April 2011 - What are we reading?

New thread for the month of April. Enjoy!

I haven't read any mysteries for a while now. Must remedy that as soon a possible.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley.

Just finished reading Fade Away by Harlan Coben and I have started Shadow Prey by John Sandford.

Just finished Crunch Time by Diane Mott Davidson.

Read a Hamilton Crane Miss Seeton (Miss Seeton undercover), which was pretty awful. Most of the time when the original author dies and someone takes up a mystery series, I hate the new ones.

Reading Love You More by Lisa Gardner

I am reading, for the second time (first time was over 50 years ago) The Hound of the Baskervilles.

I am enjoying it more this time because my expectations are not as high, having been sadly disappointed in the story the first time around.

Glad to see the new thread for April. Looking for what I want to start next.

Have reached the half-way mark in An Instance of the Fingerpost and I must say that Wallis is the most distasteful narrator yet. I'm not surprised I abandoned the whole thing during his part the last time I read it. Insufferable ass is what he is.

So to get my head out of a hateful, divisive, religious obsessed, misogynistic setting and a misogynistic narrator, I am listening to another Jack Reacher - Bad Luck and Trouble

Just finished reading Those In Peril by Wilbur Smith for the Early reviewers program. The basic concept is intriguing and the plot unfolds well, but I didn't really like the book. My problem was the "pushiness" with which Smith sold the all-around brilliance of his protagonist. Hector was astounding at EVERYTHING. And, rather than let us become impressed with his actions on our own, we were just told how he amazed everyone with his brilliance.

Now beginning The Echo by Minette Walters, which I picked up because she was recommended here, in the March thread. Getting drawn in pretty quickly. I like her style. It reminds me, a little bit, of Stieg Larsson.

I love these threads every month. For me, it is one of the best things about LibraryThing and I am building a hefty authors list from all your recommendations.

Going to start Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs

I finished The Documents in the Case an excellent collaboration by Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace. It is an epistolary murder mystery and I love it every time I re-read it.

The next one up in my Dorothy Sayers re-read-a-thon is Busman's Honeymoon.

I'm thoroughly enjoying Atkinson's Started Early, Took My Dog.

Read The Queen is Deadby Jane Dentinger. I didn't like it as well as her earlier books because it seemed to spend an awful lot of energy on the main character's sidetracked romance. Next Up: The Pyx by John Buell.

I started Angel with Two Faces by Nicola Upson this afternoon. I'm also dipping in and out of The Innocence of Father Brown, reading a couple of stories a day.

Just started Robert Barnard's Death of an Old Goat, which I picked up in a fabulous 1977 Penguin Crime edition at a library sale the other week. So far, it's lovely. Quite wry.

A few chapters into The Blood Detective by Dan Waddell and I'm really starting to dislike one of the main characters, I'm trying not to let it put me off.

Just finished One Was A Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming. Received an ER copy. I'm generally a cozy reader, so the language and situations in this one were well past my PG comfort zone, but enjoyed it still--the author does a good job of making you care about the folks in the little town of Millers Kill.

Still reading Tyrannosaur Canyon and liking it very much. Even the bad guys are sympathetic! Still rooting for the good guys, though.

Any fans of Joe R Lansdale out there? I just finished the 1st book in his Hap & Leonard series, The Savage Season. It was a good & humorous read.

I just finished Blue-Eyed Boy by Joanne Harris and it was fabulous. Also read Night Visitor and Nasty Habits by Gilian White which were delightfully creepy.

Have just finished Dissolution by C J Sansom.
Anyone who likes historical mystery novels is in for a treat, as there are several in the series. They are set in the reign of Henry VIII and you can see, hear and smell Tudor London as you're reading. Highly recommended.

the Sansom series is excellent. Unfortunately there aren't many books in it yet, but they're all good.

I just started Plaster and poison by Jennie Bentley

I just started Decadent Way to Die by G.A. McKevett. I love her mysteries, clean but very, very funny! ;o) God Bless!

Already Dead by Charlie Huston is the first in a series in one of the crossover genres. It features a vampire vigilante/detective in an embattled New York City. A lot of LTers like this author, so I'm giving this a try.

@30, I've read a couple of books from his other series and really enjoyed them so will be interested on your thoughts for this one. It's currently sat on my tbr shelves.

I have started Detective Stories compiled by Philip Pullman. I'm enjoying this collection of mysteries starting from the vintage to the modern era.

I just finished When the Thrill is Gone by Walter Mosley. I like the author, but this is not one of my favorites. I don't feel uplifted or satisfied. Just depressed.

