49 - HEAT WAVE: RICHARD CASTLE

R. Castle is a character on a TV show who writes novels. On the show he wrote this novel after following a female police office around on her cases.
The whole time I was reading the book I was hearing the dialogue in the voices from the show. Not a bad thing as I enjoy the programme but I probably won't bother with the next book unless I run out of reading material. Light and predictable .. not what I want as I turn pages but I give the write/writers credit for creating the novels perhaps even giving TV watchers a reason to open a book.

48 - THE BURNING WIRE: JEFFERY DEAVER

The weapon is invisible and omnipresent. Without it, modern society grinds to a halt. It is electricity. The killer harnesses and steers huge arc flashes with voltage so high and heat so searing that steel melts and his victims are set afire.

When the first explosion occurs in broad daylight, reducing a city bus to a pile of molten, shrapnel-riddled metal, officials fear terrorism. Rhyme, a world-class forensic criminologist known for his successful apprehension of the most devious criminals, is immediately tapped for the investigation. Long a quadriplegic, he assembles NYPD detective Amelia Sachs and officer Ron Pulaski as his eyes, ears and legs on crime sites, and FBI agent Fred Dellray as his undercover man on the street. As the attacks continue across the city at a sickening pace, and terrifying demand letters begin appearing, the team works desperately against time and with maddeningly little forensic evidence to try to find the killer. Or is it killers . . . ?

Meanwhile, Rhyme is consulting on another high-profile investigation in Mexico with a most coveted quarry in his crosshairs: the hired killer known as the Watchmaker, one of the few criminals to have eluded Rhyme’s net.

I had it figured except for a few minor details long before the ending. Still it was enjoyable and I will continue with the series.

It's getting harder and harder to find new and interesting novels. I read too much but can't seem to stop.

47 - 61 HOURS: LEE CHILD

Sixty-one hours. Not a minute to spare.
A tour bus crashes in a savage snowstorm and lands Jack Reacher in the middle of a deadly confrontation. In nearby Bolton, South Dakota, one brave woman is standing up for justice in a small town threatened by sinister forces. If she’s going to live long enough to testify, she’ll need help. Because a killer is coming to Bolton, a coldly proficient assassin who never misses.

I did like the cast of characters in this book and the conversations between Reacher and the main players. I've been reading Child's novels since the beginning and have found no reason to stop.

46 - THE PENGUIN BOOK OF CRIME STORIES: PETER ROBINSON

Bestselling Canadian author Peter Robinson once again delivers a special treat for crime fiction lovers: a compilation of outstanding contemporary crime writing from the English-speaking world. With a selection of fifteen stories featuring established writers and new voices, The Penguin Book of Crime Stories Volume II is a rich source of literary menace, psychological insight, and roaring plot. This collection includes riveting stories by Lee Child, John Connolly, Colin Cotterill, Jeffrey Deaver, Sue Grafton, Sophie Hannah, Reginald Hill, Maureen Jennings, and Ruth Rendell. The stories are selected and introduced by Peter Robinson.

As with most short story collections I enjoyed some more than others.









45 - THE COLLECTED STORIES OF ROGER ZELAZNY: POWER AND LIGHT

I was surprised at how well the stories from the 60's read . I found myself skimming the fantasy stories but read most of the science fiction. Well put together collection covering his career in several volumes, I will watch out for others.

44 - FEVER DREAM: PRESTON & CHILD

Yesterday, Special Agent Pendergast still mourned the loss of his beloved wife, Helen, who died in a tragic accident in Africa twelve years ago.

Today, he discovers she was murdered.

Tomorrow, he will learn her most guarded secrets, leaving him to wonder: Who was the woman I married? Why was she murdered? And, above all . . . Who murdered her?

Still enjoying this series because they are quick to read, the story carries on and when they leave you with a cliff hanger you know you will be watching for the next instalment. I do like Pendergast.
Interesting how the authors are the selling feature rather than the title.

43 - ANNIVERSARY MAN: R.J. ELLORY

Twenty years ago John Costello's life, as he knew it, ended. He and his beautiful girlfriend, Nadia, were victims of the deranged 'Hammer of God' killer who terrorised New Jersey City throughout the summer of 1984. Nadia was killed instantly. John survived, but withdrew from society, emerging only to work as a crime researcher for a major newspaper. Damaged he may be, but no one in New Jersey knows more about serial killers than John Costello. Then a new spate of murders starts - all seemingly random and unrelated - until John discovers a complex pattern that links them. But could this dark knowledge be about to threaten his life?

