fantasy genre such as Tolkien, Terry Pratchett, and the almost forgotten Fritz Leiber. In his life he built an enormous archive of information about my ancestors and the hangman profession, and I have been allowed free use of this resource. Also, during my career as a journalist I made several radio programs on this topic, talking to herb women and guardians of cultural heritage and searching in many archives of Bavarian cities for my ancestors. Oliver Pötzsch: After the thriller about Ludwig II, I am writing the fourth novel in the Hangman series. "A brilliantly-researched and exciting story of a formative era of history when witches were hunted and the inquisitors had little belief in their methods beyond their effect in pacifying superstitious townspeople . Pötzsch, actually descended from a line of hangmen, delivers a fantastically fast-paced read, rife with details on the social and power structures in the town as well as dichotomy between university medicine and the traditional remedies, which are skillfully communicated through character interactions, particularly that of Magdalena and Simon. The shocking motivations from unlikely players provide for a twist that will leave readers admiring this complex tale from a talented new voice."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I liked the start of this story, the basic idea of the tale, a hangman searching for the truth. The title of this story suggests this daughter has a major role, but quite frankly she doesn't. In fact, the hangman's daughter is such a minor character, she could be removed completely from the story and the novel would be virtually the same. She has a scene towards the end of the book where she's captured as a hostage, but it's so forced and unnecessary, it's more like a "women in refrigerators" moment. In the meantime, if you're a minor character living in this historical world, it seems like your only purpose is to be to chased, tortured, threatened with rape, or face being burnt alive as a witch. Yes, the hangman's daughter manages to escape, but the scene adds nothing to the novel. The second woman, the hangman's daughter, captured and threatened, was an unnecessary cliché. Instead of tying up loose ends, there's more drama, then everything is miraculously solved behind the scenes. The female characters could be replaced with potted plants, so I can't see myself recommending it to any of the women in my life."
"I loved the history in this book and fell in love with Jakob, Magdalena and Simon."
"Memorable characters and interesting insight into historical Germany."
"I would definitely recommend this book to everyone ."
"After a child is found dead with a strange symbol scratched into his shoulder, the hangman Jakob Kuisl, actually an ancestor of the author, is required to torture and seek a confession out of the town midwife presumed a witch and responsible for the death. Without a speedy confession the whole town is in danger of a "witch trials" type scenario that will cause finger pointing and screaming confessions to more "witches" and in turn many more women of the town will end up dead. Jakob and Simon work together to find and catch "the devil" who has orchestrated the chaos is the town, and then work to convince the town leaders of the truth."
Best Australian & Oceanian Literature
Imagining a life beyond the kitchen and fields of the wealthy family they both work for, they plot to leave their homeland, marry, and raise the child Kathleen is secretly carrying. Born in Germany and now a resident of Spain, Sarah Lark is a horse aficionado and former travel guide who has experienced many of the world’s most beautiful landscapes on horseback.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Michael and Kathleen grow up together in nineteenth century Ireland, at a time when the majority of the Irish are starving because of the potato blight. It felt authentic, the author has put a lot of care into her research which shows in the detail of the historical facts and the way she describes the landscape. The characters are very human, as portrayed by their determination, hopes and dreams but they also have their flaws which makes them realistic."
"I really liked this novel, two different storylines going at once, it had to come to a head, but the ending really?"
"This story line based on true historical facts was good."
"With the rollercoaster of emotions author induces throughout book, it can be slow going at times but worth the effort."
"Actually Ms. Lark writes very well."
"New Zealand and its down under neighbors are intriguing in their immigration history and native stories."
"I really love historical fiction, this was a interesting take on England exporting criminals to Austrailia, emigrants going to New Zealand and their ensuing lives."
"I could not put this book down - it was so interesting and intense."
Best Mystery Series
His drug-addicted sister has just been released from prison and his mother is succumbing to Alzheimer's, but Dillard's commitment to the case never wavers despite the personal troubles and professional demands that threaten to destroy him. "Pratt's richly developed characters are vivid and believable, especially the strong Southern women who fight their male-dominated culture from behind a facade of vulnerability in this brilliantly executed debut."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Other writers will use long descriptions of what the landscaping is like as someone enters a driveway to a house, or a long paragraph describing what a woman is wearing and the scent of her perfume and the necklace she is wearing. And that is exactly what Scott Pratt avoids and makes his books such a delight to read. Each of his books in this series has a great plot that makes them a such page turner."
