Killer Book Reviews, Volume 6 (2009)

ISSUE 6.6

Edited by 

Tom and Enid Schantz

Rue Morgue, Lyons, CO 

www.ruemorguepress.com

BAD THINGS HAPPEN by Harry Dolan (Putnam $26.95), recommended by Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen www.poisonedpen.com: Maybe I like this debut so well because Dolan studied writing with the late Frederick Busch. Dolan earned a master’s degree in philosophy from the UNC Chapel Hill and worked for several years as a freelance editor. Which is how come he writes so keenly of that university town Ann Arbor and of the literati who cluster around the mystery magazine Gray Streets. A loner who calls himself David Loogan throws a few stories over the transom. Publisher Tom Kristoll offers him a contract: as editor. Tom, himself a failed writer, has found a good niche as publisher. Loogan is soon seduced by Tom’s professor wife Laura, who alibis Loogan when Tom, some months later, is murdered at the office. Soon Loogan’s life imitates fiction as several of the magazine’s circle are murdered, and Detective Elizabeth Waishkey of the Ann Arbor PD wants to tag Loogan it. He sees nothing for it but to work the case, remembering the Gray Streets formula: Plans go wrong. Bad things happen. People die.

THE COLD LIGHT OF MOURNING by Elizabeth Duncan (St. Martin’s Press, $24.95). Recommended by Marian Misters, Sleuth of Baker Street www.sleuthofbakerstreet.com: Duncan is the first Canadian to win the Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery Novel Competition. The book is set in a small town in North Wales and introduces manicurist Penny Brannigan. It seems that hairdressers and manicurists are the hub of village goings-on and gossip and Penny’s shop is no exception. After getting her nails done on her wedding morning, a local bride doesn’t show up for her wedding and it seems that Penny was the last person to see her. This is your classic British cozy, or should I say Welsh cozy, with all the trapping: the Lord of the Manor; eccentric locals; the vicar and his wife; and small town gossip. It’s got charm and it is a delight to read.

HOUSE SECRETS by Mike Lawson (Atlantic Monthly Press, $22.00) Recommended by Fran, Seattle Mystery Bookstore. www.seattlemystery.com: There’s one thing you can be certain of when you pick up the latest novel by Mike Lawson – you’re in for an excellent story. Joe DeMarco is asked by Speaker of the House Mahoney to look into the death of a reporter. Normally this wouldn’t be of any interest to much of anyone, but the dead reporter’s father is a friend of Mahoney’s, and Mahoney just wants DeMarco to turn over a few rocks, look into it, reassure Finley that his son’s death was really an accident. “There you go, DeMarco thought. That was his job description: rock flipper and bug crusher. Not very flattering but accurate enough.” 

But it’s not that simple, and there are more than mere creepy-crawlies hiding under the rocks DeMarco overturns, and soon not only is DeMarco in over his head, but Emma is being threatened, and it’s possible that even Mahoney is in jeopardy. 

The joy of Lawson’s writing is how very well drawn his characters are, how tight and well-woven his plots are, and how easy and fluid his writing is. In my opinion, Mike Lawson is truly one of the gifted authors of our time, and if you haven’t had the pleasure of reading his Joe DeMarco series, now is a good time to start. Each book stands on its own, which is a testament to the skill of his writing, but as a whole, this is one of the best thriller series out there, bar none.

DEATH AND THE LIT CHICK by G.M. Malliet (Midnight Ink, $14.95) Recommended by Tom & Enid Schantz, The Rue Morgue www.ruemorguepress.com: In the second outing for her stalwart police detective, Chief Inspector Arthur St. Just of Cambridge, the author treats us to an absolutely delicious skewering of the world of mystery publishing and its none too savory denizens. St. Just has been roped into speaking at Dead on Arrival, a prestigious conference for crime writers and aficionados being held in Edinburgh. He and the other panelists are being put up at nearby Dalmorton Castle, where the glamorous and arrogant Kimberlee Kalder, dubbed the queen of chick lit after the runaway success of her debut mystery, is eventually found dead at the bottom of the castle’s bottle dungeon. 

