A Reference to Murder
935993
This series is adorable!! I received the first book through Netgalley & loved it so I bought A Reference to Murder about 5 minutes after I finished Fatal Fiction. This is a feel good series with a interesting mystery..... and a pink armadillo. What's not to love?

Can't wait for the 3rd book in this series.
2270806
Judge Dee, as many readers already know, was a real magistrate who lived in ancient China from 630 A.D. to 700 A.D. and is the central detective in a large series of crime novels and short fiction by Dutch diplomat-author Robert van Gulik (1910-1967). This book, THE EMPEROR'S PEARL (1963), is a relatively compact fair-play Puzzle story involving four interconnected murders and a fairly small number of suspects. Readers who pay careful attention should be able to identify the guilty person or persons with little difficulty using the clues the author provides, including (among other things) a missing domino.

The victims include a young man (who dies from poison while participating in a boat race), a young woman (who is stabbed to death while supposedly buying the long-lost Emperor's Pearl at the house once owned by that young man's father), another young man (whose head is bashed in with a brick at the same location), and an older woman (who is strangled while court is in session).

Judge Dee and Sergeant Hoong interview a wide range of people and then, in the manner of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin, assemble the suspects in one room at night for the finale to the case. With the help of a small turtle that Judge Dee found near one of the murder victims, the truth about the four killings comes out.

Perhaps the most interesting and delightful character in this book is a massive Mongolian female wrestler who goes by the name Violet Liang. Although she respects Judge Dee, when she testifies before him, she is the only witness who does not kneel. And Judge Dee, in return, greatly respects her.

On the negative side, any crime novel that is structured to be a Puzzle is almost bound to rely on several rather implausible coincidences, and this book is certainly not an exception. If anything, such coincidences are more abundant here than in most such books, especially near the ending where they are most noticeable.

On the plus side, though, Judge Dee's compassion for one of the murder victims is belatedly aroused by one of these coincidences, and the whole book comes to a rather touching conclusion as Dee humbly makes amends for having underestimated the value of that person's life.

If I were giving this book a letter grade, in my judgment it deserves a "B".
3376388
There mysterious murder that brings about some things. It bring out some secrets from a few folks. The biggest one in this book is how Perry died and also about Lydia. Lydia find out something and has a hard time accepting it. She starts talking to Walker Anderson.

Walker Anderson is having trouble with what happen and what he seen. There detective that comes to town and people start becoming closed mouthed and things do look strange. The detective also is struggling with some things as well. Though he want wants to got back to Chicago, he starting to fit into this little commuitty that has this mysterious murder.
834286
One of the criteria on which I evaluate Perry Mason books is whether they are a "fair mystery". In other words, does the read have a chance to solve the crime? In the case of this book, yes you do. And I did figure this one out, but I'll admit not so much from the clues, as from using logic for who was most likely to have a motive other than the most obvious.

This is a very unusual case, in that Perry first defends a nurse on a petty larceny charge, the the story crashes into the murder. At that point, the nurse becomes more adversary than ally to Perry. Of interest, if you saw the TV episode, it turned the book on its ear. LOL The murderer in the TV show is Perry's defendant in the book! In the TV show, he defended the nurse on the murder charge, and she was depicted VERY differently in character.

Some Perry Mason novels have a touch of the risque, and this is one of them. Occasionally Perry will visit a female witness at her home and get anywhere from a glimpse to a good long look at "the goods". ;-) That happens in this novel when Perry visits New Orleans.

There are two courtroom sections here, since Perry defends two women for different crimes. Both are fascinating and amusing, and that's enough to recommend the book.
3325096
Ever wanted to murder someone?  Your boss, your rival, your wife?

Of course not.

But if you'd ever thought of such a thing, you'd get a kick out of this nasty look at a completely unscrupulous, conscienceless cad who finds that murder is just the thing to ensure advancement in business and in life itself.  I found this well-written and entertaining, though it lost some steam at the end.

Note: A superior example of the same concept can be found in Donald E. Westlake's "The Ax," which I recommend whole-heartedly.
4802891
Six months ago, Councillor Harold Carobleat, of the town of Flaxborough, died unexpectedly, but otherwise unremarkably. His heart failed, his physician, Dr. Hillyard signed the death certificate, and his widow had him quietly buried. His business was quietly closed up.

Now his next door neighbor, Marcus Gwill, publisher of the Flaxborough Citizen is dead, found electrocuted at the foot of a power pole. Suicide? A bizarre accident? An equally bizarre murder? Inspector Purbright, of the Flaxborough Constabulary, has to look into this death, however unfamiliar such investigations are in quiet Flaxborough.