"Scott Pratt's "An Innocent Client" is a typical Scott Pratt book! His hero Joe Dillard is tough as nails, but you just want to smother him in a big hug."
"Awesome start to a series, I had no idea of this series, and it flows beautifully all the way to the end."
"What a delightful book!"
"Joe Dillard is an interesting attorney."
"I particularly liked the way the author gave the reader credit for understanding some of the ins and outs of the law, and the humor amid the strife."
"Can't wait to begin In Good Faith, Scott's second book in the Joe Dillard series."
"I'm skipping over several books I have to start on "In Good Faith" the second in the Joe Dillard series."
Best Traditional Detective Mysteries
“Penny’s absorbing, intricately plotted 13th Gamache novel proves she only gets better at pursuing dark truths with compassion and grace.” — PEOPLE “Louise Penny wrote the book on escapist mysteries.” — The New York Times Book Review “You won't want Louise Penny's latest to end….Any plot summary of Penny’s novels inevitably falls short of conveying the dark magic of this series.... ‘Glass Houses,’ along with many of the other Gamache books, is so compelling that, for the space of reading it, you may well feel that much of what’s going on in the world outside the novel is ‘just noise.’” —Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post When a mysterious figure appears in Three Pines one cold November day, Armand Gamache and the rest of the villagers are at first curious. In Glass Houses , her latest utterly gripping book , number-one New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny shatters the conventions of the crime novel to explore what Gandhi called the court of conscience. - AudioFile Editor's Pick "In his third narration of Louise Penny's popular Three Pines series, Robert Bathurst emphasizes the humanity and compassion of Chief Superintendent Armand Gamache . AudioFile , Earphones Award Winner "The audio book is splendidly read by Robert Bathurst." "Robert Bathurst puts his own indelible stamp on Chief Inspector Armand Gamache in Louise Penny's twelfth Three Pines puzzle. LOUISE PENNY is the #1 New York Times and Globe and Mail bestselling author of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novels ( Still Life, A Fatal Grace, and The Cruelest Month ).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"There’s a lot going on here, with Gamache dealing with the murder and also with his duties as head of the Sûreté du Québec (as readers of the previous novels will remember that the Sûreté had a corruption problem that Gamache exposed.). However, if you haven’t read any Armand Gamache novels, I recommend you start with her first novel - Still Life - to really enjoy the series. I don’t want to say too much as much of the joy of the books in this series is how disparate plot points come together but I found myself frustrated that once again we have the clever Armand Gamache looking like he’s in over his head. I found myself putting the book down - needing a break from reading it. While this is one of those books that I’m glad I read, unlike some of the other books in the series, I don’t see myself reading it again."
"I consider myself fortunate to have read all the Inspector Gamache novels by Louise Penny. In this novel Inspector Gamache has taken over as head of the Surete after rooting out top level corruption. There are rumblings that Gamache hasn't really changed anything as crime is up, the drug trade is rampant and what is to be done? This blends into the second story of the drug trade and Gamache's plan to really put a dent in it, if not stop/slow it down for good."
"More than just a mystery - this is a book that takes you into the characters, challenges your assumptions and leaves you wondering who is as they appear, and who is genuine. I loved this latest in her series - as expected she picked up from recent events in the prior novel and goes to the task of writing a story that is both compelling and puzzling. She surprised me with the defendant on trial, and the ultimate set of villains in this book, while bringing along my favorite characters and developing them further. People with drug abuse, distrust of the police and their competence, the hard working and dedicated law enforcement officers, politicians you don't quite want to trust, and couples living marriage equality."
