Category: Book Reviews

Book Review: Betrayal by Ed Teja

TG Wolff

Betrayal is a thriller. Corporal Tina Clarke received a medical discharge from the Army. She didn’t want it or need it, but there she is, back in Kingman, AZ with no options, no future, and one friend who has problems of her own. A lawyer for everyman, Bobby Black, thinks Tina has potential and if she can get out from under the Army’s eye, she just might make something out of this hole she’s in.

Bottom line: Betrayal is for you if you like thrillers at an “every day” level where underdogs have heroes, too.

This is the origin story. We know Tina Clarke’s Army experience does not match working in the motor pool as her official papers show. But what exactly she did, well, that’s classified. We know she was unceremoniously discharged and returned to her point of origin: Kingman, AZ. Without an official transition, Tina has nothing but a high school BFF who is living on the lower side of life and a lawyer who gave us the high stakes game to work from a storefront.

The characters are intelligently crafted, allowing room to grow as the series develops. Tina has her secrets and is trying to figure out the game being played and who can be trusted. The lawyer, Bobby Black, is shrewd, bold, and comes at cases from all angles, even those less than legal. Beryl is the BFF who grew up to be a diner waitress who sells drugs for the local gang, Kingman Roughnecks while trying to avoid questions about her recently deceased boyfriend from the gang, the cops, and Tina. The cast of characters includes a detective trying to solve the case of a drug buy gone very wrong and the head of biker gang working to get his money and the product while keeping control of his gang. Every character is out for their own goal…maybe with the exception of Bobby. He is the white knight in the sea of gray.

The thrill comes from the conflict created when the goals of these characters collide. Tina is, to some extent, caught in the middle. Not one to run and hide, she decides to fight her way out.

The logic of this holds well. The characters act according to their primary goals and it’s a matter of who is going to come out on top. The pacing of the story is a bit slower than typical in a thriller. I chalk this up to being an origin story, which builds the backstory and motivation for the lead character to become the hero.

This is the first book in the series and was an easy read. The characters were easy to distinguish (something I often struggle with) which added to my enjoyment.

Book Review: No Room to Hide by Carol Light

TG Wolff

No Room to Hide is a cozy mystery. Crystal Ward is a professional organizer. Her latest client, Eva Rolfe, hired Crys for her de-cluttering skills but really wants her expertise-amateur sleuthing. The Victorian home Eva and her partner are flipping has a history and Crys is asked to suss out the truth that could make or break their bottomline.

Bottom line: No Room to Hide is for you if cozy mysteries and cold cases are the perfect ways to warm your Autumn nights.

The star of this show is Crys Ward. She is a charming mix of curious and practical that first gets her into trouble and then gets her out. I both liked and respected her as our detective because she didn’t let a good lead die, but she also wasn’t foolishly rushing into proverbial dark alleys. Her husband, Rick, a Chicago PD financial crimes detective, is a nice balance to her. His position gives Crys the connection to the police every good cozy detective needs while being different enough that they aren’t trampling over each other. His often grumpy disposition was a fun comic relief.

There are several storylines here nicely woven together. We have the original job Crys is hired for – going through boxes salvaged from an attic. Then there is the potential that a famed suffragist lived in the house which could make it a historic landmark. And we can’t forget the young mother who put her son to bed and disappeared from the house some 30 years ago. There’s the drama around the restoration of the house itself including interesting characters from the local board. Finally, there’s a little antagonist action with a reporter who is splashing Crys’s life on the front page. One reason I think these worked together so well is because they are all related. Where in other books, you might feel like you are jumping around from one storyline to another, you don’t get that feel here. The transitions are smooth and reasonable.

Standing at the end of the story and looking to the beginning, I did have a few questions, primarily related to the bad guy. The logic of Crys’s actions were solid as she followed the trail paved by her client Eva and her own intuition. Eva is a little more difficult to figure out but that’s intentional and part of the fun. Crys made significant contributions to the story continuing forward. Often her role was more of advisor as Eva was deciding to continue to end the project. In the end, the bad guy asserted control, creating a nice little thriller moment.

