MURDER-GO-ROUND: REVIEWS BY HARRIET KLAUSNER
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Harriet Klausner, was chosen the number
one reader in the entire USA by BOOK Magazine. What does that mean
to you? She reads constantly and knows what's out there and wants
to let you know, too. Read on for tips to great books from the wonder
reader Harriet Klausner. |
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December 2004
A
CATERED WEDDING
Isis Crawford
Kensington, Dec2004, $22.00, 288 pp.
ISBN: 0758206852
Lisa Sharpe is marrying a very rich man, who happens to be more than two
decades her senior. She is not marrying for love; she is marrying for
money as the nine carets on her hand, the twenty-five K wedding dress,
and a billion other items make up for the lack of passion. When she gets
a call to meet someone at the wedding tent, an irritated Lisa enters the
reception tent, but is killed instantly by a cross bow arrow.
Catering the nuptials, Bernadette and Libby Simmons, owners of A Taste
of Heaven, find the body. The father of the Simmons sisters Sean is the
former police chief, but now confined to a wheelchair due to a debilitating
illness; he takes an interest in the homicide especially when he and his
two daughters are hired to uncover the identity of the perpetrator. For
the first time in three years, he has left his home to scope out the crime
scene while his daughters heed (not) his advice and investigate on their
own only to find much of the wedding party including the groom had motives
and opportunity.
A CATERED WEDDING is an upbeat, funny and delightful amateur sleuth mystery
(though one is a former professional — he got paid for investigations)
due to the three main characters. Sean tries unsuccessfully to boss his
daughters, but Bernie spouts encyclopedic paragraphs at the drop of a
hat and Libby is the poster girl for obsessive-compulsive. All the suspects
have strong motives for wanting the victim dead so in spite of clues readers
will remain clueless until the author reveals the killer’s identity.
The three likable protagonists win readers’ hearts as they "crash"
the wedding party.
Harriet Klausner
A
COLD AND SILENT SPRING
Eleanor Taylor Bland
St Martin’s, Dec 2004, $23.95, 272 pp.
ISBN 0312326653
With a change in administration Lincoln Prairie homicide detective Marti
McAllister reports to Lieutenant Gail Nicholson. This situation neither
woman likes because the lieutenant wants to be the only African-American
in the department and Marti because she put too many years into being
a police officer to deal with petty garbage. Lt. Nicholson is recording
every move Marti makes waiting until she has enough evidence to fire her.
While Marti is coping with the Lieutenant, she and her partner are dealing
with a case in which two homeless people were murdered in an abandoned
house. A Desert Storm vet was in the house but they don’t have enough
evidence to arrest him. The lieutenant wants Marti and her partner to
forget about trying to get more evidence on the vet because the public
cares more about a man who served his country than two homeless people.
The case is far from closed because more bodies turn up murdered in the
same way the first two victims were. Marti doesn’t know it but this
perpetrator is known to her and poses a danger to her and those she cares
about.
The animosity between the two cops feels realistic because Marti’s
boss is a woman who wants no competition and she knows that her subordinate
could take the limelight away from her. The case is solved by good old
fashioned detective work with many officers putting in plenty of man hours
to catch the perpetrator before he strikes again. Eleanor Taylor Bland
is an expert at creating true-to-life characters for readers who like
strong independent women will definitely want to read A COLD AND DYING
DAY.
Harriet Klausner
ABBY
COOPER, PSYCHIC EYE
Victoria Laurie
Signet, Dec 2004, $5.99, 307
ISBN 0451213637
In Royal Oak, Michigan, Abby Cooper tries an online dating service since
she hasn’t had a date in years. She believes that once she proves
she is a psychic, men are scared off. Her date with Dutch goes smoothly
but when she tells him that the child who was abducted in the mall is
dead and the mother and another close relative are the perpetrators he
cuts her off. She doesn’t hear from him for a week.
Abby senses she is being followed and she sees the stalker. The next day
he shows her his gold shield and tells her the mother and brother is in
custody. He and his partner spent the last week investigating Abby and
psychics are not in his belief system. Another of Abby’s client is
brutally murdered; Abby feels guilty that she didn’t give Allison
another appointment when she requested it. Taking it upon herself, she
learns her sister supposedly committed suicide shortly before her wedding
but Abby’s sixth sense says she was murdered by the same person who
killed Allison Now she has to find out who he is and give the name to
Dutch.
This is the start of a great new series due in large part to the heroine
who is not afraid to use her powers to help people in crises. Up until
Allison’s case she never worked with the police because of their
skepticism but once Dutch gets over the shock, he accepts Abby and her
powers completely. The mystery is well constructed and there is plenty
of action in this amateur sleuth tale but readers will love ABBY COOPER,
PSYCHIC DETECTIVE because the storyline is well written and refreshingly
unique.
Harriet Klausner
ACCESS
DENIED
Donna Andrews
Berkley Dee 2004, $23.95, 256 pp.
ISBN 0425198383
Artificial Intelligence Personality (AIP) Turing Hopper has gained sentience
and with the help of her two friends is now in charge of Universal Libraries
and Alan Grace Inc. All three sentient beings are on the lookout for Nestor
Garcia because he knows about Turing and wants to steal her just like
he did her clone T2. When someone uses his credit card to make online
charges and have them delivered to a house where he family is on vacation,
Tim, a private investigator sets up a surveillance, which collapses when
he falls asleep on the job.
