Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan

 

First Line: No death could have been more profound.

 

When the body of a young Muslim girl is found at a local mosque in Blackwater Falls, Detective Inaya Rahman and other members of Denver's Community Response Unit (CRU) are called in to take charge of the investigation. There have been sustained charges of the harassment of minorities filed against the local sheriff, and no one wants to see this town turn into a powderkeg. 

Rahman and her partner, former trauma therapist Catalina Rivera Hernandez, have barely begun when they learn that other young girls from the immigrant community have gone missing, and their fates have been largely ignored. Finding a link between the death of young Razan Elkader and the missing girls, Rahman discovers that the leader of the CRU, Lieutenant Waqas Seif, is finding ways to obstruct the investigation. Wary of his motives, she relies on her partner Catalina and local civil rights attorney Areesha Adams for help in finding the truth before another young girl goes missing.

~

When you open Blackwater Falls, you immediately fall into a story of racial tensions, faith, prejudice, and fear, and author Ausma Zehanat Khan is a master of pulling readers into an unfamiliar world and making them feel a part of it. This is the sort of book many of us need to read in order to understand what immigrants and minorities have to endure every day, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if some readers find it an uncomfortable experience.

Detective Inaya Rahman is an interesting character. Daughter of Afghan-Pakistani parents and sibling to two younger sisters, Inaya has only recently stopped wearing the hijab. Formerly of the Chicago Police Department, she fled an untenable situation to become a member of Denver, Colorado's Community Response Unit (CRU). Described by another character as being "as biddable as a musk ox," her stubbornness and tenacity make her a good investigator, but she needs to learn when to dig in her heels and when to make a strategic retreat. 

As good and compelling a read as Blackwater Falls is, I felt that it suffers a bit from Too Much Syndrome (TMS). In this case, much of the TMS is due to setting up her characters and the background, but let me give you an incomplete rundown of the plot elements. You'll find various immigrant communities (Somalis, Afghans, Pakistanis, Palestinians, Syrians, Lebanese) and their differences described, Inaya's Chicago backstory, her boss Waqas Seif's backstory, corrupt police officers, a spy in the CRU, Seif's real agenda, goings-on at a food processing plant, goings-on at an aerospace plant, the plight of refugees, hate crimes, a murder investigation, a missing persons case, an evangelical church complete with hate-filled sermons and its own biker gang enforcers, Inaya's mother trying to marry her off, Inaya being big sister, and romantic sparks between Inaya and Seif. As I said, this is an incomplete list. Whew! Sometimes, there was so much going on that my head spun.

But I value Khan's storytelling ability. She's proven to me that she's one of the best at creating complex investigations to solve in worlds that I'm unfamiliar with-- and becoming familiar with those worlds and their people is every bit as important to me as the crimes she asks me to solve.

 

Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan

eISBN: 9781250822390

Minotaur Books © 2022

eBook, 384 pages

 

Police Procedural, #1 Inaya Rahman mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

On My Radar: A Fever in the Heartland!

 

Although the focus of my reading for several years has been crime fiction, I've always loved well-written non-fiction-- the sort with well-stocked bibliographies and facts that read like the best fiction. That's how I first became acquainted with Timothy Egan, who wrote one of my all-time favorite books (of any genre) The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl. 

 

I still feel the impact that book had on me, more than fifteen years after I read it. So... is it any wonder that I perked right up when I learned that Egan would have a new book coming out next year? Of course not! Let me tell you more about it before I give you another reason why I want to read his new book.

 

 

Available April 4, 2023!

 

Synopsis:

 

"The Roaring Twenties--the Jazz Age--has been characterized as a time of Gatsby frivolity. But it was also the height of the uniquely American hate group, the Ku Klux Klan. Their domain was not the old Confederacy, but the Heartland and the West. They hated Blacks, Jews, Catholics and immigrants in equal measure, and took radical steps to keep these people from the American promise. And the man who set in motion their takeover of great swaths of America was a charismatic charlatan named D.C. Stephenson.

