Two for Sorrow: Nicola Upson’s third winner Sunday, Nov 13 2011 

Continued series winner and great read and mystery to die for and Series not to be missed , , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:58 am

Auntie M has been encouraging readers to investigate Nicola Upson. With her background in theater and as a crime fiction critic, it is easy to see how Upson’s research into the life of Elizabeth Mackintosh led to this very original series. Upson is also the author of two non-fiction books, and studied English at Cambridge.

Upson became interested in writers working between the two World Wars, which led her to Mackintosh, who wrote plays and mainly historical fiction under the pen name of Gordon Daviot. When she turned her hand to some of the most original crime novels of 1930’s-1950’s, Mackintosh wrote under the name Josephine Tey.

It is Upson’s own original device in this series to star Tey as the protagonist in her mystery novels, and it is highly effective. Following the authorship of Tey’s real novels and life events, Upson brings to life the era and settings that Mackintosh inhabited, weaving in aspects of her life with that of Tey and her friends in the theater.

In her third Tey novel, Two for Sorrow, Upson has Tey in London doing research for a possible novel based on the last double female hanging at Holloway Prison in Britain. The book follows two stories: Tey’s research into the life of the two women convicted of murdering newborn infants taken from their mothers for adoption; and the murder of a young seamstress who has been found murdered under horrific circumstances in the design studio of the Motley sisters, Tey’s friends.

Tey is staying at the Cowdray Club, a club for nurses and professional women where Mackintosh was a member from 1925 until her death in 1952. The club is the planned setting for a lavish charity gala with surperstars headlining the fundraiser, and the Motley sisters are designing many of the dresses for the prominent women attending. Inspector Archie Penrose and his team investigate the young woman’s death, which at first appears to be laid at the door of her abusive father. Penrose is not convinced this is the case, and he enlists Tey’s help in finding the real murderer, even as she continues her own novel’s research, which includes a visit to Holloway.

The lives of several women living at the Cowdray Club are brought under Archie’s spotlight, and Tey finds herself at times uncomfortable with Archie’s investigation. Then as he becomes convinced he is on the trail of the murderer, a second young woman suffers a terrible accident and the race is on to unearth a sadistic killer.

Upson’s settings are vividly described and recall the era perfectly. She also mines the reserve of the time and the simmering emotions that lie just beneath the surface of most personal relationships. Her research is exhaustive and we are the happy recipients as she expertly overlaps the real with the fictional.

The two main story lines overlap in several places that heighten the tension. The entire novel is bolstered by an intriguing subplot featuring Tey’s private life. Auntie M had to do a little research of her own to find that this, too, was based on what can be gleaned from Mackintosh’s very private life.

P. D. James has remarked that Upson  “. . .  is to be congratulated” and Auntie M agrees. Don’t miss this third strong outing in a consistently entertaining and well-written series.

 

 

 

Peter James: Riveting Two-fer Sunday, Oct 30 2011 

Award winning novelist and Continued series winner and great read and mystery to die for and Series not to be missed , , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:41 am

Peter James two latest Roy Grace novels reveal why Lee Child calls him “. . .  one of the best in the world.” James has produced numerous films (The Merchant of Venice with Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons and Joseph Fiennes) and his novels have a cinematic appeal, visual and complex. Indeed, three of the novels have been filmed and the books have sold over five million copies and been translated into thirty-three languages, a track record any author would envy.

James  blames being burgled for the realistic bent he brings to Detective Superintendent Roy Grace and his Brighton team. A detective James met at the time offered to help him with his series research, and later became the model for Grace. James says becoming friendly with the policeman and his cohorts led him to see that they live in an inclusive world of their own compatriots, looking differently at their surroundings from the average citizen: they have a healthy dose of suspicion most of us lack. James credits another detective friend who reads and comments on his novels-in-progress for being an invaluable resource. Auntie M agrees: her own Cumbrian source for The Green Remains (due out early in 2012) helps with details of everything, from the colors of the lights on top of Lake District panda cars, to the distance to the police station from the major crime scene.

Dead Like You opens in Brighton at the Metropole Hotel on New Year’s Eve. A woman is brutally raped; a week later, a second woman is attacked. Both victims have their shoes taken by the offender.