Anybody who has ever been to a mystery conference will appreciate the author’s sly digs at self-absorbed authors who take themselves far too seriously and the agents, publishers, and publicists whose careers depend on them. The author paints the petty rivalries and jealousies of her subjects and the latest trends in mystery publishing with a very broad brush, and she excels at throwaway lines (“Prologues are so last year,” “Why do serial killers always think in italics?”) that hit their targets dead on. About the only admirable characters in the book are the bemused St. Just, whom we learn is a widower, and the serenely beautiful crime writer Portia De’Ath, with whom he is instantly and hopelessly smitten. 

Malliet’s first book, Death of a Cozy Writer, recently won an Agatha award for best first mystery of the year; this sequel is even wittier and more skillfully constructed.

SHANGHAIED, by Eric Stone (Bleak House, $24.95, hardcover; ), recommended by Louise, I Love A Mystery, Mission, Kansas, www.iloveamystery.com: A group of Tibetan monks seeks the aid of the corporate investigation firm in Hong Kong for which Ray Sharp works. The monks have heard troubling rumors about the Shanghai bank that manages the lamasery’s portfolio of investments. When one of the monks disappears, he is assumed by all to be overly enamored with Hong Kong’s red-light district. Ray finds cause for alarm, however, as he learns that the bank rumors may be grounded in fact and that the missing monk was the group’s bookkeeper. The investigation takes Ray and his diminutive colleague and pal, Wen Lei Yue , to the seedy area of Hong Kong. They then proceed to Shanghai, where they encounter some very scary characters, including a sociopathic U.S. army veteran and his twin kung-fu bodyguards, Floss and Betty. 

Shanghaied is a fast-paced thriller, peopled with lively characters. Though forced to deal with some real heavies, Ray Sharp is an unlikely hero. He narrates his tale with self-deprecating wit, and, when unable to avoid a fight, is likely to end up on the receiving end of the beating. Best friend Wen Lei Yue is the dynamic other half of the duo. She’s a feisty little thing, and her Chinese-Mexican heritage gives her the ability to be profane in multiple languages, much to Ray’s oft-expressed dismay. Indeed, the dialogue between these two snaps, crackles and pops.

Edited by 

Barbara Peters, 

The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, AZ www.poisonedpen.com 

JACK WAKES UP by Seth Harwood (Three Rivers, $14), recommended by Patrick Millikin, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, AZ www.poisonedpen.com: What does a movie-star one-hit-wonder and ex-drug-addict do when he's cleaned up, down on his luck, and running out of money? What a cool publishing story: Seth Harwood sent his furious neo-noir novel out in podcast installments via his website. The book picked up such a buzz that New York came calling. The result? This violent and darkly comic first novel that will appeal to Charlie Huston and Duane Swierczynski fans as well as young, Palahniuk-readin' hipster types.

DISMANTLED by Jennifer McMahon (Harper, $24.95), recommended by Maryelizabeth Hart, Mysterious Galaxy, San Diego, CA www.mystgalaxy.com: Jennifer McMahon’s latest modern gothic novel is another winner for fans of Shirley Jackson and her literary daughters. Nine year old Emma has a neighborhood friend (sort of), an imaginary (or is she?) playmate, and a desire to reconcile her estranged parents, both of whom still live at home, but are separated by a vast emotional chasm, containing a dark secret. When Emma finds some paperwork referring to her parents’ participation in a group known as “The Compassionate Dismantlers” in their youth, she initiates contact with their past in hopes it will bring them together. Instead, it brings an unsettling ghost into clearer focus, powered by the forces of destruction.

SHAKEDOWN by Andie Ryan (Lenox Press, $24.95 or $16 trade paperback), recommended by Lea Love, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, AZ, www.poisonedpen.com: What a great first novel! Have you ever tried to understand the financial shenanigans of some of the giants of the industry? Wish you could? Then read The Shakedown and get some answers. Wall Street's most highly respected financial giant is involved in a growing financial scandal. Tom Hollister, Sledd Payne's public relations executive, is called upon to whitewash this, only to find himself involved in a murder conspiracy and an insidious fraud that could threaten the life savings of millions of investors and bring Sledd Payne to its knees. Sound Familiar? Throw in a family in crisis, an aging call girl and a scheming executive and you're in for a page turner. I couldn't put it down and I advise you to pick up a copy and hunker down for a good read!

