Cadaver Blues is an interesting idea for a series. Phuoc Goldberg (what an awesome name!) is not your typical private detective – in fact, he’s not a private detective at all. He’s a financial advisor to the down-and-out, the guy you call when the collection agencies are knocking down your doors. He helps people who are over-extended and under-financed keep… Read more

Everything is a trilogy these days! I’m serious – I cannot begin to tell you how many review copies come to me that are Book One is some trilogy or other. Most of the time, as I may have said before, I’m unimpressed. Often it means that the writer can’t seem to figure out how to wrap up the story… Read more

Have you noticed that everything is a trilogy these days? I always thought that the way things worked was that you published a book and if it did well, maybe your publisher wanted another. Maybe you could turn it into a series. That seems passé these days – now, everything is a series right out of the box. That’s not always a… Read more

I seem to be gathering quite a collection of Scandanavian crime novels lately! I’ve got Joe Nesbo, Camilla Lackburg, Ake Edwardson…and now I can add Mari Jungstedt to the list. Killer’s Art is a very good mystery novel set in the art world of Gotland, an upscale, picturesque Swedish island. In the walled city of Visby, a killer is on the… Read more

First of all, let me tell you about Kindle First. If you have Amazon Prime, Kindle First lets you get a free book for your Kindle every month – prior to its release date! Did you see that? FREE BOOKS! (As if I needed more free books.) It’s a very cool way to get new books as soon as they… Read more

I love a good thriller and I definitely enjoyed The Absence of Mercy by John Burley. It reminds me a bit of Defending Jacob by William Landay; both begin with the murder of a teenager, and both deal with a father who is a central character in the investigation. In Absence of  Mercy, Dr. Ben Stevenson is the local coroner; his wife is… Read more

Billed as an environmental thriller “inspired by the Sierra Club’s 1960s battle with Walt Disney Company over a proposed ski resort in the Sierra Nevada Mountains,” The Condor Song is compelling reading. Although informed by historical fact, the writing style is likable and engaging.  You want to sit down and finish the book in one sitting, even though it spans… Read more

Caren Gray has tried very hard to escape her roots in Attica Locke’s The Cutting Season, but for all that, she is back at Belle Vie, the antebellum plantation where she grew up. She manages the plantation, works with the clients, handles the personnel, and deals with any unforeseen circumstances — such as a body found in a shallow grave on… Read more

Extra special stuff today – the first review from my new associate reviewer, Christine Linial! She’s a long-time on-line pal who also loves books, and I am sharing some of my bounty with her (and getting more reviews on my pages at the same time). If you’re a baseball fan who loves intrigue, Hang A Crooked Number is your next… Read more