June MysteryKIT: An Author New to You

For MysteryKIT in the month of June, we will be exploring authors new to us. That's it, read a book by an author you haven't read before. Think of it as your opportunity to dive into your book bullet list. Or, if you need a suggestion, try Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, or Josephine Tey.

When the wiki's working again, I'll post a link.

Most of the mysteries on my treebook and virtual shelves are the next installments in series I'm reading but I do have some new authors.

Possibilities are:
City of Vengeance by D. V. Bishop
Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee by Robert Van Gulik
Errant Justice by R. H. Bishop

I just recently discovered the British Library Crime Classics and almost all of the books are by authors that are new-to-me. I have a few that I picked up at a local used book store that I'm going to try and hit for this prompt:

• Verdict of Twelve (by Raymond Postgate)
• The Spoilt Kill (Hedley Nicholson #1; by Mary Kelly)
• Murder in Picadilly (Chief Inspector Wake #1; by Charles Kingston)

My sister keeps telling me to read this one but we'll see. It's popular but my sister & I have such widely different tastes, I'm putting it on my "Maybe List":
• The Thursday Murder Club (The Thursday Murder Club #1; by Richard Osman)

Oddly, I have these two in my lists; but I cannot find them anywhere in my stacks or a record of my having purchased them-- so definitely long shots:
• Still Life with Murder (Nell Sweeney Mystery Series #1; by P. B. Ryan)
• Lady Helena Investigates (The Scott-De Quincy Mysteries #1; by Jane Steen)

ETA: Ah! The last two titles are buried in my Nook! The Nell Sweeney book is set in post-Civil War Boston, Massachusetts (USA) and the Scott-DeQuincy novel is another historical fiction set in 1881 Sussex. I admit I'm a little baffled as to how they made it into my stacks as I don't recall either being a recommendation or being in my wheelhouse; but there they are!

I plan to finally get around to reading the first volume in Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series.

Oh wow, there are endless possibilities for this!

I have already planned to read A June of Ordinary Murders by Conor Brady for CalendarCAT, and it fits here as well.

I took a BB from Judy a while ago for Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham which will work for this and also the AlphaKit.

ETA: Actually, more than a little while ago (2017 - yikes).

>6 dudes22: I have Talking to the Dead on my virtual bookshelf as well. I thought it was there because I'd read other books by the author, but apparently not.

>3 Tanya-dogearedcopy: I am going the same way - one of the British Library Crime Classics on Kindle Unlimited. So many to choose from!

I have Snow Angels by James Thompson in mind for June's MysteryKit.

>6 dudes22: I am sure you will love Talking to the Dead. :)

I've managed to collect a few Ed McBain novels and I've yet to read anything from him. I'm picking The Gutter and the Grave. Sounds intense.

I'm sure I'll have plenty for this on my tbr, though there are probably also lots that are continuing series (or not), but by authors I've already read. Positive I have enough options that I will still have options from authors I've not yet read.

COMPLETED Errant Justice by R. H. Bishop

I had never read anything by John Creasey, despite his having written something like 500 mysteries. Now I've read Gideon's Week by J. J. Marric (a pseudonym).

That Night in the Library / Eva Jurczyk
3.5 stars

Seven people, mostly university students including some who work in the library/archives, sneak into the basement of said library on their last night before graduation (those working there will no longer be except for one). Davey has a ritual planned and invited the others to come. In fact, they are locked in the basement for the night; they cannot get out. And when the lights go out, one of them dies. The others try to figure out who did it, while keeping themselves safe.

I like the idea of the story, and I am a librarian, so I liked the library and archives references. But none of the characters were likable, in my opinion. Maybe it’s because they all (except one) took acid at the beginning of the night (part of the ritual) that made them not likable. The POV shifted between a few different characters and I do think that worked well for the reader to see different sides of what was happening. But I did get some of the characters (who were “related” in some way) continually mixed up – there was a dating couple, one was a professor; there was a childhood friend; and a fourth person in that mix somewhere, but I kept getting mixed up as to who was who in that group of four. Overall, though, I’m rating it “good”.

Starting The Nancys by R. W. R. McDonald

I bought Das Geheimnis von Salem in the museum shop of the monastery four years ago, and I don't think the author has written any mysteries before this. But the case doesn't matter anyway here, the important thing is explaining how the monastery worked in the late Middle Ages. And she does this well enough, so if the sequels lie around the bookshops when we take our next vacation on the shore of Lake Constance, I will happily pick them up.

I read Abide with Me: A Sister Agatha and Father Selwyn Mystery by Jane Willan.

COMPLETED The Nancys by R. W. R. McDonald - a new author but not one I will be continuing with.

