7th annual Canadian Book Challenge: Summary post

This year I participated in the 7th annual Canadian Book Challenge. This is an online reading challenge hosted by The Book Mine Set: the Book Blog with a Canadian Bias. Participants from Canada and around the world aim to read and review 13 or more Canadian books in a one year span: July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014. A Canadian book is a book written by a Canadian author or set in Canada.

This was my 2nd year participating in the challenge. I read only 10 books for the challenge this year, but I was happy with that accomplishment.

I read these books for the challenge this year:

Unholy Ground by John Brady

The author was born in Dublin but immigrated to Canada at the age of 20. The first book in the series won the Arthur Ellis award for Best First Novel. The next four books in the series were all finalists for the Arthur Ellis award for Best Novel. The protagonist is Matt Minogue, a Detective Sergeant in the Murder Squad, a division of the Gardai, the Irish police force. The death of a elderly resident of Dublin is being investigated; he appears to be merely a British citizen who had settled in Ireland. It turns out he was connected to MI5 in the United Kingdom. This book was published in 1989, and is set in Dublin, Ireland. Thus the political issues in Ireland at the time are a big factor.

I Am Half-Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley

Speaking from Among the Bones by Alan Bradley

The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley 

The 4th, 5th, and 6th books in a series, set in post World War II Britain, in the village of Bishop's Lacey. Flavia narrates the stories. She is the youngest daughter (around 11 years old) in the de Luce family, and lives with her two sisters and their father in an ancient country house.

The Little Shadows by Marina Endicott

The Little Shadows by Marina Endicott is a historical novel set in the years preceding and during World War I. It is the story of three sisters, teenagers as the story begins, who travel with their mother to support the family as a vaudeville act. I loved this book and it is hard to describe why. I was engaged in the story immediately. I loved the way the author switched back and forth between the sisters (especially) and the mother (occasionally). This book covers the years from 1912-1917 and thus World War I figures a great deal. That was also a plus for me. I like to learn about wars in a fictional setting.

Under the Dragon's Tail by Maureen Jennings

This is the second book in the Murdoch Mysteries series, published by Maureen Jennings in 1998, and featuring William Murdoch, an Acting Detective in Toronto in the late 1800's. Maureen Jennings does a wonderful job of portraying Victorian-era Toronto.

We also get well-developed and interesting characters. Without dwelling on Murdoch's past, the author conveys how his childhood has affected him, and his continuing grief for his fiancee who died of typhoid, at the same time he yearns for a relationship with a woman. Maybe he is a tad too perfect, but I can live with that. Constable George Crabtree, and several of the suspects at varying levels of society are also well-defined; their portrayals contribute to the overall portrait of the city, its poverty and its inhabitants. 

The Night the Gods Smiled by Eric Wright

Eric Wright was born in 1929 in South London, England and immigrated to Canada in 1951. He is an academic; he taught English at Ryerson Polytechnic University, Toronto from 1958  to 1989. Four of his novels have been awarded the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel, including this one. 

This book gives us some insight into the relationship between the French areas of Canada and the English speaking areas. Toronto police detective Charlie Salter is assigned as liaison to a case of murder that takes place in Montreal, because the victim is from Toronto. It is the kind of case that his department doesn't have the time or inclination to deal with, so it is passed down to him. He is thrilled to get it, since he has been working essentially as a "gofer". He works with Sergeant Henri O'Brien from Montreal, and they develop a nice relationship along the way.

In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany

This mystery novel is set in the fictional mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia. Constable Molly Smith is assigned to assist veteran Detective Sergeant John Winters in a murder investigation. Although Molly (also know as "Moonlight") is a rookie, she has insider knowledge of the community that Winters does not have; on the other hand she is closely involved with various persons who could be suspects. There were a lot of elements to the story: draft dodgers who had moved to Canada years earlier, ecological issues associated with a resort development, treatment of women in police departments, and the complexity of family relationships and working relationships.

Sleep While I Sing by L. R. Wright

This book is the second in a series by L.R. Wright (1939- 2001). The series features RCMP Staff Sergeant Karl Alberg and is set in a small town on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. This second entry in the series starts with the discovery of a dead woman in a secluded area. The woman remains unidentified. An artist's sketch is made and distributed, but does not generate the identification they were hoping for.

