Hunting the Saturday Night Strangler by C.M. Wendelboe

First Line: A full moon-- a rustler's moon-- peeks from low-hanging clouds and casts eerie shadows across the grassy pasture.

It's frustrating when two innocent people are strangled to death on consecutive Saturday nights and you can't convince the police in Cheyenne, Wyoming that there is a pattern and it could happen again. Since the lead detective won't pay any attention to them, TV reporter Ana Maria Villarreal and retired homicide detective Arn Anderson decide to conduct their own investigation.

Arn's already got his plate full since he's been hired as a range detective to catch the Midnight Sheepherder who's been rustling livestock from local ranchers, but he just lights both ends of his candle and deals with it. The closer Arn and Ana Maria come to catching the strangler, the more they're met with suspicion, and when they come face to face with a desperate act of violence, they begin to wonder if they're getting close to the solution or close to their own deaths.

This two-pronged mystery begins with the Midnight Sheepherder rustling sheep in the dead of night. The scene is so vivid that I felt I was right there in the pasture with the thief and the thief's canine accomplice. The second mystery needing to be solved is, of course, the identity of the strangler. Both held my interest all the way to the end of this fast-paced book, and if I'd paid attention to one of my rules of armchair detecting, I would've figured out the rustling mystery. Oh well... sometimes I get so caught up in a story that I forget all about those rules of mine.

Arn Anderson and his motley crew of friends provide both humor and excitement to this second Bitter Wind mystery. He gets along well with Police Chief Oblanski but has a much more difficult time developing a rapport with Slade, the lead investigator on the homicide case. (Probably because Slade is one of these guys who knows he's always right.) But back to that motley crew.

Danny Spotted Elk was a homeless man who thought he'd found a home in a derelict house until Arn decided to fix up his deceased mother's home so he himself could live in it. Danny talked himself into staying because he's a first-rate carpenter/plumber/electrician... and not a bad cook either. Arn's saving a bundle on the renovation, getting fed, and finding out that it's much better when there are two smart alecks on the premises instead of just one. Ana Maria's the one who goes out investigating most often with Arn because she gets her TV station to hire him to investigate things. Wonder of wonders, she's a TV reporter with scruples and smarts, not the typical pains in the neck you usually read about in crime fiction, so you don't want to sic the Saturday Night Strangler on her.

Hunting the Saturday Night Strangler has an excellent double-barreled mystery, laugh-out-loud humor, and some hair-raising action scenes added to a very strong cast of characters. C.M. Wendelboe's Bitter Wind novels are a good way to spend an afternoon or two. I'm looking forward to the next one.
 

Hunting the Saturday Night Strangler by C.M. Wendelboe

eISBN: 9780738755243

Midnight Ink © 2018

eBook, 288 pages

Police Procedural, #2 Bitter Wind mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley


 

October 2018 New Mystery Releases!

There's nothing like spending summer afternoons in the pool to observe the change of seasons. I'm an old hand at being able to look out over the patio and tell the time by where the shadows are falling. You could call it my own variation of the sundial. In summer, the sun starts its path down the sky to its bed just beyond the roof peak. When the season is winding down, it starts its graceful glide just behind the oleanders across from where I sit... many yards to the left of the roof.

This means that my unheated pool starts cooling off quickly, and last week's day of overcast and the long afternoon of gentle rain put paid to my reading season out in the pool. But-- I still managed to find an overabundance of wonderful new crime fiction that's going to be released during the month of October! I've grouped the titles according to their release dates, and I hope that I've chosen some books that make you do a happy dance and add them to your personal wishlists. Book covers and synopses are courtesy of Amazon.

Let's take a look, shall we?

=== October 2 ===

Title: Death of a Rainmaker

Author: Laurie Loewenstein

Series: #1 Dust Bowl historical mystery set in 1930s Oklahoma.

320 pages

Synopsis: "When a rainmaker is bludgeoned to death in the pitch-blackness of a colossal dust storm, small-town sheriff Temple Jennings shoulders yet another burden in the hard times of the 1930s Dust Bowl. The killing only magnifies Temple's ongoing troubles: a formidable opponent in the upcoming election, the repugnant burden of enforcing farm foreclosures, and his wife's lingering grief over the loss of their eight-year-old son.

As the sheriff and his young deputy investigate the murder, their suspicions focus on a teenager, Carmine, serving with the Civilian Conservation Corps. The deputy, himself a former CCCer, struggles with remaining loyal to the corps while pursuing his own aspirations as a lawman.

When the investigation closes in on Carmine, Temple's wife, Etha, quickly becomes convinced of his innocence and sets out to prove it. But Etha's own probe soon reveals a darker web of secrets, which imperil Temple's chances of reelection and cause the husband and wife to confront their long-standing differences about the nature of grief." 

=== October 8 ===

Title: The Question of the Dead Mistress

Author: E.J. Copperman/Jeff Cohen

Series: #5 in the Asperger's cozy series set in New Jersey.

288 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "'Is my husband having an affair with a dead woman?'
 
For Samuel Hoenig, the proprietor of a unique agency called Questions Answered, the answer to this most recent question is simple. Since there's absolutely no evidence that apparitions exist, it would be impossible for Ginny Fontaine's husband to be having an affair with one.

But Samuel's associate, Janet Washburn, isn't so easily convinced.

Wrestling with his complicated feelings for Ms. Washburn, Samuel proposes that she take the lead on the question. As soon as her research begins, the husband in question ends up dead, leaving Janet and Samuel wondering if they stand a ghost of a chance at unraveling this twisted tale of danger and deceit."

Title: Hunting the Saturday Night Strangler

Author: C.M. Wendelboe

Series: #2 in the Bitter Wind P.I. series set in Wyoming.

288 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Two innocent victims, strangled to death on consecutive Saturday nights. Even as they see the pattern emerging, retired detective Arn Anderson and TV reporter Ana Maria Villarreal can't seem to convince the Cheyenne police that the killer may strike again.

Hunting a remorseless murderer leads Arn and Ana Maria down a rabbit hole of ranchers and rustlers. But the closer they come to catching the killer, the more they're met with suspicion. And when their investigation collides with a desperate act of violence, they wonder whether they're unwinding the killer's twisted thread of clues or tightening their own noose."