 

 

The cases jog Grace’s memory back to a series of remarkably similar crimes which remain unsolved from 1997. Are these crimes the work of a copycat perpetrator, or has the “Shoe Man” resurfaced?

By shifting between the past and present, James presents us with the fullest picture yet of Grace’s personal life, taking readers into the time before his beloved wife went missing and changed his world irrevocably. He also offers a fascinating story of sexual obsession. As the crimes mount, Grace’s team race to save the latest victim.

The novel is inventive and engrossing, blending aspects of the police procedural with the psychological suspense that has become the hallmark of James’ novels, which Jeffery Deavers say echo ” . . . the heart and voices of such authors as P. D. James and Ian Rankin at their best.”

 

 

James’ newest addition to the series will be on sale here at the end of November. Auntie M scored an Advance Readers’ Edition of Dead Man’s Grip and feels this is the strongest entry yet in the Roy Grace series.

This one sizzles off the page, building from chapter to chapter, as the action ranges through several countries and surges with emotional charges on several levels.                                                                                                                                                  

The action starts in a seemingly innocuous way, with widow Carly Chase hurrying to the office after dropping her son at school. A terrible motor vehicle accident occurs, with the resultant death of a Brighton University student. Too much wine the evening before is still in Carly’s system, but when she’s eventually cleared of any wrongdoing in the accident, she has no idea that the repercussions will extend far beyond the loss of her driving license.

When Grace’s Sussex team become involved, it becomes clear that the dead student had connections to organized crime in America, and several scenes are set in New York on Long Island’s tony Hamptons. Since this is Auntie M’s homeground, she was particularly keen to read these bits, but the routes used to get there from Manhattan are correct and descriptions of the area hold up well.

Then revenge killings of the others involved in the accident begin, accompanied by some of the most horrific torture imaginable. It becomes obvious to Grace that Carly is next on the killer’s list.

Besides James’ terrific plotting, this novel is notable for two other aspects. The first is the hit man involved, and here Grace does a sensational job of getting inside the mind of the kind of freakish sociopath who would be able to carry out these detailed killings. This may be one of the most evil characters to come out of James’ imagination yet.

The second is the weaving in of Grace’s personal life, which takes an surprising and unforeseen turn. Readers of the series will be chomping at the bit for the next book to see how this newest twist plays out. Don’t miss this latest entry from Peter James for a satisfying read and a wild ride.

 

 

Karin Fossum’s Inspector Sejer: Next three Sunday, Jun 26 2011 

Award winning novelist and great read and mystery to die for and Series not to be missed , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:30 am

As promised, here are the next three Konrad Sejer novels in Norwegian author Karin Fossum’s addicting series. The dates shown are the US translation publication dates. As of this date, there are two new Sejer’s in the wings:

2010’s Bad Intentions will be available in the US this August. 2011’s The Caller does not have its US publications date yet. I’m sure down the road this blog will have those reviews of this series that continues to delight, as Fossum has the patient and kind Sejer dissect crime in Norway’s tiny rural towns.

2007 The Indian Bride: In one of Fossum’s characteristic moves, she takes us inside the mind and life of bachelor Gunder Jomann, a man of simple means who never spends money on himself. So when he travels to India, he raises a few eyebrows; and when he comes back a married man, even more. Jomann returns alone to prepare for the arrival of his bride. As the buildup to this day looms for him, his sister’s car accident will bring forth a series of horrific events, as the villagers of his small town of Elvestad are stunned when a woman’s battered body is found in a field on his wife’s arrival day.

The town’s inhabitants all come under close scrutiny by Sejer and his colleague Skarre. Everyone has a secret to protect, from the young woman who is a key witness to the owner of a local shop. It is up to Sejer to decide whose secret led to a horrific murder. With her usual care for getting inside the heads and psyches of her characters, Fossum has written another one that will keep you turning pages at night.

Next up is Black Seconds, which also came to the US in 2007. The story opens with an ordinary day, when almost-ten year old Ida Joner setting off on her brand-new bicycle into town. Then the girl vanishes without a trace. Hundreds of volunteers comb the neighborhood, searching for the little girl, and the media is whipped into a frenzy. It takes the calm reassurance and clear thinking of Konrad Sejer to find the answer to this puzzling case.