Stephenson was a magnetic presence whose life story changed with every telling. Within two years of his arrival in Indiana, he’d become the Grand Dragon of the state and the architect of the strategy that brought the group out of the shadows – their message endorsed from the pulpits of local churches, spread at family picnics and town celebrations. Judges, prosecutors, ministers, governors and senators across the country all proudly proclaimed their membership. But at the peak of his influence, it was a seemingly powerless woman – Madge Oberholtzer – who would reveal his secret cruelties, and whose deathbed testimony finally brought the Klan to their knees." 

 

 

This book is written by one of my favorite authors, and it's about a time period that has always fascinated me. Granted, reading about the Ku Klux Klan is not going to be easy-- organizations like that are bad for my blood pressure-- but I do want to read it because it ties in with something I discovered in some of my mother's papers.

 

My mother and a family friend spent hundreds of hours combing through the various incarnations of our village newspaper back in central Illinois, mostly for their genealogy work on their family trees, but it's amazing the fascinating nuggets of history they uncovered. I well remember them reading many of these nuggets aloud as they turned the pages of those old newspapers.

 

What I found in my mother's papers were photocopies of some old (1920s) articles from the village newspaper-- articles about regular meetings of the Ku Klux Klan that were held in my little hometown (population 1800). It was as if I'd been poleaxed; I couldn't believe that that vile organization had had a home in my village. 

 

That's why I've preordered Egan's book. Yes, I think it will be good, but I want to understand why the KKK became so prominent in a time period that I'd only associated with F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jay Gatsby in the past.  Something tells me that my mother was just as stunned as I when she found those newspaper articles, and that she would want to read A Fever in the Heartland, too.

A Cool & Happy Weekly Link Round-Up

 

The photo I'm sharing with you this week makes me so happy I could cry. 

 

It's been a long, long, long time since Denis has looked so good... so well... so happy. Recently, he's shown more mobility almost daily. In fact, some days once he gets going, I feel like I'm trying to herd cats. It's annoying... until I think about how long it's been and what he's had to endure-- and then I smile. 

 

While his mobility has improved, his level of pain had not. He went to see his spine surgeon Monday, and after talking with him, the surgeon said that Denis had arthritis in the same area as the site of the infection and the surgery and that he would prescribe an anti-inflammatory to see if that would help. The very next day, this photo shows the look on his face. The new prescription did the trick. (And a call to his daughter Kelly on Wednesday put an extra sparkle in his eyes.)

 

All this AND a 25-degree drop in temperature makes the Barlow B&B a happy place indeed! It's been a long time since I've had to wear a sweater. (Hey... when you've lived with 100°+ temperatures for four months, temperatures in the 70s feel positively arctic.)

Two thumbs up!

 

Have a great weekend, and enjoy the links!

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• The world's most valuable novel will be going on display next year.
• How to find the best Kindle book deals.
• Art researchers have discovered that one of Dutch artist Vermeer's paintings is not actually his.
• The feminist history of science fiction.
• How crime novels use Point of View (POV) to reveal their true mysteries.
• What counts as a bestseller?
• Historical mysteries: pure escape or open field?
• Why we root for the adaptations of our favorite book series even when they disappoint us.
• Magpie Murders is a brisk, dexterous murder mystery about the fun of reading.
  

 

►Book Banning & Censorship◄

• This Liberty (Missouri) book club only reads the titles other parents want banned from schools.
• Banning books is a threat to public education. 
• You can join the Read-sistance by establishing a Book Sanctuary.
• A school board meeting in Michigan was closed by the fire marshal when a large group showed up to speak against books. 
• A school district in Pennsylvania has returned banned books to the shelves.
• The superintendent is retiring after a Colorado school board president urged parents to "search schools for objectionable material". 
• The right-wing money and influence behind Moms for Liberty. 
• The former Boundary County (Idaho) library director details what led up to her resignation and the dangers of censorship. 
• An Idaho student won a school board seat. He has a message for students everywhere. 
• A "rogue" employee recently replaced pro-choice book orders with Christian books.
  

 

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• A World War I German U-boat has been discovered off the U.S. coast one hundred years after it sank.
• A 3,500-year-old Babylonian tablet may contain the earliest known depiction of a ghost.
• Archaeologists in Northumberland (England) have begun their search for a Viking Great Army camp.
• Archaeologists dig up a 1,400-year-old Native American canal in Alabama.
• Why art was such a powerful tool for England's Tudor monarchs.
• A massive rare ancient Roman mosaic has been unearthed in Syria. More from Live Science and Smithsonian Magazine.
  
