Twists and Turns Make a Can't-Put-It-Down Thriller

THE SECRETS WE SHARE

Edwin Hill

Kensington Books

March 29, 2022

Sisters Natalie Cavanaugh and Glenn Abbott could not be more different. Natalie is a 40-something Boston detective, and Glenn is a food blogger who is on the cusp of significant success with a book coming out in a few days. Loner Natalie passes out every night from drinking too much and seems to have no one who cares about her other than her mentee on the force, Zane Perez, and her sister. Glenn appears to have everything in control, with her husband Jake and 12-year-old daughter, Mavis. There is a lot of trouble in Glenn's paradise, however.

The secrets that the two sisters share go back to the murder of their father years earlier. Alan Cavanaugh was murdered in the woods behind their house in suburban Boston. It appears that he was murdered by their next-door neighbor, who had an affair with him. She even confessed to it before killing herself. As a result, her two children were broken up and sent into the foster system. Natalie and Glenn were never separated, but many townspeople still believed that their mother, Ruth, was actually guilty. All the disparate threads of the murder of Alan come back to haunt them. 

Hester Thursby, librarian and researcher extraordinaire, and her veterinarian husband, Morgan make a brief appearance (along with their daughter, Kate, and various assorted canines). Their friend, Detective Angela White, is prominently present, who takes the investigation away from Natalie when Glenn's daughter Mavis discovers a grotesquely murdered body in an abandoned warehouse. All the clues seem to point back to that earlier murder of Alan Cavanaugh. The Secrets We Share is Hill's best work, full of head-spinning twists and turns that kept me up late. When the final solution to the puzzle was revealed, I was astonished. Hill's portrayal of Mavis, intelligent, focused, and fierce, placed in considerable danger, is also a stand-out.

I highly recommend The Secrets We Share. Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

5 Stars

More fun with Veronica and Stoker

 AN IMPOSSIBLE IMPOSTOR

 Veronica Speedwell #7

 Deanna Raybourn

 Berkley Books

 February 15, 2022

Veronica and Stoker have just returned from their adventures in the tiny principality of Alpenwold and are hoping to resume their work on Lord Rosmorran’s ever-growing collection.

Soon after their arrival, they have a visit from Sir Hugh Montgomerie, head of the Special Branch of Scotland Yard and sometimes right-hand man to the Queen. Sir Hugh has a favor to ask, that Stoker and Veronica visit a family of his long acquaintance. The Hathaway family has thought for years that the heir, Jonathan Hathaway, was killed in the catastrophic eruption of Krakatoa, but a man purporting to be him has returned. Veronica was with Hathaway and another man on the ill-fated expedition. Veronica has always believed that both were killed. Sir Hugh also wants them to check on the well-being of Euphemia “Effie” Hathaway, his god-daughter. He sweetens the deal for Stoker with a promise that there might be a specimen of a “Tasmanian Tiger” at Hathaway Hall and butterflies for Veronica.

Upon arrival, they find a household in turmoil, a miserable Effie, a managing and social-climbing wife to Charles Hathaway, the younger brother to Jonathan, and the estate’s present owner. There is also a dragon of a mother-in-law. Upon introduction to “Jonathan,” Veronica gets the surprise of her life, and so does the reader! The secret of his identity is one she can’t reveal, especially to Stoker. It’s hard to believe that Veronica was ever a romantic fool, but everyone is young once.

An Impossible Impostor is full of chases, kidnappings, escapes, stolen Indian jewels, supernatural happenings, and threats to life and limb. Of course, one has come to expect all that from a Veronica Speedwell novel. The Impossible Impostor himself is just that, impossible indeed. There is the introduction of a new villainess, one I would expect to see again. Isabel MacGregor is not the type to be forgiving when thwarted. The novel ends with a bit of a cliff-hanger, but it only whets the appetite for the next book in the series.

 

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

RATING- 5 Stars

 

Profane, Blackly Funny and a Must-Read

 

THE TORQUED MAN

Peter Mann

Harper Publishing

January 11, 2022

When I began reading The Torqued Man, I was unsure whether it would be for me, as espionage is not my usual genre. However, I do have an enduring interest in the WWII era. The Torqued Man is in two journals, one by Adrian De Groot, a minor functionary in the Nazi Party intelligence agency and a translator. Adrian comes from an impoverished family of merchants but has the advantage of a good education. Not aligned with Nazi Party politics or philosophy, De Groot hopes to keep his head down and survive. He is also used to recruit agents to infiltrate Ireland and build sentiment for a German invasion. He recruits Frank Pike (also known as Finn), a rabble-rousing IRA fighter. After becoming disenchanted with current IRA leadership, Pike joins the International Brigades and lands in one of Franco's infamous Spanish prisons. From Pike's viewpoint, Adrian's offer is a life-saver. Pike is a riotous, completely undisciplined person whose veracity cannot be trusted on any level. De Groot and Pike are unreliable narrators on an epic scale and become irretrievably entwined as the Reich falls.

The Torqued Man is a "can't put it down" adventure story of one of the most destructive eras of world history and an exploration of the human heart. It is blackly funny, profane, and entirely unexpected with characters, even minor ones, who jump off the page. It is also replete with literary allusion and, in my opinion, impeccably researched. I have always wondered how Germany went so off the rails. One can't ignore the connections to our era. If you put the worst of society, unscrupulous, immoral, ignorant, and steeped in racial animus, in charge of the house, don't be surprised when the roof falls in.