When he wakes up, the person who was supposed to pick up the packages
is dead. And he has to talk his way out of jail. Turing hacks into databases
where she finds that a stolen credit card ring is operating in her part
of the city. That information leads them to a collection agency where
a skip tracer who is the ringleader has all the credit cards, the names,
what was purchased and where it was delivered in a spreadsheet. When he
disappears, Turing and company set out to find him because they want to
know if he is connected to Nestor.
Turing is absolutely adorable as she tries to understand how carbon based
entities operate. She constantly contrasts their personality traits to
that of AIPs and decides she wants to be part of both worlds. Turing’s
lawyer is let in on the AIP’s secret and id already making plans
for her to gain recognition in the courts. Turing wants to keep a very
low profile until Nester is caught and T2 is returned to her. Readers
will find ACCESS DENIED a charming mystery with a delightful heroine.
Harriet Klausner
AFRAID
OF THE DARK
Donna Anders
Pocket, Dec 2004, $6.99, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0743427319
San Francisco police officer Jessie Cline worries about her eleven years
old son Danny living in an unsafe neighborhood. After a harrowing incident,
she wonders who would care for him if she was killed as her son’s
father denies the child is his because Jessie had an affair at about the
time she became pregnant. When she learns that she inherited property
on Washington’s Cliff Island, Jessie decides to fill the will’s
stipulation of living there at least a year. Jessie’s also obtains
the job of Assistant Police Chief.
Police Chief Hank Shepherd assigns Jessie to keep safe Lynda the pregnant
wife of famous cartoonist Ben Thrasher who is in the news for his social
commentary about an alleged womanizing senator. He was the Berkley professor,
who Jessie had that affair with that ended her marriage.
Someone burns down Jessie’s woodshed and she receives a threatening
letter to leave or die. Lynda tells Jessie that someone forced her off
the road while a driver tries to hit Danny. More incidents follow aimed
at Jessie, Lynda, and Danny; the link is Ben, but no motive surfaces and
the danger mounts
Jessie is a terrific strong lead heroine who has no idea why she and her
son are under siege, but the incidents and the police investigation grip
readers from start to finish though Danny is too perfect. Also a secondary
Tugboat Annie like character draws the same conclusions using the same
technology as the cops yet faster without insider information or the vast
interrelated criminal databases. Still the suspense grows with twists
and turns that hook fans who will keep the lights on being AFRAID OF THE
DARK.
Harriet Klausner
ALL
SHE EVER WANTED
Barbara Freethy
Signet, Dec 2004, $6.99, 416 pp.
ISBN: 0451213653
In San Francisco, St. Timothy’s Hospital ER specialist Dr. Natalie
Bishop hears about a bestselling novel, Fallen Angel, written by an unknown
author Garrett Malone that eerily sounds like what happened a decade ago
to her college roommate Emily Parish. Natalie thinks back to the Fabulous
Four (she, Emily, Laura, and Madison) and that fatal day that changed
all their lives.
When his irate girlfriend hits Tribune editor Cole Parish with a stapler,
his friend takes him to nearby St. Timothy’s. There he runs into
Natalie. They were attracted to one another when the death of his sister
ended their relationship and remain engrossed with each other even now
though Natalie mentioning a book surprises him. When they try to meet
the author at a book signing, he flees from Natalie or Laura who also
arrived at the bookstore. Natalie and Cole agree to investigate further
the claim of Malone that one of the other surviving Fab Four killed Emily.
ALL SHE EVER WANTED is a fabulous investigative romance tale that grips
the audience once Natalie learns of the novel obviously written by an
insider but how that reflects the worse moment of her life. The lead couple
is a fine pairing as both are very attracted to one another, but the ghost
of his sister keeps them apart as it has for a decade. Though unnecessary
coincidence staples and sutures the first meeting between Natalie and
Cole, fan will enjoy this tense thriller wondering how Malone knows what
he does and whether murder did occur.
Harriet Klausner
BURED
BY BREAKFAST
Claudia Bishop
Berkley, Dec 2004, $6.50, 272 pp.
ISBN: 0425199452
March is normally quiet time for the manager and co-owner of the Inn at
Hemlock Falls Sarah "Quill" Quilliam and for her sister co-owner
and Chef Meg. However, this year the Inn hosts a sequestered jury working
the case of Rocor vs. Meecham. Six jurors, the flamboyant Judge Moody,
his bodyguard, and the court liaison are the only guests at the Inn, but
this entourage keeps the siblings hopping trying to satisfy their outrageous
demands. Meanwhile the town is coping with Corliss Hooker who is going
to ridiculous lengths to stop Ferris Rodman, owner of Rocor Construction,
from relocating a Civil War Cemetery so that he can build a golf course
at its present site.
Soon after Corliss asks to speak with the Judge, Moody is found murdered;
Quill is eager to find out who killed him. She hopes it is Ferris Rodman,
who is supposedly planning to build an inn to rival that of the sisters.