Sorry to hear it, mstruck. I like this author, too, and I've liked the other Leonid McGills.

I'm reading The Switch by Sandra Brown.

Finished The Pyx, a late 50's mystery set in Montreal. It's about the murder of a prostitute with religious overtones and is a bit creepy. Am also reading Freeman Willis Crofts' 12:30 from Croydon and Margaret Maron's Storm track I really liked The bootlegger's daughter when I read it several years ago and am looking forward to this one.

Bury Me Deep by Megan Abbott. It's a modern day attempt at the Raymond Chandler mode of storytelling. You know early on "whodunnit" but you're kept engaged until you hit the actual point of murder.

I'm in the middle of reading My Soul To Keep by Yrsa Sigurdardottir. It's the second in a series of whodunnits with a supernatural edge. I'm enjoying, particularly as I've visited Iceland and can imagine some of the scenes.

Already Dead by Charlie Huston, a noir vampire detective novel (!) was actually very good. Sharp dialog, Chandleresque characters, and a coherent underworld in NYC. A page-turner.

I've finished and reviewed "Don't Look Back" (bloody touchstone for the right book won't load) by Karin Fossum, in my thread...post #52.

I've been neglecting this group for a couple of weeks so I'm reporting some books from the end of March as well:
- 3 Christies (I'm rereading those, what fun!): Neiti Lemon erehtyy (Hickory Dickory Dock -- this one I've always liked); Kuolleen miehen huvimaja (Dead Man's Folly -- ditto even though this is a kind of a sad story, and I really like Mrs Oliver!); Listerdalen arvoitus (Listerdale Mystery -- 12 short stories, these are ok).
- Brad Meltzer's Miljonäärit ( 196675::The Millionaires ) -- I don't know why I keep reading Melzer's thrillers... however, this was rather intriguing and kept me interested until the end.
- 9067574::Henkivartija by a Finnish thriller author Leena Lehtolainen; the title translates as "Bodyguard". She's supposed to be very good and her novels always sell very well. This was my first and I think will also be the last. I don't much appreciate these traumatized-and-oh-so-psychologically-deep heroines...

**edit: ok, so none of the touchstones work... *sigh*
**2nd edit: well, some of them do... weird...

You need to use square brackets for touchstones, not parentheses.

I'm finally getting around to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

>42 Bookmarque:: but I do use square brackets! It's just that for some reason the touchstones for "Miljonäärit" just keeps loading as do "The Millionaires" and "Henkivartija" touchstones too. Why the two latter cases also show the numbers and :: in my message, I don't know... Oh, and just noticed that "Listerdalen arvoitus" doesn't work either.
But I noticed in the Bug Collectors that there are some problems with touchstones so maybe my problems have something to do with those also.

could be the non-English titles on the English site (.com). Not sure. The internets is weird. : )

A Victim of Convenience by John Ballem

The Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen was another well done, fast-paced story featuring Galway's ex-Guard Jack Taylor. He keeps himself together often enough to figure out who's behind the title killings - after a haunting mistake - and his friends continue to try to help him shake his demons.

I'm reading Harlen Coben's Live Wire, his latest. It's another in the Myron Bolitar series. It's good, as are all Coben's books. Touchstone not working regardless of where I put brackets.

I started Christie's The Big Four last night. Poirot and Hastings back together.

I'm starting a John Dickson Carr mystery The Crooked Hinge which is back in print, thanks to the Rue Morgue Press.

26, 27: I have to agree, the Sansom series was excellent. I'll have to get up to date with the most recent title(s) in the series as I read them a while ago. I really feel like I'm back in the Henry VIII days when I'm reading his books, and the mystery plots are quite gripping, and each is different enough to make reading the whole series a pleasure. :)

I got Joyce Porter's Dover two from someone on Bookmooch and read it in an afternoon and really enjoyed it. Wilfred Dover, the worst detective at Scotland Yard, is a slob and a jerk and just a lot of fun. They were written from the mid-60's to the 80's--find them if you can.

I'm reading book 3 in Chelsea Cain's Archie & Gretchen series titled, Evil At Heart. I just finished Book 2, Sweetheart, yesterday. I can barely think of another thing while reading this series. I find these characters absolutely fascinating.

Reading In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff. Thought I would get a feel of her First Award winning mystery. Before reading her March ER book Secret of the White Rose that I received. I believe that there are one or two more in between the two.