L. R. Wright excels at characterization. Karl is a loner and divorcee who misses his family. He has his problems, but he is happy in his work and good at it. The secondary characters and side plots are interesting. The writing is understated.

The Film Club by David Gilmour

Overview from Dundurn Press: "The Film Club is the true story about David Gilmour's decision to let his 15-year-old son drop out of high school on the condition that the boy agrees to watch three films a week with him. The book examines how those pivotal years changed both their lives." I read this book as much for the commentary on the films watched as for the story of Gilmour's experiences during those years. 

I will be signing up for the 8th Annual Canadian Book Challenge as soon as I read my first Canadian book for the challenge.

The Night the Gods Smiled: Eric Wright

In some ways, this is the perfect type of mystery for me. To a certain extent, it is a straight novel about a man going through a mid-life crisis and having difficulties with his job. His job just happens to be a police detective and he wants to be investigating serious crimes, not sitting at a desk. However, sometimes I did find that the story was too slow, too quiet. I kept expecting it to pick up and waited for the twists and turns in the plot. (I do wonder if I have been reading too many "exciting" books.)

Eric Wright is a Canadian author of mystery novels. He was born in 1929 in South London, England and immigrated to Canada in 1951. He is an academic; he taught English at Ryerson Polytechnic University, Toronto from 1958  to 1989. Two of his novels have been awarded the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel. This book received that award, and also Britain's John Creasy Memorial Award for first books by previously unpublished writers.

This book gives us some insight into the relationship between the French areas of Canada and the English speaking areas. Toronto police detective Charlie Salter is assigned as liaison to a case of murder that takes place in Montreal, because the victim is from Toronto. It is the kind of case that his department doesn't have the time or inclination to deal with, so it is passed down to him. He is thrilled to get it. He works with Sergeant Henri O'Brien from Montreal, and they develop a nice relationship along the way.

The victim in this book is a professor of English at a small college in Toronto, so Wright has drawn on his own experience and we get an accurate picture of a group of colleagues at the college affected by this professor's death. This group was visiting Montreal for a conference when the death occurred.

In retrospect, I may not have been fair to this book as I read it. Maybe too much going on in my life while reading it. Maybe not so interested in male mid-life angst. And regardless of my initial reactions, I do hope to continue reading the series, should I find further books available.

When I went back and reread the first chapter, I was overwhelmed at the beauty of some of the passages. Charlie is in a loving marriage, and has two teenage boys; his wife is from a rich family on Prince Edward Island. Here he describes the feeling of an interloper married into a rich family.

Annie's family were well-bred, tactful, and keen to include Annie's choice in the clan. They absorbed Salter's family into their world of fishing, sailing, riding and perpetual lobster suppers as if he had paid dues. Most of the time Salter was happy to enjoy their world. Occasionally, impatient and constricted by it, he felt like the lone Christian in-law in a family of Jews, conscious of his uncircumcised state, his slightly albino look, and of the determination of his relatives never to make him feel like an outsider.

There is quite a bit about Salter's family life and relationships and mid-life adjustments. For some readers, that might be a distraction. I was fine with that, especially Charlie's introspective musings, I just felt that the whole story moved too slowly.

In Encyclopedia Mysteriosa (1994), William L. DeAndrea describes the Charlie Salter novels as "low-key, but finely crafted and sharply observed police procedurals." He also says:

A policeman with real-life problems and emotions, Toronto Inspector Charlie Salter is reminiscent of Helen Reilly's Inspector McKee in that although his cases are procedural in form, they don't usually take the protagonist down any particularly mean streets. Shrewd observation of the middle classes is Salter's specialty.

This book is very much like some Golden Age mysteries, with less violence and a slower pace.

 ----------------------------------
Publisher: Signet, 1985; originally pub. in hardback, 1983
Length:  254 pages
Format: mass market paperback
Series:  Charlie Salter
Genre:  Mystery, Police Procedural

"The Duke" by Eric Wright

Deal Me In Short Story #6

This week I drew the King of Spades, which corresponded to "The Duke" by Eric Wright, a Canadian mystery writer. He was born in London, England and immigrated to Canada in 1951. His best-known series features Inspector Charlie Salter of the Metropolitan Toronto Police. Two of his novels have won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel and he has also won awards for his short stories. I have only read one novel by Wright, The Night the Gods Smiled (reviewed here).