=== October 9 ===

Title: The Clockmaker's Daughter

Author: Kate Morton

Standalone historical mystery set in England.

496 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "My real name, no one remembers.
The truth about that summer, no one else knows.

In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe's life is in ruins.

Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in Victorian clothing, and an artist's sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend of a river.

Why does Birchwood Manor feel so familiar to Elodie? And who is the beautiful woman in the photograph? Will she ever give up her secrets?

Told by multiple voices across time, The Clockmaker's Daughter is a story of murder, mystery, and thievery, of art, love, and loss. And flowing through its pages like a river is the voice of a woman who stands outside time, whose name has been forgotten by history, but who has watched it all unfold: Birdie Bell, the clockmaker's daughter."

Title: Penned

Author: Eileen Brady

Series: #4 in the Kate Turner DVM cozy series set in upstate New York.

243 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Dr. Kate Turner, DVM, is seven months into her one-year contract to cover for a Hudson Valley vet taking a year-long world cruise. She's getting used to the hospital and house-call workload but not to the sometimes dangerous, if not deadly, critters - animal and human - she meets.

Eighty-something-year-old Gloria LaGuardia has been installed at an assisted living center by her niece. They bump into Kate at the Oak Falls annual Halloween street bash. And while Gloria's conversation indicates some mental confusion - she asks a couple dressed as rabbits if they are real or not - she's still sharp. And she says, "Someone evil is here. I saw him."

Saw who? Will this chance meeting draw Kate into the path of Carl Wolf, a notorious fugitive twenty-one years on the FBI's Most Wanted List? Is Wolf hiding in plain sight in or around Oak Falls?

When Gloria, once an artist endowed with a sharp eye, is murdered, Kate doesn't know what to think. But author Tucker Weinstein approaches her at Gloria's funeral and indicates he believes the old woman. Further, he's devoting a chapter in his book to Carl Wolf.

The FBI doesn't appear interested. Gloria's family just wants to move on. But publicity-hungry Tucker mentions Kate in a newspaper interview that goes viral. She's overloaded with new clients like Billy, a Nubian stud goat living penned up with alpaca, llamas, and more goats on a local farm producing milk, wool, and cheese, and a grumpy Chihuahua dressed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. Yet she senses someone is now following her. An undercover FBI agent? Carl Wolf on the prowl?

Determined not to be a victim, Kate digs deep into the arson/murder Wolf committed long ago. Are the clues to unmasking him hidden in the past, or closer than she thinks?"

Title: Wrecked

Author: Joe Ide

Series: #3 IQ P.I. mystery set in Los Angeles

352 pages

Synopsis: "Isaiah Quintabe--IQ for short--has never been more successful, or felt more alone. A series of high-profile wins in his hometown of East Long Beach has made him so notorious that he can hardly go to the corner store without being recognized. Dodson, once his sidekick, is now his full-fledged partner, hell-bent on giving IQ's PI business some real legitimacy: a Facebook page, and IQ's promise to stop accepting Christmas sweaters and carpet cleanings in exchange for PI services.

So when a young painter approaches IQ for help tracking down her missing mother, it's not just the case Isaiah's looking for, but the human connection. And when his new confidant turns out to be connected to a dangerous paramilitary operation, IQ falls victim to a threat even a genius can't see coming.

Waiting for Isaiah around every corner is Seb, the Oxford-educated African gangster who was responsible for the death of his brother, Marcus. Only, this time, Isaiah's not alone. Joined by a new love interest and his familiar band of accomplices, IQ is back--and the adventures are better than ever."

=== October 16 ===

Title: The Darkness

Author: Ragnar Jónasson

Series: #1 in the Hulda Hermannsdóttir police procedural series set in Iceland.

336 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "The body of a young Russian woman washes up on an Icelandic shore. After a cursory investigation, the death is declared a suicide and the case is quietly closed.

Over a year later Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavík police is forced into early retirement at 64. She dreads the loneliness and the memories of her dark past that threaten to come back to haunt her. But before she leaves she is given two weeks to solve a single cold case of her choice. She knows which one: the Russian woman whose hope for asylum ended on the dark, cold shore of an unfamiliar country. Soon Hulda discovers that another young woman vanished at the same time and that no one is telling her the whole story. Even her colleagues in the police seem determined to put the brakes on her investigation. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking.

Hulda will find the killer, even if it means putting her own life in danger."

Title: The Craftsman
Author: Sharon Bolton
Standalone police procedural set in England.
432 pages

Synopsis: "Florence Lovelady's career was made when she convicted coffin-maker Larry Grassbrook of a series of child murders 30 years ago in a small village in Lancashire. Like something out of a nightmare, the victims were buried alive. Florence was able to solve the mystery and get a confession out of Larry before more children were murdered., and he spent the rest of his life in prison.

But now, decades later, he's dead, and events from the past start to repeat themselves. Is someone copying the original murders? Or did she get it wrong all those years ago? When her own son goes missing under similar circumstances, the case not only gets reopened... it gets personal.

In master of suspense Sharon Bolton's latest thriller, readers will find a page-turner to confirm their deepest fears and the only protagonist who can face them."

=== October 22 ===

Title: A Picture of Murder

Author: T.E. Kinsey

Series: #4 in the Lady Hardcastle historical series set in England.

320 pages

Synopsis: "Late October 1909, and the season of ghouls and things that go bump in the night has descended on the village of Littleton Cotterell.

Lady Hardcastle and her trusted lady’s maid, Florence, find themselves hosting a colourful cast of actors whose spooky moving picture, The Witch’s Downfall, is being shown to mark Halloween. But things take a macabre turn when the first night’s screening ends with a mysterious murder, and the second night with another…One by one the actors turn up dead in ways that eerily echo their film.

With the police left scratching their heads, Lady Hardcastle calls upon her amateur sleuthing skills to launch an investigation, with Flo’s able assistance. Surrounded by suspects both human and supernatural, Lady Hardcastle must use a little trickery of her own to unmask the murderer."

