Mystery Crime Books

This is my first read by Michael Palmer and he's got my attention. I really enjoyed his style and tempo. He's a very talented writer even if he is an actual Dr. in disguise. I'm a big fan now and i intend to read all his medical thrillers.

"Silent Treatment" is a really good read. The first 80% of it was top notch, quite fascinating. Then it became rather tortuous, tedious, and disjointed. Thus, the ending was rather empty, and a disappointment.

Michael Palmer's thriller 'Silent Treatment' didn't keep me up at night turning pages. The female characters were unconvincing as was the love interest between an alcoholic artist and the protagonist, Dr Harry Corbett. The name of the protagonist is unfortunately chosen for UK readers over the age, say, of 53. This is because for very many years there was on TV in England a popular children's comedian called Harry Corbett with his two glove puppets, Sooty and Sweep.
But, I digress.

The book was a pleasant read. I found myself wanting to keep track of it because there are always several books floating around the house, which is a good sign. It was competently written in boring old third person past tense. The author included enough frissons in the form of dangerous situations to keep the plot, which was straightforward enough, moving along at a decent pace.

The book is 447 pages long, a good size; anywhere between 120K and 140K words, a typical airport-bookstall book.
In real life I find the case of the UK doctor who murdered well over a hundred patients in real life far more horrifying than medical thrillers.

In this particular plot, an evil 'inner circle' of medical practitioners conspire to murder several patients a week. The patients are of course, this being set in America, selected on the basis of the most costly to treat, go first.

Like Robin Cook, Michael Palmer writes medical thrillers. For those who doesn't know what this is, Palmer does with doctors what Grisham does with lawyers. The problem is, in my opinion, hospitals and doctors lack the plot-oportunities that we can easily find in the legal profession. So, in the end, everything seems very improbable, and the reader gets a feeling something is missing.

"Silent treatment" is about Dr. Korbet, a general practicioner (if I understood right, "gp"s are low in the "scale of doctors") whose wife is suddenly murdered during pre-op procedures. Korbet's life begins to go down the drain when he's accused of the murder and has no way to prove his innocence. On the other hand, a bunch of hot-shots of the medical-insurance industry are making reunions to, in a most unorthodox way, receive more money from their contributors. Obviously, the two plots are linked in some way or another.

This is not "the ultimate thriller", but is a light enterteinment, and an easy reading. There are many flaws, the most obvious being the very shall development of characters. The "bad guy" had a very good premise, but went underdeveloped as well, unfortunately.

If you are a Michael Palmer fan, read this one. If you're not, give it a try, if you have some time to spare.

Grade 8.1/10

This was a great book.. full of suspense right from the start. The only disappointment was the ending. I feel as if I was cheated. The ending leaves the reader hanging. Maybe you need to draw your own conclusions. This shouldn't keep anyone from not reading this book.
Once again, Michael Palmer leads the reader on a roller coaster ride of emotions. For the first time, it wasn't until near the end that I finally caught on. This is one of his better book.s

Meet Cameryn Mahoney. She's not your average high school senior. She's the assistant to the county coroner in Silverton, Colorado. Most kids her age find her fascination with all things forensic rather bizarre, if not macabre. But Cameryn is intrigued and has gained the (reluctant) respect of local law enforcement and medical personnel alike.

The story starts off with Cameryn and her father handling a fatal car accident. The victim affects Cameryn and her father in the fact that it's a young man. Nothing is worse than a senseless death. But Cameryn is ever the professional and they get the job done.

Later that day, Cameryn encounters her long lost mother, Hannah. Hannah has a young girl in the car with her. The girl seems agitated and Hannah doesn't give Cameryn a straight answer. But there is little Cameryn can do, and her mother drives off with the sad girl, Mariah, in the passenger seat.

Only later does the encounter come back to haunt Cameryn. Her father is out of town when the call comes in. There's another dead body. Cameryn is asked to attend to the scene until her father can be present. Upon seeing the body, Cameryn realizes that it's the girl, Mariah. If she lets on that she recognizes the girl, then her mother could be implicated.

What starts as an omission soon blossoms into a complete mystery that entwines everything that Cameryn does. Her mother eventually gets arrested for a murder that she swears she didn't commit. No one is there to help Hannah. Cameryn has since learned the truth of her childhood, and still finds it in her heart to forgive Hannah for everything she's done and comes to her aid. Against the odds and against the advice of everyone she knows, Cameryn takes it upon herself to clear her mother's name.

