Good Reads & Views

The Tale of Hill Top Farm by Susan Wittig Albert
Fiction

What it's about: A different kind of mystery, one involving missing, possibly stolen, things rather than a murder. This cozy mystery, based on real places and the author Beatrix Potter in 1905, features a large cast of village dwellers and their animals, whose talk to each other we can understand, but their owners cannot.

Why you might like it: If you enjoy leisurely-paced stories that describe the landscape lovingly and are up for the whimsey of the talking animals, this is for you.

Visit Kristin’s My Librarian Page

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
Fiction

What it's about: Stressed-out single mom Finlay is at the local Panera trying to explain to her literary agent why she doesn’t have her next romantic suspense novel ready, when another woman overhears and thinks Finlay is a contract killer. How Finlay ends up with the dead body of a man she didn’t kill and how she tries to solve the mystery of who did the killing is a wild, twisting, and above all funny ride.

Why you might like it: Finlay’s balancing act is a suspenseful, laugh-out-loud mystery.

Reviewers say: “Cosimano makes her adult debut with this off-the-wall series starter, which is part comedy of errors, part genuine thriller” (Booklist); “Cosimano cuts dexterously between Finn's adventures as a hit woman, her deeply iffy romance with Fairfax County Detective Nicholas Anthony, and the domestic crises that keep on piling up as if nothing had ever happened to disturb them” (Kirkus Reviews).

Visit Kristin’s My Librarian Page

An Elderly Lady Must Not be Crossed by Helene Tursten
Fiction

What happens: Maude, last seen in An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good, is now 89. She decides to escape cold Scandinavia (and a couple of suspicious cops hot on her heels) and flies off to South Africa. On her way there she reflects on dark deeds committed in her earlier years, and soon there are new annoyances to remedy…

Reviewers say: ”Assured prose matches an irresistible heroine. Readers are sure to welcome a third entry in this beguiling series” (Publishers Weekly); “Tursten effectively juxtaposes a cozy, Agatha Christie--like tone against the often surprisingly dark nature of Maud's recollections, which are rife with clever satirical jabs and delicious ironies. This absorbing dive into the mind of a ruthless pragmatist posing as a Swedish Miss Marple will please psychological-thriller fans, once they realize that Maud isn't nearly as cozy as she looks” (Booklist).

Visit Astrid’s My Librarian Page

A Shot in the Dark by Lynn Truss
Fiction

Not your typical mystery: This comic whodunnit is actually solved about half way through. The rest of the book is about young hero Constable Twitten's hilarious attempts to get his superior to believe him. Twitten believes theatre critic A.S. Crystal was killed because he remembered a crucial fact about an unsolved bank robbery years before, but Inspector Steine believes there is no crime in the seaside village of Brighton, and just wants to eat his ice cream in peace. Only the charwoman takes any notice of what Twitten says. Get ready for a wryly hilarious read.

Reviewers say:  "Truss successfully combines wry humor with a fair-play mystery” (Publisher’s Weekly); “Truss piles up ingenious plot twists, preposterous coincidences, snarky asides, and characters out of P.G. Wodehouse” (Kirkus Reviews).

Visit Kristin’s My Librarian Page

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Fiction

Why you may like it: This clever, twisty mystery features a great cast of characters and an intricately plotted storyline. The Thursday Murder Club are four residents of a retirement community who meet weekly to discuss unsolved crimes. There’s the gentle widow Joyce, a retired nurse and newest member, who records unfolding events as she sees them; Red Ron, a (mostly) former activist and agitator; Ibrahim, the therapist; and Elizabeth, whose mysterious past gives her the expertise and connections needed to investigate cold cases that former member Penny brought to the group. Their bodies may be aging and creaky, but their minds are still sharp! The droll humor, fast pace, and charming characters will have you asking for more.

What it’s about: When a local builder is found dead in the village, the senior sleuths take on their first real-time case—they have a plan to help their friend and rookie cop PC Donna De Freitas solve the murder. When a second death occurs before their eyes, the gang wonders if they are tracking two killers, or one.