Quill convinces businesswoman Marge Schmidt to break into Rodman’s
trailer hoping to find dirt on him, but they get caught. Rodman agrees
to not press charges and admits he plans to build an inn by the proposed
golf course. The next day Marge asks Quill to help her find her ex husband
Buddy who was supposed to meet them at the inn, but when they do he has
been decapitated. Quill thinks the murders are connected, but struggles
to find the missing link.
A "Hemlock Falls" mystery is always a great reading experience
and BURIED BY BREAKFAST is no exception. Claudia Bishop writes an enthralling
amateur sleuth mystery with so many suspects mostly guests that readers
will not guess who the perpetrator is. The siblings and Marge remain solid
protagonists in this highly recommended novel and series.
Harriet Klausner
BLACK
WIND
Clive Cussler and Dirk Cussler
Putnam, Dec 2004
ISBN: 0399152598
In December 1944, Captain Miyoshi Horinouchi, staff
operations officer of the Japanese Imperial Navy Sixth Fleet, informs Lieutenant
Commander Ogawa of Submarine I-403 of a change of assignment. Instead of patrolling
the Philippines, he is to "escort’ a special guest from the Kure Naval
Base in Japan to the "enemy’s doorsteps". The civilian Dr. Jisaichi
Tanaka of the Army Medical College has found a devastating biological agent
that will bring the Americans to their knees begging for peace. If he fails
on this mission, Japan will inevitably lose the war as the Battle of the Pacific
is all but over since the recent fleet devastation at the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
However neither this sub nor a companion ever made it to its intended target.
In 2007 a South Korean knows where the subs sank and
has plans for uniting his country by distracting the Americans with the launching
of the deadly biological cargo on Los Angeles. Only Dirk Pitt Sr. and his adult
children Jr. and Summer along with his crew from the National Underwater and
Marine Agency (NUMA) stand in the way of success.
This is typical Clive Cussler fare starting with a
historical naval moment expanded into an exhilarating base for a strong contemporary
watery thriller in which the action is everything. Dirk is aging gracefully
(my knees hurt just reading about his adventures), but the torch as with the
authors seem to be moving on one knot at a time to the next generation. BLACK
WIND is an exciting tale that is like all the NUMA novels worth an oceanic adventure
trek that takes enthralled readers merrily to the Pitts.
Harriet Klausner
COURTING
DISASTER
Joanne Pence
Avon, Dec 2004, $6.99, 368 pp.
ISBN: 0060502916
Still between jobs, rich, beautiful and nervous Angie Amalfi is going
crazy as she wonders where her engagement party is going to be held and
what it will be like. She put the whole affair in her mother’s hands
so that she can be in charge of creating her wedding. Her next door neighbor
Stan is depressed because Angie is getting married to homicide detective
Paavo Smith while he failed to get past being a friend in her mind.
At a Greek restaurant, Stan sees waitress Hannah and is immediately smitten.
They get to know one another, but he quickly concludes that Hannah fears
a waiter who happens to be the father of her unborn child. When Hannah
goes into labor, Stan takes her to the hospital and after the baby is
born he brings them into his home. When the father is killed, evidence
points towards Hannah as the prime suspect, but others had a motive to
murder the waiter. Stan with Angie pushing her way at his side seeks the
identity of the real culprit.
COURTING DISASTER is a great romantic mystery in which the baby scenes
provide immense humor (tissues to wipe the tears of laughter unless you
are a new parent — then its sympathy pains). The romance between
Angie and Paavo is growing stronger as each begins to accept the eccentricities
of their future partner. Stan’s desperate inquiries to prove his
beloved innocent takes a spin when Angie tries to come to the rescue in
an electrifying climax that will long be remembered. Courting the bestseller
list, Joanne Pence has written a winner deserving an award nomination
at the minimum.
Harriet Klausner
DEATH
OF A TRICKSTER
Kate Borden
Berkley, Dec 2004, $6.99, 224 pp.
ISBN: 0425199460
Halloween is right around the corner and people are getting ready to celebrate.
The town has taken an economic upswing ever since they converted the place
into a colonial village where residents dress in period costumes. Tourists
stay at the restored button factory converted into an inn. Mayor Peggy
Turner, who also owns a hardware store, is at loggerheads with the new
Chief of Police Henry Cartwright, who she believes is impugning on her
territory.
Henry thinks that whoever is stealing the skeleton Buddy from the lab
and leaving him dressed up in clothes so he looks like a corpse should
fall under his jurisdiction, but Peggy takes care of it because she knows
it is silly schoolboy pranks. When ailing elderly Luigi Alsop vanishes,
Peggy organizes the search. They find him in a cave next to Henry’s
dead son the murder weapon near Luigi. Many folks believe Luigi killed
the lad because the deceased was harassing and terrifying the older man’s
granddaughter. Peggy thinks otherwise and sets out to prove her assertion.
This New England cozy contains a very interesting mystery because of the
attitudes of the locals who pull together in good and bad times. Neighbors
know they can count on one another for help (a friend in need is not a
pest as it seems in most places today). Peggy as the activist mayor symbolizes
all that is good in this small town. Readers will also gain a feel for
life in a New England village, but it is the unusual situations that Peggy
and her best friend seem to and in find themselves in that make for a
fun regional tale.
