It's a nice bright sunny Autumn day in the Valley. I do need to get to my end year yard work, but I'm having lots of difficulty motivating myself. Today I read a bit, then caught up with an episode of Mystery Road ( a series I'd started once before but never finished) and also a couple of Peter Gunn episodes. I've finished two books since my last update. I'll provide my reviews of both, plus the synopses of the two books I've started since. I received a free book via email the other day. I'll provide the synopsis of that book as well. And then I'll finish off with my ongoing look at my favorite author.
Just Finished
"I'd previously read Bunny Lake is Missing by Evelyn Piper. I discovered this book, The Nanny (yes I know I could have just googled it), when checking out movies by Better Davis. The movie sounded creepy and so I thought I should try the book as I'd quite enjoyed Bunny Lake, both as a book and a movie. This book ended up being quite excellent.
The Nanny is packed with tension and action and it comes at you from all sides. 8-year old Joey Fane has spent two years at a mental hospital. He was sent there after the death of his younger brother, Ralphie, a tragic accident. Joey's mother, Virgie, is under a thrall of the Nanny and is very nervous about Joey coming home. She blames herself for the tragedy and feels she might let Joey down. Bill Fane, the father, is in a relationship with his secretary but wants to try again and agrees with the hospital that Nanny should be sent away as Joey is terrified of her. Her old boss, Aunt Pen, agrees to take the Nanny back. Even she seems to be under a thrall of the Nanny.
There is so much to take in in this relatively short horror story. The Nanny's resentment of being taken away from her latest child, mother Virgie Fane, by the return of Joey will result in her to commit dangerous, but subtle acts as she tries to regain control in the family. Joey is a strong, brave boy fighting against her control, and also against those who believe the Nanny; that being Aunt Pen and Doctor Medman. Aunt Pen is a fascinating character, controlled by the Nanny from childhood, with a severe heart condition, but her efforts at the end are heroic. The Dr.'s daughter, Bobbie, who is a psychopath, provides many interesting, scary twists and turns. The Doctor's feelings towards his daughter color his feelings toward Joey. The other major character is Virgie, desperately dependent, almost childlike towards the Nanny, but one who changes as the story progresses.
I don't want to ruin the ultimate plot, suffice it to say that it is creepy, at times down right scary and filled with tension and moments where you will be shouting at the book, to 'hurry up', stop wasting time!! Very impressed with this. (4.5 stars)"
"Sleeping Dogs is the second book in Thomas Perry trilogy featuring paid assassin the Butcher's Boy. If you like a book filled with action and more action, this might be one you'd like to try. Of course, you probably should try the first book before.
The Butcher's Boy, Michael Schaeffer, after the events of the first story (The Butcher's Boy) has escaped and spent the last 10 years living in England. He has a nice relationship with Lady Meg Holroyd and while living carefully has had no threats on his life from the Mob. While traveling down to horse races in Brighton with Meg and two of her friends, Michael is recognized by the nephew of an American mobster. The young man is in England training with the mob in England and was working at the races. Recognizing Schaeffer he decides to have him killed and this action results in a chain of events that will have Schaeffer return to the US and start action against the mob.
The story is a 'comedy of errors' without humor. Schaeffer travels around the US, trying to close down the mob, who he believes is again out to kill him. At the same time, FBI analyst Elizabeth Hart is called back to Organized Crime to help with the investigation into the whereabouts of the Butcher Boy. We are introduced to Jack Hamp, ex cop now FBI airport watcher, who is a methodical, intelligent investigator who helps Elizabeth by trying to track down Schaeffer and figure out what he is up to.
I mentioned a comedy of errors. Well, the incident in England leads Schaeffer to a number of incorrect assumptions about why he was targeted and this will result in so much gunfire and deaths as he tracks around the US. It's a fascinating page turner that will leave you breathless as you try to keep up. It's not always perfect but it doesn't really matter. Schaeffer has been out of the action for 10 years so his perspective is a bit out-of-date and he is also a bit rusty. Throughout the story we get excellent insights into his early life with his mentor.