The entertainment value on No Room to Hide is high. It is a fun read at just the right pace to hold your attention. This is the fourth book in the series and I have not read the others. With the majority of this story focused on the mystery, I did not feel like I was missing information or backstory needed to enjoy the book. In my opinion, new readers are good to start here.

Book Review: Fistful of Rain by Baron Birtcher

TG Wolff

Fistful of Rain is a historical, western mystery. Summer 1975 and a culture clash is reaching a boiling point. On one side is an old school sheep rancher. On the other side is a hippie commune. In the middle are a slick lawyer, a high school teacher, hired muscle, and cattle rancher / sheriff Ty Dawson.

Bottom line: Fistful of Rain is for you if you like mystery steeped in period Americana. 

Baron Birtcher’s writing style is one of the stand-out features of this Ty Dawson mystery. Narrated by our hero, you pick up the cadence of his speech and, if you’re like me, you can “hear” him speak. It’s like listening to an old friend tell you a story from back in the day. Dawson is a man you can like and respect. He lives by a code of honor, treating the people he serves equally, equitably, no matter his personal opinion. A veteran of the Korean war, a cattle rancher, a cowboy, a husband, and a father. He is not a hippy. But he recognizes the young people not only aren’t breaking any laws, but they are contributing to the economy of Meridian with their businesses. When certain people in town want Ty to run them out, he digs in and stands his ground.

The plot is on the complex end of the spectrum. There is something going on between the Rainbow Ranch and Harper Emory’s neighboring farm. Harper’s taken a beating and he says it’s at the hands of the men at the ranch. Only he can’t identify his attackers. Ty investigates but with no evidence, no charges can be filed. So Emory freelances and things devolve first to arson and then to murder. Investigating isn’t easy between people lying or plain not talking. His gut says there’s something more to it and his gut is rarely wrong.

Fistful of Rain is the second in the Ty Dawson series. I had read Book 3 (Reckoning), Book 4 (Knife River), and Book 1 (California Purples), in that order. It is rare that I come back to the start of a series when I’ve joined mid-stream, but I am very glad I did. Having gotten to know Dawson, his family, and his ranch hands, going back to the beginning has been a treat. The mysteries between the stories are stand-alone. It’s the supporting characters and Double Diamond ranch that matures with each story.

There wasn’t much not to like. As I think about the story in the days since I finished it, I have a question or two about who did exactly what in the end. Ty is true to his character, from beginning to end. The motivation of the bad guy was crystal clear. Exactly how they accomplished it is something I’ll be thinking about for days to come.

With this story, I really came to appreciate the research Birtcher had to do into the cultural and political climate of 1975. It’s one thing for a writer to reference history-book making events like Watergate. It’s another for an author to weave individual threads of pride, distaste, faith, hope, fear, and more to the point where you can see the points of view of each of the characters. Therein lies the complexity Ty Dawson has to navigate.

Overall, this is an excellent series and is a must read for fans of western mysteries and historical/vintage mysteries.

Book Review: Talking to Strangers by Fiona Barton

TG Wolff

Talking to Strangers is a women’s mystery. Karen Simmons lives the life of a vibrant, sexually healthy woman in her 40s. Her murder on Valentine’s Day draws together three unlikely allies. Detective Elise King and her sergeant conduct a police investigation. Small town reporter Kiki had featured Karen in a story. A grieving mother, Annie’s 8-yr old son died in the same forest 16-years prior. It will take all of them to find the solution to Karen’s murder.

Bottom line: Talking to Strangers is for you if you like mysteries woven into the real-life drama of the modern middle-aged woman.

The strength of Talking To Strangers is the storytelling style. This is a book in three-parts, with no part more or less important than the others. A well-balanced story, the narrators are distinct and individualistic. Karen’s death is the mechanism used to explore different but real-life challenges common in the lives of women in their 40s and beyond.

Elise is the police detective who is facing the one-year anniversary of her breast cancer diagnosis. Still recovering mentally and physically from a mastectomy and chemo, she’s working to get back to the person she was. Life suddenly looks up when a sexy new neighbor moves in.

