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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March 2005
HARD
TRUTH
Nevada Barr
Putnam, Mar 2005, $24.95, 336 pp.
ISBN: 0399152415
Married less than a week, National Parks Ranger Anna Pigeon celebrates
her "honeymoon" by starting a new job at Rocky Mountain National
Park in Colorado while her spouse Sheriff Paul Davidson remains in Mississippi.
However, barely on the job, she finds herself caught up in the case of
two female teens, who vanished with a third girl about a month ago, but
just returned. The twosome remains closemouthed about their tribulations
insisting they do not know what happened or where the third female might
be. Though traumatized by a recent climbing accident that paralyzed her,
Heath Jarrod , who with her elderly aunt found the two girls, manages
to somewhat reach the girls.
Anna investigates what little she has learned especially the recent slaughter
of small animals and a tight lipped cult whose charismatic leader controls
the young that flock to him as she hopes to rescue the still missing third
person. Meanwhile Heath tries to aid the two devastated teens, who still
seem frightened by whoever abducted them. Actually by assisting the girls,
Heath helps herself more as she begins to adjust to life in a wheelchair.
Though darker than her previous appearances due to the graphically related
evil exploits of the villain, the latest Anna Pigeon police procedural
is a terrific thriller in which the heroine risks her life. The story
line cleverly counterbalances the malevolent antagonist with Heath's reemergence
as a member of the living as both have "purpose". The courageous
Anna is fabulous with her two time zone marriage (she may detest cell
phones, but they come in handy) while investigating a dangerous case with
several viable suspects, who seem as if anyone could kidnap girls and
if needed kill.
Harriet Klausner
COLD
SERVICE: A SPENSER NOVEL
Robert B. Parker
Putnam, Mar 2005, $24.95
ISBN: 0399152407
The Ukrainian mob has begun to muscle its way into the Boston rackets
with an eye on competing against Luther Gillespie's bookie operations.
Luther fearing the intrusion of this dangerous group from Brooklyn hires
Hawk as his bodyguard. However, as good as Hawk is, the mob proves better
at killing and most of Gillespe's family except for his young son are
murdered, while Hawk takes three bullets in his back.
Hawk identifies the shooters but the case is botched leaving it to Hawk's
code of ethics to take action although the Ukrainian gangsters have sanctuary
in nearby Marshport from the mayor and the local mob. Still taking out
five is not the difficult task especially with Spenser covering his back;
it is taking out the quintet without retaliation from the Ukrainians,
their handlers, and the Mass-east mob without leaving evidence for the
Feds or the police that is the problem.
The Spenser series always is at the stratospheric levels of male in your
face boldness, but this time Robert B. Parker takes the machismo gene
to the upper area of the atmosphere, the exosphere. The story line is
action-packed as the two friends continue their quest proving why bullets
have a certain phallic shape. Series fans will enjoy this thriller filled
with Superman levels of testosterone in which even their respective female
Docs fail at softening the avenging duo.
Harriet Klausner
RULES
OF ENGAGEMENT
Bruce Alexander
Putnam, Mar 2005, $24.95
ISBN: 0399152423
In 1775 a saddened Lord Chief Justice William Murray asks a favor of Sir
John Fielding, the magistrate of the Bow St. Court. William explains to
John and his clerk Jeremy Proctor how Lord Francis Talley died. The aristocrat
was completing work on a bill to blockade the four biggest American ports
so the economic consequences will put an end to the Adams' nonsense when
he left his office to take a walk. Halfway across the Westminster Bridge
he suddenly leaped into the Thames; several witnesses willingly testified
to that account of the suicide. William wonders why. John agrees to make
discrete inquiries to learn what motivated Francis to kill himself.
John and Jeremy soon learn that Dr. Goldsworthy, is a newcomer in town
whose patron is the widow of William's clerk. This leads the sleuths to
wonder who would gain most by Lord Francis dying and soon realize that
no member of the dysfunctional Lammermoor family grieves and some act
euphoric celebrating the death of its patriarch Lord Francis.
Though the great mystery author Bruce Alexander passed away, his fans
(including this reviewer) still have a treat as his wife and John Shannon
completed his last Sir John novel and no one will know who wrote which
part. The story line is fabulous as Jeremy is a sort of Watson looking
back from near the end of the century writing about his salad days as
a clerk sleuthing for his employer and mentor. Sir John and Jeremy remain
true to their personalities from previous tales and the mystery of Lord
Francis' death is cleverly designed. RULES OF ENGAGEMENT is a wonderful
homage to a notable writer.
Harriet Klausner
AS
SIMPLE AS SNOW
Gregory Galloway
Putnam, Mar 2005, $23.95
ISBN: 0399152318
Brooding Goth Anna "Anastasia" Cayne recently moved to the small
town where she attends Hamilton High School as a sophomore. She dresses
in black joining up with six other Manson clones as a clique. Anastasia
loves to read, loving those who craft wild ghost stories and enjoys tossing
riddles at people. Her hobby is writing obits for the living with her
current goal to complete one for all fifteen hundred plus residents in
less than a year.