SECOND DEATH OF GOODLUCK TINUBU by Michael Stanley (Harper, $24.95), recommended by Robin Agnew, Aunt Agatha's, Ann Arbor, Mich., www.auntagathas.com:  Michael Stanley's second novel set in Botswana featuring the – there's no other word for it – adorable Detective Kubu has all the languid charm of an actual hike through the jungle. Stanley brings an Agatha Christie style sensibility to his gorgeously rendered jungle; you can almost see and hear the various creatures he writes about. The setting of a tourist camp, beset by several deaths where most everyone at the camp, guests and staff alike, seem to have a motive, is as classic as it gets. 

Stanley's ability to give the reader a real three dimensional look at life in contemporary Africa, complete with Kubu's delightful wife and his relationship with his parents, really makes this novel a stand out. Kubu, which means "hippo" in Botswana, is frequently at the table (or wishing he was), but also like the creature he's nicknamed for, when he gets angry, he charges. 

Stanley ratchets up the suspense by bringing danger into Kubu's family and it's a delight to see him in full action mode. A shade darker than McCall-Smith's Precious Ramotswe books, this book is nevertheless full of the same type of delightful charming qualities that makes those books so enjoyable. As an added bonus, Detective Kubu is a real discovery: he already feels like an enduring classic to add to the mystery canon.

Edited by 

Deb Andolino, Aliens & Alibis Books, Columbia,OH,  www.aliensandalibis.com 

Safer by Sean Doolittle (Delacorte Press, $24) recommended by Sue Wilder, Murder On The Beach, Delray Beach, FL, www.murderonthebeach.com :   Paul and Sara Callaway move to Clark Falls, Iowa from Boston when Paul accepts a position as a professor at the local college. On the first night at their new home, Paul runs a quick errand and returns to find an intruder attacking Sara. He scares off the intruder and at the suggestion of his security obsessed neighbor Roger Mallory, Paul volunteers for the Neighborhood Patrol.

The Callaways invite their new neighbors to a cocktail party which is suddenly interrupted when the police arrive and arrest Paul on charges of child pornography. The nightmare escalates when compromising pictures of Paul and a 13-year old girl from the neighborhood are found on Paul's computer. The story is told from Paul's point of view, making his innocence even more credible.

The town's skeletons start to emerge as Paul delves into the cause of his troubles. The chief suspect is Roger Mallory, an ex-cop and founder of the neighborhood patrol, who harbors a troubled past. Apparently, Roger's security concerns stem from the murder of his son. Paul finds security cameras in Roger's home that monitor all of the homes in the neighborhood. Even more horrifying, Paul unwittingly consented to this surveillance when he moved into his house. The real question is why Roger has targeted Paul, a question that drives Paul to the edge of madness.

Safer is a page-turner that is hard to put down. Mr. Doolittle draws the reader into a story based on an insular community that has gone haywire while maintaining an eerie veneer of normalcy. The characters are interesting and scarily believable. The plot is tight and well-executed. As with his previous books, good writing and spare dialog contribute to the suspense.  Safer is another winner from this Barry Award winner.
Highly Recommended!.

Also by Mr. Doolittle: The Cleaner, Rain Dogs, Burn (each $6.99 paperback)

Running from the Devil, by Jamie Freveletti,(Morrow $24.99) recommended by Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen. Scottsdale, AZ. www.poisonedpen.com:  I like character-driven more than action-driven novels, so while what happens we’ve seen before, Emma Caldridge, a biochemist for a cosmetics company on a flight to Bogota in pursuit of a covert personal mission, makes it work. The depiction of the (deliberately engineered) crash into the jungle is harrowing and the pharmaceutical stuff lends interest. Emma and the (conveniently aboard) Cameron Sumner who turns out to work for DEA duel with a satisfyingly nasty band of guerrillas while DOD’s Edward Banner and his military

contractors (think Rollins’ Sigma Force here) work to rescue them and the surviving hostages. Freveletti provides a clever motivation for the whole which I liked a lot. And so did Indie Next: it’s a May Notable for Mystery.

