I finished one more book since my Friday entry and that will be the last book in March. I'll do my monthly update next time. For this post, I'll update my current reading and then I'll continue with my 11th entry on the American PI sub-genre.
Just Finished
"Phineas Finn is the second book in the Palliser series by Victorian author, Anthony Trollope. As simply put as possible, the story follows young Irish lawyer, Phineas Finn, as he arrives in London, finishes his legal education and decides to run for Parliament.
He arrives with no money other than his father's allowance, no prospects and no love life. He has left behind Mary Flood Jones, who loves him, but who Phineas feels he can't yet offer any sort of life. Thus begins Phineas's journey in London, a journey of romance(s), of life in government and of his rise up the ladder and then, well, I won't ruin how it ends.
Call it a Victorian soap opera, but an interesting one for sure. We do get some people crossing over from the first book, namely my favorite character Lady Glencora Palliser, but for the most part, this story is filled with new personages. You have, of course, Phineas, but also those people who he meets and gains friendship with from his days in government; Barrington Erle, Mr. Monk, Lord Brentford, etc. We also meet those women whose paths Phineas crosses throughout the story, Lady Laura, Violet Effingham and the lovely Madame Goesler (my favorite).
There is much more politics in this story which adds to the interest. Personally, Finn's dealings with the Canada 'issue' definitely added to my interest, being Canadian and all. :0) But of course, there is romance, attempts, failures, duels, etc. It's a long story, but all the same a very interesting one. Anthony Trollope isn't a George Eliot by any means but he still spins a neat tale. I enjoyed it very much, being very frustrated by the frustrating attempts for romance, not just by Phineas, but by all of the main characters really. But that didn't really matter in the long run, it just added to the story.
The next book in the series is The Eustace Diamonds and I'll wait a bit to start it, but now that I'm into the Palliser series, I do want to continue. (4 stars)"
Currently Reading
I have started two books, one being a freebie and conveniently for a group read in my Mystery Book Club.
"Rachel Innes, a middle-aged spinster, has barely settled in at the country house she has rented for the summer when a series of bizarre and violent events threaten to perturb her normally unflappable nature. A strange figure appears briefly in the twilight outside a window. At night, a rattling, metallic sound reverberates through dark halls, and — most disconcerting of all — the body of a strange man is found lying in a pool of blood at the bottom of a circular staircase.
Before this spine-tingling tales ends, five connected deaths shatter the normally placid atmosphere of the vacation retreat. Rachel's devoted niece and nephew are among the prime suspects in one of the murders; stolen securities and a bank default threatens the young pair's financial security; and Aunt "Ray" ultimately fights for her life in an airless secret room."
"The brilliant anatomist Dr. Thomas Silkstone returns in Tessa Harris's vivid and compelling mystery series set in 1780s London. . .
It is not just the living who are prey to London's criminals and cut-purses. Corpses, too, are fair game--dug up from fresh graves and sold to unscrupulous men of science. Dr. Thomas Silkstone abhors such methods, but his leading rival, Dr. John Hunter, has learned of the imminent death of eight-foot-tall Charles Byrne, known as the "Irish Giant," and will go to any lengths to obtain the body for his research.
Thomas intends to see that Byrne is allowed to rest in peace. Yet his efforts are complicated by concern for his betrothed, Lady Lydia Farrell, who breaks off their engagement without explanation. When Dr. Hunter is implicated in the horrific murder of a young castrato, Thomas must determine how far the increasingly erratic surgeon will go in the name of knowledge. For as Thomas knows too well, the blackest hearts sometimes go undetected--and even an unblemished façade can hide terrifying secrets. . ."
My Ongoing Look at the Mystery Genre - American PI's #11
In my last entry I looked at the works of Steve Hamilton (Alex McKnight) and Dashiell Hammett (Sam Spade). In this entry I'll look at two series by fantasy / mystery writer Charlaine Harris.
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| Charlaine Harris |
a. Lily Bard (Shakespeare series). This series consists of 5 books, written from 1996 - 2001.
"Welcome to Shakespeare, Arkansas. Lily Bard came to the small town of Shakespeare to escape her dark and violent past. Other than the day-to-day workings of her cleaning and errand-running service, she pays little attention to the town around her. So when she spots a dead body being dumped in the town green, she's inclined to stay well away. But she was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and despite her best efforts, she's dragged into the murder case. Lily doesn't care who did it, but when the police and local community start pointing fingers in her direction, she realizes that proving her innocence will depend on finding the real killer in quiet, secretive Shakespeare." (4 stars)
"There's something rotten in Shakespeare... Lily Bard was running from shattering memories when she moved to Shakespeare, Arkansas. Now cleaning houses pays her bills. Working out helps her heal. Still protecting her scars, she hides a hard body and impressive skill at martial arts under baggy sweats. And nobody knows how strong she is until racial violence has her looking behind closed doors for a killer -- doors to which a house cleaner might have the key.