For anyone who's a fan of C.S.I. or Bones, THE CIRCLE OF BLOOD is a real page-turner. It's a bit graphic in the descriptions of dead bodies and autopsies, but done so in a fascinating and scientific manner. This isn't the first story featuring Cameryn Mahoney, but one doesn't have to have read the previous stories to enjoy this one. The story is easy to follow with little to cloud the main plot. I enjoyed it quite a bit and will now look for the previous Cameryn Mahoney books myself.

Reviewed by: Jaglvr

This is the best of the three forensic mysteries, I think. With each new book, Ferguson, becomes better at hiding the solution to the mystery. I had a little inside chuckle concerning the head rolling down the side of the mountain (sick, I know).
Learning new things like the story behind "Keep Sweet" and how the path of the bullet was determined by using the "brain bucket" is great information. You just never know when that information might come in handy at a party. LOL No really, I love it!
Justin has been staying at a safe distance. Maybe he has been just waiting for Kyle to surface.

I love Encyclopedia Brown books! I got hooked on them in 5th grade and I still love them!

Too much forced tension, problems with voice, weak writing in parts, and a character you can't empathize with, much less like, made this book a disappointment for me. As I mentioned in another review, particularly in this genre of romantic suspense, when you know how the story is going to end before you read it, well-developed characters and plot are even more important than usual. Something has to keep you interested until the very last page. The book begins on an intriguing note (a smart, beautiful lawyer confronts three men from her mother's past and announces she knows one of them killed her, and she's going to find out which one it is). It's deja vu all over again when she returns to the place of her birth/where her mother died and the two men involved with the mother become involved with the daughter. The townspeople dislike and resent the daughter as much as they did the mother. Someone's hiding a secret, but who, and why? Unfortunately, halfway through the book I started losing interest in the who and the why, and just wanted it to be over. There were just too many problems with this book. First, the love triangle between Alex, Reede, and Junior. (And was I the only one who kept thinking of Junior Minton as Junior Mint? Did the author intentionally give this character such a goofy name?) Both men are nearly 20 years older than Alex, and them both lusting over her sort of creeped me out a little. I don't have a problem with age differences, but in this book it bothered me. As for Alex, her character says and does enough contradictory things that I found her character unbelievable, unlikable. We get the impression over and over again how smart she is, hotshot young attorney blah blah blah, but she does and says a lot of pretty dumb things. In one paragraph, she tells Reede she thinks he's the murderer, then a few paragraphs later, she's crying or whining because he's mean to her or doesn't seem to share her feelings of lust. Gee, you think? Accusing a man of murder does tend to cool his ardor. Men are weird that way. This scene repeats often enough in the book, and is so annoying, that I found myself wanting to reach for a bottle of White-Out and erase forever those annoying scenes. One minute she's being friendly, the next she's accusing the person she's talking to of murder. Then she's puzzled when the accused refuses to show warm, fuzzy feelings. WTF? She accuses Reede of every vile act short of sex with small animals, then turns around and begs him to spend the night and/or hold her because she doesn't want to be alone. Again, WTF? Then, after the requisite female-character-is-harmed-and-alpha-male-comes-to-her-rescue scene, when Reede offers her a painkiller, she accuses him of bending the law by having strong medications at hand. (Of course, it doesn't stop her from accepting the proffered drugs.) For the third time, WTF? This scenario repeats itself so often in the second half of the book, and was so irritating, it was headache-inducing. The author could have found a better way to create tension between the two main characters. This was amateurish writing at best. I'm surprised this was a Sandra Brown book. It falls well short of her writing abilities.

Somehow, for some reason, Brown has combined a lame specimen of the mystery genre with an explicit, bodice-ripper romance. It doesn't work. The plot and events are improbable, the characters are mostly shallow and stupid. It promotes a sappy and destructive concept of love and romance. I'm glad I was alone in the car while listening to the CD, since the sweaty scenes are not something you'd want your kids or mom to hear. Also, the actor reading the story was not very good. He sometimes mumbles unintelligibly and seems to mispeak on occasion. He does not do female voices well. They come across as a mocking caricature.

This is one of the worst book I've read by this author, and I read most of them. Good thing I didn't spent my money to buy the book or I'd be kicking myself now.

