Happy Holidays and two Christmas Anthologies

Happy Holidays! This will be my last post for 2019.

Here are two Christmas anthologies for you. If you are traveling and need something to read and get in the spirit or just chillin', check these out.

The Twelve Cozy Mystery Carols of Christmas.

A Collection of Holiday Cozy Mystery Novellas by Members of the Sleuthing Women Author Collective

Deck the Halls with books of mystery, fa la la la la, it’s murder most foul.

The season is rife with tasks and obligations. Shopping, cleaning, cooking, and parties...you need some downtime. So, cue up your favorite holiday album and stoke up a blazing fire. Grab your preferred beverage and a bowl of freshly popped corn, and immerse yourself in murderous fun from a dozen goddesses of mystery, mayhem, and murder.

Deck the halls with mystery, hear sleigh-bells in the bloody snow, wish for a merry murder, and make this holiday season your very own with this fun collection of cozy mystery novellas featuring Ava Mallory, Carolyn Ridder Aspenson, Jenna St. James, K.M. Waller, Laina Turner, Rachael Stapleton, Sam Cheever, Stephanie Damore, Susan Boles, Tara Meyers, Tricia L. Sanders, and Wendy Meadows. 

Meows and Mistletoe: A Holiday Anthology

Eight holiday tales in the magical town of Cat’s Paw Cove by authors:

Sharon Buchbinder, Candace Cold, Darcy Devion, Mia Ellas, Kerry Evelyn, Kristal Hollis, Debra Jess, Sue-Ellen Welfonder

See ya next year!

Making it Rain in Texas by Russ Hall

This was a book offered with Authors/XP/Elite Reader group. 

Making it Rain in Texas is Al Quinn Novel Book 5.

About: 

"Once again, Al Quinn’s wish to lead a quiet life as a retired sheriff’s department detective gets interrupted. This time, a female con artist has ripped off a charity drive his brother, Maury, and his sister-in-law, Bonnie, are heading.

Sheriff Clayton also wants a favor. He asks Al to look into a report of a chupacabra, a mythological Texas beast that sucks the blood from goats. The tangled web causes Al and his “starting-to-get-serious” partner, Fergie, to cross paths with two hardened killers who decide Al and Fergie need to die.

Their dance across the drought-stricken countryside threatens to finish Al and Fergie, along with the rest of his household, including the baby, Little Al, and their dog, Tanner."

I really liked this book. New series to me and a new author. Very suspenseful with constant action beginning to end. Although it takes place in current day central Texas, it had a wild west feel to me, with the posse of Al and Fergie, Maury and Bonnie trying to bring in a fund raising scammer, while checking out reports of a Chupacabra. They are chasing down the bad guys, while being chased by other bad guys, all out in the hills of central Texas.

I liked all the references to the small towns, as I am very familiar with them. The story about the fund raising (rain maker) scam really opened my eyes, and I wonder and suppose there is some truth to it.

Likeable characters, fast paced, definitely kept my interest. If you are from Central Texas I think you would like to follow Al's adventures. He was just a few miles from me in this story.

If you are interested in receiving free books for review, check out Authors XP. You will get emails about books currently available for review, you can choose the genres you are interested it. You submit with a click, the book you are interested in and it will show up on your dashboard for the download method of your choice. Then post the link to your review in the dashboard when you are done. It is pretty simple. I figured it out. :) Here is the link:

https://authorsxp.com/readers/join-the-axp-elite-book-squad

I received a free copy and voluntarily provided this review.

Best of 2019

It is a busy time of year isn't it? Even if you don't decorate much, or bake, or shop a lot, somehow it sure is busy. I am looking forward to some down time coming up which for me means more reading time. :)

We had our last Mystery Book Club meeting of the year almost two weeks ago. We don't read a book for this last meeting of the year, but share our favorite books of the year, bring books to share and bring snacks to share. We had quite a spread! All so good.

I want to share the book clubs favorite picks. Interestingly, there were several non fiction books that people really liked, not just mysteries. Let's see if I can force the list I made to send out to the members, into this post.

First I will tell you my favorites:
Turn of the Key, Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware: We had read In a Dark Dark Wood last year I think which introduced this author to me. I really like her books. These three books all have a house in them. I like spooky house stories.

