Murder is in the Air...
935997
In the 5th installment in the Lucy Stone Mystery series, love is certainly not in the air on the library board in Tinker's Cove, Maine.  Lucy has become the newest board member, and is looking forward to the opening of the new addition to the beloved town library.  But at Lucy's first board meeting, she stumbles upon the dead body of the controversial librarian, and discovers that the board has a lot of secrets that it has been keeping.  When another board member is found dead, Lucy starts to fear for her own safety, and the safety of her family.

As in previous books in the series, the Valentine Murder deals with another complex issue.  This time the topic is gambling.  Lucy is writing a feature story for the Pennysaver regarding this subject, and while doing research, she discovers that a large percentage of the town is purchasing lottery tickets as a way to win big.  The economy has been tough for the residents of Tinker's Cove, and Lucy is shocked to discover that she was not aware of the gambling problems of many in her small town.  Instead of bread and milk being the hottest sellers at the local convenience store, Lucy discovers instead that lottery tickets are the item of choice.  And when one of the library board members is found to have a gambling addiction, Lucy is determined to find assistance for her town.

I have really enjoyed all of the books in the Lucy Stone series.  Reading them in order, I have watched Lucy's children grow, and have also glimpsed a change in the relationship between herself and her husband, Bill.  In previous books, Bill has been portrayed as a grouchy, demanding husband.  However, in this book, he has been portrayed as much kinder and loving...a welcome change to the series.  I look forward to reading more Lucy Stone mysteries for years to come!

The first book in the series is called "Mistletoe Murder".  Enjoy!
3222218
This lead character is interesting....solving crimes while unable at times to accept that her husband was killed in a violent crime. Second book by this author and he does weave the story.
3147271
CC has written a murder mystery which takes place on a college campus. The police and an associate of th murdered man. The rest of the novel is about the police and the young lady attempting determine who did the murder....ER
254747
A gay friendly newspaper publishing company and a homophobic church congregation are at odds from the beginning. As one entity appears to threaten the other in a back and forth retribution for past incidences, the implications of these events are clearly not as they appear.

Storm Stoker weaves a tapestry of well developed characters into a thrilling murder mystery.

The story remained intriguing throughout keeping the reader engaged in solving the murders.
2543063
Is it a suicide or murder or an accident?  The lead detective on the case thinks the young man was killed by his father who is a wealthy man with lots of contacts.  Her partner disagrees and they end up with several possible suspects.  The chief of police has something he is hiding about his relationship with the young man's father.  Things get tangled up further as they dig deeper into the case.  I enjoyed reading this novel.
2322184
With The Last Dinner Party, Duncan has created a murder mystery that moves along at a steady pace, new suspects turning up as clues are uncovered. The author created a diverse cast of characters who draws the reader in and keeps them guessing as to if their difficulties with Jeanie were enough to make them snap.

The clashes between Anna and Kristy, though they weren't a huge part of the story, added an interesting element. The author also developed a good deal of tension between two other important characters, which served to deepen the mystery.

I'm glad to see Duncan is creating a series with Anna Cole and Kristy Hicks. It will be interesting to see where they go from here.

I received a digital copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.
3668066
EB has written a murder mystery in the time, of Sherlock Holmes. The story concerns an Inspector of Scotland Yard who is attempting to solve a crime of murder. When the Inspector hits a brick wall his trusty household staff comes to his aid and rescue. This is an excellent read for the genre..... ER
880677
This story moves fast with a homicide detective searching for the who and why of a murder captured on a cell phone video. There is enough character development to keep your interest in the main protagonists. I would enjoy more by this author with this cast.
309488
Isaac Bell, the tall and handsome Chief Investigator for the Van Dorn Detective Agency, leads his team in their latest adventure. In 1910, flying machines are coming into their own element and rising in popularity. Newspaper publishing magnate Preston Whiteway is sponsoring a coast-to-coast 50-day air race, and the prize for the winner will net $50,000. Whiteway sponsors young female aviatrix Josephine Josephs Frost, who is daring and confident in her ability to fly. The Van Dorn Agency is hired to protect Whiteway's progeny from her crazed husband, gangster Harry Frost. Frost has murdered Josephine's airplane designer, Marco Celere, in a hunting accident. Enraged with jealousy, Frost believes that his feisty young wife is having an affair with her mechanician. Now he is on the run but is determined to kill his wife.

Bell looks forward to a confrontation with Frost, to right a wrong from 10 years earlier when Frost had killed three newsboys in cold blood and escaped, besting Bell as a novice investigator. Frost boasts enormous personal strength and will prove difficult to bring down.  Besides, Frost has amassed wealth and resources for carrying out the destruction he desires. Gangs of thugs are at his command for the right price.

