A Brew for Chaos by Esme Addison

A Brew for Chaos by Esme Addison

by CarolNo Comments
I remember liking the first two Enchanted Bay Mysteries, which is why I picked up A Brew for Chaos, but looking back at my comments now, I definitely enjoyed the first more than the second. As for A Brew for Chaos, I really should have skipped it. It's fall in Bellamy Bay and Oktoberfest is coming up. I was hoping for all the fall vibes and a cozy mystery, which is not what I got. And I should have been prepared based on how I felt about the second, but I only remembered the cute town, the close-knit family, the bit of mermaid magic. Instead I got more paranormal than cozy and more government conspiracy than killer down the block. The characters are mostly well-developed and the topics it brings are worth discussing, especially in light of the political climate, but it did have me rolling my eyes occasionally at how outlandish some of the plot was. I think this is...
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Death at Silent Pool by Benedict Brown

Death at Silent Pool by Benedict Brown

by CarolNo Comments
This is the 14th entry in the Lord Edgington Investigates series, but I have only read a few here and there. Lord Edgington is a famous retired detective, a bit cold and arrogant, but he's usually accompanied by his twenty year-old grandson, Christopher, who is both our narrator and Edgington's apprentice. Christopher is clever, but also friendly and charming. Lord Edgington is looking into the disappearance of Patience Hindmarsh, the wife of a member of parliament, but her husband/main suspect in her disappearance is being uncooperative, until his own life is threatened. There are a lot of murders in this one, which makes getting to the solution difficult. The Hindmarsh family patriarch is an abusive man and when he is killed all of the children are viable suspects. It's not a light mystery. It's dark and sad, different from the others I've read in the series. We've got several twists and turns on the way to the solution. I listened...
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Armstrong and Oscar Cozy Mysteries #1 – 4

Armstrong and Oscar Cozy Mysteries #1 – 4

by Carol4 Comments
I was looking for a book set in Italy and found Murder in Tuscany. It was fun and I ended up listening to the first four in the series, one right after the other, from the library. Retired DCI Dan Armstrong is a fish out of water at a writing retreat in Tuscany. Yes, he's an aspiring writer, but definitely not of erotica. Then someone is killed and he's helping the local police solve the crime between writing classes and sight-seeing. I loved the setting, a large villa in the Italian hills. We have a closed circle of suspects, several of whom are hiding secrets. Dan is a bit sexist and a bit mopey, but it's a quick read and the dead guy was not a good person, by any stretch of the imagination. Dan is staying in Tuscany, has a house and a dog and everything. He agrees to help the local chief and his friend Virgilio catch the killer,...
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The Mysterious Case of the Missing Crime Writer by Ragnar Jónasson

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Crime Writer by Ragnar Jónasson

by CarolNo Comments
I have not read anything by Jónasson, including the first in this trilogy, which maybe was a mistake. We get enough background that I knew what was going on, but at least one subplot is carried over into this one and I might have been more invested in the characters. Famous crime author Elín S. Jónsdóttir is missing and our Detective Helgi is assigned the case. Helgi is a fan of Golden Age mysteries and turns to them for inspiration occasionally, which I enjoyed. Helgi interviews those her friends, in the hopes of solving the case before the press find out and we get bits and pieces of an interview she gave in 2005 that has yet to be published. Maybe she's just taking some time away, which she's done before. The book also shows us a bank robbery that took place in 1965 that probably has a connection to the disappearance because why else would it be introduced. I didn't...
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The Story That Wouldn’t Die by Christina Estes

The Story That Wouldn’t Die by Christina Estes

by Carol1 Comment
I read the first in this series starring reporter Jolene Garcia, but this one definitely works as a stand alone. Jolene is looking for the next big story, since the murder she solved in book 1 hasn't really seemed to give her career much of a bounce. However, her bosses have her running all over town to cover cupcakes and stuck elevators, so when a small business owner with ties to the city council is killed, Jolene feels like she's the only one who wants to investigate. Jolene is an interesting character. She's caring, smart, and tenacious. She's also a bit of a bulldozer and is not above hurting her friends' feelings or pawning assignments off on the intern in order to do what she thinks she needs to. She's ambitious, but maybe not entirely likeable. I liked the peek into a news station and Jolene was a competent investigator. The mystery itself was well done. It moved along at a...
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Towards Zero by Agatha Christie

Towards Zero by Agatha Christie

by Carol1 Comment
One more Christie then I'll move on to other books for a while. This time around our detective is Superintendent Battle. While he's not as memorable as Poirot or Marple, he's a good guy and a solid detective. The story starts with a variety of seemingly unrelated events. In the prologue, would-be murderer is plotting out a murder right down to the last detail. But then we meet a schoolgirl, Battle's daughter, who is accused of theft at school, and we hear the story of a man who attempted suicide but was saved and has found a new job, but not happiness. Then there's the tennis player who is staying at his benefactress' seaside home with his wife - and his ex-wife. Tensions are elevated and murder becomes inevitable. We know a lot about the characters before the actual murder takes place, but that didn't help me solve it....
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