Another lucky find from the newer book shelf at the library. I had stopped bothering with most thriller type novels finding them becoming very similar and in some cases beyond gory. This one caught me from the very beginning and kept me turning pages right to the end. I will be checking out Ellory's previous novels and can only hope I enjoy the characters and find the storyline as readable.

I recommend this one to police, mystery and thriller readers.

42 - DEATH IN A FAMILY WAY: GWENDOLYN SOUTHIN

It's 1958 and Margaret's children are grown and her husband is comfortably settled in his job and she is bored. Answering a want ad she ends up working 1/2 days in a detective agency. She likes it.

Thanks to her intuition she becomes personally involved in a case of murder and missing girls.

Worth turning the pages if you like light mysteries. I'll get the next one from the library and see if Maggie and Nat ( the boss ) can keep my interest.

40 - THE WEED THAT STRINGS THE HANGMAN'S BAG: ALAN BRADLEY

I'm not giving the description as it gives too much away. Just be assured that Flavia and her trusty bike Gladys are out and about having another grand adventure. It was as enjoyable as her first romp, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. My only complaint is that the pages ran out before I was ready to leave Bishop's Lacy and the deLuce family.

Bring on the next adventure.

39 - THE RED DOOR: CHARLES TODD

Lancashire, England, June, 1920. Who was the woman who lived and died behind the red door? What did she see before she died? And who was the man who never came home from the Great War, for the simple reason that he had never really gone? How is the woman's death linked to his disappearance? And why is Scotland Yard blind to the connection, even when Inspector Ian Rutledge points it out?

Quite the family involved in this one. A few twists and turns that caught me off guard but I did pick up one clue early.

Not as much a page turner as some of the earlier works but I will continue with this series.

The side story .. Billy .. seemed a little unnecessary.

38 - THIS BODY OF DEATH An Inspector Lynley novel: ELIZABETH GEORGE

New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth George is back with a spellbinding tale of mystery and murder featuring Scotland Yard Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley.

On compassionate leave after the murder of his wife, Thomas Lynley is called back to Scotland Yard when the body of a woman is found stabbed and abandoned in an isolated London cemetery. His former team doesn't trust the leadership of their new department chief, Isabelle Ardery, whose management style seems to rub everyone the wrong way. In fact, Lynley may be the sole person who can see beneath his superior officer's hard-as-nails exterior to a hidden—and possibly attractive—vulnerability.

While Lynley works in London, his former colleagues Barbara Havers and Winston Nkata follow the murder trail south to the New Forest. There they discover a beautiful and strange place where animals roam free, the long-lost art of thatching is very much alive, and outsiders are not entirely welcome. What they don't know is that more than one dark secret lurks among the trees, and that their investigation will lead them to an outcome that is both tragic and shocking.

A multilayered jigsaw puzzle of a story skillfully structured to keep readers guessing until the very end, This Body of Death is a magnificent achievement from a writer at the peak of her powers.

This is the first George book I have read but have watched some of the Lynley mysteries on TV. I quite enjoyed this book although one character annoyed me enough to wish she would wise up or disappear. There are a good number of books in this series to explore although I will not be reading any of the ones that were used for the TV show. Tried one and found I didn't like knowing who the culprit was even though the books contain far more background material.

I list this one as not bad.

36 - SORROW WOOD: RAYMOND L. ATKINS

When the charred body of a promiscuous, self-proclaimed witch is discovered at a farm called Sorrow Wood, nearly everyone in the sleepy town of Sand Valley, Alabama, is drawn into the case. As the murder probe continues, a multitude of secrets are revealed, including one that leads back to the rock castle home of Wendell Blackmon, Sand Valley`s police chief, and his beloved wife Reva. The town`s inhabitants ruminate on the true meaning of commitment, love, death, hope, and loss as they delve deeper into questions such as Who was this woman? Where did she come from? and What did her presence mean to Wendell, Reva, and the townspeople of Sand Valley?

This is the life story of Wendell and Reva not just another mystery. It is a tale of two people who live and love and click so perfectly, so well written, that you almost feel you are listening in to their conversations and sharing their days.
I loved this book and will now be tracking down the first by this author, The Front Porch Prophet and watching for anything new he writes.

31 - ARMS AND THE WOMAN:an elliad: REGINALD HILL

Someone attempts to abduct Ellie Pascoe, and her friend, Daphne Alderman, is assaulted by a man keeping watch on the Pascoe house. Dalziel, Pascoe and Wield feel certain there must be a link here with one of Pascoe's cases, either current or past. Only DC Shirley Novello wonders whether perhaps these events might have more to do with Ellie than her husband.