Quietly unnerving, Black Seconds illustrates how the disappearance of a child can affect a small village as much as any terrorist or serial killer.

2009’s Water’s Edge is the last case for Sejer I can review at this date.

A young married couple, Kristine and Reinhardt Ris, set out for a Sunday walk in the woods. What could be more normal? Until they stumble on the body of a young boy, just as they see a man limping away. To make matters worse, as the couple await the arrival of the police, Reinhardt takes multiple pictures of the dead boy’s body.

While Sejer makes his inquiries, he delves into the stories of the people in the town and those who knew the dead boy. Then another boy disappears without explanation, and the Ris’s marriage begins to disintegrate.

Fossum’s novels are like M&M’s: you can’t read just one. In places the syntax is evocative of the Norwegian of their origin, and this adds to the flavor of this series. I will be anxiously awaiting the August arrival of the next installment.

 

I’ll Walk Alone Sunday, Jun 5 2011 

great read and writers , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:17 am

Mary Higgins Clark’s newest fits her traditional pattern: readers know the hero and heroine, don’t ever doubt they’ll somehow find their way to each other, despite the odds the author throws in their pathway. Readers know exactly what they’re getting when they pick up one of her books, which is exactly Clark’s reason for continued popularity.

Still, it’s not the way her books will turn out that keep readers in droves flocking back; it’s the obstacles and plot she comes up with, the familiar and realistic New York setting, and the look at the way some people get to live their lives. Clark pointed this out in a recent Wall Street Journal interview, where she felt her detractors claims of ‘formulaic’ fiction don’t understand her audience the way she does. Why change a pattern that has been shown readers adore? she noted. Why indeed? I’ll Walk Alone is her 37th novel to hit the best selling lists, not counting the 5 she’s written with her daughter Carol.

This time identity theft plays a part in the life of interior decorator Zan Moreland. Still reeling from the kidnapping of her son, Matthew, two years before, Zan is a gifted designer on the brink of a huge career break when she discovers someone is using her credit cards and manipulating her bank accounts to destroy her reputation.

Clark ratchets up the heat when she adds kidnapping and murder to the perpetrator’s brutal crimes. Then on what would be Matthew’s fifth birthday, photo’s emerge of what seem to show Zan kidnapping her own child. Plot twists tell Zan someone has literally stolen her identity, down to ordering the clothing she wears.

The press is baying, her ex-husband is attacking her, and the police think she’s a schizophrenic kidnapper–Zan certainly has lot on her plate, in true Clark style. I’ll let you spot the hero for yourselves. For brain candy that you know will have the heroine triumphing, no one is better than Mary Higgins Clark.

 

The Janus Stone Monday, May 30 2011 

great read and mystery to die for and new series , , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:24 am

I mentioned earlier that I would review the second Ruth Galloway novel by Elly Griffiths, Janus Stone, and one of my readers said it was good as the first. She was not mistaken.

This time the forensic archaeologist  is called in to investigate when builders demolishing a large ancient house uncover what appears to be the skeleton of a child. Bad enough, but its skull is missing. Found under the doorway, Ruth feels this might be a ritual sacrifice. While gathering her samples, DCI Harry Nelson, he of the complicated relationship with Ruth, becomes involved after it is revealed the bones are not ancient, and that the house was once a children’s home. He sets out to interview the Catholic priest who ran the home, who tells him forty years ago two children went missing, a boy and a girl.

When carbon dating proves the child’s bones are from an earlier period, Ruth maintains her ties to the investigation. She’s drawn more deeply into the case when it becomes obvious someone is trying to frighten her off it. They’re doing a good job of it, for Ruth is pregnant herself, and although she’s thrilled and determined to raise the child alone, is still dealing with telling her parents and friends about the baby, who include the child’s father.

Ruth is a grand creation, someone most women can relate to: an earthy, overweight gal who’s happy her pregnancy gives her a reason to stop trying to lose weight. Some of Ruth’s colleagues from the first novel, The Crossing Places, reappear, and add to Ruth’s wry sense of humor, which make these books a treat to read.

