The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

***I'm playing catch-up in a major way these days, so these reviews will be shorter than normal. Don't hold it against me. I am still only reviewing books I enjoyed - so the length of the review does not reflect my enjoyment level, just my memory and abhorrence for spoilers.)***

So I already knew I was going to like this, based purely on it being by the same man who brought us Coraline. Here's the premise: the book opens with the murder of the family of Nobody Owens, who manages to escape his crib and house and toddle up the street to the cemetery. Once inside the gates, the occupants of the cemetery (Ghosts and a corporeal guardian) decide to adopt and raise him. This is literally the coming-of-age story of a boy raised by ghosts. It's fascinating. There is sadness and suspense and a thrilling climax, but the overwhelming story is of this boys maturation. It's dark and witty and wise with the perfect amount of creepiness thrown in. A good October Book, I think.

From the NYT book review:

"The Graveyard Book, by turns exciting and witty, sinister and tender, shows Gaiman at the top of his form. In this novel of wonder, Neil Gaiman follows in the footsteps of long-ago storytellers, weaving a tale of unforgettable enchantment."

I agree with that last part. It's been months since I read it and I still find myself musing over bits of it. Well worth the read, I feel.

Enjoy!

The Poisoner's Handbook by Deborah Blum

So you'll notice that I tagged this with "instructional" - it's not a how-to manual, per-se, but for those of us with a "how to kill someone and what to do with the body" shelf in their library, this is invaluable.

It's just about as grisly as you'd expect it to be, especially considering every word of it is true. When you stack that up against something like American Psycho (where not even Brett Eason Ellis is sure he's actually torturing those women*,) this proves that truth is often much stranger, much more shudder-inducing than fiction.

This is broken up by year/poison - it starts in 1915 and ends in 1935 - spanning prohibition, alcohols feature heavily in the text. As do things like Arsenic (the "inheritence drug") and Radium (have some Radithor for youthful vitality!) and Carbon Monoxide (still a threat.)  Blum is unapologetically on the side of Charles Norris and Alexander Gettler - the team who created modern forensics in America. They were inexhaustible and determined and enthusiastic about their cause. For the entire span of Prohibition, for example, these two - a doctor and a toxicologist - were the most vocal opponents of the Noble Experiment  due to the fact that it killed more people than it saved. This crusade is broken up by cases that were investigated by the duo: from industrial poisonings to crimes of passion.

Blum made even the chemical compounds enrapturing and I found myself reading "just one more page" despite the fact that I have a list of things to-do that's as long as my arm. I also found myself thinking that Bones and/or House and/or the new Sherlock on BBC need to do a story arc with a serial poisoner - one who's always poisoning, but changing the poison. It makes me dizzy just to think of it.

A note for those who find themselves squeamish about such things: Blum does not pull punches. If you ever wanted graphic (while remaining extremely clinical) details about what things like Arsenic and Carbon Monoxide do to you, this is your book. Just remember that some things can't be unread. You should get over your squeamishness, though. This book is THAT GOOD.

Book trailer:





* I heard that on a Fresh Air interview a million years ago, and I cannot for the life of me find it. Anyone have a source? Or did I hallucinate that?

Dangerous to Know by Tasha Alexander

This is the fourth book in this series, but only the second that I have read. The previous one, Tears of Pearl, I read and enjoyed so much that when I saw this on the shelf at the library I snatched it up and dragged my son (and all our stuff) back to the checkout so I could take it home and read it. It took me a matter of hours to devour it (spread in 20-30 minute increments over a few days - I have a toddler) and I'm considering doing something I almost never do: reading the series out of order. (The other series that I've discovered in the middle and then gone back to the start being The Home Repair is Homicide series - mostly if I discover it's a series I either just pick it up in the middle or hold off on the latest installment until I've caught up.) 

One of the blurbs on the back states that Alexander is perfect for fans of Laurie R. King and I agree - she's following the same vein: real people interspersed with her creations, a capable female protagonist who was very "modern" for the times she's living in...but by my math King is writing a full 40-50 years after Lady Emily's adventures. Still, the heroines are intelligent and scrappy (sorry, they are) and constantly proving people wrong by being stronger than their gender suggests. 

This installment takes place in France, opens with a dead body, and follows a twisty tale of madness, misconception  and a WASPy (were there WASPS in Victorian France?) ability to not acknowledge unpleasantness. I had an inkling of where the story was headed and got there just ahead of our heroine, but I won't hold that against Alexander. I'm well read in these Novels of Suspense. 

There are two things I particularly like about the series:

1) her use of real people lend credence to the possibility of these stories actually happening. Monet makes an appearance in this one, for example. She also has a firm grasp on the dress and social niceties that existed at the time. Every now and again, you can almost hear the crinolines rustling through the paragraphs.

2) her subtlety in the romantic scene department. I enjoy a good romp, but after watching people make out at the lunch table in high school (I wish I were kidding) and then a glut of Sex and the City, I have to admit that witnessing serious snogging - even if it's just being described to me - is a huge turnoff. There is obvious romance and intimacy and a healthy relationship happening between Lady Emily and her Husband, but it is alluded to and even then it is mostly for the purposes of illustrating other more pressing plot points. It's well-done, at any rate.