While the men concentrate on their individual theories, Ellie, her daughter Rosie, Daphne, and Novello (their official minder) head for the coast to the supposed safety of the Alderman's holiday home, Cleets Cottage. But their flight proves somewhat futile as Ellie's would-be abductor continues to send her letters of possibly threatening intent, composed in a strange Elizabethan English.

I liked parts of this better than others. I found it slow to read and harder to concentrate on then any other of his novels. Perhaps it was the language, perhaps it was the story within the novel. The main storyline was good and strong and I liked all the good-guy main characters ( I certainly like how each novel builds and fills in the characters ) but for me it wasn't as satisfying as most of Hill's works.

29 - THE MURDER STONE or A RULE AGAINST MURDER: LOUISE PENNY

There’s something other­worldly and altogether enchanting about the Manoir Bellechasse, the magnificent lodge in the Canadian wilderness where Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec, has taken his wife for their 35th wedding anniversary. Not only does the auberge offer grand views and the order and calm of old-world service, but it also observes a no-kill policy, with the proprietors feeding wild animals in winter and forbidding guests to hunt or fish. Someone obviously failed to explain that rule to the cultured but quarrelsome family holding a reunion to unveil a statue of their late patriarch, who makes his feelings felt by toppling down on one of his own. As Gamache observes, things were not as they seemed, not even in a paradise like Bellechasse.

I figured out the how early on but not the who although I had suspensions.
Now I have to wait for new releases, all up to date.

28 - ON BEULAH HEIGHT: REGINALD HILL

The Yorkshire detective team of Dalziel and Pascoe is back in another riveting procedural. Fifteen years earlier, the quaint British village of Dendale suffered double tragedies: three children were kidnapped, never to be found, while a fourth barely escaped with her life. Then the government forced the villagers to evacuate Dendale so they could flood its homes and shops to create a new reservoir. A decade and a half later, seven-year-old Lorraine Dacre disappears from Danby, the village where most of the Dendale's inhabitants retreated. Dalziel and Pascoe are caught in a painful nightmare. They failed to solve the earlier case; can they solve this one? Theories, speculation, and suspects abound. Villagers report seeing Benny Lightfoot, a crazy recluse who was the prime suspect in the Dendale case. Betsy Allgood, the victim who escaped 15 years ago, is full of dark secrets she won't reveal. (from Booklist)

I thought I had it figured but I was wrong. Good twist at the end.
Whenever possible I post the cover of the edition I've read.

27 - THE CRUELLEST MONTH: LOUISE PENNY

It's Easter, and on a glorious spring day in peaceful Three Pines, someone waits for night to fall. They plan to raise the dead! When C. I. Gamache of the Surete du Quebec arrives the next morning, he faces an unusual crime scene. A seance in an old, abandoned house has gone horrifically wrong and someone lies frightened to death. For in idyllic Three Pines not all is as it seems. Toxic secrets lie buried, and something terrible has finally clawed its way out. And even Gamache has something to hide. One of his own team is preparing to betray him. But who is it? And how far will they go to ensure Gamache's downfall?

Rather fun reading this just as we approach Easter. I continue to appreciate how the author expands and continues the stories of so many of the characters in Three Pines and I drool when she records lunches from the bistro and I would love to find a B&B like the one in her novels. I have only one left and I'm up to date and I'm sad I'll have to wait for the publication of another.

26 - DEAD COLD or A FATAL GRACE : LOUISE PENNY

From Booklist

Quebec Surete Inspector Armand Gamache, who made his debut in Still Life (2006), returns in this enjoyable follow-up. An almost universally disliked, even hated, woman is murdered. Naturally, the pool of potential murderers is deep, ranging from the victim's lover to her friends (well, acquaintances) to various others in the small Canadian community of Three Pines. Gamache, a smart and likable investigator--think Columbo with an accent, or perhaps a modern-day Poirot--systematically wades his way through the pool, coming upon a few surprises along the way. Penny is a careful writer, taking time to establish character and scene, playing around with a large cast, distracting us so we won't see the final twists coming until they're upon us. This is a fine mystery in the classic Agatha Christie style, and it is sure to leave mainstream fans wanting more.

It's confusing when a book has 2 titles depending on edition..I think Dead Cold suits the story best. Part of me wishes I hadn't read the latest book first. There would be more mystery in watching the characters develop and there would be no foreknowledge of certain events but I wouldn't have wanted to miss finding this series. On to the next one.

