Category Archives: mystery

In the Woods by Tana French

Posted on November 26, 2012 | 19 Comments

Word Lily review

In the Woods by Tana French (Viking Penguin, 2007), 429 pages

Summary
In a small outlying Dublin neighborhood, three children hop the stone fence into their favorite woods. But then they don’t come home for tea, and they don’t come when their mothers call. Much later, police find only one of the tweens, terrified and with a complete block as to what filled the missing hours. Years later, that found boy is a detective on the Murder Squad. He’s changed his name and left the past buried. But when he and partner Cassie Maddox investigate the murder of a 12-year-old girl in those same woods, well, things get interesting.

Thoughts
I’d heard so many good things about this, I knew I wanted — needed, even? — to read it. I’m glad I finally got around to picking it off the shelf. The writing is superbly beautiful and filled with nuggets like this will still being accessible and readable.

The characters are definitely flawed, just the way I like them. Even when they disappoint me.

Haunting is a good word for In the Woods. Not that it scared me, but that it stayed with me in a somewhat uncomfortable way. It’s interesting to read the blurbs on the back cover, some call it a “hard-boiled police procedural” and others label it “psychological suspense.” Of course these aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, but it does kind of show, I think, the limits of labels.

I think I might finally understand all the people who say they love sad books. Well. I’m not saying I love sad books to the extent that I’m going to seek them out, but this book is sad, and I [still] love it.

I was spoiled, I knew before I got to the end that it wasn’t all wrapped up neatly. But I don’t think it would have bothered me like it did some people, even if I hadn’t known. I should have suspected, anyway. I’m OK with ambiguity. The sadness was harder for me than the lack of closure.

In the Woods won an Edgar Award for best first novel.

Rating: 4.5 stars

I look forward to reading more from French. I’ll probably start with the follow-up to this one, The Likeness

About the author
Tana French grew up in Ireland, Italy, the US and Malawi, and has lived in Dublin since 1990. She trained as a professional actress at Trinity College, Dublin, and has worked in theater, film and voiceover.

Other reviews
Caribou’s Mom
Reading Matters
You’ve GOTTA Read This
Book Journey
Fyrefly Books
Farm Lane Books
Presenting Lenore
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Tiny details

Posted on November 16, 2012 | 4 Comments

Maybe she, like me, would have loved the tiny details and the inconveniences even more dearly than the wonders, because they are the things that prove you belong.

This is my first book by French, and I’m loving it so far!

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Mini-review: The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley

Posted on November 15, 2012 | 12 Comments

The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley
AKA book 2 of Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce series, AKA the series with titles way too long to remember :: I’m really hoping this was just a book-two flub and that book 3 (and subsequent titles) will be better, back to what I expect based on book 1. While I loved The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, this one felt overly dark and also nearly failed to keep my interest. Just kind of a dud. I’m holding out hope that A Red Herring Without Mustard is better, especially since I already have it. But I’ll give the series a break before giving it that shot at redemption.

Do you think it’s sophomore releases, or book-2s-in-a-series that’s so often the problem? Maybe both? Thoughts?

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Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear

Posted on March 22, 2012 | 10 Comments

Word Lily review

Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear, Maisie Dobbs book 9 (Harper, March 27, 2012), 352 pages

Summary
It’s the spring of 1933, and the costermongers Maisie grew up with come to her for help. They’re convinced that a guy from their neighborhood was murdered, that his death was not an accident. Eddie was a gentle soul, more boy than man. Most of the neighborhood looked out for him with kindness. And when a horse needed calmed? He was the one to call.

Thoughts
Note: This review may contain spoilers of previous books in the series.

In Elegy for Eddie Maisie continues to walk somewhat blindly through life, confident when it comes to her cases but not so clear in her personal life and relationships. Her life has changed drastically, and while she thinks she has come to terms with that, she’s still working it out.

More than a note of sadness pervades this book, as instead of recovering from World War I the global perspective shifts to preparing for World War II.

The state of her relationship with James in this book was frustrating to me, most of the way through (if not all the way). I kept thinking, *if they would just sit down and talk to each other, they’re more on the same page than either of them thinks they are.* I know I sometimes live with slights, imagined or otherwise, rather than addressing them immediately, but so many things could be solved by just a little communication!

I did like how this case took her back to the part of London where she grew up. This dovetailed nicely (as I’ve come to expect from Winspear) with the conflict Maisie’s feeling presently about her place in society.

