Search
Search results
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated A Distant Grave in Books
Jun 23, 2021 (Updated Jun 23, 2021)
Maggie Faces a Case that Crosses the Ocean
Maggie D’arcy’ latest case as a homicide detective on Long Island involves a man on one of the beaches. He’s been shot and robbed, making identifying him the first priority. It is looking like a random homicide, which are always difficult to solve, when Maggie gets an ID. The man is an Irish national. Maggie begins to wonder why the victim was on Long Island in the middle of February. With a trip to Ireland already planned to visit her boyfriend, Conor, Maggie decides to do a little digging. Will she uncover a motive for murder across the Atlantic?
After the first book, I’d wondered how Maggie would once again find herself in a case involving Long Island and Ireland, and the set up for this book was perfect. The plot unravels wonderfully, with Maggie following a logical trail of clues until she reaches the satisfying climax. The book does spoil the events of the first in the series, so be aware of that before you pick this one up. We need that information since some of the character growth in this book flows out of what happened in before. It was wonderful to catch up with Maggie and the other returning characters, and the new characters were just as strong. This book is definitely darker than the cozies I typically read, but it wasn’t overly dark for me, and I didn’t find the violence or language excessive. The writing is wonderful, bringing Maggie’s world to full atmospheric life without slowing down the story. The book is mostly written from Maggie’s first-person present tense point of view, but we do get occasional third-person past tense passages. It’s always easy to see them apart. I got so engrossed in the story that I finished the book faster than I expected to, and I loved every page of it. This is a strong second book, and I’m looking forward to visiting Maggie again soon.
After the first book, I’d wondered how Maggie would once again find herself in a case involving Long Island and Ireland, and the set up for this book was perfect. The plot unravels wonderfully, with Maggie following a logical trail of clues until she reaches the satisfying climax. The book does spoil the events of the first in the series, so be aware of that before you pick this one up. We need that information since some of the character growth in this book flows out of what happened in before. It was wonderful to catch up with Maggie and the other returning characters, and the new characters were just as strong. This book is definitely darker than the cozies I typically read, but it wasn’t overly dark for me, and I didn’t find the violence or language excessive. The writing is wonderful, bringing Maggie’s world to full atmospheric life without slowing down the story. The book is mostly written from Maggie’s first-person present tense point of view, but we do get occasional third-person past tense passages. It’s always easy to see them apart. I got so engrossed in the story that I finished the book faster than I expected to, and I loved every page of it. This is a strong second book, and I’m looking forward to visiting Maggie again soon.
Debbiereadsbook (1166 KP) rated Kill Shot (The Fighting Detective #1) in Books
Jul 12, 2021
a great step out of my comfort zone!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
A step out of my comfort zone, but a very welcome one!
Jack is from London, but has relocated clear across the globe after *something* happened. He and his partner are now tasked with finding out where the missing MMA fighter is, and who killed the trainer.
Jack is. . .interesting! He's not a perfect detective, not by any means, but I think, in his own way, his heart is in the right place. In JACK's right place, you know? Lots of hints and clues and titbits abotu what happened in London to send him running to Australia, but I didn't get the FULL picture, not really. And I really really want it! I think, this might be the only reason that I didn't give it 5 stars, was because I wasn't putting the clues and hints together well enough.
Oh, wait, no. there was another point I want to make. Claudia, Jack's partner, gets a chapter. Just the one. And I wanted more of her, or none of her. that one chapter had my hopes up of a dual point of view, and it's not, not really. One chapter is a tease! So in future books, can we have MORE Claudia, please??
The case of the MMA fighter and missing trainer is well laid out, and I wasn't sure which way it was gonna go til the end, so I was fully engaged and kept on my toes. Thoroughly kept on my toes, if I'm honest and that's a rare thing these days!
This is a step out of my comfort zone, I tend to mostly stick to romance of some description, so the blurb most have grabbed something at me for me to request it. I have not a clue what that was, but I'm very pleased it did.
I'd like to follow Jack and Claudia, they are good together!
4 good solid stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
A step out of my comfort zone, but a very welcome one!
Jack is from London, but has relocated clear across the globe after *something* happened. He and his partner are now tasked with finding out where the missing MMA fighter is, and who killed the trainer.