A description of the hero of his story:

After half a lifetime of not being very much at home in the world, Duke Luscombe had finally found exactly the right job. He was a cook, trained in Montréal by a catering company to run the kitchen of a construction camp. The training could not have been very extensive: the Duke could cook about twenty different menus, though the same vegetables appeared on most of them, but because some of the items, like steaks and chops, were offered at least once a week, and because there was a roast or a boiled ham every Sunday, some of the menus, like pork tenderloin, appeared only once a month, giving the Duke's repertoire an appearance of being much bigger than it really was. But his skills matched the needs of the men.

Duke is an obsessive man, guarding his domain and its contents at all times. He is a man satisfied with his simple life, and the men accept him for what he is. Until a troublemaker comes along and sees that he can take advantage of Duke's nature.

This is a very short story and I won't go into the plot further than that. What makes this story different is that the narrator addresses the reader briefly at the beginning and the end with a fairly straightforward story in between. I liked this approach and I liked the twist at the end very much. The author set it up very well and certainly had me fooled.

The story was first published in 1993 in 2nd Culprit: A Crime Writers' Annual edited by Liza Cody and Michael Z. Lewin. I bought this book of short stories because of the gorgeous cover, and now I am finally reading some of the stories.

"The Duke" has since been published in A Killing Climate, an anthology of the author's stories and in two collections of short stories by Canadian authors (Iced: A New Noir Anthology of Cold, Hard Fiction and Mystery Ink).

Every other week I draw a random card to determine what short story I will read for the Deal Me In Short Story challenge. My list of short stories is here. Jay at Bibliophilopolis hosts the challenge.

Sci-Fi Experience Wrap-up

The 2014 Sci-Fi Experience at Stainless Steel Droppings has come to a close. In January, as a part of my participation in that event, I read two science fiction novels.

These are the two novels I read, with links to my reviews:
Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi (second novel in the Old Man's War series)
and
The Naked Sun by Isaac Asimov (blend of science fiction and mystery)

In addition to reading science fiction, I also watched several sci-fi movies, which I have not yet reported on.

 



Dark City, directed by Alex Proyas and released in 1998, is a blend of noir and science fiction. It is very dark. Visually dark and dark in mood.

John Murdoch wakes up in a hotel  room that he doesn't remember at all. He is in the bathtub, with a dead woman in the next room. He does not know what is happening to him or around him, and the memories he does have don't make sense either.

The first time I watched this movie, I found it confusing. This time around, I was very impressed. I liked the look and the acting. I am not that familiar with Rufus Sewell but I thought he did a fine job as John Murdoch. Jennifer Connelly was good as the equally confused wife. William Hurt was superb as Bumstead, the policeman; Kiefer Sutherland was a very convincing mad doctor.

The rest of the sci fi movies I watched in December and January were 2013 releases. I saw them for the first time on Blu-ray.

Star Trek Into Darkness is the twelfth film in the Star Trek film franchise and the second movie since the reboot of the original series. On the one hand, I enjoyed the movie. On the other hand, it was disappointing, in comparison to Star Trek (2009), which I liked a lot. I like all the new actors in this reboot, and I enjoyed watching them. However, It felt like the action was too kinetic, too jumpy, that it went in too many directions. However, I certainly will be watching it again, and I may revise my opinion.

I found two articles on the web with two opposing viewpoints. Both include spoilers if you have not seen the movie yet.

At Wired, this article explores how Star Trek Into Darkness could have been a better movie.

Wil Wheaton loved the movie, and explains why in his review.

Oblivion is not the perfect movie, and has been accused of being derivative and too slow, but nevertheless I enjoyed it. It was visually stunning, and I thought the acting was good too.

All we start out knowing is that two people, a couple, are living on Earth, which has been damaged by an alien attack. The survivors have been moved to Titan, one of Saturn's moons. Jack (Tom Cruise) is a repairman who handles problems with drones that "care for" the planet. His partner, Victoria (Andrea Riseborough), manages his work and communicates with their superiors. Both have had their memories wiped for security reasons, ostensibly, but Jack has persistent dreams and memories about something from his past.

I will admit that the movie might have been better if it had moved faster, but I was fine with it as it was, and I enjoyed the twists and turns. Morgan Freeman also had a significant role, and that is almost always a plus for a movie. This is another movie that I will be re-watching.