• A fire has irreversibly damaged statues on Easter Island.
• Archaeologists have unearthed eight colonial-era mummies in Peru.

 

►Channeling My Inner Elly May Clampett◄

• Meet Blue, an urban apartment-dwelling green iguana.
• In "bizarre behavior", New Zealand penguins lay one egg, reject it, and then lay another. Now, scientists know why. 
• Chernobyl radiation triggered a surge of black frogs while the green frogs "croaked". Evolution explains why. 
• More than half of the U.S. bird populations are shrinking. Is it any wonder? Just ONE neighborhood here in Phoenix has a feral cat colony numbering FIFTY cats. 
• Bear 747 overcomes scandal to win Fat Bear Week. 
• Eclipse, known for riding the bus to the dog park alone, has died. 
• Six endangered gray wolves were poisoned in Washington. 
• Thousands of cannonball jellyfish wash ashore after swarming North Carolina's Outer Banks. 

 

►The Wanderer◄

• See the vivid colors of a rainbow eucalyptus tree.
• How would van Gogh have painted the Faroe Islands?
• Images from the 2022 Weather Photographer of the Year contest.
• Alexandria: a center of ancient crime writing.
• This beautiful Italian region will reimburse your train ticket.
• The allure of Georgia's golden isles.

 

►Fascinating Folk◄

• Meet the four women who will run Antarctica's Penguin Post Office.
• Nicole Mann becomes the first Native American woman in space. 
• Mary Vaux Walcott, the trailblazing illustrator and mountaineer who explored the wild North. 
• How Colleen Hoover's normcore thrillers made her America's bestselling author. More from Time Magazine.
• The bookish life of Angela Lansbury. 

 

►I Want One!◄

• This sleek new personal submarine has lounge chairs and its own mini bar.

 

►I ♥ Lists◄

• Seven mysteries set in the Midwestern winter.
• Crime sub-genres to add to your TBR. 
• The ten best hats in crime movies. 
• Eleven books for fans of P.G. Wodehouse. 
• The best books that give an unexpected twist to a familiar situation. 
• Thirteen detective series books to jumpstart your next obsession. 

 

 

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

 

Stay healthy. Stay safe. And don't forget to curl up with a good book!

Hell and Back by Craig Johnson

 

First Line: There was the sound of bells and then the silence-- the kind of quiet that only comes with snow, capturing the soundwaves of life and smothering them before they can cry out.

 

Fort Pratt, Montana has an unhappy history. In 1896, thirty Native American boys died in a boarding school fire there, and it's where Sheriff Walt Longmire wakes up, lying in the middle of the street with his sheepskin coat frozen to the ground.

Why is he in Fort Pratt? Why is he covered in blood? Why is there a bullet missing from his gun? The sweatband in his hat has a name printed on it, but... who's Walt Longmire?

And why does everyone he meets in town seem so familiar?

~

If you pick up Hell and Back and think you're about to enjoy the usual Walt Longmire mystery, think again. Open this book, and you're in the Twilight Zone. 

I found Hell and Back to be perfect reading for the Halloween season, because as Walt begins to roam the streets of Fort Pratt in order to find answers to all the questions swimming around in his head, I was getting creeped out. This is the type of book that a reviewer can't say much about without giving things away, but I will say this: (1) if you haven't read all the books in the series, you're going to be confused, and (2) if you're not a fan of Native American mysticism, dream sequences, and the fact that Henry Standing Bear and Vic Moretti only make cameo appearances, you might want to give this one a miss.

This is a very different Longmire novel, and I liked exploring this departure. I also admire Johnson for his bravery because something tells me he has a lot of fans who are not going to be happy-- to the point where they get their flaming torches and sharpened pitchforks and head to Ucross, Wyoming. 

What's going to be very interesting is finding out where Craig Johnson takes Walt next. I look forward to finding out.

Hell and Back by Craig Johnson

ISBN: 9780593297285

Viking © 2022

Hardcover, 352 pages

 

Thriller/Suspense, #18 Walt Longmire mystery

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from The Poisoned Pen.

November 2022 New Mystery Releases!