At the library, she accosts a student over his reading material; they
begin dating. However, upon completing the town obits, Anastasia vanishes.
Her stunned boyfriend, encouraged by odd anonymous notes with enigmatic
puzzles and codes, begins looking back over the five months she was in
town and realizes weird things besides his own darkened transformation
had occurred. While the obituaries were being written no one died and
the author though new in town knew more about the souls than those who
lived here their entire life. He wonders if his family or friends caused
Anastasia's disappearing act or did she pull a Houdini and vanish.
AS SIMPLE AS SNOW grips the readers once Anastasia challenges the narrator
over his choice of Kerouac instead of Burroughs and never lets up until
the final metamorphosis, but fails to bring together the enigma that makes
up the fascinating anti-heroine. The story line grips the audience on
two levels; the need to know what really happened to the gloomy Anastasia
and as an insightful look at alienated youth. Gregory Galloway provides
a deep look at disenchanted teens, but in the end leaves too much unanswered
especially the spooky elements that haunt the left behind boyfriend..
Harriet Klausner
DEAD
OF NIGHT
Randy Wayne White
Putnam, March 2005, $24.95, 384 pp.
ISBN 039915244X
Dr. Marion Ford owns Sanibel Biological which sells marine samples to
schools and research laboratories around the countries. He looks like
a nerdy scientist but that is a cover for he is part of a deep cover operations
team. Members of the group provide its agents with legitimate and mobile
professions. Ford's job collecting marine samples takes him all over the
world, a great cover when on an assignment.
As a favor to a friend he checks on her brother Jobe Applebee because
he hasn't answered the phone for a few days. Marion sees a woman Dasha
beating and torturing Jobe. Marion chases her and her partner away but
meanwhile the man commits suicide. Guinea worms crawl out of his body.
A cunning criminal, Dr. Desmond Stokes is letting loose these and other
types of exotics so that property values in the area will drop and he
can buy prime land cheap. He seeks Jake's computer which might have the
cure for the worm infestation. He wants to develop it so that the world
will look at him as a savior while the clever and strong Dasha has orders
to eliminate Ford who has the computer files and knows who is behind the
loosening of the poisonous exotics on an unsuspecting state.
Randy Wayne White has written a high powered bio-terror thriller. The
action starts during the first chapter and picks up speed, taking the
reader on a roller coaster ride full of chilling terror. In the wrong
hands bio-terrorists can devastate an area and there is little anyone
can do to stop them until after the mission is accomplished and the results
become known. This is a very scary novel because it is based on a realistic
premise one that people can't guard against. DEAD OF NIGHT is a scintillating
action adventure thriller.
Harriet Klausner
FREEFALL
Judith and Garfield Reeves Stevens
Pocket, March 2005, $7.99, 556 pp.
ISBN 0743406079
After a year of training to use manipulative systems to gather the cylinders
containing moon dust and rocks that the rover collected, civilian Cory
Rey considered her mission a success and knows her boss Kai Teller of
TTI industries will be pleased. The rocks and dust are worth over $100
million dollars and he will make a huge profit at auction. From the time
that Cory completes her mission, things go wrong. The science officer
tries to kill her in order to take the cylinders; the shuttle and the
space station are badly damaged in a crash that kills all but three people.
The cosmonauts on the Soyuz rescue Cory after a near fatal accident and
she brings back with her one of the cylinders that someone was willing
to kill to possess. Inside are the petrified remains of three human fingers
but supposedly nobody ever died on the moon. Captain Mitch Webber of the
secret United States Space Force is sent to the moon to cover up what
a certain faction of the government wants kept secret but he is in a race
with the Chinese who plan to reveal what the U.S. government did over
three decades ago
Webber is sent on the mission without all the facts and once he discovers
what he is really supposed to do he has to decide between taking the legal
or the moral course. This is an action thriller that starts off at light
speed and than races at an even greater velocity towards the startling
climax and resolution. The team of Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens
has written a fine tale that will appeal to fans of Tom Clancy and Jack
Higgins.
Harriet Klausner
SLAYING
IS SUCH SWEET SORROW
Patricia Harwin
Pocket, Mar 2005, $6.50, 304 pp.
ISBN: 0743482255
After Catherine Perry's husband Quinn dumped her for another woman, she
packed her belongings and moved to Far Wychwood to reside near their daughter
Emily, her son-in-law Peter, and her grandson Archie. When Quinn and his
lover Janet come for a visit, Emily promises her mom to keep her dad away
from her because Catherine wants nothing to do with her ex. Quinn and
Catherine separately attend a dinner where Peter is to be named head of
his department at Oxford.
The outgoing head names Edgar Stone to replace him leaving Peter very
disappointed. When Catherine returns to the banquet room, she sees Peter
standing over a dead Edgar. The police arrest Peter, feeling they have
an airtight case after hearing a phone call Edgar allegedly made to the
prime suspect. However, the case collapses when Edgar's wife is found
dead with a suicide note in her handwriting saying she killed her husband.