The World's End is the third of three movies directed by Eric Wright, written by Eric Wright and Simon Pegg, and starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. All three films (Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End) are different types but they all do have a lot of blood and gore. I liked all three movies but I am not a fan of blood and gore, so I cannot say I loved them. They are all funny, and well worth watching. 

The World's End starts with a pub crawl initiated by Gary King (Simon Pegg). He talks a group of former friends into reenacting a pub crawl that they attempted 20 years before but never completed. As they go from pub to pub they discover more about their relationships and secrets of the past, and also run into some really strange characters in their home town.

I am sure I will be watching this movie many more times and discovering new things each time. Next time I plan to pay more attention to the soundtrack, which includes many songs from the time of the characters' adolescence.

Those were my choices for the Sci-Fi Experience and I enjoyed all of them. Thanks to Carl for encouraging me to mix some science fiction reading into my normal fare.

BINGO! Vintage Mystery Challenge 2014 Results

Every year since 2012 I have participated in the Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge. The Challenge is hosted by Bev at My Reader's Block. For the Vintage Mystery BINGO Challenge 2014 version she used a bingo card format.

Vintage Mystery BINGO Challenge 2014 Rules:
For the purposes of this challenge, the Golden Age Vintage Mysteries must have been first published before 1960. Short story collections (whether published pre-1960 or not) are permissible provided all of the stories included in the collection were originally written pre-1960. Check the link for further info.

These are the books I read for the GOLDEN edition of the challenge:

G1: Color in the Title   The Indigo Necklace by Frances Crane
G2:  Set anywhere except the US or England   Epitaph for a Spy by Eric Ambler

O1:  Book published under More Than One Title   The Ivory Grin by Ross Macdonald
O2:  Number in the Title   The Count of Nine by Erle Stanley Gardner

L2: Book that has been made into a Movie   The Moving Target by Ross Macdonald
L3:  Amateur Detective  The Danger Within by Michael Gilbert
L5:  Country House Mystery  Death Has a Past by Anita Boutell

D1: An author you've read before     Double for Death by Rex Stout

D2:  Book with a Lawyer   A Case for Mr. Crook by Anthony Gilbert
D3:  Read by a Fellow Challenger  The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout
D4:  Professional detective     Coffin Scarcely Used by Colin Watson
D5:  Mystery that involves water       Holiday Homicide by Rufus King
D6:  Outside Comfort Zone   (Using FREE SPACE: Author not read before):  
The Davidian Report by Dorothy B. Hughes

E1: Detective "Team"   Murder Within Murder by Richard and Frances Lockridge
E5:  Set in England    The Saint vs. Scotland Yard by Leslie Charteris

N6:  Set in the USA   Keeper of the Keys by Earl Derr Biggers

For the Gold Edition, I achieved two Bingos... AND I was very surprised that I did that.

1. The D column was a Bingo, using the FREE space for one category.
2. The second Bingo was this DIAGONAL: G1, 02, L3, D4, E5, and N6.

This year, Bev added a new twist to the Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge. There are two "editions" to the challenge. The Silver Edition covers mysteries written in the three decades following the Golden Age of mystery writing. For the purposes of this challenge, the Silver Age Vintage Mysteries may be first published any time from 1960 to 1989 (inclusive). Short story collections (whether published pre-1990 or not) are permissible provided all of the stories included in the collection were originally written pre-1990. 

These are the books I read for the SILVER edition of the challenge:

S2:  Set anywhere except the US or England   Sleep While I Sing by L. R. Wright
S5:  Academic Mystery    Rest You Merry by Charlotte MacLeod
S6:  Set in the entertainment world      Death of a Hollow Man by Caroline Graham

I6:  Book with a Woman in the Title   Henrietta Who? by Catherine Aird

L2:  Book Made into a Movie   In the Heat of the Night by John Ball

V1:  Book by an Author You've read before     Death is a Lonely Business by Ray Bradbury
V2:  Book with a Courtroom   Time's Witness by Michael Malone
V3:  Book read by a Fellow Challenger    A Hearse on May-Day by Gladys Mitchell
V4:  Book with a Professional Detective    The Death of a Butterfly by Margaret Maron
V5:  Mystery that involves water    Horse Under Water by Len Deighton
V6:  Outside Comfort Zone   (Using FREE SPACE: Book Set in England)  
Skeleton in Search of a Cupboard by Elizabeth Ferrars

E1:  Book with a Detective Team    The Mother Hunt by Rex Stout
E2:  Book with a Day, Time, Month, etc. in the Title   The Night the Gods Smiled by Eric Wright

R1:  Book with an Animal in the title      Firecrest by Victor Canning

For the Silver Edition, I achieved one Bingo.  The V column is a Bingo using the FREE space for one category.

