Maisie Dobbs

Maisie Dobbs

Author: Jacqueline Winspear

Publisher: Penguin (2004)

ISBN: 0142004332

pages: 320

genre: Mystery

3 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Private detective Maisie Dobbs must investigate the reappearance of a dead man who turns up at a cooperative farm called the Retreat that caters to men who are recovering their health after World War I.

Summary: "She started as a maid in an aristocratic London household when she was thirteen. Her employer, Lady Rowan Compton, a suffragette, took the remarkably bright youngster under her wing and became her patron, aided by Maurice Blanche, a friend often retained as an investigator by the elite of Europe. It was he who first recognized Maisie's intuitive gifts and helped her to earn admission to prestigious Girton College at Cambridge where Maisie planned to complete her education."

"The outbreak of war changed everything. Maisie trained as a nurse, then left for France to serve at the Front, where she found - and lost - an important part of herself." Ten years after the Armistice, in the spring of 1929, Maisie sets up on her own as a private investigator, one who has learned that coincidences are meaningful, and truth elusive.

Her very first case involves suspected infidelity but reveals something very different. In the aftermath of the Great War, a former officer has founded a convalescent refuge for those grievously wounded, ex-soldiers too shattered to resume normal life. It is a working farm known as The Retreat. When Fate brings Maisie a second case involving The Retreat she must confront the ghost that has haunted her for over ten years. (www.goodreads.com)

Evaluation: Maisie Dobbs was a big hit in my Reader's Advisory class, but personally I did not love it. The mystery part of the book was okay. But the ending really bothered me; it bothered me enough that I did not much care for the book. When Maisie goes to visit her ex-finance I was surprised to realize he was alive and had been alive in the hospital/nursing home for nearly ten years now since the end of the war. I do not know that Maisie owed him anything, per se, but I was still diappointed in her.

Read-a-likes:

Murder in the Marais by Cara Black

Maisie Dobbs Series

1- Maisie Dobbs

2- Birds of a Feather

3- Pardonable Lies

4-Messenger of Truth

5- An Incomplete Revenge

6- Among the Mad

7- The Mapping of Love and Death

Naked in Death

Naked in Death

Author: J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts)

Publisher: Berkley (1995)

ISBN: 0425220184

pages: 306

genre: romance

subgenre: mystery

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Eve Dallas, a New York police lieutenant, is in over her head when she breaks the rules and falls in love with a suspect in her most recent case.

Summary: As NYPD Lt. Eve Dallas races to find a serial killer, she becomes very involved with one of the suspects. Her overpowering feelings for a man she barely knows could jeopardize her investigation, her faith in herself--and her life. J.D. Robb is the pseudonym for bestselling author Nora Roberts. (www.goodreads.com)

Evaluation: LOVED, LOVED this book. The mystery part was interesting but the romance is what sold me. The relationship between the two main characters was sizzling! I am so happy that there are so many books in this series. I already have two on hold at the library to read over Christmas break when my class is over. I have also been recommended this book to everyone.

Author Read-a-likes:

Julie Garwood

Laurell K Hamilton

Linda Howard

Lisa Gardner

Suzanne Brockmann

In Death Series:

There are over 30 books in the In Death series by JD Robb. Here is a great quick reference link to the series listing the books in order.

Bury the Lead

Bury the Lead

Author: David Rosenfelt

Publisher: Warner Book (2004)

ISBN: 089286782X

pages: 261

Genre: mystery

Subgenre: defense attorney

3 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Andy Carpenter's friend, a newspaper owner, asks Andy to represent and protect his star reporter after being arrested as a serial killer.

Summary: Andy Carpenter is a defense attorney who has recently inherited $22 million dollars so he actually no longer needs to work. He has not changed his lifestyle and comes across as your average Joe (or Andy, for that matter.) Vince is a friend of Andy’s and he owns the local newspaper. Vince calls Andy and asks him to defend his star reporter Daniel. Daniel has been receiving phone calls from a serial killer. The killer calls Daniel after every murder and gives him information and details about the murder. Daniel is relishing his time in the spotlight. Unfortunately things back fire and Daniel is soon arrested for the serial killings.

Andy signed onto the job even before Daniel was arrested. So now Andy has a client with several murder charges on his head. Andy and his coworkers have to find a connection between the four female victims and then find a way to prove Daniel’s innocence, if he is, in fact, innocent which appears at this point to be debatable.