Best Historical Mysteries
Twenty years before, amid strange staff disappearances and allegations of fraud, panicked investors sold Cleveland’s largest bank in the middle of the night, locking out customers and employees, and thwarting a looming federal investigation. Iris, a young engineer working her first job out of the office, finds herself assigned to map out a floor plan for the bank building which has been empty for two decades. Just as Beatrice did 20 years before her, Iris quickly recognizes that there’s something not quite right at the bank and she soon learns that the building is not as empty as everyone thinks.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The story concept is interesting: an important bank mysteriously closes overnight. When I was about 1/3 into the story it seemed that n.o.t.h.i.n.g. Reading the early reviews, I was sure I was reading a different book. For example, in most instances, we don't read about the secretary's workday, we read about her thinking about her workday or thinking about the personalities of the people she works with, or wondering where her friend is, or wondering about the significance of papers she sees. For example, the engineer meets her boss at the building and explains to him some of the work she has done, but (from the reader perspective) this is merely retelling what the engineer already mused about in the previous pages: she went to the eighth floor, to the room on the left; it was dusty; she made some measurements; she went to the next room; she saw papers on the floor; she wondered why the papers were left behind; she made some measurements; she looked at some of the papers; she wondered what the papers meant; she decided to take some of the papers with her to look at later; she went to the next room; she made some measurements. I second that thought."
"The author thinks that if they have so many "problems" in life that the audience will resonate with at least one of them but a character with problems is only likable if they get over them, makes for a more interesting story and one that you can better connect with emotionally since then it gives you hope. Iris also practically refuses to interact with the story she's been pulled into, the mysteries behind the decaying First Bank of Cleveland which closed one day with no warning (which really did close in 1978 due to defaults, although the real life explanation is different than this fictional one, fewer bodies for one). Beatrice didn't intend to get wrapped up in the mystery as it was coming closer and closer to it's doomed day either but once she starts investigating a only tangentially related thread her caution and determination to see this through to the end make her half of the story by far the more interesting one."
Best Cozy Mystery
Hoping to clear his name, Dawn returns to Starlight Cove, her idyllic hometown on Lake Michigan, where the doomed vessel sleeps beneath the beam of a ramshackle lighthouse. “I wanted to stay in Starlight Cove—Cynthia Ellingsen’s fictional town is magical, and its people and its mysteries, both past and present, are too much fun to leave behind.” —Alison Atlee, author of The Typewriter Girl.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The boat sank in a terrible storm that lost many lives over 100 years ago, but not all on board perished. Can Dawn unravel each tiny clue while she learns who she can trust and who she cannot, while trying to open her heart for real love?"
"A nice romantic mystery, quick read, and thoroughly enjoyable story!"
"Traditional mystery love story evolution too."
"A wonderfully cozy story that is both easy to follow and full of local color."
"Nice light reading departure, Plot is well thought out and the character ensemble It’s quite interesting."
"I chose this review as this book had a good story line."
"This book kept me guessing until the end."
"I haven’t read a romance novel for years, but this book adds enough mystery to have kept me reading."
Best Private Investigator Mysteries
Private investigator Kinsey Millhone finds shocking connections between two seemingly unrelated deaths in this #1 New York Times bestselling mystery in the Alphabet series. Wasted lives, wasted time, and wasted opportunities are at the heart of this twenty-third entry in the long-running Kinsey Millhone series, which reveals how the deaths of two very different men impact Kinsey’s life. --Stephanie Zvirin Praise for W is for Wasted “Grafton is a writer of many strengths—crisp characterizations, deft plotting, and eloquent dialogue among them—and she has kept her long-running alphabet mystery series fresh and each new release more welcome than the last.”— Louisville Courier-Journal “Further proof—as if it were needed—of Grafton’s immense talent. And her ability to give equal weight to the story of the detective and the detective story sets her apart in the world of crime fiction.”— Richmond Times-Dispatch “Involving, amusing and fast-paced.”— The Wall Street Journal “Nearing the conclusion of this celebrated series, Grafton continues to shape Millhone’s character, toughened by circumstance but still both understanding and forgiving.”— Booklist “Grafton has lost none of her ability to bring her character vividly to life: Kinsey is as witty and engaging as ever.”— Library Journal (starred review) More Praise for Sue Grafton and the Alphabet Series.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"An unexpected inheritance opens up a tale of the lives of the homeless and the tenacity of an intelligent private investigator."
"our gal Kinsey finds herself in a situation where she is involved with a homeless community trying to find out what happened to a drifter. As always, once Kinsey starts picking at the loose thread all sorts of things come unraveled."
