Entries Tagged 'Detective or mystery' ↓
August 17th, 2008 — Books, Detective or mystery, Humorous, Romance
Fearless Fourteen continues the comic saga of Stephanie Plum and her cohorts in bond enforcement. Along the way there are the requisite crimes to solve to the tune of $9 million missing from a heist. Then add to the mix being stalked by the perpetrators who are dying one by one. Complicate it with the kidnapping of a cousin of Morelli’s, and it gets more and more crazy.
If you are a fan of this saga, you will appreciate this latest caper. So many of the characters seem like old friends — Lula, the overweight ex-’ho, who has no concept that she dresses for a woman half her size; Grandma Mazur, who is always a hoot and never acts her age; Joe Morelli, the longsuffering cop who loves Stephanie in his own way; Ranger, hot as hades; and assorted other characters who add to the zaniness — Zook who is totally absorbed in an online game until he is asked to watch Morelli’s house –saved by potatoes; Brenda, the 61 year old singer, who is being stalked by a man who claims to be prescient, then she wants to be an interviewer…
Ranger was sort of periphery in this book. He could have had more of a part. Lula is planning her wedding to Tank, who can’t quite remember how he got roped into it. Stephanie holds it all together, while at the same time she creates situations that for any other person would mean disaster.
I laughed a lot, either because it was funny or because it was so hard to believe.
I give it a 2.5. It wasn’t as good as some of her books, but it was a happy read for summer.
Karin
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July 9th, 2008 — Adoption, Books, Detective or mystery, Military, Parenting
Because I enjoyed Tess Hudson’s Double Down so well, I wanted to read this one. If you remember, Double Down was a romance about a young woman overcoming her addiction to gambling. There were some darker images in it involving uncovering a mystery about drugging a football player (her new romance) in order to predict a game.
I don’t know what I expected from Invisible Girl. Perhaps it was something psychological about a teen? It was not what I expected.
Invisible Girl’s prologue starts in the middle of the story. It unfolds in flashbacks to Vietnam and the Vietnam War, not chronological, superimposed on present day. It is very well written. I finished it pretty much in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down.
I think Hudson captures the time of the war, as well as the feeling that there are a lot of things we will never know about or that are deliberately hidden from us. She tells us that she was befriended by a Vietnam-era veteran who taught her about writing, art, and faith and showed her a side of the war she hadn’t glimpsed in the news broadcasts from her childhood.
She uses that to good advantage here. I cannot check her facts, but I can attest that she captures the feel of that time of war perfectly. And the feel of many of the returning soldiers.
She moves effortlessly from the battlefield to deep love; from rape to the babylift; from the soldiers to the highest echelons of politics and a powerful family; from the family of soldiers to the family of one of them; from the harshest of betrayals to the depths of trust and love. Along the way she mingles Catholicism and Buddhism, as Maggie’s mother covers all the bases to protect her family. She succeeds in a way not foreseen, including her own death and the solving of a puzzle from the past wherein only bits of the puzzle are held by individuals in order to afford protection to her children.
I find myself thinking if only, if only she had taken others into her confidence, others that loved her, she would be alive and reunited with her daughter.
For those who are touched by the Vietnam babylift, this book offers a small insight into the pain corruption adds to adoption. At the same time, the woman who was adopted as a baby was deeply loved by her adoptive mother (and loved her too.) There is also reunion of the half-siblings.
Additionally, it was interesting to me how the young Vietnamese woman who gave birth after being raped by an American soldier named her daughter Tam, which means heart. She felt that when she prayed to Buddha, he conceived this child through her heart on her own, not through rape. I don’t know how realistic this is, but it was very touching to me. Having biological (and adopted) children of my own, I know how deep is the mother love, and how it is very often our heart.
I give it a 5.
Karin
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July 7th, 2008 — Books, China, Detective or mystery
This is the first book I’ve read by Qiu Xiaolong, though he’s written a number of other books. I chose to read this book because the cover jumped out at me from the library — a beautiful Chinese woman, drawn from just above the mouth, rising over a city (Shanghai) — and because of the Chinese subject matter.
This is the fifth book in the Chief Inspector Chen series, according to Qui Xiaolong’s website, though he has written other books, including translations of poetry. I found I could easily pick up the stories with this book, then read the others.
He dedicates this book to his elder brother, Xiaowei –
but for luck, what happened to him during the Cultural Revolution could have happened to me.