THE RELIABLE WIFE, by Robert Goolrick (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, $23.95), recommended by Barbara Tom, Murder by the Book, Portland, OR; www.mbtb.com:  From the first paragraph of The Reliable Wife, I heard music. Robert Goolrick has a poet's rhythm with his words. His writing sounds like water moving towards high tide. He uses repetition, adding a few more words or another thought each time to finally build to the climactic revelation or pronouncement. Goolrick also has an artist's eye with presentation. The story starts with simplicity and builds to opulence and decadence. It starts with inhibition and ends with a tempest.

Within the first few paragraphs we meet Ralph Truitt. He is waiting on a snow-laden platform for a woman to arrive by train. We learn he carries sorrow, humiliation, and hope. But just as Ralph patiently waits for the woman to arrive, the reader must wait to learn about these burdens. Does it seem strange that hope would be a burden? Ralph has spent half of his life without needing hope and the other half bringing his hope to the painful climax that led him to the platform, waiting for a train.

A "simple honest woman," Catherine Land, steps off the train. She has sent Ralph a letter with this declaration, and he has sent for her to become his wife.

It is 1907 and Catherine has come to a Wisconsin town dark and heavy with the beginning of the winter snow. Within hours, in the heavy, fast-falling snow, she has lost the last tangible reminders of her old life. Just as the landscape and houses are buried under the snow, Catherine and Ralph's prior lives are buried deep within themselves. Goolrick dots his story with tales of people driven mad by winter and isolation, and what they must face about themselves when there is nothing else to distract them.

The tale accelerates when Ralph asks Catherine to travel to St. Louis to find his runaway son and bring him home. It is at this point that the layers begin to tear away, that we discover the story that has only been hinted at so far.

What begins with starkness and distance and rectitude becomes a tale of sensuality and an overflowing of emotion. The characters struggle to tear away their misery, and they begin by tearing away their layers of clothing. They stand naked before each other, but are terribly hidden otherwise. Goolrick masterfully shows us their pain and their passion.

This is a high-intensity tale of sex and repression and murderous thoughts, of people longing to forgive themselves and each other, of incredible pain. In describing what formed Ralph's character, Goolrick says: "That his mother had said, needle to the bone, that the way to goodness, the only way, was through pain and suffering. He could have said that grief had left him wholly good." There's enough pain and suffering to go around, but will they find redemption? 

The Last Child by John Hart (Minotaur Books, $24.95), recommended by Robin Agnew, Aunt Agatha's, Ann Arbor, Mich., www.auntagathas.com:   This winter one of the VPs at St Martin's asked if he could swing by the store with author John Hart. I had enjoyed Hart’s first book King of Lies and enthusiastically agreed—just as enthusiastically, the VP offered to fedex me copies of Hart’s new book, The Last Child. The book arrived on a Wednesday afternoon for a Thursday visit—I trundled into the store to pick it up, hoping I might get at least half way through before Hart stopped in—and I couldn’t put it down. I was finished with the book Thursday morning, eager to have a chance to discuss it with the author.  All of Hart’s books are standalones, so no need to start with the first one (though it’s well worth a read). 

This novel is about thirteen year old Johnny Merrimon, who is obsessed by the disappearance of his twin sister a year ago. As his family has self destructed—his father has disappeared, his mother is lost in a fog of drugs and alcohol, and dating an abusive man—Johnny is left to fend for himself, and one of the things he’s chosen to do is to get on his bike, map in hand, scouring likely neighborhoods where his sister might have vanished. There are red “x’s” all over the map, sometimes with the notation, “Bad men live here”.

As Johnny works on his guide, he’s shadowed by Detective Clyde Hunt, who is almost as haunted by Johnny’s sister as Johnny himself. His life has taken an almost equally self destructive turn, as he’s gotten divorced, become estranged from his teenaged son, and gotten on the thin side of legal behavior at work. While Johnny feels alone, he has an ally in both Hunt and his somewhat wayward friend Jack, who helps sometimes when Johnny is off with his map and his bike.  One of the many remarkable things about this book is the fact that though it’s told through the lens of a 13 year old boy—and they are certainly complicated creatures—it never feels either condescending or false. Johnny is a very believable flesh and blood character, and often his desperation and desire to find his sister pulls you through the narrative, though you may know in your gut what the probable outcome will be. Hart manages to both maintain suspense and to describe Johnny’s landscape so fully, fleshed out with the other people and situations that surround him, that sometimes looking up from this book is almost jarring. Hart has put you in Johnny’s world that completely.