While the plot, namely, Alex's investigation into her mother's murder 25 years ago, could have developed into a great suspence story, it fall short of getting anywhere on every turn. The heroine's strategy (or lack of) to her so-called "investigation" is so bad it's laughable; every time she found out something that she would have known if she had only done her homework (like to look up marriage records at the court house, interview acquaintances of people involved), she made one of these "why wasn't I told" scene that only magnify her own stuipidity. Her interview technique is even worst and the way she kept throwing accusations into everyone's face made me feel she deserved every bit of insults she got and then some. And why she was so fixated on the murderer being a man, and specifically one of the three main male characters, from the very beginning is a big question mark - even after being verbally attached by two female characters who hated her mother, and realizing one of them had lied about her whereabouts the time of the murder, she totally ignored the possibilities and went on going after the guys. How she made it through law school is a mystery to me.

The "romance" between Alex and Reede didn't come out of nowhere - it came right out from between their legs. All the so called attractions are described in terms of primal lust: smell, heat, hair, skin, lips....etc. neither had anything nice to say to or about each other but they are always so turned on by the other, despite the age difference, or personal conflict...etc. Literally once in a billion chance kind of love - unbelievable. Both Reede and Junior used other women to relieve their frustrations (i.e. with Alex, of course) - especially Junior, who said his ex-wife who is still in love with him is better than a whore because she's free, is simply despicable. I suspect the author really doesn't want the readers to like any of these characters.

If you read enough suspense fiction (or watch TV drama) to know a little about basic investigative techniques, you may feel your intelligence is being insulted when you read this book - but you may get a good laugh out of it if you don't take it so seriously.

This was an exciting, action-packed story that held me captivated until the mystery was resolved in the end. I have a strong appreciation for the descriptive style of writing Sandra Brown used in this story, which added greatly to my enjoyment of the book! Well-done!

Reede, Junior, and Celina were always known around town as the three musketeers. As far back as anyone could remember, they were joined at the hip until Celina's untimely death. This murder was never solved, and 25 years later Alex Gaither has made it her mission to bring her mother's murderer to justice. She has been groomed for her current job as assistant district attorney her entire life being raised by her grandmother with the constant propaganda about how pure and good Celina was. After initial research, Alex has determined that there are only three people that could have committed the murder - Reede, Junior, or Junior's father Angus. She travels back to the small Texas town she was born in, and announces to the three of them that the guilty party is going down.

Reede is the local Sheriff, and thus responsible for helping Alex as she reopens the investigation into her mother's death. He reluctantly helps her, and gives her an ominous warning about how some things are better left in the past. As they work more closely together, Alex and Reede fight off the attraction they feel toward each other. She finds herself in a similar situation as her mother with both men becoming an important part of her life. When more of the townspeople become vocal about the life Celina lived, Alex starts to understand Reade's warning when unpleasant tidbits of her mother's life are revealed. Reede takes it upon himself to protect Alex when attempts are made on her life. Apparently someone does not want the killer exposed.

I liked the story, but did have some ewwww moments when Reede and Junior made references about how they could have, and at some point wanted to be her father. Being involved with men her mother was involved with was uncomfortable reading at times during the story. Thank goodness Reede never slept with Celina because for me that would have been a deal breaker.

This is an early novel written by a now famous novelist/screenwriter/producer/director/etc./etc. I won't mention his name here (though a few minutes on Google will suffice for the curious.)

Anyway, are the "John Lange" novels any good? Unfortunately, this one is a bit of mess.

The most glaring of the book's many problems is that Zero Cool uses a clumsy "framing" device, with the story told years later by the hero (Peter Ross) to his eleven-year-old grandson.

For this to work, the story should be told in the first person. It isn't.

Also, the story should be told exclusively from the point-of-view of Ross. Instead, we get scenes described where he wasn't present. How does he know what other people were saying or doing if he wasn't around?

Worse, the story includes various intimate encounters with young women. Are we really to believe a grandfather would describe such events to his eleven-year-old grandson? Kinda creepy.

Quite obviously, the framing device was added *after* the novel was written.

My guess is that the editor insisted on it because the story itself was too implausible. "Look, with the framing device, it's now just a story told to a kid. If the boy doesn't believe the events ever really happened, then you, dear reader, can be forgiven for scoffing at the story too. And if there are plot holes and unexplained coincidences, it's just because Grandpa's memory is not so good anymore!"

Okay, but can't the reader just ignore that framing device? Sure. But you won't be able to ignore the plot holes that the framing device tries to spackle over.

Add in clumsy prose, sketchy characters and you have a novel that probably shouldn't have been resurrected.

For a better "John Lange" novel, check out Grave Descend.

If you do the autopsy, we'll have to kill you.