Catherine feels good for her daughter and grandson, but has some lingering
doubts how the two deaths occurred.
Patricia Harwin has written a delightful British cozy that will appeal
to fans of Ann Granger and Patricia Hall. Readers receive an insider's
look at a small English village consisting of thirty cottages yet the
heroine feels more at home here than back in the States where she used
to live. The mystery is cleverly constructed so that Catherine's attempts
to solve the case ring true as she stumbles from one incident to the next.
Readers will seek out the previous Far Wychwood tale (see ARSON AND OLD
LACE) and look forward for the next one.
Harriet Klausner
YEAR
OF THE HYENAS
Brad Geagley
Simon & Schuster, Mar 2005, $23.00, 291 pp.
ISBN: 074325080X
In 1153 BC Thebes, the Clerk of Investigations and Secrets Semerket is
delegated with finding out who killed the popular much-loved Priestess
Hetephras. Unbeknownst to Semerket is that his superiors selected him
because they assume that the alcoholic acrimonious loser will fail. Then
they can fire him for incompetence, but not before they blame him to the
masses who demand the killer face vigilante justice; the pathetic Semerket
would make a fine substitute as far as his bosses are concerned.
However, shockingly Semerket digs deep and soon uncovers tomb robbers
that he begins to believe may be connected to his murder investigation.
As he uncovers more clues, he begins to realize that this simple murder
of a cherished figure and related robberies are just the surface covering
up a conspiracy that he believes places the Pharaoh in peril. As Semerket
drinks to ease his fears of what to do without losing his head, his decision
making process is stolen from him when his beloved becomes a target.
YEAR OF THE HYENAS is a terrific Ancient Egypt police procedural starring
an interesting protagonist; readers will agree with Semerket's superiors
that he is the last person they figure capable of solving anything. Semerket
is an unpleasant grouch who makes a perfect foible for the conspirators
except that no one realized how he would go the extra tomb or two to solve
the case. Although the prose reads at times deliberately archaic giving
the investigation an ancient feel that is difficult to follow, fans will
enjoy Brad Geagley's fine historical who-done-it.
Harriet Klausner
FORGOTTEN
MAN
Robert Crais
Doubleday, Mar 2005, $24.95, 342 pp.
ISBN: 0385504284
At four in the morning, LAPD Detective Kelly Diaz calls private eye Elvis
Cole to inform him that a shooting victim just before dying mentioned
him as his son. Elvis is shocked as he never knew the identity of his
father though he spent much of his life seeking his paternal shadow.
Overwhelmed emotionally, Elvis turns to his partner Joe Pike for advice
and help especially since the corpse means nothing to him. They fail to
learn much more from the police beyond the deceased registered as Herbert
Faustina at the Home Away Suites. Could Herbert, if that was the man's
actual name, really be Elvis' father? Detective Carol Starkey, who obsessively
desires Elvis in what seems like unrequited love keeps doing little favors
to help the sleuth learn more. Hindering Elvis is Frederick Conrad who
has covered up a deadly secret for years; believing Elvis killed his fellow
conspirator his boss, he plans to murder the sleuth.
The latest Elvis Cole thriller is very personal as he struggles to determine
whether a dying man's last words are true only to find himself with Joe
watching his back caught up in a dangerous cat and mouse game in which
he is the rodent. The dark story line is driven by Elvis who seems human
as he switches back and forth between belief and doubt over the veracity
of the death alley statement, but also uses people like he does with besotted
DEMOLITION ANGEL Carol. Robert Crais provides an outstanding investigative
tale that brings home many of the hero's insecurities.
Harriet Klausner
LOST
LAKE
Phillip Margolin
Harper Collins, March 2005, $25.95, 322 pp.
ISBN 0060735023
General Morris Wingate is running for his party' presidential nomination
against the incumbent president. To the public at large he is a hero who
used his security officers from the company he owns to rescue hostages
in Afghanistan. What they don't know is that when Wingate ran the agency
for intelligence data coordination, he formed a black ops organization
and assigned the men to kill those he declared as enemy combatants of
the United States.
To dissolve his personal unit, Morris sent his men into a trap in North
Vietnam where they all died except for Carl Rice who escaped. Carl was
once the lover of Wingate's daughter Vanessa Kohler. When she found about
the unit she tried to expose her father as a traitor, but he instead had
her committed to a mental institution and now nobody takes her seriously
especially since she works on the tabloid Exposed. Carl surfaces after
fifteen years on the run; he and Vanessa team up in the hopes of exposing
retired General Wingate to the American people.
Phillip Margolin has written an exciting political thriller that captures
and keeps the audience's attention even when fans knows almost from the
start that Wingate is evil but cleverly eliminates anyone who knew about
his clandestine activities.. The audience will keep reading just to find
out given the lack of no paper trail or other evidence how Wingate can
be convicted in a legal court room or in the court of public opinion.
LOST LAKE is a chilling work because the premise feels so plausible.
Harriet Klausner
THE
COMPASS ROSE
Gail Dayton
Luna, March 2005, $13.99, 400 pp.