Kiki is the journalist who gave up the big city job when she became a single mom. Now with her daughter turning 13, Kiki longs for stories bigger than the small town paper she works for. Her current feature is on the dating scene for women in their 40s and her star is Karen Simmons. Karen’s death spurs her to dig deeper, unearthing a group of twisted men who treat dating as a dirty sport.

Annie is a wife and a mother. Sixteen years ago, her two boys were playing in the forest. Only one came home. A man was arrested for his murder, but he suicided in police custody and Annie never got the answers she needed. When Karen’s murder makes the news, Annie recognizes her as the woman who cut the family’s hair in their old town. Feelings buried, memories recessed boil to the surface, driving Annie to act for Karen, for her lost son, for herself.

In the same age group, the three women have different lifestyles. Themes of loneliness and surviving mental and/or physical trauma are part of each story.

The mystery is a challenge to review. There is little evidence for Elise and Kiki to work with. The suspects are derived from Karen’s dating life and one by one, explored and eliminated until there is only one remaining. I did not think the same level of detail was given to exploring background and alibi of the last person standing as was given to the others. At the end of the book, I was left with a number of questions, which were answered in the epilogue. While this made for a feeling of closure, it highlighted that the story was not really finished when the book ended.

TALKING TO STRANGERS was very well written and the stories of the three narrating women were engaging. This was listed on Amazon as Women’s Crime Fiction, Women’s Psychological Fiction, and Psychological Thriller. The common theme is this book was written for women and their experiences in their 40s and beyond. This is stronger as a women’s fiction story than a mystery, but all around enjoyable.

Book Review: South California Purples by Baron Birtcher

TG Wolff

South California Purples is a historical, western mystery. April 1973. Cattle rancher Ty Dawson is getting a late start on Spring Works and things aren’t going well with four of his cows dead. Then the Korean war veteran is tagged to act as the undersheriff when a dispute between a horse trainer and the Bureau of Land Management turns into dangerous spectacle.

Bottom line: South California Purples is for you if you like a strong hero who can use his head as well as a gun  

Baron Birtcher’s writing style can best be described as lyrical. From his description of sunrises, to the land of the Double Diamond ranch, to the people and events of Meridian, Oregon, his style is smooth and sophisticated yet easy to read. Ty Dawson is our narrator, and you pick up the cadence of his speech. If you’re like me and tend to “hear” characters, you’ll enjoy listening to Dawson.

Dawson is a hero. He lives by a code of honor in good times and tough times. That code is put to the test in Sour California Purples and it interesting to watch how he navigates that code while accepting his conscription as undersheriff. We meet his wife, Jesse, and daughter, Cricket, as well as the men who help run the Double D. The “cast” is large enough to support the story without being overwhelming with townsfolk who don’t have a role in this story.

The plot is on the complex end of the spectrum. There are three storylines. The murder of one of Dawson’s ranch hands along with having four of his cows not just killed but blown up. The stand-off between a horse trainer and the federal Bureau of Land Management, which draws in hippie protesters, a documentary film crew, and a violent motorcycle club. The mysterious Blackwood who looks like a biker but acts that something dangerously different. If there is a morale to this story, it is found in the horse trainer whose good intentions to protect the wild horses from a cruel culling is subverted by people with selfish motivations.

South California Purples is the first in the Ty Dawson series. I had read Book 3 (Reckoning) and Book 4 (Knife River) as Toe Tags (Follow links to hear first chapters). It is rare that I come back to the start of a series when I’ve joined mid-stream, but I am very glad I did. Having gotten to know Dawson, his family, and his ranch hands, reading Book 1 was an origin story that added texture and meaning to the allusion of the later books.

There wasn’t much not to like. As I think about the story in the days since I finished it, I have a question or two on the premise and I thought one murder was out of proportion to the rest of the story. These are definitely subjective points and did not detract from my enjoyment.

