Where Are the Children Now

Seems like summer has arrived already. I am grateful for the rain we have had so far, and grateful to not have been hit with some of the storms Texas has had.

Our Mystery Book Club continues to go strong. For this month, we read:

Where Are The Children Now by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke.and an option to also read  Where Are The Children by Mary Higgins Clark. 

Where Are The Children Now was published in April of 2023. Where Are The Children was published in 1975. I was very interested to see what the differences would be in a book from 1975 vs 2023.

Where Are The Children

About: "Nancy Harmon long ago fled the heartbreak of her first marriage, the macabre deaths of her two little children, and the shocking charges against her. She changed her name, dyed her hair, and left California for the windswept peace of Cape Cod. Now remarried, she has two more beloved children, and the terrible pain has begun to heal -- until the morning when she looks in the backyard for her little boy and girl and finds only one red mitten. She knows that the nightmare is beginning again."

This was Mary Higgins Clark suspense debut novel. "Of the fifty-six bestsellers the “Queen of Suspense” Mary Higgins Clark published in her lifetime, Where Are the Children? was her biggest, selling millions of copies and forever transforming the genre of suspense fiction."

Where Are The Children Now? 

About: " Now, more than four decades since readers first met Nancy and her children, comes the thrilling sequel to the groundbreaking book that set the stage for future generations of psychological suspense novels. 

A lawyer turned successful podcaster, Melissa has recently married a man whose first wife died tragically, leaving him and their young daughter, Riley, behind. While Melissa and her brother, Mike, help their mom, Nancy, relocate from Cape Cod to the equally idyllic Hamptons, Melissa’s new stepdaughter goes missing. Drawing on the experience of their own abduction, Melissa and Mike race to find Riley to save her from the trauma they still struggle with—or worse."

My thoughts and impressions:

I read the first book, first. Where Are The Children. I probably read it in 1975 also. I read many of Mary Higgins Clark books and really liked them. 

This first book is less than 300 pages and reads very very fast. The suspense starts right away and never stops. The author very successfully keeps you away from who but gives you peeks into where and how. I loved how the author untangles what has happened and how we get to the conclusion, never breaking the tension. I did not have the feeling of "I know who did it."

Where Are The Children Now:

The second book is very good also. We get enough of the backstory about the first book, that you do not need to read book one. But you don't get the feeling of book one, of course. I haven't been able to find out if Mary Higgins Clark had this book outlined, partly written etc. or did she and Alafair Burke take turns writing chapters, or did Alafair Burke take a partially written book and finish it. Nevertheless, they did a good job of building suspense. There where parts that you want to scream at a couple of the characters and say " Hey look at that.!"

The differences; the suspense built up slower, and I almost couldn't believe this would happen again to the same family. I did have a pretty good feeling of who was involved at some point, but it was more of " I think so and so, no...maybe not...Oh yes I think so." But there were other aspects I was quite surprised with.

In the end, I liked book one Where Are The Children the best. Not that I didn't like Where Are The Children Now. Book one just really had me on the edge of my seat quicker and through the entire book. It flowed slightly differently.

As I said, this was our May Mystery Book Club selection(s). Only about a third of the members were able to read book one also, six or seven people. But all seemed to like book one best.  Almost everyone else liked book two. We all liked Nancy, the mother from book one, role in this book. The story hit a little too close to home for a couple of people who have small children I think. There is no graphic violence or descriptions of abuse in either book, by the way.

All in all both were two thumbs up.

Review: Clark and Division

Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this first book in a new series. Not only is there a mystery but a good amount of history about Japanese Americans that were placed in camps and their release and their struggle to start over in different places in the United States. What happened to Rose? Iko is determine to find out what happened to her sister Rose, certain she would not have committed suicide. Good story all around. The ending will make you want to read the next book in the series.

View all my reviews

Review: The Nanny is Dead: Darkwater Lake Mystery #3

The Nanny is Dead: Darkwater Lake Mystery #3 by Tannis Laidlaw
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Really enjoying this series about an author turned amateur sleuth...without really trying. When Jodie heads over to the cabin she was offered for the winter, no strings attached, she finds the previous occupant's (Emma) belongings all still there. Emma is the nanny for the family who offered up the cabin for the winter. Of course Jodie finds this all odd and feels uncomfortable in case Emma comes back and finds Jodie there. What to do? Look around of course. Emma is found at the bottom of the cliff on Lovers Lane. With the family's preteen daughter providing info, Jodie is convinced there was foul play. The mystery by itself is a good story. Add in Jodie's possible romantic interest, Rigo. Then Jodie is inconveniently called back to London about the "tell all" book she is ghost writing. How not to let her be found out and putting herself in danger with the things she is about to write, is another story. All of these parts add up to a great story.
I received an ARC and voluntarily provided this review.