It's not long before he and his assistant, Sergeant Love, have many questions about the other respectable citizens who are also neighbors of the two dead men, including Dr. Hillyard, physician to both men, and George Gloss, solicitor to both men.

This book was first published in 1957, and reflects its time, but it's a solid, interesting mystery. Purbright and Love are interesting, likable characters, and others, including the Chief Constable and a couple of the uniformed constables, show signs that as the series progresses (there are at least two more books), they may become so.

The "of its time" social mores caveats include the roles and status of women, and the fact that, as far as I can tell, Every. Single. Person. Smokes.

Nevertheless, an enjoyable light mystery.

I received a free electronic galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.
2280599
A man commits brutal murder (shot in the head.)  Amanda moves in with Myrna.  To a rural location.  In this rural town she is going to keep a police column.  I sense foreshadowing when the man tells her "shouldn't be much to write...nothing ever happens in this town."  I enjoyed this mystery.  I counted 27 characters in this story and I can't lie,  I started to feel like some of them were not developed enough.  My mind was following them and waiting for them to enter the scene again.  Some did and some didn't.  Aliases were used.  Kind of a brain tease to follow and rewarding to connect the dots.  I enjoyed when the characters last names were given towards the second half of the novel.  If I had to choose, use of full names or developing the characters...I would have chose for the author to elaborate on character utilization and pertinence to the story.  But I think I get what she was trying to do with her writing style.  I also liked the shut up and drive ending!
1473488
Is there a connection with the large number of murders?  If so what is it? If you go to one with questions about the other the inquiry is repeated.  How can you solve the murders when those that should help are the problem.

You will have to read to find out.  Good read
3061235
Chief Superintendent Dalziel and Inspector Pascoe are back, this time in a rather sophisticated case -- or a collection of related case, actually. The trigger is the nearly concurrent deaths of three elderly men one freezing winter night, one apparently of exposure in a vacant field, one brutally murdered in his bath, and one knocked off his bicycle by a car in which a heavily inebriated Dalziel says he was a passenger, though witnesses say he may have been the driver. Pascoe gets the call-out on all three -- hes spending a lot of time at the hospital this time around -- but only the bathtub murder really draws his attention. The Deputy Chief Constable (whom Dalziel regularly gives headaches to) is trying to keep a lid on the possible DUI and wants Fat Andy on the sidelines with his head down, but we know that isn't going to happen. On the other hand, there are hints that Dalziel may have a finger in some iffy importing from the Continent, just to help out an old friend, and Pascoe doesnt like that at all.

Nobodys getting much sleep this time, and Ellie Pascoe is having to deal with her own aging fathers gradual slide into dementia (the fact that she admits she doesnt quite know what to do is shocking to her husband, to whom shes the steadfast pillar of his life). And theres the hotel restaurant chef/manager who probably knows a good deal more about everything than he lets one. And theres the murdered mans grandson, now in the army in Germany, who has a fiance whos a real piece of work. And theres growing evidence that the dead man in the field may have been attacked. Its a complicated skein of events, some connected and some not, and Hill does a very good job.
2283513
One of the most frightening aspects of these ten true-crime stories is that the early release dates for many of the perpetrators have already passed.  I would hate to think that any of these particular criminals are free to kill again.  Ann Rule has selected gruesome cases to include in "A Rage to Kill."

Fortunately a few of the most vicious killers did not survive their capture.  Unfortunately one of them was never identified, and some of the stories have had to have their body count revised upward.

Ann Rule, a former policewoman writes about the victims with a compassion that sometimes ventures over the border into clich.  Many are described as stunningly beautiful, innocent, soft-spoken, harmless, well-loved, kindhearted creatures who would certainly have qualified for sainthood if their lives had not been cut tragically short.

The killers are more interesting, as in that old Vaudevillian clich, "the snake has all the lines."  A transvestite prostitute stabs his customer to death when the john discovers his true sex.  A prison official must decide whether this particular killer should be incarcerated with other men or put in a prison for women.  Spree killer Chris Wilder drives one of his victims cross-country, then puts her on a plane back to California instead of murdering her.

Rule's homicide detectives are all a heroic blend of hard work, perseverance, and courage.  They do not stand out as individuals as they would if say, Joseph Wambaugh had written this book.  I will remember the murderers in "A Rage to Kill" much longer than the bland policemen or the saintly victims, because they are the characters upon which Rule lavishes her most original prose.