When you finish, the characters and story have a real hold on both your brain and your heart—two important things for a good writer to get ahold of, and Hart is a very good writer. He also writes beautiful prose, complete with motifs—in this book the motif is a raven (sometimes ravens plural), which adds an occasional extra note of both poetry and atmosphere. There’s really not too much more to ask for in a good book and I don’t expect to read too many finer books this year.  

Shatter by Michael Robotham (Doubleday $24.95)  recommended by Lou, I Love a Mystery, Mission, KS, www.iloveamystery.com:  Joe O’Loughlin is married with two children. He is a clinical psychologist who was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s and is now teaching a few classes at a college in London. When a constable arrives at the college requesting help in talking down a jumper on the Clifton Suspension Bridge, Joe reluctantly agrees to help. The woman, appearing to be in her forties, is standing naked wearing red high heels, the word SLUT written across her stomach. She is talking to someone on a cell phone and paying no attention to Joe’s attempts to engage her. Before jumping, she whispers, “You don’t understand.” The police have ruled it a suicide. Joe is not satisfied. He’s torn. Who was on the other end of the phone? When the woman’s 16 year-old daughter appears at Joe’s door also convinced it could not possibly be a suicide, Joe agrees to help her discover the truth. Joe finds himself confronted with a killer who tortures his victims by destroying their minds and realizes that he and the killer are not so different: “He tears minds apart. I try to repair them.” 

Also Highly Recommended by Deb Andolino, Aliens & Alibis Books, Columbia,OH,  www.aliensandalibis.com 

Issue 6.3

Edited by 

Tom and Enid Schantz

Rue Morgue, 

Lyons, CO www.ruemorguepress.com

Issue 6.2

Edited by 

Maryelizabeth Hart

Mysterious Galaxy

San Diego, CA

www.mystgalaxy.com

THE MYSTIC ARTS OF ERASING ALL SIGNS OF DEATH by Charlie Huston (Ballantine, $25.00), recommended by J.B. Dickey, Seattle Mystery Bookshop, Seattle, WA www.seattlemystery.com: Charlie Huston's The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death (Ballantine hc, $25) is the sort of modern-day noir that is both refreshing and familiar. His characters never end up where they start at the beginning of the book which is one reason I like his writing. Too often the people involved in crime stories have their lives interrupted but it all goes back to what it was. Not in Charlie's universe.

Web is a guy whose life has been off its rails for a year now and he's alienated everyone around him. His roommate and best friend gives him an ultimatum – get a job, get a life and get a job. He goes to work for a small outfit that cleans up after people die, whether that is by violence or not. Needless to say, this new gig will lead him into trouble.

Web is a true wise-ass, which is part of his problem but also part of his charm. Whatever situation he finds himself in – watching someone murdered with a telephone, for instance, in his apartment and then having to clean it up – he's so wholeheartedly irreverent that you can't help but like him. Soon he's up to his eyebrows in stolen nuts, a possible femme fatale, a war between cleaning outfits and the desire to reattach himself to humanity even while he's trying to puzzle out just what went wrong in his life.

Actually, he knows, but it takes him awhile to grasp it.

If blood and maniacs don't bother you, if you like cool, crisp writing and a pitch-dark sense of humor, read Charlie Huston.

THE SOUND OF BUILDING COFFINS by Louis Maistros  (Toby Press, $24.95)  Recommended by Patrick Millikin, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale AZ www.poisonedpen.com: One of the best New Orleans novels I've ever read, Maistros' debut seems dictated in a fever dream of automatic writing. The book begins in 1891 with a nine year-old boy,
Typhus Morningstar, riding down to the Mississippi river with a basket full of aborted fetuses to baptize. Meanwhile, his father Noonday Morningstar visits the home of a poor family whose infant son has been possessed by a demon. The confrontation between Morningstar and this evil spirit will take readers into an underworld journey as a decades-old voodoo curse is unleashed. One of the children present that evening is a young musical genius named Buddy Bolden whose cornet helps to usher in a new form: jazz.

Readers will inevitably compare Maistros' debut with Hjortsberg's Falling Angel, but in my opinion Maistros' is the superior effort. Written in lush, sensual prose that reminded me a bit of early Cormac McCarthy, it will reverberate with readers long after its final note is struck. Buddy Bolden is the subject of David Fulmer's Shamus winning debut Chasing the Devil's Tail.