Overall, this is an excellent opener to the series and is a must read for fans of western mysteries and historical/vintage mysteries.

Book Review: The Stuff of Murder by Kathleen Marple Kalb

TG Wolff

The Stuff of Murder is an amateur sleuth cozy mystery. Dr. Christian Shaw is a mother, a widow, and the director of the historical society. She is responsible for the 17th century bible and pewter tankard used by the lead actor in a movie very loosely based on The Scarlet Letter. Then the actor dies, dramatically. Christian’s old stuff is at the heart of the investigation and where they go, she goes.

Bottom line: The Stuff of Murder is for you if you like cozy mysteries, charming characters, and everyday old stuff.   

One of my favorite things about The Stuff of Murder is the characters. Kalb does a wonderful job of giving the primary characters distinct voices and appearances, making the story easy to read. Christian Shaw is six foot one with flaming red hair. Her son Henry is a five-foot tall third-grader with photographic memory. The fathers she should have had are Garrett the academic and his husband Ed the retired state trooper. And last but certainly not least is the handsome, philanthropic, and very tall state’s attorney Joe Poli. Then there are the other parents, the society volunteers, and townspeople. This is an amazing, heart warming cast.

The setting is small town Unity, Connecticut. As with most small town cozies, the nature of the town with the tensions and conflicts of people too involved in each other’s business is an amusing counterpoint to main mystery. This is the source of much of the information Christian uses as well as the bane of her busy days.

Brett Studebaker is a fifty-something actor looking to launch into the next stage of his career on a period film based loosely on The Scarlet Letter. Brett is filming a pivotal scene, acting in the pulpit of church turned synagogue some ten feet above the floor. When he goes off script, only Christian and the locals with her notice the odd behavior. Brett falls from the pulpit, breaking his neck. But it isn’t the simple accident someone wants everyone to believe. The leading theory is poison, introduced through the pewter mug the historical society lent to the film.

This mystery is a throw back to an older style where conversations, not evidence, are the primary detection tool. Christian pieces together the small facts she learns into a chain that will catch the guilty. It’s hard to discuss the logic of the mystery without giving too much away. Suffice it to say that the motives and actions of the guilty are consistent and follow logically in their minds.

The Stuff of Murder is a character driven story that would be enjoyed by readers who love cozies as well as those who prefer traditional mysteries.

Available at Amazon and other book retailers

Book Review: The Billiard-Room Mystery by Brian Flynn

TG Wolff

Anthony Bathurst accepted the last minute spot on Sir Charles Considine’s cricket team, thinking a week of fun and games with his old university friends was just was he needed. After a dinner conversation on the skills of fictional detectives, Bathurst is willing to bet on his skills standing up to Scotland Yard’s, given the same resources. And then Gerry Prescott goes and gets murdered.

Bottom Line: The Billiard-Room Mystery is for you if like sinking your teeth into classic whodunnit mysteries.

NOTE: The Billiard-Room Mystery was original published in 1929. Reprints are available or you can get it for free at the Gutenburg Project. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/58413

The strength of this story is…the end. Really. I was getting frustrated reading, thinking this was one of the worst written mysteries I’d ever read and then WHAMMO. Everything fell into place…and it was awesome.

This story is told in the classic Holmes-Watson style. Bathurst is the detective, working in, under and around Inspector Baddeley. Bill Cunningham, a buddy from college, is drafted into the Watson role of narrator.

The police investigators of Inspector Baddeley and his junior officer Roper are good cops – not portrayed as bumbling, etc. The house party presents an ample pool of suspects, some with motive, some with opportunity.

Where this story fell short: I’ve been doing alot of thinking on this one and haven’t found a logic flaw. Bathurst is a good lead detective and Cunningham does his job as narrator.

While I loved the “gotcha”, I could see some readers taking exception to it. This is definitely personal preference and I fall on the “love it” side.

Book Review: Devil May Care by David Housewright

TG Wolff

Devil May Care (Mac McKenzie #11) is a PI Mystery. McKenzie is approached by the granddaughter of a locally powerful man to find her missing boyfriend. She is certain he didn’t ghost her. McKenzie starts to believe he is a ghost…or at least not the man he sold himself to be.