I read Death of My Aunt by C. H. B. Kitchin, an author new to me. Looking forward to reading more by him.

The Finders / Jeffrey B. Burton
3.5 stars

When a dog is left behind and almost dies at a crime scene, dog-trainer Mason adopts her and names her Elvira, or Vira for short. The type of training Mason does is for cadaver dogs – to find human remains. Vira is exceptional at this, and is able to pick out the perpetrator from quite a ways away, so is recruited to help with a current case.

I listened to the audio and was hopeful this one would really hold my attention. It did… until we heard from the killer, “Everyman” he called himself. I am rarely interested in the killer’s POV in any book, and it’s just way too easy for me to lose where I am in an audio book, so put the two together... It flipped back and forth too often and without warning, unfortunately. I loved the dogs, though… not just Vira, but Sue (a male dog… “A Boy Named Sue” – Mason liked to name his dogs after songs), as well (and there were a few other dogs, too). I’m rating it “good” and do plan to continue the series.

I read Still Life by Louise Penny.

I have completed Palm Beach Finland by Antti Tuomainen.

I have finished Meurtre dans le boudoir by Frédéric Lenormand. It's the second in a series of historical mysteries where Voltaire does the sleuthing – what little there is of it. Mainly, this is about the censor running down illicit books, Voltaire's among them, and the author gives us a guided tour to the literary world of 1733.

Not worth pursuing, in my opinion. The writer is quite prolific with at least two other series to his name.

I read The Tin Princess by Philip Pullman since it was tagged as a mystery. It turned out not to have too much mystery in it though. Was more of an adventure type story.

I read Curiosity Thrilled the Cat by Sofie Kelly which was a cute cozy mystery featuring a librarian who was adopted by two magical cats when she moved to Minnesota.

Currently reading Verdict of Twelve (by Raymond Postgate). Set in 1938 and published in 1940, it's at the end of the Golden Age of Mysteries but technically still in the mix as it refers to the Great War even as it notes rising anti-Semitism. The first part of the book are characters sketches of the twelves jurors, all sharply drawn. The next sections are marked "The Case", "Trial and Verdict", and "Postscript". Straightforward enough! :-)

ETA: I just finished reading Verdict of Twelve, Raymond Postgate's only standalone novel and arguably the only one of note. The court drama centers around the suspected murder an an eleven-year-old boy by his guardian aunt. The characters are portrayed deftly and vividly, and the thought processes during deliberation ring true. Overall well-written as the reader is given no special insight as to the innocence or guilt of the accused until the very, very end. Postgate's social commentary is shrewd and the plot has its "Aha!" moments but the author's cleverness is tonally very cynical.

OP: June 14, 2024
ETS: June 16,2024

I read The Appeal by Janice Hallett for this month.

I read The Gutter and the Grave by Ed McBain. Originally published in 1958, it's a pulpy tale of a former private detective who lost everything, yet gets pulled back into the job when he becomes an accessory to murder. It's a bit predictable, but it's got everything: day drinking, hired thugs, lonely women and jazz musicians.

I just realized I missed posting my book for this prompt.

Await Your Reply was my first book by Dan Chaon.
Chaon tells a story - well, actually three stories - involving identify. It’s twisty and dark but he cleverly brings it altogether and everything clicks nicely into place. Terrific characters. This was my first by Chaon but I'll be looking for more.

I read Dead on the Level by Helen Nielsen.

I've finished Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham which was a BB I took from Judy way back in 2017. Wish it hadn't taken me so long to read it.

I just finished Green for Danger by new-to-me author Christianna Brand. I am definitely interested in trying more of her work now!

I have finished In tiefen Schluchten by Anne Chaplet, which was recommended to me by my sister. An author well worth reading more of.

Two Days Gone / Randall Silvis
3.5 stars

Writer/professor Thomas Huston has disappeared and his wife and three kids (one a baby) have been murdered. The baby was stabbed and all other three had their throats slit. Sargent Ryan DeMarco thinks there is more going on than meets the eye. But is his friendship with and admiration for Huston clouding his judgement? Meanwhile, the reader is following Huston in the woods as he tries to hide, while at the same time, dealing with immense grief. What actually happened in that house?

I liked this. It is also quite dark. I liked the discussion with the author at the end comparing literary fiction (more focus on character-development and less on plot) vs genre fiction (the opposite). He has written literary fiction in the past and in this novel (and presumably the series – this is the first in the series), he does a very good job of combining these. DeMarco himself is dealing with the loss of his own baby a few years previous, which led to his wife also leaving him. I will continue the series.

I discovered two more new authors this month, both of whom I would like to read more from:
Pint of No Return by Dana Mentink, a cozy featuring an ice cream shop owner
Still Waters by Viveca Sten, a Swedish police procedural