You’re Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

You’re Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

by CarolNo Comments
When Amaya is invited to her former best friend Kaavi’s extravagant wedding in Sri Lanka, she decides to attend. Her plan is to make sure the wedding does not happen - Kaavi is marrying Amaya's ex-boyfriend Stephen. The tale goes back and forth in time from the day of the wedding to three months earlier and several times in between, especially the week of the wedding. The points of view switch between Amaya in the beginning, an unreliable narrator at best, and Kaavi through the second part. There are also transcripts of interviews with various guests on the day of the wedding. None of the characters are actually likable. Yes, Amaya has been hurt, clearly, and she has some major issues, but listening to her inner dialogue can be too much. Kaavi is a spoiled brat in a lot of ways, but she runs a charity that she clearly believes in. Stephen seems to be charming, but we all know...
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Under Lock & Skeleton Key by Gigi Pandian

Under Lock & Skeleton Key by Gigi Pandian

by Carol5 Comments
Is it any wonder I enjoyed Under Lock & Skeleton Key? It's a locked room mystery, more or less, with delicious descriptions of food, multiple secret rooms and staircases, and even a family curse. Tempest comes from a magic family- even if none of them are currently performing. The family construction business does keep up the tradition though - it's all about creating hidden rooms, secret staircases, and the like. The misdirection theme runs throughout the book, almost too repetitively. The mystery itself is well done. The whodunnit didn't surprise me exactly and I was glad of a certain twist near the end. This is one of those books that's more about the how, which was actually pretty simple in the end, but I didn't put the pieces together. I like Tempest and her family. They are interesting and charming and feel real in their concerns. Her friends make a great team too and I hope we see more of...
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Death and the Conjuror by Tom Mead

Death and the Conjuror by Tom Mead

by Carol6 Comments
It's no surprise Death and the Conjuror caught my eye. It's set in London in 1936, the Golden Age as far as mysteries are concerned. It features a locked room mystery, something I've been reading a lot of lately, and our sleuth is a magician, which is a fun touch - after all, who would be a better person to solve the impossible? A psychologist seeing three rather unique patients is found dead in his locked study. Inspector George Flint is in charge of the case, but he knows he needs help and calls his friend, magician Joseph Spector. There are a fair number of suspects each with his or her own secrets. Actually, there are all around a lot of characters involved - the dead man's family and clients, the folks from the show Spector is helping put together, the cops obviously - and two mysteries, the murder and a stolen painting, taken from a locked chest in a locked...
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Murder at the Mansions by Sara Rosett

Murder at the Mansions by Sara Rosett

by Carol5 Comments
It appears that there has been a murder in Olive's building and it seems highly likely that someone on her floor is dead. The trouble is that there is no body and no one seems to be missing. Olive's friend, Minerva, is not one to imagine things though. She's practical and intelligent and she saw a foot sticking out of the end of a wrapped rug, so Olive takes the case and together they are determined to get to the truth. Murder at the Mansions is a fun little mystery. Olive is smart and clever as always. I liked that it was set in her building which has a nice variety of people and their pets living in it. We get to meet some new characters, but Jasper is still around and I like their relationship. He helps her out, but she is definitely the one solving the case and the romance doesn't take over the book. I really like this series....
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Lost and Found by Helena Marchmont

Lost and Found by Helena Marchmont

by CarolNo Comments
Like all the Bunburry books, Lost and Found is light and cozy. This time around, Alfie meets his half-sister and his niece. Both are warm, charming women, but the niece has a problem Alfie is determined to help her solve. I should have figured out the answer to the main mystery, it's a short novella and there are only so many characters. I can't say I loved the mystery itself, but I read these more to spend time with the characters than for the plot. Alfie and his friends (and now family) are a delightful, colorful bunch....
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The Holdout by Graham Moore

The Holdout by Graham Moore

by CarolNo Comments
The Holdout is my first "summer book" this year - a paperback that I can read while floating in the pool or sitting in my hammock. Entertaining and fun, but not one I'd be afraid to get a little water on. Thankfully, cause half of it got dunked on accident. Ten years ago, Maya was the lone holdout on a jury and convinced her fellow jurors to acquit a black teacher accused of murdering his white teenage student. According to the press and most people, they got it wrong. One of the other jurors, Rick, thinks they let a guilty man go free and blames Maya. Ten years later, the jury is reassembled for a documentary. Rick claims to have new evidence but is killed before he can share it. Maya is the prime suspect and feels the only option for her is to prove who the killer really is. The story alternates between the still unsolved 10-year-old case to the...
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