Gone for the last unread Brookmyre title in my collection and Pandaemonium has broken out everywhere.

I will be reading Luis Rocha's The Pope's Assassin and Vince Flynn's American Assassin. I guess April is Assassin month.

I am reading Stephen King's Dark Tower series. I am on the second book The Drawing of the Three. I couldn't wrap my head around The Gunslinger but I am really enjoying The Drawing of the Three.

just finished the Viognier Vendetta by Ellen Crosby

Just finished Too many murders by Colleen McCullough. Plot is a bit silly but McCullough's writing sucked me right in. As usual-I like her whatever the genre.

Sidetracked by Henning Mankell. It's the 5th or 6th in the Kurt Wallender series and I plan to read them all!

Vancouverdeb -- hope you like Sidetracked! It's a good'un; I used it to get my parents and grandparents hooked on the series ;)

I am reading The Way of the Traitor by Laura Joh Rowland. This is the third in her historical mystery series featuring Sano Ichiro.

>62 DeltaQueen50:

I love this series :)

I am on a quest to read this year's Agatha nominees before the result got announced (yeah, I know - should have started earlier but at least I started this year).

One down - Diamonds for the Dead by Alan Orloff (First Mystery Novel) - good, readable and surprisingly fresh (no detectives of any type). And let's be realistic - how many new mystery authors don't start a series with their first book :)

I've just started (at last!) An Instance at the Fingerpost after finishing The Club Dumas in one reading. I really enjoyed The Club Dumas, although I realise in retrospect that the beginning of the book is littered with clues as to the story's mystery. If only I had realised earlier! I'm not sure about Instance, my enjoyment of the story is rather marred by distaste of Cola's (insufferably superior) character, and I'm only at the third chapter. I'm not sure this bodes well for the rest of the book.

sakayume, I just finished Fingerpost. You can't go into it expecting detection and clues like a typical mystery and Cola is the most likeable character you'll find until the last narrative. It is worth it though, the historical and political intrigues are interesting and the mystery is revealed in pieces that you need to frame yourself, the author won't hand it to you. I couldn't get through it my first try and it took me 13 years to come at it again, but I do admire what Pears accomplished.

I've started the fifth in the Simon Serrallier series by Susan Hill, The Shadows in the Street. Excellent mystery, character development, and secondary plots.

I'm starting Death of a chimney sweep

Sounds like the sequel to the one I'm reading, The Secret of Chimneys. :-)

I'm reading a historical mystery set in 1833 England The Devil in Bellminster

Read a wonderful compilation of detective short stories by Philip Pullman called Detective Stories. My review is here,

http://www.librarything.com/review/71390685

Or my 75 Books Challenge thread,

http://www.librarything.com/topic/106099

I'm reading #4 of the I can't get enough of Maisie Dobbs series, Messenger of Truth.

I'm nearly finished with Faithful Place. It's Tana French's 3rd book and it looks to be another winner. She's a good writer.

agreed, I like what Tana French has done so far and I wonder which cop she'll delve into next...Scorcher maybe?

Have just started Old City Hall by Robert Rotenberg - only a few pages in, and I'm gripped already!

>Bookmarque- How about Stephen the young cop? Hmmmmm....

Finished In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff. For being an award winner maybe I was expecting too much. It was just ok. I will have to read and review her ER book. Secret of the White Rose. Will read something in between, though.

I love Hamish MacBeth, so I decided to break down and try Agatha Raisin. Am halfway through The quiche of death and so far, so good.

could be him, Sophie, but it would be a short book since his career is about 5 minutes old. but you never know.

#77- I still like Hamish, but find Agatha a bit irritating- I've still read a number of them, but somehow different thatn Hamish's stories.

Helenoel, I was put off by the Agatha titles for years. They were just a bit too cute, but I finally decided to give them a go. So far I haven't guessed the murderer in the first one, so it's holding my attention.

I just started reading The Camel Club by David Baldacci - it's the first of the series by the same name - only I'd stupidly read the 3rd, then the 2nd before this, not having realised at the time that they were a series & I was reading them in the wrong order... Good books nonetheless, though.

Just finished The Last Enemy. I had been eager to try the Commisario Cenni series, and for the first 7/8's of the book, I really enjoyed it. But I hated the ending, so don't expect I'll read more of these.

Currently reading Night at the Vulcan AKA Opening Night, an old classic by Ngaio Marsh. It's one of hers where too much of the book is spent on the pre murder story and cast of characters.

#72...Agreeded! I loved all 3 of her bookd...can't wait for a 4th!!!