So if historical romantic suspenseful murder mysteries are your thing - pick these up. But maybe start at the beginning so you don't find yourself in my quandary. 

Oh, but maybe I won't go back just yet - there's a new one out at the end of Oct...or maybe I should read the first two *very* quickly so I can have all the backstory I need...decisions, decisions...

The Ghost Writer by Robert Harris

I will not lie - one of the best parts of reading this was having it narrated by Ewan McGregor in my head.

To further the truth-telling: had this not been written by Robert Harris, I would have skipped the book and gone straight to the movie, which I would only have seen (via Netflix) based on the cast. Does anyone else have a girl crush on Olivia Williams?

Here's why I would have skipped it: it's a work of political fiction. It's full of intrigue and, due to a classic Fish-Out-Of-Water device, a lot of explanation of The Way Things Work. Which is all fine and dandy if you - like the Ghost - have lived in a politics-free-bubble your entire life. I haven't. My father was in the Navy and I have seen The West Wing enough times that I can quote lines. So at times I found it tiresome.

Not tiresome at all: the basic plot. The Ghost (who is never named) steps in to take over for a previous Ghost Writer who has died in a mysterious and ominous fashion. The book is written almost as a confessional to the reader, peppered with "had I known at the time" or "little did I know..." which is nice for the purpose of foreshadowing and does help build the momentum for apex of the plot and it's ultimate resolution.


It was good. It was not very good. I am not going to tell everyone I know to read it. But it was solidly good and I didn't throw it down in exasperation even once. (If only you knew how often I do that...it explains the length of time between posts.) If you like political thrillers, pick this up. If you do not, move along to something more your cup of tea.


I can't let this go - it's not quite a spoiler, but it's more than I generally like to share: in the final chapter, the Ghost breaks the 4th wall. It's abrupt and direct and off-putting. I'm much more a fan of letting it go to the reader's imaginations...but this time Harris felt the need to tell me how to feel about it.

Oh well, I will continue to read him because overall he is a very good writer.

and here is the trailer, which I will be watching just as soon as netflix sends it to me:

Crawl Space by Sarah Graves

Graves just keeps getting better. It's like she hit an even dozen in the series and thought "eff it. Just to keep my faithful readers on their toes...NO ONE is sacred. No one." And then she chuckled an evil chuckle and uncapped her pen.

We're still in 3rd-person-omniscient-land in this installment and I have to admit that it's growing on me. I like that Graves has figured out how to keep the suspense building while still keeping us in all of the loops. In fact, the only person whose head we DON'T enter is the bona fide sociopath's...and we're all better off for that. But aside from that dude, Jake, and our usual characters, you can't be sure who's "good" and who's "bad" because they're all out there in the gray-area somewhere. Which is nice and truer to life.

This book focused more on the suspense and action than on the home repair, so if you've got a hankering for more tips you may be disappointed. If so, watch Bob Vila. And then pick up the next installment which is out later this month.

A Face in the Window

This - the second to latest installment of the Home Repair is Homicide series - takes a different tack: 3rd person all the way through. And since Graves isn't one to shy from "killing" our favorite characters, the level of suspense is ratcheted up. This one falls squarely into Page Turner territory.

The great thing about a series is that you can invest in the characters - and Graves plays on that by sending Ellie and George on vacation and then having their daughter (in the care of Jake) abducted.

That's as far as I'm going with the plot because holy cow. I'm not sure how to talk about it without giving away too much. It's downright gripping.

If you're a fan of the series, you won't be disappointed.

And if you're a fan of the series you'll be happy to know that there is another...but will there be another? After A Face at the Window....it's really anybody's guess.

The Book of Old Houses by Sarah Graves

If you've read the previous few issues of the Home Repair is Homicide series, then you're familiar with the story of the Book which was found in the foundation of Jake's house. That is the titular book of this installment. The murder in question happens before this book opens, and we are graced with a second viewpoint periodically through the narrative - that of one of the men who was investigating the Book.

The one that may or may not be a hoax. The one that may or may not be written in blood. The one that may or may not be bound in human skin. The one with Jacobia's name in it.

Because of that, I've tagged this with "speculative" because, while some may be satisfied with the answers, some may not. Which you know I love.

There's plenty of humor heaped in - a fight with a bathtub, for instance. And there are lover's quarrels, outsiders poking their noses around, a very uppity old biddy whom Jake is desperately trying to impress.

And of course the usual cast of characters, all of whom bring their own brands of zaniness.

A thoroughly enjoyable installation, as they all are, which is why I keep reading. I think there are only three left and then I have to wait for them to be written and published. I love/hate that.

Even by Andrew Grant

Dude. DUUUUUUDE. I follow Janet Reid's blog and when she suggested this one I threw it on my library queue thinking it would be a nice Bourne/Bond/Ryan* type romp. It was all that I wanted it to be...and more.