 

Here it is, the end of October, and it's finally cooling down here in the desert. As I write this, the high temperature is only going to be 84°F/29°C, and I have to admit that, if I can't spend my days in the pool, the mid-eighties is the perfect temperature range for me. (Told you I don't like the cold!) Denis and I can get out and roam outdoors to our hearts' content without the fear of being fried on the hoof, although we do still need our hats and sunscreen.

 

The past couple of months, I've been treated to some excellent books that have made my Best Reads of 2022 list, and I'm definitely hoping that this trend continues. To that end, you know I'm keeping my eyes peeled for new crime fiction to read.

 

The following books are what I consider to be the crème de la crème. I've grouped them according to their release dates, and their covers and synopses are courtesy of my favorite showroom, Amazon. Let's see if I've chosen any that tickle your fancy, too.

 

 

=== November 1 ===

 

 

Title: Death on a Winter Stroll

Author: Francine Mathews

Series: #7 in the Merry Folger police procedural series set on Nantucket Island.

288 pages

 

Synopsis: "Nantucket Police Chief Meredith Folger is acutely conscious of the stress COVID-19 has placed on the community she loves. Although the island has proved a refuge for many during the pandemic, the cost to Nantucket has been high. Merry hopes that the Christmas Stroll, one of Nantucket’s favorite traditions, in which Main Street is transformed into a winter wonderland, will lift the island’s spirits. But the arrival of a large-scale TV production, and the Secretary of State and her family, complicates matters significantly.
 
The TV shoot is plagued with problems from within, as a shady, power-hungry producer clashes with strong-willed actors. Across Nantucket, the Secretary’s troubled stepson keeps shaking off his security detail to visit a dilapidated house near conservation land, where an intriguing recluse guards secrets of her own. With all parties overly conscious of spending too much time in the public eye and secrets swirling around both camps, it is difficult to parse what behavior is suspicious or not—until the bodies turn up.
 
Now, it’s up to Merry and Detective Howie Seitz to find a connection between two seemingly unconnected murders and catch the killer. But when everyone has a motive, and half of the suspects are politicians and actors, how can Merry and Howie tell fact from fiction?
 
This latest installment in critically acclaimed author Francine Mathews’s Merry Folger series is an immersive escape to festive Nantucket, a poignant exploration of grief as a result of parental absence, and a delicious new mystery to keep you guessing."

 

 

Title: Blackwater Falls

Author: Ausma Zehanat Khan

Series: #1 in the Detective Inaya Rahman police procedural series set in Colorado.

384 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "Girls from immigrant communities have been disappearing for months in the Colorado town of Blackwater Falls, but the local sheriff is slow to act and the fates of the missing girls largely ignored. At last, the calls for justice become too loud to ignore when the body of a star student and refugee--the Syrian teenager Razan Elkader--is positioned deliberately in a mosque.

Detective Inaya Rahman and Lieutenant Waqas Seif of the Denver Police are recruited to solve Razan’s murder, and quickly uncover a link to other missing and murdered girls. But as Inaya gets closer to the truth, Seif finds ways to obstruct the investigation. Inaya may be drawn to him, but she is wary of his motives: he may be covering up the crimes of their boss, whose connections in Blackwater run deep.

Inaya turns to her female colleagues, attorney Areesha Adams and Detective Catalina Hernandez, for help in finding the truth. The three have bonded through their experiences as members of vulnerable groups and now they must work together to expose the conspiracy behind the murders before another girl disappears.

Delving deep into racial tensions, and police corruption and violence, Blackwater Falls examines a series of crimes within the context of contemporary American politics with compassion and searing insight." 

Title: It Came Upon a Midnight Shear

Author: Allie Pleiter

Series: #3 in the Riverbank Knitting cozy series set in Maryland.

304 pages

 

Synopsis: "The holiday season looks merry and bright for Libby and her friends at Y.A.R.N. The store is expanding for a holiday boom, and she’s gathered Collinstown’s businesses to decorate a community Christmas tree. Dashing “Gallant Herdsman” Vincenzo Marani arrives to showcase the rare vicuña, whose coat produces the world’s most luxurious yarn. It’s a perfect yuletide—until Libby’s ex-husband, Sterling, turns up in town…and then turns up dead.

