Bad neighbors make a good read
936453
While looking into land fraud for the Domesday Book, our heroes, A Norman Knight and a Saxon Clerk, find murder and kidnapping with a Range War in the 12th century. And a murder to solve.  The plot twists and turns carrying you along through a complex landscape of deceit, treachery, love and hate. But it is fascinating and Marstons' writing is marvelous. His historical research shows.
2290317
Myrtle Clover, a retired school-teacher, can't bear one more beach read, so she  plots a coup to transform the Bradley book club into something more literary. Her schemes come to naught when her evil next-door-neighbor, Erma, suggests a supper club instead.

Apparently, Myrtles neighbors are a bunch of foodies, because the first progressive supper has been planned before she can say Charles Dickens. Things turn an even darker shade when one of the hostesses turns up ... dead. But for Myrtle, a natural-born snoop, things are just becoming interesting. And when a feral cat claims her yard, thank goodness for all the hunting lessons it imparts.

The story shines as it captures the eccentricities and charm of Myrtle's annoying and perhaps deadly neighbors.
521370
The author writes delightful mysteries that are fun to read. The characters are interesting, and you feel you know this little town and its residents.
3960975
I finished Wallace Street in 5 hours, reading into the wee hours of the night. It was impossible to put it down without knowing the answer to Who dunnit? This is a mystery novel about crime in a typical south side neighborhood teeming with kids, drunks and illicit side businesses. The writing is quite good  it reels you into the characters backgrounds and their dialogues, it creeps you out and is intriguing at the same time. The introduction of the different families and characters is a bit too long, but the writing is such that in a few chapters, I was already a part of the neighborhood. The story really picks up pace from the 10th chapter, and no, it does not disappoint. When a child is murdered in the middle of a harrowed neighborhood, it is everyones business, and it is personal. You want to find out who did it, and you want justice. You find yourself in the middle of the throng, once again, as the whole ragged community rises up to take revenge. I felt like it got a little inconsistent towards the end; I would have enjoyed a thicker plot and more original suspense. Nevertheless, this is an enjoyable thriller right here, and definitely recommended.
1317190
Didn't quite like the book in the beginning but kept reading and found it a funny and amusing read. Two older detectives who have retired from the police force but go back on duty whenever there is a murder in their small town in Kentucky .  The writer describes the townsfolk and places in Kentucky  with amusing humor and it's an enjoyable read that will keep you turning the pages .
4932897
Surprisingly good. Nice descriptives of neighborhood. Cover illustration is not representative of story and is a negative.
1276336
Fun fun fun book about crime in Blanco County, Texas. Ben Rehder has a clean crisp style that rolls along familiar highways and landscapes until you know where you are without a compass. Most of the good guys are easy going good 'ole boys who conserve talk but completely understand each other and the bad guys just never seem to know when to shut up. There is a small-town wisdom allowing all the town inhabitants to look out for one another, because they been inside each others' homes, schools and heads for most of their lives. The crimes and descriptions of the scenes are spot-on.

I had a lot of fun with Bone Dry. Keep 'em coming, Ben Rehder!
1268857
As usual from this author a book with well portrayed characters.although this is a book of short stories they re all woven together as strands in a neighbourhood. A great read.
3490677
This book was a good read, not GREAT, but it was pretty close.

Bella is our protagonist--she is a hard nosed detective from the Bronx who knows what she is doing and goes after killers with deadly accuracy. Her dept. teams her up with Mack--a washed up detective who needs a second chance. They have a great friendship--we find out along the way that Bella refrains from emotional relationships and just isn't cut out for them, but she shares an easy kindred with Mack (think brother/sister relationship).

The two head to Greenvale, New York to investigate a murder. Enter the Stepford Wives--the "friends" of the woman killed.

3 Seconds into meeting them, I wanted to reach through the book pgs and strangle them for being such narcissistic pansies. Something is off in Pleasantville and Mack and Bella are determined to get to the bottom of it.

It was a fun ride- I liked how you didn't KNOW who the killer was, it could have been one of many different people and this book kept you on your toes trying to figure out who did it. I docked one star because I felt like the ending was way too abrupt. The whole book flowed smoothly with easy transitions, then the ending came and BAM, felt rushed.

Other than that gripe, it was a quick read with a lot of mystery and awesome character development.
4027500
After serving a decade in prison for the murder of two young women, Tobias Sartorius returns to his small village to pick up the pieces.  Of course, things are never that easy and the book quickly takes a nasty turn.  We get more violence including the murder of Tobias's mother, another disappearance, and a town closing ranks to protect its citizens.

