Legacy of Death by Judith Cutler

First Line: My daily walk takes me to the site of the new model village; it always pleases me to see how fast the work is progressing, despite the shortness of the winter days.

 

With the mental health of Thorncroft House's owner failing, the management of his vast country estate has been assigned to a group of trustees, including land agent Matthew Rowsley and his wife Harriet. Unfortunately, the smooth running of the estate is interrupted by a series of unforeseen events. 

 

Building on the estate workers' new cottages is stopped by the discovery of Roman ruins, and shortly afterwards the family butler is attacked and left for dead. Then Lord Croft's long-lost cousin and heir, Julius Trescothick, arrives from Australia, ready to claim his inheritance.

But is Trescothick who he claims to be, and what exactly are his intentions? And was the butler randomly attacked, or was he targeted? To preserve Thorncroft House, Matthew and Harriet Rowsley must uncover the truth-- and they have their work cut out for them.

~

You can always count on author Judith Cutler for a strong mystery and engaging characters, and her second Matthew Rowsley mystery, Legacy of Death, is no exception. The discovery of DNA nailed the coffin lid down on one of my favorite mystery conventions (is the long-lost heir of a wealthy estate really who he says he is), but with this set in Victorian England, I can enjoy it once more. Trescothick is a piece of work, and it takes time for Matthew and Harriet to find the truth behind his claim to the Croft estate.

As intriguing as the mystery is, for me, the strongest part of the book is its Victorian setting. The finding of Roman ruins and how Rowsley deals with the discovery. How a large estate is run when its owner is ill and the heir has yet to be found. And, most important of all, how the trustees set about improving the lives of the estate workers when they'd been neglected by previous owners. One of the scenes I enjoyed the most is when a few of the more vocal workers tell Rowsley and another trustee that they want a say in these improvements to their lives instead of the trustees just stomping in and assuming they know what is best.

The point of view in Legacy of Death shifts between Matthew and Harriet, and sometimes the transitions are a bit confusing, but this is still an absorbing mystery set in Victorian England. Now I'm left wondering what Matthew and Harriet will be facing next.

Legacy of Death by Judith Cutler

eISBN: 9781448304875

Severn House Publishers © 2021

eBook, 240 pages

 

Historical Mystery, #2 Matthew Rowsley mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

March 2021 New Mystery Releases!

 

You'd think that, with me staying home, time would be crawling by, but it's not. It's hard for me to believe that March is here already. I must be doing a good job of keeping myself occupied.

Of course, one way I've always kept myself occupied is by keeping an eye peeled for new books to read, and let me tell you, March has a bumper crop of bright, shiny crime fiction to tickle our taste buds.

The following list contains my picks for the best new crime fiction being released throughout the month of March. I've grouped the titles according to their release dates, and the covers and synopses are courtesy of Amazon.

Let's see how many of my picks are on your own personal MUST READ lists!

=== March 1 ===

 

 

Title: The Deadly Mystery of the Missing Diamonds

Author: T.E. Kinsey

Series: #1 in the Dizzy Heights historical mystery series set in 1920s England.

335 pages

 

*My review

 

Synopsis: "London, 1925. With their band the Dizzy Heights, jazz musicians Ivor ‘Skins’ Maloney and Bartholomew ‘Barty’ Dunn are used to improvising as they play the Charleston for flappers and toffs, but things are about to take a surprising turn.

Superintendent Sunderland has had word that a deserter who stole a fortune in diamonds as he fled the war is a member of the Aristippus private members’ club in Mayfair—where the Dizzy Heights have a residency. And the thief is planning to steal a hoard of jewels hidden there under the cover of a dance contest.

As mutual pal Lady Hardcastle has suggested, Skins and Dunn are perfectly placed to be Sunderland’s eyes and ears—and Skins’s wife Ellie soon lends a hand with a bit of light snooping. But the stakes change dramatically when a mysterious death at the club brings a sinister note to the investigation.

With the dance contest fast approaching, the trio must solve the mystery of the missing diamonds, unmask the murderer, and prevent more deadly crimes—all without missing a beat." 

 

 

=== March 2 ===

 

 

Title: Fatal Scores

Author: Mark de Castrique

Series: #8 in the Blackman Agency Investigations private investigator series set in North Carolina.

272 pages

 

Synopsis: "Sam Blackman and Nakayla Robertson, partners in a private investigation agency in Asheville, North Carolina, are hired by the widow of an environmentalist who died while monitoring water quality in the nearby Pigeon River. No soil or water samples were found near the deceased, and his widow doesn't believe his death was an accident.

Sam had, in fact, witnessed a public altercation between the man and local mill heir Luke Kirkpatrick just two days prior. Both Luke and his father, Ted, are prime suspects because of the threat that contamination poses to their proposed business expansion. Meanwhile, preparations for a local festival suffer some violent setbacks. Are the events related? And can Sam and Nakayla identify the killer and serve justice before Asheville is threatened once again?" 

 

 

Title: We Begin at the End

Author: Chris Whitaker

Standalone thriller set in California.

384 pages

Synopsis: "Walk has never left the coastal California town where he grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released.

Duchess is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Her mother, Star, grew up with Walk and Vincent. Walk is in overdrive trying to protect them, but Vincent and Star seem bent on sliding deeper into self-destruction. Star always burned bright, but recently that light has dimmed, leaving Duchess to parent not only her mother but her five-year-old brother. At school the other kids make fun of Duchess―her clothes are torn, her hair a mess. But let them throw their sticks, because she’ll throw stones. Rules are for other people. She’s just trying to survive and keep her family together.

A fortysomething-year-old sheriff and a thirteen-year-old girl may not seem to have a lot in common. But they both have come to expect that people will disappoint you, loved ones will leave you, and if you open your heart it will be broken. So when trouble arrives with Vincent King, Walk and Duchess find they will be unable to do anything but usher it in, arms wide closed."

Title: Dark Sky

Author: C.J. Box

Series: #22 in the Joe Pickett game warden series set in Wyoming.

368 pages

 

Synopsis: "When the governor of Wyoming gives Joe Pickett the thankless task of taking a tech baron on an elk hunting trip, Joe reluctantly treks into the wilderness with his high-profile charge. But as they venture into the woods, a man-hunter is hot on their heels, driven by a desire for revenge. Finding himself without a weapon, a horse, or a way to communicate, Joe must rely on his wits and his knowledge of the outdoors to protect himself and his companion.