The murder unravels Libby’s life faster than a hand-knit Christmas stocking. The luxe yarn goes missing, Sterling’s domineering family comes to town, and the vicuña attempt an escape. If Libby can’t stitch up a solution to the case, she may be trading in her knitting needles for a set of handcuffs." 

 

 

=== November 8 ===

 

 

Title: Outback

Author: Patricia Wolf

Series: #1 in the DS Lucas Walker police procedural series set in Australia.

320 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "DS Lucas Walker is on leave in his hometown of Caloodie, taking care of his dying grandmother. When two young German backpackers, Berndt and Rita, vanish from the area, he finds himself unofficially on the case. But why all the interest from the Federal Police when they have probably just ditched the heat and dust of the outback for the coast?

As the number of days since the couple's disappearance climbs, DS Walker is joined by Rita's older sister. A detective herself with Berlin CID, she has flown to Australia - desperate to find her sister before it's too late.

Working in the organised crime unit has opened Walker's eyes to the growing drug trade in Australia's remote interior, and he remains convinced there is more at play.

As temperatures soar, the search for Berndt and Rita becomes ever more urgent. Even if Walker does find the young couple, will it be too late?" 

Title: Desert Star

Author: Michael Connelly

Series: #5 in the Renée Ballard police procedural series set in California. (Also features Harry Bosch.)

400 pages

 

Synopsis: "A year has passed since LAPD detective Renée Ballard quit the force in the face of misogyny, demoralization, and endless red tape. But after the chief of police himself tells her she can write her own ticket within the department, Ballard takes back her badge, leaving “the Late Show” to rebuild and lead the cold case unit at the elite Robbery-Homicide Division.

For years, Harry Bosch has been working a case that haunts him—the murder of an entire family by a psychopath who still walks free. Ballard makes Bosch an offer: come volunteer as an investigator in her new Open-Unsolved Unit, and he can pursue his “white whale” with the resources of the LAPD behind him.

First priority for Ballard is to clear the unsolved rape and murder of a sixteen-year-old girl. The decades-old case is essential to the councilman who supported re-forming the unit, and who could shutter it again—the victim was his sister. When Ballard gets a “cold hit” connecting the killing to a similar crime, proving that a serial predator has been at work in the city for years, the political pressure has never been higher. To keep momentum going, she has to pull Bosch off his own investigation, the case that is the consummation of his lifelong mission.

The two must put aside old resentments and new tensions to run to ground not one but two dangerous killers who have operated with brash impunity. " 

 

 

Title: Peril in Paris

Author: Rhys Bowen

Series: #16 in the Royal Spyness historical mystery series set in 1930s France.

304 pages

 

Synopsis: "What a delight it is to finally be able to enjoy a simple meal again! I have been in the throes of morning sickness for the last few months as Darcy and I prepare to welcome a brand-new addition to our little family. Now that I am feeling better, I have realized I am dreadfully bored! It seems that all my nearest and dearest are off leading their own busy lives while I sit at home and attempt to train our two adorably naughty puppies. Fun as it may be, it is hard not to long for a little adventure, a change of pace, before my true confinement begins when the baby comes.

Happily, it seems that Darcy has read my mind. When I receive a letter from my glamorous best friend, Belinda, Darcy suggests we take a trip to Paris to visit her. It seems he also has a spot of business of which to take care, so I will be staying in Belinda’s flat as she works feverishly on Coco Chanel’s fall collection. I happen to know Coco from a disastrous encounter in Nice years ago, and I am hoping this visit will go much more smoothly. But I soon learn that nothing about my time in Paris is going to be simple . . . or safe for that matter.

Darcy has asked me to take on a small chore as a part of his latest assignment. I am to covertly retrieve something from an attendee of Coco’s show. It seems easy enough, but I discover that this little errand could have terrifying consequences for a world on the brink of war. When things go horribly wrong, I am left to find a killer all while trying to fend off a French policeman who is certain that I am a criminal mastermind. But I have no plans to deliver my darling little one in a prison cell, and so I will muster every ounce of my courage to save the day . . . and, quite possibly, the world!" 

=== November 10 ===

Title: A Killer Christmas at Honeychurch Hall

Author: Hannah Dennison

Series: #9 in the Kat Stanford/Honeychurch Hall cozy series set in England.