You might also like: For more geriatric amateur detectives, try Exit by Belinda Bauer or Auntie Poldi and the Sicilian Lions by Mario Giordano. Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz is another intricately plotted witty mystery. 

Visit Laura’s My Librarian Page

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict
Fiction

What happens: The famous mystery novelist Agatha Christie went missing for 11 days in 1926, and she never spoke about that time except to claim amnesia. This novel tells the story of those days from the point of view of her husband Archie, as well as imagines the story of Agatha’s and Archie’s marriage from Agatha’s point of view.  As the story travels back and forth between these two timelines, the reader is forced to ask which narrator is reliable—or if neither is.

Reviewers say: “Mystery lovers, especially fans of Christie's works, as well as those who enjoy period pieces, will find this an engrossing fictional answer to a real historical mystery” (Library Journal); “A compelling portrait of a marriage gone desperately sour” (Kirkus Reviews).

Visit Kristin’s My Librarian Page

Borrowed Time by David Mark
Fiction

What it’s about: After finding out that he was adopted, Adam Nunn hires a private eye  to help him search for his birth parents. The PI promptly turns up dead in an area that had been used in the 1970s as a dumping ground for mob killings, and Adam becomes the prime suspect. Works as both a police procedural and a work of psychological suspense.

Reviewers say: “Gripping from start to finish” (Booklist); “A wild, brutal, fascinating tale of death, betrayal, and love” (Kirkus Reviews).

You might also like: Try the author’s Aector McAvoy series, starting with The Dark Winter, or read one of his stand-alone novels like The Mausoleum or A Rush of Blood.

Visit Astrid’s My Librarian Page

Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett
Fiction

What it’s about: Dayna’s acting career is over, and she is flat broke. The reward money for information about a hit and run Dayna may have witnessed looks like an easy way to save herself and to help her folks pay their mortgage. But turning private eye is more difficult and dangerous than she expected. Dayna and her friends—self-proclaimed reality star-in-training Sienna and online gamer Emme (identical twin to a bone-fide Hollywood star)—uncover a possible connection to a notorious Tinsel Town crime spree, and then someone tries to kill Dayna.

Why you might like it: This entertaining romp is a fresh take on the bumbling amateur sleuth, and is filled with lively, interesting characters. Smart and sassy, and full of insight about the Hollywood scene, this adventure will have you looking for more about Dayna and her besties.

Try this next: Travellin' Shoes by V. M. Burns, Broken Places by Tracy P. Clark, and The Last Place You Look by Kristen Lepionka.

Visit Laura’s My Librarian Page

Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders by Tessa Arlen
Fiction

What it’s about: It’s 1942 and Poppy Redfern, a young woman from the English countryside, is serving as Air Raid Precautions warden for her village. When two other young women are found murdered, suspicion falls on the American pilots based just outside the village, but Poppy’s vivid imagination leads her to think otherwise. Her feelings for one of the pilots, Griff, couldn’t be the reason, could it?

Why you might like it: If you like mysteries set during World War II or plucky heroines, give this one a try.

Reviewers say: "History, suspense, and an appealing heroine combine in a series debut that should attract war buffs and many others" (Kirkus); "Vivid settings and high emotions keep the suspense at fever pitch, but it’s the characters that make Arlen’s series kickoff such a stunner" (Library Journal).

Visit Kristin’s My Librarian Page

The Survivors by Jane Harper
Fiction

What it’s about: Years ago Kieran made a foolish and reckless mistake, the consequences of which still haunt him. Recently returned to his hometown to help his struggling parents, long-held secrets threaten to bubble up when the body of a young woman is found on the beach.

Here’s a taste: “Are they supposed to be happy or sad? I mean, is it a celebration of the people who made it, or a memorial to the ones who didn't?”

Also recommended: Jane Harper’s other novels are The Dry, Force of Nature, and The Lost Man.

Visit Astrid’s My Librarian Page