It opens with a dead body, so you know I was totally hooked at that point. All in. Also, the main character is British (in my head he sounds like Pierce Brosnan) and Grant took his time subtly developing the character and the plot. It's not only smartly written, but he managed to make me feel smart just reading it. And the fight scenes were amazing. Jason Bourne makes me want to start running; David Trevellyan makes me want to take up mixed martial arts.

It's your basic whodunnit/mistaken identity/special ops-meets-FBI-meets-NYPD in a turf war/action thriller with a dash of Deranged Lunatic** and Evil Plot To Take Over The World thrown in for good measure. The plot bobs and weaves and twists (but not too much and not in any way that I put together until the character did) and dumps you out the way a good roller coaster does: vaguely disoriented and needing a minute to digest what just happened and then gunning for more.

This is Grant's debut novel. He's clearly been honing his craft for a while because: DUDE. That's how good it is. I keep saying Dude.

It's not a quick read but it's WORTH IT. Read it with a beer, but not too many beers or you'll get confused. If it weren't so darn heavy I'd say take it on the plane, but I'm certain that Men everywhere won't be shy about being seen reading it.

So good. It's so good. Note that I tagged it "Wish I were smart enough to have written this." High Praise.

Oh, but I'm going to throw a little spoilery warning down there because I feel it may be necessary. Look for these: **

Read it before it becomes a movie. Starring a 30-something hot British guy.



* Jason Bourne, James Bond, Jack Ryan. Although, if you don't know who those guys are - this might not be your genre.







**spoilers:

The action scenes are well-choreographed and fun to read. But there's a scene with a deranged lunatic involving a scalpel and some poor guy's man-parts. No one will think less of you if you skim/skip those pages. I didn't, but I don't have man-parts so I wasn't feeling it like some of you might.

Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich

Ok, it's no secret I love this series and by this point, if you're on the bus then you KNOW and if you're still waiting for the bus I really don't want to spoil all of the greatness that develops over the course of the 1st fifteen books by over-sharing for the latest installment.

So.

Let's just say that this one contains Morelli being off-again but maybe not for long, Lula wearing inappropriately appealing clothes, Ranger being...yummy, Connie being all kinds of kick-ass, Vinnie finding amusing new lows and Grandma Mazur made me laugh so hard I fell off the couch.

And now, Gentle Readers, I have a question...if *you* were casting for the silver screen adaptation of the series, who would you pick?

I'm on board with everyone but Katherine Heigl.... Anne Hathaway is the right age/looks/body type ...Jeanine Garafalo or Sandra Bullock, had it been filmed when Evanovich sold the rights (1993) but you know who would be great (even though she'd have to dye her hair?) Alyson Hannigan.

Is it just me, or does she look like someone who keeps a pet hamster and her gun in the cookie jar?

Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs by Blaize Clement

 

Dixie Hemingway is back!

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I do enjoy this cozy little series...if that isn't so demeaning "little" - but in my defense there are only a handful of titles so far so the word is somewhat accurate. In addition to the quirky animals, the will-they-won't-they love interest (I do so hope they WILL), the endearing leave-it-to-modern-Beaver brother and brother-in-love (don't you love that phrase?), Clement has introduced a sullen teenager, potential gang members from the left coast, a very talkative parrot, and, of course, life on a Florida Key that makes you want to pack up and move.

I really want to write a review worthy of the book, but I'm having a hard time putting sentences together.

So: read this if you like animals, ex-cops with broken hearts who are open to maybe loving someone again, a bit of suspense and intrigue...and reading in the bath (which is where I read most of it.)

But start with the first (Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter) so you're up to speed - even though Clement does the "this is my name, this is my story" update with the best of them.

Enjoy!

God of the Hive by Laurie R. King

Read. This. Book.

Ok. Really, what you need to do is start with the first in the series (Beekeeper's Apprentice) and read in order of publication. At the very least you need to read The Language of Bees because this one starts literally minutes where the prior leaves off.

And it is so so so so good.



I'm not sure how to talk about this book without giving away major series spoilers. MAJOR. So let me say this for those of you who aren't caught up: go read the prior books and then read this one. Trust me.
Laurie King makes Robert Downey's Holmes look like a buffoon. Her adaptation is respectful, well researched, and intelligent. 

"The great marvel of King's series is that she's managed to preserve the integrity of Holmes's character and yet somehow conjure up a woman astute, edgy, and compelling enough to be a partner of his mind as well as his heart." - Washington Post Book World.

There. And at the risk of being redundant: read this.

SPOILERS!





We left with the family split apart - arrest warrants, Mycroft has been questioned and then abducted, Brothers may or may not be dead (depending on who you're asking,) Holmes has fled with Damian in search of medical attention, and Russell is the unlikely care-taker of Holmes's (SURPRISE!) granddaughter. They're in the far reaches of Scotland, headed in different directions and this is a time when phones are hard to find and cell phones are unheard of. They may or may not have murderous madmen on their tails and both are hampered. Over the course of the next few days, plots are created, revealed, and cast aside. There's a funeral, a man who seems to have walked out of a fairy tale, an unlikely surgeon, an equally unlikely confidant, and a mastermind...there's also gunfights, snipers, disguises, and secret messages.