=== October 23 ===

Title: Go to My Grave

Author: Catriona McPherson

Standalone Gothic thriller set in Scotland.

304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Donna Weaver has put everything she has into restoring The Breakers, an old bed and breakfast on a remote stretch of beach in Galloway. Now it sits waiting—freshly painted, richly furnished, filled with flowers—for the first guests to arrive.

But Donna's guests, a contentious group of estranged cousins, soon realize that they’ve been here before, years ago. Decades have passed, but that night still haunts them: a sixteenth birthday party that started with peach schnapps and ended with a girl walking into the sea.

Each of them had made a vow of silence: 'lock it in a box, stitch my lips, and go to my grave.'

But now someone has broken the pact. Amid the home-baked scones and lavish rooms, someone is playing games, locking boxes, stitching lips. And before the weekend is over, at least one of them will go to their grave."

=== October 30 ===

Title: Murder by the Book

Author: Lauren Elliott

Series: #1 in the Beyond the Page Bookstore cozy series set in New England.

304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Addie left some painful memories behind in the big city, including the unsolved murder of her fiancé and her father’s fatal car accident. After an unexpected inheritance from a great aunt, she’s moved to a small New England town founded by her ancestors back in colonial times—and living in spacious Greyborne Manor, on a hilltop overlooking the harbor. Best of all, her aunt also left her countless first editions and other treasures—providing an inventory to start her own store.

But there’s trouble from day one, and not just from the grumpy woman who runs the bakery next door. A car nearly runs Addie down. Someone steals a copy of Alice in Wonderland. Then, Addie’s friend Serena, who owns a nearby tea shop, is arrested—for killing another local merchant. The police seem pretty sure they’ve got the story in hand, but Addie’s not going to let them close the book on this case without a fight . . ." 

Title: Thread Herrings

Author: Lea Wait

Series: #7 in the Mainely Needlepoint cozy series set in Maine.

304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Tagging along to an estate sale with her fellow Needlepointer, antiques shop owner Sarah Byrne, Angie Curtis impulsively bids on a tattered embroidery of a coat of arms. When she gets her prize back home to Haven Harbor, she discovers a document from 1757 behind the framed needlework—a claim for a child from a foundling hospital. Intrigued, Angie is determined to find the common thread between the child and the coat of arms.

Accepting her reporter friend Clem Walker's invitation to talk about her find on the local TV news, Angie makes an appeal to anyone who might have information. Instead, both women receive death threats. When Clem is found shot to death in a parking lot, Angie fears her own life may be in jeopardy. She has to unravel this historical mystery—or she may be the next one going, going . . . gone . . ."

Title: Dark Sacred Night

Author: Michael Connelly

Series: #2 in the Renée Ballard police procedural series set in Los Angeles.

448 pages

Synopsis: "Detective Renée Ballard is working the night beat--known in LAPD slang as "the late show"--and returns to Hollywood Station in the early hours to find a stranger rifling through old file cabinets. The intruder is retired detective Harry Bosch, working a cold case that has gotten under his skin.

Ballard can't let him go through department records, but when he leaves, she looks into the case herself and feels a deep tug of empathy and anger. She has never been the kind of cop who leaves the job behind at the end of her shift--and she wants in.

The murder, unsolved, was of fifteen-year-old Daisy Clayton, a runaway on the streets of Hollywood who was brutally killed, her body left in a dumpster like so much trash. Now Ballard joins forces with Bosch to find out what happened to Daisy and to finally bring her killer to justice. Along the way, the two detectives forge a fragile trust, but this new partnership is put to the test when the case takes an unexpected and dangerous turn."

October is another of those "abundance of riches" months, isn't it? There are so many books I'm looking forward to reading that it's impossible for me to choose one clear-cut winner. Let's just say... outside the U.S., I'll pick Ragnar Jónasson's The Darkness. Inside the U.S., it's got to be Michael Connelly's Dark Sacred Night, and as for an author I've never read before, my choice is Laurie Loewenstein's Death of a Rainmaker. I would've chosen this book anyway, but when Lesa Holstine sits down next to you at a conference and gives a glowing recommendation of it, I tend to sit up and take notice!

What about you? Did I manage to choose any titles that made you sit up and take notice? Which ones? Inquiring minds would love to know!

Hunting the Five Point Killer by C.M. Wendelboe

First Line: The middle-aged victim slumped dead in his Barcalounger, one trouser cuff riding up over his snow-white ankle and his zipper splayed open like he expected a happy ending.

It's been ten years since a series of unsolved mysteries rocked Cheyenne, Wyoming, and an ambitious television reporter thinks uncovering the identity of the killer will be her ticket to the big time. She enlists the help of retired detective Arn Anderson, who spent more than thirty years in the Denver Police Department.

When he gets there, Arn doesn't have money to burn, so he moves into the now-derelict family home and starts fixing it up when he's got the time. He's getting nothing but grief from the Cheyenne Police Department, but that's going to change. Because the Five Point Killer doesn't want to be found, and he'll do whatever it takes to remain in the shadows.

I first became aware of C.M. Wendelboe's writing through his Spirit Road trilogy of mysteries set on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. I enjoyed all three books and was sad to see the series end. When I learned of this new Bitter Wind series, I couldn't wait to start reading.

Arn Anderson is yet another example of Wendelboe's gift of creating strong characters. He's been a widower for years and has yet to look at another woman. He's just not ready, and-- who knows?-- he may never be ready. He's persistent and has an eye for the telling detail, which finally has him breathing down the neck of the Five Point Killer. It's a pleasure watching this man put clues together. But it's in Arn's personal relationships where he really shines (and where Wendelboe shows his marvelous sense of humor). Arn tries to act tough and hard-hearted, but he's not. All you have to do is watch him with Danny, the homeless man who had moved into Arn's rundown house for the winter.

As I read, it occurred to me that there was only one person who could be the Five Point Killer, and Wendelboe did everything in his power to shake me loose... but it didn't work. And it didn't matter. I enjoy Wendelboe's writing, his sense of humor, the way he has his story unfold-- and the man certainly knows how to ratchet up the suspense. His writing is reminiscent of Craig Johnson's, which is one reason why I like it so much.