Trust Me: Hank Phillip Ryan: This was also a new author for me and I really liked this book.

Need to Know: Karen Cleveland: Another new author. I really liked this book also and plan on reading the next book.

Here are the group picks. They are in no particular order.

China Thrillers  -  Peter May

Phryne Fisher books – Kerry Greenwood

Lena Jones Books – Betty Webb

Tracy Crosswhite books – Robert Dugoni

The Ruin (Cormac Riley #1) – Dervla McTiernan

The Scholar (Cormac Riley #2) – Dervla McTiernan

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane – Lisa See

The Island of Sea Women –Lisa See

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone – Lori Gottlieb

Lock Every Door – Riley Sager

The Mystery of Three Quarters (New Hercule Poirot Mysteries, #3) – Sophie Hannah

Death in a Desert Land (New Agatha Christie #3) – Andrew Wilson

Wish You Well – David Baldacci

Wolf Pack (Joe Picket #19) – C.J. Box

Complete Short Stories of Mark Twain – Mark Twain

People Power and Profits – Joseph Stiglitz

One Step Behind (Kurt Wallander #7) – Henning Mankell

The Huntress – Kate Quinn

The Code Girls – Daisy Styles

A Better Man (Inspector Gamache #15) – Louise Penny

Love and Death Among the Cheetahs,  Victory Garden – Rhys Bowen

Lady in the Lake – Laura Lippman

Becoming – Michelle Obama

Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owen

Blow Out – Rachel Maddow

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI – David Grann

Tell the Wolves I'm Home – Carol Rifka-Brunt

Stillhouse Lake (Stillhouse Lake #1) – Rachel Caine

The Laws of Human Nature – Robert Greene Have a great holiday, whatever you celebrate.

River City Dead by Nancy G. West, A Fatal Folly by Jeanette de Beauvoir

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here are the two books I read in the past couple of weeks.

River City Dead is the 4th book in the Aggie Mundeen series.

About: "Advice columnist Aggie Mundeen and SAPD Detective Sam Vanderhoven plan their first rendezvous at a San Antonio River Walk hotel during Fiesta Week—sumptuous sights, sounds, and festivities in the middle of America’s Venice. A vacation from crime and a reset for their tumultuous relationship. But murder descends on the Casa Prima Hotel. Disturbing revelations surface about the Fabulous Femmes, Aggie’s new friends holding a convention. Evil emerges at parties in La Villita. Calamity plagues Aggie’s debut dance performance at the Arneson River Theater, the celebration skewed by carousing, crazies, and corpses. Even in idyllic River City, crime complicates relationships."

This book appealed to me since I have been to the River Walk many times. I really enjoyed this mystery. Aggie goes off on her own, (like all good amateur detectives) searching for the killer. She knew the person that was murdered, after all. Despite Sam warning her and telling her to go home, that they will reschedule their weekend, Aggie just does what she thinks she should anyway. She really is thorough in her research (which is interesting) and her information does help Sam. We also learn a lot about Fiesta and the military history of San Antonio. Lots to like in this book.

I read this with the House of Clues Facebook group. They announce the book they are sponsoring about a month ahead of time. Then the author hosts an informal discussion throughout the scheduled day. It is fun and there are usually a couple of prizes.

I also read A Fatal Folly: A Provincetown Mystery (Sydney Riley Series Book 5). This is a new author and new series to me. I read it as a read and review for The Cozy Mystery Review Crew.

About: "Holly Folly is approaching, and Sydney Riley is feeling far from festive. She hasn’t heard from her boyfriend in weeks, a mysterious stranger has crashed into her beloved “little green car,” and, in a moment of temporary insanity, she’s invited her parents for the holidays. She’s convinced things could not possibly get worse—until she stumbles over a body at the lighting of the lobster pot Christmas tree.

As if this is not enough, when a gold coin and nameplate of a missing fishing boat are discovered, she’s asked to investigate the unsolved mystery of a murdered fisherman. While Provincetown is aglow with holiday lights and events, Sydney, Provincetown’s unofficial sleuth, is in the dark but determined to uncover the motive for both murders."