The God of the Hive is King herself.

(Ok, it's not but you couldn't have imagined that I would spoil it THAT MUCH for you, right?)

Nail Biter by Sarah Graves

* I read Tool and Die...but I’ve had really bad sleep since then. I know I loved it...but I don’t remember it well enough to review it. On the plus side, this means I can re-read it!


It’s fall in Eastport when Nail Biter opens up and we discover that Jake and Ellie have purchased - and are currently renting out - a fixer-upper in one of the neighboring towns.  It’s not an entirely out-of-character move for our daring duo, as Jacobia likes biting off more than she can chew and Ellie is infinitely capable. But Ellie has a baby, a doozie of a fall storm is on its way, and Jake has...well, her family, her house, and a list of repairs as long as her arm.

So it only makes sense that the story opens with a murder, and then Graves throws a missing person into the mix, as well as her trusty conglomeration of hooligans, ne’er-do-wells, helpful citizens, suspicious strangers, suspicious old acquaintances, weather, leaky plumbing, boats, and pets.

At this stage of the game, it feels like the murders and missing persons are almost the b-plot. I would go so far as to say that they’re really just an excuse for us to catch up on the lives of our favorite fiction Eastportians. I’m also a fixer-upper junkie, so the state of her projects and - ultimately-  her house - are of great interest to me. I sit in my rental and read vicariously about things like new porches and double hung windows and a justification for power tools.

This book - which is set in October - has it’s share of chilling moments and things that make you go hm….it also serves as a gentle reminder that we don’t always know what something means, not everything can be explained, and not everything makes sense.

And that’s all I’m saying because otherwise I’ll spill a whole boatload of spoilers and no one likes that. Luckily, there are 3 more of these before I get to the one that’s coming out in May. Also Luckily - my TBR list never shrinks.

Confession: 13 Books I Should Have Written Full Reviews For...but Didn't

I have been remiss. I've been reading and not reviewing. Not because what I've been reading sucks (please see sidebar) but because I am so scatterbrained I've let myself fall behind.

So, to wrap up - the 13 books that have been on a sticky on my desk for me to review for MONTHS. Seriously. Since the spring.

I've decided mini-reviews are the way to go. Just to give you a taste. All of these are recommended. Trust me.

In alphabetical order:

 Eoin Colfer (who's first name is pronounce "Owen") has taken it upon himself to fill the Very Large Shoes of Douglas Adams and write another installment to the Hitchhiker's Saga. We return to meet all of our good friends as Earth is -yet again - being exploded. Everyone has gone on to lead their own lives and are very surprised to find themselves back together again. Antic ensue. Colfer has captured Adams' voice nicely and the book didn't disappoint me. Of course, I also think that Mos Def and Zooey Deschanel make the best Ford Prefect and Trillian to date, so that tells you my opinion of the state of things. Enjoy!

Ah...Jenny McCarthy. You either love to hate her or hate to love her...or count her among your guilty pleasures. This little memoir (essays, mostly) about her journey through pregnancy is full of pre-vaccine angst and is quite amusing. I haven't felt as cute as she looks, though, and I think I hold that against her. If you find yourself in the family way, this is a fun read (you can do it in an afternoon). If not, then I wouldn't bother. It just won't resonate unless you, too, experience what she's talking about.

The Gears (yes, they're married) are experts in their subject: paleo-indians living right around the end of the last ice age in what is now Canada. It's Young Adult, but don't let that sway you. It's full of archeological tidbits woven into a compelling plot about a civilization on the brink of destruction. There's even some nice tribal warring to spice things up. I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment.

This one should be titled: "A History of Tectonics and the Settling of the West...and a Few Chapters About The Great California Earthquake of April 1906." Dense, rife with information that you missed in High School Earth Science/Geology, this took me a loooooong time to read. But I did read it - cover to cover. And I now feel like I know a little bit more about the ground upon which I live. Even better that currently that ground houses the San Andreas Fault and I have a better understanding of earthquakes. I also have added a few places to my "must travel" list - places where the earth is so new it hasn't even hardened yet. If you're at all nerdy, this is a book you should at least take a stab at.  Good stuff.

Like all of Green's recent novels, this one is about people who are putting their lives back together the best way they know how. There are also nice sub-plots: romance, intrigue, general life-happenings... She gives back story on every  recurring character and that helps make them all the more real. It's a good beach/pool/bedrest book. More interesting than your basic fluff, but not so taxing that you miss what's going on if your poolside beverage is a little boozy.

Read. This. Series. Start with One For The Money and keep going. You've got LOTS to catch up on. With the exception of number 7 (which was great, but certainly not the best) there are guaranteed laugh out loud moments. Murder, mayhem, an ex-ho, an ex-special ops guy who is now a bounty hunter, a cop who makes everyone drool (in a good way) and generally pathetic criminals...what's not to like? Oh, and did I mention the crazy grandmother whose favorite passtime is going to funerals? It's a recipe for delightful. Trust me.