Check out other Bingo wrap up posts HERE. Some bloggers completed entire Bingo cards.

18th Annual Canadian Reading Challenge

 

The Canadian Book Challenge was started in 2007 by John Mutford at the Book Mine Set blog (no longer available?). Now the challenge is hosted by Shonna at Canadian Bookworm. Between 2012, when I started blogging, and 2022, I participated in five Canadian Reading Challenges; now I am back for my sixth attempt.

The goal is to read and review 13 or more Canadian books in a one year span: from Canada Day, July 1st, 2024, to Canada Day eve, June 30th, 2025. Reviews posted online are required. (That is the hard part for me.)

What constitutes a Canadian book?

For this challenge, Canadian books are books written by Canadian authors (by birth or immigration) or about Canadians. The books can include any genre or form (picture books, poetry, novels, non-fiction, plays, anthologies, graphic novels, cookbooks, etc).

See the signup post for more information. 

What will I read?

I am currently reading a book for this challenge, A Cast of Falcons by Steve Burrows. Steve Burrows is a Canadian author but the books are set in the UK. 

Other books I plan to read are:

• Kelley Armstrong – The Poisoner's Ring: A Rip Through Time Novel
• Anthony Bidulka – Flight of Aquavit
• Gail Bowen – Verdict in Blood
• Louise Penny  –  A Great Reckoning
• Alexandra Pratt – Lost Lands, Forgotten Stories
• Robin Spano – Dead Politician Society
• Michael van Rooy – An Ordinary Decent Criminal
• L. R. Wright – Fall From Grace 
• Iona Whishaw – Death In A Darkening Mist

Other Canadian authors I have on my shelves (or on the Kindle) are:

• Vicky Delany
• J. Robert Janes
• Maureen Jennings
• Dietrich Kalteis
• Thomas King
• Emily St. John Mandel
• Margaret Millar
• Anna Porter
• Sam Wiebe
• Eric Wright

16th Annual Canadian Reading Challenge

The Canadian Book Challenge was started in 2007 by John Mutford at the Book Mine Set and hosted by him for its first 10 years. Now the challenge is hosted by Shonna at Canadian Bookworm. Between 2012, when I started blogging, and 2020, I participated in four Canadian Reading Challenges; now I am back for my fifth attempt.

The goal is to read and review 13 or more Canadian books in a one year span: from Canada Day, July 1st, 2022, to Canada Day eve, June 30th, 2023. Reviews posted online are required. That is the hard part for me.

What constitutes a Canadian book?

Canadian books can include any genre or form (picture books, poetry, novels, non-fiction, plays, anthologies, graphic novels, cookbooks, etc). They can be written by Canadian authors (by birth or immigration) or about Canadians.

See the FAQ sheet for more information. 

What will I read?

I have already read one book for this challenge, Dead in the Water by Ted Woods, which I plan to review soon. I am currently reading The English Wife by Adrienne Chinn.

Other books I plan to read are:

• Kelley Armstrong – A Darkness Absolute
• Louise Penny  – The Long Way Home
• Stef Penney – The Tenderness of Wolves
• Alexandra Pratt – Lost Lands, Forgotten Stories
• Robin Spano – Dead Politician Society
• Michael van Rooy – An Ordinary Decent Criminal
• L. R. Wright – Fall From Grace 
• Iona Whishaw – A Killer in King's Cove

Other Canadian authors I have on my shelves are:

• Vicky Delany
• J. Robert Janes
• Maureen Jennings
• Dietrich Kalteis
• Margaret Millar
• Sam Wiebe
• Eric Wright

14th Annual Canadian Book Challenge

The Canadian Book Challenge was started in 2007 by John Mutford at the Book Mine Set and hosted by him for its first 10 years. Now the challenge is hosted by Shonna at Canadian Bookworm. I participated in the 6th, 7th, and 12th Canadian Book Challenges, and now I am back for more.