ISBN 0373802161
The city of Ukiny in the kingdom of Adara is besieged by warriors of Tibre
who depend on cannons, guns, and gunpowder instead of magic to take over
the realm. Kallista Varyl, a captain and a naitan (witch) prays to the
One for a victory and when she uses her magic, to her amazement every
Tibre soldier on Adara is killed except for Stone who is taken prisoner.
Both Stone and Kallista are god-marked and as they sail on the same ship
to the capital city, they realize something inside them has intrinsically
changed.
Aisee, a Tibran slave girl attaches herself to Kallista on the boat ride
to the capital and once there another god-marked person, the rich merchant
Obed finds them. The ruler orders all the players, including Kallista's
bodyguard married in a special ceremony that will make them an instant
family. Kallista acquiesces because she needs all the magic that she can
command because her new family is going to the capital city of Tibre to
kill the demon that pushed them into going to war.
THE COMPASS ROSE is a sword and sorcery fantasy that concentrates as much
on the characters as it does on the battles. The Adara use magic as another
sense believing it is a gift from the One and they are one in harmony
with the earth as opposes to the repressive caste society of Tibre. Gail
Dayton has created a world that is so colorful and vivid readers will
feel they made an adventurous visit to this enchanting realm.
Harriet Klausner
ENDGAME
Dee Davis
Harlequin HQN, Mar 2005, $6.50
ISBN: 0373770367
FBI Behavioral Science Unit Chief Walter Blythe informs subordinate profiler
Madison Harper that she will co-head a special task force that the White
House has sanctioned at the request of her godfather, business mogul Cullen
Pulaski. At the same time that Madison objects because she has worked
hard to prove herself without using family connections, CIA deep undercover
operative Gabriel Roarke is yanked to be her co-leader though he was working
on a case for two years in the Keys. He believes that his co-chief is
rich man's candy; she figures he is the typical brainless macho over the
top warrior.
Cullen explains to the two unhappy draftees that he believes someone is
killing the members of the elite American Business Consortium, but making
it look like an accident or a natural death. Madison brings on an IT guru
who pays dividends immediately when he finds a deadly pattern; Gabriel
brings on two field operatives that he trusts. As they work together,
the initial disdain and contempt turns into respect and admiration before
becoming love as each willingly would risk their lives to save the other
from a killer who seems one step or two ahead of them.
This exciting police procedural romance is an intriguing tale more so
because of Madison's abilities than that of Gabriel. The motive for the
homicides comes up very late and seems off kilter, but the investigation
is fun to follow especially as Madison and Gabriel begrudgingly initially
realize how wrong first impressions can be as they soon depend, trust
and love one another. Fans of suspense thrillers will want to read ENDGAME,
a fine tale of love and murder.
Harriet Klausner
SPEAK
SOFTLY, SHE CAN HEAR
Pam Lewis
Simon & Schuster March 2005, $23.00 341 pp.
ISBN 0743255399
In 1965 New York City Carole, an overweight shy student is determined
to lose her virginity before she begins Vassar. Her best friend Naomi
arranges for Carole to meet twenty-six year old Eddie in Vermont so he
can teach her about sex. Carole gets very drunk so that when Rita appears
for a ménage a trois she does it. Caroline remembers little except
that Rita is dead and Eddie claims she broke her neck.
From that day forward, Caroline's life is never the same. Eddie blackmails
her for money and her parent's valuables. She runs away to San Francisco
and lives in a commune with her friend Rachel and her son Pepper when
Eddie once again shows up to terrorize Carole and even hits Pepper, scarring
him for life. The small family relocates to Montpellier, Vermont where
Carole opens a restaurant and moves in with the love of her life. She
thinks she is safe until Naomi and Eddie arrive and their unholy triangle
explodes in violence leaving two people dead and one severely injured.
Carole is a vulnerable and frightened person but readers won't feel sorry
for her because she allows herself to be a victim, first by letting Eddie
intimidate her and then by causing her parents' untold grief when she
runs away. Eddie is a true sociopath a remorseless stalker who enjoys
tormenting Carole; he also keeps tabs on her so he can hurt her some more.
Pam Lewis' debut novel is a chilling thriller, full of non-stop action
that grips readers so much that they will finish this novel in one sitting.
Harriet Klausner
VANISHING
ACTS
Jodi Picoult
Atria, Mar 2005, $26.00, 448 pp.
ISBN: 0743454545
In New Hampshire, Delia Hopkins and her dog Greta work as a great team
helping the police find missing people mostly children. Every time she
and Greta succeed in reuniting a mother and child, Delia reflects on her
own life raised by her father since her mother died in a car accident
when she was three. She also always ponders how she would react if her
beloved child Sophie vanished. Though engaged to her daughter's father,
Delia raises her daughter mostly with the help of her sixty years old
dad Andrew, who runs a senior-citizens' home.
The relationship between father and daughter that seemed perfect for over
three decades collapses instantly when Arizona police arrest and have
Andrew extradited to Phoenix on kidnapping charges; the victim ironically
is Delia. She learns that her mother Elsie still lives and that her father
abducted her when she was three because he insists she was an alcoholic
dangerous to their child. Delia meets her mother, who is a sober caring
healer while her dad's tale has inconsistencies; she wonders whether the
truth will surface in court?
