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The Girl from Venice–WWII setting
The Girl from Venice
by Martin Cruz Smith
The Girl from Venice is the tale of Cenzo, a very versatile and capable Italian fisherman, and Giulia, a young Jewish lady. Their lives intertwine in World War II in 1945 in Venice in the midst of conflicting players: Nazi soldiers, Mussolini’s Blackshirts, and the equally deadly Partisans. This work of historical fiction is a combination of thriller and mystery with a little romance thrown in.
I had conflicting feelings about The Girl from Venice. The plot has some interesting twists and turns. Part of this novel revolves around the many different ways of fishing in the lagoons near Pellestrina. I thought the story was a little slow in its extended descriptions of the art of fishing, but many of the details were essential in the plot progression. They explain how Cenzo and Giulia were able to deceive the Nazis searching for Giulia as well as how Giulia transformed from a wealthy, highly educated Italian Jew into a skilled fisherman in her own right.
The author had a lot of decisions to make about the reader’s background knowledge concerning Italy and its politics in 1945. He did a good job of supplying necessary details without oversimplifying or being pedantic.
The setting varies between city and fishing village. There are complicated family relationships involving Cenzo, his mother, two brothers and sister-in-law, and through those relationships we discover more about each character. The character of Giulia, however, is mostly undeveloped. We want to know more but are left unsatisfied.
As the story ended, so did its unfulfilled promise. The idea was a good one, the setting was interesting, but none of the characters were particularly engaging or well-developed. There was one major twist in the plot, but otherwise it seemed to just keep plodding along. It took me many days to read it just because nothing kept drawing me back. Not one to usually comment on a book’s cover, I must say the cover was outstanding–dramatic and perfect for this book.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Simon & Schuster for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Candidate–Echoes of today’s political climate and THEN…
The Candidate
by Lis Wiehl
I read The Candidate with about twenty days left until the U.S. presidential election of 2016. As I began the book, there were certainly echoes of today’s political climate and I feared for a lack of originality. I am pleased to say that the storyline quickly deviated into a very riveting, original plot while maintaining a theme of potential world domination that reflects the very real fears that many harbor today.
The main character is a top journalist with her own show, The Erica Sparks Effect. The author of The Candidate, Lis Wiehl, is a lawyer as well as a legal analyst appearing on many TV shows as a commentator. She brings authenticity to her novel. I admit going into the book with a bias against the media; there seems to be little integrity in the field today, little honest reporting. Those hired as “reporters” seem determined to opine outside the confines of an editorial piece. The fictional Erica Sparks, however, is different and refreshing. She sees her job as reporting the news, not making it or persuading others to view events through her political lens.
When some oddities appear in one presidential candidate’s campaign, she risks her life to discover the truth that could affect the nation and the world. Even as she is immersed in these events, the private side of Erica Sparks is revealed as we see her struggle with balancing the work she thrives on with her desires to be a great mom to the daughter she adores. She also has to work through feelings for Greg with whom she is trying to maintain a long distance relationship.
I recommend The Candidate. It has lots of twists and turns in the plot, a likable and well-developed main character, suspense, and political intrigue.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Thomas Nelson for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Send in the Clowns–outstanding cozy mystery
Send in the Clowns
by Julie Mulhern
The Country Club Murders is a series of cozy mysteries set in in the early 1970’s. Send in the Clowns is the fourth in the series and the second one I have read. While there is a lot of serious crime in this tale, Julie Mulhern knows how to write with humor and keep the reader coming back. I honestly had trouble putting the book aside at bedtime. Then I devoured the last half the next morning.
There is no waiting for the book to get interesting. In the first chapter, Ellison, who seems to attract handsome men and dead bodies, has to go to a haunted house to retrieve her teenage daughter. While there she has an encounter with two clowns, one of whom calls her by name and then dies in her arms. There are many more twists and turns in the plot which keep interest at a high level all the way through.
The likable Ellison Russell may have been born with a silver spoon in her mouth, but she is no stranger to personal tragedies and horrors. The story is told from her perspective. The dialogue intermixes what Ellison says (in quotes) with what she thinks so well that her character takes on a reality not possible with third person narration. The way she is presented makes it very easy to identify with her and her struggles to get the men in her life to see her as capable and independent. Remember, this is the early seventies, an era when women are still expected to emerge from college with an “MRS.” degree.
One of my favorite aspects of the book is the setting of the seventies. The little details are right on target, but not forced. There is shag carpeting and the only telephones are those that are attached to the wall. The diet soft drink of choice is Tab, and a plaid coat in shades of plum and hunter green echoes one I wore in that time frame. Probably one of the best and most subtle references to an earlier time is Ellison’s admonition to the teenagers as they exit the car: “Lock your door.” Each door needed to be locked manually by the passenger.
I have absolutely no negative criticisms for this book. In fact, I am going to return to the series to read the two out of four that I have not read yet. Additionally it is important to note that reading them out of sequence did not detract from my pleasure in reading these mysteries. Send in the Clowns has everything you want in a cozy–a fast pace, intricate turns in the plot, interesting characters and setting, a little romance with the requisite tension, and a good resolution.
This book is scheduled for publication on October 25, 2016.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Abstract Aliases–part of a cozy mystery series with an art world focus
Abstract Aliases
by Ritter Ames
Abstract Aliases is the third book in the cozy mystery series Bodies of Art written by Ritter Ames. A typical cozy mystery series continues from book to book with the same main characters. Each novel has a unique plot, and the author only has to fill in some background information about the characters and their relationships for the reader to be ready to enjoy the story. Abstract Aliases is different because the plot continues into the next book. This format is not a bad thing, but the reader should be aware of it.