If you refuse to do the autopsy, we'll have to kill you.

What's a vacationing radiologist to do? Dr. Peter Ross is going to find himself very busy over the next few days, involved with so many people, he'll be lucky to make it in time for the radiologists' convention.

Zero Cool is the second John Lange novel (after Grave Descend) to be revived by Hard Case Crime, but it was actually published first originally. It is also, I think, the better-written and more entertaining of the two.

John Lange was the pseudonym for an author who later became a huge best-seller under his own name. I'll hint by saying he's an "admirable" sort of fellow (unless that's a reference too dated for modern readers), but a quick Google search will reveal all.

Events in Zero Cool pile on one another in an almost improvisatory fashion, as if Lange were simply taking dictation from a compulsive liar with A.D.D. The seemingly unplanned nature of it simply means I was unable to predict much of what happened.

Ross hops from Spain to France and back again, mostly against his will, all the while leaving behind what must be the world's most tolerant (and trusting!) girlfriend, a woman he only met days ago on the beach (portrayed in Gregory Manchess's cover painting by model Meredith Napolitano, who is cleverly shown reading a copy of Grave Descend.)

It's a lot of fun, but it's not the best-written book in the world. Its classic pulp adventure-inspired origins shine through brightly, with at least three occurrences of "And then it happened." But the fact that the author added new material for this reprinting makes it just that much more special. The new pieces, a prologue and epilogue that bring the action into the current day, make Zero Cool feel like a new book, even though it's almost 40 years old.

I'm a big fan of Lange's Grave Descend, but this book is even better.

This is the classic Hitchcock plot; ordinary guy gets caught up in a web of intrigue beyond his comprehension in 1950's Europe, principally Spain. No one is whom they seem to be, there's a beautiful woman who may be more than she seems, and event move faster and faster towards the close.

What makes this better than the average noir story is the unfolding clues and sense of mystery as the protagonist, Peter Ross comes closer to the truth. The locale descriptions are detailed and captivating. The final scenes, played out in the catacombs of the Alhambra, are quite exciting.

If you like fast paced thrillers like The Da Vinci Code, you'll like this fine reissue by Hard Case Crime a lot. They have yet another winner.

"Zero Cool" is a stripped-down thriller that moves like a high-speed train non-stop from its opening on a babe-filled beach in Barcelona to its deadly conclusion in the catacombs of the Alhambra. Dr. Peter Ross is an American radiologist on vacation in Spain who is quickly drawn into violent intrigue surrounding an ancient treasure. He finds himself in the middle of a winner-takes-all struggle between three different groups seeking a priceless artifact, none of whom will hesitate to kill him to get it. This book has everything: kidnappings, death threats, secret disguises, animal attacks, massacres, dying declarations, arson, poisoning, even an autopsy and a dwarf thrown in for good measure. It's an entertaining read, but with no depth whatsoever.

I enjoyed the book, for what it was, but you have to understand that everything takes second place to moving the story along. That makes for a fast read, but not a very satisfying one. It's like watching a movie with cardboard sets. Most of the exotic locations, including the "rain-swept streets of Paris" and the "towers of the Alhambra" are described so quickly and generically that they lack authenticity or interest. There is no back-story here; by the end of the book, we know almost nothing personal or individually important about Peter Ross or the raven-haired beauty he meets on the beach, Angela Locke. The villains, too, are one-dimensional. The dialogue is so simple at times that it feels like reading a kids' book. The author does throw in some nice twists and turns, but the plot falls back on at least one coincidence that I found dissatisfying.

So, three stars for a clever and entertaining plot, but none for depth or character development.

I have read and enjoyed almost all of the titles from Hard Case Crime; however, this one, I'm sad to say, just does not make it. Poor development of character, grade school sytax, witless plot, and rambling jibberish make this book almost impossible to finish. In fact, I just barely made it through the first quarter of the book before I had to ditch it. I almost didn't include it on the shelf with the other 42 fantastic Hard Case Crime hits. Sorry, but this one ain't worth a fraction of the paper it's scribbled on.

all the agatha raisin books are a delight to read. you just want to take a break with a cup of tea, and see what trouble she gets herself into with each new book in the series. buy them all. and now they are on CD's - of course only get unabrdiged - they are mysteries, you know

I found Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley to be a much less successful book than the earlier three books in the series. The mystery can barely qualify as one. Agatha is an unpleasant terror for much of the book (which makes for less than happy reading). The new characters are unsympathetic. The victim is particularly so.