The changing perspectives as each of the key players take turns as the
lead provides an intriguing look at what is truth as the audience will
observe the same incident interpreted differently, which leads to reality
seemingly shifting. The story line is fast-paced, but character driven
and filled with angst. Though sidebars like the prison scene add excitement
that seems unnecessary to a fabulous thriller that grips the audience
in and out of the courtroom wondering whose point of view will ultimately
be accepted as fact.
Harriet Klausner
SLEEPER
Gene Riehl
St. Martin's, Mar 2005, $22.95
ISBN: 0312310536
In 1992 Paris, sixteen years old Samantha Williamson of Asian descent
watches the Americans kill her adopted parents. The North Korans "adopt"
her following the tragedy insisting she is one of them and renaming her
Sung Kim. They train and brainwash her to be the ultimate spy-terrorist
causing havoc in the United States.
NSA Director Philip Carter learns that an Asiatic woman stole the Madonna,
valued at $15 million, from the home of Lyman Davidson. Philip believes
the deadly Sung Kim is the culprit and fears she is escalating her campaign
to devastate those in power. He assigns FBI Special Agent Puller Monk
to stop her. Besides a gambling problem, Puller believes he inherited
from his recently deceased father, Alzheimer's and that he is already
in the second perhaps third phase. Now the games begin.
SLEEPER is an intriguing sequel in which the fascinating character is
the villainess though Sung Kim is more comic book than flesh and blood.
Puller in spite of his concerns and his addiction lacks fullness (unless
you read his previous appearance in QUANTICO RULES). Still although the
key combatants seem two dimensional, espionage thriller fans will appreciate
their spy vs. spy war in which both will do anything necessary to triumph.
Harriet Klausner
JANE
AND HIS LORDSHIP'S LEGACY
Stephanie Barron
Bantam, Mar 2005, $24.00, 292 pp.
ISBN: 0553802259
Edward Austin, Jane's wealthy brother, possesses the freehold of every
house in Chawton Village; he gives his sister and their mother the cottage
of the late bailiff, dispossessing is wife which made the villagers irate.
The female Austins believe the renovated cottage will make a happy home
for them, a new beginning of sorts. On their first day in their new home,
a lawyer visits Jane with a Bengal trunk that contains the letters, dairies,
and miscellaneous papers of Lord Harold Trowbridge, the only man Jane
ever loved.
Realizing that the trunk contains items that people would kill to own,
she has it taken to the basement where they find a dead body. That same
night while dining at the magistrate's house, someone steals the trunk
and a laborer is arrested for the crime. A new arrival Justin Thrace arouses
gossip and suspicion because he claims to be the Earl of Holbrook's heir.
He and his half-sister Imogen are riding when she is thrown from her horse
and dies because a thorn was placed beneath the saddle. Justin runs from
the law after people accuse him of placing the thorn there. Jane learns
that the corpse in the cellar was placed there by Mr. Hinton. As she makes
inquiries she thinks the real killer has yet to surface.
Stephanie Barron gives a realistic portrayal of how impoverished genteel
folks lived in Regency England. The investigation into the murders enables
Jane to temporarily take her mind off the death of her beloved Harold.
Though somewhat overly scattered with the motive coming late, the who-done-it
is cleverly conceived inside of a fast-paced plot populated by eccentric
likable characters making for a gem of a historical amateur sleuth tale.
as Joshua's circumstantial evidence implicates her as the culprit in at
least two deaths.
Harriet Klausner
SAVING
CASCADIA
John J. Nance
Simon & Schuster, Mar 2005, $25.00, 320 pp.
ISBN: 0743250516
US Geological Survey seismologist Doug Lam is positive that the Washington
state barrier island Cascadia is on the verge of an earthquake. Still
Chadwick and Noble company approved construction of Mick Walker's posh
casino-hotel and convention center on the island. Feeling remorse and
guilt, company engineer Diane Lacombe possesses proof that her company
knew about the dangerous deadly potential of building on the fault line.
However, before she can do anything with her evidence, Diane is forced
to flee the Seattle area as someone wants the CD with its proof and her
silenced.
The quakes begin with the first tremor centered on the ocean floor but
close enough to the coast to feel it in Puget Sound. The first major quake
hammers coastal Bellingham, but help is impeded due to a thick fog. Next
Cascadia Island shakes with a ferry containing a hundred guests on the
way to the new facility sinking and the new hotel collapsing. Cascadia
Island seems destined to become a twenty-first century Krakatoa sinking
beneath the ocean while a deadly tsunami is heading to destroy much of
the state potentially killing millions.
The tragedy in Asia provides a stark reality to John J. Nance's action
tale that with each concentric widening circle gets more and more pulse
pumping. The story line is action-packed with heroes, victims, and culprits
who only care to bury the truth in the rubble. Because of the recent Asiatic
devastation, SAVING CASCADIA is more than just a disaster thriller as
Mr. Nance makes the case that what happened in the Indian Ocean rim could
occur here. This scary terrific thriller should raise alarms in that other
Washington.