"Its rare when a character, who is 20 novels deep continues to enthrall - but Kinsey Millhone absolutely does."
"A blast from the past shows up, and an old unscrupulous PI that she knew from her startup days becomes intertwined into the family matter."
"I’ve read and loved them all."
"Sue it seems is trying to get to the final letter-Z-and not take the time to really develop the story/plot that she has/did in her past books."
"The library scenes were excruciating, the list of neighbors and relatives mind-numbing, the stupid, pointless padding of every move she made was criminal. W made the bestsellers lists on promise alone, not on actuality and I am so disappointed in the blathering mess that it is."
"Come on Sue, get out of your funk, stop moralizing and bring back the Kinsey Millhone series we fell in love with years ago."
Best Hard-Boiled Mysteries
Medical science and governments around the world scramble in an effort to solve the problem, but twenty-five years later there is no cure, and an entire generation grows up with a population of fewer than a thousand women. She's been held in the prison her entire life, along with a few other girls who disappear after the coming-of-age ceremony. Zoey and her new friends must break into the compound and rescue the other female prisoners.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Zoey is probably one of the strongest female characters I have found in any book I've ever read."
"(trying not to spoil too much). Hart seizes on the fears of a populace dealing with population control issues and shows us what can happen when control is removed from our hands."
"It is written in present tense, a fad I keep hoping will die, because it is so difficult to write well and, more often than not, just grates on the nerves. As a result she ends up as a rather non-entity and frankly, being a woman myself, I found her a pretty insultingly insipid female protagonist. Thus the few remaining female infants are gathered up and raised in puritanical prison conditions with severe punishments if they ask questions. Instead of investing time on actually developing the main character in thoughts, actions, and feelings that would let the reader get to know her and like her in and of herself, he just added a scene with mean girls picking on an outcast and let the main character show some pitiful token defense so that the reader knows that our heroine is the "good girl." Note to male authors: women can and very often do form very strong, healthy, and supportive relationships with one another and elevating your female protagonist by juxtaposing her next to catty, mean girls is taking the cheap way out."
"Have you ever read a book and been like, what made me read that? I think I have to tell you a little bit about the book to let you know why I am so disappointed in it."
"The treatment of the girls just seemed like an excuse for the author to imagine torturing women. I ended up skipping lots of pages just hoping that this story would finally make sense, but it never did."
Best Mystery Anthologies
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Lee Child returns with a gripping new powerhouse thriller featuring Jack Reacher, “one of this century’s most original, tantalizing pop-fiction heroes” ( The Washington Post ). Reacher takes a stroll through a small Wisconsin town and sees a class ring in a pawn shop window: West Point 2005. Reacher wonders what unlucky circumstance made her give up something she earned over four hard years. So begins a harrowing journey that takes Reacher through the upper Midwest, from a lowlife bar on the sad side of small town to a dirt-blown crossroads in the middle of nowhere, encountering bikers, cops, crooks, muscle, and a missing persons PI who wears a suit and a tie in the Wyoming wilderness. Powerful forces are guarding a vast criminal enterprise. Praise for The Midnight Line “Puts Reacher just where we want him.” — The. New York Times Book Review. “A gem.” — Chicago Tribune “A timely, suspenseful, morally complex thriller, one of the best I’ve read this year . Child weaves in a passionately told history of opioids in American life. I don’t know another author so skilled at making me turn the page, at putting me in the thick of it all.” — The Times “Reacher is the purest distillation of the white knight in contemporary mystery fiction. As always in a Child novel, pace is fast, twists and turns surprise, characters are well-developed, dialogue is exactly right, and the plot is very plausible. One of the best thrillers I’ve read this year.” — The Washington Post “Jack Reacher has become arguably the most iconic fictional hero we have.” — Men’s Health “Compelling and moving . bold and mysterious.” — Associated Press “This, Child’s twenty-second book in the series, has heart to spare, and it proves the franchise has plenty of gas left in its tank.” — Minneapolis Star-Tribune “Compulsively readable.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review) “[A] multifaceted novel about dealing with the unthinkable . It’s automatic: Reacher gets off a bus, and Child lands on the New York Times bestseller list.” — Booklist “The book is very smart . [and] suggests something that has not been visible in the series’ previous entries: a creeping sadness in Reacher’s wanderings that, set here among the vast and empty landscapes of Wyoming, resembles the peculiarly solitary loneliness of the classic American hero. “Child does a stellar job this time by not following his customary formula; his usually stoic hero who rarely displays softness and compassion is hit hard emotionally by this case.”’ — Library Journal (starred review). A native of England and a former television director, Child lives in New York City.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Even though the movie rights belong to Tom Cruise, Lee Child has no reason to reduce the size and presence of his star character. The longest journey begins with but a single step and Mr. Child takes his readers on what appears to be a simple quest to make things right. This novel is a perfect example of how someone's imagination has allowed them to create an interesting, insightful, and enjoyable read while informing us about two major problems affecting today's society. When you finish reading it, and I'll bet that you won't want it to end, the artistry with which Mr. Child tied all of his subplots together will be wonderfully apparent."