This one addresses my love of what realtors refer to as "The Handyman Special." The title refers to a family house that has been allowed to fall into disrepair...it also refers to the woman who's going to fix it. She's just been the unwitting pawn in a gigantic financial scandal and she flees home with her tail between her legs. She's got romance trouble, family trouble, financial trouble, and a giant decripit house- complete with a cantankerous old sqautter - buried deep in the South where people want to know who your "people" (relatives) are before they want to know anything else about you. I read this one by the pool in Vegas (ok, in the bath, but by the pool sounds much better) and then I was sad that I read it too quickly. Andrews delivers exactly what you're looking for: a feel good book with just the right amount of suspense, intrigue, and home-repair/antiquing tips.

Ah...the Mommy Memoir. I picked this one up based on a recommendation from my Aunt and the title. Because it's true. As with Belly Laughs, though, if you're not a mom/parent I'm not sure it would resonate with you. If you are, however, it's a fun little afternoon on the couch book. Interesting tidbit: Kogan's son plays young(est) Spock in the new Star Trek. He's very good for the five and a half minutes he's onscreen. Well, done! Also - I love that she whips around town with her kids on her Vespa. She's lived all over the world and she's not afraid of a little traffic. It's inspiring.

When I was seven or so, I was home sick from school one day and my mom brought me this book. Twenty (or so) years later, I still pull it out to read whenever I'm not feeling well. Morning sickness that lasts for months on end counts. It's a fairy tale - but this princess is not one dreamed up by Disney. She's quite plain looking and she has a distinct awkward phase, but she's full of moxie and isn't afraid to stand up to her parents when they decide that a dragon being allowed to lay waste to the countryside is the only way to marry her off. Finally, a princess I could relate to! Obviously this book is awesome because I have it memorized and still read it from time to time. You will, too. Especially if there's a seven year old girl who secretly wants to be a rebellious princess living inside you.

Why this book has been banned I will NEVER understand. It's got math, grammar, moral lessons...AND a talking dog with a clock in his side. I will be reading this one to my kids when the time comes. Assuming they don't mistake it for homework and grow bored with it on principle, that is.

Yes, they keep writing more of these. It's still Christmas, they're still in St bath's, and someone is still trying to off our Heroine. I'll admit that I was shocked at who the culprit was, but I'm not giving it away. The books are significantly better than the lame web-series they put together. Save your five-minutes-at-a-time streaming attention span and READ these instead. You'll be much, much happier. These are for the Seventeen year old girl who secretly wants to be a rebellious princess living inside you.

The last in the Ivy League/Secret Society Girl series. And still very good. Start with Secret Society Girl and work your way through.  They're based at a very poorly disguised Yale (Eli University) and follow the senior year of the first group of girls admitted to the exclusive Rose and Grave Secret Society. Antics, near-death experiences, love-affairs...the stuff good summer reading is made of.

This is not the first in the series. I read it anyway - having read not one word of Alexander's work before. I was not disappointed. A murder mystery set in the late 1800s, told from the perspective of a female amateur detective (in this book she is on her honeymoon, having recently married a professional detective.) They are, of course, wealthy and connected. They are, of course, eventually wanted dead - but that doesn't happen until after they try to solve a murder that has taken place in the Sultan's palace. Yup. There's a Sultan involved. I may have to start at the beginning with these and see where they lead me.

So there you have it. Thirteen VERY late reviews.

Happy Reading!

Mallets Aforethought by Sarah Graves

I warned you that I was picking up the next one in the series to see if I was right about the foreshadowing.

And without spoiling too much: I was and I wasn’t. That particular plot involved Jemmy, Jacobia’s old partner-in-”crime” who has been in hiding from the mob since book one. It has always been a B-plot and remains so in this book, which I found disappointing. I enjoy Jemmy when he makes the rare appearance and would love to have seen this character fleshed out even more - not to mention the insight we get into Jake’s previous life as a slightly shady investment tycoon. Luckily, there are several more books just waiting to be read and maybe he’ll pop back up now and again.

Graves doesn’t waste any time mucking about with catching the reader up on what happened between the last book and this one - by page two you know that Ellie is pregnant (I know - that’s a spoiler, but it’s page two. I promise not to spoil anything else.) The historical society is restoring a house that was once in the possession of Ellie’s family, but hasn’t been for at least a generation and is now falling apart. Ellie and Jake, perpetually curious, have found a hidden room and not one, but two dead bodies. One of them is very fresh and is the much-reviled president of the Historical Society, and the other appears to have been killed in the twenties right before the room was sealed off.

The most unfortunate part of all of this is that said Historical Society President is discovered dead mere days after Ellie’s husband, George, was seen by more than half the town in a local bar, drunkenly ranting about how much he’d like to see the other man dead. Apparently this puts George at the top of a long list of possible suspects, but his refusal to give an alibi coupled with the fact that Bob Arnold (our beloved local law enforcement) is out of town lands George in the clink.