288 pages

Synopsis: "Following the butler's death and the cook's retirement, the ever-gullible Lady Lavinia replaces them with a power couple who are determined to thrust the crumbling estate into the 21st century. The Dowager Countess reluctantly agrees to hold a big-ticket Christmas gala and silent auction with a mystery celebrity flying in from Monaco as the guest of honour.

Needless to say the newcomers' make a few enemies in their quest to change the status quo and when one body is discovered in the Victorian stumpery and a second, in the ha-ha, it seems that their high-flying past is catching up with them.

Meanwhile, Kat is dealing with the theft of a valuable doll that had been earmarked for the auction. When it turns out that all the ticket money has vanished and there never was a celebrity guest, it's up to Kat to save the day and bring the cold-blooded killer to justice."

=== November 15 ===

Title: Dark of Night

Author: Barbara Nickless

Series: #2 in the Dr. Evan Wilding police procedural series set in Illinois.

367 pages

 

Synopsis: "What an exotic way to die in Chicago.

When esteemed historian Elizabeth Lawrence is found in her car, killed by a cobra’s bite, only a brilliant professor of semiotics, Dr. Evan Wilding, can see the signs around her strange death. As he helps homicide detective Addie Bisset decipher the scene, the puzzles left behind offer Evan chilling passage into the mind of a killer.

Evan’s investigation merges with that of an Israeli agent, who claims Elizabeth was close to acquiring an invaluable artifact. She was also drawing the attention of unsavory treasure hunters, forgers, and thieves. Was someone desperate to expose the truth of Elizabeth’s astonishing discovery?

The deeper Evan and Addie delve into the case, the darker it gets. A murderer’s archaic crimes are just the beginning. In a race where there can be only one winner, the final victim might be Evan." 

 

 

Title: A Ghost of Caribou

Author: Alice Henderson

Series: #3 in the Alex Carter wildlife biologist series set in Washington state.

320 pages

 

Synopsis: "When a remote camera on a large, rugged expanse held by the Land Trust for Wildlife Conservation picks up a blurry image of what could be a mountain caribou, they contact Alex Carter to investigate. After all, mountain caribou went extinct in the contiguous U.S. years ago, and if one has wandered down from Canada, it’s monumental.

But when Alex arrives on scene in the Selkirk mountains of northeastern Washington state, she quickly learns that her only challenge isn’t finding an elusive caribou on a massive piece of land. The nearby townspeople are agitated; loggers and activists clash over a swath of old growth forest marked for clearcutting. The murdered body of a forest ranger is found strung up in the town’s park, and Alex learns of a backcountry hiker who went missing in the same area the year before.

As she ventures into the forest in search of the endangered animal, she quickly finds herself in a fight for her life, caught between factions warring for the future of the forest and a murderer stalking the dense groves of ancient trees." 

 

 

Title: Bleeding Heart Yard

Author: Elly Griffiths

Series: #3 in the Harbinder Kaur police procedural series set in England.

352 pages

 

Synopsis: "When Cassie Fitzgerald was at school in the late 90s, she and her friends killed a fellow student. Almost twenty years later, Cassie is a happily married mother who loves her job—as a police officer. She closely guards the secret she has all but erased from her memory.

One day her husband finally persuades her to go to a school reunion. Cassie catches up with her high-achieving old friends from the Manor Park School—among them two politicians, a rock star, and a famous actress. But then, shockingly, one of them, Garfield Rice, is found dead in the school bathroom, supposedly from a drug overdose. As Garfield was an eminent—and controversial—MP and the investigation is high profile, it’s headed by Cassie’s new boss, DI Harbinder Kaur, freshly promoted and newly arrived in London. The trouble is, Cassie can’t shake the feeling that one of them has killed again.

Is Cassie right, or was Garfield murdered by one of his political cronies? It’s in Cassie’s interest to skew the investigation so that it looks like it has nothing to do with Manor Park and she seems to be succeeding.

Until someone else from the reunion is found dead in Bleeding Heart Yard…" 

 

 

Title: The Twist of a Knife

Author: Anthony Horowitz

Series: #4 in the Hawthorne & Horowitz series set in England.

384 pages

 

Synopsis: "“I’m sorry but the answer’s no.” Reluctant author, Anthony Horowitz, has had enough. He tells ex-detective Daniel Hawthorne that after three books he’s splitting and their deal is over.