I can't imagine that The Torqued Man will not be one of the top books of my reading year. Thanks to Harper and NetGalley for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

RATING- 5 Stars

Updated Collection of Phryne Fisher Stories for 2022

 

THE LADY WITH THE GUN ASKS THE QUESTIONS

Phryne Fisher Collection

Kerry Greenwood

Poisoned Pen Press

May 17, 2022

I am a fan of the Miss Fisher series with the incomparable Essie Davis in the title role. But, I had only read a few of the books, so this collection was a delight. Even more so was the introduction describing how Phryne sprang into being. There are four new stories in the group, and some others have been edited. They were all new to me. I can't say which stories were better than others. Still, I can point out a couple of my favorites: Death Shall Be Dead, in which Phryne shows her innate kindness by finding a home for the old dog of a murdered man. Marrying the Bookie's Daughter, in which she thwarts the revenge of a jilted young woman by getting her a more profitable one, is another favorite.

I highly recommend The Lady with the Gun Asks the Questions for fans of Miss Fisher, both old and new. Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

RATING- 5 Stars

A New Detective Inspector Comes to Town

 

 PIGNON SCORBION & THE BARBERSHOP DETECTIVES

 Rick Bleiweiss

 SoHo Crime

 February 8, 2022

The quiet town of Haxford, England, has a new Chief Detective Inspector. It’s 1910, only a few years before the upheaval of WWI will change England forever, and sleepy Haxford is much as it has been for centuries. So the Inspector, Pignon Scorbion,  causes quite a stir in the town with his odd name, uncertain origins, and dapper attire. Good Heavens, two-tone shoes! The Inspector does have one friend in the city, however. The proprietor of the local barbershop is an old friend, and Scorbion quickly makes the shop his unofficial headquarters. The employees and patrons are happy to provide him with the local background. Scorbion quickly immerses himself in three cases, the first being a young man presenting himself as the heir to a wealthy landowner, though illegitimate. The second case is a stolen pig, and the third is murder. The issues seem unrelated, but as Scorbion interviews the principals, he suspects a connection. Helping him with his interviews are the denizens of the barbershop and the brilliant and attractive Thelma Smith. Scorbion is wary of any involvement, having suffered an unhappy marriage, but Thelma might change his mind.

Pignon Scorbion & The Barbershop Detective is very much a homage to Agatha Christies Poirot, and Conan Doyles Sherlock Holmes, written in the sort of Edwardian English one would expect from them. Rick Bleiweiss has added quirky characters and charm to the mix.

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

RATING-4 Stars

 

Rockton Comes To An End (or does it?)

 

 THE DEEPEST OF SECRETS

 Rockton # 7

 Kelley Armstrong

 St. Martins Minotaur

 February 15, 2022

Kelley Armstrong is one of those authors who seems to be able to write in any genre and provide a suspenseful, imaginative, and action-packed experience for the reader. Nowhere has her ability been more evident than in her seven-book Rockton series. Rockton is a village in the Canadian Yukon, established to be deliberately off the grid, invisible to even overhead air traffic. The town was founded decades ago as a refuge for people on the run from abuse or victimhood, primarily political persecution. Governed by the shadowy "council," it has slowly devolved into a money-maker. Once for only non-violent people, the council has gradually allowed violent criminals in for vast sums. The changes are no secret to Sherriff Eric Dalton and his Deputy, Casey Duncan. Casey came to Rockton, running from her problems, but Eric was born there. It also is clear that the council is closing the town down. They just aren't saying so.

Secrets are the essential currency in Rockton. The residents promise never to divulge the reasons why they are there. But when the history of another deputy's presence is revealed very publicly, things begin to fall apart. Everyone wonders what other secrets are hiding and trust, never much in evidence, disappears completely. Eric and Casey must find out who revealed it and why. When they do, the person is nearly dead. Rockton has a desperate resident willing to do anything to hide his secrets.

The Deepest of Secrets brings the Rockton series to an end, at least in its present form. Eric and Casey are well-developed characters, as are others who have been front and center in the series. I will be sorry to see them go. One thing I am sure of is that Kelley Armstrong has more exciting stories to tell.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Minotaur for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

RATING- 4 Stars

 

Crime Short Stories from a Master

 READER, I BURIED THEM and other stories

Peter Lovesey

SoHo Crime

February 1, 2022

My first question was, "Who could resist that title?" and with Peter Lovesey as the author, who would want to? Peter Lovesey has had a long and distinguished career as a crime novelist, telling stories in the classic puzzle vein. I am a great fan of his contemporary series, set in Bath and featuring the overweight, irascible Peter Diamond. I was unaware of his Victorian series and many short stories.

The stories in Reader, I Buried Them include characters both high and low-born, rich and poor, good and evil, and those caught in situations, not of their making. I found And The Band Played On heart-wrenching and The Homicidal Hat hilarious. Each of the stories is a small gem, many with a touch of macabre humor. Anyone who knows Peter Lovesey's work will be delighted by this collection, and those who aren't familiar will have a pleasant introduction.

Thanks to SoHo Crime, NetGalley, and Mystery and Suspense Magazine for an advance digital copy.

RATING- 4 Stars