Jack is. . .interesting! He's not a perfect detective, not by any means, but I think, in his own way, his heart is in the right place. In JACK's right place, you know? Lots of hints and clues and titbits abotu what happened in London to send him running to Australia, but I didn't get the FULL picture, not really. And I really really want it! I think, this might be the only reason that I didn't give it 5 stars, was because I wasn't putting the clues and hints together well enough.
Oh, wait, no. there was another point I want to make. Claudia, Jack's partner, gets a chapter. Just the one. And I wanted more of her, or none of her. that one chapter had my hopes up of a dual point of view, and it's not, not really. One chapter is a tease! So in future books, can we have MORE Claudia, please??
The case of the MMA fighter and missing trainer is well laid out, and I wasn't sure which way it was gonna go til the end, so I was fully engaged and kept on my toes. Thoroughly kept on my toes, if I'm honest and that's a rare thing these days!
This is a step out of my comfort zone, I tend to mostly stick to romance of some description, so the blurb most have grabbed something at me for me to request it. I have not a clue what that was, but I'm very pleased it did.
I'd like to follow Jack and Claudia, they are good together!
4 good solid stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
BookInspector (124 KP) rated Watching You (Berger & Blom #1) in Books
Sep 24, 2020
This the first book in Berger and Blom series, and it was my first encounter with Swedish noir.
At the beginning of this book, I had no idea what was going on and what are they trying to figure out. There were only little clues, that a 15-year-old girl is missing. As the story progressed, I started to see, that Sam Berger, is the main detective, trying to solve this case. The characters in this book are really entwined with each other and very mysterious at the same time. There is a lot of secret work going on, which is uncovered throughout the book, and it was very pleasantly unexpected for me.
The narrative is told from multiple perspectives, and the events keep traveling to the past, to share some of the secrets with a reader. Even though the beginning of this book is quite dull, once it reaches around 40 % it spikes up drastically. The whole narrative gets a different perspective and is way more interesting, so do not give up on this book, wait for those juicy twists. The main issue discussed in this book is bullying, and how it can scar people for life.
The setting of this book is very dark and gloomy, giving this book this cold and shadowy feeling. The writing style is pleasant to read, however, it has these Swedish place and street names which were kind of hard to read… (So I just skipped them) The chapters are a decent length and did not bore me. I really liked the suspense in this novel and I really loved the culmination as well. Even though there are clues of where it is headed and who the “Bad guy “ is, the reasoning behind it, was what really got my curiosity. So, to conclude, it was a very dark and intriguing read for me, filled with plot changing turns and very unique events. I do recommend to give this book a try if you have enough patience. It’s worth a wait, I think. Enjoy
At the beginning of this book, I had no idea what was going on and what are they trying to figure out. There were only little clues, that a 15-year-old girl is missing. As the story progressed, I started to see, that Sam Berger, is the main detective, trying to solve this case. The characters in this book are really entwined with each other and very mysterious at the same time. There is a lot of secret work going on, which is uncovered throughout the book, and it was very pleasantly unexpected for me.
The narrative is told from multiple perspectives, and the events keep traveling to the past, to share some of the secrets with a reader. Even though the beginning of this book is quite dull, once it reaches around 40 % it spikes up drastically. The whole narrative gets a different perspective and is way more interesting, so do not give up on this book, wait for those juicy twists. The main issue discussed in this book is bullying, and how it can scar people for life.
The setting of this book is very dark and gloomy, giving this book this cold and shadowy feeling. The writing style is pleasant to read, however, it has these Swedish place and street names which were kind of hard to read… (So I just skipped them) The chapters are a decent length and did not bore me. I really liked the suspense in this novel and I really loved the culmination as well. Even though there are clues of where it is headed and who the “Bad guy “ is, the reasoning behind it, was what really got my curiosity. So, to conclude, it was a very dark and intriguing read for me, filled with plot changing turns and very unique events. I do recommend to give this book a try if you have enough patience. It’s worth a wait, I think. Enjoy
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Vampire in Brooklyn (1995) in Movies
Sep 18, 2020
Brooklyn's Own Vampire
Vampire in Brooklyn- is a entertaining movie. It has horror, comedy and eddie Murphy as the bad guy.