Most of these cases took place in the Seattle area, and only one that I know of has received extensive, nation-wide media attention.  True-crime aficionados will appreciate Ann Rule's meticulous attention to detail, and the extensive contacts with law enforcement officials that give her a unique perspective into each of these ten stories.
1242631
THREE STRIKES AND YOURE DEAD, a baseball-themed crime novel, is the second sports mystery from the Connecticut-based Michael Draper, following on the heels of his basketball-centered SPLATTERED BLOOD. It continues with the protagonists of his first, while giving us a tight new mystery set in a new sports milieu.

Baseball has gone on strike; its new season is in jeopardy; its fans are not happy. A chat room group "Friends against the baseball strike" complains of the star players multi-million dollar salaries. One member, "The Vindicator" decides to take action to end the strike.  Soon some of baseballs highest paid players have been murdered. The trio of Connecticut-based enthusiastic amateur detectives, Roseanne Kelly, widow of Johnny, victim in SPLATTERED BLOOD; her brother Graham Dunne, and their friend Randy Larkin, who narrates here, as he did in the first book, are puzzled by the mystery and take on their second case. They liaise with their friends in law enforcement, the baseball commissioners office and the FBI as they rush around the country trying to identify the murderer and predict where he will next strike.

This is a nice tight little mystery, a very welcome original one, so far as I know, and a page turner. Its Connecticut settings are nicely done, as are those of the star baseball players deaths.  Its nicely written. But it could do with a bit less chit-chat and backstory.  The perpetrator also seems a bit too much influenced by those of that favorite mystery author, James Lee Burke. I read, liked and reviewed SPLATTERED BLOOD on its own page. I recommend this crackerjack too.
4455899
A small, I mean short, crime story, a page turner, about three men who are all unworthy of living in a humane world, but since the world is not humane they are right in place.

One is a real criminal, supposedly impotent, married to a harpy who - in fact which would be better fitting here - he hates because she is humiliating him, betraying him, you name it you have it. He is a book bee, one of those people who are collecting and gathering books, mainly second hand and out of print, in order to deliver them - at a price of course - to those who want the rare gems in booklore that only a book bee can find and circulate.

He wants to kill his wife and he does it.

The second is a lawyer, not in criminal law for sure, but so nave and idiotic that he falls in love and marry a psychotic person who little by little - like a spider in her web - wraps him up in her silk out of the world for personal consumption only, and humiliation, criticism, mental and psychological violence are the everyday and every night last supper of farewell till the next evening when she will start all over again: carry your cross to the top of the calvary on Golgotha and that will never end because every morning you resuscitate to be available on the following night. He wants to kill her but he is of course unable to do so. He is innocent in acts though not in intentions.

The third one is a cop who decides to join the two cases because of some similarities and to get the two men down for the murder of their wives, even if in the second case the autopsy and the coroner's office have concluded it is a suicide.

Tactic, if any? Politically and police wise unethical and incorrect: brutalize the two to bring them to their limits and confront them to see what happens. The book bee is a vicious obnoxious vengeful man. You can imagine when he discovers, thanks to the cop, the other one is an impotent copy cat. His own impotence comes back to the front directly in the limelight. The second is totally incompetent at working with other people, understanding their motivations and preserving himself. He falls in all the traps of the cop and he goes through an ordeal till the bitter end.

The only winner is the cop. But that you will have to discover yourself.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU
653457
The stage is a bucolic small town, pretty, quiet, safe -- then add a hatchet job on a man and wife.  Their skulls are cracked, the man is able to get out of bed, pick up the morning paper and make coffee and then drop dead. The wife is  barely alive, so much blood, her face cut several times through the skull and down through an eye.  When police arrive, the wife is asked who did it, in a dazed state, she says the name of her youngest son, who is promptly arrested.

The woman, after coming to in the hospital, says she does not remember but it could not have been her son. As soon as she is released, she hires Dick Moonlight to prove his innocence.  Moonlight has barely survived an attempted suicide and lives with an inoperable bullet in his brain which could move and kill him at any time.  Still he functions as a PI and takes the case, not to prove or disprove innocence, though he would like to believe in innocence, but to find the truth.