As I read through the book (one which I could not put down) I was struck time and time again by how much improved Graves’s writing has become. She hasn’t lost her voice, by any means. But her prose is tighter, her plots layered and interesting enough that - while you may have an inkling - you never quite know if what you suspect will turn out to be the way it happened. Also, because she knows her characters as well as most people know their close friends and family, their actions become more fluid and when they drop in and out of the story it’s with an ease that only comes from years of familiarity (both in real life and on the page.)

Have I mentioned how glad I am that I am so far behind? If you’re just picking these up (start with Dead Cat Bounce, please and go from there) I am jealous that you are getting to read them for the first time.

Unhinged by Sarah Graves

*Note - I read Wreck the Halls in the spring during my bed-rest...it was really good but I dropped the ball and didn’t review it and now I’ve read the next one and so that ship has sailed. But let me say this - it was really good. I read it in a single afternoon, which is easy to do when getting out of bed is a Bad Idea and you just can’t sleep anymore.

Unhinged opens as so many mysteries do: with a missing person and a home-repair nightmare. Ok, not all mysteries have home repair nightmares, but Sarah Graves’ do and that’s part of their charm. The other part is her characters: Jacobia, who is afraid of heights and sometimes clumsy but who insists on going up the ladder herself. Ellie who dresses like an extra from Dumbo’s circus but is unfailingly loyal and intuitive and bull-headed when necessary. In addition to the rest of the crew we’re coming to like (I’ll admit it...I’m even starting to like Victor when I’m not rolling my eyes at him) we meet a few new characters in this installment: all of whom are potentially murder suspects.

It’s nice and juicy. There’s a little bit of gossip, a little bit of romance, some explosions, some suspense...all the good stuff is there. Even home repair tips, although the recurring theme in Unhinged is to hire a professional because some things go beyond what mere mortals can accomplish without dragging an entire house down with you.

The book reads (again) like a love-letter to Eastport, Maine. I’m not complaining...but every time I read about the hijinks gotten into by Jake, Ellie, et al, Maine moves a little higher on my must-visit list.

I do like that while Jake and Ellie are well-known around town for snooping into shady events and often getting themselves completely embroiled in them, that it’s not always someone they know who is the victim. Because in some series you just think “Man, you sure are a magnet for murder. I’m glad I don’t know you in real life!”

By the end of Unhinged I found myself being rather moved - emotionally - by the events that were unfolding. There was just enough suspense and grit without a complete unravelling that you get caught up in the events...and by this stage of the game it’s entirely possible to forget that these characters we are beginning to know so well are imaginary so their fates feel just that much more important. I was satisfied by the ending, and am not going to hesitate skip a few books in the TBR stack to move straight on to the next one...mostly because I suspect some foreshadowing in the last chapter and I want to know if I’m right.

Have you started reading these yet? Catch up!

The Color of Law by Mark Giminez

    It is no secret from the moment you crack the cover on this book that it was inspired by To Kill a Mockingbird. As far as inspiration for a debut novel goes, one could do significantly worse than the illustrious Harper Lee.  Giminez, himself a lawyer, has set this modern-day Lawyer’s tale in Dallas...Murder Mystery + Dallas = Win in my book. Add to that equation fully rounded characters (not all of them likable), a thought-out plot with a nice set of curves, and a working knowledge of the law and you get what appears to be the recipe for a Very Good Read.

    And it is a Very Good Read. A. Scott Fenney (two guesses what the “A” stands for...and his daughter is called Boo…) is a hot shot young attorney working for a snazzy law firm in a downtown Dallas skyscraper. He over bills his clients, eats and works out in exclusive clubs, lives in Highland Park (think Beverly Hills but with really old money and even more of a superiority complex), and regularly trades on the fact that he was - at one point - a football star for Southern Methodist University. He pulled himself up by his bootstraps and never looked back.

    And then...the son of the next Presidential Hopeful candidate is murdered one night. He’s home from Washington for the weekend (he likes to do his whoring in Highland Park where the family’s deep pockets have some sway) and the circumstances surrounding his death could prove fatal to a presidential campaign. He was with a black hooker...and it turns out he has a history of abuse.

    In a case of what can only be Very Bad Timing (or Very Good Timing depending on how you look at it) Fenney is giving a speech on the virtues of being Atticus Finch to a group of lawyers and local judges - one of whom decides that he has finally found a decent lawyer and assigns Fenney to the Defense of the poor (heroin-addicted) black woman who is charged with the murder of the Senator’s Son.

    Yes, Giminez wades through predictable racial (and neighborhood) stereotypes to try and prove his point - that the color of law isn’t black or white anymore: it’s green. He often falls flat, but the growth of the character alone is worth the read. And did I mention the curves? This plot has curves. Because what do you do when you’re abandoned by the very people who forced you into the situation to begin with? You re-examine. And you regroup...and if you’re A. Scott Fenney, you stick to your guns and make your six-year-old daughter (who is a much more interesting character than your wife, by the way) proud, regardless of the outcome of a very stacked trial.