Yes, I do like his writing, but this book could've been better. It did need to be tightened up a bit because there were places where the story dragged, but I'm going to go off the reservation here and talk about a couple of things that Wendelboe had no control over. One: the print in the paperback edition is tiny. I finally gave up and bought a digital copy (which shows you how much I was enjoying the story). Two: the proofreaders really let the man down. "Loped" instead of "lopped." "Bitty" instead of "biddy." "Lose" instead of "loose." And-- most surprising-- "neckless" instead of "necklace." (And, no, that wasn't a complete list.) I'm used to reading advance reader's copies of books that do contain errors but to have a finished edition be this poorly done was a shock.

Is this going to dissuade me from reading the next Bitter Wind mystery? Absolutely not. But one can always hope the editing has vastly improved.

Hunting the Five Point Killer by C.M. Wendelboe

eISBN: 9780738753645

Midnight Ink © 2017

eBook, 434 pages

Police Procedural, #1 Bitter Wind mystery

Rating: B

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

January 2018 New Mystery Releases!

I'm running way behind schedule here on the blog due to the flu that Denis accidentally brought home from picking up our to-go order at a local restaurant. First it hit him, and just as he'd recovered, it slammed me. The poor man had to work Christmas day, but at least he felt well. I wouldn't've been fit company for man nor beast, but at least I did manage to keep a bit of food down. Anyway, that's why I'm behind and have no jolly lead-in to one of my favorite posts.

I've grouped my picks of January's new crime fiction by their release dates, and I hope I've chosen a title or two that tickles your fancy. After all, if you're like me you received some gift cards during the holidays and you feel the need... the need to buy BOOKS! Let's take a look at this list of mine!

=== January 2 ===

Title: An Aegean April

Author: Jeffrey Siger

Series: #9 in the Andreas Kaldis police procedural series set on the Greek island of Lesvos.

280 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "The beautiful Greek island of Lesvos, birthplace of the poet Sappho, and for centuries an agrarian paradise famed for anise-flavored ouzo and tasty sardines, sees its serenity turn into chaos as the world watches boatloads of refugees daily flee onto its shores from Turkey across the narrow Mytilini Strait.

Mihalis Volandes is one of Lesvos' elite, the patriarch of a storied shipping clan. He's weathered many changes in his long life, and when a government policy accelerates the surge of refugees onto his island, he rises to prominence in relief efforts he sees as growing increasingly ineffectual.

One evening, after working to stir up support for his breakthrough plan to strike at the heart of the lucrative refugee trafficking trade, he returns to his mansion in darkness - only to fall victim in his own garden to a swishing sword.

A refugee-turned-local-aid-worker is found at the scene, splattered with Volandes' blood, and swiftly arrested by island police. Case closed - or would be, if young Ali Sera were not working with SafePassage, an NGO (non-government organization), headed on Lesvos by American Dana McLaughlin. McLaughlin is having none of Ali's arrest. Within hours the phone rings in the Athens office of Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis, and she's requesting that Kaldis take over the investigation.

Volandes was a prominent citizen and the crime particularly gruesome. Could it be terrorism or something else? But whether Ali is guilty or framed, Andreas can't ignore a powerful motive for the murder. Volandes' daring plan, if implemented, would soon shut down the cash-generating refugee-trafficking pipeline between Turkey and Lesvos.

And so, we're off on a nail-biting ride with Kaldis and his team through Byzantine island politics, deteriorating diplomatic relations, and a world on fire with intrigues and more brutal deaths." 

Title: Dial M for Mousse

Author: Laura Bradford

Series: #3 in the Emergency Dessert Squad cozy series set in Ohio.

304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "The Emergency Dessert Squad business is booming, with owner and baker Winnie Johnson working overtime to satisfy the emergency cravings of Silver Lake, Ohio. Her latest order, a plate of motivational desserts for an artists’ retreat, is just what she needs to keep her mind off her own relationship woes.

But Winnie’s problems seem like trifles when she discovers the body of retreat owner Sally Dearfield mere inches away from five oh-so-eccentric and viable suspects. Now, this baking detective must uncover the inspiration behind Sally’s murder before another creative genius is iced." 

Title: The Bomb Maker

Author: Thomas Perry

Standalone thriller set in Los Angeles.

384 pages

Synopsis: "A bomb is more than a weapon. A bomb is an expression of the bomber’s predictions of human behavior―a performance designed to fool you into making one fatally wrong move. In The Bomb Maker, Thomas Perry introduces us to the dark corners of a mind intent on transforming a simple machine into an act of murder―and to those committed to preventing that outcome at any cost.

A threat is called into the LAPD Bomb Squad and when tragedy ensues, the fragmented unit turns to Dick Stahl, a former Bomb Squad commander who now operates his own private security company. Just returned from a tough job in Mexico, Stahl is at first reluctant to accept the offer, but his sense of duty to the technicians he trained is too strong to turn it down. On his first day back at the head of the squad, Stahl’s three-person team is dispatched to a suspected car bomb. And it quickly becomes clear to him that they are dealing with an unusual mastermind―one whose intended target seems to be the Bomb Squad itself.

As the shadowy organization sponsoring this campaign of violence puts increasing pressure on the bomb maker, and Stahl becomes dangerously entangled with a member of his own team, the fuse on this high-stakes plot only burns faster."

Title: The Pyramid of Mud
Author: Andrea Camilleri
Series: #22 in the Inspector Montalbano police procedural series set in Sicily.
272 pages

Synopsis: "On a gloomy morning in Vigàta, a call from Fazio rouses Inspector Montalbano from a nightmare. A man called Giugiù Nicotra has been found dead in the skeletal workings of a construction site, a place now entombed by a sea of mud from recent days of rain and floods. Shot in the back, he had fled into a water supply system tunnel. The investigation gets off to a slow start, but all the evidence points to the world of construction and public contracts, a world just as slimy and impenetrable as mud.

As he wades through a world in which construction firms and public officials thrive, Montalbano is obsessed by one thought: that by going to die in the tunnel, Nicotra had been trying to communicate something.

