A Poisoned Season (2007) Tasha Alexander The second Lady Emily mystery finds Lady Emily Ashton still trying to find her place in society as a widow, and battling her mother’s domineering attempts to get Emily remarried. Emily is still refusing Colin Hargreaves offer of marriage, but not because she doesn’t love him, but because she […]
Silent on the Moor (2009) Deanna Raybourn Lady Julia Grey and her sister–against the wishes of both their father and older brother–are headed to Yorkshire, the Grimsgrave estate, where Brisbane has taken up residence and is attempting to rehabilitate the manor. There is a lot of work ahead of him. Although I guessed relatively quickly […]
The Paris Affair (2013) Teresa Grant It is the summer of 1815, and Malcom & Suzanne Rannoch are in Paris, following the Battle of Waterloo. They are supposed to meet with a French informant who wants out of Paris, and is willing to blackmail multiple members of the British diplomatic corps in his effort to […]
Black Arts (2014) Faith Hunter And now I’m all caught up on Jane Yellowrock–at least until the new book comes out in October. The book opens with Jane under attack–from Evan Trueblood, who believes that Jane is hiding his wife, Molly. Jane and Evan came to an uneasy truce in an earlier book, but Molly […]
Blood Trade (2013) Faith Hunter The sixth book in the Jane Yellowrock series finds Jane very much out of sorts. She hasn’t heard from Molly since the death of Evangelina, Rick is mad at her (because she thought he shot her), she’s still mad at Bruiser, and Beast is chained to Leo. But a job […]
Death’s Rival (2012) Faith Hunter Jane is back to working for Leo, and she’s out West to gather blood samples from sick vamps–and vamps aren’t supposed to be able to get sick. There is a lot that happens here. Jane has to pay the piper for statements she made earlier (in the last book). There’s […]
Raven Cursed (2012) Faith Hunter Book four in the Jane Yellowrock series finds Jane back in North Carolina, running security for a meeting between a representative from New Orleans and Lincoln Shadrock, a vampire who wants to become a Master. It’s also where Molly is, but Evan wants Molly to have nothing to do with […]
Blood Cross (2010) Faith Hunter The second book in the Jane Yellowrock series (and another re-read). Jane has remained in New Orleans to hunt the vampire who is making young rogues–and allowing the free into the population where they kill, unrestrained. Additionally, while Evan is in Brazil, Molly and her kids are staying with Jane, […]
Skinwalker (2009) Faith Hunter This is a re-read. The first book in the series introduces us to Jane Yellowrock, a skin walker and rogue vampire hunter. She’s come to New Orleans at the request of the local vampire council to take out a rogue who has been killing civilians. I enjoyed going back to the […]
Magic City: Recent Spells (2014) Paula Guran Table of Contents “Street Wizard” by Simon R. Green “Paranormal Romance” by Christopher Barzak “Grand Central Park” by Delia Sherman “Spellcaster 2.0” by Jonathan Maberry “Wallamelon” by Nisi Shawl “-30-” by Caitlín R. Kiernan “Seeing Eye” by Patricia Briggs “Stone Man” by Nancy Kress “In the Stacks” by […]
Dirty Magic (2014) Jaye Wells I desperately needed something distracting, so picked up Dirty Magic, read a couple chapters, wasn’t sure it was what I was in the mood for, but the next day picked it back up, and discovered it served admirably as a distraction. Kate Prospero spent her youth cooking dirty magic. She […]
Strange Brew (2009) edited by P.N. Elrod This is a re-read, and as such, I skipped the stories I didn’t like or wasn’t in the mood for. Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs Last Call by Jim Butcher Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine Vegas Odds by Karen Chance Hecate’s Golden Eye by P.N. Elrod Bacon […]
Hounds of Autumn (2013) Heather Blackwood I really wanted to love this. The cover is gorgeous, and the premise is fabulous–a young female inventor in an alternate London, living her life within society’s constraints. The problem in this case is the steampunk. I think there should be a corollary to Clarke’s Law, “Any sufficiently advanced […]
Dangerous Women (2013) edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois “Some Desperado” (Red Country story) by Joe Abercrombie “My Heart is Either Broken” by Megan Abbott “Nora’s Song” by Cecelia Holland “The Hands That Are Not There” by Melinda Snodgrass “Bombshells” (Harry Dresden story) by Jim Butcher “Raisa Stepanova” by Carrie Vaughn “Wrestling Jesus” […]
Angelica’s Smile (2010/2014) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli “Ah Chief, Chief! Ahh Chief!” Catarella’s cry pretty much describes how I feel about this book. Ah Chief, how you’ve fallen. A strange series of burglaries has hit Vitaga. Burgulars break into a vacation home, gas the couple sleeping there, then, stealing the keys, return to […]
Silent in the Sanctuary (2009) Deanna Raybourn After discovering her husband’s murderer, Lady Julia Gray has gone to Italy to recuperate, living with her brothers, Plum and Lysander, and enjoying the country. But after her brother Lysander returns home married (much to everyone’s surprise) the three are ordered home by their father, ostensibly to spend […]