Harriet Klausner
MISSING
PERSONS
Stephen White
Dutton, Mar 2005, $25.95, 352 pp.
ISBN: 0525948597
Psychologist Alan Gregory does not want to get involved in the missing
persons case of Mallory Miller, who lives in the same neighborhood as
JoBenet Ramsey. The two used to play together as children and now Mallory
vanished on the eighth anniversary of JoBenet's death. Circumstances draw
a reluctant Alan into the case because his colleague Diane Estevez consulted
with her now deceased friend Hannah Grant about a girl who fit Mallory's
description coming into the office for a session. The patient was worried
about her mother, a schizophrenic living in Vegas apart from her husband
and children.
Alan's schizoid patient Bob implies that he knows something about Mallory's
disappearance, but patient privilege prevents Alan from saying anything
to anyone. Bob disappears and when Diane goes to Vegas to meet with Mallory's
mother, she also vanishes. Alan might have to risk losing his license
to practice psychology, but he knows he must reveal what Bob and Diane
told him to the police to rescue the missing people.
MISSING PERSONS graphically describes how medical privilege can be a two
edge sword when it protects the rights of a patient bit impedes a police
investigation. Alan is realistically portrayed as a doctor filled with
doubts on what is the morally right thing to do. His dilemma on top of
a fast-paced, action filled story line grips the audience. Though Stephen
White enables his protagonist to wiggle somewhat free of his quandary,
he remains concerned that he played loose with acceptable medical ethics.
Mr. White delivers a pulse pounder that cleverly combines a tense medical
thriller with a police procedural amateur sleuth tale.
Harriet Klausner
MOST
WANTED
Michele Martinez
Morrow, March 2005, $23.95, 384 pp.
ISBN 006759690
When Melanie Vargas had proof that her husband cheated on her she threw
him out. One night, her six-month old baby is crying and won't go to sleep,
so she takes the infant out in her stroller walking in the direction of
police sirens. The home of former U.S. Prosecutor Jed Benson is in flames
and his body is all chopped up and riddled with dog bites.
Melanie, a federal prosecutor, wants to take part in this high profile
case so she convinces the policemen that her boss sent her there as the
attorney who will try the case when they catch a suspect. Her boss admires
her chutzpah and gives her the case. She is teamed up with FBI agent Dan
O'Reilly; sparks fly from the moment they meet. They team up very well
but the investigation goes badly from the start. Witnesses are murdered
and evidence disappears. Melanie believe someone is leaking information
to the killer, perhaps even Dan and when her boss tries to throw her off
the case, she makes a final attempt to find the killer and that makes
her the potential next victim.
Fans of Iris Johansen, Christine McGuire and Elizabeth Lowell will love
this suspense thriller with just the right amount of romance. The heroine
is smart and ambitious but so vulnerable that readers will take her into
their hearts. Besides seeking the perpetrator, the heroine has to figure
out who is dirty in her office or amongst the cops. Surprisingly enough,
one of the support cast, Melanie's boss will elicit reader sympathy because
she is looking for love with the wrong man. Hopefully MOST WANTED is the
beginning of a new series.
Harriet Klausner
SEE
ISABELLE RUN
Elizabeth Bloom
Mysterious, March 2005, $22.95, 259 pp.
ISBN 0892967854
She moved from Vermont to be with her fiancée but on their wedding
day he jilted Isabelle and he too the maid of honor with him to the honeymoon
in Fiji he was to share with Isabelle. A class act, Isabelle insists everyone
enjoy the reception and even dances on the table. The newspaper prints
a picture of Isabelle dancing to go along with her heartbreaking story
and Becky Belden, a Martha Stewart clone, offers her a job in her empire.
When she arrives Isabelle is assigned to work as Lisa Kinne's assistant
in special projects. She learns that she is the replacement for Marcia
who died when she was pushed in front of a train. A company friend warns
Isabelle other deaths of employees have occurred and one worker Kenny
remains missing. Becky dedicates a show to Kenny and places a life sized
picture of him in the street level window of Becky Belden's Enterprises
where everyone can see it. When Lisa drowns in her swimming pool and a
man enters her house to kill Isabelle, she knows something sinister is
going on at the company and all the deaths are related and intends to
prove it.
Elizabeth's Bloom's debut novel is a smashing success and ensures that
readers who have read SEE ISABELLE RUN will buy the next thriller this
author writes. The heroine is a spunky brave individual who refuses to
ignore crimes being committed even when one of the suspects is her lover,
a top executive in Becky's business. When she believes she is the next
person to be killed, she doesn't runs away but look for answers though
that places her in more danger.
Harriet Klausner
TEN
LITTLE NEW YORKERS
Kinky Friedman
Simon & Schuster, March 2005, $24.00, 195 pp.