'The novels of Andrea Camilleri breathe out the sense of place, the sense of humor, and the sense of despair that fills the air of Sicily.' —Donna Leon"

=== January 9 ===

Title: The Black Painting

Author: Neil Olson

Standalone art-history-inspired thriller set on the East Coast of the US.

320 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "There are four cousins in the Morse family: perfect Kenny, the preppy West Coast lawyer; James, the shy but brilliant medical student; his seductive, hard-drinking sister Audrey; and Teresa, youngest and most fragile, haunted by the fear that she has inherited the madness that possessed her father.

Their grandfather summons them to his mansion at Owl’s Point. None of them have visited the family estate since they were children, when a prized painting disappeared: a self-portrait by Goya, rumored to cause madness or death upon viewing. Afterward, the family split apart amid the accusations and suspicions that followed its theft.

Any hope that their grandfather planned to make amends evaporates when Teresa arrives to find the old man dead, his horrified gaze pinned upon the spot where the painting once hung. As the family gathers and suspicions mount, Teresa hopes to find the reasons behind her grandfather’s death and the painting’s loss. But to do so she must uncover ugly family secrets and confront those who would keep them hidden."

Title: The Widows of Malabar Hill

Author: Sujata Massey

Series: #1 in the Perveen Mistry historical series set in 1920s Bombay, India.

400 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "Inspired in part by the woman who made history as India’s first female attorney, The Widows of Malabar Hill is a richly wrought story of multicultural 1920s Bombay as well as the debut of a sharp and promising new sleuth.

Perveen Mistry, the daughter of a respected Zoroastrian family, has just joined her father’s law firm, becoming one of the first female lawyers in India. Armed with a legal education from Oxford, Perveen also has a tragic personal history that makes women’s legal rights especially important to her.

Mistry Law has been appointed to execute the will of Mr. Omar Farid, a wealthy Muslim mill owner who has left three widows behind. But as Perveen examines the paperwork, she notices something strange: all three of the wives have signed over their full inheritance to a charity. What will they live on? Perveen is suspicious, especially since one of the widows has signed her form with an X—meaning she probably couldn’t even read the document. The Farid widows live in full purdah—in strict seclusion, never leaving the women’s quarters or speaking to any men. Are they being taken advantage of by an unscrupulous guardian? Perveen tries to investigate, and realizes her instincts were correct when tensions escalate to murder. Now it is her responsibility to figure out what really happened on Malabar Hill, and to ensure that no innocent women or children are in further danger." 

Title: A Mortal Likeness

Author: Laura Joh Rowland

Series: #2 in the Victorian historical series set in 1880s London.

304 pages

Synopsis: "A photographer in 1889 London, Miss Sarah Bain runs a private detective agency with her friends, Lord Hugh Staunton and former street urchin Mick O’Reilly. Their sole credential is that they solved the Jack the Ripper case, a secret they can never tell because they did it outside the boundaries of the law. Their new big case arises when a wealthy banker, Sir Gerald Mariner, posts a handsome reward for finding his missing infant. All of London joins in the search. But Sarah has an advantage―a photograph she took during a routine surveillance job, which unexpectedly reveals a clue about the kidnapping.

After Sir Gerald hires Sarah, Hugh, and Mick to find his son, they move into his opulent mansion and discover a photograph of baby Robin. It eerily resembles postmortem photographs taken of deceased children posed to look as if they’re alive. Was the kidnapping real, or a cover-up for a murder? Is the perpetrator a stranger, or someone inside the troubled Mariner family? The case hits close to home for Sarah as it intertwines with her search for her father, who disappeared after he became the prime suspect in a murder twenty-three years ago. She finds herself on the wrong side of the law, which threatens her budding romance with Police Constable Barrett. But Sarah must uncover the truth about Robin’s kidnapping, and her own family, before her past catches up to her in A Mortal Likeness, the gripping follow-up to award-winning author Laura Joh Rowland’s The Ripper’s Shadow."

=== January 16 ===

Title: A Treacherous Curse

Author: Deanna Raybourn

Series: #A3 in the Veronica Speedwell historical series set in 1880s London.

320 pages

Synopsis: "London, 1888. As colorful and unfettered as the butterflies she collects, Victorian adventuress Veronica Speedwell can’t resist the allure of an exotic mystery—particularly one involving her enigmatic colleague, Stoker. His former expedition partner has vanished from an archaeological dig with a priceless diadem unearthed from the newly discovered tomb of an Egyptian princess. This disappearance is just the latest in a string of unfortunate events that have plagued the controversial expedition, and rumors abound that the curse of the vengeful princess has been unleashed as the shadowy figure of Anubis himself stalks the streets of London.

But the perils of an ancient curse are not the only challenges Veronica must face as sordid details and malevolent enemies emerge from Stoker’s past. Caught in a tangle of conspiracies and threats—and thrust into the public eye by an enterprising new foe—Veronica must separate facts from fantasy to unravel a web of duplicity that threatens to cost Stoker everything..."

Title: The Silent Room

Author: Mari Hannah

Series: #1 in the Matthew Ryan police procedural series set in Northumbria, England.

416 pages

Synopsis: "Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan wants to clear the name of his former boss, who stands accused of official corruption. But before he can do so, his boss disappears. Did he escape from police custody, or was he kidnapped? Or did something even worse happen to him?

The Silent Room has everything a good thriller should have―compelling characters, a gripping plot and storyline, superb pacing, and a strong sense of place. In addition it has heart, something many thrillers sorely lack. Add some truly scary villains, vast uncertainty about whom to trust, and a loudly ticking clock, and we have ourselves a thriller that will grip readers from the first pages and never let go." 

Title: The Night Market

Author: Jonathan Moore

A near-future standalone thriller.

304 pages

Synopsis: "It’s late Thursday night, and Inspector Ross Carver is at a crime scene in one of the city’s last luxury homes. The dead man on the floor is covered by an unknown substance that’s eating through his skin. Before Carver can identify it, six FBI agents burst in and remove him from the premises. He’s pushed into a disinfectant trailer, forced to drink a liquid that sends him into seizures, and then is shocked unconscious.