"Instead, Reacher, a former Army MP major, puts on his Military Police cap and does some serious sleuthing from the opening scene where he finds a West Point class ring in a pawn shot in Rapid City South Dakota to his search to find the rightful owner of the ring in Wyoming. He decides that maybe he can help the owner of the ring and immediately starts gathering clues to identify this fellow West Pointer. Of course, as the story develops, a simple lost and found case becomes dangerous as Reacher creates enemies in the oxycodone and fentanyl drug trafficking business. I am guessing some readers are going to be unhappy that there is less violent action in The Midnight Line than in a typical Reacher story. Update 2: I wrote this review two months ago and predicted this new Reacher novel would go right to the top of the best seller list, which is where it stands on this first day of publication."
Best Police Procedurals
A South Florida Sun-Sentinel Best Mystery of 2017. An Amazon Book of the Month Harry Bosch is back as a volunteer working cold cases for the San Fernando Police Department and is called out to a local drug store where a young pharmacist has been murdered. Meanwhile, an old case from Bosch's LAPD days comes back to haunt him when a long-imprisoned killer claims Harry framed him, and seems to have new evidence to prove it. "[Connelly's] immaculate plotting and gift for bringing procedural intricacies to life now seem as strong as ever...he writes the best detective novels around. "Harry Bosch is a one-of-a-kind hero who started out pretty wild when he returned from Vietnam to become a cop, but over the years he's developed into someone you want to ride with. "Connelly's immaculate plotting and gift for bringing procedural intricacies to life now seem as strong as ever...he writes the best detective novels around. "[Two Kinds of Truth] is a reflection of Connelly's talent that after 19 books chronicling Bosch's career, this iteration feels fresh and authentic. "Expertly juggling both plots, Connelly mines the double murder for fascinating and frightening details...Connelly remains atop a heap of contemporary crime writers thanks to his rare ability to combine master plotting and procedural detail with a literary novelist's feel for the inner lives of his or her characters.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Two Kinds of Truth is an outstanding addition to the fabulous Harry Bosch series. This mystery series is one of my very favorites; Connelly has managed to create an authentic, likeable main character in Harry Bosch and has successfully provided him with a career path that lends itself to interesting cases and story lines. In Two Kinds of Truth, Harry starts out revisiting a cold case for the San Fernando Police Department. The other part of Two Kinds of Truth that I loved was the resolution of the cold case Harry was pursuing. And the other, malleable truth of politicians, charlatans, corrupt lawyers, and their clients, bent and molded to serve whatever purpose is at hand.” As the mother of three children, I have had to spend an inordinate amount of time this past year making sure my kids understand how important the truth is and how important it is to refuse to accept those that attempt to corrupt truth."
"This author writes at a steady, methodical pace that is like taking a good, long walk or drinking a fine bottle of wine."
"The plot moves along quickly and reveals details that the reader should pay attention to as Harry unravels the twists and turns."
"I should say that I liked the part of Bosch going undercover."
"I was surprised to run in to the Lincoln Lawyer character, something I was familiar with from the movies."
"Hope to hear more about Elizabeth Clayton, the addict Harry saves, in a future book."
"Excellent book but then anything from Michael Connelly always is a great read."
"Once again,Harry is involved in multiple mysteries but this time it will take his best as he is forced to defend his name in one case and go under cover as an addict in the other."