So should you read the book? Yes, you're stuck. The book contains a lot of development in the Agatha Raisin-James Lacey relationship that will leave you high and dry if you skip Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley. Sorry.

During Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet, Agatha agreed to work in PR again in London in exchange for surreptitious help with her ruined garden. As this book opens, Agatha is finishing up her six-month stint in London at Pedmans, the firm that bought out her PR old firm. It's been an unpleasant experience and her final dinner leaves a bad taste for everyone but the client.

In Dembley (part of Gloucestershire), the cause-devoted, militant Jessica Tartinck is organizing the Dembley Walkers (a ramblers society) into another planned confrontation with a landowner who has blocked the public way while armed with a shotgun. Jessica savors the chance to make a splash. The others aren't so enthusiastic. After that meeting, her written challenge to Sir Charles Fraith is returned with an invitation to tea if the ramblers will avoid one of his fields that has been planted. Jessica's friend Deborah Camden is sent to check out the path. Jessica decides to ask permission first and captures the attention of Sir Charles who asks for her telephone number. Thoroughly charmed, Deborah recommends that they go along with Sir Charles and the other ramblers agree . . . except for Jessica who decides to challenge him on her own.

Meanwhile, Agatha returns to Carsely and finds that her handsome next-door neighbor, middle-aged bachelor James Lacey, has also been leading walks. She immediately joins the group and irritates him again by trying to organize things.

Soon thereafter, Jessica is found murdered in Sir Charles' field and a witness places Sir Charles in the vicinity. Concerned for her new friend, Deborah calls on her friendship with Mrs. Mason, head of the Carsely Ladies Society, seeks to engage Agatha to find the killer. Before long, Agatha and James are operating undercover, posing as a married couple, to penetrate the Dembley Walkers.

In the process, Agatha finds it frustrating to be pretending what she so desperately wants . . . to be Mrs. James Lacey. James, in turn, finds the whole matter even more annoying for different reasons.

Before the book ends, Agatha finds herself in a race to stop a murder.

Those who like romantic mysteries with an emphasis on "romantic" may find this book to be a four-star effort.

"Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley" is one of my favorite Agatha Raisin books. It is in this book that Agatha first meets Sir Charles, who becomes her companion and works with her on cases in later books. Agatha's roots were in working-class Birmingham, and she brought herself up by her bootstraps to own a successful PR firm in London. As a child, she had a dream that she would someday leave the grimy city and live in a Cotswold village, and that no one would know she had ever been poor and desperate. Now middle-aged, Agatha has sold her firm and bought a charming cottage, just as she dreamed. She never had friends in London, and for the first time she is making friends. She would really like her handsome, aloof next-door neighbor to be more than a friend, but he's alarmed by Agatha's prickly personality and man-hunting ways. A group of ramblers, comprised of assorted bohemians, rebels, and troublemakers, has decided to hike across some cultivated farmland belonging to Sir Charles. This is a political statement against landowners who do not honor the right for foot traffic to use ancient right-of-ways. When the strident leader of the "Walkers of Dembley" is killed in his field, Sir Charles becomes a suspect and Agatha and her neighbor James go undercover as a married couple to infiltrate the walking group. There is a lot of humor in Agatha living under the same roof as the hard-to-get James, and the new man in Agatha's life, Sir Charles, is absolutely hilarious. If you have never read an Agatha Raisin mystery before, you are in for a real treat!

I am new to the Agatha Raisin series. I have not been reading them in sequence and I am really glad I did not read this one first. I did not find this story as interesting as the others in the series that I have read. This story lacked the humor that I am accustomed to from M. C. Beaton's other books.

This story deals with class prejudice.

It is about a group of Walkers from Dembley, England more often called Ramblers in this story. This is no ordinary group of ramblers that like to ramble in the countryside. This group is described as an odd bunch of leftists who like to demand their walking rights and aggravate aristocratic landowners by trespassing on their private property. In the group are teachers, waiters, an IRA sympathizer, and a male chauvinist.

The group has a major falling out with the leader, Jessica. Jessica is a bully and Marxist sympathizer. Jessica wants the group to trespass on Sir Charles' property. The others refuse so Jessica decides to walk by herself and is found murdered. Agatha Raisin and James Lacey go undercover and discover by accident the real murderer. Unfortunately, this happens after a second member of the group is found murdered.

All the members of the walking group plus Sir Charles are prime suspects. Sir Charles is a ladies' man and has an interest in one of the ramblers, Deborah.

