“ICED”  By Carol Higgins Clark

       A Regan Reilly Mystery

2011  Book Review #75

      Booklist Review

Thirty-something private investigator Reilly is headed for the ski slopes of Aspen for the Christmas holidays, parents in tow. Mom and Dad are to be houseguests of television actress, Kendra Wood, while Regan visits with an old friend who's opening a new restaurant.

But the Reillys walk into more than just a cheery holiday ski party.  Kendra Wood's valuable art collection has been stolen, and her trusted housekeeper, Eben Bean, is missing. That's all Regan needs to know to send her off in pursuit of Eben and the sneaky thieves.

After assorted hi-jinks, adventures, false alarms, and--yes--plain old silliness, the plot finally gets all tied up in a nice, neat, mostly happy ending that will no doubt charm even the most Scrooge-like reader.

Solidly entertaining, mostly clever, occasionally funny, and always fun, this one is sure to please the author's growing audience. 

My Thoughts:  Clark’s books are always fun to read.  Regan Reilly is an intelligent and fun character.

“THE RIVERS RUN DRY” 

          by Sibella Giorello

A Raleigh Harmon, Forensic Geologist Mystery

2011 Book Review # 74

         Booklist Review 

Raleigh Harmon, the Virginia forensic geologist and FBI special agent, is not having an easy time. Abruptly transferred to the Seattle office, she's finding that they do things differently here than in her native South and that her new boss seems hell-bent on seeing Raleigh fail.

But Raleigh doesn't have time to worry about personal squabbling: a woman is missing, and only Raleigh, with her unique investigative gifts, can find her before it's too late.

Giorello, a Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist, has made the transition from journalism to fiction writing smoothly: the novel reads as though it were written by a veteran of the genre. Raleigh is a strong, assertive series lead, and, if these first two novels are any indication, she should be around for quite a while.

My Thoughts:  This is my first time reading this author…it won’t be the last!  I loved the characters and the writing.  Even male readers will enjoy this one.  It has a fresh approach to the mystery genre and a more believable one. 

"SNAGGED"  

              By Carol Higgins Clark

A Regan Reilly Mystery

2011 Book Review #73

  Publishers Weekly Review

In Miami for a friend's wedding, PI Regan Reilly acquires a new friend in the bride's uncle, Richie Blossom, who has invented ``run-proof, snag-proof'' pantyhose. If Richie can sell his patent to a manufacturer, he'll have the funds to buy the retirement home where he and his friends live. 

A year earlier, the residents acquired an option on the home from Dolly Twiggs before she died under suspicious circumstances; now the option is about to expire, and if Richie's endeavor fails, the extremely valuable property goes on the open market. 

Meanwhile, Ruth Craddock of Calla-Lilly Hosiery, who has her hands on a pair of the prototype pantyhose, realizes that Richie's invention could put her out of business. 

When an aggressive driver nearly mows Richie down, Regan appoints herself his protector and determines to learn more about what happened to Dolly. Although Regan gets the job done and is generally pleasant company, her gripes about such trivial matters such as hotel-room hangers and health-food aficionados occasionally make her seem a whiny sort of lass. 

My Thoughts:  This is what I call a "fun" mystery!  This is Clark's second Regan Reilly novel, (she has written about 10 of them), and it is fun to read, but I think I prefer her later novels after Regan meets Det. Jack Reilly (no kin).  They become much more interesting!!! If you want a light mystery, this is one!

“The Confession”   By John Grisham

2011 Book Review #72

Summary from the Hardcover Edition of the Book

An innocent man is about to be executed. Only a guilty man can save him. For every innocent man sent to prison, there is a guilty one left on the outside. He doesn't understand how the police and prosecutors got the wrong man, and he certainly doesn't care. He just can't believe his good luck.

Time passes and he realizes that the mistake will not be corrected: the authorities believe in their case and are determined to get a conviction. He may even watch the trial of the person wrongly accused of his crime. He is relieved when the verdict is guilty. He laughs when the police and prosecutors congratulate themselves. He is content to allow an innocent person to go to prison, to serve hard time, even to be executed.