Donald Harrington, an author I much admire, writes that this "debut novel is a thing of wonder, unlike anything in our literature. It startles. It stuns. It stupefies. No novel since Confederacy of Dunces has done such justice to New Orleans. If Franz Kafka had been able to write like Peter Straub, this might have been the result."

RUNNER by Thomas Perry (Otto Penzler, $25.00), recommended by Stephanie Saxon Levine Murder on the Beach Mystery Bookstore, Delray Beach, FL, www.murderonthebeach.com:  Here is reason to rejoice in this New Year: Jane Whitefield is back!  After a nine-year absence, Thomas Perry's series character has, albeit reluctantly, returned to her most unusual and highly hazardous career: turning victims into runners. I am thrilled to see her return, and her latest escapade was well worth the wait.

Having read all the earlier books, I was sympathetic with Jane's desire to leave her profession behind and live her happy, quiet life as Jane McKinnon, wife of an Amherst, New York doctor. From time to time, though, I'd cast a wistful look at Thomas Perry's website, hoping for some word of further plans for Jane. Last year, I saw what I'd been waiting for, and, at last, she's here.

What draws Jane into her role as guide is a bombing at a fancy hospital fundraiser. Jane quickly learns that the explosion was set by a team of trackers seeking to bring a young girl in mid-pregnancy back to the man she's running to escape. She has come to the hospital to find Jane, sent by a friend Jane had previously guided to a new life. Jane can't turn her back on this girl, and the result is a gripping tale.

Jane Whitefield's motivations and background make her a fascinating character. In each book in the series, we learn more about her Native American heritage and its customs, which I find fascinating. Perry gives us plenty to chew on, in terms of what makes her tick. Why a woman would give up a comfortable, non-threatening life to give a new life to a total stranger is perfectly believable when Thomas Perry illuminates her character for us.

Another plus is the fascinating manner in which Perry reveals the how-to's of Jane's unlikely career. As she travels across the country, we learn about the documentation necessary to create a new identity for a runner and all the tricks that runner must learn to have a chance at success.  We meet some intriguing characters along the way.

Jane is never out of danger, having amassed an impressive list of enemies in her quest to give good people new lives. How she helps them and avoids death for them and herself makes suspenseful and rewarding reading. New readers of this series will become fans, and old readers will be delighted with this newest outing. I'm looking for more!   

REVELATION by C.J. Sansom (Viking, $26.95),  recommended by Tom & Enid Schantz, The Rue Morgue, Lyons, CO www.ruemorguepress.com: In the year 1543, Henry VIII is looking to take his sixth wife, a widow named Catherine Parr who is afraid to marry him, and afraid not to. It's a most repressive time in England's history, as Henry is turning away from reform and religious reformers are now being persecuted if they speak their minds too freely. Meanwhile, the streets of London are full of sick, homeless people, including former monks who were turned out when the monasteries were closed as well as the poor souls they once treated in their hospitals. And the king is more interested in pouring money into foreign wars than caring for his subjects at home. 

Matthew Shardlake, the sharp-witted hunchback who has figured in three earlier books from this astonishing author, is now a successful and prosperous lawyer working on an unusual case, that of a teenage boy gone mad from religion. For his own protection he's been placed in the notorious Bedlam hospital for the insane, and though his parents want him removed, Matthew feels he is safer there, lest his uncontrolled prayers get him branded as a heretic. In the midst of all this Matthew's best friend is murdered in a most sensational way, and he promises his widow Dorothy (whom he has long loved in secret) to find the killer. More gruesome murders ensue, all following certain prophecies in the Book of Revelation. It's clear to the modern reader that we are dealing with a serial killer, a concept unknown to Tudor England. 

The story is dense, complex, and at 550 pages, not one word too long. We can't help but marvel at Sansom's clear, easy prose and his gift for creating memorable characters and for breathing life into a time gone by. Matthew is a remarkable creation, a kind and rational man in an age of cruelty and superstition. And of course there are the inevitable unspoken comparisons to our own time, as there should be in any work of historical fiction, since one age never learns from another's mistakes. We can't recommend this book too highly; it's another virtuoso performance from a truly great talent.