Repair to Her Grave, by Sarah Graves

If you remove the relative abundance of death from this installment of the Home Repair is Homicide series...what you are left with is very nearly a Cozy Mystery. Nearly. It all starts out simply enough: it’s summer in Eastport, which means it’s time for some projects around the house. Add in a wall that won’t stay plastered, a son spending his last summer before college getting SCUBA certified and diving for treasure, an ex-husband who is still painfully aware that the only reason he’s not still incarcerated is because of his ex-wife, a best friend/next door neighbor who will happily help with anything you need, an upcoming meeting of the Eastport Ladies Society (in Jake’s home, no less), and an unexpected houseguest...and you’ve got the start for a very interesting few months.

But you can’t forget the ghost. The one that has vaguely haunted the house since Jacobia moved in. The one whose every action can be explained by a draft or something equally innocuous. The ghost who is supposed to be the original owner of the house - a famous violinist who disappeared over a hundred years ago, leaving behind a handful of compositions and a minor mystery: a stradivarius... The ghost who is the reason for this new houseguest (who shows up humming one of the tunes that Sam unearthed in that last book.)

So of course people are falling off cliffs. Falling? Or being pushed? And because of the water, their bodies aren’t being found. There is lots of local turmoil as tourist season kicks into high gear (Lobster Festival, anyone?) amidst these unfortunate accidents. People are coming and going and it’s hard to keep track of just who might be sinister and who is merely odd...until, of course, it isn’t anymore.

Graves has a gift, people. I keep eeking these out so I don’t run out of new installments. They are multi-layered and filled with real-life drama - in addition, of course, to the amateur sleuthing that’s always going on. Graves acknowledges situations that other (lesser) writers take for granted: of course the small town would talk about how Jake and Ellie are almost better at solving murders than the police are. Of course life doesn’t stop just because some stranger wandered into town and fell (or was thrown) off a cliff. Those old ladies are still going to show up at your house exactly at the time on the invitation and they’ll want their tea hot and their sandwiches crustless, thank you very much.

This is the sort of thing, after all, that keeps us coming back for more.

The Language of Bees by Laurie R. King

Book Nine of the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series is every bit as good as book one. Better, even. King has matured and honed her craft to an even sharper edge (pick up The Beekeeper’s Apprentice and you won’t think it a possible feat, her writing already being top-notch.) As we open this latest installation we feel like we’re coming back to meet old friends as the return from a trip - they are literally returning from San Francisco via Japan - and we know their backstory and what to expect. And we like it.

Don’t worry, though. If this is your first foray into this series of unauthorized Holmes sequels, King gives you enough detail so that you’re not foundering. The unfamiliar reader would be able to read this one as a stand-alone novel, save for the need to read the next one.

On the cover, plain as day, this book brands itself as “a novel of suspense” and it doesn’t disappoint. From the inexplicable failure of one of Holmes’ beehives to the shadowy figure who appears on their porch asking for their help.The reader is grateful for the map in the opening of the book, because the adventure starts on the Southern Coast of England - in Sussex, where Russell and Holmes live - and takes us up to the northern tip of Scotland (in a hurricane, no less) with many, many stops in between.

We meet Holmes’ brother, Mycroft, again - perhaps his largest appearance in a single novel - and are also introduced more thoroughly to Sherlock’s sentimental side. Yes, it is told in the first person through the eyes of Mary Russell, but she would be no match for Sherlock Holmes if she were not brilliantly observant...and it helps that she becomes very emotionally involved in this particular case as well.

Because she is Laurie R. King, I have to say that I pick up her books merely based on her byline. I have never been disappointed. King falls into that category that only a handful of writers manage: “Books I Wish I’d Written”...or, on my more cynical writers-block filled days: “Stop Now Because You Will Never Be This Good.” Luckily, those days are few and far between and instead she is inspiration. Even if you’re not a writer, I have a feeling that you’ll find inspiration.

Ok - I don’t generally like spoilers, but I want to call attention to a particularly timely scene...so if you don’t want even the hint of a spoiler, stop reading now and go get this book. Otherwise:

There is a scene where Mary has apprehended a suspect...at the very least he is a man who has information that she very badly needs. So she trusses him up and threatens to leave him for dead. The setting is one in which not even the reader is positive she won’t. Yes, we all know that she would call to let someone know his whereabouts, but we can’t be sure she’ll do it in a very timely manner. Under the tenets set out by the Geneva Convention - what she does to extract information could be termed “torture.” Given the situation, I was completely on board. I rooted for her. Granted, what she did wasn’t appalling by any means, but her suspect was terrified and genuinely afraid for his life. Emotional/Mental torture, then. Granted, it is a work of fiction. And we all give fiction a lot of leeway because it’s made-up. But her situation is one that even the most mundane woman could find herself in. And if that woman were me...let’s just say I was taking notes. So go and read, and then come back and tell me what you thought. I have feeling it won’t be a debate, though...which makes me wonder about what anyone would do when pushed far enough.

That being said: READ THIS BOOK.

