Mystery Crime Books

Daisy has a commission to write about the Tower of London. One would think that at least there, a place guarded by Yeomen Warders and the military, she should be able to visit without meeting up with mayhem and murder.
Daisy stays overnight to see the ceremony of the keys because all the gates are closed and locked just before this ceremony begins.
The next morning a she leaves early to return to Alec and her children, she stumbles over a body. How could someone be murdered with sentries and guards all over the place?
The situation is such that Daisy can not be as involved as she usually is in the mysteries but she is more involved than either Alec or the Assistant Commissioner ( crime) like.
Of course, no crime in which Daisy is involved is ever simple or straightforward and there are various events and episodes before the case is solved.
Carola Dunn and Daisy always please.

The Honorable Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher has been asked to do a series of articles about the Tower of London for an American magazine. It will be the first time she returns to work since the twins were born four months ago. People take a natural likening to Daisy and she gets a personalized tour of the Crown Jewels, interviews the people in power in the tower, learns about the feuds between the Yeomen Warders and the Hotspot officers, and is told the stories of the ghosts who haunt the place.

When she gets ready to leave, she comes across the murdered body of the chief Yeomen Warder with a partisan (pike) in his back and his neck broken. She gets someone to call the superintendent who calls her husband DCI Alex Fletcher, who is resigned to the fact that Daisy will once again be in the middle of a homicide investigation; but this time she walks away and is dragged back by the entreaties of two teens she befriended. She contributes to the investigation and hopefully with what she learns it will lead to the killer.

The latest Daisy Dalrymple mystery is as refreshing and entertaining as are the rest of the books in this delightful historical amateur sleuth police procedural combination. Points of views keep changing between the spouses who learn much of the same information from different sources in different manners. This is a perplexing case because everybody liked the victim and it is only when knowledge of the victim comes to light the Fletchers begin to even come to solving the case.

Harriet Klausner

This is another installment in Carola Dunn's Daisy Dalrymple series. As usual, we are treated to a new location in Britian and new murder to be investigated by Daisy's husband, Detective Chief Inspector Alec Fletcher of Scotland Yard. Daisy has been very pregnant in the last book and now she has twins. The twins play a very minor role, though. This is Daisy's first assignment since the birth and take her to the Tower of London. She discovered a murder one morning - a case of mistaken identity it turns out. Daisy isn't quite as involved as normal, as she isn't living at the Tower, but she still provides a lot of fodder for Alec to work with. This is another exciting and interesting mystery - Daisy and Alec never fail to amuse me!

There seems to be a sudden proliferation of mystery novels set in Post WWI England -- it almost seems as if it is the "in" thing to do right now. And while some of the more recent offerings have proved to be rather well written pieces, I have to admit that for me, my favourtie has to be Carola Dunn's Daisy Dalrymple series.

In this latest installment, "The Bloody Tower," Daisy has been asked by her American editor to write a series of articles on the Tower of England. Having just recently given birth to twins, this assignment fits in nicely with Daisy's plans to remain close to home while working. Another bonus is the realisation that a friend of her mother-in-laws, the eccentric Mrs. Tebbit and her daughter Myrtle, are currently living with the Resident Governor, Major General Carradine and his two daughters. Now, if only her luck would hold, she won't find herself embroiled in yet a murder investigation! Unfortunately for Daisy, her luck doesn't hold: invited to spend the night at the Resident Governor's so that she can observe the Ceremony of the Keys, Daisy almost trips over the body of Chief Yeoman Warder Crabtree as she leaves the Tower the following morning. That Crabtree has been murdered is evident; but who would want to murder the nice, harmless Mr. Crabtree? In spite of her good intentions, Daisy soon finds herself giving her husband, Chief Inspector Alec Fletcher, some unsolicited assistance on the case once again...

"The Bloody Tower" was a quick and easy read from the very first page. This was due entirely to the author's energetic and effervescent prose style, and the fact that she managed to maintain and light touch in spite of the dark overtones the storyline sometimes decreed. I particularly enjoyed all the colourful and atmospheric descriptions of the Tower of London shrouded in fog. It was only two paragraphs long, but it set the tone and was completely memorable. I also enjoyed the all the wonderful red herring suspects that the author had thoughtfully provided for me as well as interesting plot twists. Best of all though, was observing how Daisy and Alec interacted with each other, assisting and respecting each other's strengths, and so working together to catch another killer. All in all a very enjoyable and absorbing read.

My usual rating for a Daisy Dalrymple mystery is a full five stars. I gave this one four not because this was not a bad book, but it lacked the usual fun romp feel of most of the other books. So - Daisy fans enjoy your fist introduction to Daisy, new mom, but first timers - try Murder on the Flying Scotsman first.