Meanwhile, Joe's closest friend, Nate Romanowski, and his own daughter Sheridan learn of the threat to Joe's life and follow him into the woods. In a stunning final showdown, the three of them come up against the worst that nature--and man--have to offer."

 

 

Title: The Postscript Murders

Author: Elly Griffiths

Series: #2 in the DS Harbinder Kaur police procedural series set in Scotland and across Europe.

336 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "The death of a ninety-year-old woman with a heart condition should not be suspicious. Detective Sergeant Harbinder Kaur certainly sees nothing out of the ordinary when Peggy’s caretaker, Natalka, begins to recount Peggy Smith’s passing.

But Natalka had a reason to be at the police station: while clearing out Peggy’s flat, she noticed an unusual number of crime novels, all dedicated to Peggy. And each psychological thriller included a mysterious postscript: PS: for PS. When a gunman breaks into the flat to steal a book and its author is found dead shortly thereafter—Detective Kaur begins to think that perhaps there is no such thing as an unsuspicious death after all.

And then things escalate: from an Aberdeen literary festival to the streets of Edinburgh, writers are being targeted. DS Kaur embarks on a road trip across Europe and reckons with how exactly authors can think up such realistic crimes..."

Title: Legacy of Death 

Author: Judith Cutler

Series: #2 in the Matthew Rowsley historical mystery series set in Victorian England.

240 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "With his lordship's mental health failing, management of his grand country estate has been assigned to a group of trustees, including land agent Matthew Rowsley and his capable wife Harriet. But the smooth running of Thorncroft House is disrupted by a series of unforeseen events. Building work on the estate workers' new cottages is halted by the discovery of Roman remains. Shortly afterwards, the family butler is brutally assaulted and left for dead. A random attack - or was he deliberately targeted? Matters take an even more disturbing turn when Lord Croft's long-lost cousin and heir, Julius Trescothick, arrives from Australia, ready to claim his inheritance. But is he who he claims to be . and what are his true intentions? If they are to preserve Thorncroft House and a way of life that has continued for centuries, Matthew and Harriet must uncover the truth behind Trescothick's identity and solve a series of interlocking mysteries." 

=== March 9 ===

Title: The Stills

Author: Jess Montgomery

Series: #3 in the Kinship historical mystery series set in 1920s Ohio.

352 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "Ohio, 1927: Moonshining is a way of life in rural Bronwyn County, and even the otherwise upstanding Sheriff Lily Ross has been known to turn a blind eye when it comes to stills in the area. But when thirteen-year-old Jebediah Ranklin almost dies after drinking tainted moonshine, Lily knows that someone has gone too far, and―with the help of organizer and moonshiner Marvena Whitcomb―is determined to find out who.

But then, Lily’s nemesis, the businessman George Vogel, reappears in town with his new wife, Fiona. Along with them is also her former brother-in-law Luther Ross, now an agent for the newly formed Bureau of Prohibition. To Lily, it seems too much of a coincidence that they should arrive now.

As fall turns to winter, a blizzard closes in. Lily starts to peel back the layers of deception shrouding the town of Kinship, but soon she discovers that many around her seem to be betraying those they hold dear―and that Fiona too may have an agenda of her own." 

=== March 23 ===

Title: Every Vow You Break

Author: Peter Swanson

Standalone psychological thriller 

320 pages

Synopsis: "Abigail Baskin never thought she’d fall in love with a millionaire. Then she met Bruce Lamb. He’s a good guy, stable, level-headed, kind—a refreshing twist from her previous relationships.

But right before the wedding, Abigail has a drunken one-night stand on her bachelorette weekend. She puts the incident—and the sexy guy who wouldn’t give her his real name—out of her mind, and now believes she wants to be with Bruce for the rest of her life.

Then the mysterious stranger suddenly appears—and Abigail’s future life and happiness are turned upside down. He insists that their passionate night was the beginning of something much, much more. Something special. Something real—and he’s tracked her down to prove it.

Does she tell Bruce and ruin their idyllic honeymoon—and possibly their marriage? Or should she handle this psychopathic stalker on her own? To make the situation worse, strange things begin to happen. She sees a terrified woman in the night shadows, and no one at the resort seems to believe anything is amiss… including her perfect new husband."

=== March 30 ===

Title: The Hiding Place

Author: Paula Munier

Series: #3 in the Mercy & Elvis series set in Vermont.

336 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "When her late grandfather’s dying deputy calls Mercy to his side, she and Elvis inherit the cold case that haunted him―and may have killed him. But finding Beth Kilgore 20 years after she disappeared is more than a lost cause. It’s a Pandora’s box releasing a rain of evil on the very people Mercy and Elvis hold most dear.

The timing couldn’t be worse when the man who murdered her grandfather escapes from prison and a fellow Army vet turns up claiming that Elvis is his dog, not hers. With her grandmother Patience gone missing, and Elvis’s future uncertain, Mercy faces the prospect of losing her most treasured allies, the only ones she believes truly love and understand her.

She needs help, and that means forgiving Vermont Game Warden Troy Warner long enough to enlist his aid. With time running out for Patience, Mercy and Elvis must team up with Troy and his search-and-rescue dog Susie Bear to unravel the secrets of the past and save her grandmother―before it’s too late.

Once again, Paula Munier crafts a terrific mystery thriller filled with intrigue, action, resilient characters, the mountains of Vermont, and two amazing dogs."

 

 

Title: Murder at Wedgefield Manor

Author: Erica Ruth Neubauer

Series: #2 in the Jane Wunderly historical mystery series set in 1920s England.

288 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "England, 1926: Wedgefield Manor, deep in the tranquil Essex countryside, provides a welcome rest stop for Jane and her matchmaking Aunt Millie before their return to America. While Millie spends time with her long-lost daughter, Lillian, and their host, Lord Hughes, Jane fills the hours devouring mystery novels and taking flying lessons--much to Millie's disapproval. But any danger in the air is eclipsed by tragedy on the ground when one of the estate's mechanics, Air Force veteran Simon Marshall, is killed in a motorcar collision.

