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"Irony comes in many flavours, sweet to bitter. The harshest irony I ever tasted was this: when I was interrupted that spring morning, I felt only relief. But then, tyres on wet gravel sound nothing like the crack of doom." ~ from Laurie R. King's The Murder of Mary Russell
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| Death of a Nurse by M.C. BeatonCozy Mystery. In the picturesque Scottish Highlands village of Lochdubh, constable Hamish MacBeth discovers that old Mr. Harrison has a lovely new nurse. He asks her to dinner, but she doesn't show...and several days later her body's discovered on the beach. His police superiors take over, but smart-yet-unambitious Hamish also investigates the murder -- however, he has to make sure that he doesn't end up with a promotion, which would force him to move to the city. Helping him is his new policeman partner, who becomes fast friends with Hamish's ex-fiancée and her father. Death of a Nurse is the 31st entry in this popular series; readers looking for other witty cozies set in Britain can try G.M. Malliet's Max Tudor mysteries. |
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| I'm Traveling Alone by Samuel BjørkMystery. An abducted six-year-old girl has been found dressed in doll clothes and hanging in a Norwegian forest wearing a sign that reads "I'm traveling alone." To solve the case, veteran homicide detective and doting grandfather Holger Munch needs the help of a former member of his team, Mia Krüger, an excellent young profiler who's suicidal after killing the man she blames for her twin's death (it's complicated). With fragile Mia reluctantly on board, Munch restarts Oslo's Violent Crime Unit since Mia is adamant the killer will strike again. When other girls go missing, the tight-knit team follows leads involving an earlier infant abduction and a religious cult. Fans of Norwegian authors Jo Nesbø, Karin Fossum, and Anne Holt should appreciate this compelling, cleverly plotted offering from their fellow countryman. |
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| Thursday's Children: A Frieda Klein Mystery by Nicci FrenchMystery. Frieda Klein, a London psychotherapist with plenty of her own issues, is surprised when she hears from a former classmate: the two women had never been friends, and Frieda hasn't visited her hometown in two decades. It turns out the woman wants help with her anxious 15-year-old daughter, Becky, who's stopped eating. Frieda sees Becky and learns that, a month earlier, she was raped in her own bedroom by a masked night-time intruder. Though many don't believe Becky, Frieda does, because it's exactly what happened to her when she was a teenager in the same town. As sex crimes escalate to murder, Frieda returns to Suffolk to face her past and a cunning killer. |
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| When Falcons Fall: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery by C.S. HarrisHistorical Mystery. In 1813 England, Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is in a Shropshire village to visit the relative of a deceased friend and to learn more about his own confused ancestry. But when an inexperienced magistrate asks for his help after a young widow visiting the town dies, St. Cyr and his intelligent wife, Hero, discover that the beautiful victim was living under an assumed identity, that the village is full of secrets, and that Lucien Bonaparte (yes, Napoleon's brother) is in town. Like the earlier books, this nicely plotted 11th St. Cyr mystery should please fans of richly detailed, well-researched historical tales. |
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| Honky Tonk Samurai: A Hap and Leonard Novel by Joe R. LansdaleMystery. Hap, a working-class white man who's done time in prison, and his best friend Leonard, a gay African American Vietnam vet with an anger problem, work as investigators for a small East Texas PI firm. But since their boss has taken a job as the new sheriff, they are out of work in their 11th outing. Thankfully, Hap's girlfriend steps in, buys the detective agency from the sheriff, and sets them to work. Their first case for her? Find a tough-as-nails granny's missing adult granddaughter. Wish you could see these guys on the small screen? You're in luck: Sundance TV's Hap and Leonard premiered in March. Those who want another gritty series with crackling banter, wicked humor, and quirky characters should try Rick Gavin's Nick Reid novels, starting with Ranchero. |
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| Blood of the Oak: A Novel by Eliot PattisonHistorical Mystery. Colonial America in 1765 is a place full of danger and anger as colonists make their first movements toward freedom. Amidst the Stamp Tax dissent, Scotsman Duncan McCallum is called to the deathbed of a highly respected Iroquois woman. She tells him about her dead grandson, whom she believes was murdered, a stolen Iroquois artifact, and a dream she had in which McCallum and his Nipmuc Indian best friend bring the artifact back. But before McCallum even reaches home, he discovers a dead Oneida Indian, and he knows more blood will be shed before he figures out what's going on. Booklist calls this atmospheric, authentic 4th in the Bone Rattler mysteries "historical mystery at its best." |
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If You Like: Laurie R. King's Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes
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Known for her elegant prose and fascinating characters (particularly intelligent female ones), Laurie R. King writes the acclaimed Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes historical mysteries. Readers who enjoy compelling, well-plotted whodunnits with a strong sense of place will want to read King if you haven't already. To follow the development of Russell and Holmes' relationship, start with the excellent 1st book, The Beekeeper's Apprentice. If you're on the hold list for King's newest Russell/Holmes novel, the provocatively titled The Murder of Mary Russell, check out one of the selections below.