On Sunday he wakes in his bed to find his neighbor, Mia—who he’s barely ever spoken to—reading aloud to him. He can’t remember the crime scene or how he got home; he has no idea two days have passed. Mia says she saw him being carried into their building by plainclothes police officers, who told her he’d been poisoned. Carver doesn’t really know this woman and has no way of disproving her, but his gut says to keep her close.

A mind-bending masterfully plotted thriller that will captivate fans of Blake Crouch, China Miéville, and Lauren Beukes, The Night Market follows Carver as he works to find out what happened, soon realizing he’s entangled in a web of conspiracy that spans the nation. And that Mia may know a lot more than she lets on." 

=== January 17 ===

Title: The Marshal and the Moonshiner

Author: C.M. Wendelboe

Series: #1 in the Nelson Lane Frontier historical series set in Wyoming and Oklahoma during the Great Depression.

251 pages

Synopsis: "Gangsters and hoodlums prey upon people’s weaknesses for a quick buck in an era that saw few bucks to spare, making criminals of everyday folks in the rural Great Depression. In a place as wild as the West ever was, in the heyday of the badmen and the lawmen, the law is in short supply. U.S. Marshal Nelson Lane chases a fleeing murder suspect from the frontier of the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming all the way to the big city of El Reno in Oklahoma―out of his element in both places and nearly everywhere in between. His only help is an Indian rookie deputy sheriff, and she is as wild as any other young woman in that time with access to booze and men: Not much help to a widower alcoholic struggling in recovery. While she might get Nelson killed unintentionally, a shady sheriff dealing in illicit booze, his henchman warning to him to leave, and run of the mill moonshiners just taking care of business are running him down and trying to kill him from all sides. When his persistence pays off and he finally catches up with the murderer, Nelson must find it in himself to look beyond the law and deliver the ultimate justice."

=== January 30 ===

Title: Into the Black Nowhere

Author: Meg Gardiner

Series: #2 in the UNSUB police procedural series set in Texas.

368 pages

Synopsis: "In southern Texas, on Saturday nights, women are disappearing. One vanishes from a movie theater. Another is ripped from her car at a stoplight. Another vanishes from her home while checking on her baby. Rookie FBI agent Caitlin Hendrix, newly assigned to the FBI's elite Behavioral Analysis Unit, fears that a serial killer is roaming the dark roads outside Austin.

Caitlin and the FBI's serial crime unit discover the first victim's body in the woods. She's laid out in a bloodstained, white baby-doll nightgown. A second victim in a white nightie lies deeper in the forest's darkness. Both bodies are surrounded by Polaroid photos, stuck in the earth like headstones. Each photo pictures a woman in a white negligee, wrists slashed, suicide-style--posed like Snow White awaiting her prince's kiss.

To track the UNSUB, Caitlin must get inside his mind. How is he selecting these women? Working with a legendary FBI profiler, Caitlin searches for a homology--that elusive point where character and action come together. She profiles a confident, meticulous killer who convinces his victims to lower their guard until he can overpower and take them in plain sight. He then reduces them to objects in a twisted fantasy--dolls for him to possess, control, and ultimately destroy. Caitlin's profile leads the FBI to focus on one man: a charismatic, successful professional who easily gains people's trust. But with only circumstantial evidence linking him to the murders, the police allow him to escape. As Saturday night approaches, Caitlin and the FBI enter a desperate game of cat and mouse, racing to capture the cunning predator before he claims more victims."

Title: Death by Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake

Author: Sarah Graves

Series: #1 in the Death by Chocolate cozy series set in Maine.

240 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "Life just got a little sweeter in the island fishing village of Eastport, Maine. Jacobia “Jake” Tiptree and her best friend Ellie are opening a waterfront bake shop, The Chocolate Moose, where their tasty treats pair perfectly with the salty ocean breeze. But while Jake has moved on from fixing up houses, she still can't resist the urge to snoop into the occasional murder.

Jake and Ellie have been through a lot together, from home repair to homicide investigation. So when they decide to open a chocolate-themed bakery, they figure it’ll be a piece of cake. With Ellie’s old family recipes luring in customers, they expect to make plenty of dough this Fourth of July weekend. Having family home for the holiday only sweetens the deal for Jake—until the ill wind of an early-season hurricane blows up her plans. When the storm hits, Jake’s grown son Sam is stranded in a Boston bus station, and her husband Wade is stuck on a cargo ship. But as bitter as the storm is, something even more sinister is brewing in the kitchen of The Chocolate Moose—where health inspector Matt Muldoon is found murdered.

Ellie never made a secret of her distaste for Matt, who had been raining on their parade with bogus talk of health code violations. Now, with no alibi for the night of the murder, she’s in a sticky situation with the police—and it’s up to Jake to catch the real killer and keep Ellie living in the land of the free." 

January is a good month for new crime fiction, isn't it? I think the book I'm looking forward to most is Sujata Massey's The Widows of Malabar Hill. Which titles are you looking forward to? Inquiring minds would love to know!

October 2017 New Mystery Releases!

For the month of October, my eyes were almost bigger than my stomach, at least when it comes to reading. So many good new books. So many available advance reading copies. Yikes! But I remember the year in which I burned out on those advance reading copies. I promise publishers and authors to have my reviews of their particular books up either on the day of their release or within the following two days.  If I accept too many of these, it's like having a tall pile of assigned reading, and that can make me grumpy. Reading isn't nearly as much fun when you have to do it in a certain order and with deadlines.

No grumps are allowed here, so I'm going to get right down to it. The following books are my picks of the new crime fiction being released throughout the month of October. They are grouped according to their release dates, and I hope that you'll be able to find a title or two (or three) that tickle your fancy. Book covers and synopses are courtesy of Amazon. Now-- let's get this show on the road!

=== October 3 ===

Title: Old Scores

Author: Will Thomas

Series: #9 in the Barker& Llewelyn historical series set in 1890 London.

304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "In 1890, the first Japanese diplomatic delegation arrives in London to open an embassy. Cyrus Barker, private enquiry agent and occasional agent for the Foreign Service Office, is enlisted to display his personal Japanese garden to the visiting dignitaries.