I don’t want to give any more of the mystery away but suffice to say it is an interesting read, will keep you guessing and has some nice twists and surprises at the end. So go read the book!

Evaluation: This is book 3 in a series of 8 books about the defense attorney Andy Carpenter. I did not realize this was book 3 when I was reading it. It actually stood alone just fine, but I really prefer to read series in order. So I was a bit disappointed that I had not realized that before I got started. I do think I will go back and read the whole series starting with number one.

The main draw of this book is the sense of humor. It has a dry, understated, occasionally sarcastic wit. Here is one such example: “As soon as I walk in, the woman gives me the eye. This is not quite as promising a situation as it sounds. First of all, I’m in a Laundromat. Also, the woman giving me this particular eye is not exactly a supermodel. To totally close off any romantic possibilities in this encounter, I remain in love with, and totally faithful to, one Laurie Collins. So no matter how this round stranger tries to tempt me, I’m not about to engage in an early evening bout of tawdry Laundromat sex” (pg. 2). The only problem with this type of humor is the reader really needs to be in the mood for it. And unfortunately, I was not in the mood while reading this book. I believe this probably colored my opinion of the book rather negatively.

On the other hand, this book is a great escape book. It is quick and easy to read. The sentence structure is simple and basic allowing for the plot to run the show. I was not able to solve the mystery before the end of the book but I still thought the ending was plausible. A nice, easy mystery read.

More books to read:

The Andy Carpenter series

1-Open and Shut

2-First Degree

3-Bury the Lead

4-Sudden Death

5-Dead Center

6-Play Dead

7-New Tricks

8-Dog Tags

The Blue Edge of Midnight

The Blue Edge of Midnight

Author: Jonathon King

Publisher: Penguin (2002)

ISBN: 0525946438

pages: 259

Genre: mystery

Subgenre: ex-police officer

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Max Freeman, an ex-police officer, is unwittingly pulled into an investigation to find a child serial killer.

Summary: Max Freeman was a police officer in Philadelphia, but that all changed three years ago when he shot and killed a twelve-year-old boy in self-defense during a shoot-out. Freeman found himself unable to continue on as a policeman. After being paid a nice settlement he moved to Florida. He now lives in solitude in the middle of the Everglades trying to fight the demons in his head.

Suddenly, Freeman's solitude is broken when he is thrust into the middle of an investigation for a child serial killer. Freeman discovers the third child's body in the river by his house. As much as Freeman wants to be uninvolved it becomes no longer possible. The old time inhabitants of the Everglades are suspicious of him as an outsider. And the law and the FBI are also suspicious of his involvement as a possible suspect.

Freeman finds it necessary to track and discover the murderer himself.

Evaluation: Interestingly enough my favorite part about this book was its bleakness and darkness. There is just something attractive about a man with a past full of demons. Here is a great paragraph from the beginning of the book.

“I settled into the stern seat and pulled six or seven strokes to get upstream from the falls and then readied myself. The mile from my stilted shack had just been a warm-up. Now I’d get into the heavy work that had become my nightly ritual. This time of year in South Florida, high summer when the afternoon rains came like a rhythm, this ancient river to the Everglades spread its banks into the cypress and sabal palms and flooded the saw grass and pond apple trees until the place looked more like a drowning forest than a tributary. It was also the time of year when a man with a head full of sour memories could power a canoe up the river’s middle and muscle and sweat through yet another impossible night.” (pg. 2). The whole book has this same brooding, intense mood.

My one concern was discovering that the murdered victims were children. I have a very difficult time with any crimes against children and with sexual crimes against woman. But this book handled the murders tastefully and briefly. The murders were not the focus of the story. Freeman and the serial killer and the thought process behind the murders were the main focus of the plot.

More books to read:

There are 5 books in the Max Freeman series by Jonathon King.

1-The Blue Edge of Midnight

2-A Visible Darkness

3-Shadow Men

4-A Killing Night

5-Acts of Nature

Final Appeal

Final Appeal
Author: Lisa Scott
Publisher: HarperCollins (1994)
ISBN: 0061042943
pages: 336

genre: mystery
subgenre: legal thrillers

3.5 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Overwhelmed by her divorce, an affair with her boss, and a volatile assignment, lawyer Grace Rossi finds herself investigating a murder case involving judicial corruption.