When Lily uses her training in goju to help a black man jumped by white teens, she does it for justice...only to hear he's been abducted and beaten to death a few weeks later. Then a bodybuilder is killed at her gym. Both incidents jar Lily's need for security and refuge. Looking into closets, sweeping under rugs, she soon uncovers enough dirt to confirm that something sinister is growing in her adopted town. Getting involved could endanger her life. But Lily is seeing a new man and dreaming new dreams. And no one can make this strong woman run again." (4 stars)
"It wasn't a Christmas mystery per se, just set during Xmas. But all in all, an entertaining, interesting mystery. Further development of Lily Bard's relationship with Jack and interaction with her sister and parents as she attends her sister's wedding. Interesting mystery involving a potential child-napping. Moved along nicely and held my interest nicely. (3 stars)"
"Welcome back to Shakespeare -- a charming Arkansas town with endless back roads, an eclectic mix of residents, and a dollop of noir. Featuring cleaning woman/karate expert Lily Bard, Charlaine Harris's series puts a unique spin on the traditional cozy to create mysteries that "work on every level". In the latest installment, Lily discovers lifelong Shakespeare resident Deedra Dean murdered inside a car parked in a woodsy area outside town. Determined not to get involved, Lily wants to leave the police work to Sheriff Marta Schuster and her team of deputies, and concentrate on cleaning, high kicks, and her boyfriend Jack's impending visit. But when Deedra's notoriously promiscuous lifestyle provides an extensive list of suspects but very few clues, Lily has no choice but to resume the roll of amateur detective and join the investigation." (3 stars)
"Cleaning woman and karate expert Lily Bard is a woman with a complicated past. Trying her best to cope with her terrifying memories and horrible nightmares, she decides to join a weekly group therapy session in her hometown of Shakespeare, Arkansas. At first, Lily can hardly believe the number of her fellow Shakespeareans that share her life experiences.
As it turns out, the group members' feelings aren't the only things that need sorting out -- they assemble for a session and find a woman dead, killed in bone-chilling fashion and deliberately left on display to send a twisted message. Who would commit such horrendous crime, and who is the intended recipient of the message?
Before long, Lily becomes embroiled in this disturbing murder and its aftermath, one in which the brutal killer's motives are entirely unclear. The truth is, the situation has dredged up more than a few of her own terrible secrets, and she may not be able to rest until she can untangle the who and why of this terrible crime. But can she accomplish this before the killer strikes again, and before her nightmares send her over the edge?" (4 stars)
Excellent series.
b. Harper Connelly Series. This consists of 4 books written from 2005 - 2009.
"This is the first book in the Harper Connelly series. Harper was struck by lightning as a young girl and can now see how people have died. She and her step-brother Tolliver travel around the US helping people determine how their loved ones have died. They have their own issues; family issues from their childhood, but they have a very close bond. They go to Sarne, Arkansas at the request of one of the town rich families to ascertain how their son died and to try and find the body of his girl friend. The case spirals and gets quite intricate as other events take place. There are many secrets in the town. A very interesting story; I quite liked this series starter and will try to read the others in it. (3 stars)"
"This is the second story in the Harper Connelly series. I've been quite drawn to it, having read the first book earlier this month as I tried to focus on stories (series) by Charlaine Harris. I like the character of Harper very much, even with her 'condition' (she can ascertain how people died), she remains a straight-forward, strong person. Her step brother Tolliver is her agent (sort of) and manager and they have an interesting dynamic. I've enjoyed both stories very much; the story line, the characters, the development of the story itself. Very enjoyable. (4 stars)"
"An excellent series; I've enjoyed every book in the Harper Connelly series thus far. I like the main characters, Harper and Tolliver very much, especially Harper, with her unique talent of being able to sense how people have died. This story has many twists in it, both crime-wise and relationship-wise and it kept the story interesting and moving along at an excellent pace. I'm very happy for some of the developments (will let you find out for yourself) and the mystery led me down paths I didn't expect. It was nice to see that sometimes Harper's talents (gift) are respected by law enforcement, rather than being treated as strictly ghoulish. I enjoyed this very much and will have to ensure I get the remaining book in the series. (4 stars)"
"Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris is the fourth and final book in Harris' Harper Connelly supernatural mystery series. While I'm sad that it's ended, just as I was sad when her Lily Bard mysteries ended, at least everything was wrapped up nicely.
Harper and her step brother, Tolliver, travel around the US, mainly the South, helping people discover how their kin died. When Harper was young, she was struck by lightning. One of the after-effects is that she can see how a person died or, as in most of her stories, was murdered. She and Tolliver get involved in the mysteries trying to solve the crimes.
In this final story, the two have returned to Dallas to see their younger sisters and Tolliver's brother to try and decide if they want to settle down in the area. Their childhoods were not the best and the area brings back many, many bad memories; their parents were drug addicts, their sister Cameron disappeared at a young age, etc.
One of the surprises for them during this visit, where they also conduct some business in Texarcana for a wealthy land owner, is the discovery that Tolliver's father, Harper's step father, has been released from prison and wants to regain contact with Tolliver. Another 'bad' surprise is an attempt on Harper's life; someone tries to shoot her but hits Tolliver instead.
So you have a few mysteries to solve as well as try to resolve the series. It's an interesting, well-paced story with nice twists and turns, just like the other books in this excellent series. The results, while a bit pat maybe, are very satisfying and succeed in the aim at wrapping up the stories and the outstanding issues. I like Harper and Tolliver and also some of the other characters, especially Manfred, their other supernatural friend. So now I have the Sookie books and the Midnight Crossing books to work through. (4 stars)"
It's unfortunate that both series have been wrapped up but one of the nice things is that characters from both the Lily Bard and the Harper Connelly series have turned up in her Midnight Texas series. I've read the first one of that series so far and enjoyed very much.
So there you go. Some reading ideas for you to check out in April. Enjoy your week.