The members of the Scenes and Beans blog assemble in the Java Joint to celebrate Ted Dawson, S Man's, sale of his book Star Fire to Harper Collins Publishing. No one knows that what is supposed to be a celebratory event will turn into the scariest day of their lives.

Kent Wicksell and his three sons are armed, dangerous, and on their way to the Java Joint seeking vindication for their son and brother, T.J., who they believe is falsely accused of murder. Taking over the Java Joint, now made famous by the blog, will let everyone around the world know T.J.'s story and will put the Kanner Lake chief-of-police on notice that the Wicksells mean business and if T.J. is not immediately released from jail, the hostages will die.

In the last book from the Kanner Lake series, readers will wonder who among their favorite citizens of Kanner Lake will survive the siege. Brandilyn Collins starts the action early, right away grabbing and keeping the reader's attention to the final surprising end.

Amber Morn is a suspenseful stand-alone novel and to me, a great starting book if you are a member of the Big Honkin' Chickens Club and have been too scared to read the author's novels. Readers are aware of the bad guys early so the nail-biting suspense is wondering how, when, and if anyone will make it out of the Java Joint alive.

You can handle that can't you?

Wow....where do I start? Wow! Great book! When you finish a four part series and the characters have become so alive, it's sad to see it end. Simply put, Amber Morn is an incredible conclusion to the Kanner Lake series.

The Java-Joint gang have all come to celebrate the signing of S-Man's contract. It's a beautiful morning, spirits are high, and everyone is bursting with happiness. Never in there wildest nightmares, could they imagine that in a few short minutes, three men would enter, shoot one man, and hold 12 others hostage.

While the first three books are mystery/suspense, Amber Morn is an all out thriller. The characters we've grown quite fond of are put in a situation where their love and friendship is clearly visible. Each one willing to do whatever it takes to protect the others. Each one relying on God and those around them to make it till their ordeal is over. It's an amazing story of friendship and coming together in times of crisis.

It's also an excellent glimpse at the flip side. A hardened family outside of God's love with two uncontrollable adult children. A mother unable to feel beyond her own pain to grasp what her family is doing. A family that sees injustice rather than their own flaws. A family that's willing to kill thirteen people just to see their convicted son freed from jail. An amazing contrast between misguided love and true devoted love.

The end of Amber Morn is a nice conclusion to this series. It was truly one of the best four part series I've read in a while. I found myself totally involved in these character's lives and loving every minute of it. Excellent, excellent series.

I highly recommend Violet Dawn, Coral Moon, Crimson Eve & Amber Morn. If you like suspense, you'll be riveted to these books. The people of Kanner Lake with become like old friends and you'll be easily drawn ino their struggles and triumphs as God's grace sees them through it all

How do you follow three excellent suspense novels? If you're Brandilyn Collins, you kick things up a few notches and release Amber Morn.

Action-filled from the opening pages, the final installment of the Kanner Lake Series grabs the reader and just won't let go. This is the ultimate example of a book you don't want to put down, and it's a blast to read.

This is probably Brandilyn's best novel to date, and I've read them all, from her Bradleyville Series (women's fiction), to her Chelsea Adams and Hidden Faces Series', and finally the Kanner Lake Series. Before I read Amber Morn, I had stated unequivocally that Crimson Eve, the third book in the Kanner Lake set was the best. I was wrong. Amber Morn is a masterpiece of page-turning suspense with a cast of dozens. How Brandilyn managed to keep everyone straight is beyond me. Something I could never imagine attempting myself. And her mastery of plot twists and surprises hold true to form - and then some.

This one's a bit different because you know who the bad guys are. They're right there 'in your face.' You just don't know what' they're going to do next.

It is tricky to review a book of Brandilyn's without giving away any plot twists or spoilers of any sort, so I'll stop right here.

I can say this. Don't read this book out of sequence. Matter of fact, I highly recommend--if you haven't already--start with book one, Violet Dawn, then Coral Moon, Crimson Eve, and finally Amber Morn. At the very least, read Crimson Eve before you read Amber Morn. If you like suspense, you'll LOVE this series.

With the 4th book in the series Andy Carpenter's witty observations, love of his dog, relationship with Laurie, as well as his springing rabbits from hats to get his clients off all don't seem as fresh and compelling as they were in the firsr couple of books. The continuing cast of characters are comforting in their familiarity, but Andy and company seem to lack some kind of edge compared to other series. Maybe Laurie returning to her childhood home and Andy seeing other women will add some interesting aspects to the next few adventures. All in all, it is a series worth reading - the last two books just have not been as gripping as the first two novels.

If you like Janet Evanovich, give Andy Carpenter a try. I would start with the first book in the series, but you don't have to. This is a quick read.

Another fun and fast-paced courtroom mystery from one of my favorite new authors. This one and First Degree are the best of the bunch. Some of the scenes in Sudden Death jumped out at me and caught me of guard. I love it when that happens in books. Doesn't happen enough.