Wicked Fix by Sarah Graves

Book Three in what used to be called the Mainely Murder series and is not the Home Repair is Homicide (much better, in my opinion) opens with...not a murder. A bar fight. It happens off-screen, as it were, and requires the attention of Jacobia’s Love-To-Hate-Him ex-husband Victor.

The next morning there is the discovery of not one, but two murders in the quiet town of Eastport, Maine, and inconveniently right before their annual Salmon Festival. Also inconvenient is that Victor appears to be the murderer. So condemning is the evidence that the state police lock him up and proceed to build their case, which leaves Jacobia and her trusty crew to prove Victor’s innocence and get him out of jail. Even more inconvenient is that Jacobia has put up almost her entire fortune as seed money into a trauma-center venture that Victor is planning to build in Eastport.

As much as we love to hate Victor, we all realize that his presence in Eastport is good for Sam. Also we don’t want Jacobia to suddenly become very, very poor. So in this particular instance we’re rooting for her and Ellie a little more than usual.

The proximity of the Salmon Festival means that the town is packed with tourists - both of the Never- Been- To- Eastport- Before and the Grew- Up- And- Moved- Away- But- Came- Back- For- This- variety. When considering that the “big” murder victim as a known sociopath who grew up with Ellie and Wade (oh, don’t you just love Wade?) the door is wide-open for likely suspects.

So Jacobia is more determined than usual to track down the actual culprit...in between attempting to winterize her possibly haunted Handyman’s Special Historic House. (Don’t you just love the house?) Then Ellie gets sucked into Salmon Festival preparations and Sam and his best friend Tommy Daigle decide to learn Morse Code and use it - via a Ouija Board - to communicate with the dead who may or may not be inhabiting Jacobia and Sam’s house and who may or may not know who the real murderer is.

Which leaves Jacobia to her own devices, and the help of the local police force, which is great except that Bob Arnold is at the mercy of the State People (who are still building their case against Victor) and his wife is going to give birth at any minute. Just as we know she’s getting close (because there are deterrents) and we think we know (ok really we don’t, but maybe we have a clue) more people start dying and then it’s all just a bit much. And Jacobia is still about to lose her money.

I won’t tell you how it wraps up because that would be giving things away, and we all know how loathe I am to do that. But I am glad that I chose this for my summer series to read through. I’m already looking forward to the next installment. (I still don’t want to move to Maine though...and it’s not even winter, yet!)

Triple Witch by Sarah Graves

The second book in the Home Repair is Homicide Series opens with a homicide, which is always a nice way to start a murder mystery, in my opinion. It goes on to reintroduce us to all of the people we got to know in the first book, including Jacobia’s delightfully hateful ex-husband. I don’t know about you, but I like a good character that you’re allowed to just outright hate. Obviously, we’re allowed to hate outright the murderer...but that’s not nearly as fun.

Triple Witch finds the tiny town of Eastport, Maine preparing for a fourth of July celebration and a visit from a woman who will determine whether or not the town gets a grant based on it’s level of historic integrity. So in between finding bodies, snooping about with best-friend Ellie, dating Wade, counseling her son, Sam, and fighting with ex-husband Victor, Jacobia is rescuing and repairing shutters in an attempt to get them hung before the grant benefactor arrives.

A note - Graves switched up her writing style a bit for this one. It’s choppy, which is sometimes disorienting, but not overly detracting from the story. Since the first book I read in the story came at the end of what has been published I can say with confidence that this choppiness smoothes itself out, so don’t let it detract you.

The plot - the murder plot - is pleasantly thick and complicated enough that when it all drops into place you are surprised that you missed some of the blatant hints she dropped. But glad that you did because if you’d picked up on it you would have just been frustrated at how daft everyone was being. The moments of suspense are satisfying, particularly the one at which everything comes rushing together. It was one of those times when the bath water had gotten cold but rather than get out and pause reading I reached up with one hand and turned the hot tap on and then settled back to finish the book. You’ve had that moment, too. Don’t lie.

The b-plot, the home repair, is always interesting to me. Satisfying even in the moments of destruction because there is information seeping off the page. Read enough of these books and you, too, could rehab an 1823 Federal clapboard in Maine. And you probably want to, anyway. I do.

Of course, there’s also ex-husband Victor to consider. Vile Victor who will manipulate, lie, cheat, throw temper tantrums, disappear...basically whatever it takes to get his way. He shows up as an unwelcome houseguest and sticks around to be a thorn in everyone’s side. Like I said, he’s fun to hate...even when Graves shows us a bit of his genuine vulnerability and gives us the sense that maybe he’s not a complete sociopath.

We’re also getting to watch Sam grow up, now he’s considering colleges and careers and having to figure out how to stand up to his father, protect his mother, and keep himself happy. A tall order for even an adult but Graves writes him with such honesty and complexity that it’s as if she’s just recording the actual life of a teenage boy and inserting it into fiction. Who knows, maybe she is.

Graves wraps the novel with a lead-in to the next, and if I didn’t have the self control I do have, I’d be running out to pick it up to read. But I’m doling these out slowly to myself, so I don’t run out.