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| The House of Silk: A Sherlock Holmes Novel by Anthony HorowitzHistorical Mystery. In addition to reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original works, fans of Laurie R. King's Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes books can check out any number of Holmes pastiches -- but those looking for a compelling, pitch-perfect read will certainly want to pick up this book since "Horowitz gets everything right" (Publishers Weekly). A year after Holmes's (real) death, an elderly Watson finally writes the story that was "too monstrous, too shocking" to appear in print before. The story takes place in November 1890 when a London fine art dealer hires Holmes to figure out why an Irish-American criminal is harassing him. As Holmes soon discovers, the case is linked to another horribly disturbing one. |
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| Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth PetersHistorical Mystery. Crocodile on the Sandbank, set in 1884 and the 1st in a beloved series, introduces independent 32-year-old Amelia Peabody, who has no intention of ever getting married. While traveling, she befriends a forlorn young woman, Evelyn, whose lover has left her. The two make their way to Egypt, where they meet the Emerson brothers (an archaeologist and philologist), face kidnappers, and deal with a mummy who walks. Though Amelia and Radcliffe Emerson have a rough introduction (he believes she is the "rampageous British female at her clumsiest and most arrogant" and she calls him "swaggering, loud, certain of his own superiority"), working together draws them together. Amusing, richly detailed, and with a smart, resourceful heroine at its center, the delightful Amelia Peabody novels are a good choice for readers of Laurie R. King. |
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| Have His Carcase: A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery with Harriet Vane by Dorothy L. SayersClassic Mystery. When mystery writer Harriet Vane, the unrequited object of Lord Peter Wimsey's affections, stumbles upon a body while walking on a beach, Lord Peter shows up to help her deal with the fallout (she has been accused of murder before). As the two investigate, they get to know each other better even as they draw closer to a killer. Though this is the 7th in the Lord Peter Wimsey series, it is the 2nd book to feature Harriet (the 1st is Strong Poison). Harriet, like Laurie R. King's Mary Russell, is a strong, Oxford-educated female character whose romantic relationship with a talented detective develops over the course of several well-researched mysteries. |
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| Maisie Dobbs: A Novel by Jacqueline WinspearHistorical Mystery. In her 1st outing, Maisie Dobbs -- a former housemaid turned Cambridge student turned World War I nurse -- starts a one-woman detective agency in 1929 London. The first of her "discreet investigations" involves what initially appears to be a simple case of marital infidelity, but quickly develops into something more complex and sinister when she discovers that a convalescent home for soldiers may not be what it seems. Readers who enjoy the 1920s and 1930s English setting of the early Mary Russell mysteries might want to check out the Maisie Dobbs books, which also take place then and there; additionally, both series feature courageous, intelligent heroines. |
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