ISBN 0743246039
Amateur private investigator Kinky Friedman is despondent because his
cat is missing and he has no case to occupy his time. He also feels that
his life is not going to get any better than it is, which makes him even
more depressed. His friends convince him to go to his Echo Hill Ranch
in Texas; which he does.
When he arrives at the ranch, he feels much better until his neighbor
Winnie Katz calls to let him know that she found a wallet belonging to
a Robert Scalopini, someone Kinky never heard of. He finds out the man
was the fourth male killed in the Village in a week and a half. When the
police learn about the wallet they make Kinky return to Manhattan to question
him. As evidence at a fifth homicide points to Kinky the police tail him.
When he loses the tail, a sixth murder occurs and the Kinkster has no
alibi. Someone is framing him for the murders; Kinky has a case to work
on to exonerating himself and finding the real culprit.
A Kinky Friedman novel is always a treat to read. His raunchy sense of
humor, his quirky outlook on life and his love for his cat endears him
to readers who hope he snaps out of his funk. It is exciting watching
Kinky fall under police suspicion although he knows he is innocent but
can't prove it; still he interestingly eliminates suspects. The climax
of TEN LITTLE NEW YORKERS will come as a complete shock to fans of this
series, making this one a must buy to find out who and why.
Harriet Klausner
ALL
THE FLOWERS ARE DYING
Lawrence Block
Morrow, Mar 2005, $24.95, 304 pp.
ISBN: 0060198311
Five years ago, someone raped and killed three little children. All the
evidence pointed to Preston Applewhite, who though he denied the deed,
was convicted and sentenced to execution by lethal injection. New York
Dr. Bodinson visits Preston, pretending to believe the condemned convict
is innocent. Not long afterward, Preston is killed by the Commonwealth
of Virginia.
In New York, Matthew Scudder, who retired from NYPD thirty years ago,
has reduced his private investigative caseload to practically zero as
social security, a city retirement pension, and Elaine's income from her
shop seems adequate. However, he accepts Louise as a client and looks
into the boyfriend David Thompson she met over an Internet dating service.
As his simple inquiries tie back to the Applewhite case, he finds evidence
of a serial killer who loves to kill when the moment is right; no discernable
"full moon" pattern emerges. This diabolical killer targets
the Scudders as his next victims, which means rape and murder is coming
home to roost.
Scudder continues to age with each new book but this time grandpa feels
old with his mortality confronting him as he attends several "last
call" funerals of peers. Still once he knows what he must stop, he
refuses to back down even if healing seems slower than ever. The serial
killer is incredible as he does not fall into the usual profile of obsession.
This makes him a worthy opponent of Scudder, whose investigation starts
off so simple, but soon spins into a deadly game of battle chess between
two capable antagonists. Block writes his usual fantastic thriller that
his audience will want to read in one session.
Harriet Klausner
SIGN
OF THE BOOK
John Dunning
Scribner, Mar 2005, $25.00, 368 pp.
ISBN: 0743255054
Former Denver police officer Cliff Janeway has known his Twice Told Books
bookstore partner, attorney Erin D'Angelo for two years so that he is
capable of telling when she has something bothering her. He remains patient
until Erin explains she needs Cliff to do her a favor. Laura Marshall
is accused of killing her spouse and wants Erin to defend her. However,
Erin informs Cliff she will never forgive Laura for stealing her lover
who became her husband, but still the ethical side of her needs to know
if Laura's confession that she killed Bobby is legal and true.
Cliff would do anything for Erin so he journeys to Paradise to learn the
truth and offer some assistance to Laura's lawyer Parley McNamara struggling
to overcome the confession. In the Western Colorado town, Cliff aggravates
the arresting officer, battles with bibliophiles who behave more like
mob goons than book lovers, and begins to wonder if one of the three Marshall
kids killed their father as Laura never seems to fully cooperate with
her defense.
THE SIGN OF THE BOOK is an excellent cleverly designed mystery filled
with red herrings, and numerous twists and turns, but fans will still
compare this to the already classic last year's THE BOOKMAN'S PROMISE,
which few works can compare with. The story line is fantastic as readers
go down a path thinking they know what will happen only to find a sudden
yet logical detour that works quite well and is totally believable. The
sidebars involving rare books are always a bonus, but that might be this
reviewer's personal bias. The Bookman is terrific in this fine investigative
tale.
Harriet Klausner
THE
DEAD STONE
Vicki Stiefel
Leisure, March 2005, $6.99, 384 pp.
ISBN 0843955201
Tally Whyte is a psychologist and a homicide counselor who helps the friends
and families of murder victims cope with their loss. One night Tally receives
an anonymous phone call from her hometown of Winsworth, Maine telling
her to return because the trouble that drove her and her father way is
starting up again. Tally and her father escaped their house that was on
fire and fled the town.
In Winsworth, Tally finds people believe that her father ran off with
money from a housing development he conceived and managed. She notices
that the development is half built under another name but before she can
inquire further, the sister of her best friend is murdered and she intends
on helping the family out. Two more murders shortly follow and one of
the victims is the person responsible for the housing development not
being finished. Since this somehow involves her father, Tally investigates
the homicides that were made to look like suicides unaware that she is
intended victim number four.