Harriet Klausner
DEATH
TAKES A GANDER
Christine Goff
Berkley, Dec 2004, $5.99, 212 pp.
ISBN 0425193926
Angela is a U.S. Fish and wildlife Agent being trained by Ian a senior
agent. He calls dispatch who calls her to meet Ian for backup at Barr
Lake but by the time she gets there, Ian is dead. She notices a swan acting
peculiarly but her attention is mainly on Ian who the coroner says committed
suicide. Without an experienced agent to train her, Angela’s boss
assigns her to Elk Park’s first Annual Ice Fishing Jamboree to make
sure the anglers don’t catch any greenback cutthroat trout.
The event is sponsored by Donald Tavern, CEO of Agriventures, Inc. Before
the Jamboree begins, there are a lot of sick geese on the ice with similar
coloring to what Angela noticed when she found Ian’s body. They treat
the surviving geese for lead poisoning. Angela investigates how the lead
got into their bodies. She rescues an unconscious agent from the icy water
and lands a plane when her pilot succumbs to poisoning. Angela thinks
that the incidents are linked, but how and why remains to be proven.
DEATH TAKES A GANDER is a great mystery because the heroine refuses to
give up her investigation even when her boss takes her off the case. Angela
is a feisty and independent woman who is not afraid to think outside the
box seeking the connecting thread that ties the incidents together. Christine
Goff creates an intriguing mystery with lots of action without resorting
to blood and gore so that fans of cozies will appreciate his work.
Harriet Klausner
DEGREESS
OF SEPARATION
Karen Wiesner and Chris Spindler
Quiet Storm, Oct 2004, $26.95, 297 pp.
ISBN: 0974408441
Andre Trelawney oddly opens up Danse de Minuit, a classy French club that
the locals call a strip joint, in Falcon’s Bend, Wisconsin. He keeps
his dancers under tight rein with the performers residing under his roof
and not allowed to leave the premises without an escort guard.
One of the dancers Teresa is found strangled to death under a bridge in
Witmer Park. Police Lieutenant Pete Shasta and his partner Detective Danny
Vincent investigate the first murder in town in over a year and that incident
was a DUI. They interview Andre who the cops conclude is hiding something
although he seems to have an airtight alibi. They talk with the wife of
the club owner and follow that up with questioning the surviving dancers
(Lacey, Cherry, Deidre, Sugar and Vanessa). The case seems to go nowhere
as the detectives dig into the background of the club employees and employer
seeking a motive.
DEGREES OF SEPARATION is a terrific police procedural with detectives
struggling to uncover who and why. Pete is a fabulous focus to the fine
plot as he worries that his second wife will dump him like his first spouse
did because he works long diligent hours on the case instead of on her.
His partner adds depth with his big city cynical outlook though under
thirty (five years in the Big Apple will do that). The dancers have unique
personalities and Andre is a way out antagonist who has no apparent reason
to kill the victim. Though the twist is obvious and overused, sub-genre
fans will appreciate this tense one sitting Falcon’s Bend offering.
Harriet Klausner
DIED
BLONDE
Nancy J. Cohen
Kensington, Dec 2004, $22.00, 256 pp.
ISBN: 0758206569
When the lights go out during working hours at Marla Shore’s beauty
parlor Cut’N'Dye, the owner’s first thought is that Carolyn
Sutton of Carolyn’s Hairstyle Heaven is up to one of her tricks.
Since Carolyn moved her business into the same shopping center where Marla
is located, the newcomer has been playing dirty tricks on her in hopes
of stealing or at least reducing her rival’s customer base. When
Marla goes to her meter room, she trips over the dead body of her competitor.
Marla’s significant other Detective Vail heads the investigation.
This should help Marla who has publicly announced to her customers that
she would kill Carolyn if she was responsible for the outage. Vail does
not suspect her, but asks her to help him by talking with people who knew
the victim especially her employees. Marla learns that Carolyn had a lot
of secrets including being a blackmailer, but who had the greatest motive
to murder her remains the prevalent secret.
DIED BLONDE is a hair raising amateur sleuth mystery that also contains
a fine romantic subplot between Vail and Shore with her having to decide
whether she can fully commit to him and his daughter who she also loves.
There are more suspects than Marla has customers so readers and the heroine
will wonder who the real killer is. Nancy J. Cohen is a terrific writer
who always provides her customers with a stylish tale as the author has
done with this fine novel.
Harriet Klausner
EPHAME'S
CHOICE
P.C. Cast
Luna, Dec 2004, $13.95, 400 pp.
ISBN: 0373802137
Ephame is the offspring of a mating between a human and a centaur; from
the waist up she is human, but from the waist down she is covered with
brown hair and has cloven hoofs. Her genes make her stronger and faster
than her human counterparts. Although she loves her mother, she needs
to make a life for herself. She intends to return Castle MacCallan to
its former glory and become the new clan chieftain. Centaurs and humans
welcome her as the rightful owner.
Ephame meets the half-human half Fomonian Lachlan; they fall in love even
though their races are enemies ever since his invaded Parthelon, destroyed
Castle MacCallan, and kidnapped human women because their own are sterile.