It is Deborah who convinces Agatha to help Sir Charles by finding the real killer so that Sir Charles would no longer be a prime suspect.

Agatha is a middle aged PR professional and amateur detective. Throughout most of the book she creates a fantasy romantic life with her neighbor James Lacey. She eagerly suggested that she and James should pose as husband and wife and infiltrate the Dembley Ramblers so they could learn more about the characters involved.

James for most of the story is indifferent towards Agatha. He likes being a bachelor. By the end of the story he draws closer to Agatha.

The walkers referred to in the title are a rather eclectic and somewhat pathetic bunch who traipse around with a chip on their shoulders just spoiling for a fight with area landowners. They seldom have any trouble finding conflict especially with their pushy, outspoken and obnoxious leader Jessica Tartinc leading the charge. As this book begins Jessica has gone too far even for her followers and she heads off to confront a local aristocrat on her own. When her body is found on said aristocrat's land the suspect list includes not only the gentry but also the walkers themselves. Because one of the walkers is the niece of Mrs. Mason, the President of the Carsely Ladies Society, and has therefore heard of Agatha and her amateur sleuthing Agatha's assistance is requested. Needless to say, this gives a big boost to Agatha's ego but by the end of the book she finds out that maybe the reference that she received wasn't nearly as complimentary as she had thought.

Much to Agatha's delight, the strategy decided upon requires her and her neighbor James Lacey to move into a flat in Dembley and pose as husband and wife in order to infiltrate the group of walkers. Agatha, who has been chasing Lacey since the first book of the series is soon dejected however because her pretend marriage just doesn't work out at all like she had planned. Unknown to her however she is much more attractive to James when she isn't trying to get her claws into him and he becomes more and more fond of her as the book progresses. This part of the plot in fact leads to a bombshell of sorts at the end of this book, which will leave the reader very anxious to get their hands on the next entry in the series.

Despite the bombshell however this is probably the least enjoyable of the first four books in this series. The mystery itself plays a much larger part in this story than in the previous books, which would at first glance appear to be a good thing. Unfortunately the mystery is not suspenseful or for that matter interesting enough to carry the plot on it's own and all of the little side plots that involve the other characters in the book fall very flat. The problem may well be that for the most part the old comfortable characters in Carsely are basically absent from this book leaving only the new characters introduced for this book and quite frankly most of these new characters are fairly wretched creatures. It is really hard to get involved in a story when most every person involved makes your skin crawl. The whole notion of a cozy mystery is sort left by the wayside when there is absolutely nothing cozy about the story or it's characters.

I am a great fan of this series and if you intend to read any of the books following this one then this is a must read because of the interaction between Agatha and James. Just don't be at all surprised if after reading this book you find that instead of feeling all warm and fuzzy, like your supposed to feel after reading a cozy mystery, you just feel numb.

Jaine Austen is a copywriter and part-time investigator. Lance, her neighbor, decides Jaine's elastic waist pants must go and gives her a makeover. He takes her to Passions, a hip boutique, where nothing fits. But she gets an interview to be the new magazine ad writer for Passions.

When Jaine arrives for her interview, she finds out that Grace no longer owns Passions. Giselle, aka Frenchie, now does, and she isn't someone Jaine wants to interact with. But she needs a job. So she arrives early one morning to pitch her ideas to Frenchie, but she finds Frenchie dead with a Jimmy Cho stiletto in her neck. There are plenty of suspects, and Jaine sets out to wade through them to find the killer.

This is one of my all-time favorite series. Jaine is such a fun character. I love the L.A. setting. The author puts plenty of humor into each book that I just devour them. Her neighbor Lance and the various other characters in this book really add to the story. The plethora of suspects provides enough red herrings to keep the reader guessing right up until the end. I highly recommend this book.

Ms. Levine has a great sense of humor. This book is a quick, fun read if you are looking for something that is completely mindless. I would have preferred to see a little more substance...to say it is the proverbial cotton candy for the brain might be assigning too much nutritional value.

"Shoes to Die For" is the fourth book in Laura Levine's Jaine Austen mystery series. I have read the prior three, but you don't need to read them in sequence. Jaine Austen is a freelance writer of business slogans, resume's, and brochures. She is single and likes it, and lives in L.A. with her cat named Prozac. When she goes in a trendy boutique to see about an advertising job, someone is murdered in the shop that night. An employee, whom Jaine likes, is accused and asks Jaine's help to exonerate her. Characters are well done and hold your interest. The plot is good. Hardly a page goes by without a laugh, or at least a smile. This is a light, fast read that keeps you turning the pages 'til the end. Good climax. I enjoy Ms. Levine's wonderful sense of humor, but I thought in this book there could have been a little more. This is one series you can count on to entertain.