I just finished The Maze Runner by James Dashner and ready to start on The Scorched Trails.

i'm having trouble putting down Sleep Pale Sister. It's pretty dark and twisted, right up my alley!

Who is the author of Sleep Pale Sister?

I'm reading Charles Todd's A Lonely Death and started listening to Peter Temple's The Broken Shore.

#87> Oh, I liked The Broken Shore.

I just picked up Dame Agatha Christie's first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

going to start Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde. Not exactly a mystery but kind of a fun science fiction mystery.

Just Finishing Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow

#90 corbain - wow! I just read about Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow. It sounds wonderful and I'm going to try to track down a copy.

# 82 CD1am, I read and reviewed Opening Night last year and I agree with you. Too much time is spent on the cast of characters.

Finished The quiche of death and am now reading S. S. Van Dine's Canary murder case. Haven't read any Philo Vance in a while (except for the dreadful Gracie Allen murder case, so we'll see.

Quite a few wonderful-sounding mysteries mentioned on this thread. My TBR list is getting long enough to paper a wall with.

I'm in the middle of The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest and can't stop listening to it. I simultaneously want to find out what happens and don't want it to end, esp. knowing there won't be anymore.

Just before I started Hornet's Nest, I read the first Jack Reacher ~ The Killing Floor ~ and all I can say is "Wow!" That's another series I will definitely be continuing on with.

just finished 'The friends of eddie coyle' by george higgins. & 'The spoken receipts of detective smiley' by marcus mccarthy, by far the best two hardboiled crime novels I've ever read. (both can be purchased at lulu.com & amazon)

also recently finished 'The Killing' by lionel white which is also very good. (purchased at blackmask.com)

And not wishing to knock a great, I've just given up on 'The ironman' by w.r.burnett. I'm fond of a bit of dialogue but this one i feel is overkill. but if your interested in burnett then I'd suggest 'The Asphalt Jungle' for starters.

happy reading everybody....cheers..

#65: Bookmarque, thanks for the advance warning. ;) I read your reply a few days ago, but am sorry to say I've only had time to reply today. I've since finished Instance. Once I got past my initial dislike of Cola (and Prestcott, and Wallis - I fully agree with you that Wood was the most likeable character, I'm glad his narration came last, although I found each narrator progressively less detestable), the story sucked me right in, and the gradual unfolding of the details of the mystery kept me flipping pages. I enjoyed all the historical and political detail, and even more the mentions of early scientific development. All in all, it was an extremely satisfying read. :)

Reading treachery in death by j.d. robb Great series, and once you start reading, you won't want to put it down! Enjoy! God Bless! :o)

Just started Tasha Alexander's A Fatal Waltz. I like this series and think I keep hoping that I will love love it, but it just hasn't happened yet. They're entertaining enough, though.

Just finished the 2nd in Dan Wells Series. Loved I am not a Serial Killer and Mr. Monster was just as good.

I really must try Tana French

Just started the second book of the Strain Trilogy: "Lankeemus" ("The Fall"). Scary stuff, with vampires that are definitely NOT the cute Edwards of Twilight...

**edit: tried the touchstones, don't work.

#86 The author of Sleep Pale Sister is Joanne Harris. I think she's great

#101 I've read Five Quarters of the Orange and Gentlemen and Players and loved them both. I think she's great, too!

#94 Storeetllr - Glad to hear there's another Reacher fan out there! I've read all of the books in the series & there isn't one that I wouldn't recommend! Happy reading.

Agree with you on Jack Reacher. Why can't more Thriller authors come up with a Reacher-like creature? Certainly would like to see a female counterpart.

Great idea!

Has anyone been watching the AMC series, "The Killing"? It is a fantastic show and one I highly recommend for crime & mystery fans. It's only 3 episodes in.
Also I plan on starting a May: Murder & Mayhem Thread. It should be a great time and if you are interested, start picking your books! I probably have 20-30, easy.

Just finished A troubled man by Henning Mankell, a must for Kurt Wallander fans.

Finished The Canary murder case. Philo Vance is definitely a detective for another time. I found him affected, elitist, supercilious and downright annoying. Plus, I guessed the murderer in the first couple chapters.

Yes, Philo Vance is all those things. And that's why he's largely out of print.

I'm looking for something cozy to read myself, but not TOO cozy or cute or gimmicky. I may go have to see what Rue Morgue Press or Felony and Mayhem Press are offering these days.

A nice clerical mystery Heavenly Vices by D. M. Greenwood.