I first read this as a library book. I keep getting it out and rereading it. It's probably time I bought a copy. It's witty, well plotted and over-all, a pleasure to read and reread and reread and ....

Rosenfelt succesfully follows up his first three novels, Open And Shut, First Degree and Bury The Lead, with Sudden Death. Rosenfelt continues to grow as one of the freshest voices among today's mystery writers due to his ability to provide interesting plots, credible courtroom drama, plenty of surprises, lots of humor and well-developed major and minor characters. Andy Carpenter, the main character who is a wise-cracking suburban New Jersey defense attorney, is one that stays in your mind even after you finish the book and is one that I'm looking forward to 'hang out' with in his future legal adventures. Plus, his dog, Tara, is one I wish I had. I highly recommend Sudden Death when you're in the mood for a fast-paced, easy read. However, you might want to first consider reading the other books in the series which I think will further your appreciation of Sudden Death.

This is second novel about Jane Whitefield, half-Seneca (and half blue-eyed) "guide," whose specialty is helping those on the run disappear into the cracks in society. Most of these fugitives are innocent -- women fleeing from abusive spouses, etc. -- but not all of the. Mary Perkins is one of the latter, a successful practitioner of S&L fraud who was caught and served her time in prison. The thing is, she still has a very large amount of stolen money tucked away that she never admitted to, and if that fact becomes known, her parole will be revoked. So she has no one to turn to when the Really Bad Guys go looking for her hidden wealth -- except Jane. At the same time, Timothy Phillips, whose parents died and left him a huge trust fund, really is one of the innocents -- but he has been targeted by the same Bad Guys. What makes these stories fascinating, at least to me, is the detail Perry brings to the business of convincing society you don't exist. Many of the things Jane does in the mid-1990s wouldn't work today, of course, not in our security-happy post-9/11 world, so it will be interesting to see how she updates her methods. As always, Perry is strong on characterization and back story, and the action seems to flow naturally -- most of the time, anyway. In this case, he appears to have rushed the ending. Earlier in the story, Barraclough demonstrates that he understands how dangerous Whitefield can be, but he seems to have forgotten this in the climactic scenes. And we're never actually told how Jane sets up her final encounter, though it's hinted at. Nor does it seem quite in character for her to coolly take a shotgun to those who are hunting her. Also, Perry seems to think it's necessary to bring in a boyfriend whose existence was never hinted at before. Why?

I really enjoyed the first Jane Whitefield book and was eager to read the second. Yuck. Jane was totally unappealing this time around; the plot was incredibly contrived. She has, all of a sudden, a lover. Their conversation is contrived and stilted. She acts like a teenager about his phonecalls. What gives?

I was bored by the long descriptions of how money was stolen from savings and loans. The descriptions of sadism were unnecessary. Jane does all kind of illegal things and gets away with all of them, including killing people. She performs tasks such as climbing fences and running for miles that seem impossible to me. She sees people from long distances away in office windows and can tell whether they are bosses or secretaries.

In the first book, the Native American sequences were woven in seamlessly. Here they were a mere add on.

And then, just when I thought I would make it through to the end, I'm stuck in the head of this sadistic guy who's after her. Yuck again. This will be my last Jane Whitefield.

I love books that are both exciting and actually teach me something--trusts and banking--without slowing down the story. Jane is a fascinating character, a Native American whose culture and history are provided through visions and dreams, who is capable and inventive. This is a very good book in a fascinating series.

You know when someone is cooking something on the stove and they want you to taste it? You take some off the spoon and it tastes good,but it needs a little something to make it better. Maybe a dash of salt? or pepper? That's the way I feel about Thomas Perry's books. He writes interesting characters, I love Jane W.,and his plots are plausible and engaging, but there is just something missing that I can't quite put my finger on.

I found the romance with Dr. McKinnon to be rushed and contrived. It's not unusual to develop romantic feelings for a long time friend but it is unusual to propose marriage to her right after making love for the first time. It would have read much more realisticly to let this relationship develop over two or more novels.

Dance for the Dead, was my fourth or fifth Perry novel. So far, I haven't been blown away like many other reviewers have. Until Perry finds that dash of something, he'll always be a 3 star writer to me.

I have read all of Thomas Perry's books. He is a great author! He manages to combine huge amounts of action and suspense with literate writing and well-developed, sensitive and interesting characters. "Dance for the Dead" is about Jane Whitfield, my favorite Thomas Perry character. Jane is a Seneca Indian who grew up near Niagara Falls, and the book is loaded with Indian history. Jane saves people by giving them a new identity and helping them to hide from whatever trouble they are in. This puts her in a lot of danger and provides plenty of opportunity to meet interesting people. Since her life is so dangerous, she keeps a very low profile and doesn't have much of a social life. In this book, she begins a romance with a doctor from her hometown who she has known for a long time, but thankfully this series really sticks to the action and adventure, and never veers too far into romance territory. As other reviewers have noted, it makes me really happy to find a male author who chose to write about such a take-charge, capable woman. I would recommend this whole series to anyone who likes well-written action adventure.

