London Calling! by Matthew Costello and Neil Richards

London Calling! by Matthew Costello and Neil Richards

by Carol4 Comments
Sir Harry Mortimer and his American wife, Kat, are settling into married life in the small town of Mydworth. London Calling! is the third in the Mydworth series and can be read as a stand-alone, but since they’re each only a little over 100 pages, it might just make as much sense to go back and meet Harry and Kat at the beginning. They make a good couple. They’re both smart and resourceful. Kat is definitely a “modern woman” for the times, the late 1920s, and Harry seems quite happy that she can ride a motorcycle and throws a mean hook when she needs to. Harry is a nice, friendly, refined man who can also be tough when it’s called for. This time around they head to London to find the daughter of Glenys and Aubrey Spense. She's gone to try her luck at making it big as a dancer, but the couple hasn't heard from her. Actually, the wife is...
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Dune by Frank Herbert

Dune by Frank Herbert

by Carol4 Comments
I tried to read Dune a couple of years ago and got about 1/3 through before sitting it aside. It's long and the copy my daughter has has small print. But the new movie's coming out later this year and one of our friends picked up the re-issued board game, so I decided it was definitely time to finally read it. I had heard good things about the audiobook, so I decided to give it a try this time around. I don't know if the timing for me was just better or the audio was the way to go, but I thoroughly enjoyed it, right from the beginning. Dune is a classic. There is little I can say about it that hasn't already been said. The world-building is monumental, and Herbert weaves the geopolitics, religion, and philosophy into that setting seamlessly. In the distant future, humanity is ruled by an intergalactic feudal Empire. Duke Leto Atreides accepts control of a desert...
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Dancers in Mourning by Margery Allingham

Dancers in Mourning by Margery Allingham

by CarolNo Comments
My problem with Dancers in Mourning is that while the plot itself is well-done, Campion is not his usual self. He's over-emotionally involved and it's affecting his decisions and involvement with the case. To start off, Campion visits the theatre with ‘Uncle’ William Faraday, who has found his mostly fictional memoir turned into a hit musical comedy. The star is dancer Jimmy Sutane, who is unsettled by a series of practical jokes and needs Campion's help. Campion and Faraday head to Sutane’s house, where they meet a group of theater/musical people. Not long after their arrival, another guest is dead, maybe accident, maybe murder, hard to tell. That's just the first of the deaths, there are three or four more before the killer is found. Clearly, one of the people in the house is a murderer, and Campion has his suspicions. The problem is that Campion has fallen in love with Sutane's wife. I wish he hadn't. First off, he barely knew...
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The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne

The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne

by Carol4 Comments
It's a shame Milne only wrote one mystery. The Red House Mystery is clever and funny and charming. From the dedication: Our amateur sleuth is Antony Gillingham. He stops at The Red House to visit his friend, Bill Beverly, but as he gets there he finds a frantic man banging on the door of a locked room, trying to get in. Antony and the man run to the back of the house and break in the window, finding a dead man, shot. The man who was breaking into the room was Mr. Cayley, cousin and assistant to Mark Ablett, owner of The Red House. The dead man is Mark's brother, Robert, newly arrived from Australia. Mark himself is missing. Antony is an outsider at The Red House, but allowed free reign that the detectives don't have. The mystery is well-done, the clues make sense. I knew who the killer was, but not the hows and whys until the end. The characters are...
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A Scandal in Belgravia by Robert Barnard

A Scandal in Belgravia by Robert Barnard

by Carol2 Comments
I picked A Scandal in Belgravia up at a library book sale. I had never heard of Barnard before, but the title grabbed my eye because of the Sherlock episode. After i read the blurb on the back it sounded like one I'd enjoy and I think it was like 50¢. I have to say I'm really pleased I picked it up. Peter Proctor, a former politician, is writing his memoirs. Or at least trying to. But his mind keeps going back to the murder of his friend, Timothy Wycliffe, some 30 years ago. I liked the pace of this mystery. It's an old murder. The police think they knew who did it and the killer is safely out of the country. There's no rush; no one's in danger; there's nothing to be gained by solving the case aside for peace of mind - and maybe a book that will sell better than his memoirs. Peter can go around talking to people,...
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The Automaton’s Wife by Vered Ehsani

The Automaton’s Wife by Vered Ehsani

by Carol4 Comments
The Automaton's Wife is an amusing, quick read, although I do suggest reading the first in the series before this one. Bee continues her adventures in Africa with the help and also complications of her friends and family. This time around she meets a large bat, her husband's ghost has seemingly disappeared and her horse is posessed by a snake spirit. In the meantime, a local woman has been found dead in a mysterious manner. I like the Kenya 1899 setting and the author provides a brief fact or fiction section after the story. Bee and her family don't fit in, but they are doing their best. Bee tries to keep an open mind when dealing with people, but she is a part of her British culture. Bee also learns a few things about her past that puts her prejudices in a different light. It's a cute series. It's light and enjoyable. And Bee is fun to hang out with....
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