25 - STILL LIFE : LOUISE PENNY

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Canadian Penny's terrific first novel, which was the runner-up for the CWA's Debut Dagger Award in 2004, introduces Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec. When the body of Jane Neal, a middle-aged artist, is found near a woodland trail used by deer hunters outside the village of Three Pines, it appears she's the victim of a hunting accident. Summoned to the scene, Gamache, an appealingly competent senior homicide investigator, soon determines that the woman was most likely murdered. Like a virtuoso, Penny plays a complex variation on the theme of the clue hidden in plain sight. She deftly uses the bilingual, bicultural aspect of Quebecois life as well as arcane aspects of archery and art to deepen her narrative. Memorable characters include Jane; Jane's shallow niece, Yolande; and a delightful gay couple, Olivier and Gabri. Filled with unexpected insights, this winning traditional mystery sets a solid foundation for future entries in the series.

Having read her most recent, The Brutal Telling, and enjoying it it was natural for me to start at the beginning. I've now reserved the 2nd and 3rd in the series. Good reading

24 - THE STRANGER HOUSE: REGINALD HILL

This standalone novel by award-winning suspense writer Hill (Good Morning, Midnight) features two characters with little in common but for their families being in the wine business. Samantha Flood is a 20-year-old Australian math genius, while Miguel Madero lives in Jerez, Spain, with a Spanish father and an English mother. After the death of her grandmother, Samantha learns that her father was adopted and comes to England seeking information about his birth mother. Miguel, who experienced a mystical calling to the priesthood but left the seminary to pursue an academic career in history, is in search of information about Catholic priests during the reign of Elizabeth I. Both find themselves drawn to the Cumbrian village of Illthwaite, and both meet resistance from the locals when they arrive and begin asking questions. As their quests become intertwined, Samantha and Miguel at last join forces. Filled with suspense, history, and wry humor, this is a treat of a novel about two people who are driven to uncover the truth about their families and unexpectedly find allies in each other.

Most enjoyable. I was slow getting into it but once I hit mid way I read right to the end.

23 - UNDER WORLD: REGINALD HILL

When young Tracey Pedley vanished in the woods around Burrthorpe, the close-knit community had their own ideas about what had happened, but Deputy Chief Constable Watmough has it down as the work of a child-killer who has since committed suicide - though others wondered about the last man to see her alive and his fatal plunge into a disused mine shaft.

Returning to the town he left in anger, Colin Farr's homecoming is ready for trouble, and when a university course brings him into contact with Ellie Pascoe, trouble starts.

Meanwhile, Andy Dalziel mutters imprecations on the sidelines, until a murder in Burrthorpe mine forces him to take action that brings him up against a hostile and frightened community.

I like the way stories flow from one book into another. It does mean that reading them in order is the best way to go but I am managing well enough with a little bit of back and forth. I fear the day I am up to date.

22 - CHILD'S PLAY: REGINALD HILL

The 10th in Hill's Dalziel and Pascoe novels is, as usual, a nicely plotted, smoothly written mystery on the top rung of the genre. A half-dotty old Yorkshire widow dies, throwing her relations into confusion with a will that leaves her wealth to a son missing in action in World War II. If he's not found by 2015, the fortune will be divided among charities for animals, the needy and Women for Empire. A man resembling the long-lost son appears and disappears. Officials of the charities, surviving relatives and the deceased's lawyer begin a complicated bargaining dance. A top cop campaigns to become Chief Constable. A young drifter enters the life of Sgt. Wield, forcing him to a decision about his homosexuality. There are a couple of apparently unrelated murders. Supt. Dalziel sorts it all out in his usual boorish, intuitive, irreverent way. He's helped by youthful, (relatively) cultured Inspector Pascoe, stolid Sgt. Wield and by Lexie Huby, a young, mousy legal secretary with lots of surprises. Readers will love Hill's rich characterization, vivid local color and lightly stinging humor.

Reading the older books after the current books is like a trip to the passed. Still not bored with the series and looking forward to the next one.

21 - EXIT LINES: REGINALD HILL

Three old men die on a stormy November night: one by deliberate violence, one in a road accident and one by an unknown cause.

Inspector Pascoe is called in to investigate the first death, but when the dying words of the accident victim suggest that a drunken Superintendent Dalziel had been behind the wheel, the integrity of the entire Mid-Yorkshire constabulary is called into question.

Helped by the bright but wayward DC Seymour, hindered by 'Maggie's Moron', the half-witted Constable Hector, Peter Pascoe enters the twilight and vulnerable world of the senior citizen - to discover that the beckoning darkness at the end of the tunnel holds few comforts.

Fast and easy read. I sometimes wish all the characters were real people and that I could meet them all. Hill creates them well.