This is the fourth book in the Earlene Fowler quilting mystery series.

Benni Harper and her husband Gabe Ortiz become involved in a police investigation after Benni discovers a woman's body floating in a lake next to their jogging path. The dead woman is dressed in a Mother Goose costume and Benni immediately recognizes her as Nora Cooper, a local storyteller.

Because of Benni's job as curator of the San Celina Folk Art Museum, she was well acquainted with Nora Cooper and they were both working on an upcoming Storytelling and Story Quilt Festival. Benni tries to stay out of the police investigation, but she keeps getting pulled in because she knew the victim and most of the suspects.

Benni and Gabe are newlyweds and still getting adjusted to living together which is difficult because they are both set in their ways. The situation is not helped by the arrival of three different relatives who all come to visit at the same time causing commotion in their small home.

Though Earlene Fowler gives us a patchwork of personalities and several different plots, she still manages to keep the reader interested and entertained.

I've read the entire series. Loved them all.

The Goose in the Pond is my favorite of the Benni Harper series. I love Earlene Fowler's characters they are so interesting, fun and real. When Benni discovers a storyteller in the water who is dressed up as Mother Goose, this starts a marvelous mystery. I am so happy that I rediscovered this mystery series. I have also have enjoyed reading Kansas Troubles, Dove in the Window and Mariner's Compass. I love quilts and mysteries so this series have been so wonderful!

In this book, Benni Harper, who is recently married to the Chief of Police, Gabe Ortiz, finds the dead body of one of the storytellers from the museum. Since she knows the victim and the suspects she tries to stay out of the investigation, but everyone thinks she knows more than she does.
I found the ending quite unsatisfying -- not because of who is revealed as the murderer, but the way in which this is discovered.
I also found Gabe's self-righteous macho posturing too much to take. He is at least as much to blame for the problems between him and his son, Sam, as Sam is. How could Sam not be troubled with a father who can't find anything good about him?

I have read 5 of the 8 Benni Harper mysteries. Being a serious quilter, and an avid reader I find books fairly predictable. Ms. Fowler keeps you guessing until the very end!! Ofter the title of the book which relates to a specific quilt block is not revealed until late in the book. She has so captured me that when I was telling my small quilt group about the books they thought I was talking about a real family!! I have ordered all of the remaining books that I have not read, and wish Ms. Fowler could produce one a week to keep me entertained when I am not quilting. Books are ment to help you be part of the story and these do an excellent job at that! It is nice that the characters in the books remain the same and it doesn't seem to matter if you read them out of sequence as she renews the past in a way to refamilirize you and not make you lost, guessing where who all of the people in San Celina or how they are related. Keep up the good work Ms. Fowler and HURRY with another book!

Garth Ennis' masterful run on Punisher MAX went to new heights with the fourth storyarc, Up is Down and Black is White. Nicky Cavella, the mob hood who managed to survive a face-off with Frank back in In the Beginning, returns with a plan to really get to Frank. The plan involves desecrating the graves of Frank's family, with what follows being some of the most intense and blood curdling moments ever seen in a Punisher comic. Ennis' examination of the role of the death of Frank's family in his one man war on crime is what fuels this TPB, but its the origin of Nicky Cavella that is even more worth noting, making him one of the most well developed, well-rounded, and realistic villains to ever appear in a Punisher comic. Leandro Fernandez' stark artwork is great as well, helping make Up is Down and Black is White the absolute best Punisher arc to ever see the light of day. Some may argue that the following volume, The Slavers, holds that distinction, but I disagree. When it comes to the Punisher, no other writer has totally understood the character the way that Ennis has, and here's even more proof of that. Even if you haven't always followed Ennis' run (and why wouldn't you?) but are a Punisher fan, consider Up is Down and Black is White an essential pick up.