The plot: In the wake of her mother's death in a mental institution, detective Rita Veder (Angela Bassett) is assigned to a baffling serial murder case. After examining the crime scene -- a corpse-filled ship found adrift at sea -- Rita meets Maximilian (Eddie Murphy), a smooth-talking Caribbean playboy determined to romance her. When Rita begins suffering from crippling hallucinations, she calls upon Dr. Zeko (Zakes Mokae), an occultist who suspects a vampire is on the loose.
According to Charlie Murphy, the movie was originally going to be a straight horror film with no laughs but Wes Craven brought a different focus to it. He also said: "Maximilian wasn't going to have any redeeming qualities. But Wes taught us that we must get the audience to care about our characters. And even if they didn't know any vampires personally, they would at least have to identify with the type of person he was.
About the movie, Eddie Murphy said: "I've always wanted to do something where I was the villain in the movie. I love horror pictures and I was a big fan of Wes Craven. This movie started out as something small, this was a movie my company was just going to produce and the screenplay came together so well that I thought it will be a fun role to play. Because I got to do something kind of scary and had a safety net because the vampire can turn into other peoples. I get to be funny when I'm the preacher and I get to be funny when I'm the Italian guy. And the vampire is pretty straight and I got all these funny stuff happening around me. I felt it was a unique piece to do."
Although contemporary reviews were negative, Vampire In Brooklyn has since become a cult classic.
Like i said its a good comedy horror film.
The plot: In the wake of her mother's death in a mental institution, detective Rita Veder (Angela Bassett) is assigned to a baffling serial murder case. After examining the crime scene -- a corpse-filled ship found adrift at sea -- Rita meets Maximilian (Eddie Murphy), a smooth-talking Caribbean playboy determined to romance her. When Rita begins suffering from crippling hallucinations, she calls upon Dr. Zeko (Zakes Mokae), an occultist who suspects a vampire is on the loose.
According to Charlie Murphy, the movie was originally going to be a straight horror film with no laughs but Wes Craven brought a different focus to it. He also said: "Maximilian wasn't going to have any redeeming qualities. But Wes taught us that we must get the audience to care about our characters. And even if they didn't know any vampires personally, they would at least have to identify with the type of person he was.
About the movie, Eddie Murphy said: "I've always wanted to do something where I was the villain in the movie. I love horror pictures and I was a big fan of Wes Craven. This movie started out as something small, this was a movie my company was just going to produce and the screenplay came together so well that I thought it will be a fun role to play. Because I got to do something kind of scary and had a safety net because the vampire can turn into other peoples. I get to be funny when I'm the preacher and I get to be funny when I'm the Italian guy. And the vampire is pretty straight and I got all these funny stuff happening around me. I felt it was a unique piece to do."
Although contemporary reviews were negative, Vampire In Brooklyn has since become a cult classic.
Like i said its a good comedy horror film.
Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Batman: Detective Comics, Volume 6: Fall of the Batmen in Books
Nov 30, 2020
<b>OMG!</b> Seriously?!? <i>* one more time *</i> <b>OMG!</b> That volume's ending was off the ever-lovin' Feels scale! I knew it was coming (Yaay! Browsin' on the interwebs!), but still, the death of [Spoiler] packed a lot of emotion as well as distaste towards [Spoiler - Part Deux] for not following B-Man's direction or that of the team as a whole!
And, I would like to correct my statement in the other two reviews, that this was the final book of Tynion's 'TEC run. There is, in fact, one last volume, VOL. 8: BATMAN ETERNAL, which I bought digitally the night before, and I will be tackling that one tonight in what has been a great ride, full of fun and excitement, helping to remind that Batman is still cool (despite all of Tom King's efforts)!
In my reviews, I always try to acknowledge the artist(s), whether good or not so good. In this case, there were two Joe Bennett (did the first couple of the arc), followed by Miguel Mendonça, winding down with Jesus Merina (he was on the finale issue of "Fall of the Batmen"), and finishing up with Philippe Briones (handled the epilogue issue, "Knights Fall"). Oh, and Eddy Barrows worked on the last book in this volume, DETECTIVE ANNUAL #2, which I skimmed over, as it was a retread of Clayface's origin/beginnings. But, yeah, those artists were on fire! Such grand attention to detail, facial expressions, and brilliant use of shadows! They are all names I will be keeping an eye out for going forward!