To further complicate matters, Whiteway falls for Josephine and wishes to annul her marriage and make her his own wife. A mysterious Russian mechanician remains in the camp of flyers working on the various planes in the race. Soon flyers run into sabotaged aircraft, with deadly accidents becoming a norm. Bell learns to fly a monoplane made by the same technique as Josephine's. He has met the daughter of the inventor who might be credited for developing Josephine's plane. She has been incarcerated for the attempted murder of Celere.

Bell is still under order to protect Josephine. From the air, he can follow her, protecting with guns above any ground threat. Meanwhile, his crews below can watch for Frost and any attempts to kill her or threaten her machine. Bell has technical crews researching backgrounds of the Russian, Celere and Frost. As the race progresses, Bell discovers more loose ends that do not connect. He is more and more convinced that Celere did not die in the hunting accident. Perhaps the mechanic and Josephine are in love and plotting to eliminate her competitors.  When Whiteway proposes to her, why does she accept?

Clive Cussler and Justin Scott have kept the action lively, with the notion that Van Dorn detectives never give up. Bell remains cool in the face of numerous complications, giving justification to his standing as Chief Investigator for Van Dorn. Bell's love interest lies with his beautiful fiancee, Marion Morgan, who is a skilled photographer. She is contracted to play up the publicity for the great aviation race for Whiteway and will accompany him in San Francisco at the end of the race.

Not only have the co-authors enlivened the story, they also introduce aviation techniques common in the early industry. Readers will be enlightened by the mechanics of the first flying machines, with an introduction to the techniques of flight itself. We also see through the early fliers' eyes insight into possibilities for aviation's future. Unlike Cussler's other series books exploring the ocean, THE RACE transports his audience into the air, to experience the exhilaration of early air travel, and the pains and joys accompanying such flight.

  --- Reviewed by Judy Gigstad
4542245
Interesting...It seems todays authors have  not only grown up on the Saturday Afternoon Matinee cliff hangers. It is always hard to go back to ones past without problems showing up. But murder! Wow!
656128
Murder Mystery, plot interesting but writing was a little slow. It keeps you guessing until the end but there is too much going on.
3733550
Another good mystery from McNab.  Detective Inspector Carol Ashton is back in Australia after her adventures in Washington.  She called in to investigate the murder of a professional golfer at Australia's premiere women's golf tournament.  As Bourke, Ashton's associate, says, "We have a victim who has more enemies than friends, a suspect list that's growing, and a wide-open time of death, so that practically everyone seems to have had the opportunity to do murder."  But Ashton and her team painstakingly investigate each clue as it's presented to them until Ashton finally figures out who committed murder.  I was pretty smug because I had it figured out who the murderer was about half way through.  I remained smug right up to the moment Ashton revealed who the real murderer was - and, of course, McNab had not tricked me at all - she had only written a villanous character who I was willing to lay the murder on.  McNab got off course a few books back, but she's back on course and writing good procedurals.  Her characters are well drawn and keep growing, her plotting is excellent and she's even writing better than she had been.  This is an excellent read!!
2651061
This is one of the better entries in the series of Victorian murder mysteries featuring Inspector Thomas Pitt of the Metropolitan Police and his meddling wife, Charlotte. This time it's a death by arson in the affluent London suburb of Highgate. The victim is the wife of a local physician who escaped by being out on a call -- but was it really him they were after? There's a singular lack of clues and the local police are annoyed at Pitt's being called in anyway, so it's a particularly tough case. Charlotte and her sister, Emily, involve themselves by attending funerals and memorials and asking leading questions -- their usual m.o., in fact. Perry always includes a social issue to fulminate against and this time it's the profits made by aristocratic families from ownership of slum tenements. The Inner Circle appears, too, but only peripherally, which was a good decision on the author's part.
73864
Entertaining.  Author finds a way to introduce humor while writing about a murder. A fast read.
4815351
The sisters are all feeling something is in the air.  They don't know what it is, but it is an energy that can be felt but can not be recognised.  A ghost appears but then disappears, two bodies are found.  Murder victims.  Mr. Finch feels the energy too.  Whose going to be in danger?  The girls, some of their friends?  Need to read to find out.  I could not put this book down.
4027434
Love the mother daughter amateur sleuths are at it again.  Murder or not starts them on the path to track down the murderer with multiple suspects.
4803284
A good read with an interesting cast of suspects.....very human ones.  I plan to read the next book in the series.