It's all fascinating, but very violent. Interesting characters and plot. I look forward to finding the third book to see how it all resolves as the story does leave you hanging somewhat. (3.5 stars)"
Currently Reading
"In this stunning debut,
Betsy Tobin spins a classic tale of Gothic suspense. Immersing readers
in Elizabethan England, she masterfully evokes a heady place where
science and superstition walk hand-in-hand and sensuality and violence
are masked by the merest veneer of gentility.
...some people are the center of their world, and others are the spokes.
The center of one village was Dora, the great-bellied prostitute whose lush curves gave solace to men even as her compassion and honesty drew the company of women. So when Dora is found dead in an icy ravine, her loss impacts everyone. So, too, does it torment a young chambermaid at the Great House. Determined to discover the truth, she finds that Dora left behind many unanswered questions, along with a huge, slow-witted son, a boy of eleven trapped in a man's body. The deeper she digs, the more the mystery of Dora's life is revealed, until a terrible secret is laid bare."
"Dedicated, intuitive and utterly obsessive, DCI James Langton is ruthless in his pursuit of a gang of illegal immigrants, killers of a young prostitute. When he is horrifically, almost fatally injured by one of them, it falls upon DI Anna Travis to put her own career on hold as she nurses him through his intense frustration and desperation to bring his would-be murderer to justice.
Then Anna is assigned to a different case, the brutal killing of a quiet, studious woman whose body was discovered by her daughter returning home from school. A senseless attack with no obvious motive or immediate suspect. Until, chillingly, the case becomes unexpectedly linked with Langton's and Anna finds herself under similar threat from those who almost destroyed his career and his life."
New Books
"Sam Canon is a brilliant
journalist, with the perfect life and boyfriend - until their
relationship ends abruptly. Lost and hurt, Sam calls on her best friend,
Bella, to help her to escape from the bitter memories which block her
from moving on.
An opportunity in Indonesia enables Sam to
complete her escape - the warmth of Jakarta and her new workmates
enhance this vastly different life, and she finds happiness again. And
she also finds love - or did love find her? As the months speed past,
passion and desire return to her - until her instincts are awakened, and
doubt begins to cloud her judgement. As the strange bond between her
new man and his friend begins to eat at her, everything she has secured
for herself in this country, so rich in colour and culture, is called
into question.
Who can she trust? The more she seeks the truth,
the more shocking and dangerous are her discoveries. With nobody left to
help, she turns to her oldest friend Bella for help - but will Bella be
too late?
This story of love, fear and deception is filled with
intrigue and surprise - with actions at a breathtaking pace that will
leave you engrossed in the subtleties of Indonesia and the people who
share Sam's life."
My Ongoing Look at My Favorite Authors - Sue Grafton
Sue Taylor Grafton was an American crime writer who lived from 1940 - 2017. She is known for her alphabetical mystery series featuring PI Kinsey Milhone. Grafton died when she finished Y is for Yesterday. Since 2000, I've read the majority of the series. It's a comforting series, one I can pull off my shelf and slide into Kinsey's life in California. In this post, I'll highlight the last six books in the series that I've read.
Sue Grafton
"Through fourteen books,
fans have been fed short rations when it comes to Kinsey Millhone's
past: a morsel here, a dollop there. We know of the aunt who raised her,
the second husband who left her, the long-lost family up the California
coast. But husband number one remained a blip on the screen until now.
The
call comes on a Monday morning from a guy who scavenges defaulted
storage units at auction. Last week he bought a stack. They had stuff in
them—Kinsey stuff. For thirty bucks, he'll sell her the lot. Kinsey's
never been one for personal possessions, but curiosity wins out and she
hands over a twenty (she may be curious but she loves a bargain). What
she finds amid childhood memorabilia is an old undelivered letter.