The sliced brake cables prove this was no accident, yet was the intended victim someone other than Simon? The house is full of suspects--visiting relations, secretive servants, strangers prowling the grounds at night--and also full of targets. The enigmatic Mr. Redvers, who helped Jane solve a murder in Egypt, arrives on the scene to once more offer his assistance. It seems that everyone at Wedgefield wants Jane to help protect the Hughes family. But while she searches for answers, is she overlooking a killer hiding in plain sight?" 

Title: Knitty Gritty Murder

Author: Peggy Ehrhart

Series: #7 in the Knit & Nibble cozy series set in New Jersey.

288 pages

 

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

 

Synopsis: "Most times of the year, the tight-knit community gardens in quaint Arborville, New Jersey, overflow with seasonal vegetables and herbs. But who planted the dead body? Farm-to-table enthusiast Jenny Miller had a cookbook in the works when she was suddenly found strangled by a circular knitting needle in her own plot. Now, the pressure is on Pamela and her neighbor Bettina as they weave together clues in search of the person who kept Jenny's renowned heirloom plants--and budding career--from growing. With suspects and victims cropping up like weeds, it'll take a whole lot more than green thumbs and creative minds this spring to entangle the crafty culprit..." 

See what I mean about a bumper crop? Any month that has a new Elly Griffiths and Jess Montgomery is stellar, but March also has several more of my favorite authors. Isn't it great to be spoiled for choice?

Which books caught your eye and just had to be added to your Need to Read lists? 'fess up!

February 2020 New Mystery Releases!

Denis and I went to The Poisoned Pen Bookstore last Thursday, and I think I was too excited about getting out of the house for non-medical reasons because I forgot to take my voice recorder to record the event. Shame on me! I'll just have to try something different to share the event with you sometime in the near future.

When owner Barbara Peters learned that I was doing much better, she said, "Does this mean we'll be seeing more of you?" I certainly hope so, but in the meantime let me share my picks of the new crime fiction that's being released during the month of February. I've grouped them by their release dates, and the covers and synopses are courtesy of Amazon. Let's see if I managed to choose a book or two that tickles your fancy!

~~~ February 4 ~~~

Title: Things in Jars

Author: Jess Kidd

Standalone historical thriller set in Victorian London.

384 pages

Synopsis: "Bridie Devine—female detective extraordinaire—is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery.

Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing a past that she’d rather keep buried. Luckily, her search is aided by an enchanting cast of characters, including a seven-foot-tall housemaid; a melancholic, tattoo-covered ghost; and an avuncular apothecary. But secrets abound in this foggy underworld where spectacle is king and nothing is quite what it seems.

Blending darkness and light, history and folklore, Things in Jars is a spellbinding Gothic mystery that collapses the boundary between fact and fairy tale to stunning effect and explores what it means to be human in inhumane times." 

Title: The Case of the Reincarnated Client

Author: Tarquin Hall

Series: #5 in the humorous Vish Puri private investigator series set in New Delhi, India

240 pages

My review of the UK edition.

Synopsis: "When a young woman comes forward claiming to be the reincarnation of Riya Kaur, a wife and mother who vanished during the bloody 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Puri is dismissive. He's busy enough dealing with an irate matrimonial client whose daughter is complaining about her groom’s thunderous snoring. Puri's indomitable Mummy-ji however is adamant the client is genuine. How else could she so accurately describe under hypnosis Riya Kaur's life and final hours?

Driven by a sense of duty - the original case was his late father’s - Puri manages to acquire the police file only to find that someone powerful has orchestrated a cover-up. Forced into an alliance with his mother that tests his beliefs and high blood pressure as never before, it’s only by delving into the past the help of his reincarnated client that Puri can hope to unlock the truth."

Title: The Wages of Sin

Author: Judith Cutler

Series: #1 in the Matthew Rowsley historical series set in Victorian England.

240 pages

Synopsis: "Newly appointed as land agent to the youthful Lord Croft, Matthew Rowsley finds plenty to keep him busy as he attends to his lordship’s neglected country estate. But he’s distracted from his tasks by the disappearance of a young housemaid. Has Maggie really eloped with a young man, as her mother attests – or is the truth rather more sinister? What’s been going on behind the scenes at the grand country estate … and where has his lordship disappeared to?

Teaming up with housekeeper Mrs. Faulkner to get to the bottom of the matter, Matthew uncovers a number of disturbing secrets, scandals, and simmering tensions within the household. Something rotten is going on at Thorncroft – and it’s up to Matthew and Mrs. Faulkner to unearth the truth."

Title: A Cold Trail

Author: Robert Dugoni

Series: #7 in the Tracy Crosswhite police procedural series set in Washington state

357 pages

Synopsis: "The last time homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite was in Cedar Grove, it was to see her sister’s killer put behind bars. Now she’s returned for a respite and the chance to put her life back in order for herself, her attorney husband, Dan, and their new daughter. But tragic memories soon prove impossible to escape.

Dan is drawn into representing a local merchant whose business is jeopardized by the town’s revitalization. And Tracy is urged by the local PD to put her own skills to work on a new case: the brutal murder of a police officer’s wife and local reporter who was investigating a cold-case slaying of a young woman. As Tracy’s and Dan’s cases crisscross, Tracy’s trail becomes dangerous. It’s stirring up her own haunted past and a decades-old conspiracy in Cedar Grove that has erupted in murder. Getting to the truth is all that matters. But what’s Tracy willing to risk as a killer gets closer to her and threatens everyone she loves?"

~~~ February 11 ~~~

Title: The Only Child

Author: Mi-ae Seo

Standalone thriller set in Korea

304 pages

Synopsis: "Criminal psychologist Seonkyeong receives an unexpected call one day. Yi Byeongdo, a serial killer whose gruesome murders shook the world, wants to be interviewed. Yi Byeongdo, who has refused to speak to anyone until now, asks specifically for her. Seonkyeong agrees out of curiosity. 

That same day Hayeong, her husband’s eleven-year-old daughter from a previous marriage shows up at their door after her grandparents, with whom she lived after her mother passed away, die in a sudden fire. Seonkyeong wants her to feel at home but is gradually unnerved as the young girl says very little and acts strangely. 