To quote Ogden Nash, "Philo Vance / Needs a kick in the pance." :)

My current mystery read is The Serpent's Tale, by Ariana Franklin. It's set in the time of Henry II and features what is essentially a female coroner, or as they call her, a "mistress of the art of death". Not bad so far.

103 ~ Thanks, ceinwenn! I am glad to hear the rest of the series is equally as good as the first.

104 ~ Have you read any of the Mallory mystery/thrillers by Carol O'Connell, dyarington? Mallory's not quite a Reacher, but for a female murder detective in NYC she's strong and intelligent, as are all the books in the series, at least as far as I can recall, having read them a number of years ago. One thing, though: I found the first book of the series Mallory's Oracle, the most difficult to get through. I always meant to go back to it, now that I finished the series, but too many other new books have gotten in the way of that so far.

#111, I've read two of this series and enjoyed both. A bit of a new twist on historical mysteries.

oh I hope no one tries for Reacher clones. Sure to be a hollowed out, let-down.

And I beg to differ on the Mallory series.

111 ~ "Philo Vance / Needs a kick in the pance." Thanks for the morning chuckle.

The Serpent's Tale is the second in the series, after Mistress of the Art of Death. I liked both, but Mistress was better, I thought, plus it introduces the characters and sets the stage for the rest of the series, which is, due to the author's unfortunate recent and untimely death, much too short.

114 ~ I take it you didn't like the Mallory series, Bookmarque. What was it you didn't like about them? I almost didn't go on with it after the first, but I ended up really enjoying the rest of the books.

I am reading The Cat Who Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun. I am reading the entire series over again. It is quite enjoyable.

I didn't want to tear down your choice since it's such an individual thing, but I really couldn't stand the one book I read. both in terms of writing (it was horrendous in spots, laughable in others) and in terms of character. Mallory's police work is really, really bad. In any real life cop shop, she'd never make it out of uniform. also I found her characterization as a sociopath mostly off the mark. The whole thing just didn't gel for me at all. It was Killing Critics that I read. Plot wise it was ok, but the rest was just torture.

Nah, never worry, Bookmarque ~ tear away! It's what makes LT a fun place to visit: everyone's taste is different, and I really wanted to know what made the Mallory series so unpalatable to you.

I understand your points, though I think I liked Killing Critics a lot, but I don't know a lot about sociopathy (only what I've read in novels) and admit I'm not a critical reader when it comes to details like police work. For instance, I found that most of the police and FBI work in The Killing Floor just didn't ring true for me, but I decided it didn't matter to my enjoyment of the story.

Diff'rent strokes! :)

glad you're not taking it personally.

I think the difference for me is the focus. In Child's series, Reacher isn't a cop anymore and the focus of the novels is not police work - it's action and ass-kicking. O'Connor's series is about a cop, therefore she should bother to understand exactly what it is that cops do and how they do it. Ditto for creating a "sociopath", she should at least know the clinical definition of one and the symptoms they manifest. On both points she fails.

Not that Child get's it all right, all the time - I've noticed a few ordinance problems with his books, but mostly he gets it right. And the man just plain writes better as a whole, too.

115, I liked Mistress better too, especially because it was the first in the series. I'm of two minds about continuing with this one, but I'll give it one more day's worth of bus rides (it's my bus book) before making my final decision.

Just finished Shadow Prey by John Sandford. I am a person that tries to read series in order and I found this one a little harder to get through than Rules of Prey, but that could be my lack of time to read. I am now starting my first Harry Bosch The Black Echo by Michael Connelly.

I read Fellowship of Fear the first Gideon Oliver novel by Aaron Elkins. I wish I'd been patient enough to wait to find #2 in the series but I wasn't - I jumped to Good Blood. Both books I thoroughly enjoyed and hope to fill out the series.

Now I'm reading The Shadow of the Wind and am mesmerized by it.

I love Gideon Oliver- I think I have read them all- need to check and make sure..

Enjoying the gentle storytelling and vague mystery in The Good Husband of Zebra Drive.

MaddieBloom: I loved "The Shadow of the Wind"! I liked it so much I gave copies to many friends and they all liked it too.

>125 raidergirl3: I love the Precious Ramotswe series. I'm looking forward to reading the new one.

The Secret of Chimneys was a so-so Agatha Christie. The central characters, Anthony Cade, Virginia Revel and Inspector Battle, were fun though.

Next up is Holy Disorders by Edmund Crispin.

