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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2204 KP) rated The Death of an Ambitious Woman in Books
Jul 17, 2018
It Definitely Wasn’t an Accident
The car crash that killed Tracey Kendall was looking suspicious from the start. She was driving way too fast and didn’t break at all for example. Then the mechanic who serviced her car vanishes, which definitely makes acting police chief Ruth Murphy suspect there is more going on than a simple accident. Unfortunately, this comes at the worst possible time with her permanent promotion to police chief about to go through. Can she navigate internal politics and still uncover the truth?
I was thrilled to finally make it back to Barbara Ross’s debut mystery. The mystery is strong, and the internal politics adds a nice layer to an already complex mystery. Ruth and her fellow police officers are strong characters, and I also felt the main suspects were well developed. Some of the supporting players got a little lost, but that is my only complaint about the book. This is a step away from the author’s normal cozy mysteries, with a few four letter words and a touch more description of the aftermath of violence. Still, most of her readers will do just fine with this soft-boiled or traditional tale. Anyone who enjoys a good mystery should pick up this book.
I was thrilled to finally make it back to Barbara Ross’s debut mystery. The mystery is strong, and the internal politics adds a nice layer to an already complex mystery. Ruth and her fellow police officers are strong characters, and I also felt the main suspects were well developed. Some of the supporting players got a little lost, but that is my only complaint about the book. This is a step away from the author’s normal cozy mysteries, with a few four letter words and a touch more description of the aftermath of violence. Still, most of her readers will do just fine with this soft-boiled or traditional tale. Anyone who enjoys a good mystery should pick up this book.
Moke J Dupman (12 KP) rated Humanarium (Book One in the Humanarium Series) in Books
Sep 9, 2018 (Updated Sep 9, 2018)
One of the best books I read this summer
Best book I’ve read in months! Humanarium by C. W. Tickner is an imaginative, well told story. I love the characters and the plot shows depth on many levels. The book is complete with heroes, bad guys, unfamiliar worlds, excitement, and just a dollop of romance. I also appreciate very much how Mr. Tickner incorporates unity among humans who are sometimes quite different from one another into the story. Some scenes were especially good, such as the return journey thru Drew’s tank. Movie worthy, indeed!
Parts of the story remind me of how humans often keep wild animals as pets for their personal enjoyment when they would be much better off left in their own environment. You’ll see why when you read it...no spoilers from me!
I’m left just intrigued enough to get me to want to read the next book. Going into more detail would give away too much, but there are some mysteries that I hope will be answered in books to follow. I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to Mr. Tickner’s next release! All in all, I found Humanarium to be thoroughly fascinating and enjoyable and give it a rating of 4.7/5 ⭐️
Parts of the story remind me of how humans often keep wild animals as pets for their personal enjoyment when they would be much better off left in their own environment. You’ll see why when you read it...no spoilers from me!
I’m left just intrigued enough to get me to want to read the next book. Going into more detail would give away too much, but there are some mysteries that I hope will be answered in books to follow. I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to Mr. Tickner’s next release! All in all, I found Humanarium to be thoroughly fascinating and enjoyable and give it a rating of 4.7/5 ⭐️
Deborah (162 KP) rated Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death in Books
Dec 19, 2018
First off, I expected this to be a novel, so when I got about 70 pages in and it seemed to be winding up the mystery, I was a bit confused. It's actually a series of 6 stories which are different mysteries that Cannon Sidney Chambers finds himself getting involved in. Also, except for the division into stories, there are no chapter breaks.
Of the six stories here, I thought that some worked better than others. The first ones were a little more genteel whereas the later ones, particularly perhaps the penultimate story, were a little more dark and disturbing.
I'm too young to remember this period, so I can't comment on how accurate it is, but I didn't feel that I got a really strong sense of the period. The geographical setting is mainly around Cambridge, with several jaunts up to London. Perhaps the author thought this was just the sort of thing to appeal to those readers of Agatha Christie, because the solutions to no less than three of her books are revealed here - good job I'd read them already....
Altogether, there's enough going on to sustain the interest and I see that the author is proposing a total of six volumes, taking us right up to the early 1980s.
Of the six stories here, I thought that some worked better than others. The first ones were a little more genteel whereas the later ones, particularly perhaps the penultimate story, were a little more dark and disturbing.
I'm too young to remember this period, so I can't comment on how accurate it is, but I didn't feel that I got a really strong sense of the period. The geographical setting is mainly around Cambridge, with several jaunts up to London. Perhaps the author thought this was just the sort of thing to appeal to those readers of Agatha Christie, because the solutions to no less than three of her books are revealed here - good job I'd read them already....
Altogether, there's enough going on to sustain the interest and I see that the author is proposing a total of six volumes, taking us right up to the early 1980s.
Deborah (162 KP) rated The Perfect Murder (Inspector Ghote, #1) in Books
Dec 21, 2018
This is the first in a series of mysteries featuring Inpector Ghote of the Bombay CID recently rereleased as a Penguin Modern Classic. I don't know how many titles there are in the series, but as in the introduction we are told the author didn't set foot in India until the first nine were written I'd hazard a guess there are at least ten!
Now, I do love a good mystery, or what my mother calls 'a nice murder' and although I was entertained enough by this I don't think it will finding a permanent home on my bookshevles. It's not that there is anything particularly wrong with it, perhaps it just wasn't my cup of tea? I found most of the characters in the book to be completely frustrating and unhelpful so I felt frustrated too! Lala Varde I could have quite cheerfully strangled myself with his obstructiveness and childish rhyming language!
One thing I do usually enjoy in mystery novels is trying to work out the solution and then feeling particularly pleased with myself if I get anywhere near the truth. I think that was difficult to do here, so maybe another reason why I wasn't taken with it?
Now, I do love a good mystery, or what my mother calls 'a nice murder' and although I was entertained enough by this I don't think it will finding a permanent home on my bookshevles. It's not that there is anything particularly wrong with it, perhaps it just wasn't my cup of tea? I found most of the characters in the book to be completely frustrating and unhelpful so I felt frustrated too! Lala Varde I could have quite cheerfully strangled myself with his obstructiveness and childish rhyming language!
One thing I do usually enjoy in mystery novels is trying to work out the solution and then feeling particularly pleased with myself if I get anywhere near the truth. I think that was difficult to do here, so maybe another reason why I wasn't taken with it?
Mothergamer (1546 KP) rated Nancy Drew in TV
Feb 5, 2020
I read the Nancy Drew books when I was a kid and loved them, so I was pretty interested in checking out the show. I am really enjoying it so far. The characters are interesting each with their own strengths and skills that they bring to the group. Nancy herself is very smart, but I like that she's also not perfect. She makes mistakes and her friends aren't afraid to call her out on it and eventually she does own up to it and tries to make it right. It makes her feel like a fully developed character. The main mystery is great with a few extra side mysteries thrown in. I am enjoying the spooky ghost story elements to it too and there have been a couple episodes where the show scared me with it. Sometimes the pacing feels a little slow with the writing and it can feel very drawn out at times, but it doesn't detract too much from how good the show is. The cast is really good and they bring the characters to life. I'm enjoying it and always looking forward to the next episode to see where the story goes.
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