Wednesday 24 February 2021

New Books and My Favorite Authors

Jo and I ran some errands this morning and after a very satisfying lunch are now watching old Law & Orders. They are always great to watch. I've been enjoying a silly comedy sketch show that CBC is showing, just started the 2nd season. It's called Tall Boyz and reminds me of the humor of 4 on the Floor and Kids in the Hall.

I've received two books in the mail in the past couple of days; older mysteries by new authors for me. I'll provide the synopses for both and also continue with my ongoing and winding down look at my favorite authors. (NB. I've decided on my next 'book look'.. 😀)

New Books

1. Alibi for Murder by Charlotte Armstrong (1955). I've recently enjoyed A Dram of Poison by Armstrong and want to explore her work more.

"An unscrupulous actress is perpetrating a supernatural hoax that has stunned the country. She's the Dream Walker - a mysterious apparition who shows up in two different cities at the same time, then disappears, untraceable. Olivia Hudson, an acting teacher at a private Manhattan girls' school, considers this no more than a mean-spirited prank born of desperation and blind ambition. Until, that is, it tarnishes the deservedly spotless reputation of a beloved, but famous, family friend. Now, Olivia respects a good actress, but when this woman's antics begin to involve murder... someone has to intervene. Someone who can best an actress at her own game... to escape with her life!"

2. The Penguin Pool Murder by Stuart Palmer (Hildegarde Withers #1 / 1931). Jo and I started to watch the movie starring Edna May Oliver as Miss Withers. Both the books and movies were very popular at the time.






"For the third graders at Jefferson School, a field trip is always a treat. But one day at the New York Aquarium, they get much more excitement than they bargained for. A pickpocket sprints past, stolen purse in hand, and is making his way to the exit when their teacher, the prim Hildegarde Withers, knocks him down with her umbrella. By the time the police and the security guards finish arguing about what to do with Chicago Lew, he has escaped, and Miss Withers has found something far more interesting: a murdered stockbroker floating in the penguin tank.

With the help of Detective Oscar Piper, this no-nonsense spinster embarks on her first of many adventures. The mystery is baffling, the killer dangerous, but for a woman who can control a gaggle of noisy third graders, murder isn't frightening at all."

My Favorite Authors - Michelle Spring

Michelle Spring
Michelle Stanworth was born in Victoria, BC in 1947 and is both a sociologist and crime writer. Under Stanworth, she wrote sociology books. As Michelle Spring, and having moved to the UK, she wrote a number of books featuring British PI Laura Principal. I discovered the series in early 2000's and enjoyed each of the 5 books. I've also read her one standalone mystery. I'll highlight the 6 books for you here. Each of the Laura Principal book titles is from a song title. The neat titles and the cover photos both attracted me at first.

1. Every Breath You Take (Principal #1 / 1994).

"Wildfell Cottage is a serene weekend oasis for three career women whose lives have taken sudden turns. But they are barely acquainted before one of them is dead—and another is determined to find out why.

Between the worlds of academia, art, and politics, someone slipped into a woman's life and snuffed it out in a burst of rage, leaving Laura Principal to untangle a wicked web of secrets and hypocrisy. What Laura finds is the perfect suspect. Unfortunately, a better one has found her. . . ." (4 stars)

2. Running for Shelter (Principal #2 / 1995).







"When Laura Principal rings the bell at theatrical producer Thomas Butler's London mansion, a young maid opens the door. And suddenly, Laura is plunged into a mystery whose depths she fears to plumb.

The maid asks Laura to help her find some missing money, but overnight she disappears. Neighbors say she was abducted; the Butlers insist no such person ever existed. But beneath the vicious underpinnings of affluence—in clubs, country houses, and charming mews—Laura uncovers the unbelievable truth. Proving it, though, could be fatal." (4 stars)

3. Standing in the Shadows (#3 / 1998).







"The shocking murder lingered in the tabloids for weeks. A sweet elderly lady bludgeoned to death in a quiet corner of Cambridge by her eleven-year-old foster child, Daryll Flatt. Hideous as the crime was, the case was closed when the boy confessed to the murder. Now, two years later, Daryll's older brother hires private investigator Laura Principal to revisit the case—and to answer the baffling question: Why?

On the surface, Daryll fit the mold of a child murderer perfectly—a hopeless boy, abused and cast off by a wretched family. Yet as Laura Principal probes deeper, several curious facts reveal themselves. And with each step closer to the truth, Laura senses someone in the corner of her eye, a threatening presence . . . standing in the shadows . . . watching her every move." (4 stars)

4. Nights in White Satin (#4 / 1999).

"At the annual May Ball, a jubilant celebration marking the end of examinations at Cambridge, private investigator Laura Principal is hired to provide security. Then, somewhere between the dancing and the fireworks, a student disappears.

Katie Arkwright wore white, a vision of purity. But when Laura starts probing into the missing woman's life, she finds that Katie concealed a dark side. The deeper Laura searches into a tangled past, the more tension mounts in every corner of Cambridge—where someone waits, coiled to strike. And strike again." (4 stars)

5. In the Midnight Hour (#5 / 2001).

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Twelve years ago, four-year-old Timmy Cable vanished suddenly from a wild and lonely stretch of East Anglian beach. After a massive police search fails to find a body, the boy is presumed dead.

Now, on a quiet street in Cambridge, Timmy's mother, still wracked with grief, is drawn to a teenage street musician—and feels desperately certain that this tall, blond boy must be her son. Has the long nightmare of loss ended at last? If so, where has Timmy been all these years? And why, whenever the boy is questioned about his past, does he become strangely hostile?

It falls to private investigator Laura Principal to ferret out the truth. Is this young stranger with a badly bruised face truly Timmy Cable? Or is he merely a dangerous interloper, bent on taking the wealthy Cable family for a lucrative ride? And what can explain the trail of violence that begins with his arrival—and ends with murder?

As Laura Principal searches for answers, she confronts a loss that threatens to turn her own world upside down. For Laura, this is a haunting case that reaches its breathtaking climax . . . in the midnight hour." (4 stars)

6. The Night Lawyer (2006).

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I had previously read Michelle Spring's Laura Principal mysteries and enjoyed very much. The Night Lawyer is a standalone mystery and it didn't grab me as much. The main character, Eleanor Porter, is recently hired as the night lawyer for a London newspaper, meaning she works the night shift reviewing articles for possible legal issues. Sounds like an interesting job. Ellie has a past, a previous nervous breakdown, something from her childhood that is alluded to throughout the story and also a stalker. Ellie isn't a confident character; she's trying to rebuild her life, from a previous relationship breakup (the reason for her nervous breakdown) and also trying to build her body and character with a karate course. There are things I didn't like at all, her neediness to reconnect with her ex, her constant panic attacks. But I imagine these characteristics are realistic; but the extent of them kind of irritated me. However, the story moved along nicely and ultimately resolved itself to my satisfaction. Not my favourite of her, but nevertheless, a well-paced mystery. (3 stars)"

I do hope that Michelle Spring writes more books in the series. I'll keep looking. Check out the first book and enjoy your week. 


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