Later that night, Ambassador Toda is shot and killed in his office and Cyrus Barker is discovered across the street, watching the very same office, in possession of a revolver with one spent cartridge.

Arrested by the Special Branch for the crime, Barker is vigorously interrogated and finally released due to the intervention of his assistant, Thomas Llewelyn, and his solicitor. With the London constabulary still convinced of his guilt, Barker is hired by the new Japanese ambassador to find the real murderer.

In a case that takes leads Barker and Llewelyn deep into parts of London's underworld, on paths that lead deep into Barker's own mysterious personal history, Old Scores is the finest yet in Will Thomas's critically acclaimed series."

Title: The Deep Dark Descending

Author: Allen Eskens

Series: #4 in the Max Rupert police procedural series set in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

285 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Homicide Detective Max Rupert never fully accepted his wife’s death, even when he believed that a reckless hit-and-run driver was to blame. Haunted by memories both beautiful and painful, he is plagued by feelings of unfinished business. When Max learns that, in fact, Jenni was murdered, he must come to terms with this new information—and determine what to do with it.

Struggling to balance his impulses as a vengeful husband with his obligations as a law enforcement officer, Max devotes himself to relentlessly hunting down those responsible. For most of his life, he has thought of himself as a decent man. But now he’s so consumed with anguish and thoughts of retribution that he finds himself on the edge, questioning who he is and what he stands for.

On a frozen lake at the US–Canadian border, he wrestles with decisions that could change his life forever, as his rage threatens to turn him into the kind of person he has spent his entire career bringing to justice." 

Title: Hidden Scars

Author: Mark de Castrique

Series: #6 in the Sam Blackman private investigator series set in Asheville, North Carolina.

256 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "When Asheville, NC, private eyes Sam Blackman and Nakayla Robertson are asked by an eighty-year-old client to investigate the suspicious death of her brother, they warn her there is little chance of success. Paul Weaver died nearly seventy years earlier. The only documentation she has is the sole surviving copy of a coroner's report stating his death was caused by an accidental fall while hiking.

There's a red flag: local son Weaver knew every inch of the mountain trails. The returning World War II veteran had enrolled at Black Mountain College, a liberal local school with an international reputation for innovation, thanks to its stellar faculty and advisers like Buckminster Fuller and Albert Einstein. The college of the 1940s is currently being portrayed in a film being shot on the site of its former location. The plot is based on a book by a local author. The research behind both may provide a lead in the Weaver case.

One is drawn from movie crew member Harlan Beale, an octogenarian mountaineer who knew Weaver. In a late-night voice message, Beale tells Sam he's found something to show him. Then Beale is discovered dead in the Black Mountain College Museum. His murder turns the cold case white hot. When a second killing follows, the question becomes how to separate dark doings in the present from dark days and hidden scars of the post-war past. In typical de Castrique fashion, the answers aren't what you expect.

No-nonsense Nakayla and veteran Sam with his prosthetic leg love their investigations which always carry a thread from the past, and love each other. An interracial couple in the South, even the new South around Asheville, they've surrounded themselves with a terrific support team including an unorthodox lawyer and a veteran cop, and use humor both to bind them all together and to deflect insults. Plus, it helps deal with the tragedies their work uncovers."

=== October 8 ===

Title: Weycombe

Author: G.M. Malliet

Literary Mystery, Standalone, set in the county of Surrey, England in the present day.

360 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Living in the gated, wealthy village of Weycombe with her titled English husband is a fantasy come true for American Jillian White. But the murder of a local estate agent mars the so-pretty surface of her life and home. Worried about a killer on the loose, Jill tries to piece together clues hidden in the many versions of truth she hears from her suspicious neighbors. As Jill plunges deep into the investigation, her own suspicions grow into a warped web of lies and treachery.

From award-winning author G.M. Malliet comes a gripping psychological tale of murder and deception in which few can be trusted and nothing is as perfect as it seems."

Title: The Question of the Absentee Father

Author: Jeff Cohen AKA E.J. Copperman

Series: #4 in the Asperger's Mystery cozy series set in New Jersey and California.

288 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Samuel Hoenig, proprietor of a business called Questions Answered, doesn't have strong feelings about his estranged father. After all, you can't miss what you never had. But when Samuel's mother receives an enigmatic letter and asks him where his father lives, Samuel is duty bound to provide an answer.

Unfortunately, answering this question means taking a trip to Los Angeles with his associate, Ms. Washburn. The personality traits of Asperger's Syndrome make flying across the country a major challenge for Samuel. Little does he know that as troubling as flying is, it's nothing compared to the danger they'll face when they land."

Title: Hunting the Five Point Killer

Author: C.M. Wendelboe

Series: #1 in the Bitter Wind mysteries featuring former Denver homicide detective Arn Anderson and set in Wyoming in the present day.

432 pages

Synopsis: "Retired detective Arn Anderson never thought he’d be broke enough to take on a cold murder case. Or desperate enough to team up with a TV reporter. Or pathetic enough to go back to his rundown childhood home after he swore he’d left Cheyenne for good. But here he is, hunting a serial killer who also appears to have come out of retirement. On the anniversary of the Five Point Killer’s crimes, Arn’s only option is to survive the carnage of a murderer who may be too twisted―and too brilliant―to catch."

=== October 10 ===

Title: Nail's Crossing

Author: Kris Lackey

Series: #1 in the Maytubby/Bond police procedural series set in Oklahoma.

185 pages

Synopsis: "This debut mystery from a fresh voice in Southwestern fiction stakes out the common ground between Tony Hillerman, Elmore Leonard, and Cormac McCarthy.

In a remote corner of the Chickasaw Nation, tribal Lighthorse policeman Bill Maytubby and county deputy Hannah Bond discover the buzzard-ravaged body of Majesty Tate, a young drifter with a blank past. They comb Oklahoma's rock prairie, river bottoms, and hard-bitten small towns for traces of her last days.

Tate was seen dancing with Austin Love, a violent local meth dealer fresh out of prison. An Oklahoma City motel clerk connects her with an aspiring politician. An oil-patch roustabout and a shady itinerant preacher provide dubious leads. Ne'er-do-wells start dying off.