The truth is that Anthony has other things on his mind.

His new play, a thriller called Mindgame, is about to open at the Vaudeville Theater in London’s West End. Not surprisingly, Hawthorne declines a ticket to the opening night.

The play is panned by the critics. In particular, Sunday Times critic Margaret Throsby gives it a savage review, focusing particularly on the writing. The next day, Throsby is stabbed in the heart with an ornamental dagger which turns out to belong to Anthony, and has his fingerprints all over it.

Anthony is arrested by an old enemy . . . Detective Inspector Cara Grunshaw. She still carries a grudge from her failure to solve the case described in the second Hawthorne adventure, The Sentence is Death, and blames Anthony. Now she’s out for revenge.

Thrown into prison and fearing for both his personal future and his writing career, Anthony is the prime suspect in Throsby’s murder and when a second theatre critic is found to have died in mysterious circumstances, the net closes in. Ever more desperate, he realizes that only one man can help him.

But will Hawthorne take the call?" 

 

 

=== November 29 ===

 

 

Title: An Act of Foul Play

Author: T.E. Kinsey

Series: #9 in the Lady Hardcastle historical mystery series set in turn-of-the-20th-century England.

303 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "November 1911. Lady Emily Hardcastle is celebrating her birthday by seeing a play at the Duke’s Theatre in Bristol with her maid and confidante, the inimitable Flo. Act One is a triumph. Then Act Two opens with a body on stage―a real one. One of the cast has been brutally murdered during the interval.

When other matters get in the way of Inspector Sunderland overseeing the case himself, he asks the ever-resourceful Lady H to keep a watchful eye on the suspects―and his police colleagues. Rustling up some cunning disguises of their own, she and Flo are soon in deep cover among the cast and crew, pulling back the curtain on some shocking secrets and rivalries…

The problem is, everyone seems to have a motive, and everyone seems to have an alibi…In this locked-room mystery in which nothing is as it seems, the amateur sleuths need to put on the performances of their lives if they’re to stand a chance of shining a spotlight on the truth…" 

 

 

 

November is another month in which several of my favorite authors have new books being released. I think the publishers are hoping that we all blow our budgets on book buying, don't you?

 

Which new books tickle your fancy most? Inquiring minds would love to know!

A Trace of Poison by Colleen Cambridge

 

First Lines: "I just don't see any way around it. He's simply got to be done away with," said a hushed voice.

 

The village of Listleigh has the perfect residents to raise awareness of the local writers' group's Murder Fête: Agatha Christie and her husband who live at Mallowan Hall. In quite a coup, four members of the Detection Club have agreed to attend the fête, give talks, sign books, and judge a writing contest, the winner of which will win a valuable international publishing contract. All the proceeds of this fête will go to replacing the roof of the local orphanage.

With people like G.K. Chesterton and Dorothy L. Sayers wandering the house and grounds, it's no wonder that housekeeper Phyllida Bright pays no special attention to voices discussing murder under her window... until the local priest is murdered with a poisoned drink at that evening's cocktail party.

Everything points to the head of the writers' group being the intended target of the poisoned drink, and since he is almost universally detested, Phyllida finds that her suspect list is quite long indeed. When another person dies, Agatha Christie's indomitable housekeeper knows that she has to work fast to find the killer.

~

I'm really enjoying this historical mystery series written by Colleen (Gleason) Cambridge. Not only does it have a plot that would make Dame Agatha proud, but historian Cambridge really gives readers a strong feel for the period and all that it entails being the housekeeper of a large country home. 

Phyllida Bright is a stern taskmistress, but she is liked and respected by the staff of Mallowan Hall, and since she and Agatha Christie served together during the Great War, she has a special relationship with her employer. Phyllida is extremely opinionated and, in A Trace of Poison, seems to have a thing about mustaches, but to each her own. The chauffeur, Bradford, and his puppy really get up her nose, and I love how Bradford enjoys getting a rise out of her every chance he can get. Yes, the sparks are flying between these two, but I sincerely hope that Cambridge doesn't light the fire, at least for a while. 