View all my reviews

Murder at Haven's Rock, Hallmark Mysteries, PBS

 Hey all! I see I started a post April 5th and then nothing. Well there was something. HVAC went out. In Texas. No can do. That whole week was getting someone in and yes getting a new unit. Research, estimates, workers in the house. All great now. Just in the nick of time.

Meanwhile I listened to:

Murder at Haven's Rock by Kelley Armstrong book #1 in the series.

This is a spin off of the Rockton series which has seven books in the series. I listened to two books in the Rockton series and then jumped to Haven's Rock. Why did I do that? I wanted to see if the Haven's Rock series is as good as the Rockton series and can you read Haven's Rock without reading all of the Rockton books.. If so, I want to recommend it for my Mystery Book Club. Unfortunately, our library system doesn't have enough of each book for everyone to get a copy about the same time. So my collaborator suggested we do a Kelley Armstrong month. 

My assessment? Yes and Yes!

About: "Deep in the Yukon wilderness, a town is being built. A place for people to disappear, a fresh start from a life on the run. Haven’s Rock isn’t the first town of this kind, something detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, know first-hand. They met in the original town of Rockton. But greed and deception led the couple to financing a new refuge for those in need. This time around, they get to decide which applicants are approved for residency.

There’s only one rule in Haven’s Rock: stay out of the forest. When two of the town's construction crew members break it and go missing, Casey and Eric are called in ahead of schedule to track them down. When a body is discovered, well-hidden with evidence of foul play, Casey and Eric must find out what happened to the dead woman, and locate those still missing. The longer Casey and Eric don’t know what happened, the more danger everyone is in."

Casey and Eric have left Rockton to start their own town and run it more like they want. They have a construction crew building out the town in an isolated spot in the Yukon. They do have a "backer" or "sponsor" from Rockton. A few of the citizens from Rockton are on site and participating in the building of the town. Some are new and hired only for the construction phase. Casey and Eric come to the town for the first time after being called out to find the two missing workers. They also find disgruntled employees. 

The book jumps right in to the action. I like how Casey and Eric plan and solve together. They also bring in Will to help. Is the dead woman their employee Penny? Whose mining camp did they stumble onto? Who is this strange women who has a wolf for a pet? Lots of suspects, lots of things happen out in this developing settlement/town out in the wilderness. 

I did really like it and will recommend it. I am anxious to see how the new town turns out. I would say if you like Joe Pickett, these books have a similar atmosphere. 

Have you checked out the new Hallmark Mystery channel? The have a new Hannah Swensen movie on this month.

One Bad Apple: "Hannah meets a new side of law & order as she investigates a murder and crosses paths with by-the-books prosecuting attorney Chad Norton. Meanwhile, Delores has a secret. Starring Alison Sweeney, Victor Webster and Barbara Niven.:

Hannah's love interest Mike has left town for the FBI. Hannah is teaching a baking class at the local college and one of the professors is found dead. Hannah gets involved of course. She has to work with a new DA on an old case and he doesn't want her getting her nose in these things anymore. Hannah's mother has a new career path. I found her part in this movie pretty funny.

Curious Caterer Mysteries are back, based on the books by Diane Mott Davidson.

Foiled Plans Premiere Date: Friday, April 26, 2024

"Goldy Berry's Medieval feast at Hyde Castle gets interrupted by a murder. She teams up with Detective Shultz to solve the mystery before the murderer strikes again. Starring Nikki DeLoach and Andrew Walker."

Family Practice Mysteries: Premiere Date: Friday, May 17, 2024

"A former Army surgeon moves back to her hometown and joins a practice of family doctors, but when she’s drawn into solving the mysterious death of a patient, her quiet life becomes upended. Starring Amanda Schull and Brendan Penny."

PBS:  Guilt starts April 28th for it's third and last season. Bummer.

"Max and Jake find themselves back in Edinburgh where they soon face a familiar danger. Kenny tries to help a family member, while dramatic action plays out at a farm.

Now in its third and final season, the award-winning TV series Guilt is a darkly funny Scottish thriller. Mismatched brothers Max and Jake McCall are reunited, but enemies old and new cause them to seek ever more desperate solutions to their ongoing problems. Digging deep into their past, Max (Mark Bonnar, Napoleon, World on Fire) and Jake (Jamie Sives, Annika, Chernobyl) hope to finally find a future free of danger…and each other."

There you have it. 

I read Where are the Children? and the new book Where are the Children Now? for our May Mystery Book Club. I will tell you what I thought about those soon. 

Two Nights in Lisbon, A Darkness Absolute

 Happy Spring! Here is a picture from a drive we took last week. After several really dry years, it is so nice to see so many wildflowers coming up this year.