It
will force her to reexamine her beliefs about the breakup of that first
marriage, about the honor of that first husband, about an old unsolved
murder. It will put her life in the gravest peril."O" Is for Outlaw:
Kinsey's fifteenth adventure into the dark side of human nature." (4 stars)
"It is now nine weeks since Dr Dowan Purcell vanished without trace. The sixty-nine-year-old doctor had said goodnight to his colleagues at the Pacific Meadows nursing home, had climbed into his car and driven away never to be seen again. His embittered first wife Fiona is convinced he is still alive. His second wife, Crystal a former stripper forty years his junior is just as sure he is dead. Enter private investigator Kinsey Malone, hired by Fiona to find out just what has happened to the man they loved. Enter also Tommy Hevener, an attractive flame-haired twenty-something who has set his romantic sights on Kinsey. And Tommy is a man with a very interesting past." (3 stars)
"Most enjoyable. I've enjoyed every one of the series to - date. I liked the characters in this one; the two old cops, Dolan and Stacey who involve Kinsey in their cold case. They are like a bickering old married couple. The cold case was interesting; I did think at times that there were great leaps in the solving of the case, but hey, it's a mystery story. Ms. Grafton also makes the peripheral characters interesting. Nobody is totally unlikeable, even the suspects. All in all, another good story from Sue Grafton. (3 stars)"
"I had mixed emotions about this particular Kinsey Milhone mystery, but as she says at the end, sometimes she's just a passenger. Kinsey is hired to escort Reba from prison by her father. A simple job and Kinsey likes Reba. But the story develops a twist as the police and Feds ask Kinsey to persuade Reba to help them catch her boss. It turns out Reba went to jail for her boss, because she was in love with him. The story has many twists and Reba has her own plans and Kinsey becomes sort of a pawn. I found this story frustrating at times as I'm not used to Kinsey playing such a secondary role, but it did tie up nicely. As well, Kinsey deals with her landlord, Henry, who is dating but also competing with his brother, Henry. How does that all work out? And finally, what does the future bode for Kinsey and her new friend, police investigator, Cheney? The story had its frustrations, but was still ultimately satisfying. S is next. :0) (3 stars)"
5. S is for Silence (2005)
"I think S is for Silence by Sue Grafton was a bit of a return to form for Grafton. While I enjoyed the previous three books; P, Q and R, I just thought they were ok. S was so much better.
The story is a cold case. Kinsey is hired by Daisy Sullivan to find her mother, Violet, who disappeared when Daisy was a child, 35 years previously. Kinsey doesn't want to take the case as she feels it's a waste of her time and Daisy's money. But Daisy is persuasive and gets Kinsey to accept the job for 5 days. Thus begins her investigation into Violet's life and the possible reasons she disappeared, or was she murdered? The story is presented in an interesting style; alternating between present day, where Kinsey interviews people who still live in the area and who knew Violet, and then presenting the final days of Violet's life in Serena Station.
There was so much to enjoy about this latest Kinsey case. It builds nicely, the plot is interesting, the characters are interesting and there is a tension that slowly develops as Kinsey seems to be getting close to a solution. I enjoyed S very much and hope the next, T is for Trespass is as good. (4 stars)"
"I've been enjoying the Kinsey Milhone mystery series since I discovered it early 2000s. They are one of my comfort reads. The 20th book in the series, T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton has to be one of the best so far. This story had great tension and a palpable feeling of menace.
The story follows Kinsey as she works on a number of cases; an eviction, trying to help solve a traffic accident for an insurance investigator and helping her elderly neighbour, Gus Vronsky. The story also follows Solara Rojas, the woman hired to care for Gus. Kinsey runs an check on Solara for Gus's niece, who lives in New York, and finds that there are no red flags on her. (This was a quick check as the niece is impatient and needs to find someone quickly. Solara is not who she seems and over the course of this story, Kinsey and her friend and landlord Henry Pitts begin to suspect that she is mistreating Gus.
It's a scary story and Solara is a sociopath who will do anything to get what she wants and in this case what she wants is Gus's money. We begin to find our more about her as the story progresses. Kinsey is unfortunately distracted by her other cases but she keeps coming back to Gus's case and she begins to realize that Solara is more than a match for her. Read the story to see how this is all resolved.
The story is especially terrifying for people who have elderly parents or relatives, I think, especially if they need extra help. The way Solara gains control is frightening and makes the story especially dark. It's not graphic but the implications give you cause for uneasiness. Yes, an excellent story and an excellent Kinsey mystery. (4.5 stars)"
I have the next two books on my shelf. I want to savor the last 5 books. The complete list of Grafton's books can be found at this link.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
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