Library – Page 2 – Carol's Notebook

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie

April 3, 2025April 3, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I've read most if not all of Christie's book before, but The Seven Dials Mystery is not one I remember well. Maybe Battle just doesn't grab my attention like the rest of Christie's detectives. It starts out promising. We've got a weekend house party at Chimneys. One of the young men, Gerry Wade, always sleeps late and the others decide to play a prank on him, setting eight alarm clocks in his room to ring one after another. But then he still doesn't wake up - turns out he died overnight. Of course, since this is a Christie, we know it wasn't just coincidence. Then another man is killed and Lady Eileen 'Bundle' Brent decides they need to investigate. Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention to the audio or maybe all the young people just blended into each other, but I got a little confused. And then it veers off into international intrigue, and it turns out I just wanted a traditional...

The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch

April 2, 2025April 2, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I've read a couple of the Rivers of London books, which gave me enough background to enjoy The Masquerades of Spring, but since it's a novella that falls outside of the regular series, I also didn't feel like I was missing anything plot- or relationship-wise. We are in the 1920s in Harlem. Augustus Berrycloth-Young is a very British wizard, who has taken refuge in America. His life is pretty decent - he spends his time listening to jazz, enjoying the city, and being in love with his boyfriend, Lucien. It can be difficult, gay men are hassled by the cops and Lucy, being black, is not allowed into some of the nicest restaurants, even in Gussie's company. And then Thomas Nightingale arrives asking for Gussie's help in finding the original owner of a cursed saxophone. What follows is a decent little mystery, with plenty of action and magic. I loved the characters in this one. Nightingale is his usual self, if...

The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood

March 17, 2025March 17, 2025 by Carol6 Comments

I honestly expected to thoroughly enjoy The Marlow Murder Club. It features three very different women who form a friendship and solve murders. We have Judith, in her 70s, who lives on her own in a mansion on the edge of town, drinks too much, and sets crossword puzzles. Becks is the vicar's wife, who usually spends her time taking care of her family and house. Suzy is a dog-walker who is estranged from her adult daughter. I like the friendship the women form and how they push each other outside of their comfort zones. The plot is where the story really let me down. Judith very early on has a couple of suspicions and then they spend the rest of the book trying to prove her theories. A few of the clues were unbelievable. The twist wasn't surprising, although it did make the mystery overly convoluted. Even the suspenseful ending was over the top and borderline silly. I listened...

The Mysterious Mr. Quin by Agatha Christie

March 12, 2025March 12, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

The Three Act Tragedy led me to a reread of The Mysterious Mr. Quin, collection of short mystery stories that feature Mr. Harley Quin and Mr. Satterthwaite. Mr. Satterthwaite, is upper class, single, a man who loves his comforts and is rich enough to afford them. He enjoys life’s dramas, watching rather than participating. Satterthwaite is both the main character and the sidekick. It’s his reasoning and actions that solve the mysteries, but it’s Harley Quin who mysteriously shows up at just the right time and asks just the right questions. Mr. Quin is a touch supernatural, he seems to intercede on the behalf of lovers or the dead, those whose mysteries still need solved. The stories in the collection are a variety of situations. Sometimes cold cases are solved, tragedy prevented because a wrong is righted, and sometimes a murder is solved. I think I enjoyed them more this time around because I knew what to expect. I listened to...

Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie

March 11, 2025March 12, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

Three Act Tragedy is not a story I remember well - it's been ages since I read it last. This time around I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Hugh Fraser, who just does these wonderfully. His characterizations are spot on and his pace and tone match the plot well. The book opens with a dinner party. A retired famous actor, Sir Charles Cartwright, hosts a dinner party for local friends and some guests from London including Mr. Satterthwaite (from the Harley Quin stories) and Hercule Poirot. Of course, someone dies, but only Sir Charles and another guest, the young Miss Egg Lytton-Gore suspect suspect murder. Until a second house party with many of the same guests ends in a similar death, but this time it's definitely murder - the police discover the poison that was used. Sir Charles and Egg convince Satterthwaite and eventually Poirot that they need to take the investigation into their own hands. The plot is...

The Diva Steals a Chocolate Kiss by Krista Davis

February 18, 2025February 18, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I had a book on next up on my to-read pile that was a little too dark for Valentine's Day, so I looked for something light and fun and free to listen to first. A cozy mystery with chocolate sounded perfect and it was available through my library. I've read several of the Domestic Diva mysteries and they're always enjoyable. This time around Sophie is in charge of the 60th Anniversary event for Amore chocolates, including a tasting at the owner's mansion. Unfortunately, the owner, Joe Merano, is missing and his family is trying to keep it quiet. Then, during clean-up after the tasting, Sophie finds a dead body- not Joe, thankfully- in the guesthouse. Sophie is one of those too good to be true women. She's smart and spunky, a great cook, a spontaneous entertainer, a loyal friend. She's maybe dating a lawyer, is friends with her former former love interest/detective, and is still close to her...