Lachlan believes that Ephame is the person that the prophecy foretold
would lift the curse of the hybrids and allow the evil Fomonian side to
vanish. He also fears the cost to his beloved is too high, but his race
plans to insure the fulfillment of the prophecy.
EPHAME'S CHOICE is a beautiful adult fantasy about two "Romeo and
Juliet" hybrids falling in love with the backdrop of cross species
hatred to keep them apart. Ephame always felt like the odd person although
her neighbors and family respect her. When she strikes out on her own
she gains the self confidence that she lacked and quickly becomes a leader
worthy of ruling. Her mate is her equal prepared to ostracize himself
amidst his people to help his beloved. Together they cast the keeper shelf
spell on readers.
Harriet Klausner
FIRE
WHEN READY
Kate Kingsbury
Berkley, Dec 2004, $5.99, 224 pp.
ISBN: 0425199487
During World War II in England, the villagers have seen too much change
in too short a time to want any further disruptions in their way of life.
Lady Elizabeth Hartleigh Compton of the Manor House subtly soothes ruffled
feathers of the locals, tired by food rationing, the invasion of the Americans
quartered in British homes, and the curfews. Even Elizabeth the great
cannot get the residents to accept the new munitions factory run by Douglas
McNally.
At the opening ceremony, Elizabeth has the honor of cutting the ribbon,
but is taken aback when Douglas informs her that he is receiving death
threats in the mail. Shortly thereafter, a fire breaks out at the factory
killing Douglas and a charwoman. Following a rather quick inquiry, the
fire marshal declares an accident occurred, but Elizabeth wonders in light
of the letters whether murder happened. She learns that the victims were
locked inside an office unable to get out. Totally connived that murder
took place, Elizabeth intends to prove that and uncover the identity of
the culprit.
FIRE WHEN READY is a fun to read amateur sleuth historical mystery that
pays attention to period detail so that the readers can taste the real
frustrations, fears, sacrifices, and hardships of villagers in England
during the Great War. The heroine is a plucky strong willed character
who watches over her villagers like a mother hen; thus investigating arson
and murder in Elizabeth’s mind is part of protecting her "children".
Kate Kingsbury treats her readers with a charming tale that will send
her satisfied audience seeking previous novels in this fine series.
Harriet Klausner
MAD
MONEY
Linda L. Richards
Mira, Dec 2004, $6.50, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0778321037
In Manhattan, a failed investor who rejected his broker’s advice,
enters the offices of Merriweather Bailey and kills thirty-five years
old Jackson Shoenberger. Jackson’s best friend, fellow broker, Madeline
Carter witnessed the murder. Madeline takes a leave of absence and at
Jackson’s funeral, Madeline offers her condolences to her friend’s
wife and children, but blames herself unfairly for his death as her decision
on a promotion opportunity influenced his.
Unable to cope, Madeline quits her job; her former boss Sal gets her a
place to stay in Malibu, California at a friend’s home. The friend
turns out to be Hollywood director Tyler Beckett, his young wife, and
his teenage daughter. To earn money, Madeline becomes a successful day
trader until she meets former boyfriend Ernest Billings, who gives her
insider information that he has been named as CEO of Langton Regional
Group. Though questionable and perhaps illegal, Madeline invests in LRG
and inadvertently persuades her mom to do so too only to see the price
of the stock collapse and Ernest vanishes. As she searches for Ernest
and the money she meets Steve Rundel, but her fiscal fiasco seems to keep
the duo apart though they are attracted to one another.
MAD MONEY is an enjoyable financial contemporary romantic suspense starring
a beleaguered heroine struggling with grief while trying to start over.
The tale has several subplots besides the Billings deal that are well
written such as a teen runaway, but take the reader away from the prime
theme of Madeline’s drowning in her professional life while flopping
in her personal life. Readers will enjoy this madcap fiscal adventure
starring a likeable cast especially the protagonist.
Harriet Klausner
MIRROR
RORRIM
Karen Wiesner
Hard Shell Factory
0759945748
Fourteen years ago clairvoyant Gwen Nicholson-Nelson was pregnant when
her husband a NASCAR Circuit champion died. Each year since Tommie’s
death, Milwaukee based small press A Star is Born Biographies asks Gwen
for permission to write a biography about her late spouse. Through her
gift, Gwen never even opens their letter; her daughter Allison watches
her throw it out.
Gwen works as a counselor with troubled teenage boys. Her current client,
Kyle, is in danger from the clairvoyant Other that has taken control of
his mind and influencing his actions. The Other is more powerful than
Gwen is with the skill to conceal or reveal to the latter at will.
Allison convinces her mother to allow the writing of the biography of
her father, but Gwen agrees only if author Dylan Mitchell writes the book.
Having never forgotten his one night with Gwen before she married, widower
Dylan accepts the assignment hoping for a second chance; he and his teenage
daughter Randa move into Gwen’s mansion to work on the biography.
Soon the Other enters Randa's mind with only Gwen to keep her safe.
Mirror rorriM is a terrific one sitting second chance at love psychological
thriller that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats anticipating
a final confrontation. The key to the romance and to the psychological
kinetic suspense is the cast. Readers fully understand what has and does
motivate Dylan and Gwen, and to a lesser degree the Other, teens, family
members, a friend, and the late Tommie without slowing down the action-packed
plot. Karen Wiesner gets inside the minds of her audience with the fabulous
book 3 of the Wounded Warrior series (see RELUCTANT HEARTS and WAITING
FOR AN ECLIPSE).