At work and at home, Seonkyeong starts to unravel the pasts of the two new arrivals in her life and begins to see startling similarities. Hayeong looks at her the same way Yi Byeongdo does when he recounts the abuse he experienced as a child; Hayeong’s serene expression masks a temper that she can’t control. Plus, the story she tells about her grandparents’ death, and her mother’s before that, deeply troubles Seonkyeong. So much so that Yi Byeongdo picks up on it and starts giving her advice. 

Written with exquisite precision and persistent creepiness, The Only Child is psychological suspense at its very best." 

Title: Above the Bay of Angels

Author: Rhys Bowen

Standalone historical mystery set in Victorian France

347 pages

Synopsis: "Isabella Waverly only means to comfort the woman felled on a London street. In her final dying moments, she thrusts a letter into Bella’s hand. It’s an offer of employment in the kitchens of Buckingham Palace, and everything the budding young chef desperately wants: an escape from the constrictions of her life as a lowly servant. In the stranger’s stead, Bella can spread her wings.

Arriving as Helen Barton from Yorkshire, she pursues her passion for creating culinary delights, served to the delighted Queen Victoria herself. Best of all, she’s been chosen to accompany the queen to Nice. What fortune! Until the threat of blackmail shadows Bella to the Riviera, and a member of the queen’s retinue falls ill and dies.

Having prepared the royal guest’s last meal, Bella is suspected of the poisonous crime. An investigation is sure to follow. Her charade will be over. And her new life will come crashing down—if it doesn’t send her to the gallows."

Title: American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI

Author: Kate Winkler Dawson

Non-Fiction

336 pages

Synopsis: "Berkeley, California, 1933. In a lab filled with curiosities--beakers, microscopes, Bunsen burners, and hundreds upon hundreds of books--sat an investigator who would go on to crack at least two thousand cases in his forty-year career. Known as the "American Sherlock Holmes," Edward Oscar Heinrich was one of America's greatest--and first--forensic scientists, with an uncanny knack for finding clues, establishing evidence, and deducing answers with a skill that seemed almost supernatural.

Heinrich was one of the nation's first expert witnesses, working in a time when the turmoil of Prohibition led to sensationalized crime reporting and only a small, systematic study of evidence. However with his brilliance, and commanding presence in both the courtroom and at crime scenes, Heinrich spearheaded the invention of a myriad of new forensic tools that police still use today, including blood spatter analysis, ballistics, lie-detector tests, and the use of fingerprints as courtroom evidence. His work, though not without its serious--some would say fatal--flaws, changed the course of American criminal investigation.

Based on years of research and thousands of never-before-published primary source materials, American Sherlock captures the life of the man who pioneered the science our legal system now relies upon--as well as the limits of those techniques and the very human experts who wield them."

Title: Play the Red Queen

Author: Juris Jurjevics

Standalone historical mystery set in Vietnam

360 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Viet Nam, 1963. A female Viet Cong assassin is trawling the boulevards of Saigon, catching US Army officers off-guard with a single pistol shot, then riding off on the back of a scooter. Although the US military is not officially in combat, sixteen thousand American servicemen are stationed in Viet Nam “advising” the military and government. Among them are Ellsworth Miser and Clovis Robeson, two army investigators who have been tasked with tracking down the daring killer.

Set in the besieged capital of a new nation on the eve of the coup that would bring down the Diem regime and launch the Americans into the Viet Nam War, Play the Red Queen is Juris Jurjevics’s capstone contribution to a lifelong literary legacy: a tour-de-force mystery-cum-social history, breathtakingly atmospheric and heartbreakingly alive with the laws and lawlessness of war."

~~~ February 18 ~~~

Title: The Lucky One

Author: Lori Rader-Day

Standalone thriller set in the US Midwest

400 pages

Synopsis: "Most people who go missing are never found. But Alice was the lucky one... 

As a child, Alice was stolen from her backyard in a tiny Indiana community, but against the odds, her policeman father tracked her down within twenty-four hours and rescued her from harm. In the aftermath of the crime, her family decided to move to Chicago and close the door on that horrible day.

Yet Alice hasn’t forgotten. She devotes her spare time volunteering for a website called The Doe Pages scrolling through pages upon pages of unidentified people, searching for clues that could help reunite families with their missing loved ones. When a face appears on Alice’s screen that she recognizes, she’s stunned to realize it’s the same man who kidnapped her decades ago. The post is deleted as quickly as it appeared, leaving Alice with more questions than answers.

Embarking on a search for the truth, she enlists the help of friends from The Doe Pages to connect the dots and find her kidnapper before he hurts someone else. Then Alice crosses paths with Merrily Cruz, another woman who’s been hunting for answers of her own. Together, they begin to unravel a dark, painful web of lies that will change what they thought they knew—and could cost them everything.

Twisting and compulsively readable, The Lucky One explores the lies we tell ourselves to feel safe." 

~~~ February 25 ~~~

Title: The King's Justice

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Series: #9 in the Maggie Hope historical series set in World War II London

352 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "Maggie Hope started out as Winston Churchill’s secretary, but now she’s a secret agent—and the only one who can figure out how the missing instrument ties into the murders.

London, December 1942. As the Russian army repels German forces from Stalingrad, Maggie Hope takes a much-needed break from spying to defuse bombs in London. But Maggie herself is an explosion waiting to happen. Traumatized by her past, she finds herself living dangerously—taking huge risks, smoking, drinking, and speeding through the city streets on a motorbike. The last thing she wants is to get entangled in another crime.

But when she’s called upon to look into the theft of a Stradivarius, one of the finest violins ever made, Maggie can’t resist. Meanwhile, there’s a serial killer on the loose in London, targeting conscientious objectors. Little does she know that investigating this dangerous predator will pit her against a new evil—and old enemies. Only Maggie can uncover the connection between the robbery, the murders, and a link to her past."

There are some very good books being released during the month of February! Which ones of my picks tickled your fancy? Inquiring minds would love to know!

Head Count by Judith Cutler

First Line: I'd seen kids like that a thousand times on TV.

Head teacher Jane Cowan is a victim of her own success. Having done well with Wrayford Primary, she's now expected to bring a neighboring school up to scratch, too. On top of all this, she's purchased a house and is trying desperately to find a contractor who'll make it habitable.

