Contemporary Mysteries and Thrillers

Contemporary mysteries and thrillers ranging from the mid 1900s (plus or minus) to the present time

Review of Murder in the Basement by Anthony Berkeley – recently e-published

I really liked the first half, but the second half, not so much… Murder in the Basement is the eighth in Anthony Berkeley’s Roger Sheringham series.   Originally published in the 1930s, it recently has been e-published by Poisoned Pen Press as part of their British Library Crime Classics series, and I received a review copy […]

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A review of So Shall You Reap by Donna Leon – coming in March 2023

Brunetti is still as awesome as ever… It’s hard to believe that Donna Leon has been writing her Guido Brunetti series since the early 1990s, and although there’s a little bit of variability from title to title (some stand out a little more than others), I’ve read each and every one, and all are excellent.  

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Review of Murder at Black Oaks by Phillip Margolin – coming soon

An unusual mix of legal thriller and Golden Age atmosphere… I hadn’t read any books by Phillip Margolin before receiving a review copy of Murder at Black Oaks, and I was surprised to find that he is the author of several mystery series, including this one, which features Robin Lockwood as the protagonist. But my

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The Well of Ice by Andrea Carter – a review

A nice addition to an enjoyable series…. The Well of Ice is the third entry in Andrea Carter’s Inishowen series.   In it, Carter returns to the same small town, Glendara; and the same cast of characters, including solicitor Benedicta “Ben” O’Keefe and local police Sergeant Tom Molloy; that have made the first two books so

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Review of Round Up the Usual Peacocks by Donna Andrews – recently published

Peacocks and weddings and some not-so-cold crime… The Meg Langslow series is one of a very few series that I have to read by myself, because I end up unexpectedly laughing out loud at least a couple of times in every book – and often more than a couple!  And in Round Up the Usual

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Review of To Kill a Troubadour by Martin Walker – out tomorrow

A not-so-cozy mystery in a wonderfully cozy setting… In his fifteenth full-length Bruno mystery, coming out tomorrow, Martin Walker has created a wonderful mix of crime investigation, scrumptious food, Périgordian history, Bruno’s friends and colleagues, and of course, Bruno himself.    And readers also get a healthy dose of Bruno’s basset hound, Balzac, and Balzac’s adorable

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A review of Cold Cold Bones by Kathy Reichs, coming in early July

A solid and enjoyable investigative procedural – except for the ever-present chapter cliff-hangers… I am a late-comer to the Temperance Brennan series by Kathy Reichs, having read only this book, and the book preceding this one in the series.   (See my review of The Bone Code here.)  Like the previous book, Cold Cold Bones was

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