Silent in the Grave (2007) Deanna Raybourn First, a mea culpa. In my memory, I confused this with another book. A book that I found ho-hum at best. I also read this at a time when I was still irritated when someone put romance into my mystery (or fantasy or whatever), and I remembered this […]
Arctic Chill (2005/2009) Arnaldur Indriðason and translated by Bernard Scudder and Victoria Cribb This is, I believe, the fifth book in the detective Erlendur series, and I continue to like Erlendur and enjoy spending time with him despite myself. Erlendur is a broken and often not very nice man, and there are many reasons to […]
The Draining Lake (2004/2007) Arnaldur Indridason translated by Bernard Scudder Lake Kleifarvatn is draining, and no one is quite sure why, but what they do know is that as it drains, things are being uncovered. In this case, one of the scientists discovers the body of a man who obviously had been killed and his […]
Something from the Nightside (Audio Version) (2003/2008) Simon R. Green narrated by Marc Vietor This is the first book in the Nightside series, and introduces us to both John Taylor and the Nightside. You’ll probably know very quickly if this is for you or not. John “Bloody” Taylor is a private investigator who has been […]
The Archangel Project (2008) C.S. Graham October ‘Toby’ Guinness is an Army vet who was washed out with a psychiatric discharge after an incident in Iraq. “You didn’t want to go to Iraq?” said the Colonel. “Are you kidding? The only people who actually want to go to Iraq are either seriously delusional or very, […]
Gooseberry Bluff Community College of Magic: The Thirteenth Rib (2013) David J. Schwartz After I finished reading, I discovered this had originally been a kindle serial, which explains the pacing. But don’t take that as a negative, this is actually a pretty good story. Joy works for the Federal Bureau of Magical Affairs (FMBA) and […]
The Indian Bride (2001/2005) Karin Fossum translated by Charlotte Barslund This is another Inspector Sejer mystery, and I’ve found these books to be very hit or miss as to whether I enjoyed them. Luckily, this one was a hit. Gunder Jomann has spent his life alone, with few friends except for his sister Marie. An […]
Dead Spots (2012) Melissa F. Olson Scarlett Bernard is a Null. Magic doesn’t work within an extended radius around her, which means she cannot be bitten by vampires or werewolves or the curses of witches. Therefore, the Old World has a use for her: clean up. When there is a magical “accident,” Scarlett is called […]
The Lighthearted Quest (1956) Ann Bridge I picked up a bunch of books in this series when they were on sale, and then they sat, unread, while I read other things. The book started off well. It’s set post WWII, a time period I’m fond of due to Agatha Christie, and it was amusing. “Where […]
Black Magic Woman (2008) Justin Gustainis This isn’t the first book by Justin Gustainis I’ve read, so I had a general idea of what to expect. This book is a bit different from the other series I’ve read, however. A little less horror, and although there was a bit of police procedural to it, the […]
Miss Buncle’s Book (1936) D. E. Stevenson This book was a fun read. First published in 1936, it’s set in England, in that strange time period between the two world wars. Miss Buncle is at wits end as to what to do for money. Her dividends are no longer supporting her, so she has to […]
The InCryptid Short Stories: Jonathan Healy and Frances Brown (2013/2014) Seanan McGuire Having read the latest InCryptid book, I realized I had downloaded a bunch of InCryptid short stories, but not gotten around to reading them. Since I didn’t feel like starting a new book, I blew through them all. As of right now, all […]
Half-Off Ragnarok (2014) Seanan McGuire I don’t know what it is about this series. I love the Toby McGuire series. I love the Toby short stories I’ve read. But every book in this series I’ve expected to love as much as I love the Toby series, and I just… don’t. These aren’t bad books, and […]
London Falling (2012) Paul Cornell (Shadow Police) I started reading, and briefly thought I had entered in the middle of the story. I hadn’t. It was actually the beginning, but for the characters, they believe they are in the end game. Two cops working undercover to take down a crime lord, the DI running the […]
The Golden Egg (2013) Donna Leon I am starting, perhaps, to be disconcerted by how Brunetti and his family seem to have stopped aging. The first book was written in 1992, so twenty years have passed since that book, but time has not passed at the same rate for Brunetti. It’s most obvious with Chiara, […]
A Red Herring Without Mustard (2011) Alan Bradley This is the third Flavia de Luce book, and the de Luce family still hovers on the edge of ruin. I’ll actually be curious to see how long into the series this particular sword hangs over their heads. But that is not the start–or even the main […]
Still Life (2005) Louise Penny Chief Inspector Gamache of Montreal Quebec has been called to the small village of Three Pines to investigate the death of Jane Neal–a retired school teacher found lying dead on the ground with a hole through her heart. Gamache is a kind man, which is a skill that serves him […]