One of the things she notices in her new school is an influx of children, most of whom do not speak English. At first, Jane believes them to be children of migrant workers brought in to supply cheap labor to local farms, but she simply cannot turn a blind eye to the conditions in which these children live. When some of them vanish, that's it. Jane believes there are human traffickers in the area, and she wants the police to get to the bottom of it.

The only parts of Judith Cutler's second Jane Cowan mystery, Head Count, that might not set well with American readers are the scenes in which Jane is an umpire for cricket matches. Fortunately, they are few and serve more to spotlight Jane's people skills (which she has in abundance) than anything else. Good thing, too, because the only part of cricket I like is the bit where fans sit out in the sunshine in that green and pleasant land.

Jane probably has more highly developed people skills than most because she was the victim of domestic violence for years. She's had more than her share of dealing with unreasonable humans. Although the man who abused her is now in prison, she still tries to fly beneath the radar (no Twitter or Facebook for her) because he has many loyal friends on the outside and retaliation is a definite possibility. Jane is an intelligent, capable woman who's a brilliant teacher and administrator, and when she's embroiled in something like human trafficking, she knows enough to let the police do their job.

Some readers may not think there's much of a mystery to Head Count because it percolates beneath the surface while Jane lives her peripatetic life, going from school to school and cricket match to cricket match while trying to deal with her house. Most readers of crime fiction are used to the main character conducting their own investigation and putting themselves in danger. With Jane's life experience, she's learned to trust the police to do what they're trained to do, so anytime she learns something, she hands it over to them. This makes a great deal of sense, and although it may sound boring, it's not-- because Cutler has created a very real sense of danger from her ex-husband's friends. Readers never know which bad guy will be sneaking up on this caring head teacher.

Readers familiar with Cutler's mysteries (and I wish there were a lot more of us here in the US) may come across a familiar name or two as they read. The author mentions one of my favorite characters, Fran Harman, and brings in Caffy Tyler and the formidable group of women known as PACT from Scar Tissue. Judith Cutler has created a wonderful group of intelligent, strong, "in charge" women characters throughout her career. Jane Cowan-- the woman who should be afraid of her own shadow but isn't-- is the latest and a prime example of why I think Cutler's books should be much better known in this country.

Head Count by Judith Cutler

ISBN: 9780749020859

Allison & Busby © 2017

Hardcover, 352 pages

Amateur Sleuth, #2 Jane Cowan mystery

Rating: A

Source: the publisher

Head Start by Judith Cutler

First Line: We might have been reprising my interview, with the solemn faces topping sober clothes.

Jane Cowan finally has the confidence to accept a job as head teacher of a primary school in a village in Kent now that her abusive ex-husband is in prison. However, problems arise almost immediately. Someone breaks into the school. A child is seriously injured on the playground. There are mechanical disasters in her new home. Jane begins to think that the school incidents are intentional-- especially when another child is hurt. Checking into things herself in order to protect the children in her charge, Jane becomes a target herself.

This is another thoroughly enjoyable mystery from one of my favorite writers, Judith Cutler. Jane Cowan is just the sort of nuanced character that Cutler can sink her teeth into. Victim of horrific spousal abuse, Jane has worked hard not to let that define her. She's funny, she's smart, she's hardworking, and she's an excellent school administrator. In many ways, she reminds me of another favorite Cutler character, Fran Harman. Both characters certainly have superb people skills.

Another thing that I liked about Head Start is that Jane isn't your typical amateur sleuth, and with the horrible things that have happened to her in the past, she shouldn't be. She has more sense than to tackle investigating vandalism, theft, "accidents" and the like on her own. She lets the police do their jobs and keeps them informed.

While readers can learn about the joys, trials, and terrors of teaching, they're also experiencing a finely crafted plot filled with twists and turns. First and foremost, who's responsible for what's going on? Does Jane's ex-husband have someone on the outside doing his dirty work for him? Is all this even aimed at Jane to begin with? Could it be aimed at the school itself? Readers have to pay attention to navigate the plot and arrive at the proper solution.

The reveal happens offstage because Jane let the experts handle all the heavy lifting, and this didn't bother me a bit. It's realistic. 99.9% of amateur sleuths who think they know more than the police are only going to make everyone's lives more difficult. Head Start is a fast-paced, first-rate puzzle of a mystery with an appealing heroine. I hope to read more books featuring Jane Cowan.
 

Head Start by Judith Cutler

ISBN: 9780749020705

Allison and Busby © 2016

Hardcover, 325 pages

Amateur Sleuth/Police Procedural, #1 Jane Cowan mystery

Rating: A

Source: the publisher 


 

On This Week in 2005: From the Historical to the Hilarious

It's me-- back again with more of my reading from eleven years ago! As I've gone through this book journal of mine, it's really given me food for thought. Why did I stop reading this series? Do I still read that type of book? When's the last time I read____? It seems as though I always have an endless loop of questions running through my mind!

On this week in 2005, I read three very different books. Each was a very enjoyable read, and each was a mystery. There's something for everyone in crime fiction, which is probably why I have yet to tire of the genre.

What was I reading back then? Let's take a look!

It's hard to describe a book by one of my favorites, Jasper Fforde, so I'm just going to give you the synopsis of this first in his Nursery Crime series, The Big Over Easy:

"It’s Easter in Reading—a bad time for eggs—and no one can remember the last sunny day. Ovoid D-class nursery celebrity Humpty Stuyvesant Van Dumpty III, minor baronet, ex-convict, and former millionaire philanthropist, is found shattered to death beneath a wall in a shabby area of town. All the evidence points to his ex-wife, who has conveniently shot herself.

But Detective Inspector Jack Spratt and his assistant Mary Mary remain unconvinced, a sentiment not shared with their superiors at the Reading Police Department, who are still smarting over their failure to convict the Three Pigs of murdering Mr. Wolff. Before long Jack and Mary find themselves grappling with a sinister plot involving cross-border money laundering, bullion smuggling, problems with beanstalks, titans seeking asylum, and the cut and thrust world of international chiropody.

And on top of all that, the JellyMan is coming to town . . ." 

Hopefully what you got from that synopsis is that Fforde likes to take something very well known-- like a nursery rhyme-- and turn it on its head using brilliant word play, a wickedly silly plot, and some well-drawn characters. The word play and situations keep you laughing, and-- wonder of wonders-- there's actually a good mystery to be found. I love Fforde's imagination and rated this one an A+.

