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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2572 KP) rated Just Plain Murder in Books

Dec 2, 2018

It was Heavenly to Visit These Characters Again

In the time that shop owner Claire Weatherly has been dating detective Jakob Fisher, she has never met Russ Granger, the man Jakob counts as a mentor and father figure. Of course, it makes sense since Russ has retired and moved to Florida. He is back in Heavenly, Pennsylvania, for a visit, but before Jakob and Russ can reconnect, Russ is murdered. Distraught over the man's death, Jakob throws himself into solving the crime. Can Claire help him come up with any leads?

It's been two and a half years since we've been able to visit this community, and I hadn't realized just how much I missed it until I was reading the first page. I was immediately swept back into the peaceful state I find while reading this series. In keeping with a town next to an Amish community, the pace in this series has always been a bit on the slow side, but I did feel this book's pacing was slower than normal. Still, when the pace does pick up, we get a well-done plot. The real star has always been the characters, and I was thrilled to be able to visit them again. They are as wonderful as ever, and I enjoyed some of the developments happening in their lives.

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Shetland

Ann Cleeves

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Ann Cleeves' bestselling series of crime novels, featuring Detective Jimmy Perez, and now also...

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2572 KP) rated The Overlook (Harry Bosch, #13; Harry Bosch Universe, #16) in Books

Sep 26, 2020

Fast Paced Fast Read

LAPD Detective Harry Bosch has recently transferred to the Los Angeles Homicide Special department, and his first case finds him at an overlook on Mulholland Drive where a doctor was shot in the back of the head. Bosch has hardly gotten the basics of the case when the FBI shows up. As jurisdictional wars break out, Bosch tries to keep his focus on solving the crime. Can he do it?

I was surprised to find this book was shorter than normal for a Harry Bosch novel, but when I learned it originally appeared in serialized form, it made sense. The book doesn’t skimp on twists and turns; they are still packed into the pages. I had part of the solution figured out early, but it was just a small part of it. Bosch is dealing with a ticking clock, and that means that any personal sub-plots are left out of the book. Because of the shorter length, the characters aren’t as well developed as usual, but this lack of character growth is a minor issue. What bothered me more was some of Bosch’s actions here. Normally, I enjoy his efforts to skirt the rules, but in this case, I felt he went a bit too far. Still, Harry’s many fans will enjoy this fast-paced entry to the series.