The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag (2010) Alan Bradley This is the second Flavia de Luce book. Flavia is eleven and fascinated by chemistry and poisons. And murder, although that was a recent discovery. She has two older sisters who dislike and torment her, and a father who is wrapped up in his stamps, […]
Why Kings Confess (2014) C.S. Harris I gave up re-reading the past books and the series and jumped straight to the newest book. No more hardback books for me, I think. The last several books have been set in a relatively compressed time frame–within a nine month period, to be precise, and in this book […]
What Remains of Heaven (2009) C.S. Harris I’d forgotten this book ends on a cliff-hanger of sorts. Not the mystery, but the situation of Hero Jarvis. Sebastian is pulled into yet another mystery when he formidable aunt asks him to look into the death of the Bishop of London and the presumed successor to the […]
Where Serpents Sleep (2008) C.S. Harris Now we reach the point where I started buying this series in hardback. And I hate hardback books. The fourth Sebastian St. Cyr book discovers Sebastian working with someone entirely unexpected: Hero Jarvis. A home for reformed fallen doves (ie women who want to escape prostitution) is burned to […]
Why Mermaids Sing (2007) C.S. Harris This is a hard book. Lots of terrible things are revealed, which are very hard for Sebastian (and the reader) to bear. These discoveries, however, are separate from the mystery. Young men are being killed–butchered in a horrible way–and the Magistrate Lovejoy asks St. Cry for his help, because […]
When Gods Die (2006) C.S. Harris I have to admit, I’m reading slower than I have been, because I can’t afford to buy the eBook version, so I’m re-reading my paperbacks. It’s odd how much more comfortable I find an eBook to read. Plus, if I fall asleep reading an eBook, I don’t loose my […]
What Angels Fear (2005) C.S. Harris Sebastian St. Cyr is a young nobleman who returned from the wars with France wanting only to forget, but unable to do so, and thus unable to fit back into society. His refusal to wed and produce and heir only makes his already poor relationship with his father even […]
The Grimrose Path (2010) Rob Thurman Trixa Iktomi is a trickster. She comes right out with it at the beginning of this story, so you know what you’re getting into. But she and her friend Leo (the reformed Bad Boy but now a trickster by calling, Loki) are mortal while Trixa rebuilds her powers after […]
Trick of the Light (2009) Rob Thurman Now, apparently, I need to re-read Rob Thurman. But as I relatively recently re-read the Cal & Niko series, I decided to go with the Trixa Iktomi series. Trixa runs a bar in Sin City, but all she really wants is revenge for her brother’s murder. Leo helps […]
Magic Strikes (2009) Ilona Andrews This is the third book in the Kate Daniels series, and we learn more of Kate’s secrets. This book also has a scene that stuck with me, and sort of bothered me, but that’s something else entirely. Kate is continuing to work for the Order, but spending more and more […]
Magic Burns (2008) Ilona Andrews Book two in the Kate Daniels series finds Kate still working as a merc, but also still working for the Order. We get more important introductions here: Julie, Andrea, Auntie B, Raphael… Most of the main characters have now entered the series. We’re still missing a lot about Kate’s history […]
Magic Bites (2008) Ilona Andrews After finishing off the Inspector Salvo Montalbano series, I’ve been picking up books, trying to figure out what I was in the mood to read. There were several new releases that I quite liked, but they didn’t help me fall into what I wanted to read after. At a loss, […]
The Investigation (1959/1974) Stanislaw Lem translated by Adele Milch This is a good book, however, it’s not what I was expecting or wanting when I started reading, so I didn’t like it. Let me explain. It’s supposed to be a British detective story (written in 1959, so it was modern when it was written, but […]
Broken Homes (2014) Ben Aaronovitch This is the fourth Rivers of London book, in which we find Peter Grant–son of a jazz man and an immigrant from Sierra Leon–becoming comfortable in his position at constable and apprentice magician. That’s not a common or even popular status in the London Force. His fellow apprentice, Lesley, is […]
Midnight Blue-Light Special (2013) Seanan McGuire So… I had pre-ordered this, and then it sat, unread, for… ten months. I think, first and foremost, it’s a sign that I’ve become predominately an eBook reader. (Further evidence? The last Cat and Bones book is sitting on my coffee table, staring at me, wondering why I haven’t […]
The Dance of the Seagull (2009/2013) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli Alas, I’m now back to current on the Inspector Montalbano series, and I have no idea what I want to read next. The story opens with Montalbano seeing a seagull dive to the ground, do a strange dance, and then die on the […]
The Age of Doubt (2008/2012) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli On this second reading, I really didn’t like this story. The mystery was fine, but I knew what was coming, and I just kept getting madder and madder at Montalbano, not wanting him to make the mistakes I knew he was going to make. […]