Griffiths does a great job of intertwining the emotional with the plot points and keeps them coming as the tension rises. There was one point at first where I thought she’d taken a jog off into the impossible, but her explanation and Ruth’s reaction to these events make that twist believable, and in the end, reasonable. Of course, that just makes me now anxious to read the third installment, due sooner than Ruth’s baby.

A

 

Blue Lightning Monday, Mar 14 2011 

Uncategorized , , , , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 12:01 am

Ann Cleeves is an award-winning writer Auntie M first became acquainted with in her Inspector Ramsey series. Following that were three DI Vera Stanhope mysteries, and I’ve just read that those have been filmed for TV in the UK with the wonderful Brenda Blethyn playing the rumpled and secure Vera. Watch your Masterpiece Mystery listings down the road for these.

Today’s review is of the fourth installment in Cleeves’ Shetland Island series. The first, Raven Black, won Cleeves the Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award, followed by White Night and Red Bones, which have also been reviewed on this blog. The novels feature Shetland Island detective Jimmy Perez and his love, Fran, as well as the inhabitants of the small island. Filled with atmosphere, all of the books give the reader a glimpse of life on a remote island where community traditions are held in reverence and secrets are kept.

With Blue Lightning, Cleeves takes a huge risk, one that this writer is not about to reveal. Suffice it to say that you will be transfixed when Perez takes Fran home to Fair Isle to meet his parents. Strangers are viewed warily, and Perez is worried about the reception Fran will have to endure. The tiny island, famous for its knit sweaters, becomes cut off from the rest of the world when an autumn storm rages. Cleeves does a good job communicating the sense of being trapped, with the high tension this brings. She also informs the reader of the birding world and the passion birders hold for their subject.

Then a woman’s body is discovered at the island’s renowned bird observatory, feathers threaded through her hair, signifying something only the murderer knows. With no support from the mainland, Fran becomes involved in helping Perez as he hunts for the killer.Long-buried secrets within Perez’s own family are revealed during the investigation, calling into question everything Perez thought he knew. What first appeared to be a crime of passion is revealed to be a cold-blooded, planned murder. And then a second body is found . . .

Author Louise Penny called Blue Lightning “nothing short of riveting” and I would have to concur. Don’t miss this installment from a writer willing to take risks, writing at the top of her game.

 

 

Basketball Monday, Mar 10 2008 

Uncategorized , , , , Auntie M Writes Crime 5:15 pm

Down here in NC, basketball is the sport everything revolves around.  In particular, the teams of UNC Chapel Hill and Duke play out a long rivalry going back too many years to count.  Dukies, also known as Cameron Crazies, with blue faces, wigs and bodies, appear to cheer their Coach K team on.  Over at Chapel Hill, Coach Williams has taken his team to a number one spot with the Amazing Tyler Hansborough.  So Saturday night’s game was watched in households too numerous to count.  But wait: an amazing thing happened.

Earlier this week, the President of UNC’s Student Body was murdered, senselessly, for her car and her ATM and credit cards.  This bright, 22 yr old woman lost her life so thugs could use her cards, probably to support their drug habit.  The entire campus was outraged and in mourning.  That spread to the town and community and then to anyone in NC watching the news, as photo’s of her ‘alleged’ attackers were shown on television, trying to use her ATM card in her car, the driver wearing garb now identified as that of a Los Angeles gang member.

At the Saturday night game between these two teams, competing for first place in the ACC, everyone (yes, everyone, regardless of which team they were rooting for) were given and wore Carolina blue ribbons in Eve Carson’s honor.  Mothers wearing Duke corsages for Senior Night wore their blue ribbons on the other side.  The Duke team wore black bands on their shirts.  UNC’s Tarheels had EVE inside a black circle embroidered on their shirts.

There was moment of silence just before the National Anthem.  Ten thousand (yes, 10,000) hyped up fans fell completely silent.  Some had tears in their eyes.   Others shook their heads at this crude and cruel loss of life.

Once the game started, both teams played their hearts out.  Each camera shot reminded us they were playing for their team, their school, the rivalry, the win.  But each camera shot also reminded us they were playing for Eve.

Godspeed, Eve Carson.   You will be missed.  And your team won.