Good story line that held my interest. Different setting and plot for me; set on a small town, east coast, trying to solve a murder from several years ago. A local man, Tony, was found shot, and his wife and two daughters and their boat, disappeared. Now a piece if the boat has washed up. Sydney meets Guy, who is in town to search for a French sloop, The Mignonette, that was sunk in 1716. He is trying to beat another underwater archaeological explorer. Thing is, it isn't really the time of year to be diving. Sydney, being known in town as an amateur detective, is asked to investigate the death of Tony, by his sister. Does Guy have something to do with this? Meanwhile, Sydney's boyfriend, Ali is undercover on the west coast. It has been so long since she heard from him, that she is pretty sure something has happened to him. And if all that isn't bad enough, Sydney's parents managed to get her to invite them for Christmas. Peppered with humor, and an exciting conclusion, this is a good holiday read. Lots of interesting history too.

I received a free copy.

Last but not least, I watched a movie on TCM that is related to Thanksgiving. While it was a Hollywood production, when I then looked up the same information on Wiki, it appears that the basic story line stays pretty true to what they know about the journey. They through in some romances and a story about a young boy that isn't in the accounts of the journey, but the characters and one of the characters tragic ending is true. Although what happened to her was never determined. 

Plymouth Adventure: 1952 starring Spencer Tracy, Gene Tierney and Van Johnson.

About: "The film tells a fictionalized version of the Pilgrims' voyage across the Atlantic Ocean to North America aboard the Mayflower." 

Next week, our Mystery Boo Club is having our end of year holiday gathering and will be sharing our best of 2019. I will report back with a list of our favorites.

Top Ten Golden Age Detective Novels

Thought I would share this article and list of the Top 10 Golden Age Detective Novels. I found it interesting and now I want to read the ones I have not read. Interesting that the first five were written between 1939 and 1952, and the last five were written in the 2000's. Ok I have only read 2 of these books but have heard of several of the other authors.

How is it this picture of Agatha Christie surrounded by books looks so wonderful, but if you look at my office/library, it doesn't look so great? Maybe it's not that bad.

Here is the like to the article.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/nov/13/top-10-golden-age-detective-novels-agatha-christie-josephine-tey

Fan Mail by Daryl Wood Gerber

Fan Mail is the second novel in the Aspen Adams Novels of Suspense. I read and ARC through the Cozy Mystery Review Crew I have mentioned. 

I love this cover.

About: 

"An adoring fan and a string of murders: a demented show of love that leaves no one safe . . .

Local celebrity news anchor Gloria Morning is used to receiving declarations of love and praise in her weekly fan letters, but when a Lake Tahoe doctor is murdered and she gets an anonymous note telling her it was done for her glory, her appreciation turns to panic. Unsure of where else to turn, she enlists the help of novice private investigator Aspen Adams. No sooner does Aspen begin digging into who sent the macabre note than another murder occurs, followed by another note, and she soon realizes she’s up against a ruthless and deranged killer.

Working with scant clues and a puzzling array of potential suspects, Aspen is determined to unearth the elusive connection between the victims and her client. But as the body count grows and the murderer remains a mystery to both her and the police, Aspen discovers she’s gotten closer to the killer than she ever imagined, and now she must risk everything she holds dear to stop the killings, including her own life."

This was an excellent cozy/thriller. The story escalates as more people are murdered in this small town. Aspen (amateur P.I.) helps her boyfriend Nick (detective) try to figure out who the murderer is and how they are all connected. Aspen is also trying to be mother to her niece, Candace, and it looks like she, Candace and their dog are targeted. Good complex mystery, with a really tense, can't put it down ending. There are several strong characters with good back stories to keep this series going. I think it would make an excellent Hallmark Mystery. 

Daryl Wood Gerber also writes The Cookbook Nook Mysteries, French Bistro Mysteries and as Avery Ames, The Cheeseshop Mysteries. She has also written some standalones. 

http://darylwoodgerber.com/

If you would like to check out the Cozy Mystery Review Crew you can look at their website:

https://cozymysteryreview.wixsite.com/home

or Facebook group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/cozymysteryreview/

You do not have to be on Facebook to get the newsletters and review opportunities. I have gotten many really good (free) books through them.

I received a free copy and voluntarily provided this review

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

For our November Mystery Book Club (MBC), we read Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI.

It is a nonfiction book. It is a mystery.

About:

"In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Indian Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe.