THE TOURIST by Olen Steinhauer (Minotaur, $24.95), recommended by David Lampe-Wilson, Mystery on Main Street, Brattleboro, VT www.mysteryonmain.com: Author Olen Steinhauer is no stranger to those who like their espionage driven by complex, intelligent characters.. His latest, The Tourist, hits the ground running and this dark tale of spies, betrayal and adventure never lets up. We're in Len Deighton country here, as Milo Weaver, a former CIA — an undercover agent, is pulled back into the world of intrigue. No longer in the field, he's settled into a CIA office job when his earlier life and some old secrets surface, making the world a dangerous place for himself and his family.

The Tourist is a complex, contemporary espionage story told with wit and sagacity, and it offers up a dozen or more intricate characters who keep the action on target. While the international intrigue and cross-country chase are the stuff of traditional Hitchcockian entertainment, Steinhauer once again demonstrates how his economical prose style can turn pervading paranoia into an exciting ride for his readers.

This may not be Steinhauer's best book but he's set himself such a high standard that what he misses in character shading he more than makes up for in deceptive action. It's what the reviewers in popular entertainment magazines refer to as "unputdownable." And the fact that George Clooney picked up the movie rights could indicate that Steinhauer may be discovered finally by those not otherwise prone to reading literary thrillers.

Issue 6.1

Edited by Robin Agnew,

Aunt Agatha's,

Ann Arbor,MI

www.auntagathas.com

If you have a taste for the outrageous, if you relish satire, if you enjoy academic settings, this is the book for you. You may recognize a few thinly disguised Harvard notables, which is fun, but not at all essential to enjoying the murder mystery. And it is a genuine mystery, with suspects, motives, and clues. I was enjoying myself so much that I was not deeply concerned with guessing the identity of the killer, but loose ends and questions are resolved in a satisfying conclusion.

Yes, there is a certain "squeam" factor owing to the cannibalism theme. Let me reassure you by saying that I am not a fan of gory mysteries, and I found this book well within my tolerance level - and well worth it for the academic satire and the laugh-out-loud situations, such as the reception for chimpanzee authors and the academic posturing at board meetings. I find it hard to do justice to this book, which almost falls into the indescribable category. So, just imagine that I am handing you this book and saying "I know you will love it!" Happy reading!

[This is truly "one that almost got away," having been originally published in 1997 and just picked up by Random House for release this January.]

BEAT THE REAPER by Josh Bazell (Little, Brown, $24.95), recommended by Barbara Tom at Murder by the Book, Portland, OR, www.mbtb.com: Peter Brown is a doctor. He is clever. He isn’t in awe of the institution of medicine. He gets things done. The only thing is...he isn’t really Peter Brown. Medicine is his second career. His first was as a hit man for the mob. He testified against the New Jersey mob and now has gone into hiding through a witness protection program. You could say he’s gone from taking bodies apart to putting them back together again.

All is well until a patient recognizes him. If he dies, he says, word will get back to the mob and the day of reckoning will arrive for Peter. Then the mob guy dies, through no fault of Peter’s, but because the mob guy had chosen his=2 0surgeon unwisely.

That’s the premise in a nutshell.

What is harder to convey is how quirky, stylish, and fun this book is. It’s also tough, thoughtful, and charming at the same time. It’s not all craziness and action, which is what is appears to be at the start, because author Bazell touches on the human core of the protagonist’s heart. I can hardly wait until it’s available in paperback, because this book is getting my star (for a Murder by the Book favorite). Beat the Reaper first showed up on my horizon at the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association trade show, when the publisher's rep said everyone in the company who read it couldn’t put it down. So I read it....and couldn’t put it down.