At this point in the series, my affection for any particular title is greatly influenced by the state of Maisie’s relationship with her beau. And I was pretty unsettled, disgruntled, annoyed by how this was handled in this book. It reminds me of how I felt about Bones last year. It felt like, to drag the series out, they had Brennan reverting to old behavior, like she’d forgotten everything she’d learned, all the ways she’d grown over the past several years. Maisie seemed to be acting like Brennan — not as the person we’ve come to know her to be, but as the person she grew beyond already. That comparison might be a little unfair, but it’s how I felt while reading.

Maisie Dobbs books

1. Maisie Dobbs [my review]
2. Birds of a Feather [my review]
3. Pardonable Lies [my review]
4. Messenger of Truth [my review]
5. An Incomplete Revenge [my review]
6. Among the Mad [my review]
7. The Mapping of Love and Death [my review]
8. A Lesson in Secrets
9. Elegy for Eddie

Rating: 3.75 stars

About the author
Jacqueline Winspear (Facebook) quit her day job for her writing when she saw the tour schedule for Birds of a Feather. She lives in California, after leaving England in 1990. She finally has a blog.

Other reviews
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The Pawn by Steven James

Posted on December 1, 2011 | 3 Comments

Word Lily review

The Pawn by Steven James, book 1 of the Patrick Bowers Files (Revell, 2007), 432 pages

Summary
FBI Special Agent Patrick Bowers is called to North Carolina to consult on a serial killer case. The guy calls himself The Illusionist, and he’s one of the toughest Bower has ever been up against. On top of that, turmoil from his personal life — his wife died of cancer, leaving him with a teenage stepdaughter he hasn’t really figured out how to communicate with yet — keeps breaking in on his thoughts.

Thoughts
I’ve heard so much great buzz about this series (mainly from Deborah and Tami, I think) over the last couple years, and I’m glad I finally got around to starting it.

Patrick Bowers, our protagonist, is a coffee snob, a man grieving the loss of his wife. His specialty is environmental criminology, which at times reminded me of Numb3rs.

The story is well-written and gripping.

I enjoyed it so much I immediately picked up the second book in the series, The Rook.

Really an excellent read.

Rating: 4.25 stars

About the author
Steven James (@SJamesAuthor) lives in Tennessee with his wife and three daughters. When he’s not writing or speaking, he’s rock climbing, playing disc golf or slipping away to a matinee.

Other reviews
Tree Swing Reading
A Peek At My Bookshelf
Window to My World
Genre Reviews
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By a Spider’s Thread by Laura Lippman

Posted on November 30, 2011 | 6 Comments

Word Lily review

By a Spider’s Thread by Laura Lippman, book 8 in the Tess Monaghan series (William Morrow, 2004), 368 pages

Summary
Mark Rubin, orthodox Jew and wealthy Baltimore furrier, insists that he had a perfectly happy marriage, despite the fact that his wife and three children vanished. The police won’t help, so he comes to Tess.

Thoughts
I blew through most of this series this fall. I’m not planning on reviewing most of them, though; I just don’t feel like I have much to say about them. They were all enjoyable, but mostly quickly forgotten. And since I read five of them back to back, they kind of blend together in my mind.

Really, this one is no exception. I have but one rant, and it’s really more of an editing rant than a beef with the actual story, but it won’t leave me alone, so here I am. Note: I read the hardcover, so maybe (hopefully!) this was fixed in later editions already.

Speaking of Tess’s newly formed country-wide group of female private detectives, the book states:

“There were still some wide-open places to be filled — they had no one to cover the vast swath west of the Mississippi and east of the Rockies, and an Atlanta connection would have been helpful. But they were otherwise solid along the eastern seaboard and could do most of Texas and the Pacific Coast in a pinch.”

~page 30, By a Spider’s Thread

See the problem?

Yes, I’m probably more attuned to it than some, since I live in that vast wasteland known as the Midwest. But there’s no excuse for screwing up (so badly) on geography. Look at a map! Most of Texas lies between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River.

I understand that Tess lives in Baltimore and hasn’t ever ventured far from there and is probably clueless about this, as so many people who live on the coasts are. But this paragraph wasn’t really in her words. It should have been accurate.

Anyway, like I said, I’ve generally enjoyed this series. I like how rooted they are in their place, and Tess and her family are delightfully flawed.