All in all, this was a truly memorable, and emotional, story arc. It was another winner for James Tynion IV, but come on, they were all winning arcs, as far as I'm concerned! And that, my loyal readers (are there really that many who genuinely follow my reviews? I dunno, but I am still going to go that phrasing), is that! Peace!
And, I would like to correct my statement in the other two reviews, that this was the final book of Tynion's 'TEC run. There is, in fact, one last volume, VOL. 8: BATMAN ETERNAL, which I bought digitally the night before, and I will be tackling that one tonight in what has been a great ride, full of fun and excitement, helping to remind that Batman is still cool (despite all of Tom King's efforts)!
In my reviews, I always try to acknowledge the artist(s), whether good or not so good. In this case, there were two Joe Bennett (did the first couple of the arc), followed by Miguel Mendonça, winding down with Jesus Merina (he was on the finale issue of "Fall of the Batmen"), and finishing up with Philippe Briones (handled the epilogue issue, "Knights Fall"). Oh, and Eddy Barrows worked on the last book in this volume, DETECTIVE ANNUAL #2, which I skimmed over, as it was a retread of Clayface's origin/beginnings. But, yeah, those artists were on fire! Such grand attention to detail, facial expressions, and brilliant use of shadows! They are all names I will be keeping an eye out for going forward!
All in all, this was a truly memorable, and emotional, story arc. It was another winner for James Tynion IV, but come on, they were all winning arcs, as far as I'm concerned! And that, my loyal readers (are there really that many who genuinely follow my reviews? I dunno, but I am still going to go that phrasing), is that! Peace!
Darren (1599 KP) rated The Ghoul (2016) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
Characters – Chris is an undercover detective that starts seeing a psychotherapist to help solve the latest case, but the more time he spends in therapy the thinner the line between reality and the truth come from. Kathleen is an old friend from university that supports Chris, while also having him when she needs help. We have other characters that come into the life of Chris, the therapists trying to help him, the fellow patient trying to warn him, the film does keep the character numbers down with each posing a potential end of the investigation for Chris.
Performances – Tom Meeten appears in every scene and his performances needs to be great to carry the film, he is wonderful through the film as we feel his confusion through it all. Going into the supporting cast, we do have good performances for Tom to bounce off too.
Story – The story is the hardest thing to describe, it will keep you guessing from start to finish as you wait to see where the film will go next. This is both a good thing and a bad thing, because you will need to give the film 100% attention to make sure you don’t miss anything and even if you blink you might miss an important clue.
Thriller – This has tension driven through the film as we can see how thing could end up becoming something shocking.
Settings – The film is set in London which helps us se the busy street feel to the busy lives that the people are living.
Scene of the Movie – The final reveal.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It is slightly too confusing.
Final Thoughts – This is a real mind bender, I always enjoy seeing film makers push things to the limits even if I don’t personally enjoy the film as much as I should have.
Overall: Real mind bender for all.
Performances – Tom Meeten appears in every scene and his performances needs to be great to carry the film, he is wonderful through the film as we feel his confusion through it all. Going into the supporting cast, we do have good performances for Tom to bounce off too.
Story – The story is the hardest thing to describe, it will keep you guessing from start to finish as you wait to see where the film will go next. This is both a good thing and a bad thing, because you will need to give the film 100% attention to make sure you don’t miss anything and even if you blink you might miss an important clue.
Thriller – This has tension driven through the film as we can see how thing could end up becoming something shocking.
Settings – The film is set in London which helps us se the busy street feel to the busy lives that the people are living.
Scene of the Movie – The final reveal.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It is slightly too confusing.
Final Thoughts – This is a real mind bender, I always enjoy seeing film makers push things to the limits even if I don’t personally enjoy the film as much as I should have.
Overall: Real mind bender for all.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated Murder in Chinatown in Books
Aug 18, 2019
Missing Girl Leads to Murder
After a recent close call, midwife Sarah Brandt has vowed to stay away from solving crimes and getting involved in anything dangerous. However, she is in Chinatown with the Lee family since Cora Lee is about to give birth and gets a front row to the family drama unfolding. Cora’s niece, Angel, is upset that her father has arranged a marriage for her to an older man and runs away. The family is frantic to find her because the city is no place for a fifteen-year-old to be alone. While the family does find her, she turns up dead a few days later. Sarah manages to get NYPD Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy involved in the case because she fears other police won’t care to fully investigate given who the victim was. But can Malloy figure it out? Will Sarah get involved despite her promise to stay away from murder?