The goal is to read and review 13 or more Canadian books in a one year span: Canada Day, July 1st, 2020, to Canada Day eve, June 30th, 2021. Reviews posted online are required. That is the hard part for me, but I will manage.

What constitutes a Canadian book?

Canadian books can include any genre or form (picture books, poetry, novels, non-fiction, plays, anthologies, graphic novels, cookbooks, etc), can be written by Canadian authors (by birth or immigration) or about Canadians.

See the FAQ sheet for more information. The sign up post is HERE.

My reading plan:

I have already read one book by Louise Penny, A Trick of the Light, set in the province of Quebec.

My last post featured seven books by Canadian authors, and I plan to read all of those books. That  post is HERE.

Other than those books, I plan to stick with books I already own. Authors that fit that description are:

Brenda Chapman
Rachel Cusk
Vicky Delany
Jeff Lemire (graphic novels)
J. Robert Janes
Maureen Jennings
Dietrich Kalteis
Margaret Millar
Sam Wiebe
Eric Wright
L.R. Wright

Mount TBR Challenge - Second Quarterly Check in

This quarter I have read seven books that count toward the 2014 Mount TBR Challenge. Combined with the 18 books I read in the first quarter, I have read a total of 25 books for the challenge (out of my goal of 36 books).

The seven books I read were:

Time's Witness by Michael Malone
The Night the Gods Smiled by Eric Wright
The Malcontenta by Barry Maitland
In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany
Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch
Sleep While I Sing by L. R. Wright
Horse Under Water by Len Deighton

Bev at My Reader's Block, who hosts this challenge, asked participants to: Choose two titles from the books you've read so far that have a common link.

Three of the titles I read in this time period were by Canadian authors and set in Canada. I read them for the 7th annual Canadian Book Challenge sponsored by John Mutford at The Book Mine Set. The Night the Gods Smiled was set in Toronto; In the Shadow of the Glacier was set in a fictitious town in British Columbia; Sleep While I Sing was set in British Columbia also, but in Sechelt, a small town on the Sunshine Coast. 

I enjoy taking part in this challenge; this is my third year. I would probably read just as many books from my TBR piles with or without the challenge. What I like about the challenge is keeping track of how many and which ones I have read.

Mysteries in April and Picks of the Month

In April I read seven books, all mysteries. My reading included books set in four countries: one in Canada, one in Australia, two in the UK, and three in the USA.

It was a strange month for reading. I had a trip planned to visit my family in Alabama late in the month and most of my activities centered around that. My mother has health problems and my sister is her primary caregiver, so my thoughts have been focused on that for a while. I hate to fly and it is a long trip, but the positive factor is the reading I can get done in the air and on the ground (assuming I can get good light).

I have only reviewed four of the books I read.  I did have access to a computer to work on, but there was neither time nor energy to write reviews while I was in Alabama. So once I can get my thoughts on the books together, I will be catching up on reviews.

The books I read in April are:

Time's Witness by Michael Malone
The Burning by Jane Casey
Original Sin by David Mark
The Golden Spiders by Rex Stout
The Night the Gods Smiled by Eric Wright
Eleven Days by Donald Harstad
A Few Right Thinking Men by Sulari Gentill

I am not sure it is fair to pick a favorite for the month when I have not had time to digest and review my feelings for nearly half the books. This is especially true because so many of the books I read this month had wonderful qualities, yet none of the new books that I read for the first time this month really rose above the others.

I will feature two of the books I felt are worth highlighting:

Time's Witness, is the second book in a police procedural series. Cuddy Mangum is the narrator and the Chief of Police in Hillston, North Carolina. Cuddy is educated, but he is not refined, and to the powerful and rich inner circle of Hillston residents, he is a redneck. The book was published in 1989 and set around the same time period. The story in this book centers on George Hall, a black man arrested seven years earlier for killing a white cop. He is now on death row and supporters are seeking a reprieve or pardon. This is a very long book and there are many characters, but Malone does a beautiful job with them all. There are some quirky characters and the story is told with humor at times. Yet it is a very serious story. The themes are the death penalty, racism, inequity in the justice system, and the power that the rich can wield to get what they want. The author is passionate about his beliefs; telling the story via Cuddy make this more palatable.

