Character deserves a new mystery
928292
Very good only wish there were more by the end i realy liked the character  without  anything  left  someone needs to write a new mystery to add the original authors
2966853
I received this book from my LibraryThing Secret Santa,  who I would like to acknowledge.  Thank you so much for introducing me to a delightful new series set in France's beautiful Dordogne region (which is located east of Bordeaux).  The book is a police procedural mystery set in the present day that introduces us to Bruno the Chief of Police in St. Denis located in Dordogne.  Mr. Walker allows us to make the acquaintance of  a wonderful new protagonist, and he also introduced me to the beautiful region in France where this series is set.  Bruno is one of the most sincere detectives you'll ever read about, and his knowledge of his area and of his people is what helps him the most when trying to solve complex cases.  In this book an elderly man is found murdered in his remote cottage, and he has had a swastika cut into his chest.  Bruno joins forces with a couple of national police forces to try to solve what looks like a racist crime. As a result of Bruno's investigation,  we are taken back to the second world war and to the very active French Resistance movement in the Dordogne region during the latter part of the war.  Bruno delves deeper and deeper into history to try to figure out what happened to this apparently harmless old Algerian man and as he digs, he finds that the crime is much more complicated than it appears.  What a great atmospheric mystery, and I want to pursue this series now that I've been introduced to it.
1117785
Sam Blackman needs an attitude adjustment and he receives part of that early on in this book. The progress continues when he agrees to help in solving the murder of a new acquaintance, reads a journal with clues to a 90 year old mysterious death, and finds treasure that belongs to the family of the murdered acquaintance. This is one of the most interesting books I've read recently and I look forward to the next in this series.
1129485
This new donut hole cozy series is getting better with each installment. In "Caramel Apple & Murder" Heather Shepherd and her friends find a dead body as they were bicycling on a bike tour around their new home in Florida. The dead man, a bartender, was left in the middle of the trail where anyone could have found him. He was stabbed to death and then his fingers were broken after he was killed. Detective Smith, who is supposed to be retiring very soon, thinks that this murder could be related to the murder of a nurse two years earlier. He asks Heather, Heather's husband, Ryan who will be taking Smith's place as detective after retiring, and Amy Givens, Heather's P.I. assistant, to help find the murderer and to see if the two murders were done by the same person.

Author, Susan Gillard, has stepped up her mystery writing skills with this book. There are two murders for Heather to solve and the book isn't just about one murder and donuts. The author has put a lot of thought into "Caramel Apple & Murder" and I like her new style. Moving the main characters from Texas to Florida has given this very popular cozy series a breath of fresh air. Another new character was added to the group making the series even more interesting.

The books are still fun to read but the plot twists and changes have added an extra zing to the series.

"I received an advanced readers copy and am voluntarily reviewing this book."
58182
I enjoyed this a lot although serious mystery readers will figure out the bad guys pretty quickly. An interesting main character, a very different location, and some fresh and engaging writing all make me want to read the next book in this series.
4025581
A Private Detective with Aspergers Syndrome, what a wonderful concept for a detective series.  If you took Adrian Monk's quirkiness and paired it with Hercule Poirot's 'little grey cells' and Sherlock Holme's deductive powers, and added in Autism, you'd have something close to Samuel Hoeing. Samuel is a gumshoe sleuth, who runs his own detective agency Questions Answered. His gimmick is that he only investigates, when someone asks him a question. The question in this particular case is how could the frozen head of a client in a cryogenic lab go missing.  Marshall Acrkerman, the head of the so-called secured facility is determined to hire and pay big money for that answer. The frozen head of a wealthy client, Rita Masters-Powell has been stolen and Mr. Ackerman has hired Samuel to find it. Once at the facility they discover the dead body of Dr. Rebecca Springer. Now there are two questions to be answered, who took Miss Rita Masters-Powell's and Who Murdered Rebecca Springer.

 The other character in the story is Janet Washburn (Taylor), which adds a Monk fell to the story, she is definitely more Sharona Fleming or Natalie Teiger then Waston. She calls into Samuels business looking to "answer" her questions. Little does she know she's walking into a job interview with her future boss. She becomes Samuel's assistant thought the first case thoughtout the book, she gets him because she had previous experience with autistic children. She drives him around and helps him out on the case.

This is the beginning of an excellent series!
4763059
The first book in this series was great. In this book the same character has greatly increased in rank, and has a new mystery.

The author writes very well, and does a great setting. The hero is interesting.

Three issues. 1. The mystery is not all that compelling, it seems like more effort is spent by the hero than it deserves until the final reveals. 2. The hero's spouse has a storyline that is more like a tragedy--just a bummer. 3. I am sure that travel times in the era were a real drag, but reading about them is even less fun.

This was good, but not great like the first book was.
213922
A good mystery with no indication of who the murderer is until the last chapter.
4777703
Mary Higgins Clark's newest mystery appears to raise some controversy with readers.  It has some devotees (of which I am one) and a number of detractors. One of the criticisms has been that Willy and Alvirah should not be given the role of sleuths.  As largely figures of comic relief in Ms. Clark's previous books, they do seem like a surprise as front-and-center characters here. However, I accept that as a much-needed lighter side that serves to balance the very tragic part that deals with Alzheimer's disease and its dark consequences. Also, as former lottery winners, they are just about the only characters who would _not_ be suspected of stealing the precious letter.