Our Mystery Book Club read Two Nights in Lisbon by Chris Pavone for our April book.

I think this was the first book by this author that 99% of the group had read.

About: "Tautly wound and expertly crafted, Two Nights in Lisbon is a riveting thriller about a woman under pressure, and how far she will go when everything is on the line.

You think you know a person . . .

Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone―no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong.

She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the American embassy, at each confronting questions she can’t fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new―much younger―husband?

The clock is ticking. Ariel is increasingly frustrated and desperate, running out of time, and the one person in the world who can help is the one person she least wants to ask."

I liked it. It is a long book but it moves very fast. I liked how the story unfolds with Ariel discovering her husband of three moths is gone from the hotel room in Lisbon, her thought process of what to do, wait? report it? And then convincing people to take action. I liked reading what the local police are thinking and what the Embassy thinks about the kidnapping. More people are brought in for the investigation. I like reading how the professionals work through the issue, investigating not just the crime but Ariel and her husband John. We gradually find out more about Ariel and John. Without giving away spoilers, the story really escalates in the last third of the book. Many twists and surprises. There is a lot more going on than we know.

What did our book club members think? It was 50/50, like/didn't like. Those that liked it, liked the pace, the writing and the suspense. Those that didn't, didn't like specific characters. Those that liked it, want to read more by this author. The book does deal with a tough subject. Again I don't want to give away too much. Nevertheless, we had a good discussion with the varying opinions.

I listened to an interesting interview with Chris Pavone, who talked about his writing style. His style and twists and when they occur are very purposeful. I did not listen do the entire interview due to time but the first part was very informative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkicMd_coRw

I am also enjoying listening to the Rockton series by Kelley Armstrong. 

I recently finished book two: A Darkness Absolute.

About: " It's winter in Rockton, a little town hidden deep in the wilds of the Yukon. The town exists for people who need to escape their pasts, though it's not clear if those in hiding are victims or perpetrators. Or, when the lines gets blurred, maybe both. Ask Casey. She's been used, betrayed, beaten. But she's also killed someone. She moved to Rockton to help her best friend, Diana. Ex-best friend. Diana lied to get Casey to come with her; she used her and she almost got her killed. But Casey decided to stay anyway, to work as a detective alongside her new boyfriend and the town's sheriff, Eric Dalton. Fresh off solving a series of grisly murders, Casey and Deputy Will Anders get stranded in a blizzard while they're tracking a runner from the town. Seeking shelter in a cave, they stumble across a woman who's been imprisoned in a deep well. Nicole Chavez--whom everybody thought had run away from town and died in the woods more than a year earlier--is alive. Barely. But she can't identify her captor: she's never seen his face.

Was she taken by one of the hostiles who inhabit the wilderness around the town? Or is Casey facing something even worse? In a town where everyone lies about their past and lives under assumed identities, it's very easy to hide your true nature..."

This series is definitely suspenseful. The writing is very descriptive to the point that you can picture the wilderness, the snow and cold and the desolation of the forest. These stories are not cozies. The main characters, Casey, Eric and Will, are people you can like and want to know more about. The stories are developing their work and personal relationships. We learn more about the town and it's workings.  I like how the characters work together to solve the case. Some very unexpected things happen, some "oh-no" moments, and some "was that a good idea" moments. But all and all, I am liking the series. 

I would recommend it if you like very suspenseful books with characters you can root for and get to know.

https://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/series/rockton/

Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

 Hi all!

For our March Mystery Book Club we read Killers of a Certain Age. 

About: "Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that's their secret weapon.

They've spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they're sixty years old, four women friends can't just retire - it's kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller.

Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills.

When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they've been marked for death.

Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They're about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman--and a killer--of a certain age." 

I really liked this book. The four women are all 60 years old now. They are on what they think is a retirement cruise, all expenses paid by the Museum, their employer for the last 40 years. When Billie thinks she recognizes one of the crew members, the women all put their spy hats back on and soon figure out they are to be retired permanently. The book describes all the steps they take to figure our who, what, where, when and why, traveling to England and France incognito. There are disguises that are hilarious but work. There are late night planning meetings, including a My Little Pony murder plan, a Menopaws app for their phones and potatoes as weapons. While that may sound silly, the women are deadly serious. Afterall, they are trained assassins. The book also shows us how they were recruited in the 1970's to join the Museum. There are lots of references to '70s culture and music mentioned that will make you smile if you are of a certain age.

We had a large group attend the MBC to discuss this book. We had several new young women and I was afraid they would not have liked it since they are much younger. But then, if they read it and came to the meeting for the first time, they must have like it. Most of the ladies at the meeting really liked the book.  They liked the strong personalities of the women, that it showed women could still do such active, physically demanding activities and were smart. Very smart. Surprisingly the very few that did not like it were all, but one, of a certain age, not the young women. But that's why we try to read a variety of mysteries.