Troy Soos is a talented writer who has a series of historical baseball mysteries that my husband enjoyed and another historical series of only four books that I really enjoyed. The Gilded Cage is the second in the Rebecca Davies and Marshall Webb series set at the turn of the twentieth century. Here's the synopsis: 

"In the riveting Island of Tears, Troy Soos introduced dime-novelist Marshall Webb and reformer Rebecca Davies. Now, the critically acclaimed author plunges readers once again into the gritty underside of turn-of-the-century New York, as Marshall and Rebecca reunite to take on Tammany Hall and the city's ruthless elite. A cholera epidemic has forced New York's immigrants into quarantine, and fear and panic ripple through the city. Amid a shaky economy, Rebecca Davies' father cuts off funding for her woman's shelter. Rather than turn these destitute women out onto the cold, dangerous streets, Rebecca seeks investment help from Lyman Sinclair, a remarkably successful young banker. But when Sinclair is found dead--an apparent suicide--and Rebecca's money is nowhere to be found, the police refuse to investigate further. Determined to recoup her money, Rebecca approaches her friend, writer marshall Webb. Together, Rebecca and Marshall unravel a web of corruption that runs from the top levels of Wall Street, through the lavish theaters of Broadway, to the mean streets of the Bowery. At its heart is a massive cover-up, marked by unquenchable ambition and greed that could shake the very foundations of New York City."

I really appreciated Soos's grasp of the historical context of the books. The period came to life as I read each one. Of course, the mysteries were also good, but the author's characters really put the sparkle on these stories. Rebecca Davies comes from a privileged background which gives her entrée into areas of society where freelance reporter and dime novelist Marshall Webb cannot go. Both are strong, intelligent individuals with plenty of common sense, although Rebecca can be a bit more adventurous than Marshall. There's also a growing attraction between the two that is never fully realized in this short series. I rated The Gilded Cage an A.

Pardon me for sharing this hideous cover for Judith Cutler's Staying Power, but I could not find the cover of the edition that I read. Yikes. That thing is scary!

Cutler is one of my favorite crime fiction writers. She has a knack for creating female characters that are complex and fascinating-- and her sense of humor (check out her two Josie Welford mysteries) keeps me laughing. Although there are flashes of humor in all her books, most of her series are not played for laughs. Her Kate Powers series is an example. Here's the synopsis:

"Detective Sergeant Kate Power is on her way home from a trip to Florence when the textile importer sitting on the plane next to her strikes up a conversation. Days later he is founding hanging from a bridge in Birmingham - with Kate's card in his pocket the only means of identification. What follows includes a scam to forge ecstasy tablets, bondage, long firm fraud and domestic violence - and Kate's in the middle of it all." 

Besides the fast pace and intriguing mysteries, the thing that impressed me most about Cutler's Kate Power series (written from 1998 to 2003, six books total) was her depiction of what it was like to be a female police officer in Birmingham, England at that time. If you're a fan of British police procedurals and strong female characters, Judith Cutler's Kate Power series is definitely one you should check out. I rated Staying Power an A.


There you have it-- three more books that I read way back in 2005. Whatever will be next? Your guess is as good as mine!




 

December 2015 New Mystery Releases!

I've been so busy with cooking, cleaning, pruning, raking, knitting, and plotting Christmas decorations that I could swear I just put up my November new release mystery picks just last week!

I've also been doing some plotting as far as this blog goes, but I'm not sure where I'm going to come up with the necessary free time.  But all this doesn't mean I haven't been keeping my eye on new crime fiction, no indeedy!

I've grouped all my picks according to their release dates, and I've included all the information you'll need to find them at all your favorite book procurement sites. The book synopses are courtesy of Amazon.

Hopefully you'll find plenty of books to request at the library or to add to your wish lists so folks will know what to buy for you for Christmas. Who knows? You may even get a gift card or two to spend! (Do those things burn a hole  in your pockets as quickly as they do in mine???)  Happy Reading!

=== December 1 ===

Title: His Right Hand

Author: Mette Ivie Harrison

Series: #2 in the Linda Wallheim series set in Utah

ISBN: 9781616956103

Publisher: Soho Crime

Hardcover, 352 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "In Draper, Utah, a tight-knit Mormon community is thrown into upheaval when their ward’s second counselor—one of the bishop’s right-hand men—is found dead in an elaborately staged murder on church property. Carl Ashby was known as a devout Mormon, a pillar of the community, and a loving husband and father. Who would want him dead?

Linda Wallheim, the wife of the ward’s bishop, can’t rest as long as the ward is suffering. She is particularly worried about Carl’s grieving family. But the entire case is turned upside down by the autopsy report, which reveals Carl Ashby was a biological female. In the Mormon church, where gender is considered part of a person’s soul, some people regard transgenderism as one of the worst possible transgressions of faith. Church officials seem to be more upset by Carl’s gender than by his murder, and more concerned with hushing up the story than solving the crime.

Linda realizes that if the police are to catch the killer, they are going to need an ally on the inside—and she is the only one who can help. Carl was living a life of secrecy for twenty years. What else was he hiding—and can Linda ferret out the key to his death before the rumors tear her community apart?"  

Title: Blood, Salt, Water
Author: Denise Mina
Series: #5 in the Alex Morrow police procedural series set in Glasgow, Scotland
ISBN: 9780316380546
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Hardcover, 304 pages

Synopsis: "For reasons she can't quite explain, Alex Morrow is addicted to watching surveillance footage of Roxanna Fuentecilla--a gorgeous Spanish mother of two, in a tempestuous relationship with her boyfriend, who recently relocated to Glasgow under mysterious circumstances. She is also Morrow's prime suspect in an investigation that resembles a soap opera, filled with glamorous jetsetters and enough money to interest the highest levels of law enforcement. Until Roxanna vanishes.

Morrow traces Roxanna's steps to Helensburgh, a sleepy, picturesque seaside community. But behind the idyllic Victorian homes and quaint storefronts, darkness lurks. Home to a man with blood on his hands who is haunted by guilt, a mysterious woman with ulterior motives back in town for the first time in decades, a sexually frustrated restaurateur looking to blow off steam, and a crew of vicious small-time gangsters blindly following orders, it's a town ruled by base instincts where no one is quite what they seem. And it's the perfect place to get rid of someone.