Bottom line: Devil May Care is for you if you like hard punching PIs who do what’s right, even if it’s gonna hurt a little.

Strengths of the story. As the star of the show, McKenzie is a strong leading man. His morals and ethics repeatedly lead him into the heart of trouble. His quick wits and fast actions get him out. He is a hero that is fun to cheer for.

The series contains a cast of characters that makes reading the next McKenzie book feel like visiting old friends. From McKenzie’s girlfriend Nina, to his best friend Bobby and his family, they round McKenzie out as well as fill in the gaps and smooth out the rough edges.

Housewright’s development of a plot that has more switchbacks than a mountain pass means that the reader is never bored and rarely goes where we think we are. The pacing matches my preferred style of fast and driving, moving forward with every chapter.

Where the story fell short of ideal: McKenzie always drives his own story and the logic of the arc holds up, so nothing to pick on here. The boyfriend McKenzie is looking for, Juan Carlos Navarre, is a character some readers will hate and others respect. That’s the sign of good writing when, even buttoned up, things aren’t black and white.

Book Review: The Preacher by Camilla Lackberg

TG Wolff

The Preacher is a mystery. The body of a young woman is found. Naked and broken, she is found on a blanket. Beneath the blanket are bones, not of one person but two. Patrik Hedstrom has his hands full with the new murder, the old murders, and the imminent birth of his first child.

Bottom line: The Preacher is for you if you like complex whodunnits led by engaging characters set in the beauty of Sweden.

Strengths of the story. With this second book, the story settles with Patrik Hedstrom was the lead. The mystery is a police procedural that brings in everyone at the Tanumshede police station. While Patrik does lead, the other police officers have meaningful assignments, which gives the mystery a rich texture. This is not a story where one man does all the work.

Surrounding the mystery is the drama of Patrik’s home life. He is living with his girlfriend, Erica, in her family home. She is eight months pregnant during a heat wave. And there is the never ending stream of free loading family looking for a few days on the water.

I personally enjoyed the balance between the mystery and the homelife. This mystery is pretty heavy. The homelife gives a nice counterpoint that is a mix of humorous, sweet, and ridiculous.

As with ICE PRINCESS (Book #1), this mystery is very complicated. There is no way for readers to solve this one ahead of Patrik. This book is listed on Amazon as a serial killer thriller, a kidnap thriller, and a murder story. This isn’t especially strong as a thriller – Patrik is working in a police procedural manner. He is not in danger. The categories give away that there is a serial killer element as well as a kidnapping element, both of which give an urgency to the investigation that creates a mood more alike a thriller.

Where the story fell short of ideal: This story crosses lines of mystery and thriller. If a reader prefers one or the other, you may not be fully satisfied with this story. It is for crossover readers. While the reader does get a full explanation of what happened, the author hands it to us, the detective doesn’t earn it. On one hand, it’s satisfying. On the other, the structure of the story did not enable the mystery to be resolved.  

As with the first book, I struggled with the author holding back information. This story is written in third-person omniscient from the point of view of the section’s narrator. Intellectually, I know it is supposed to build curiosity and intrigue when the character whose head I am in looks, for example, at a newspaper article but doesn’t say what’s in it. For me, this creates frustration. In talking to other readers, some have the same pet peeve, others don’t. This is definitely a subjective issue.

My 5 Star books of 2023

TG Wolff

I am fortunate in that the Toe Tags I do as part of Mysteries To Die For exposes me to many authors and titles I wouldn’t ordinarily find on my own. Add to that list the books that are recommended by other readers and the ones my husband gives me and, well, I read a lot of mystery, crime fiction, and thrillers. This post contains those that I gave 5 start ratings to. To earn 5 stars from me, a story has to have flawless logic, no loose ends, great characters, and, of course, be entertaining. One is missing: Room 13 by Edgar Wallace. This 1924 mystery was one of the coolest I’ve read. Happy Reading Detectives!