A fluke lead propels Maytubby deep into Louisiana's bayou country, where a Cajun shrimper puts him on the scent of a bizarre conspiracy. He and Bond reunite in the Chickasaw Nation for the eventual face-off at Nail's Crossing."

=== October 17 ===

Title: Righteous

Author: Joe Ide

Series: #2 in the Isaiah Quintabe private investigator series set in Los Angeles.

336 pages

Synopsis: "For ten years, something has gnawed at Isaiah Quintabe's gut and kept him up nights, boiling with anger and thoughts of revenge. Ten years ago, when Isaiah was just a boy, his brother was killed by an unknown assailant. The search for the killer sent Isaiah plunging into despair and nearly destroyed his life. Even with a flourishing career, a new dog, and near-iconic status as a PI in his hometown, East Long Beach, he has to begin the hunt again-or lose his mind.

A case takes him and his volatile, dubious sidekick, Dodson, to Vegas, where Chinese gangsters and a terrifying seven-foot loan shark are stalking a DJ and her screwball boyfriend. If Isaiah doesn't find the two first, they'll be murdered. Awaiting the outcome is the love of IQ's life: fail, and he'll lose her. Isaiah's quest is fraught with treachery, menace, and startling twists, and it will lead him to the mastermind behind his brother's death, Isaiah's own sinister Moriarty."

=== October 24 ===

Title: Dying to Live

Author: Michael Stanley

Series: #6 in the Detective Kubu police procedural series set in Botswana.

336 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Michael Stanley's Dying to Live is the sixth crime novel to feature the humble and endearing Detective Kubu, set against the richly beautiful backdrop of Botswana.

"A fantastic read. Brilliant!" -Louise Penny, New York Times bestselling author of The Long Way Home

A Bushman is discovered dead near the Central Kalahari Game Reserve in Africa. Although the man looks old enough to have died of natural causes, the police suspect foul play, and the body is sent to Gaborone for an autopsy. Pathologist Ian MacGregor confirms the cause of death as a broken neck, but is greatly puzzled by the man’s physiology. Although he’s obviously very old, his internal organs look remarkably young. He calls in Assistant Superintendent David “Kubu” Bengu. When the Bushman’s corpse is stolen from the morgue, suddenly the case takes on a new dimension."

Title: The Usual Santas

Authors: A wonderful group of writers published by Soho Press

Short Story Collection

416 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Finally: the perfect stocking stuffer for the crime fiction lover in your life! With a foreword by CWA Diamond Award-winner Peter Lovesey, these eighteen delightful holiday stories by your favorite Soho Crime authors contain laughs, murders, and plenty more.

This captivating collection, which features bestselling and award-winning authors, contains laughs aplenty, the most hardboiled of holiday noir, and heartwarming reminders of the spirit of the season.

Nine mall Santas must find the imposter among them. An elderly lady seeks peace from her murderously loud neighbors at Christmastime. A young woman receives a mysterious invitation to Christmas dinner with a stranger. Niccolò Machiavelli sets out to save an Italian city. Sherlock Holmes’s one-time nemesis Irene Adler finds herself in an unexpected tangle in Paris while on a routine espionage assignment. Jane Austen searches for the Dowager Duchess of Wilborough’s stolen diamonds. These and other adventures in this delectable volume will whisk readers away to Christmases around the globe, from a Korean War POW camp to a Copenhagen refugee squat, from a palatial hotel in 1920s Bombay to a crumbling mansion in Havana.

Includes Stories By (In Order of Appearance):
Helene Tursten, Mick Herron, Martin Limón, Timothy Hallinan, Teresa Dovalpage, Mette Ivie Harrison, Colin Cotterill, Ed Lin, Stuart Neville, Tod Goldberg, Henry Chang, James R. Benn, Lene Kaaberbøl & Agnete Friis, Sujata Massey, Gary Corby, Cara Black, Stephanie Barron and a Foreword and story by Peter Lovesey."

=== October 31 ===

Title: The Secret, Book & Scone Society

Author: Ellery Adams

Series: #1 in the Nora Pennington cozy series set in North Carolina.

304 pages

Synopsis: "Miracle Springs, North Carolina, is a place of healing. Strangers flock here hoping the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. If none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked “comfort” scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That’s Nora’s special talent—prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person’s deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.

When a visiting businessman reaches out to Nora for guidance, she knows exactly which novels will help. But before he can keep their appointment at Miracle Books, he’s found dead on the train tracks.

Stunned, Nora forms the Secret, Book, and Scone Society, a group of damaged souls yearning to gain trust and earn redemption by helping others. To join the society, members must divulge their darkest secret—the terrible truth that brought each of them to Miracle Springs in the first place.

Determined to uncover the truth behind the businessman’s demise, the women meet in Nora’s cramped and cozy bookstore to share stories and trade support. And as they untangle a web of corruption, they also discover their own courage, purpose, and a sisterhood that will carry them through every challenge—proving it’s never too late to turn the page and start over . . ."

Title: Thread the Halls

Author: Lea Wait

Series: #6 in the Mainely Needlepoint cozy series set in Maine.

320 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "This Yuletide season, there's no time for Angie Curtis and Patrick West to linger under the mistletoe. Patrick's being needled by his mother—movie star Skye West—to set the stage for a perfect white Christmas as she brings her costar, screenwriters, and director home for the holidays. With his mother's long list of wishes, Patrick's becoming unraveled. To help, the Mainely Needlepointers offer to decorate Skye's Victorian mansion and create needlepoint pillows as gifts for the guests.

But not long after the celebrity celebrants invade Haven Harbor, an unscripted tragedy occurs. Then some questionable Christmas cookies make Patrick sick. Before Santa arrives at the town pier on a lobster boat, Angie and the Needlepointers need to trim down the naughty list, catch a cold-hearted killer, and wrap up the case . . ."

A strong batch of new books for the month of October, isn't it? There's even a couple of titles to get us ready for Christmas. Which books did you add to your own wish lists? Inquiring minds would love to know!