#122 grshppr215 - the Harry Bosch series is quite wonderful. I'm from LA so the locale is quite an important part of the books for me, but they are great books with a strong protagonist.

#127 jnwelch - I re-read all the Edmund Crispin books in 2008 and enjoyed them very much.

I'm just getting ready to open the 6th book in the Inspector Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny, Bury Your Dead.

Karenmarie -- I just read Bury Your Dead recently and enjoyed it. Hope you like it too. Have you read others in the series? That was my first one but I'll definitely be back for more :)

Ditto on the Harry Bosch series! I read the 1st three and enjoyed them very much. I will return to the series soon.

Right now I am about to start John Lescroart's The Vig.

Reading my ER book.Secret of the white Rose by Stefanie Pintoff. So far I like it better than her first one with the same characters. Her first one won The Edward Award.

I'm re-reading The Black Echo because it didn't take the first time and I never read another Bosch. This time will probably result in the same. I'm sort of stuck in it.

#129 rabbitprincess - I have read the series in order and adored it. I'm really enjoying this one so far. You should try to read the rest of them in order if you can. Not critical, but I'm trying to read series in order these days and it does enhance my reading experience.

#132 Bookmarque - there are series that LT friends adore that I can't seem to get started on at all so perfectly understand that Harry Bosch just isn't your cup of tea. Have you read the Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny mentioned above?

I'm reading Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett right now. I'm not that far into it yet, but I do like it a lot. Is it really bad that I'm rooting for the German spy right now?

133 karenmarie -- thanks for the tip! Usually I read series in any old order but reading this one in order would be an interesting experiment. Or I could read them in reverse order ;) Anyway the first one is on my TBR list already so I shall likely get to that one next.

Just started The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo.

Am partway through Vienna Twilight, the fifth installment in Frank Tallis's excellent Liebermann Papers series.

After taking a break from mysteries I'm back with In the Woods by Tana French. It's the first I'm reading by her. I hope I like it.

I started Iron Lake by William Krueger today, I think I am going to like this one, it's grabbed my attention right off.

dharmalita- Hope you enjoy In the Woods. I just finished her 3rd book and have loved all of them.

Judy- I've had a copy of Iron Lake in the stacks forever. Maybe you'll inspire me to move it up.

I'm reading Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett, which is shaping up to be a great spy novel.

I love spy novels (but oddly not James Bond, I think I've been spoiled by the movies), but haven't read any in the past few years. But now I seem to be on a spy novel binge, I've read three already this year and The Eye of the Needle makes 4.

#141 - if you're on a spy novel kick, Charles Cumming is rather good ... (Pesky touchstones!)

#94, 103, 104 --- The Jack Reacher series is on my TBR list. What makes him a good hero?

Currently, I'm reading the 2nd Sister Frevisse mystery, The Servant's Tale, by Margaret Frazer. I have the series in ebook through Book 13 so I'll be encased in a medieval nunnery for a while. Good thing I like it there.

99% of the time I read a series in order. Drives me crazy not to. No matter what they say, "...even tho this is Book 44 in the series, this book can be read as a stand alone...", you MISS stuff if you do it that way. If it's good, I don't like to miss stuff.

#106 --- I am watching The Killing on AMC. My DVR had been recording and I had all 3 episodes waiting. Just started watching a couple days ago and WOW. If you're a mystery lover, this is the show. The whole season is dedicated to solving one murder mystery and it's a good murder mystery. The actress that plays the lead detective, Linden, is excellent.

>141 Samantha_kathy: I thought Eye of the Needle was terrific. If you're like me, you'll have a hard time putting it down.

>142 Sophie236:: Oohhh, shiny new author with shiny new books! Thanks for the rec!

>144 jnwelch:: I do have a hard time putting it down, it's really amazing. I read it during my commute and the only reason I'm not continuing while I'm walking home from the bus stop is the fact that I need to cross a road!

>145 Samantha_kathy: I commute by train (the el in Chicago) and I'm starting a book tag "almost missed my train stop". This one I'm sure would qualify.

peajay check out this thread about Reacher - http://www.librarything.com/topic/88945

>144 jnwelch:: Read "Eye of the Needle" years ago, and still remember the "no putter downer" experience. My husband was also walking around with his nose in it.

Can anyone recommend a good mystery? Tired of the ones where you know what happened by the end on chapter 3 would love any ideas.
Thanks!

right now im reading Skeleton Crew. Trying to get that finished before my copy of Fatal Storm by Lee Driver arrives that I won through member giveaways :)

Have just started Think of a Number by John Verdon, and so far it's excellent and not at all what I expected!