Once again, we are expertly transported back to 1890’s New York City. Along with our normal glimpses of life during the time period, we get to see a bit of how the Chinese were treated during the time; unfortunately, it isn’t pretty. However, the book never stops to preach at us, instead working this in during the mystery. The case itself is strong with plenty of twists to keep us entertained until the end. I thought I had a few things figured out, but I discovered I was wrong when I reached the logical ending. Sarah, in her efforts to stay out of the case, isn’t quite as involved as Frank, but she still has plenty to contribute. Both are great lead characters, and I enjoyed spending time with the regular supporting players as well as meeting the new characters introduced here. We get some advancement on a couple of on-going storylines, and it looks like one of them will be the main focus of the next in the series. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where that leads.
Once again, we are expertly transported back to 1890’s New York City. Along with our normal glimpses of life during the time period, we get to see a bit of how the Chinese were treated during the time; unfortunately, it isn’t pretty. However, the book never stops to preach at us, instead working this in during the mystery. The case itself is strong with plenty of twists to keep us entertained until the end. I thought I had a few things figured out, but I discovered I was wrong when I reached the logical ending. Sarah, in her efforts to stay out of the case, isn’t quite as involved as Frank, but she still has plenty to contribute. Both are great lead characters, and I enjoyed spending time with the regular supporting players as well as meeting the new characters introduced here. We get some advancement on a couple of on-going storylines, and it looks like one of them will be the main focus of the next in the series. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where that leads.
Lindsay (1717 KP) rated The Black Midnight (True Crime #7) in Books
Aug 4, 2020
If you are a history lover and enjoy England, you will enjoy this book. Well, you will get a bit of a tour of London. Though we start in Austin, Texas. We are introduced to every strong Pinkerton detective and her partner. We seem to have unsolved murders in Texas. But our detectives seem to be quite busy otherwise while chasing down a killer.
Will Annie and her partner Isaiah solve the murders in Austin and London? Will they find the killer that is killing women in their beds in Austin and the connection with the killing in London? The queen seems to want her great-granddaughter to look into them with her friend from Texas.
The pages will make you want to read until the last page. You will be on your toes and turning or sliding your pages up reading until the end. Is the killer Jack the Ripper, or is it someone else? You will be trying to guess and figure out along with the Pinkerton detectives in their investigations.
I felt like I was investigating along with them trying to find the killer of the mysterious deaths. You do get pulled into experience the London along the way. Who or What is the Black Midnight? Is the Midnight Assassin the same person as The Black Midnight or Jack the Ripper?
All fans of historical fiction and crime will love this book and the series. It had me wanting more. It is in does go into details about investigations but not a lot into the deaths of killings. This is good in that way. What does the Prince want with his daughter? Why is he trying to bring his daughter home? Who is Annie Walters? Will she give herself away? What up with Cameron Blake and his reporting. Some entertaining story plots are going on. We go on as adventure with this one.
Will Annie and her partner Isaiah solve the murders in Austin and London? Will they find the killer that is killing women in their beds in Austin and the connection with the killing in London? The queen seems to want her great-granddaughter to look into them with her friend from Texas.
The pages will make you want to read until the last page. You will be on your toes and turning or sliding your pages up reading until the end. Is the killer Jack the Ripper, or is it someone else? You will be trying to guess and figure out along with the Pinkerton detectives in their investigations.
I felt like I was investigating along with them trying to find the killer of the mysterious deaths. You do get pulled into experience the London along the way. Who or What is the Black Midnight? Is the Midnight Assassin the same person as The Black Midnight or Jack the Ripper?
All fans of historical fiction and crime will love this book and the series. It had me wanting more. It is in does go into details about investigations but not a lot into the deaths of killings. This is good in that way. What does the Prince want with his daughter? Why is he trying to bring his daughter home? Who is Annie Walters? Will she give herself away? What up with Cameron Blake and his reporting. Some entertaining story plots are going on. We go on as adventure with this one.
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Aug 15, 2020 (Updated Aug 15, 2020)
Too Late to Say Goodbye
5.0
Rate It
Book
Jenn Corbin, a lovely, slim, brown-eyed blonde, appeared to have it all: two dear little boys, a...