I love it when I find a book so good, I almost race ahead of myself (and the story), so eager to turn the page and see what's next. This book, I turned the pages quickly just to get to the end and be done with it. (I'm one of those strange people who, no matter how much I dislike a book, usually have to finish it.) I found myself wondering if this was a first draft. That's how it reads to me. Could have benefited tremendously from a good copyedit. The first thing I had a problem with was the voice. These characters aren't particularly crude in any way, so when the author puts in lines like, "He wanted to drag her over to the bed, strip off her clothes, and scr#w her" or, even worse, "He needed to learn that when he upset her, she wasn't going to hop in the sack with him whenever his d!ck twitched," it sounded so jarring, so nasty, it made me wince. Ick. Then there are the goofy, overblown, over-done lines like, "I need you. I'm not sure I can make it without you." Again. Ick. There was also no suspense for me. I thought it was obvious almost from the character's introduction who the killer was. And so obvious which characters were NOT the killer. And the killer's reason for singling out Lexie just wasn't plausible (even when the author makes sure to have different characters say that the killer is obviously insane and his reason for singling her out would make no sense to a rational person). Boring. Uninspiring. Other bad parts or parts where I thought the words sounded awkward or scenes just didn't work: "Lexie nodded, and then took another sip of coffee. When Cara set a plate filled with French toast and fresh fruit in front of her, Lexie mouthed the words thank you." Ugh. Just bad writing. I also noticed throughout that "Dundee's" is used, which isn't grammatically correct. Especially when in other instances, "Dundee" was (and properly) used. Sorry, English major, lol. And the charity ball. What? Lexie is worried about her own safety and that of her friends, but has no problem with going forward with a ball in which hundreds of *millionaires* will be in attendance? Very implausible scene for me. As is the scene that sets up the letter bomb: a reporter asks Lexie and Cara to pose for a photo op holding up wads of cash? Yeah, that happens. It was a really weak way of setting the scene that follows. Again, poor writing. Then we have Lexie, who on one page accuses Deke of playing her for a fool and then a few pages later can't seem to even breathe unless he's in touching distance, and will simply expire on the spot if he doesn't confess his undying love for her. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. Maybe this book would have been more enjoyable if I hadn't read books in this genre by other, smart authors who know how to execute a good story, with solid writing and dialog and plausible scenarios and character development. Having done so, it made this book glaringly inferior by comparison. This is not one for my bookshelf.

I did enjoy the "romance" of the book with the Protectors feel to it. I had narrowed down the potential suspects well before the the books heroes and in the end had it figured out before the guy gets the girl part. Overall a good read.

Great romantic suspense story! Even if you don't follow Ms. Barton's THE PROTECTORS series, you'll really enjoy this emotional story of Deke Bronson and Lexie Murrough.

Great suspense and intrigue, great romance, and some steamy sexual tension!

Beverly Barton does a good job of writing suspense books. I've read all hers and their all are great. Love a book you can't put down and this is one of those

I could not put this one down. It was classic Barton at her best. It was taut and emotional. It had the tortured, wracked-with-guilt, hero and the smart but vulnerable heroine. After her last Proctectors book, I was glad to see she's gone back to the kind of writing that made me a fan.

I recommend A Time to Die. If you like her earlier Protectors books you should like this one.

I saw this movie by Costa Gavras a couple of years ago at the TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL. The movie moved me so much...that I decided to buy the book a year later. I loved reading it but it was so much like the movie that I knew what was going to happen...I probably should have read the book before the movie...I don't know. The MOVIE is simply excellent. I couldn't help seeing excerpts from the film as I read the book. It's a scary dark noir thriller of what could happen with outsourcing jobs to other countries and how one's home country could falter for it...very interesting reading.

This is the best book I've read in years for one reason: You almost become the main character, an out of work psychopathic murderer. Now, you may be asking yourself why you'd want to become a out of work psychopath, but trust me you'll like it... in a weird way which makes you worried about yourself when you finally put it down. The book is written in the first person with very little dialogue, due to this you get such an intimate bond with the character, through his thoughts, that you don't want him to get caught... because your so involved you feel like your at risk of being found out too. You sympathize with this guy to a degree that I didn't think was possible to feel for a killer, but you want him to succeed, you want him to kill again... It's a strange sensation that is wonderful and scary at the same time, like you're doing something you're not supposed to. If you want a read that you'll never forget, this is it. Westlake at his very best.

Although first published in 1997, "The Ax" remains relevant ten years later as the downsizing in corporate America continues unabated. The downsizing of white collar jobs is still topical and should continue to be for years to come. Dark, satirical, and surprisingly moving, "The Ax" is the crown jewel of Westlake's bibliography.

Last week I coincidentally read the above two books -- The Negligence of Death and The Ax...one right after the other. At the end of both, my reaction was the same. Chilling! Although they have quite different storylines, I saw a number of similarities:

...I didn't like what I was reading, but couldn't stop.
...Though fiction, I felt their "realness."
...They are perfect illustrations of the impact of society on one (or more) individual.
...Killing is a by-product -- a means to an end.
...Though I didn't like reading them, I am thankful I did.

Vietnam. The 60s. Many of us knew people who were in that war. Many of us wondered why few of those who returned were unwilling to talk about it. In The Negligence of Death by Jerome Gold, we learn why.

The story revolves around the life of Dixie, a green beret. Some might say he is the main character. He's not. Death is the main character in this book. As a silent voyeur, the author takes the reader to Vietnam into Dixie's life -- his "daily" life in Vietnam. After a few pages, you really don't want to be there; you don't want to see and hear through Dixie...you want to go home, AWOL. But you can't; you're in for the duration . . .just like Dixie.