 

« Previous Page

Amazing Family Books

Featuring The Very Best in Fiction & Nonfiction Books For Children, Parents & The Entire Family

Book Review Magazine

Incredible Books & Authors

Book Sparks News

Writing, Books & Authors News

Artisan Book Reviews

& Marketing

Bookish Trends

Book Bug Out

KIDS CLUB

Writer Beware

Shining a small, bright light in a wilderness of writing scams

authorplatforms.wordpress.com/

Books, Reviews & Author News

DESTINATION PROPERTIES

The preview before the visit.<ins class="bookingaff" data-aid="1815574" data-target_aid="1815574" data-prod="map" data-width="400" data-height="300" data-lang="xu" data-currency="USD" data-dest_id="0" data-dest_type="landmark" data-latitude="40.7127753" data-longitude="-74.0059728" data-landmark_name="New York City" data-mwhsb="0"> <!-- Anything inside will go away once widget is loaded. --> <a href="//www.booking.com?aid=1815574">Booking.com</a> </ins> <script type="text/javascript"> (function(d, sc, u) { var s = d.createElement(sc), p = d.getElementsByTagName(sc)[0]; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.async = true; s.src = u + '?v=' + (+new Date()); p.parentNode.insertBefore(s,p); })(document, 'script', '//aff.bstatic.com/static/affiliate_base/js/flexiproduct.js'); </script>

Auntiemwrites Crime-Mystery Author M K Graff

Award-winning Mystery Author on books, reading and life: If proofreading is wrong, I don't wanna be right!

Lee Lofland

The Graveyard Shift

Being Author

Sherri Lupton Hollister, author

Romance, mystery, & suspense she writes...

Liz Loves Books

The Life of Guppy

the care and feeding of our little fish

MiddleSisterReviews.com

(mid'-l sis'-tǝr) n. the reader's favorite sister

My train of thoughts on...

Smile! Don't look back in anger.

Killer Women

K.R. Morrison, Author

My author site--news and other stuff about books and things

The Wickeds

Wicked Good Mysteries

John Bainbridge Writer

Indie Writer and Publisher

Some Days You Do ...

Writers & writing: books, movies, art & music - the bits & pieces of a (retiring) writer's life

Gaslight Crime

Authors and reviewers of historical crime fiction

Crimezine

#1 for Crime

Amazing Family Books

Featuring The Very Best in Fiction & Nonfiction Books For Children, Parents & The Entire Family

Book Review Magazine

Incredible Books & Authors

Book Sparks News

Writing, Books & Authors News

Artisan Book Reviews

& Marketing

Bookish Trends

Book Bug Out

KIDS CLUB

Writer Beware

Shining a small, bright light in a wilderness of writing scams

authorplatforms.wordpress.com/

Books, Reviews & Author News

DESTINATION PROPERTIES

The preview before the visit.<ins class="bookingaff" data-aid="1815574" data-target_aid="1815574" data-prod="map" data-width="400" data-height="300" data-lang="xu" data-currency="USD" data-dest_id="0" data-dest_type="landmark" data-latitude="40.7127753" data-longitude="-74.0059728" data-landmark_name="New York City" data-mwhsb="0"> <!-- Anything inside will go away once widget is loaded. --> <a href="//www.booking.com?aid=1815574">Booking.com</a> </ins> <script type="text/javascript"> (function(d, sc, u) { var s = d.createElement(sc), p = d.getElementsByTagName(sc)[0]; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.async = true; s.src = u + '?v=' + (+new Date()); p.parentNode.insertBefore(s,p); })(document, 'script', '//aff.bstatic.com/static/affiliate_base/js/flexiproduct.js'); </script>

Auntiemwrites Crime-Mystery Author M K Graff

Award-winning Mystery Author on books, reading and life: If proofreading is wrong, I don't wanna be right!

Lee Lofland

The Graveyard Shift

Being Author

Sherri Lupton Hollister, author

Romance, mystery, & suspense she writes...

Liz Loves Books

The Life of Guppy

the care and feeding of our little fish

MiddleSisterReviews.com

(mid'-l sis'-tǝr) n. the reader's favorite sister

My train of thoughts on...

Smile! Don't look back in anger.

Killer Women

K.R. Morrison, Author

My author site--news and other stuff about books and things

The Wickeds

Wicked Good Mysteries