So with the sun shining in the windows, let's take a look.
New Books
"Wilson has blended H.P. Lovecraft's dark vision with his own revolutionary philosophy & unique narrative powers to produce a stunning, high-tension story of vaulting imagination. A professor makes a horrifying discovery while excavating an Anatolian archeological site. For over 200 years, mind parasites have been lurking in the deepest layers of the unconscious, feeding on human life force & steadily gaining a foothold on the planet. Now they threaten humanity's extinction. They can be fought with one weapon only: the mind, pushed to-& beyond-its limits. Pushed so far that humans can read each other's thoughts, that the moon can be shifted from its orbit by thought alone. Pushed so that humans can at last join battle with the loathsome parasites on equal terms."
"Hardy's best friend, Lieutenant Abe Glitsky, has kept a secret from him...and everyone else. Hardy never knew that Abe had a daughter-until she was shot dead. It seems obvious that the heroin addict hovering over her body with a gun is the guilty party, and Glitsky has few qualms about sweating a confession out of him. But there is more to this murder-much more. And as both Hardy and Glitsky risk their lives to uncover the truth, others are working hard to stop them."
"Harry Bosch is California's newest private investigator. He doesn't advertise, he doesn't have an office, and he's picky about who he works for, but it doesn't matter. His chops from thirty years with the LAPD speak for themselves.
Soon one of Southern California's biggest moguls comes calling. The reclusive billionaire is nearing the end of his life and is haunted by one regret. When he was young, he had a relationship with a Mexican girl, his great love. But soon after becoming pregnant, she disappeared. Did she have the baby? And if so, what happened to it?
Desperate to know whether he has an heir, the dying magnate hires Bosch, the only person he can trust. With such a vast fortune at stake, Harry realizes that his mission could be risky not only for himself but for the one he's seeking. But as he begins to uncover the haunting story--and finds uncanny links to his own past--he knows he cannot rest until he finds the truth.
At the same time, unable to leave cop work behind completely, he volunteers as an investigator for a tiny cash-strapped police department and finds himself tracking a serial rapist who is one of the most baffling and dangerous foes he has ever faced."
"When young Tenar is chosen as high priestess to the ancient and nameless Powers of the Earth, everything is taken away - home, family, possessions, even her name. For she is now Arha, the Eaten One, guardian of the ominous Tombs of Atuan.
While she is learning her way through the dark labyrinth, a young wizard, Ged, comes to steal the Tombs' greatest hidden treasure, the Ring of Erreth-Akbe. But Ged also brings with him the light of magic, and together, he and Tenar escape from the darkness that has become her domain."
"Iris Carr is a beautiful, young socialite on her way back home to England after vacationing in Europe. Feeling terribly alone and afraid, she finds comfort in the company of a strange woman she knows only as "Miss Froy." But comfort soon turns to horror when Miss Froy mysteriously vanishes without a trace. Fearing madness, risking death, Iris desperately tries to solve the sudden disappearance of her traveling companion-a woman no one else on the journey remembers seeing at all!"
My Ongoing Look at the Mystery Genre - American Cops Part 2
In my first entry, I looked at Nevada Barr's series featuring US Park Ranger, Anna Pigeon.
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| Jefferson Bass |
"In a forest in Tennessee, rotting bodies litter the ground.
This is not a mass murder scene; it's the Body Farm, where human remains lie exposed to be studied for their secrets. Its real-life founder has broken cold cases and revolutionized forensics...and now he spins an astonishing tale, inspired by his own experiences.
A woman's corpse lies hidden in a cave in the mountains of East Tennessee. Undiscovered for thirty years, her body has been transformed into a near-perfect mummy. Clueless, the local police enlist the help of Dr Bill Brockton, renowned anthropologist and founder of the Body Farm.
The body has been found in Cooke County, a remote community that's insular and distrustful. When Brockton's autopsy discloses an explosive secret, old wounds are reopened and feuds rekindled. As the powerful and uncooperative sheriff and his inept deputy threaten to derail Brockton's investigation, even Brockton, after years surrounded by death and decay, is baffled by this case as it unfolds in a unique environment, where nothing is quite what it seems." (3 stars)
"Anthropologist Dr. Bill Brockton founded Tennessee's world-famous Body Farm—a small piece of land where corpses are left to decay in order to gain important forensic information. Now, in the wake of a shocking crime in nearby Chattanooga, he's called upon by Jess Carter—the rising star of the state's medical examiners—to help her unravel a murderous puzzle. But after re-creating the death scene at the Body Farm, Brockton discovers his career, reputation, and life are in dire jeopardy when a second, unexplained corpse appears in the grisly setting.
Accused of a horrific crime—transformed overnight from a respected professor to a hated and feared pariah—Bill Brockton will need every ounce of his formidable forensic skills to escape the ingeniously woven net that's tightening around him . . . and to prove the seemingly impossible: his own innocence." (3 stars)
"This is the 3rd book in the Body Farm series, featuring U of Tennessee forensic scientist Bill Brockton. I've enjoyed every book so far. There is a nice folksiness about Brockton and he is surrounded by excellent friends and co-workers, especially his faithful assistant Miranda (she's lovely) and his old friend police detective Art. This story has its own unique mysteries; both dealing with burned corpses in their own way. The first is the death/ murder of a woman, whose burned body is found in a car and Bill assists the local Tennessee detective try to find out whether it was an accident or murder. The other finds Bill assisting his lawyer, fondly known as Grease, ascertain whether the remains of his aunt, are in fact the remains and finds Bill researching a local (Georgian) crematorium. Added to the mix is the escape of Bill's enemy, Garland Hamilton, the man responsible for the murder of Bill's love interest from the previous story. There is always interesting scientific factoids about bodies found in this series and the story moves along very nicely. The ending may have been a bit pat, but, then again, it didn't take away from the story in the least. Most entertaining. (3 stars)"
"Each book in this series gets better and better. Bones of Betrayal by Jefferson Bass, the 4th book in the Body Farm, forensic series, was no exception. This book finds the head of University of Tennessee's Body Farm, Bill Brockton, and his assistant, Miranda Lovelady, heading off to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the site of the nuclear laboratories of WWII fame, to work on a body frozen into an abandoned hotel's swimming pool. They are in for a shock as it turns out the body died of radiation poisoning and others will be infected. The story involves a search into the history of the Oak Ridge facility as the body belongs to one of the scientists who worked their during WWII. I enjoyed the historical aspects of the story and, as always, I liked the main characters, Brockton and Miranda. For all its tension, the story has a nice folksy quality to it, that brought about by these characters. The mystery itself was interesting and well-developed. I had an idea of those who would be involved in the murder(s) but the reasons were still a surprise. The books have all been enjoyable and very readable. The Bone Thief is next and is sitting on my bookshelf awaiting my attention. Excellent series. (4 stars)"
The remaining books in the series are below. I've added an asterisk * if I have a copy.
a. The Bone Thief (2010) *
b. The Bone Yard (2011) *
c. The Bones of Avignon (2012) (also published as The Inquisitor's Key)
d. Cut to the Bone (2013)
e. The Breaking Point (2015) *
f. Without Mercy (2016)
There you go. I hope you find some reading ideas above. Enjoy your week!
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