A Disorganised Death by Simon Brett

A Disorganised Death by Simon Brett

by CarolNo Comments
A Disorganised Death is the fifth book in the of the Decluttering Mysteries, and I haven't/won't read any of the others. I actually disliked this one. The set-up is fine. Ellen is a widow who declutters clients’ houses, but doesn’t handle house clearances. Her daughter, Jools, runs the London branch of the company, and in this installment, they're both dealing with jobs that involve wills, in addition to the decluttering. I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by the author. And while yes, I do think it's possible for authors to be great narrators and for men to narrate books told from a woman's first-person point of view, but neither worked here. Ellen is a 50-something woman who sounded like an 80-year old man. It's distracting. Ellen has two adult children. Jools, her daughter, is running her own branch of the decluttering company. She lives with her boyfriend in London. Ellen and Jools don't seem close, but they get along....
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The Murder of Viscount Montcrief by Karen Baugh Menuhin

The Murder of Viscount Montcrief by Karen Baugh Menuhin

by CarolNo Comments
The reclusive Viscount Montcrief, whose country home is not far from Lennox', has been murdered shortly welcoming an acting troupe into his home. Lennox and Swift are sent to investigate, but since it's close to home, we get to see plenty of Florence and Persi, too, and the pets. As always, Swift tries to do everything correctly and by the book, while Lennox kind of jumps around and goes more by instinct. The plot works well. The actors are appropriately eccentric and are trying hard to keep their secrets. We've got a couple of surprising twists, and another dead body or two. Maybe I'm getting a little bored with the series, though....
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A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

by Carol2 Comments
I love that Miss Marple is bored on her vacation at the Golden Palm resort on St Honoré in the West Indies. The weather is always the same, lovely and warm, and the nothing interesting ever happens. She spends most of her time knitting and observing those around her. She also ends up listening to a lot of her fellow guest, Major Palgrave's, stories. When the major ends up dead, apparently of natural causes, Miss Marple is sure that his death was a murder and connected to a story he told her. She puts on her little old lady act and starts investigating. She does rope in an assistant, Mr. Rafiel, a grouchy, wealthy elderly man in a wheelchair. He's really a great character and I love how he and Miss Marple work together - both older and underestimated, but with their own outlooks and resources. We've got a nice batch of varied suspects and a lot of undercurrents of...
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The Silver Pigs by Lindsey Davis

The Silver Pigs by Lindsey Davis

by Carol4 Comments
I love a good detective novel - and this one just happens to take place in Ancient Rome. Marcus Didius Falco, a former legionnaire now returned from his tour of duty in Britannia and making a not great living as a "private informer," doing what PIs always seem to be doing, working for suspicious spouses and shady businessmen and damsels in distress. The damsel here is Sosia Camillina a sixteen year-old who literally runs into Falco at the forum while she is trying to escape from kidnappers. He, of course, steps in to help and lands right in the middle of a conspiracy involving theft from the empire. We've got mystery, murder, family squabbling, and a potential love interest (not Sosia, but her cousin Helena Justina who is divorced from her first husband). We also get transported to ancient Rome, but in a way that makes it accessible and interesting. We get snippets of historical events and learn what everyday life...
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Félicie by Georges Simenon

Félicie by Georges Simenon

by Carol1 Comment
Félicie is only the second Maigret book I've read and I don't think I have a good feel for the character or the writing yet. This time around an old man is found murdered in his cottage in a picturesque village outside of Paris. The actual focus of the book though, is his young housekeeper, Félicie, who was the only other resident of the house and who inherits it, to everyone's surprise. Félicie is infuriating for Maigret, but has his full attention. She's headstrong, impetuous, angry, and trying desperately to control what she allows Maigret to see and know, but there's more going on than she realizes. Maigret's team is methodical, while his instincts tell him to keep arguing, cajoling, and spending time with Félicie. Turns out he's right and the clues she unwillingly gives him lead to the solution. I listened to the audio and thought the narrator did a good job with Maigret's voice and keeping the other characters...
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Fatality in F by Alexia Gordon

Fatality in F by Alexia Gordon

by Carol1 Comment
I liked Fatality in F a little more than the previous one in the series. It's back to more solid ground, or at least as solid as it can be when a ghost is around. Gethsemane is one of those amateur sleuths who has a knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and usually discovering a dead body in the process. This time around a rose show has come to Dunmullach and one of the competitors, who is also Gethsemane's friend Frankie's main rival, is found dead with a pair of garden shears sticking out of his back. In the meantime, Frankie is receiving bouquets reminiscent of the Flower Shop Killer of decades ago. The plot moves along at a nice pace. We had several suspects, clues, red herrings, and several secret agendas. We also learn a bit about the language of flowers and plant-based pharmaceuticals. I like Gethsemane. She a brilliant musician. She's strong and independent....
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