Harriet Klausner
MRS.
HUDSON AND THE SPIRITS' CURSE
Martin Davies
Berkley, Dec. 2004, $13.00, 320 pp.
ISBN 0425198456
Homeless and hungry Flotsam tries to steal a rotting cabbage but the grocer’s
son Scraggs catches her. He turns her over to housekeeper Mrs. Hudson,
who sees something in the orphan and takes her into service as a maid.
Mrs. Hudson insures that Flotsam is educated in the domestic arts and
the three R’s. When her employer commits suicide Mrs. Hudson takes
a job as housekeeper to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson; she brings Flotsam
along to keep her safe and secure.
One night a man with one eye and a scar on his face and wearing a cowl,
comes calling with a note saying his master wants to meet with Mr. Holmes.
The next day Nathaniel Moran asks the famous detective for his help. He
is clearly frightened because he believes he is under a Sumatran curse
caused when he and his two business partners disrespected their gods.
Several people connected with their enterprise in Sumatra are dead and
Nathaniel hopes Holmes can break the curse. Holmes believes a human is
killing people but before he can solve the case, Moran’s partners
die. It takes Mrs. Hudson to help the great detective solve the spirit’s
curse.
Readers who are fans of the Mrs. Jeffries mysteries will want to read
MRS. HUDSON AND THE SPIRITS’ CURSE. Although Sherlock Holmes gets
the glory, it is Mrs. Hudson working behind the scenes who solves the
case. Her relationship with Flotsam is more like mother-daughter than
upper and lower servant. The protagonist has a heart of gold beneath her
gruff exterior and readers will take her into their hearts. Martin Davies
take on Sherlock Holmes will shake up die hard fans of the master detective.
Harriet Klausner
SPIDER
DANCE
Carole Nelson Douglas
Forge, Dec 2004, $24.95, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0765306832
In August 18899 at the Green-wood cemetery in Brooklyn, Irene Adler Norton
and her companion Nell Huxleigh look at the gravesite that might be the
last resting place of the former’s mother. Out of nowhere, Sherlock
Holmes appears and directs them to the grave of Eliza Gilbert. Both females
assume that Gilbert is most likely Irene’s biological mother who
gave her up at birth. Further research reveals that Gilbert was Lola Montez,
an adventuress who was a mistress of King Ludwig of Bavaria.
With a dead man found on his table, Willie Vanderbilt hires Holmes to
investigate who killed the man, who is sending him threatening letters
involving gold and jewels, and what is the link between the two. Irene
recognizes the corpse as the priest who was giving Lola comfort when she
was dying. As their cases interconnect, Holmes finds himself with a new
partner, whom he admires for her intelligence, until Irene abruptly vanishes
with Vanderbilt’s child Consuelo.
Carole Nelson Douglas has written a fantastic historical mystery showcasing
the only person to ever outwit the great Holmes, who plays a key supportive
role. Told in rotating first person narratives, readers know what thoughts
are going through the minds of the protagonists which in turn enable the
audience to fully follow the two separate inquiries and know what the
intersection means before the two great sleuths do. SPIDER DANCE is an
excellent work that emphasizes great detective work with a back drop of
the wealthy in the Gilded Age of Manhattan.
Harriet Klausner
THE
BLUE ROSE
Anthony Eglin
St. Martin’s, Dec 2004, $23.95, 304 pp.
ISBN 0312328702
From the moment they saw the Parsonage in the English village of Steeple
Tarrant Alex and Kate Sheppard knew they found their dream house. Once
they moved in, Alex and Kate work to fix the huge neglected gardens and
soon find hidden under other plants a blue rose. Kate knows it must be
very valuable because scientists have tried for decades without success
to create one. They contact Doctor Lawrence Kingston who is an expert
on roses and ask him to provide his expert opinion.
When he sees the rose, he advises them to get a lawyer to handle all the
buyers that will want to purchase the flowery gem. They decide to put
it up for auction but before that can happen, two businessmen desperate
for money call and try to get the rose. The Sheppards refuse to talk to
them and refer them to their lawyer. Someone is desperate enough to kidnap
Kate and hold her for ransom in exchange for the rose. The only problem
is Alex no longer has it because someone has stolen it.
THE BLUE ROSE is an exciting amateur sleuth mystery that will appeal to
people who love to garden and those readers who don’t like a lot
of gore and blood in their who-done-it. The protagonists are beleaguered
from every side by folks who will stop at nothing to get THE BLUE ROSE.
What nobody knows is that the flower has an unexpected property that makes
it dangerous. Anthony Eglin has written a wonderful garden mystery that
like many vines takes a lot of unexpected twists and turns.
Harriet Klausner
THE
FIRE BABY
Jim Kelly
St. Martin's, Dec 2004, $24.95
ISBN: 0312321457
Every night for the past four years, Weekly Crow reporter Philip Dryden
visits his comatose spouse Laura at Ely's Tower Hospital. Laura's
current roommate, cancer victim Maggie Beck expects to die shortly.