This was the second Jaine Austen mystery I have read. It was very witty. I enjoyed reading about Jaine's class and her student Mr. Goldman. He is such a funny and believable character. Reading her emails from her parents are also a hilarious subplot.

The mystery was solved eventually by Jaine in the nick of time. Although the culpret was not Jaine's first choice, she eventually figured it out.

This series is refreshing and cleverly written. You will enjoy it too!

This was a fun book; it had comedy, mystery, and a little bit of everything...even made me hate a few characters, which usually doesn't happen. It's a good, funny read, with lots of twists.

Michael Jecks, one of the two best authors of English medieval murder mysteries, weighs in with this long-ish tale precipitated by the murder of a King's Messenger in the city of Exeter. Baldwin de Furnshill and Simon Puttock, the 14th Century's Holmes-and-Watson, are brought in to unravel the mystery.

Trying to make sense of the crime they uncover a conspiracy to murder the king using a necromancer's black magic. Intertwined in this are sub-plots involving a servant girl's unrequited love, the lingering after-effects of a devastating fire, in-fighting over a vacant abbacy and so on. In other words, a typical Michael Jenks potboiler!

There have been about 20+ Knights Templar mysteries and, as with the others, MALICE OF UNNATURAL DEATH is notable for its period detail, character development and puzzling mystery. At 512 pages, it's longer than most of the other titles in the series and you need to pay attention to the goings-on. I confess I had to occasionally check the 'Cast of Characters' page to make sure of who was doing what to whom but Jecks does a good job of keeping the momentum going and also of juggling the various sub-plots.

Murder mystery fans will welcome this latest outing by two beloved - and very human - characters!

Well, I guess certainly differ from the other reviewers. I found this book to be very confusing. Although I realize the author introduces several different plot threads and then pulls them together at the end, there were so many plot threads and so many characters I just couldn't keep them straight. I finally gave up and returned the book to the library, only half read.

If you like this mystery series, you will definitely enjoy this installment. It is well plotted and compelling.

This reader has long wondered how Sir Baldwin was going to continue his disdain for national politics, especially in view of his friendship with Walter Stapleton, a prominent figure in the reign of Edward II. This one goes out a bit on a limb by postiing that curse magic is real and that Bishop Walter, as well as those despicable figures, the elder and younger Despencers, and even the King himself would be the target of a well-financed attempt by a necromancer. There is all the suspense, action, and convoluted plot that we have come to expect of Mr. Jecks, and at least one guessed-at, but never quite thought though surprise. Highly recommended, as are all the series. BTW, it is best to read them in order, I have found. Start with "The Last Templar," if you haven't already.

Jecks consistantly delivers a great story. His charters blend in perfectly with the real people of the period. I have enjoyed all of his books and always look forward to the next one. He does not disapoint.

I really like P.D. James, so I think my review could be a bit biased. I have read four of her books and this is my second favorite so far. I thought the book had a couple of interesting twists, but it is really the feeling that I get when I read these books that I like. The descriptions are enough to put me in the place, but not get in the way of my vision of where we are. I also enjoy the characters, and don't feel they are over delveloped while their dialog seems truthful.

LOVED THE BOOK (AND ADAM DALGLIESH) UNTIL THE END. CONTRIVED AND TOTALLY UNSATISFYING RESOLUTION. OBVIOUSLY AN EARLY EFFORT, NOT UP TO JAMES' SUBSEQUENT NOVELS.

I haven't been a fan of P.D. James novels, and this is only my second attempt. UNNATURAL CAUSES has a very complex, but interesting plotline, some unusual eccentric characters and a strong sense of atmosphere in Ms. James' depiction of the various scenes in the novel.
Her main hero, Adam Dalgleish, is a bit of a mystery, and probably because it's my first encounter with him, not having followed along with his previous character development. The characters in the novel aren't very likeable and the murderer's identity came as somewhat of a surprise. The finale in the storm at the murderer's cottage was inventive, and James ties up the murders with a flare in the taped confession.
I don't know whether this will prompt me to read any more of Ms. James' books, but there's an obvious flair in her writing, and she does have a strong sense of characterization.