The Nero Wolfe novels by Rex Stout are always a joy to read, and I have read all of them more than once. The Golden Spiders is typical in some ways: we get to see some of the activities in Wolfe's home, his love for food, his quirks, and we get the final gathering of suspects where Wolfe reveals the killer. However, in this novel, Nero Wolfe uncharacteristically agrees to work with a young boy from his neighborhood on a potential case of possible kidnapping. Archie and Wolfe and his pack of freelance detectives investigate a group of people taking advantage of poor immigrants who are seeking help in getting settled in this country.

This story seemed unusual to me because Archie, Fred, Saul and Orrie actually get into a gun fight with some thugs. Archie often carries a gun, but rarely uses it. The plot is very convoluted and the book is shorter than some Nero Wolfe novels. My copy was 150 pages. The first eight Nero Wolfe novels were all around 300 pages long.

The Crime Fiction Pick of the Month meme is hosted at Mysteries in Paradise. Bloggers link to a summary post for the month, and identify a crime fiction best read of the month.

Short Story Wednesday: Short Stories from Christmas Stalkings

 

The subtitle for this book of Christmas short stories is "Tales of Yuletide Murder." Based on the cover, you might think the stories are all cozy, but one reviewer of the book described the stories as mostly dark. In the small sample I have read so far, one is on the cozy side, and two are definitely darker. Christmas Stalkings was published in 1991, and all of the stories in the book appeared in print for the first time in this book.

 

"The Santa Claus Caper" by Bill Crider

Bill Crider is one of my favorite authors. I have read nine books in his Sheriff Dan Rhodes series and I plan to read all of the Dan Rhodes mysteries. Another mystery series by Crider features Carl Burns, a professor of English Literature at a small college in Texas. (Crider was the chairman of the English Department at Alvin Community College in Alvin, Texas.) 

"The Santa Claus Caper" introduced me to the characters in the Carl Burns series, including R. M. “Boss” Napier, Chief of the Pecan City, Texas, police. Carl Burns has talked Napier into playing a part in a "reader's theater" version of A Christmas Carol. In turn, Chief Napier wants Burns to go undercover as a department store Santa Claus, because the store was having high losses due to shoplifting. Neither one of them is happy playing their new role.

"Family Christmas" by Patricia Moyes

I like Patricia Moyes' mysteries and I have read all nineteen books in her Inspector Henry Tibbett series. The short story in this book does not feature her series characters.

"Family Christmas" is a clever and poignant story. Robert Runfold and his wife, Mary, live a comfortable life with lots of money. They have two married daughters, who are coming home for Christmas. Robert is curmudgeonly and suspicious. He thinks that both of his daughter's husbands would gladly kill him for the money that their wives would inherit after his death. So he has changed his will so that they will not inherit any money until both daughters are over forty. I had no idea how this story would end.

"Miss Melville Rejoices" by Evelyn E. Smith

Evelyn E. Smith is new to me. Early in her career, she wrote science fiction and fantasy, both short stories and novels. In 1986, she started a five book series featuring Miss Melville, a middle-aged assassin. The story in this book, published in 1991, was her first short story featuring Miss Melville.

This story begins on Christmas Eve, with Miss Melville breaking into the Melville Foundation for Anthropological Research, where later in the evening there would be a party in honor of the deposed dictator of Mazigaziland, the infamous Matthew Zimwi, the man for whom Time magazine had established the category of Monster of the Year. Miss Melville is planning to assassinate Matthew Zimwi during the party. The story is very complicated and I enjoyed the outcome very much. 

I will definitely be reading the first novel in the Miss Melville series, Miss Melville Regrets.

Following is a list of the authors and short stories in this book:

• Charlotte MacLeod: Counterfeit Christmas 
• Reginald Hill: The Running of the Deer 
• Elizabeth Peters: Liz Peters, PI 
• Medora Sale: Angels 
• John Malcolm: The Only True Unraveller 
• Dorothy Cannell: The January Sale Stowaway 
• Bill Crider: The Santa Claus Caper 
• Patricia Moyes: Family Christmas 
• Evelyn E. Smith: Miss Melville Rejoices 
• Eric Wright: Two in the Bush 
• Mickey Friedman: The Fabulous Nick 
• Robert Barnard: A Political Necessity 
• Margaret Maron: Fruitcake, Mercy, and Black-Eyed Peas

Reading Summary March 2019

I read thirteen books this month, including three graphic novels, one science fiction novel, one non-fiction book, and eight crime fiction novels.