Inthe1920s,therichestpeoplepercapitaintheworldweremembersoftheOsageIndianNationinOklahoma.Afteroilwasdiscoveredbeneaththeirland,theOsagerodeinchauffeuredautomobiles,builtmansions,andsenttheirchildrentostudyinEurope.

Then,onebyone,theybegantobekilledoff.OneOsagewoman,MollieBurkhart,watchedasherfamilywasmurdered.Heroldersisterwasshot.Hermotherwasthenslowlypoisoned.Anditwasjustthebeginning,asmoreOsagebegantodieundermysteriouscircumstances.

InthislastremnantoftheWildWest—whereoilmenlikeJ.P.GettymadetheirfortunesandwheredesperadoessuchasAlSpencer,“thePhantomTerror,”roamed–virtuallyanyonewhodaredtoinvestigatethekillingswerethemselvesmurdered.Asthedeathtollsurpassedmorethantwenty-fourOsage,thenewlycreatedF.B.I.tookupthecase,inwhatbecameoneoftheorganization’sfirstmajorhomicideinvestigations.Butthebureauwasthennotoriouslycorruptandinitiallybungledthecase.Eventuallytheyoungdirector,J.EdgarHoover,turnedtoaformerTexasRangernamedTomWhitetotrytounravelthemystery.Whiteputtogetheranundercoverteam,includingoneoftheonlyNativeAmericanagentsinthebureau.Theyinfiltratedtheregion,strugglingtoadoptthelatestmoderntechniquesofdetection.TogetherwiththeOsagetheybegantoexposeoneofthemostsinisterconspiraciesinAmericanhistory.

Atrue-lifemurdermysteryaboutoneofthemostmonstrouscrimesinAmericanhistory.

Then, one by one, they began to be killed off. One Osage woman, Mollie Burkhart, watched as her family was murdered. Her older sister was shot. Her mother was then slowly poisoned. And it was just the beginning, as more Osage began to die under mysterious circumstances.

In this last remnant of the Wild West—where oilmen like J. P. Getty made their fortunes and where desperadoes such as Al Spencer, “the Phantom Terror,” roamed – virtually anyone who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll surpassed more than twenty-four Osage, the newly created F.B.I. took up the case, in what became one of the organization’s first major homicide investigations. But the bureau was then notoriously corrupt and initially bungled the case. Eventually the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to try to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including one of the only Native American agents in the bureau. They infiltrated the region, struggling to adopt the latest modern techniques of detection. Together with the Osage they began to expose one of the most sinister conspiracies in American history.
 

A true-life murder mystery about one of the most monstrous crimes in American history."

 

I was not aware of this story. I attributed it to not being from the area. But members of the MBC that are from Oklahoma, were not aware of this story either. Everyone agreed it was shameful what happened to not only the people that were murdered, but the members of the Osage tribe as a whole.

 

I can't say "it was a good book", because there isn't anything good about this true story. Well, maybe it was good they developed new investigative processes, good they founded the FBI but....

 

Martin Scorsese is directing a movie based on this book. It will star Leonardo DeCaprio and Robert Di Nero. It will be filmed in Osage County. They recently held a casting call in Osage County for people with the knowledge of i.e. customs, hair styling, cooking, etc. I think it is good that Scorsese wants to bring this story even more out in front by making a movie. Let's hope they stay true to the facts.

 

The author of the book is David Grann. He is a journalist currently for the New Yorker and has written several true crime books. They all look very interesting.

 

You can read more about the author and his books here: https://www.davidgrann.com/

 

You can read more about the Osage Indian murders here:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage_Indian_murders

Stolen Script by Janet Pywell

Stolen Script is the third book in the Mikky dos Santos Thriller series by Janet Pywell. '

About: " A Gripping International Crime Thriller from author Janet Pywell's Culture Crime Series. Artist and photographer, Mikky dos Santos is brilliant but rebellious. After a personal catastrophe in New York she insists on going to Greece to authenticate a valuable parchment where she makes a promise to return it to the Jewish museum in Rhodes. But time is running out and Nikos Pavlides isn't giving up the Torah easily. He's also hiding a deeper, darker secret and, as he plays a deadly game, the stakes are raised. Faced with drug dealers and human traffickers with no regard for life, Mikky's survival instincts kick in as she uncovers the sordid reality of the truth and its savage consequences. Fighting for her life, how will Mikky fulfill her promise? This enthralling, fast-paced thriller is an emotional roller coaster of shocking twists and turns... Set in New York (America), Izmir (Turkey) and Rhodes (Greece) this exciting novel will keep you turning the pages."