I think my favorite aspect of this book is how her partly Jewish, partly not, background tugs on Tess in various scenarios.

Rating: 3 stars

About the author
Laura Lippman grew up in Baltimore and returned there in 1989 to work as a journalist. She has won numerous awards for her work. I interviewed her last year. Her most recently published is The Most Dangerous Thing.

My reviews of other Lippman books
Baltimore Blues (book 1 of the Tess Monaghan series)
Life Sentences (a standalone)

Other reviews
Rhapsody in Books
A Worn Path
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Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark

Posted on October 27, 2011 | 3 Comments

Word Lily review

Secrets of Harmony Grove by Mindy Starns Clark, (Harvest House, October 1, 2010), 386 pages

Summary
Sienna is pretty happy in life; she’s got a new job at a swanky Philadelphia advertising agency, which affords her the amenities of life she’s always wanted. Her boyfriend is really into her, and the mere sight of him makes her swoon. But she returns from a business trip and is called to the bosses’ office. She’s suspended, without pay, indefinitely, because she’s under investigation by the federal government. She heads to Lancaster County to check on her bed and breakfast, and what she finds there puts her being investigated in the back of her mind.

Thoughts
This is a book set in Amish country — Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, even — but it’s not really an Amish book.

I was distracted from the story by corny similes on the page and set this book aside for awhile. I’m glad I came back to it, though, because of this:

“During the renovation, when I was spending more time with the [Amish] relatives than I had in years, I had even done an experiment, privately taking note of how I was feeling and when. Over and over, the way it went was that at five minutes, I would finally stop listening for a radio or TV in the background. At fifteen minutes, even if the company was interesting and the conversation stimulating, I would find myself glancing at my phone wondering if emails had come in, discreetly checking for texts. At twenty-five minutes, I would wonder to myself how these people could possibly live like this. Weren’t they bored out of their minds?

“It usually took about an hour before my muscles would finally start to relax. By the two-hour mark, I would find a stillness I forgot I could even experience. To their credit, this kind of silence was intentional. As isolated as the Amish often seemed, it always surprised me how very aware they were of the impact noise could have on a life and the damage confusion and chaos could wreak on a soul.

“Ultimately, beyond that hard-won stillness came the true goal: a oneness with God. Was it any wonder I always felt spiritually renewed when I spent time in Amish country? By turning down the noise of my life, I was able to hear those still, small whispers of a loving God, whispers that filled my heart and never failed to refresh my soul.”

~Page 194, Secrets of Harmony Grove

In this brief excerpt, Sienna is clearly talking about the stillness she’s found in Amish country, particularly when she’s with her Amish relatives. But she’s also contrasting a fast-paced city life with a slower, more intentional, more rural one. This resonates with me. Not that it’s a completely new thought, but, I guess, I needed the reminder. The last month or so I’ve been craving a slower, simpler, quieter lifestyle, and perhaps the reason for that is just as Mindy Starns Clark (through Sienna) stated here.

I also enjoyed the perspectives given on nonviolence, conscientious objector status and self-defense.

I did figure out well ahead of time some of the answers this mystery sought, without trying.

It had been awhile since I’d read a Mindy Starns Clark book, and I was glad for the chance to try another. While not the greatest books I’ve ever read, I’ve always enjoyed her work, and this was no exception. I’ve especially appreciated her books for the touches of humor.

My [old] reviews of other Mindy Starns Clark books:
The Trouble with Tulip
Blind Dates Can Be Murder
Elementary, My Dear Watkins

Rating: 3.5 stars

About the author
Mindy Starns Clark is a former singer and stand-up comedian; she and her family live in Pennsylvania.

Other reviews
Books, Movies and Chinese Food
Lighthouse Academy
Mom’s Pace
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Book Spotlight: Pattern of Wounds by J. Mark Bertrand

Posted on July 13, 2011 | 1 Comment

About the book:
It’s Christmas, and homicide detective Roland March is hunting for a killer. A young woman’s brutal stabbing in an affluent Houston neighborhood bears the hallmarks of a serial murder. The problem: March sent the murderer to prison 10 years ago. Is it a copycat, or did March arrest the wrong man? March starts getting messages from the killer. March struggles to understand the hidden message in the pattern of wounds.

Pattern of Wounds is the second Roland March mystery, after 2010′s Back on Murder.

Read an excerpt of Pattern of Wounds by J. Mark Bertrand.

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