Laurel Beacham is an art recovery expert with high end tastes (Fendi purse) and great survival skills (telescoping baton). She rarely knows who to trust as the complicated plot keeps tossing surprises her way. The person she most wants to trust is the handsome and resourceful Jack Hawkes, but he has mysterious connections and reveals little about himself. Together they try to unravel the murders of forgers, an office break in, and the identity of the enigmatic Ermo Colle.
I read Abstract Aliases as a stand-alone and I enjoyed it. It had an engrossing plot, well-developed main characters, and multiple interesting settings as the characters travel the world seeking to unravel a multi-faceted mystery. There are abundant surprise twists to the story. Although not an art historian myself, I took pleasure in reading about famous works of art and museums and learning about the world of forgery.
I recommend Abstract Aliases to cozy mystery lovers, but I suggest reading this series in sequence. It will make much more sense, and you will have a better understanding of the minor characters.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book is scheduled for publication on October 11, 2016.
Lethal Lifestyles–so many characters!
Lethal Lifestyles
by LynDee Walker
I read and really enjoyed Cover Shot, the fifth cozy in the Headlines in High Heels Mystery Series. Therefore, I looked forward to reading Lethal Lifestyles, the sixth book in the series by LynDee Walker, which is scheduled to be published on September 27, 2016.
I have one problem with Walker’s latest book, and it is a difficulty that sneaks up on many cozy mystery writers. There are so many minor characters, either possible suspects or helpful sidekicks to the sleuth, that few are well-developed enough to be memorable. For once, I was very glad to be reading an e-book so I could search quickly for the introduction of the various characters and thus identify their roles. At first I thought the fault was mine. Late in the book, however, a character named Chad contributes an important clue via a text message to his wife. In searching the name, I confirmed that Nichelle, our crime reporter in high heels, had in fact contacted him earlier in the book, but the reader is given no information about his relationship to Nichelle’s good friend, Jenn. This was probably the most egregious example.
While this overabundance of characters is a problem in Lethal Lifestyles, it is also indicative of what makes this book a really good cozy mystery–an intricate plot with lots of puzzle pieces to keep the reader interested. The story centers around the wedding of two of Nichelle’s co-reporters. Nichelle, as maid of honor, is acting as a wedding planner for the couple and wants the wedding to be perfect. Unfortunately, a man is found dead at the site of the rehearsal dinner, and the groom is implicated. Nichelle has one week to clear the groom’s name by finding the murderer. Clues that are reasonable go off in all directions. The author brings it all together with a very surprising ending.
I do recommend Lethal Lifestyles if you enjoy cozies. In addition to great mystery elements, you will find humor and romance. The only mystery remaining to me is how Nichelle manages to do all that sleuthing in an assortment of stilettos and one good pair of wedges. It makes my feet hurt just to think about it.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Michelangelo’s Ghost–a good cozy in which I expand my cultural awareness
Michelangelo’s Ghost
A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery
by Gigi Pandian
Michelangelo’s Ghost is an interesting cozy. The mystery is good and the characters and setting took me out of my comfort zone, which is good in this case. Jaya Jones is a history professor in San Francisco. She is attractive, feisty, petite, intelligent and adventurous. As Jaya is of Indian and American descent, like the author herself, the book has many authentic references to Indian culture and foods.
In her pursuit of the killer of her former mentor, Jaya, accompanied by her successful brother Fish and his exotic girlfriend, travels to Italy to trace the Renaissance roots of an art find that the mystery is centered around. The little known artist has connections to India and possibly to Michelangelo.
There are twists and turns to the plot, characters who are not really as they present themselves, and a good tying up of loose ends. I recommend this book and am interested in reading others in the series.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Pumpkins in Paradise–Great Example of a Cozy!
Pumpkins in Paradise
by Kathi Daley
I love mysteries–the kind you read. Not the kind where you wonder where you hid something so no one else could find it! I love the type of mystery that focuses on the puzzle, not on the actual blood, gore and violence. I’m not interested in the extremities of psychological madness or depravity. When I retired, and before I began reviewing, I sated my appetite by reading all of Agatha Christie’s novels. Although I didn’t care for her mysteries that dabbled in the occult, most of the rest of the works of this prolific writer are excellent.
Having conquered the Christie mountain of 78 mystery novels, I read from a variety of genres and stumbled across a sub-genre developed at the end of the twentieth century, the cozy mystery. While I don’t limit myself to cozies, I do intersperse them with my other readings. Cozies downplay sex, violence, and inappropriate language while providing the reader with a puzzle. The story is usually set in a small town where everyone knows everyone else. The amateur detective is usually a woman with some contacts in the law enforcement community. A cozy series may be thematic and there is often an element of humor and a touch of romance. Christie’s Miss Marple books fit into this category as does the television series Murder, She Wrote.
Pumpkins in Paradise is the first novel in the Tj Jensen Mystery Series written by Kathi Daley. There are currently seven books in the series, all set in the little town of Paradise and most with a seasonal theme. Our heroine in this cozy series is Tj Jensen, a single, high school PE teacher and coach who has moved in with her father and grandfather. They run a local woodsy resort and are helping her care for her two newly orphaned half-sisters. Pumpkins in Paradise meets all the criteria for a good cozy and excels in the puzzle category. In order to solve a murder mystery, Tj has to solve a final puzzle created for her by the victim. The story is populated by interesting, colorful townsfolk and visitors. The setting has small town appeal: Paradise is decorated for fall and bustling with pumpkin activities.
I recommend Pumpkins in Paradise as an excellent cozy that you will not want to put down. I plan on reading other books in the series–comfortable excitement in a feel good setting. But don’t be fooled–Pumpkins in Paradise has a healthy dose of suspense as well!
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
education pathways 