This is not like a mad dash to the finish but a studied walk, the truth is hard to come by and not pleasant.  The PI  is determined and manages to retain some belief in humanity. Powerful read and a good mystery.
3053812
I obtained this book through the Kindle Unlimited program.
Before I forget: Nicely done, distinctive comic-book cover by Jack Wylder. I don't know if the prior editions included his work, but I like these.
With respect to the characters: I KNOW people like this. In fact, I may BE a people like this. Book worms with little attachments to society apart from murder mystery conventions, dipstick furniture refinishers, caregivers of small children who don't understand the concept of an appropriate toy, cat people who adopt rats: you'll find someone you know in the mix.
Just as Jessica Fletcher brought multiple murder into homey Cabot Cove, so does Dyce supplement the body count (In addition the The George Diner) in Goldport. At least in this case, she is willing to spread the rate out a bit, by investigating a murder that took place 80 years in the past.
Not that the time gone past will provide her with any sort of shield for her nosy investigations, oh, my no! She gets bothered by the authorities, and receives death threats, and the Rodent Liberation Front demands the release of her kidnap victims, and I REALLY want to tell you about a couple of other things, yes I do, but they would fall into the realm of spoilers. How do I do this? Well, you are safe brushing your teeth, but that's about it. That's as much as I can reveal.
Dyce has a good attitude about being a single mom, probably because she has some solid physical backup in the person of Ben, her oldest friend. However, she is not above taking pot-shots at the clothing choices of her ex-husband's new wife. I don't even know what a blue, three-tiered wedding cake dress would look like; something from the ball thrown at Tara, perhaps?
Accolades to the author for reporting a nasty little secret of the 1920's: the KKK had a nationwide influence at the time. There is another book on Amazon's Kindle Unlimited program I can recommend if you want to read further: "Notre Dame vs the Klan," by Todd Tucker.
131120
Permit me a bit of housekeeping here before we go any further, so that we're not both tripping over things in the dark. You will find MUNSTER'S CASE subtitled "An Inspector Van Veeteren Mystery," which means it is properly included in Hakan Nesser's popular series. However, the book is very much "Mnster's Case," taking its name from Intendent Mnster, Van Veeteren's invaluable second in command. The two are part of a police force tasked with patrolling the fictitious city of Maardam, in an unnamed country that is all but certainly Sweden. The book was originally published in 1998 and was translated to English --- by Laurie Thompson, and wonderfully so --- in 2011. Some English translations have borne the title LUCKY LOTTERY, but this, the US version, is titled MUNSTER'S CASE.

That cleans that up. Now to the book itself, which is a dark, quirky little tale of ordinary murder that in turn is no less violent for its everyday passion.

The events that become MUNSTER'S CASE begin with the news that a lottery ticket held by four friends is a winner. They are a group of elderly gentlemen, three of whom are lifelong friends, with the off-and-on contact that such relationships experience. They gather that evening to celebrate and then go their inebriated ways. One of them --- a crusty customer named Waldemar Leverkuhn --- is discovered dead in his bed a few hours later, the victim of a violent murder. Mnster is assigned to the case; it seems to be a relatively straightforward matter of a falling-out among friends over the prize money, particularly when another of the quartet goes missing.

That theory goes out the window, however, when Waldemar's widow, who originally reported the discovery of the body, makes a straightforward confession and surrenders to custody. Mnster and his intriguing associate, Ewa Moreno, have closed the case, and there it stays, until a neighbor of the Leverkuhns goes missing as well. She eventually reappears, but when she does, she's all over the city at once.

All of this must be connected in some way, but how can it be? That is the question that you will ask yourself as you read MUNSTER'S CASE. Mnster is a solid and dependable investigator, competent without being a genius and tenacious without being overly obsessed. While he is passionate about his job, we learn almost immediately that he would rather be at home, looking out at the gray and forlorn day with his wife and children. Yet he hangs in there, and while he is devoted to his family, he is not above guiltily obsessing over his attraction toward Moreno, even as he is reluctant to act upon it.

Oh, and lest I forget... Nesser, through Mnster, has a sense of humor, which occasionally and hilariously strays over the boundaries of political correctness. Those who are unfamiliar with Nesser's fine police procedurals (a few of which have been translated, with more apparently to be done) could do far worse than to start with MUNSTER'S CASE, which balances sharp characterization and snappy dialogue with a truly puzzling mystery.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
3772860
It makes little sense doesn't it? It's Cockney Rhyming slang - said to have developed in the mid-1800's in the East End of London, and it's not certainly known if it was a game, an accident or intentional dialect meant to confuse, distract or deceive outsiders.  What I wasn't aware of was the continual growth of the slang; its references have modernized along with society.  One of the best examples of rhyming slang in action is in the Austin Powers movie Goldmember - you can youtube the relevant clip.