The one criticism I would raise is that the parchment letter alleged to have been written by Christ is not really exposed or described very well.  There is only a tiny bit of Biblical history here, and we are left with almost no idea of what the letter may have looked like.  It might as well have been any document or tool from early times; the fact that it was promoted as central to the book seems off-kilter to me.

On the positive side, the plot, the characters, the description of people and their personalities, are all vintage Mary Higgins Clark.  That's why she has the fans she does; her writing is full of style and imagery that is very attractive and entirely personal.  I love that aspect of her work.

All in all, as others have said, don't expect The Da Vinci Code; it's not that kind of book.  It's one of Clark's psychological mysteries that will keep your attention, especially in the last half of the book, when it becomes quite suspenseful.  Well-done!
1771973
It is great to have a new character continuing the sleuthing tradition.  Hopefully, we will see more of Daniel Pitt in future novels along with his scientific female colleague.
2866927
This is a fresh new take on an unlikely investigator and hero trying to solve a baffling case. He isn't a cop so he doesn't have the restraints of the law to hinder him. With his lady assistant, a fast paced ride. Will keep you guessing.
1332894
This seems like an interesting new mystery series. Lord Falcon, the Crowner, sets out to solve the death of a Miller which turns out to be murder. Set in Medevil Times it is amazing how hard this would be without forensics.
3128486
I liked this book but would have appreciated knowing a little more about the character.
4644200
The Tell-Tale Tarte by Maya Corrigan is the fourth book in A Five-Ingredient Mystery series.  Val Deniston is shocked when her grandfather, Don Myer comes home with a new look.  She can tell that he up to something, but Granddad is claiming client confidentiality.  Val is leaving the mall with her best friend, Bethany OShay when she sees a man resembling her grandfather collapse in the parking lot.  The man, thankfully, is not her Granddad.  The man does not survive, and he is dressed in Granddads new look (same haircut, glasses, hat, and clothes).  What has Granddad gotten into this time?  At dinner that evening with Gunnar, Val discovers the deceased is Emmett Flint.  Emmett was an actor with the local theater group along with Gunnar.  Gunnar, unfortunately, recently had an argument with the man and benefits from his death which puts him at the top of the suspect list.  While catering a book club dinner, Val discovers Granddads new job.  He was hired to impersonate Rick Usher.  Was Emmett Flint hired to perform this task as well?  Was the killer after Emmett, Granddad, or Rick Usher?  Val soon finds herself embroiled in a mystery surrounding author, Rick Usher.  To get closer to Usher, Val accepts a job as the families personal chef.  Val needs to clear Gunnars name and keep her grandfather safe.  When Val is not scouting for clues, she is working at the Cool Down Caf, testing recipes for The Codgers Cookbook (another one of Granddads projects), and exploring ways to get her contract on the caf renewed.  Will Val uncover the killer before he strikes again?

I found The Tell-Tale Tarte to be a slow starter.  I had a hard time finishing this cozy mystery.  The pace starting out slow and failed to improve.  There is a repetition of information.  I find it annoying to find the same details repeated over and over.  I have not been able to warm up to Val and her grandfather (or any of the characters).  I felt that the characters are lacking in depth.  Val is a hard character to like.  She does not exude warmth or friendliness.  The grandfathers antics just got on my nerves.  Why does it have to be one zany thing after another?  I do not mind a little bit of quirkiness, but Granddad is over-the-top.  He expects Val to support him in his subterfuge (which she does).  My rating for The Tell-Tale Tarte is 3 out of 5 stars.  The mystery was interesting, but uncomplicated and could be solved early in the story. The suspect pool is minute and the killer sticks out (might as well have been an arrow pointing at the individual).  The subplot of Vals caf contract was too dominant in the book. The details about the contract and who would take over the space are mentioned frequently.  The romance between Gunnar and Val does not feel real.  It is like the author determined that there should be a romance in the book so she put it in.  I just do not feel the connection or affection between them.  I did enjoy the Poe references in the book.  I am a fan of Edgar Allan Poe and his works (did a paper or two on him in college).  There are recipes at the end of the book from the Codger.
2905025
This mystery got better and better as I got into it. Poor Peter is paired with his boss, a real pain in the bum, on an investigation of a neighboring police force officer and possible wrong doing. The case expands, though, to involve a series of missing persons (including a local art teacher) and the fact the local authorities have been pretending there hasn't been a problem in their jurisdiction. In spite of his boss Peter gets to the bottom of the situation, clears the name of an old friend and, alas, his dumb boss thinks they make quite a team and will have to do this again. Those who have followed this series will thoroughly enjoy this latest installment. I know I did.
12112
His men in Carlisle call him the Courtier.  Now we get to see Sir Robert in his former element.  You meet some historical folks.  Hopefully the author has enhanced their attributes, but some are marvelous villains.  If you like a mystery with a unique balance of humor and action, you should try one of these.  They do move smoothly from one book to the next, but would stand alone, too I think.
2200736
Genevieve is a character/heroine I like. She has interesting quirks as a high functioning autistic woman. She also has highly developed skills as a computer software genius and code breaker for an insurance company specializing in art claims and theft. The plot has plenty of interesting turns and the characters are interesting, even if they are a little unbelievable. I stopped caring about this after becoming quite involved in the story and what these characters brought to it. I have read a couple of others in the series and liked them, too.  I think they are a cut above the average mystery novel.