I started a May: Murder & Mayhem thread, if anyone is interested. I think any reason to knock out some mystery titles, is a good one. Stop by: Right Here

Sophie- I have a copy of Think of a Number. Look forward to seeing your thoughts.

Really enjoying To Kingdom Come by Will Thomas. Found this one cheap, so I've started the Barker/Llewellyn series at #2, but even minus the whole backstory, I'm really liking it.

Lunchtime read (because it has short chapters) has been Last Light...has come highly recommended by coworkers. Hits a little close to home; begins with the world coming to a screeching halt thanks to an EMP that takes out all electronic devices. How spoiled we are :)

I'm reading 1 ragged ridge road it has been on my shelf for a while. Enjoying it.

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. I am not enjoying it ...

edited to try to fix the touchstones. I used the correct brackets, but ... I'll use italics instead

I'm reading The Blessing Way by Tony Hillerman right now. It's intruiging. (Did I spell that right?)

Read the second part of The Strain trilogy. Didn't enjoy it as much as the first part.

Carrying on with my rereadings of Dame Agatha :) Just finished Paddingtonista 16.50 ("4:50 from Paddington") -- it's one of my favourites. Miss Marple starring :)

We don't have many Lilian Jackson Braun's novels in libraries so I was pleasantly surprised to find The Cat Who Went Underground . It's been many years since I read one of The Cat Who... series and I'm really looking forward to this book. I've enjoyed very much the ones I've read so far, they are nice and just a bit quirky.

Just Finished Long Lost by Harlan Coben. Enjoyed it like all is others I have read so far.

I'm just getting started on Among the Departed by Vicki Delany - the latest in her Constable Molly Smith series set in British Columbia.

The Informationist was a good thriller by a new author with an unusual background: http://www.taylorstevensbooks.com/author.php

I'm looking forward to reading her next one, which also will feature heroine Vanessa Michael Monroe.

Next up is Edmund Crispen's Holy Disorders, my first time reading him.

I just finished The Telltale Turtle by Jim Lavene

#160 - I'm adding The Informationist to my wishlist, sounds like one I would enjoy. Also, will be interested in hearing about Holy Disorders as I fully intend to continue reading this author at some point.

Right now I have started Driftnet by Lin Anderson. The first book in a series of which I know very little about. It starts off well and appears to be a quick read. Set in Glasgow and features forensic scientist Rhona Macleod. One of the blurbs says "A sexy new rival for old Rebus" - I think that's an overstatement!

Sounds good, Judy. I think you'll like it; among other things, I was intrigued by its detailed Central Africa locations, and Munroe is quite a character. I'll keep you posted on the Gervase Fen.

>149 starlitehouse:: NO SECOND CHANCE by Harlan Coben

>158 shamabibi:: I think Harlan Coben's earlier books are even better than Long Lost. I've read them all.

Read John Wainwright's All through the night, a slice of life police procedural. It was very good.

Read John Wainwright's All through the night, a slice of life police procedural. It was very good.

#152 - msf59, Think of a Number was excellent - fiendish plot, and very engaging characters - I can recommend it for the upper slopes of Mount TBR!

(Edited for smelling)

I've started the second in Kate Atkinson's Jackson Brodie series, One Good Turn.

Caught by Harlen Coben

Started Nemesis by Jo Nesbo Already liking PD Harry Hole.

Skinwalkers by Tony Hillerman, my third by him in as many months.

Cindysprocket wrong book has come up.

bertyboy, I'm not sure how to fix that. May be searching under the authors name ? Yep that worked.

>171 cindysprocket: Ooooooh I'm reading that too after just finishing The Redbreast. I really like Harry Hole.

I'm on the first chapter of The Likeness.

I read The Informationist about a month ago. I really liked it. I'll snatch #2 of the series as soon as it's available.

Just finished The Killing Floor, the first Jack Reacher, this morning. Heyyyyy, I see what all the fuss is about. I really, really enjoyed it -- everything. The mystery concerning large scale counterfeiting was great -- not TOO technical, yet filled with interesting info. The villains were great--nasty and hateful. The setting, the south was portrayed with great accuracy. Loved it. And the hero, the detective, what a great guy. Loved him, loved him. Man, I have a great series in front of me to read with this one. I'm thrilled about that.