STARVATION LAKE by Bryan Gruley (Touchstone, $14.00), recommended by Robin Agnew, Aunt Agatha’s, Ann Arbor, MI, www.auntagathas.com: Bryan Gruley has satisfied my Steve Hamilton/Alex McKnight jones by writing a wonderful book set in Northern Michigan (in tiny, fictional Starvation Lake) and including a LOT of hockey. Though the subject matter is similar to Hamilton’s, the general tone of the novel is darker and more psychological than a typical Alex McKnight outing. The book centers on Gus Carpenter, who went to the big city of Detroit to make good after blowing the tiny town’s shot at a st ate hockey title. He’s back home in Starvation Lake working as editor at the local paper after a story he was working on in Detroit didn’t pan out. The nuances of that plotline are teased out through the entire book, but the main story centers on the discovery of the hockey coaches’ snowmobile in the Lake - it’s just the wrong Lake. The coach has been missing for years, and the appearance of his snowmobile stirs up all kinds of things, especially when it’s found to have bullet holes in its side. Woven through the narrative are Gus’s experiences playing hockey, both as a child and as an adult. Playing as an adult with the guys he’s grown up with, old grudges have had a chance to harden and turn vicious. As the many layers of this heartbreaking story are pulled back, the ending, while in a way a surprise, also seems inevitable. The prose is beautiful, and the characters are indelible. This is a new author to keep an eye on.

A CURE FOR NIGHT by Justin Peacock (Doubleday, $24.95), recommended by Sue Wilder, Murder on the Beach Mystery Bookstore, Delray Beach, FL, www.murderonthebeach.com: "The day my life fell apart began like any other" is the opening line in this compelling legal drama. Joel Devereaux is a litigator at a high profile corporate law firm. His bright future starts to fall apart when Beth, a paralegal, is found dead in the ladies room of a drug overdose. Contrary to corporate good sense, Joel had been running around with Beth. He’s dismissed from the firm, barely able to hold onto his legal credentials.

Joel’s fall from grace takes him to the public defender’s office in Brooklyn. After spending some time on mundane cases, he is assigned to work a high profile case with star public defender Myra Goldstein. The case involves the shooting death of a white college student and takes them into the projects in Brooklyn. Lorenzo Tate, a black drug dealer, is charged with the murder. Joel is forced to face his own demons while seconding Myra in the defense. The reader gets a first hand view of street drug culture and the accompanying racism.

Mr. Peacock’s legal experience is obvious as he takes the reader on a journey through the New York City legal system and the Brooklyn Public Defender’s office. The characters are clearly drawn and the street scenes are authentic. The writing is sharp. His description of criminal law as "how the day tries to correct the night’s mistakes" is right on target. A Cure for Night has been deservedly nominated for an Edgar award for best first novel. We can only hope that more books will follow.

THE SHANGHAI MOON by S.J. Rozan (St. Martin’s, $24.95), recommended by Maggie Mason, Lookin for Books, maggiemary@aol.com: Lydia Chin is going it alone after the events of the last investigation. She’s approached by another P.I., Joel Pilarsky, to take on a case involving recovery of assets for Holocaust victims. He in turn has been approached by an attorney who, though not Jewish, is nevertheless on a mission. Through Lydia’s investigation, we see the lengths people will go to to obtain a treasure that hasn’t been seen in years. Does the "Shanghai Moon" even exist? Through letters written by Rosalie Gilder to her mother we see the history behind this treasured piece of jewelry.

Rosalie and her brother Paul were able to escape Salzburg before the worst of the Nazi atrocities. Rosalie writes letters to her mother detailing the events of their boat trip to their new home in Shanghai. On the trip, Rosalie is befriended by Chen Kai-Rong, a wealthy, older resident of Shanghai - Rosalie is only eighteen. She grows up fast and eventually marries Kai-Rong, and he commissions the Shanghai Moon, a necklace made from jewelry treasured by both families. The piece had been seen by only a few people, yet it is legendary. It goes missing after Rosalie is murdered at the Japanese surrender and Mao Tse Tung’s army takes over Shanghai.

Bill and Lydia are warily working together after the events of the last book (Winter and Night) and are able to piece together an investigation using museum archives, interviews with former residents of Shanghai, and a university professor who gets his students to use the case as a research project. Meanwhile they are dealing with scams, gangs and the murder of Joel Pilarsky. This type of investigation is fascinating for me - to see how someone can find the truth hidden in the past is amazing, though not surprising when it’s Lydia and Bill.

Reading the letters from Rosalie, I felt I was walking the Shanghai streets with her, wanting to cover my nose because of the stench described. There is so much more depth to this book than a brief review can cover, but I hope I’ve tweaked your interest. You won’t regret seeking it out, though you may have tears in your eyes in some scenes, as I did.