Mystery – Page 2 – Carol's Notebook

The Secret Detective Agency by Helena Dixon

March 5, 2025March 5, 2025 by Carol3 Comments

The Secret Detective Agency has a good set up. We're in London in 1941, right in the middle of WW2. Jane Treen, a mid level spymaster working in Whitehall, is concerned because several of her agents who were connected with Operation Exodus have been murdered. There seems to be a mole in their midst. Most recently, Kate Trevellian was murdered in a small village outside of Exeter, at Half Moon Manor, the home of Arthur Cilento. Arthur, conveniently, is a mathematician and codebreaker who also works for the government. Arthur had been renting the house out to Kate, and he has just returned home, so is not a suspect. Jane's boss sends her to Half Moon Manor to work with Arthur to figure out who murdered Kate and uncover the plot to kill off the remaining Operation Exodus spies. Jane and Arthur are total contrasts to each other. Jane is intuitive, on the move, and a chain-smoker (as we are...

Murder in an Irish Garden by Carlene O’Connor

March 2, 2025February 28, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I listened to Murder in an Irish Garden on audio and I loved the narrator's accent. She helped place the book solidly in Ireland. And I love hearing names and places pronounced correctly. The story starts off with Siobhan studying for her detective sergeant exam with help from her husband, Macdara. This somehow leads to a fight that has them bickering through the first half of the book, which I found annoying, especially since I couldn't see what the big deal was to begin with. Maybe they always argue? I've only read one other in this series. This time, the mystery centers around a garden competition. One of the competitors is found murdered and everyone's gardens have been ruined. Multiple crime scenes and plenty of suspects make it a complicated case. Everyone seems innocent and and everyone seems guilty. While the plot was good, I also enjoyed all the garden and flower talk. Maybe I'm just dreaming of summer and...

Music Festival Murder by R. M. Murphy

February 28, 2025February 28, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

Music Festival Murder is the second in the series. It could work as a stand alone, but they're quick so I'd probably just go back and read the first before starting this one. Denny and his pizza truck are back in his hometown, this time for JamFest. His friend Jerry's band is going to be playing on the mainstage, which is exciting. But of course someone gets killed - a boutique owner who is also the retired school band director. Denny starts asking questions. Thankfully he has hired a young man, Graham, to help at the truck so he has some freedom to traipse around the festival grounds looking for clues and talking to people. This one was another fun, quick mystery. I feel like the motive in these tend to be a bit weak. I read this a couple of days ago and I remember who the killer was but not why they did it....

The Chow Maniac by Vivien Chien

February 27, 2025February 27, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

The Chow Maniac is the 11th in the Noodle Shop series, but I think it could be read as a stand alone. There is no over-arching plotline to the series and although we have lots of returning characters, I think they're introduced well. This time around, Lana, our amateur sleuth, is approached by Lydia, a private detective we've met previously, with a case that involves the Asian community. Lydia has been hired to look into a century-old Asian organization known as the Eight Immortals. Three members have already died under seemingly natural circumstances, but the client believes they were actually murdered and that he may be next. Lana is a great character. She manages her family's restaurant, but has solved enough murders for people to notice her. She's funny and sassy and does not know how to keep a secret. Per usual cozy rules, she has an adorable dog and is dating a police detective, although neither play a huge part...

Mozzarella Murder by R.M. Murphy

February 26, 2025February 28, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I love pizza - extra cheese, no pepperoni if it's from DiCarlo's, add some veggies if it's from another pizza place, which is more or less why I picked up Mozzarella Murder. Denny, our main character/amateur sleuth, is a widower in his 40s who has left his job as a copy editor to open a pizza truck. He is back in his hometown in Eastern Pennsylvania to sell pizzas at the annual Summerfest. His first stop in town is at the cheese shop run by his old friend Ruben. In the shop, the two find the dead body of motivational speaker and former classmate, Charlie Sampson. Denny decides he needs to investigate because it looks like Ruben might be the chief suspect. It turns out Charlie had more than one enemy. Denny has been out of town for a while, but he reconnects with several old friends and knows enough people in town that he still fits in well. He has...

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

February 24, 2025February 24, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

I don't know how many times I've read And Then There Were None or books inspired by it. I know I've watched at least one tv adaptation. This is one of those novels that is surprising and tense the first time through. The second (and third, etc.) time, the reader knows the twist, knows who is terrorizing the characters, knows who is guilty and who isn't, but can appreciate how well Christie puts the plot together. Ten people, strangers to each other, are invited to a remote island by someone they each think they are acquainted with. They are a mix of personalities, but according to a record played the first evening, they are all guilty of murder or causing someone's death. They are then killed, one by one, and a storm means they have no connection to the mainland. They have to trust each other if they want to survive, but know that none of them is as innocent as...