When she uncovers an unsettling connection to Roxanna's job back in Glasgow, Morrow suspects that her missing person is more than a white-collar criminal on the lam--she may also be a victim caught up in a sophisticated conspiracy that stretches far beyond Helensburgh and is more personal than Morrow ever imagined. As the truth rises to the surface and the conflicts that lie beneath Helensburgh's calm waters threaten to explode, Morrow must find Roxanna before any hope of solving the case disappears with her.

A gripping tale of greed, power, and vengeance, Blood, Salt, Water is a masterful crime novel from Denise Mina that confirms her reputation as "one of the genre's brights stars" (George Pelecanos)."    

Title: Empty Nest
Author: Marty Wingate
Series: #2 in the Birds of a Feather cozy series set in England
eISBN: 9781101883396
Publisher: Random House Alibi
eBook, 298 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "Manager of a tourist center in a quaint British village, Julia Lanchester finds herself with more ideas than time. Her boss is the Earl Fotheringill himself, but apart from him, she doesn’t mix well with the aristocracy. Unfortunately, toxic mold forces her from her cottage and into one of the earl’s countless spare rooms at the Hall. She tries to get a handle on her overload of work, while she finds herself arguing with dinner guests, chaffing at the sudden interest the earl’s son has in running the estate, and missing her new beau, Michael Sedgwick.

Her life goes from bad to sinister when Julia discovers poisoned sparrowhawks on the expansive estate grounds. And soon after, she finds one of the Hall’s visitors murdered—felled by the same poison. While simultaneously both spooked and angry, she still can’t keep herself from snooping, and dragging Michael along into her investigation. But will she find the culprit before her own wings are clipped?" 

Title: Give Up the Ghost
Author: Juliet Blackwell
Series: #6 in the Haunted Home Renovations cozy series set in San Francisco, California
ISBN: 9780451465818
Publisher: NAL
Mass Market Paperback, 336 pages

Synopsis: "San Francisco millionaire Andrew Flynt wants to sell his Victorian mansion, but ghostly music, the squeaking of a long-disappeared weathervane, and an angry ghost keep running off potential buyers. After a famous psychic is called in, she informs the Flynts that their multi-million-dollar renovations to “update” the home have left its resident ghost extremely agitated. So contractor Mel Turner is engaged to track down and replace some of the original features of the house.

But when the beautiful psychic is found stabbed, it appears someone had a very human motive for murder. Now Mel must use her ghost whispering gift to uncover the secrets of the haunted house on the hill, and her sleuthing skills to catch a killer." 

Title: The Readaholics and the Poirot Puzzle
Author: Laura DiSilverio
Series: #2 in the Readaholics Book Club cozy series set in Colorado
ISBN: 9780451470843
Publisher: NAL
Mass Market Paperback, 336 pages

Synopsis: "Amy-Faye Johnson’s book club, the Readaholics, is engrossed in Murder on the Orient Express, and Poirot’s surprising resolution is stirring up debate. Is the solution remotely realistic? Is justice served by Poirot's decision? Well, the book is fiction after all…

Then, just as Amy-Faye is planning the grand opening of her brother Derek’s pub,
his hot-headed partner is murdered. To keep Derek from being railroaded as a suspect, Amy-Faye and the Readaholics take a page from Poirot and investigate. But as the clues lead to unlikely places, surprising motives, and a multitude of suspects, Amy-Faye and her pals wonder if truth can be just as strange as fiction." 

Title: Guilty As Sin
Author: Judith Cutler
Series: #7 in the Lina Townend amateur sleuth/antiques dealer series set in England
ISBN: 9780727885364
Publisher: Severn House Publishers
Hardcover, 224 pages

Synopsis: "It’s a busy weekend for Lina: she wins a dance competition, annoys a valuable client and has to play gooseberry when Griff, her business partner, meets an old flame. Killing time, she drives across Dartmoor, only to find two men robbing a medieval church. Outraged, she manages to stop them – only to discover that it’s not just in Devon that they are working.

Safely back in Kent, she makes some new friends. One, a frail and confused pensioner, may have been the victim of a heartless crime. Another is a bright young woman eager to hear all about Lina’s life. But suddenly Lina realises that she may have made new enemies too – or maybe just stirred up some very dangerous old ones." 

Title: Riot Most Uncouth
Author: Daniel Friedman
Series: #1 in the Lord Byron historical series set in England
ISBN: 9781250027597
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Hardcover, 304 pages

Synopsis: "1807, Cambridge, England
.

A young woman is murdered in a boarding house, and nobody knows what to do about it. The volunteer watchman who patrols the streets of this placid college town has no idea how to investigate a serious crime and the private bounty hunters the girl's family has hired to catch the killer employ methods that are questionable, at best.

What Cambridge needs is a hero, and, in a situation such as this, it's very easy for a gentleman with a romantic disposition to mistake himself for one.

19 year-old Lord Byron, the outlaw poet, is a student at Trinity College, though he can only be described as a "student" in the loosest sense of the word: He rarely attends class and, instead, spends his time day-drinking, making love to faculty wives, and feeding fine cuisine and expensive wine to the bear he keeps as a pet.

Catching a killer seems like a fine diversion, however, and Byron decides that solving the crime must take precedence over other, less-urgent matters such as his failing grades and mounting debts." 

=== December 15 ===

Title: The Treacherous Net

Author: Helene Tursten

Series: #8 in the Detective Inspector Irene Huss police procedural series set in Sweden

ISBN: 9781616954024

Publisher: Soho Crime

Hardcover, 320 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "It’s May and the snow has hardly melted in Göteborg, Sweden, but things are heating up quickly for Detective Inspector Irene Huss in the Violent Crimes Unit. The body of a teenage girl is found in the woods, naked and horrifically scarred. Then there’s the mummified body that is discovered bricked up in a chimney on a demolition site, not to mention the city’s ongoing problem with gang violence. With the sudden influx of cases and one detective out on maternity leave, everyone is stretched thin. To make matters worse, Irene feels more than a little intimidated by the new superintendent, Efva Thylqvist, who uses her sex appeal and smooth talking to bend the predominately male staff to her will.