And just for a comparison and he-men in mystery fiction, I was trying to read the Travis McGee series. I read #1, The Deep Blue Goodby, liked the mystery, wasn't particularly fond of McGee, but I loved old Florida, the setting. Started with #2 several days ago and got completely disgusted. I had every ebook in that series and I deleted every damn one of them. I now detest that asshole, T McGee.

Loved Reacher, detested McGee.

OK, rant over. :)

I just finished Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett and am now half-way through The Blessing Way by Tony Hillerman. I've read in reviews that The Blessing Way is the worst book of the series, and I'm already liking this one, so that's good news!

I've read three Hillerman's in as many months and I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the Navajo culture woven into the stories.

peajay - funny, it's reviews like yours that put me off reading that series. Every time I look into it I run into one. That you loved Reacher and hated McGee is exactly what I think will happen to me. Can you say what put you over the top in #2?

Bookmarque: I know how you feel. I took to Mickey Haller far faster than Harry Bosch!

I've read 4 books by Michael Connelly, The Fifth Witness and the Lincoln Lawyer as it's showing at the movies here in Australia at the moment. And I usually like to read the book before the film.

Also read Trunk Music and Angels Flight. Angels Flight was a fantastic read. Very dark, corrupt and political described in Conelly's gritty, bleak, intricate manner. Sensational!

Bookmarque -- What put me over the top with Travis McGee #2? Trav, as he likes to be called, was asked by an old army buddy to go to NYC and look in on his sister. He's worried about her. Her fiance just died and there was something fishy about the death. Trav goes, meets the girl who is a petite, sassy thing and some kind of artist, maybe an industrial artist? He bullies her pretty good and she ends up confessing she found $10,000 that belonged to her fiance, and somehow she knows it's dirty money and it made her bitter. Completely changed her opinion of the fiance. She says she didn't want the money, she'd GIVE it to Trav. So Trav goes to her apartment later, she pops the ten thou in his hand. He starts in again on her --doesn't believe the ten is ALL the money she found. Bullies her about jumping to conclusions about her fiance, mocks her that she thought the money she found automatically meant something derogatory about fiance. Girl slaps Trav. Trav hauls back and knocks the shit out of her. Girl falls into Trav's arms, crying.

That's the point when I had enough. There are so many things about the above that just leaves me completely disgusted. Don't wanna read no more.

I'll miss old Florida though. That part was like a trip back into a long gone, seductive world. Not enough seduction, too much BS.

ugh, that I can do without in my life. why it sells is a mystery. I'll take Reacher anytime. Or Cole. Or Pike. or even Davenport.

I finished The Blessing Way by Tony Hillerman. I liked this book and if the series gets better as is said in the reviews here (apparently this was the worst book of the series), that’s a very nice bonus when I’m reading the rest!

But right now, I'm going to finish The Abyssinian Proof by Jenny White first.

Just started St. Dale by Sharyn McCrumb, which I don't believe is much a mystery at all, but worth a mention here if you enjoy any of her Spencer Arrowood series -- this is going to go in a completely different, but very enjoyable direction.

I just finished Cold Granite by Stuart MacBride. It's the first in the Logan McRae series. I got the author's name off of a post here about Scottish crime writers. I have read other Scottish crime authors (Ian Rankin) and I really like those books. I was not disappointed with MacBride. You can check out my review here.

Now I'm reading The sea of Monsters the second book in the Percy Jackson series. It's a good light read after something as intense as Cold Granite.

#187 Joybee - I love Stuart MacBride's books, I think they just keep getting better (as long as you have a strong stomach)!

I am today starting two mystery/thrillers, The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo which has been sitting on my shelves for a couple of years, and I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells, which caught my eye at the library.

Throwing 7's by Denis Hamill

188 I look forward to trying Jo Nesbo. I loved I am not a Serial Killer and Mr. Monster, hope you enjoy them.

Reading 2nd in series The Blood Split by Asa Larsson and so far very good!

Reading the second Jack Taylor book by Ken Bruen, The Killing of the Tinkers. Finding it hard to put down!

Wookie- I'm glad you are enjoying The Killing of the Tinkers. It was so good! I've read the 1st 4 of his Jack Taylor books and they are all terrific!

@192-3, Only 3 of the series so far for me but I'm on the Jack Taylor appreciation society as well.

Vengeance is Mine by Zada Leon is a "can't put down" book.

Just about to start Void Moon by Michael Connolly to see if it stays or goes in the Kicked to the Curb collection.

Just started The Take by Graham Hurley. Plan to read the Joe Farraday police procedural series in order. Really enjoyed Turnstone and this is starting out just as good.

New thread for May is here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/115375