Mysteries in June and Pick of the Month

My total number of mysteries read this month was down drastically from the previous month.  I  finished only four mysteries, although I  also read two mystery reference books. Not sure why my reading was down, I enjoyed all the books. Work was intensive and demanding; maybe I came home with less energy and little desire to use my brain.

The mystery reference books were: Whodunit? A Who's Who in Crime & Mystery Writing by Rosemary Herbert and Hatchards Crime Companion, edited by Susan Moody.

The mysteries I read this month were:

1. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie 
2. An Empty Death by Laura Wilson 
3. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout 
4. The Information Officer by Mark Mills 

The Crime Fiction Pick of the Month meme is hosted at Mysteries in Paradise. Kerrie encourages bloggers to link summary posts for the month, and identify a crime fiction best read of the month. My problem this month is that I liked all of the crime fiction reads. It is difficult to pick one to recommend as the most outstanding book. 

An Empty Death and The Information Officer are both historical novels set in World War II. Murder on the Orient Express was published in the same year as Fer-de-Lance. So all of my mystery reading for the month was set during or prior to World War II. Refer to my reviews to see why I like them so much.


I have not reviewed The Information Officer by Mark Mills yet so I will give a brief overview. The story is set on the island of Malta during World War II. The island is under siege and all its inhabitants are threatened day and night with bombing raids. The protagonist is in charge of reporting on the events of the war on Malta and controlling and influencing the morale of the islanders. I liked how the book blends history and a whodunit.

 

Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout is my favorite mystery book ever, so by rights it should be my pick. This is the first book in the Nero Wolfe series, narrated by my favorite mystery character, Archie Goodwin. The story is complex and entertaining.