The heroine of THE DEAD STONE is a very likeable character who goes the
extra mile for people in trouble and puts her own concerns about her father
on the back burner to find a killer. There are a lot of suspects who could
have committed the murders so readers will find it impossible to guess
who the perpetrator is. Vicki Stiefel is a talented writer of psychological
suspense who grips her audience from the moment Tally returns home and
never lets go until the climax as befitting the work from one of tomorrow's
superstars.
Harriet Klausner
LUAU
OF DEATH
Jerrilyn Farmer
Morrow, Mar 2005, $23.95, 240 pp.
ISBN: 0060587296
For eight years Madeline Bean and her partner Wesley Westcott owned and
operated an event planning company making money, but now they are hosting
a special party out of love. Their employee Holly Nichols is getting married
in two weeks and they are throwing their beloved assistant a fantastic
bachelorette gala in Hawaii where Maddie plans to be one of the pampered
guests.
At their private luau, they meet the party planner for the luau Keriki.
The next day, Keriki's boyfriend, a good swimmer, drowns and it was later
discovered he was the same person Holly found in her room before she chased
him out. The medical examiner reports he was married Next Japanese ruffians
pursue a mellowing Maddie because they think she is Holly and is the ticket
to finding her husband (who she hopes to divorce before the wedding to
her betrothed) Marvin Dubinsky who apparently stole something that they
want back or else. When the thugs catch up to Marvin, a scientific genius,
they threaten to kill him with Maddie trying to save his life at potentially
the cost of her own.
Holly is a cute flake who isn't sure whether she is married or not, having
been drunk in Vegas with no recollection of how she got there and what
happened. She expects Maddie to help her with obtaining a quick divorce
or annulment. Maddie knows all heck is breaking loose once she realizes
Marvin has joined them with thugs after his hide. She brings the humor
to this zany tale as she wants to relax and have a good time, but is questioning
suspects especially guests. LUAU OF DEATH is a delightful picturesque
amateur sleuth novel that uses the background as seen by natives and by
guests like unsinkable Maddie to keep the series fresh.
Harriet Klausner
WHITE
THUNDER
Aimee & David Thurlo
Forge, March 2005, $23.94, 304 pp.
ISBN 0765311747
Navaho Police Special Investigator Ella Clah is still recovering emotionally
after almost dying in a uranium mine. She hopes to spend more time with
her daughter Dawn but when an FBI agent goes missing on the reservation,
Ella and her unit gives top priority to finding him. She doesn't expect
too much cooperation from the tribe because Agent Thomas interrupted a
medicine man during a Sing (a healing ceremony). This is a taboo and dealt
with severely but after talking to the shaman, Ella clears him of any
crimes.
Ella wants to talk to the man who underwent the Sing Melvin Rainwater
in connection with the social security checks of dead men that were not
reported deceased sent to a special post office box. A phone call from
Agent Thomas confirms he is still alive and in a dark place, which Ella
believes is one of the deserted mines just like she was not so long ago.
She uses all the resources at her disposal to find him, even going so
far as to break some laws, but somebody wants to stop her investigation
or at least slow it down and they don't care if they harm Ella in the
process.
An Ella Clah mystery is always a special treat and WHITE THUNDER is particularly
good because the authors bring to life a culture in the same way that
Tony Hillerman does. The investigation is compressed into a short period
because the protagonist knows that the victim is running out of time which
raises the level of tension and makes the audience feels as they are involved
in the search. This tale is another great mystery by the talented Thurlos.
Harriet Klausner
WITH
NO ONE AS WITNESS
Elizabeth George
Harper Collins, March 2005, $26.95, 624 pp.
ISBN 0060545607
Three teens are killed in various locations around London, England. Nobody
realizes that the murders are connected until a fourth homicide occurs;
the latest victim being a young white teens as opposed to the black or
mixed races of the first three homicides that the polices generally ignore.
To prevent the press from spewing venom at Scotland Yard, Assistant Commissioner
Hillier promotes black Officer Nkate to Detective Sergeant so that nobody
could accuse the Yard of racism.
Acting superintendent Thomas Lynley is ordered by Hillier to cooperate
with a profiler and a reporter to show the public they are doing everything
in their power to catch the killer. As the investigation moves into high
gear, two more teens die with each one connected to Colossus, a youth
outreach program. All the murders have the same modus operandi including
the cutting open the victim's chest, putting a mark on their foreheads
and cutting out their navels. Lynley, Police Constable Barbara Havers
and the rest of the task force follow one false lead after another. Just
when it looks like they are about to break the case wide open, one of
the officers is taken by the killer who intends to make him his next victim.
Life changing events take Elizabeth George's characters in new directions
which keep this long running police procedural series fresh and very entertaining.
While the police pursue the killer, they stumble across a child pornography
ring and a sixth killing that has nothing to do with the Colossus murders.
Ms. George can always be counted on to give her audience an absorbing
and juicy reading experience.
Harriet Klausner
Harriets's Archived Reviews
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