I actually found it her most enjoyable so far, Having now read them in order I was less than impressed with the first, enjoyed the second, but found this third mystery refreshing and utterly enjoyable. Dalgliesh takes a vacation, visiting his aunt whose neighbors are a variety of writers who are a hilarious collection of characters. When one of them turns up dead in a dinghy with his hands chopped off, Dalglieh becomes a reluctant participant in finding the killer among them. Witty and wonderfully written, it makes me anxious to buy the next book!

In this third mystery by P.D. James our author skirts the line of getting a bit cute--a little too wry for comfort. Realizing that she set the bar very, very high with her first two books, Ms. James seems to have retreated somewhat from focus on the mystery itself. Instead, this work is focused upon Inspector Dalgliesh; who the reader will note is destined to become one of the most well-known characters of the genre. So, not only does Dalgliesh take a bit of a vacation--so does the author.

Nevertheless, the writing is profoundly good. Inspector Dalgliesh begins to take shape in this book--his skills are evident and one learns more of his background, his likes and his dislikes. Ms. James even takes pains to prune the character back a bit. Though the mystery itself didn't get five stars, the development of Dalgliesh will pay vast dividends in future works. Like the corporations that take a charge against earnings in order to invest for the future, Ms. James' detour in "Unnatural Causes" allows her to focus uniquely upon her protagonist with results fully expected to pay rich rewards in her future installments.

Ms Miller's "Don't Look" series reminds me of the Linda Howard's "Blair Mallory" series - Tons of action, a feisty female protagonist, and a hunky but ruthless cop/hero. Claire is not nearly as silly and fluffy as Blair, but both series are really enjoyable reads.

Don't Look Now is the first book in the "Look" trilogy, but definitely not the best. It is however, a good example of how this author formulates her novels. There are always more than one story line going on which isn't bad when done properly, but it can also confuse the reader if they are not familiar with her style of writing.

Clare Westbrook is a good lawyer working for a sleezeball, who is suddenly found murdered. She has an on again/off again relationship with a sexy cop, but neither one seem to be able to stand one another more than to jump into bed together. On top of that, someone is trying to kill Clare. The only problem is that the killer is a bit stupid and doesn't seem to know the difference between what Clare looks like and the women ending up dead in her place.

There is definitely a great deal going on in this novel, and an avid reader can tell that Linda Lael Miller must be a Janet Evanovich fan. Not only does she write in first person as JE, but tends to create the same carry over with the characters romance. She just isn't as funny and the characters aren't as colorful.

The author is however, good with most of her facts. I picked up this book out of curiosity because it takes place in the Carefree/Cave Creek area of Arizona, where I grew up most of my life. I wanted to know how well the author really did know the area. Other than a few minor details, she was fairly accurate on most accounts. It was obvious though that she is new to the area, because someone living in Carefree would never admit to living in Cave Creek. The two social areas are on completely different scales. A few other misconceptions made it a little comical to me knowing the difference, but to the average reader they would never know the difference.

Is it worth buying?

I'm up in the air on this one. I actually like the second one better "Never Look Back", but you kind of have to read the first book to get a feel for the characters, and definitely before you read the conclusion "One Last Look." Alone, this book is not worth it, and honestly as a series it is only mediocre. The suspense is good though and as long as you can keep up with the plots, it is okay. Checking it out from the library or getting it on sale or at a yard sale is better than spending full price though. At least then, you won't be disappointed if you hate it.

I thought it was a great entertaining read and look forward to future books. The book was not full of the same cliches as the other romance books with only one plot. I was reminded of the stephanie plum series by Janet Evanovich.

I absolutely loved this book. I read it in 3 days. They way Linda Lael Miller is so descriptive without going overboard is great. This is the first of the 3 book series and I have already bought the second one "Never Look Back." And the 3rd one "One Last Look." I highly reccommend this series. I also like how hot Tony Sonterra is in the book.

Picked this up in the mystery section of my local library. I though LLM was a mushy romance novelist = well, she broke out here! Tension, delicious sarcasm, repartee, hunk of a hero and Clare is an angst ridden heroine.

Several different side stories kind of keep you on your toes. Set in Arizona, this was not a boring book. Emma and Beatrice are great! Tony is awesome. It has a few laughs and a pretty darn good mystery - diverting enuf that I almost didnt catch the killer until the end.

Several lawyers (Clare for one) in this book. I work with a lot like them and can recognize that "innocent until proven guilty" is so hard a concept to accept sometimes.

Am looking forward to LLM's Never Look Back, if I can find it.