All detectives worth their salt have "resources" to help them with their investigations. Sherlock Holmes has the Baker Street Irregulars, and Phyllida Bright has her "downstairs" contacts-- all the housekeepers, cooks, maids, and footmen who work in the surrounding houses. She needs all the help they can give her because this is one magnificently convoluted crime. 

All the historical figures in A Trace of Poison are 99% set dressing. They say very little and have even less to do with the actual plot, but it's great just to imagine them spending a weekend with Agatha Christie and her husband in their country house. If there's anything I've found to be a bit tiresome in the (so far) two books in this series it's the long, drawn-out summoning of the suspects and all the explanations given during the reveal at story's end. It just takes too bloomin' long. Phyllida, I know you love Hercule Poirot; does he take as long to amaze us with his brilliance? If he does, you really don't have to be a slavish imitator, you know!

A Trace of Poison by Colleen Cambridge

eISBN: 9781496732491

Kensington Books © 2022

eBook, 304 pages

 

Historical Mystery, #2 Phyllida Bright mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

While Miz Kittling Knits: Annika

 

I've mentioned that I took a break from knitting afghans to take on a few different projects (one of which was the baby blanket I showed you a couple of weeks ago), so I thought I'd show you two or three... maybe even four!

 

One is this seed and stockinette stitch scarf done in 100% acrylic yarn. The pattern called for the stockinette stitch to be the outside rows but that stitch rolls terribly. I got the bright idea to reverse the rows and begin with the seed stitch. Voilà-- no rolled edges!

 

Here's another scarf done in a braided cable pattern. (I love how the bottom edges of the scarf form little ruffles.) The yarn was an absolute treat to work with: Cloudborn Limited Edition in a gorgeous blue-gray color called Pebble. The yarn is 65% alpaca, 26% silk, 9% wool... and is so incredibly soft, with beautiful drape.

Another scarf done in a simple knit one, purl one rib stitch in one of my favorites: Isaac Mizrahi craft yarn in a colorway called Spanish Harlem. This yarn is incredibly soft and satisfies my occasional yearning for bling.

An attempted closeup of Spanish Harlem with its shades of black, blues, and purples.

Here's the finished needlepoint mat I made for my new end table. (I just realized that you can tell a lot about a person by the "necessaries" they keep by their chairs...) It's done in my favorite herringbone stitch that looks like woven cloth and wears like iron.

Herringbone stitch, right side. Stitched in Caron Simply Soft Speckle 100% acrylic yarn in Blue Gingham. It took me a little while to get the hang of this stitch because 90% of the yarn is on the top side of the canvas, leaving very little on the back for hiding tail ends of thread.

Herringbone stitch, wrong side. I think another reason why I love this stitch so much is because it reminds me of one of my mother's lessons in embroidery: Always have the "wrong" side of your work so neat and tidy that other people have a hard time telling the right side from the wrong side. Once I learned that I had to hide my thread tails on the right side instead of the wrong side, there was no stopping me.

I'm now about halfway done with a major needlepoint project using the same yarn and the same stitch for Denis's side tables. He has so many medications, etc., that he needs by his recliner that I put two end tables together for him. Having a mat on his tables (like I have on mine) is a must because he has a tendency to spill things. How major is this project? It's going to take five panels stitched together to cover the top of his space. I'm currently stitching the third panel.

 

 

 

What was one of the programs I was watching while I was keeping my needles flying? 

 

 

Annika, starring Nicola Walker

 

 

Denis and I watched Annika on PBS Masterpiece through Amazon Prime. I'm beginning to wonder if Nicola Walker has ever turned in a blah/bad performance because I've liked very single thing I've seen her in. She seems to have a knack for choosing good stories. Here's a synopsis of the series from IMDb: "The sharp, witty and enigmatic DI Annika Strandhed (Walker) heads up a new specialist Marine Homicide Unit (MHU) in Scotland that is tasked with investigating unexplained, brutal, and seemingly unfathomable murders."

Walker's character often looks right into the camera to talk to us, and although it's unusual, it took very little time for me to get used to it. She always has a literary tie-in to the case she and her team are investigating, the stories are good, and I'm enjoying the Scottish scenery. Fortunately for Walker's single-mother character, her angsty teenage daughter seems to be calming down a bit, although the bombshell at the end of the latest season makes me wonder how long that will last.

Bottom line: Bring on a new season because I still have plenty of stitching to do!