I am privileged to know someone who was caught up in the Cultural Revolution, so this book had a secondary appeal to me.
In a way, this sets the stage for the book which moves from just before the Cultural Revolution up to the present. The book is interspersed with much Chinese poetry, heady insights into the Cultural Revolution and its costs to Chinese society, Shanghai history and Chinese culture (including the concept of ‘face’ as it plays out in the story.) It also has a couple of scenes of cruelty to animals in cooking (also befitting the story.)
Chief Inspector Chen has decided to take a vacation that coincides, fortuitously, with his being asked to investigate a corruption case that is going to court. He can’t directly say no, but he can use this time to take a literature course wherein he has to write a paper.
He doesn’t appear a lot in the first half of the book. Instead we meet the other characters, including the lawyer in the corruption case, officials, his counterpart in the force who is taking over for him while he is gone and this man’s wife who is interested in helping her husband solve the case. (Women play pivotal roles in this story.) But like a fox, he solves the case in a slow and steady way, using love poems along the way.
If you are interested in learning more about Chinese culture, this series would be for you.
Qiu Xiaolong was born in Shanghai, but now lives in St. Louis, MO. A poet and translator, he has an MA and PhD from Washington University.
The book has a feel of being translated from Chinese. By this, I mean that it is easy to slip into the world of China, because the choice of words or phrases is a bit different than a native American English speaker would choose. I’m not sure this is a deliberate literary ploy or if we are just blessed because of who is writing it.
I felt the book was as valuable for what it says about China both literally and through the story and the interactions of the characters as it was for the actual story.
If you have a Chinese child or a heart for China, you should not miss this book. It is not always easy to read (such as the scenes of cruelty in cooking and the fact that it has a feel of being translated and because you’d like to remember the cultural references) but it is very worthwhile.
I look forward to reading his other books. Have you read it?
I give it a 4.
If you would like to see the story behind the book, go here.
Karin
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June 7th, 2008 — Books, Detective or mystery
Stuart Woods has written a lot of books, nearly all of them good. They are peppered with interesting characters, a bit of humor, some cynicism, some romance, some intrigue. And some of them cross characters from one of his series into another.
Reckless Abandon has some of my favorite of his characters: Stone Barrington, ex-NYPD, now lawyer; his friend Dino, still on the force, married to a mafioso’s daughter; Holly Barker, ex-military, now police chief in Orchid Beach, FL (crossing over from her own stories — or bringing her story, because this one is her’s and bringing in Stone and Dino, take your pick). Throw in Lance, who is CIA and recruits both Stone and Holly, and Holly’s ex-sometime-lover who is FBI, and you have a story with a lot of twists and turns. Factor in Herbie, the audacious photographer, Ham (Holly’s dad) and other assorted characters and you get the ridiculous with the sublime.
The setting moves from NYC to Orchid Beach to Santa Fe to NYC, including the dinners at Elaine’s and other assorted restaurants, all on a hunt for a killer with mafia roots. Holly, along with her trusty attack dog, Daisy, is determined to bring him to justice, dead or alive. Along the way, she and Stone are nearly killed. But you know they will survive to see another day.
There’s not a lot of gore. There’s honor among thieves (thankfully for Stone and Holly.) Bad things happen to bad people who did bad things to good people.
Have you read any of his books? I read them as I find them, not always in order, but the books give enough detail to pick up stories that have occurred before. Holly’s fiance (in another book) was killed in a bank robbery the day they were to marry. A cult is involved and she has yet to catch the cult leader. There’s always another book. That’s a good thing!
I like the series, so I give it a 4.
Karin
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May 16th, 2008 — Books, Detective or mystery
While perusing the new book section of our local library, I came across a new (to me) author/book series by Felicia Donovan The Black Widow Agency (Black Widow Agency Mysteries).
In a way, it reminds me of The First Wives Club, but it has the added twist of being a mystery series.
The main characters who make up the agency are all interesting and diverse. Each of them has a back story, but we don’t get the full story on at least one of them. The author is a recognized expert in the field of law enforcement techniques including the recovery of computer files, enhancement of photos, assisting the FBI, and providing technical advice about cyber crimes. She makes use of her background and knowledge in the book. I’m not always sure if it is currently possible or soon-to-be possible. Nevertheless, I found it entertaining and informational.
Have you read it?
Her new book Spun Tales is coming out shortly and I look forward to it also.
Karin
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