FMAM MOSTLY MYSTERY REVIEWS
 |
THE FMAM MOSTLY MYSTERY REVIEW is the place to come
to find out what to read next. Want to know what readers are saying
(as opposed to critics) about the books you see around you? You’ve
come to the right place! And, if you appreciate a critical review
we’ll have those, too. Come in, sit down and see what’s
write with the world! (Or, right in the world of write!) New reviews this month from: |
 |
|
|
||
January 2009
Lifelines
CJ Lyons
Penguin Books
$7.99, 405 pages
ISBN: 978-O-425-22082-5
July 1st. Could be any other day unless you are at a teaching hospital, then it is what is known as transition day. The day the new medical students begin and the most dangerous day to go to such a hospital. And the day Lydia Fiore is beginning her new job as attending physician at Angels of Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh. Lydia is an exceptional doctor. She is not only excellent at diagnosing she is quite adept at medical procedures. Things are going as well as can be expected on transition until a MVA (motor vehicle accident) comes. It seemed simple enough, car versus pedestrian, but something goes horribly wrong and soon the boy is fighting for his life and Lydia is fighting for her career. The boy loses his battle for life in an inexplicable way. Before Lydia can dissect the events, she is accused of malpractice by the boy’s father, Dr. Weiss. From that point on, Lydia’s life and career is in a head spin. Dr. Weiss gets her suspended from the staff. She attends the autopsy where it seems to be inconclusive until the stomach is removed. Then Lydia gets a whiff of almonds. Trey, the paramedic who brought Jonah Weiss in also attended the autopsy but could not smell the bitter almonds nor could Dr. Steward, who as it turns out used to be Jonah’s lover. Is there a conflict of interest there? Does he have a reason to point the finger at Lydia? Jonah was active in the gay movement and made many enemies. Nearly anyone could have poisoned him. Lydia is bound and determined to clear her name in a journey that makes friends of a Resident - Gail, a medical student - Amanda, and Nurse Nora, as well as the Paramedic Trey in the pursuit of clearing Lydia, getting the truth and stopping the pile of bodies that keeps growing.
Each of the secondary characters have their own trials and tribulations over this four day period. We discover love, deceit, and strengths. The stories within stories add to the texture and complexity of this whodunit.
CJ Lyons, a medical doctor, writes with just enough jargon to be real but so much as to bore or make one feel inferior. She taps into the human condition and asks what if this happened, what would a doctor do? Now maybe she would and maybe not, but this is indeed a plausible scenario, easy to read, and enjoyable.
On a scale of 1 to 5, I give it a 5.
Cynthia Lea Clark, Psy.D., MHt
Scots on the Rocks: A Bed and Breakfast Mystery
Mary Daheim
William Morrow, July 2007, $23.95, 360 pp.
ISBN: 0060566531
Judith and Renie are middle-aged cousins on a surprise vacation with their husbands. The real surprise is when the men leave the ladies high and dry while they go on a fishing excursion. The converted Scottish castle where Judith and her cousin stay is reputed to be haunted. More than a few dour and odd characters lurk about, but none are ghosts–so far. Before boredom sets in, an explosion on the beach rocks the night and a man is left dead. As the women casually investigate the murder, the body count rises, and a twisted plot of greed and deception unfolds.
Ms. Daheim weaves a tangled story shot with subtle tension and delightful humor. The cast of characters, while perfectly drawn, are near to excessive. Confusion forced me to reread several sections in order to understand the intertwined threads. Even so, Scots On The Rocks is a comfortable cozy of a mystery I recommend.
The Devil Can Wait
Marta Stephens
BeWrite Books
$15.99, 314 pages
ISBN: 978-1-905202-86-7
THE DEVIL CAN WAIT is the second Sam Harper Mystery. Sam is a detective with the Chandler, Massachusetts police department. Three young men, boys really, have been found floating in the water. Each was killed slightly differently yet there is a familiarity about their deaths that seem to link them. Sam’s partner thinks it’s a gang thing, but Sam thinks that although it is murder, it’s not gang related.
Many miles away in Columbia, a high priestess of sorts is being targeted for a very powerful black pearl ring she wears. Her son, Alejandro is in “bed” with some very bad people and cannot pay them (he stole from them). They hurt him and want his mother’s ring. But before he can get it from her she is brutally murdered and her ring is stolen. The ring is on the way to a buyer in the US and so goes Alejandro.
In the meantime, a reporter Jennifer Blake is trying to get Sam to comment on the floaters. But he won’t return her call.
And then there is Kenny a kid in high school being tormented by Vinny and his friends. Lo and behold, Vinny’s computer goes on the fritz and is brought into the computer shop Kenny works at. Kenny installs a keystroke worm to find out what is really going on with evil Vinny. And then Kenny is found murdered.
And if that isn’t bad enough a fourth young man is also found dead. What is going on wonders Sam?
Jennifer receives a call from an old professor who tells her a fantastic story about a cursed artifact that a pawn broker has received and asks her to pick it up for him. She hems and haws but he wins and she picks it up. A hooded man bumps her as she leaves the shop. The next morning she is assigned the murder of a pawn shop dealer – her pawn shop dealer. Could it have been the man who bumped her as she was leaving? She immediately tried to reach the professor to no avail and soon learns he too has been murdered. What is with this artifact?
Eventually Sam figures out that Jennifer was at the pawn shop and their worlds collide – professionally and personally. Alejandro is hunting for the ring and leaving a wake of bodies. What is with the 4 dead boys? And the ring is a myth isn’t it?
Marta Stephens weaves several stories into a puzzle of a thriller. She mixes voodoo with Catholicism, murder, the antichrist, and a little bit of romance to create a story that makes one wonder what if? THE DEVIL CAN WAIT is an exciting adventure. I was a tad bit disappointed in the ending, but that is not to say the book is not excellent, for it is. Quite the enjoyable read. The twists and turns will keep you page turning!
On a scale of 1 to 5, I give it a 4.8.
Cynthia Lea Clark, Psy.D., MHt
Main Book Reviews Index
All rights reserved.
Contact Lida: publisher@fmam.biz
Website contact: webmaster @ fmam.biz