The slang provides a nice side-note to the presence of the main character, private investigator and narrator and storyteller Ian Dodge.  Ian is a former police officer turned private investigator, twice divorced, with 3 children, a dog and a house he rents while he lives in a trailer in the yard. Ian presents with a wry sense of humor, slightly fastidious in his personal habits and an unerring habit of `putting on the accent' when being charmingly polite to the women he encounters.

As an unwitting and not exactly willing participant in the discovery of a murder victim in the town's decrepit bomb shelter, Ian is hired by the defense lawyer to find "anyone that could have done the crime" aside from the current suspect.

I admit - I am a fan of mysteries, and have read my share of them. In most of the mysteries I do read, I have not found more than a handful where I was unable to figure out "who did it".  I was killer at Clue as a kid. This mystery had me stumped. There were far too many possible options, and the majority of the `evidence' that pointed to one person or another was over forty years old.  Add to that a relatively small and insular area, where many people are related through blood or marriage, or even both - and you have a real `feel' for the area in which the story takes place.

The writing is incredibly tight and smooth, each chapter is relatively short and nearly all are dedicated to one little piece of the mystery to be solved.  All of the characters that are introduced are done with just enough detail to be fitting to their importance to the entire plot.  Recurrent characters (as I do believe this is going to be a series of mysteries) are given enough detail to want to know more; from quirks to relevance in the town or area - they all have some endearing quality that fits in both the story and the area.  And once I discovered the "who" in the "whodunit"  all of the hints to the murderer came clear.  That, to me, is the true mastery of a mystery author - enough dissembling and partial reveals of evidence mixed with other superfluous bits to sift through. Done with a flair for smooth and cohesive writing, careful plot construction and a keen sense of humor in the main character make this a book easy to recommend.

Like mysteries? What about stories based in the south? Have a "thing" for a brit? Just want a new read with an author you aren't familiar with?  This is the book.

**Disclaimer
I was contacted by the author and asked if I would be interested in reviewing this novel.  I received a copy of this book for purpose of honest review, and I was not compensated for this review.  All conclusions are honestly and freely given, and entirely my responsibility **
3671904
It's been almost a week since guest Cyril Orchard was poisoned on the popular Madeline Fraser radio show.  The police haven't solved the case and, at the rate they're going, they never will.  Luckily for everyone but the killer, Nero Wolfe needs money and is quite willing to allow himself to be hired to solve the mystery.  Our suspects are Madeline Fraser herself, her scripwriter, her straight man, her manager, another guest, and the representatives for the agency and the sponsers.  Nancylee, the high school student fan, is a serious pest instead of contender for the role of poisoner, but she could know something useful.  However, she's not available for questioning.  Where did she go and why?  How does the mysterious Zeck, master criminal, fit in? Archie doesn't know.  What he does know, and it's driving him crazy, is that Wolfe seems determined to do as little work as possible on the case.  Of course, this is Wolfe's normal attitude toward work, but this time the case is taking weeks instead of days.  It's Archie's job to prod Wolfe into earning his fee.  The method he uses in this case isn't quite as dramatic as the ones in NOT QUITE DEAD ENOUGH or "Invitation to Murder" (THREE MEN OUT), but it's one of his best tricks.  I rank the scene where he sets it up and gets Wolfe hooked right up there with the scenes where Wolfe rejects "Sweeties" and puts Nancylee in her place.  (I must admit that the scene where Wolfe triumphs over Deputy Commissioner O'Hara's attempt to force his hand has considerable charm of its own.)  The introduction was written by persons who actually lived through the period in which this book takes place.  Those readers who, like myself, hadn't even been born, might find their comments interesting.  The piece of memorabilia in this edition is tied with that in the most recent edition of THE SECOND CONFESSION.  The two together are not likely to make sense unless you know that in the book club edition of AND BE A VILLAIN, the poisoned drink is called "Starlite".  It's back to "Hi-Spot" in the 1950 first paperback edition, so whatever problem might have caused the temporary name change must have been cleared up.  Chapter 22, page 199, paragraph 3, line 7:  checking back with a couple of earlier editions makes it clear that the "tired" in that line is supposed to be "tried," as you would expect from the context.  For purists, yes, that "blindman's bluff" on page 216 WAS correctly spelled "buff" originally, but the error had already crept in as early as that 1950 paperback.  Similarly, the ninth word in the fifth line of the first paragraph of chapter 26 was properly hyphenated before.  I bother to mention these because I've read that Rex Stout was noted for turning in manuscripts that had no errors, so it's only fair to his memory to let the readers know that he wasn't responsible for these.  I highly recommend this book.