Science Fiction

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1979) by Douglas Adams

Most people will have heard of this book and its author, even if they haven't read the book. Arthur Dent is protesting the demolition of his house to make way for a bypass. Coincidentally, Arthur's friend, Ford Prefect, is an alien who has learned that the earth is about to be destroyed to make way for a galactic freeway. They are picked up by a giant spaceship from a different galaxy and their adventures begin. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy started out as a radio series,  broadcast by the BBC, and later became a novel. It has also been adapted as a TV series and a 2005 movie starring Martin Freeman. The book was a fun read. It is clearly science fiction, but not serious at all.

 Nonfiction

The Minimalist Home: A Room-By-Room Guide to a Decluttered, Refocused Life (2018) by Joshua Becker

This is similar to the KonMari Method, but the two systems take different approaches. Marie Kondo suggests a different order to eliminating things, going by types of objects and emphasizes doing it all at once. Joshua Becker goes from room to room, and expects the process to take a while. Both are motivational if you want to make some progress in this area, but I can probably accept Becker's approach more easily. The major flaw in this book is repetition, but I see this in most self-help literature.

Understanding Comics (1994) by Scott McCloud

This is a comic about comics. I have read comics all my life, but I do have problems comprehending some contemporary graphic novels and I thought this might help. I did find some of it very useful for me, all of it informative and enlightening, and McCloud's enthusiasm for the subject makes it very interesting.

Graphic novels

The Umbrella Academy: The Apocalypse Suite  (2008) and
The Umbrella Academy: Dallas (2009)
by Gerard Way (Writer),  Gabrielle Bá (Artist)

I bought these two graphic novels before I heard about the adaptation of The Umbrella Academy on Netflix. The story is about a dysfunctional family of adopted children, all born at the same time (in different locations all over the world) to mothers who showed no signs of pregnancy.  The adoptive father, Reginald Hargreeves, takes the children to the Umbrella Academy and trains them to be superheroes. 

Crime Fiction

The Tears of Autumn (1974) by Charles McCarry

This is a spy fiction novel by Charles McCarry, the second book in the Paul Christopher series. McCarry is one of my favorite authors and I have read most of his books. 

See review here.

Extraordinary People (2006) by Peter May

The Enzo Macleod Investigation series, Book #1. I have read several books by Peter May, and I learn a lot from each of his books. He often includes information about the setting and its history in the stories, and that is true in this case. Macleod, half-Scottish and half-Italian, is a forensics expert and a university professor in Toulouse, France. In this book, Macleod spends a good bit of time looking for clues in the catacombs under Paris.

Turncoat (2002) by Aaron Elkins

It is very difficult to describe this book in one sentence, so I will just send you to my review if you want to know more. The story, the premise, and the writing grabbed me immediately. The story begins in November 1963 in New York but soon moves to France, where the narrator, a professor of history, is trying to locate his wife, who has disappeared. 

Remembered Death (1944) by Agatha Christie

This non-series book by Agatha Christie was published in the UK as Sparkling Cyanide. Beautiful Rosemary Barton dies from drinking cyanide-laced champagne at her own birthday party while celebrating at a nightclub in London and the police assume that her death was suicide. My review here.

Smoke Detector  (1984) by Eric Wright

Smoke Detector is the 2nd Charlie Salter mystery, set in Toronto, Ontario. Salter is a member of the Metropolitan Police. In this story, he is assigned to an arson / homicide case. My review here.

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (1987)
by Douglas Adams

This book is almost as hard to describe as The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It is a bit less weird, it is set in the UK, and many strange things do happen. It is a mish-mash of science fiction and fantasy and a detective story. I enjoyed it but it took a while before I had any sense of where it was going.

The Silkworm (2014) by Robert Galbraith (AKA J.K. Rowling)

The second book in the  Cormoran Strike series. Strike is an ex-Army private detective, and his young secretary Robin wants to learn to be an investigator also. This book focuses on the publishing industry. A woman asks Strike's help in finding her husband, an author who has been missing for several days. There is a lot to like about this series and the main characters.

What Never Happens (2014) by Anne Holt

This is the second book in the Adam Stubo and Johanne Vik series. The setting is Oslo, Norway. My main attraction to this series is the two main characters. Adam is an inspector in the Criminal Investigation Service and Johanne has worked with the FBI as a profiler. See my review here.