This book has just 179 pages. Fast reading -- if you can stand it. You join Dixie in his sixth day, when he tells you "the worst part was the bodies. They reeked, some were five or six days dead and the troops . . .did not like being reminded how negligent was Death." From then on, the book could easily be titled How Many Ways are There to Die?

And there is sex. "The woman lay on her back in a cave dug into the side of a trench. As I passed she opened her legs. I went on to wake up a man who was sleeping. When I saw her again, a Ranger was on top of her."

And there are drugs. "I was in great pain and the medic on board gave me morphine. In Saigon they gave me morphine again. It was a wonder to me that I did not die of good care, but I kept my mouth shut and waited for them to administer each shot."

Somewhere along the way you discover Dixie's real name and that he is a radio operator/communications officer. But it is really unimportant; it could just as well have been through Mitch's eyes, as he tells: "So these other two Arvins who are standing around take their oranges and put them between the guy's legs. And they're laughing. He's got half his face blown away and he's going `uh-uh-uh' and pointing to those goddamn oranges, and laughing."

There is no storyline . . .it could just as easily be actual tape transcripts of daily conversations and actions by those stationed in Vietnam. Oh yes, this is a story about Dixie, who is in Vietnam. He gets wounded and goes back home. You might think the book ends there.

But Dixie reenlists, to share one last scene: "...one of the small green uniforms appears in front of me and I fire a short burst, it is so pure and sweet and clear, like sudden knowledge, like certainty, and the small green man flies backward, it is as though he were flying, his arms lift, his back arches, his feet raise off the ground, it's Superman! Ha ha. Now almost to the perimeter, there are Americans, and I fire off the rest of the magazine, ha ha, they fall, they are so surprised...I fire right into them ha ha ha, I am hit again ha ha...it is so funny, everything is, and I feel such love . . ."

Read The Negligence of Death. Understand Vietnam.



Burke DeVore got The Ax. Vietnam is our history. Getting "the ax" is today. Vietnam was at war. Burke DeVore fights his own war (ours).

Burke DeVore is unemployed. He has been downsized. He was once a middle manager with a promising future. Then one day he was told "your job is not going forward."

Burke's wife has taken on two part-time jobs. His daughter is in college; his son in high school. Burke has been unemployed for two years with no prospect of gaining a similar job with a similar salary. Although everything they could do has been done to cut expenses, they are now facing loss of their home, schooling -- everything.

One day the history of the United States will reflect that, during the 90s, many middle managers were abused, harassed, and dismissed without regard. Those affected had no way of fighting back. Being excellent loyal employees was not enough to keep a job. The bottom line dividends ($) to the stockholders, to the owners, boards and other regulators was what mattered; people didn't. Burke DeVore is making history...but he might not make the history books, though he's fighting a war. I pray he is the only one that chooses his method of fighting.

Burke was not alone when he got axed. One-fourth of his company was cut; Burke's product line was dropped completely. (He was a production line manager at a paper company.) You may immediately empathize with Burke -- we hear about similar situations on the radio or read it in the newspaper every day.

The Ax is a story about many of us. Working from the bottom up, after 25 years Burke had become a specialist in his field. His loyalty, hard work and experience had allowed him to arrive at a place where he had finally been able to "buy" (which means a long mortgage) a home and provide for his children's higher education. He had planned his career, toiled diligently and reached a goal...and then was told, "Don't go away mad; just go away." Oh yes, his company tried to ease the action. Burke went through counseling, he took a class on how to prepare a resumé, and received a generous severance. With all of his accumulated vacation and sick leave, he even got a flat sum of "four thousand, seven hundred, sixteen dollars, and twenty-two cents." Then Burke adds, "To tell the truth, if it had been nineteen cents, I doubt I would have known the difference."

Burke needs a job. "More and more of us are out here now, another thousand or so every day, and we're chasing fewer and fewer jobs." Burke prepared a new resumé, hunted for a job, and interviewed numerous times, doing exactly what his former employer had taught him to do. He tried to do it their way.

You first meet Burke as he considers, "what now? I've never actually killed anybody before, murdered another person, snuffed out another human being . . . How do you know beforehand that you can do it . . .This has to work. I have to get out of this morass, and soon. Which means I'd better be capable of murder."

After doing all the right things, no employer had hired him. And, after just receiving the ax, like so many others, he knew he could not change these employers who cared nothing about their people. So, there was only one alternative that Burke could see; eliminate the competition for the available jobs.