Tobias is an interesting character, and his actions are pretty believable even if some of us wouldn't be so magnanimous in his shoes.  The police pair involved in solving crimes throughout the novel are both likable and have some depth, which is a welcome change from the stock characters we see in many such novels.  The action moves quickly, and there is no shortage of it.  This could have been a five-star title if not for a few factors:

- As another post mentioned, it seems very unlikely that Tobias would suffer another perfectly-timed blackout, just as he had 11 years ago, with no explanation.
- A girl who looks exactly like one of the murdered girls happens to move to this small village shortly before Tobias comes home.
- The story skips around more often than it should, and a couple of these storylines (a possible affair, for instance) really add very little.

I also found the translation to be slightly messy, but not enough to hurt the book.  Looking past the bad title and some of the problems I listed above, this is an excellent and enjoyable read.
3510229
You never really know what your neighbors have done in the past. You might think you know but sometimes it will come out.  I loved this book. Very unpredictable.
854938
This is a pleasant and interesting read. The cops are sharp and humorous. The bad guys are bad enough. The only reason one star is deducted is the victims and the hero sometimes stretched my credulity.
2839904
I've driven past Co-Op City on I-95. I always wondered what it was like in there. It seems like a mystery. When I saw the cover of the book, I recognized those big, depressing buildings and wanted to read it. The author of the book does a very good job of bringing his neighborhood to life. He doesn't live there now ( I don't think) but grew up there and lived there for a long time. It's not about how he had a horrible childhood. It sounded like he had a good childhood and played a lot of sports with the neighborhood kids. I always thought it was a place for poor people but now I see it is much more than that. The writer Agovino makes it a very three-dimensional place. His father liked it but his mother hated it. Not all bad, not all good like Robert Moses and politicians expected it to be. There's a lot of "gray" area. It's a well-written book about this guy and his family. Lots of good stories, and non-sterotypical characters.
4416954
I've always said, tall fences and good food make good neighbors!  I found this book very helpful, a delight to read and excellent way to impress and keep up with the Jones's!
1846784
In every neighborhood there is always one house that all the children know to stay away from. But these houses aren't just limited to tiny suburbs in small towns. Even in New York City there's a building that all the neighborhood children know to avoid. An old building known as The Rockwell where witches and trolls and vampires live.
When newlywed Caroline Evans moves into her husband's apartment at The Rockwell, her children are quick to voice their fears about the ongoing rumors.
To Caroline, those who live there are just a bunch of lonely elderly people who simply adore her children and shower them with gifts and lots of homemade goods.
It isn't long, though, before the rumors become real for the children when they hear strange voices and laughter at night. Soon after, not only does Caroline's daughter begin to have recurring nightmares but she also becomes strangely ill. Just like the foster girl who lived upstairs. Now that little girl has disappeared - and when a social worker begins asking too many questions, she disappears too.
Everyone knows witches and trolls and vampires aren't real. But when Caroline and her children realize the evil that truly resides at The Rockwell, it just might be far worse.
Filled with things that go bump in the night, the imagery alone in Midnight Voices will leave the reader with lots of chills and thrills. This book also reads somewhat like a crime suspense novel, and though some parts are a little predictable, it still provides a very entertaining read.
2172285
I enjoyed this story with the sad but interesting neighbors of a woman who has moved into a trailer park and makes friends with them all. She brings them all together as she learns their individual stories.
923343
This is the first book I've read by this author and the first book she's written in this series.  The hero/detective is Aggie (short for Agate), the wife of a Unitarian minister who is living in a small Ohio college town with their two school-aged daughters.  Aggie and family life are very much the center of this cozy story.  ALthough life as a minister's wife is not easy -- and more difficult because a wealthy and strong-willed member of the congregation has taken a dislike to husband Ed and wants him gone -- you like the family and enjoy reading about them.  The plot involves Aggie's amateur attempts to solve the mystery of who killed a young woman who is left naked on their doorstep, to be discovered by the Ladies Society on the way to inspect the parsonage grounds.  It turns out husband Ed has been counseling this stranger to town, but he can't reveal what she told him.  Aggie is worried about why this woman's body was left on her doorstep and uses that as a reason for investigating the murder herself, although the good-looking Greek detective investigating on behalf of the police keeps telling her to stay out of it.  Aggie is assisted by her best friend Lucy (whose mother actually named her Lucille Ball).

Is this the best mystery I've read this year?  No, and I had the killer pegged about 2/3 of the way through, but it's quite good and enjoyable reading.  It's the kind of book you can safely give your grandmother or someone who is fairly traditional in taste and dosn't want explicit sex, strong violence, or bad language in their reading, and who wants likeable characters.  I will definitely be reading more as they are published.  The author has published quite a bit in other genres and series, so I suspect we'll hear more about Aggie and her family.