She asks Philip to carry out a death wish favor. She has made tapes
of her memories especially concentrating on a 1976 plane crash at the
US air base in Mildenhall in which the dying woman provides a different
report than the official one. Maggie also furbishes a spin on her
daughter's marriage. She wants Philip to deliver her last words
to her daughter.
As Laura begins to awaken from her coma, she overhears much of what Maggie
says. She struggles to warn her spouse that he could be in danger,
but she is not fully conscious yet. Meanwhile Philip uncovers two
homicides that he believes ties back to Maggie's death bed wish.
As he investigates further someone tries to kill him. Only Laura,
if she can communicate, can tell him the truth that might save his life.
This exciting thriller combines soap opera elements with a tense journalist
investigation that grips the reader mostly because the audience will like
and admire Philip and hope that Laura recovers in time to warn him.
The story line is at its best when Philip is investigating Maggie's contention
and other underbelly stories. When the tale shifts to the hospital
scenes the plot loses momentum but adds depth to the beleaguered hero.
THE FIRE BABY is a terrific opening novel that hopefully has sequels with
a healing Laura at Philip's side.
Harriet Klausner
THE
GLASS HOUSE
Ashley Gardner
Berkley, Dec 2004, $5.99, 256 pp.
ISBN: 0425199436
Injured during the Peninsular Campaign, Captain Gabriel Lacey returns
to England where he solved two murder cases due to curiosity. A Bow Street
runner, his former sergeant, calls upon Lacey to identify the body who
he thinks is his neighbor Marianne; Lacey rushes to the Thames River where
the corpse was found, but she is not his neighbor although she wears a
ring given to her by an aristocrat. Lacey takes the ring to his friend
Grenville who knows everyone important and learns from the man that the
ring belongs to Lord Barbury.
Since Lord Barbury is a visitor at Grenville’s home, he introduces
the two men to one another. Barbury admits that he gave the ring to his
lover Mrs. Chapman, wife of a barrister. Lacey’s curiosity keeps
him investigating Mrs. Chapman’s death with the trail leading to
the GLASS HOUSE, a vile bawdy place where anything is for sale. Apparently
the victim had a room there where she met Barbury; they also had trysts
at the home of another man. As Lacey continues to search for clues, two
more homicides connected to his case occur and now even he could become
the next victim.
When one thinks of honor, Captain Lacey comes to mind as he helps a child
escape the horrors of the Glass House and stubbornly seeks to find a killer
of a woman he never met. The villain is innocuous and unassuming so that
the audience will never guess though afterward would nod in agreement
that the culprit was obvious. That and the hero is why this is an exciting
Regency mystery that also captures the ambience of the era.
Harriet Klausner
THE
HANGMAN'S HYMN
P.C. Dougherty
St. Martin’s, Dec 2004, $22.95, 224 pp.
ISBN: 0312300905
The pilgrims continue their journey to Canterbury, but are stopped by
Luke Tiverton and his men providing the king’s justice by hanging
violators of the "King’s Peace". One of the pilgrims, the
carpenter faints at the grim sight. Continuing on their pilgrimage, the
travelers stop for the night at St. Bardolph’s Priory.
While resting at the priory, the carpenter narrates his tale. Simon Cotterill
a carpenter follows his beloved to Gloucester where needing work he joins
a hangman’s crew. In the nearby forest women are vanishing without
a trace and a disfigured corpse has been found in the vicinity. Mayor
Humphrey assumes that witches are toiling and boiling in the area and
quickly has three crones arrested. Trying to keep the panic down and to
insure the town continues to flourish, the mayor and his cronies arrange
a kangaroo midnight trial to insure a guilty charge. Three days later
they are hung in the forest, but the hangmen flee a nasty storm. When
they return the witches are gone and their coven apparently seeks vengeance
one mortal at a time. Simon hides while also serendipitously tries to
solve who the real killer is.
The latest Chaucer tale, THE HANGMAN’S HYMN, is a terrific entry
in what is one of the best continuing sagas on the market today. The tale
is fun due to the exhilarating story within an exciting outer tale as
the carpenter narrates a chilling ghostly amateur sleuth when the travelers
stop for respite. The two sets of characters are fully developed so that
the audience feels they rest at St. Bardolph’s with the pilgrims
and that the Carpenter’s Tale happened.
Harriet Klausner
THE
SIREN QUEEN
Fiona Buckley
Scribner, Dec 2004, $24.00, 288 pp.
ISBN 0743237528
The Duke of Norfolk is attempting to matchmake his secretary Edmund Dean
with Ursula Blanchard’s daughter Meg. While Ursula isn’t crazy
about the idea, but she, her husband and their servants head to London
to get their servant Gladys away from the villagers before she is declared
a witch. While at Norfolk’s home Ursula realizes that the man wants
to marry Mary, former queen of Scots both for love and political power
if she can win back the Scottish throne.
Two men involved in Norfolk’s home are murdered and Ursula believes
it has something to do with putting Mary on the Scottish throne and making
her Elizabeth’s heir. Sir Cecil has Ursula go to the banker Roberto
Rodolfo’s house to act as a companion to his wife. Rodolfo is the
middleman between Norfolk and the Spanish Ambassador. While Ursula is
spying she comes across encrypted papers involving a plot to put Mary
on Elizabeth’s throne after Elizabeth is killed. Sir Cecil uses Ursula
to defuse the situation before the lords in the north make war on their
sovereign by taking Norfolk and Leicester out of the equation.