Summary: Following her stunning debut novel, Everywhere That Mary Went, Scottoline's Final Appeal is another deliciously witty legal thriller. Grace is a divorced lawyer who's starting over with a part-time job in a federal appeals court. When the judge with whom she's having an affair turns up dead, Grace finds herself investigating a murder. (www.goodreads.com)

Evaluation: Final Appeal was an enjoyable read but definitely not my favorite mystery. There was just a hint of a romance begin to blosom and then one of those characters was killed. I think that is when I got annoyed with the book. It was still a fun read but I have read other mysteries that I enjoyed more.

More books to read:
Rosato and Associates series
1-Everywhere that Mary Went
2-Final Appeal
3-Running from the Law
4-Legal Tender
5-Rough Justice
6-Mistaken Identity
7-Moment of Truth
8-The Vendetta Defense
9-Courting Trouble
10-Dead Ringer
11-Killer Smile
12-Lady Killer

Bootlegger's Daughter

Bootlegger's Daughter

Author: Margaret Maron

Publisher: Warner Books (1992)

ISBN: 0446403237

pages: 261

genre: mystery

subgenre: lawyer detectives

3 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Attorney Deborah Knott decides to run for district judge while also solving an eighteen-year-old murder.

Summary: This first novel in Maron's Imperfect series, which won the Edgar Award for best mystery novel in 1993, introduces heroine Deborah Knott, an attorney and the daughter of an infamous North Carolina bootlegger. Known for her knowledge of the region's past and popular with the locals, Deb is asked by 18-year-old Gayle Whitehead to investigate the unsolved murder of her mother Janie, who died when Gayle was an infant. While visiting the owner of the property where Janie's body was found, Deb learns of Janie's more-than-promiscuous past. Piecing together lost clues and buried secrets Deb is introduced to Janie's darker side, but it's not until another murder occurs that she uncovers the truth. (www.goodreads.com)

Evaluation: This book had many interesting and varied characters. All the different types of people was my favorite part of this book. I did not love Deborah, the main character, but enjoyed all the secondary characters. It was fast paced and interesting. So altogether a nice, quick mystery read.

Read-a-likes:

Smallbone Deceased by Michael Francis Gilbert

Cause and Effect by Ralph McInerny

When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson

The Sourdough Wars by Julie Smith

Goodnight, Irene

Goodnight, Irene

Author: Jan Burke

Publisher: Simon & Schuster (1993)

ISBN: 0743444515

pages: 351

Genre: Mystery

Subgenre: amateur detective

3 (out of 5) STARS

Annotation: Reporter Irene Kelly uncovers more information about the identity of a dismembered woman found thirty-five years ago.

Summary: Irene Kelly’s best friend and father figure, O’Connor, is killed by a bomb which someone planted on his front porch. Because Kelly desires to solve the mystery of his death, she seeks to fill O’Connor’s now vacant job at the newspaper. At first, she believes the murder may be related to political matters, as O’Connor covers all the local politicians and elections. However, after more deaths, danger and clues, Kelly is lead to believe the current crimes have to do with the dismembered remains of a young woman that was found under the Las Piernas pier thirty five years ago.

Evaluation: The book Goodnight Irene has a great female protagonist. She is clever and witty and quite interesting. For example, “’Irene,’ he said, ‘do you know what the two saddest words in the English language are?’ ‘Boo and Hoo?’ I had guessed. ‘No, wise-ass. The two saddest words in the English language are ‘if only.’” (pg. 161). There are little bits of wisdom sprinkled throughout the book that Irene addresses with flair.

Another enjoyable aspect of this book is humorous dialogue. Irene and a police officer named Pete banter throughout the book. It is usually a good enough banter that it is difficult to tell if they are friends or if they actually hate each other. “’Hey, don’t dish it out if you can’t take it.’ ‘All right, all right, I get you. How ‘bout we make a pact-we’ll avoid the subject of – for want of a better term, I’ll say ‘romantic interests’?” (pg. 207).

The only aspect of the book that I did not like was how there were so much near death experiences. Irene Kelly was nearly killed about six times in one week. This seemed a bit far-fetched to me. However, this may just be part of the mystery genre and not unusual to this book.

Readalikes:

‘A’ is for Alibi by Sue Grafton
A Trouble of Fools by Linda Barnes
One for the Money by Janet Evonovich
Hardball by Barbara D’Amato
The Miracle Strip by Nancy Bartholomew