Then a second young girl is found, wearing what appears to be the other half of the sexy lingerie set recovered near the first body. Fearing the two cases are linked and that the killer may strike again, Irene and her colleagues embark on a desperate hunt that takes them deep into a shadowy world of anonymous online predators and insecure teenage girls on a deadly quest for affirmation."

Title: Killing Trail

Author: Margaret Mizushima

Series: #1 in the Timber Creek K-9 police procedural series set in Colorado 

ISBN: 9781629534862

Publisher: Crooked Lane Books

Paperback, 320 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "When a young girl is found dead in the mountains outside Timber Creek, life-long resident Officer Mattie Cobb and her partner, K-9 police dog Robo, are assigned to the case that has rocked the small Colorado town.

With the help of Cole Walker, local veterinarian and a single father, Mattie and Robo must track down the truth before it claims another victim. But the more Mattie investigates, the more she realizes how many secrets her hometown holds. And the key may be Cole's daughter, who knows more than she's saying.

The murder was just the beginning, and if Mattie isn’t careful, she and Robo could be next. Suspenseful and smart, Killing Trail is an explosive debut that will have readers clamoring for more Mattie and Robo for years to come."

Title: "Every Seven Years"

Author: Denise Mina

Standalone Short Story

eISBN: 9781504025966

Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media

Digital short story, 55 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "It’s been seven years since Else visited her tiny hometown on an isolated island off the coast of Scotland. After years of suffering bullying at the hands of the few other residents, she left to make a new life. But now that her mother has passed, Else has returned. And when her old tormentor Karen Little hands her the very book that sent her running all those years ago, the cruelties of her past have Else seeing red." 

Title: The Man on the Washing Machine

Author: Susan Cox

Standalone

ISBN: 9781250065803

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Hardcover, 304 pages

Synopsis: "When former party girl and society photographer Theophania Bogart flees to San Francisco to escape a high-profile family tragedy, a series of murders drags her unwillingly out of hiding. In no time at all she discovers she's been providing cover for a sophisticated smuggling operation, she starts to fall for an untrustworthy stranger, and she's knocked out, tied up and imprisoned. The police are sure she's lying. The smugglers are sure she knows too much. Her friends? They aren't sure what to believe.

The body count is rising and Theo struggles to find the killer before she's the next victim or her new life is exposed as an elaborate fraud. But the more deeply entangled she becomes, the more her investigation is complicated by her best friend, who is one of her prime suspects; her young protégé, who may or may not have a juvie record; her stern and unyielding grandfather, who exposes an unexpected soft center; and the man on her washing machine, who isn't quite what he appears, either.

Susan Cox's Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning novel is a charming debut with wacky, colorful characters and a delightfully twisted mystery." 

=== December 29 ===

Title: Thread and Gone

Author: Lea Wait

Series: #3 in the Mainely Needlepoint cozy series set in Maine

ISBN: 9781617730085

Publisher: Kensington Books

Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books

Synopsis: "Angie Curtis and her fellow Mainely Needlepointers know how to enjoy their holidays. But nothing grabs their attention like tying up loose threads. So when Mary Clough drops in on the group's Fourth of July supper with a question about an antique needlepoint she's discovered in her family attic, Angie and her ravelers are happy to look into the matter.

Angie's best guess is that the mystery piece may have been stitched by Mary, Queen of Scots, famous not just for losing her head, but also for her needlepointing. If Angie's right, the piece would be extremely valuable. For safekeeping, Angie turns the piece over to her family lawyer, who places it in a safe in her office. But when the lawyer is found dead with the safe open and ransacked, the real mystery begins. . ." 

Title: Murder Most Malicious

Author: Alyssa Maxwell

Series: #1 in the Lady and Lady's Maid historical series set in 1918 England

ISBN: 9781617738302

Publisher: Kensington Books

Hardcover, 304 pages

Synopsis: "December 1918: As a difficult year draws to a close, there is much to celebrate for nineteen-year-old Phoebe Renshaw and her three siblings at their beloved family estate of Foxwood Hall. The dreadful war is finally over; eldest daughter Julia's engagement to their houseguest, the Marquis of Allerton, appears imminent; and all have gathered to enjoy peace on earth, good will toward men.

But the peace of Foxwood Hall is shattered on the morning of Boxing Day, when the Marquis goes missing. Not entirely missing, however, as macabre evidence of foul play turns up in gift boxes given to lady's maid Eva Huntford and a handful of others. Having overheard her sister and the Marquis in a heated exchange the night before, Lady Phoebe takes a personal interest in solving the mystery.

As the local constable suspects a footman at Foxwood Hall, Phoebe and Eva follow the clues to a different conclusion. But both young women will need to think outside the box to wrap up this case--before a cornered killer lashes out with ill will toward them. . ." 

=== December 31 ===

Title: Haunting Investigation

Author: Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

Series: #5 in the Chesterton Holte historical series set in 1920s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

ISBN: 9781943052004

Publisher: Cleveland Writer's Press, Inc

Paperback, 352 pages

Synopsis: "Spring 1924. The world has clawed its way back from the ravages of WWI and the Spanish Flu pandemic. The 20's are beginning to roar. Poppy Thornton lives with her Aunt Jo and her excitable cat Maestro in upper-crust Philadelphia. Poppy is determined to make a name for herself as a serious crime reporter, but is stuck reporting on garden parties and ladies' fashion. Then one day her editor assigns her to collect background information on the suicide of a prominent businessman. She soon discovers it was actually a murder... but her surprising source for this information is the ghost of a man killed alongside her father during the Great War. Even if she dared tell anyone, who would believe it? Together Poppy and her "gentleman haunt" follow the trail of a string of murders. But as their investigation narrows in on an all-too-familiar suspect, Poppy becomes a target herself and wonders if her ghost of a partner will appear in time to keep her from joining him in the after-life." 

Wow-- a little something for everyone this month, isn't there? I already know there's some mighty fine reading in store from this list, and from the ones that I haven't read yet, I have to admit that Riot Most Uncouth certainly intrigues me. I guess I'd just love to know how "Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know" Lord Byron stacks up as a sleuth!

How about you? Which titles tickle your fancy in this list? Inquiring minds would love to know!