Fiona Buckley weaves historical facts so seamlessly into her storyline
that readers will find they are reading an extraordinary historical mystery.
It comes as no surprise that the heroine makes a very good spy and her
loyalty is to Elizabeth I, her queen and her half-sister. Although Mary
Queen of Scotts is not present in THE SIREN QUEEN, plots and counter plots
revolve around her and influence the course of politics during Elizabeth’s
reign. Fans of Sharon Kay Perman and Roberta Gellis are going to be very
happy reading this fine work.
Harriet Klausner
THE
UNQUIET DEAD
Gay Longworth
St. Martin's, Dec 2004, $24.95
ISBN: 0312310633
West End Central Detective Inspector Jessie Driver believes actress Sarah
Klein has pulled a publicity stunt claiming a missing-daughter to gain
media attention to her new show. However, Detective Inspector Mark
Ward and their new boss Detective Chief Inspector Moore harshly disagree.
Meanwhile her personal life seems in chaos. Having returned from
Africa, her brother Bill has flopped in her place and her romance with
rock star P.J. Dean is tabloid food frenzy.
Jessie makes inquiries into the missing girl case that leads her to the
derelict Marshall Street Baths where instead of a child she finds a mummy
of someone who apparently died in 1989. That twist takes Jessie
to Anglican Church exorcist Father Forrester who insists that those caught
between the moral realm and the great beyond need solace and forgiveness
to enable them to move on. His ranting shakes Jessie who still mourns
for her mother, but does not take her any closer to solving the missing
child's case; it does lead her to ponder how far a person will go to help
those "in-between".
THE UNQUIET DEAD is an intriguing British police procedural that grips
the reader with the insightful look at illogical rationalizing via faith
to condone any action. The story line moves forward rather quickly
though there are many twists and turns. Jessie is terrific as she
struggles with her personal life and finds her professional life as a
token estrogen in a sea of resentful testosterone turned worse with her
new female boss being a Queen Bee. Still the investigation makes
the tale as Jessie finds her value system challenged every step of the
way.
Harriet Klausner
THE
WITCH IN THE WELL
Sharan Newman
Forge, Dec. 2004, $24.95, 352 pp.
ISBN 0765308819
To escape the heat in Paris, Catherine, Edgar and their three children
visit her brother’s manor house Vielleteneuse. When her brother comes
back from the hunt he has with him an injured woman. Despite Catherine’s
efforts the woman dies, but a few seconds later she says that "evil
is coming for all Andonenn’s children" and BEGS Catherine to
save them before the well runs dry. Catherine learns that the family legend
is known to all her relatives except her.
At the Castle of Boisvert, Catherine’s grandfather summons all the
descendents of Andonenn demanding they come to the ancestral home because
their "protection" is fading. Neither Guillaume, his wife Marie
nor Catherine & Edgar want to go but someone is causing dangerous
accidents that force them to go to the haven of Boisvert. They find no
safety in the Castle because the heir is killed and his brother is injured.
A neighbor plans to take the castle with the help of a traitor but two
women, who though seemingly mad, apparently hold the key to the castle’s
salvation and the people in it.
Although there are many incidents in THE WITCH IN THE WELL that seem to
be supernaturally based, it is really the actions of two women who want
the family to come to the castle and they don’t care how much damage
they cause along the way. Sharan Newman has written a totally enthralling
historical mystery in which a castle with unexplored corridors and white
subterranean floor are explored giving the book a gothic feel. There is
treasure to be found but finding it is part of the mystery of this incredible
amateur sleuth tale.
Harriet Klausner
WHITEOUT
Ken Follett
Dutton, Dec 2004, $26.95, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0525948430
Toni Gallo is the facilities director at Oxenford Medical where the owner
invented an anti-viral vaccine. Toni runs security. While making a routine
check she finds a vial of the viral serum missing. She tracks it to an
employee who stole a rabbit infected with Madoba—2 a variant of Ebola,
but worse. The employee is dying from the rabbit’s bite as the serum
does not work on Madoba-2. While Toni and her employer Stanley Oxenford
perform public damage control, his son Kit plans to break into the lab
and steal the serum.
Toni caught Kit stealing from the company to pay off his gambling debts
and his father fired him even though he did a superb job of creating the
security system for the firm. Kit owes over $250K to nasty people; the
only way he can pay his debt is to steal and sell the viral serum. What
he fails to understand is that the buyer is uninterested in the cure;
he wants Madoba-2. Stranded at his parents’ home by a blizzard, Kit
must choose between his confederates or his family.
WHITEOUT is a frightening thriller because it shows no one is totally
safe even with top notch fail-safe security systems and processes to control
laboratory viruses and bacteria. Toni is an independent strong-willed
woman who risks her life to insure that the criminals do not escape with
the deadly virus. On a par with the best of James Patterson and Nelson
De Mille, Ken Follett injects the thrill and chill in his latest thriller.
Harriet Klausner
Harriets's Archived Reviews
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