We were happy to hear that the second book will be coming out in the spring of 2025: Kills Well With Others. 

Deanna Raybourn writes two very different series set in Victorian time; Veronica Speedwell series set in 1887 and Lady Julia Gray series. There is a another series set in the 1920's.

You can find out more about Deanna Raybourn here:

https://www.deannaraybourn.com/

Sam Spade, Hallmark Mysteries and PBS

 Happy Friday! 

I haven't mentioned any movies lately and a couple of things caught my attention...today.

Sam Spade: Monsieur Spade/The Maltese Falcon

Did you watch the six part series Monsieur Spade this winter? The story starts in 1963 in Bozuols France, where Sam Spade has "retired". We flip back to 1955 where is is hired to bring a young girl Teresa from Algiers to her father after the death of her mother. We learn about how Sam is connected to her mother Brigid and why she would ask him to bring her to France. 

The series allegedly picks up after the story of The Maltese Falcon - 1941 movie with Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade and Mary Astor as Brigid O'Shaunessy of the above story. So...

TCM (Turner Classic Movies) is showing The Maltese Falcon Saturday March 9, 2024 at 10 a.m. CST. I have seen this movie years ago but I want to watch it again with the backstory we learned about in Monsieur Spade. 

Just sayin' in case there are others interested like me.

Did you know that Hallmark Movies and Mysteries has changed to Hallmark Mysteries as of March 6, 2024? I did not know that until today. They will feature "cozy mysteries" only, from what I understand. No more romance movies in the summer...which is fine by me. I only watch the mysteries. lol

March 11: True Justice: Family Ties

About: "A law school student and her friends, set out to prove her brother's innocence but the only way to clear his name is by finding the real killer. Stars Katherine McNamara, Markian Tarasiuk, Nikki DeLoach and Benjamin Ayres."

March 15, 2024: Crimes of Fashion: Killer Clutch starring Brooke D'Orsay and Gilles Marini.

"An American psychologist, hired to coach a fashion designer, helps a guarded French detective unravel a list of fashionable suspects after a murder happens backstage of a Paris fashion show".

They also promise new Curious Caterer (Nikki DeLoach and Andrew Walker) movies and a sequel to The Cases of Mystery Lane (Paul Campbell and Aimee Garcia). Another Hannah Swensen movie is slotted for later this year.

Take a look around at https://www.hallmarkmystery.com/movies

Coming up in April for PBS:

Mr. Bates and the Post Office 4/7/24

About: "Mysterious financial losses lead the Post Office to fire and prosecute village Subpostmasters, who have no way to prove their innocence.

Toby Jones, (Empire of Light, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Sherlock), stars in this real-life David and Goliath story that chronicles the jaw-dropping plight of hundreds of postal workers accused of a crime they didn’t commit—but went to jail for and worse. It’s a story that UK journalists have reported on for years but once dramatized for TV, set off a firestorm of public outrage that forced the Prime Minister to act."

It is based on true events. There are four episodes.

Guilt Season 3 premiers 4/28/24

About: "Max and Jake find themselves back in Edinburgh where they soon face a familiar danger. Kenny tries to help a family member, while dramatic action plays out at a farm.

Now in its third and final season, the award-winning TV series Guilt is a darkly funny Scottish thriller. Mismatched brothers Max and Jake McCall are reunited, but enemies old and new cause them to seek ever more desperate solutions to their ongoing problems. Digging deep into their past, Max (Mark Bonnar, Napoleon, World on Fire) and Jake (Jamie Sives, Annika, Chernobyl) hope to finally find a future free of danger…and each other."

Oh oh. Did you catch "final season?" There are four episodes for this season.

So that gives us some things to watch when we aren't reading.

I read/listened to two books last week and this week but they were not mysteries.

The Women by Kristen Hannah: "The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on all women who put themselves in harm’s way and whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has too often been forgotten. A novel about deep friendships and bold patriotism, The Women is a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose idealism and courage under fire will come to define an era." The women in the story are nurses who served in the Vietnam war. Very good but definitely a roller coaster of emotions. 

Magic Lessons for Margo: A Follow Up to The Adventures of Miss Vulpe by Maria Elena Sandovici. This book is "literary fiction" and follows two sisters trying to find themselves, where can they fit into the world and confront the ghosts of their childhood. I received and ARC from the author. I did enjoy the story. 

Last but not least, currently reading Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn and listening to A Darkness Absolute, book 2 in the Rockton/Casey Duncan series by Kelley Armstrong. 

I will let you know how I liked those books, next week.

Happy reading!