Establishing a fictitious company and placing an ad for an individual who would apply for "his" job, as anticipated, Burke receives hundreds of applications. After studying each one, he finally, objectively, arrives at six candidates who are either better or equally qualified. He establishes a plan to eliminate his competition, then proceeds to kill each man. Studying trade journals to keep up with the job area, he reads an article about a nearby plant and visits there. Deciding that the job he wants is at this plant, he adds the elimination of one more competitor, the present manager, to his plan of action. The first elimination succeeds. The second, however, is a fiasco, and he winds up killing both his competitor and his wife. He then meets his third victim and they commiserate with each other: ". . .this is the first society ever that takes its most productive people, at their prime, at the peak of their powers, and throws them away. I call that crazy." But this becomes a problem, the competition has become a person, and Burke works to ensure that future kills do not become personal. He's merely eliminating the competition.

Thus the story follows Burke through his family life and the problems they face as a result of his unemployment; we follow Burke as death provides for his future.

Until the day occurs when he goes for the interview for "his" job, and requests, "Wish me luck."

After having just completed The Negligence of Death, upon finishing The Ax, I couldn't help but visualize that Burke never got that job, and he is still out there, quietly using death, eliminating his competition.

Another coincidence happened yesterday as I started preparing this review. A friend sent me an online joke, showing a man sitting at a computer, pointing out that the year 2000 has come and no computer bug has occurred. Two seconds later, a giant bug jumps out of the computer and pulls the man into the machine. It was funny the first time I saw it months ago. But yesterday, I remembered the following from The Ax:

...I think about the circumstances that have led me here, to this place. And I think about the millennium. Strange, that. I'd never thought about it before, that the simple arbitrary numbering of years could have an effect on us, but it turns out to be so... 2000; and it all stops. Maybe that is what they're doing. It's as good an explanation as anything they've offered. They're trying to make everything neat and perfect for the end... This kind of business management that has never been seen in the world before, trashing productive people from productive careers in productive companies, is happening because of the millennium. Because of the year 2000. I'm out of work because the human race has gone mad. On that thought, I fall asleep. It's only later that I wake up in terror.

Chilling, isn't it? Two time periods. One is our history; one is our future. The 60s were a major part of the history for many of us. The 90s has "changed" history for many of us. Prepare to be a part of history. Read these books. Prepare to wake up in terror.

This was my first Donald Westlake novel and surely not my last. I picked it up after reading Stephen King's much praised "On Writing". At the end of King's book, he gives a list of his all-time favorites and this was one of them. I am a huge King fan so I checked this one out at the library and will be adding the hardback to my collection.

This is a story that hits close to home, being that I'm currently on the market for a decent job after being laid off from a promising career.

I could not put this book down. I brought it to doctor's visits, restaurants, read it in the car when my husband was driving (feat in itself!) and into the bathtub with me.

Westlake succeded in fleshing out a man on the verge of losing everything in the wake of being laid off from a sixteen- year job and brings to light the corporate swine that ultimately makes those kinds of decisions. In a world of tough competition in the job market, Westlake gives new definition to the term "Dog eat dog world".

The pace was fast and had you rooting for the main character which in this case was the killer. A very difficult thing to do for any writer but Westlake does it flawlessly.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good dark comedy-thriller.

I enjoy Kathy Hogan Trochecks books, although when I was reading this one, once I reached page 54, it then went to page 295. I was able to pick it back up again at page 88. I'm sure a printing error, But I did miss out on 34 pages of the book.

I love all of the Callahan Garrity books, and I own the entire series. This was my favorite out of all them. The suspense and twists and turns keep you on the edge of your seat, but the humor and heart are the backbone of the books. I love that the Callahan books are set in Atlanta; it's so much more refreshing than the typical New York or LA settings that many books use. I wish Ms Trocheck would write more Callahan books, but from what I can see, she has moved on to romances (written under the name Mary Kay Andrews) which are still good, but not as good as Callahan.

I adore all of Callahan Gerrity Mysteries and this one was the fiest de resistance. I could not put it down. I ate, slept and drank every word and loved it....Kathy Trochek is a master of description and weaver of mystery. Just loved it.

It's a few days before Christmas, and sometimes disorganized Callahan Garrity, actually has things under control for a change. That is, until her deadbeat brother, Brian, shows up after 10 long years, with a toddler, Maura, who he says is his daughter. Callahan is always used to trouble following Brian, so when she finds out that he's actually kidnapped Maura from his estranged wife, she's not surprised. But, when Brian's ex-wife is found dead, the lead suspect is Brian. And though Callahan knows that he's many things, she knows that he's no murderer. So now it's time for her, her hilarious mother, Edna, and the employees of the House Mouse Cleaning Service to do some serious detective work around Atlanta, before Christmas is ruined for everyone.

This was my first Callahan Garrity mystery, and I was not one bit disappointed. Callahan, and her mother Edna are two hilarious characters, and the mother/daughter relationship between the two of them is absolutely fantastic. Whether you're a mystery lover, or a fan of family drama's, this is a must-have this holiday season.