What a rollercoaster ride of a thriller! Mikky takes on a job to find a stolen Torah authenticate it. When she meets the family of the woman who was to deliver it to a museum, but was killed it an earthquake, the job takes on a more personal feeling. Mikky runs in to some unsavory characters and has to sort out who is trying to help and who is trying to hurt her. This book will grab you right away with lots of action all the way through. And when you think it is all over, there is more. The history of Rhodes is told throughout the book and is very interesting. This series is so good; thrilling stories but interesting history told in each book. 

I have read the books out of order and it works, but it you think you would like the series, I would recommend starting at the beginning with The Golden Icon. You can download this prequel for free on the author's website: janetpywell.com/

This book is not a cozy. 

I received a free copy and voluntarily provided a review. 

Pelican Beach Murder by Phyllis H. Moore

I read Pelican Beach Murder recently as part of the Facebook group,  Cozy Mystery Review Crew. If you like reading cozy mysteries, getting a free book and posting reviews, check them out. I really liked it. It is the second book in the Meg Miller Cozy Mystery series.

About: "

Meg and Tom Richards negotiate a house trade for the summer. She will get a beach cottage on Galveston Island facing the Gulf of Mexico, and Tom will house sit for her while he wraps up the Hillard case from A Dickens of a Crime. What begins as a relaxing get away, becomes more complicated as Meg meets a family of locals with a troubled past. Her closest temporary neighbor, Echo Charles is quirky and mysterious and, Meg decides, irritating.

Although Meg enjoys a visit from her best friend, Jean, and their outings on the island, she is distracted by her thoughts about her own mother's past, a history Meg knows nothing about. As she anticipates the birth of her first grandchild, she mourns the absence of her own maternal grandmother. She wants to make memories for Dorie's and Michael's child, but she realizes she's missed half of her own heritage and will have nothing to pass on from her mother's side of the family.

The relationships she discovers during her beach stay remind her of the dysfunction and exploitation of the Hillard twins in her own hometown. The personalities and their consequences strike a familiar chord for Meg and she's alert to every nuance in her conversations with the locals. It will be her ability to form relationships and follow her intuition that will help Meg flesh out the murderer, and again, it will disappoint her to know the consequences of neglected relationships.

Scenic, historic Galveston Island, Texas is the setting for a cozy mystery reminiscent of the best in amateur sleuthing. This story will set the stage for Meg's next adventure and road trip to discover mysteries from her own family's history.

This is the first book I have read by this author. I loved the character Meg and her friend Jean. Meg is a retired librarian. Both Meg and Jean are widows. They are people I would want to hang out with. Two retired women, enjoying their retirement and grandchildren.

 Meg's neighbor at the beach house keeps popping up at Meg's rental several times and making a nuisance of herself. Everyone in town seems a little off and Meg has no problem telling them when she has had enough of them. She is very practical and doesn't put up with any nonsense.  Then someone is found murdered on the beach. Meg can't help but try to figure out what happened. It's a good mystery that escalates at the end to some thrilling moments. I don't want to say too much. 

As a person with interest in genealogy, (me) there is a very interesting thread in the story with Meg not really knowing anything about her family history, that provides a really good ending that leads into the next book, which I will be reading

About the author:

"Phyllis was born and raised in south Texas. Small town, rural settings are what she knows best, but she loves being in the city and imagining the characters that inhabit the dense population...Phyllis is a retired social worker and former owner/operator of a small bed and breakfast. She’s lived in the rural areas and cities of south Texas. She currently lives on Galveston Island .Phyllis H. Moore was in her sixties before she published her first book. Yeah, a late bloomer. She has a master's degree in social work and retired from thirty years in the field to own and operate a bed and breakfast for seven years. Those experiences gave her inspiration for settings and characters to populate several novels. She remembers the fifties fondly and some things about the seventies."

Here is a link to the author's page if you would like to read more about her and her books. There are several and they look good.

https://www.phyllishmoore.com/

I received a free copy and voluntarily provided this review.