Date with Death by Julia Chapman

April 08, 2017

The title of Julia Chapman’s debut mystery, Date with Death, doesn’t do it justice. Neither does the book jacket. The title and cover make it appear to be a cozy mystery. It is not. It’s a traditional mystery. It’s meaty with great characters....

A Cold Case by Peter Turnbull

February 25, 2017

He had me with the title, A Cold Case. I’m a sucker for cold cases. Peter Turnbull launches a new mystery series with this book. If future ones are as convoluted as this one, I’ll be waiting. I’ll also be rooting for the well-developed main...

The Shining Skull by Kate Ellis

December 16, 2016

Kate Ellis’ books are not easy to come by in the U.S., but if you have the chance to pick them up, they’re worth it. She combines history with contemporary crime, has a team of police officers in Tradmouth in Devon, England, and includes details of the...

Dead Man Walking by Simon R. Green

December 03, 2016

I’m addicted to Simon R. Green’s Ishmael Jones mysteries, but the third one is only on order for us, so I have to wait to read the next one. Dead Man Walking wasn’t quite up to the first country house mystery with supernatural overtones, but it...

Murder in Containment by Anne Cleeland

October 24, 2016

How to describe Anne Cleeland’s Doyle and Acton mysteries? They are as difficult to summarize as Louise Penny’s works. While Cleeland’s characters work for Scotland Yard, she’s created her own unusual world for them. Murder in Containment,...