Travis Boyette is such a man. In 1998, in the small East Texas city of Sloan, he abducted, raped, and strangled a popular high school cheerleader. He buried her body so that it would never be found, then watched in amazement as police and prosecutors arrested and convicted Donte Drumm, a local football star, and marched him off to death row.

Now nine years have passed. Travis has just been paroled in Kansas for a different crime; Donte is four days away from his execution. Travis suffers from an inoperable brain tumor. For the first time in his miserable life, he decides to do what's right and confess. But how can a guilty man convince lawyers, judges, and politicians that they're about to execute an innocent man?

My Thoughts:  Not Grisham’s best book, but…an exciting action packed read anyway!

“MOBBED”  By Carol Higgins Clark

      A PI Regan Reilly Mystery

2011 Book Review #71

Publishers Weekly Review

In Clark's 14th mystery featuring New York City  PI Regan Reilly (after 2010's 'Wrecked'), Reilly's mother, "well-known suspense writer" Nora Regan Reilly, asks Regan to join her in Bay Head, N.J.

Nora is concerned about eccentric 78-year-old Edna Frawley, who's sold her house on the Jersey shore and is about to hold a big garage sale. The sale's prize items are personal possessions of movie actress, Cleo Paradise, who recently rented the house, then left suddenly with a note to Edna authorizing her to do whatever she wanted with whatever was left behind.

Life imitates art as a stalker begins leaving Cleo dead flowers, just as in her latest film, ‘You Don't Bring Me Flowers, Alive or Dead’. The action shifts perspectives to introduce a legion of people who wish the star dead. Cleo is so underdeveloped that few will be waiting with bated breath for the identification of the creep threatening her.

My Thoughts:  I’ve read most of Carol Clark’s books and this one was not as well developed as most of the others.  I listened to it on audio book and probably would not have finished it if I had been reading it.  I kept waiting for the action to pick up.

“The Sixth Man”   By David Baldacci

2011 Book Review #70

 Library Journal Review

  

Something is rotten in the state of U.S. intelligence.  Baldacci's fifth Sean King and Michelle Maxwell novel opens with the investigative duo headed to a federal prison for the criminally insane. Jailed there is Edgar Roy, an IRS employee, accused of killing six men and burying their bodies in his barn.

Called in by Ted Bergin, King's old professor and Roy's lawyer, the two find their case quickly becoming personal when they discover Bergin shot to death in his car. Was Bergin killed because he was defending Roy? Did Roy murder those six men? The more questions King and Maxwell ask, the more lethal obstacles they face. Their questions begin to lead them into the most deadly places of all-the highest echelons of U.S. intelligence organizations.

Baldacci builds a suspenseful story with appealing characters that will have the reader guessing their loyalties right to the very end.

Verdict:  Highly recommended for all fans of Baldacci and similar authors like James Patterson and John Grisham.

My Thoughts:  Just as I was becoming impatient with the author’s slow pace, the book started to move along much faster and I couldn't put it down.  Never for one moment did I suspect the surprise ending!

“Murder On Waverly Place” 

       By Victoria Thompson

 A Gaslight Mystery

 

2011 Book Review #69

Booklist Review

Sarah Brandt makes an intriguing sleuth, and her Gaslight series is a consistent winner. Daughter of a prominent family, she has become a midwife, helping those in need in late-nineteenth-century New York.

The reasons for some of her choices become crystal clear in this installment. Her sister (and her baby) died in childbirth after being disowned by her father for choosing the man she loved.  Sarah's mother, Mrs. Decker, has never forgiven herself for her part in this fiasco and longs for her dead daughter's forgiveness. When she has the opportunity to visit a spiritualist, Madame Serafina, Mrs. Decker feels she has found her way back to her daughter.

Then, during a séance, one of the participants is murdered, and both Sarah and Mrs. Decker, along with Sarah's good friend Detective Malloy, want to find out the whos and whys.

This is a well-put-together traditional mystery, one that isn't solved until the final pages. Strong characters, clever plotting, and the hint of the supernatural that comes with a story centered around spiritualism make this page-turner a must for both fans and readers new to the series.

My Thoughts:   I always enjoy the Gaslight Mysteries.  This one is no different.  It is set in the 1800’s, with the values of the 1800’s which makes the reading even more interesting.