Erika Sorocco

I deliberately waited over a year to purchase and read Midnight Clear by my favorite mystery author, Kathy Hogan Trocheck. I've always paced myself with her books because there aren't that many to begin with plus it's been over 3 years since KHT last wrote one. I hope that she is working on something new, because all of us Callahan Garrity fans are anxiously awaiting the next mystery featuring Callahan, Edna & the rest of the House Mouse cleaning crew! As for Midnight Clear-it just doesn't get any better than this. Kid brother Brian, who had been in absentia for 10 years suddenly shows up at Edna's doorstep with a surprise in his truck-a 3 year old girl named Maura. There is a major murder mystery for Callahan to solve, but it looks like Brian is the prime suspect-his ex-wife is found murdered in her bed. You'll find yourself rapidly turning the pages until you reach the surprise ending, KHT pulls out all the stops with this one. Once you reach the very end, however, you realize you want more books to come out featuring Callahan Garrity & co. As the previous reviewer mentioned, if only Ms. Trocheck would write as often as Sue Grafton does! Very highly recommended-along with all of her other books. Enjoy!

I've really enjoyed the books in both of Mr. Zubro's series, most of which have attained great heights in mystery writing. But, with great heights come the risk of great falls. This book is awful. There are so many characters, assigned to different sides in an academic internecine battle, that a progam list would have been helpful. They are so full or anger and deceit as to make them ridiculously unreadable. The plot is laden. Now that Zubro's plumbed the depth of quality, one can only look forward to his regaining the high ground.Schooled in Murder: A Tom and Scott Mystery (Tom & Scott Mysteries)

"Schooled in Murder" more or less chronicles a kind of civil war taking place in a suburban Chicago secondary school, with faculty and administration arrayed in two strongly opposing sides in a battle literally to the death over teaching methodologies and overall control of the school. The passion and intensity written into this story by author Mark Zubro suggests that he knows the turf well and is writing as a witness to his own years as a public school teacher.

The novel begins with the book's principal protagonist, gay and out English teacher, Tom Mason, walking out of a fractious faculty meeting and into a supply room tryst between two male teachers and, coincidentally, a murder scene. The early set up of the plot by the author of this scene and the reaction of protagonist Mason were, for me, the highwater marks of the story. From that point forward, the inter-mural warfare in the school is described in such over the top terms that some of the otherwise excellent writing of the book is obscured.

There is so much anger and angst in the story that follows, including a second murder, that logic and the usual "procedural" part of a crime story, disappear almost altogether. Homophobia and lust for power become the overriding motives for every crazy act that follows in the book and ultimately those themes are too exagerrated to bring the story to a credible close.

This was the first Zubro mystery that I've tried and, in hindsight, I wish that I'd chosen another in this critically praised series.

Great series of mysteries, involving Tom and Scott, gay teacher and gay baseball pitcher. The author does a wonderful job of portraying the life of two gay men living together and facing life's problems. They do a great job of showing that two men can live happy and productive lives, free of the prejudice of others. You will enjoy this mystery very much.I would recommend any of Mark Richard Zubro to anyone as a great read.

This 12th installment in the series about schoolteacher Tom Mason and his partner, retired pro baseball star Scott Carpenter, focuses on Tom's life as an English teacher and union rep at a suburban Illinois high school. With trends in teaching quickly changing, there is a definite division between the "old guard" teachers in the English department, and the newbies fighting for tenure and to have their methods and preferences recognized. By playing favorites and encouraging such strife, the administration of Grover Cleveland High School has allowed this rivalry to escalate into a near war, departmental meetings with teachers shouting out insults at each other, distracting the administrators as well as each other. But when one such meeting ends with two dead bodies found on campus (both found by Tom), it's clear that there may be more going on here than professional rivalry.

The novel can be a bit of an eye-opener to readers not aware of the "old vs new" arguments that are indeed part of the educational process in America, and a shock to find teachers behaving worse than the kids they are supposed to be teaching. When a pattern of lies emerge that implicate Tom as a possible suspect in the murders, he starts an investigation of his own, helped by his few allies in the school willing to risk getting in trouble with the administration, seemingly oblivious at first, but later found to be deeply involved in the scandals that may have triggered the murders. Grade and statistic rigging, teachers cheating on pay for extracurricular activities, bigotry based on ethnic origin and sexual orientation, selling tenure for favors, as well as good old fashioned sexual improprieties surface as possible factors that could have led to the deaths. The police are stumped, and Tom is in the middle of the group of "likely suspects" that increasingly want him out of their way.

Zubro can always be relied upon for a well-written and meticulously crafted mystery novel, and this is very much in that vein. It is a bit more one-dimensional than most in the series, and doesn't really involve Scott except as the stabling and protective influence on Tom. While I can believe the exaggerated internal strife in a high school leading to such events, the police reaction seems less than realistic to me, in this story. But, it is, after all, a work of fiction, and definitely one worth reading. I give it four stars out of five.