Fiction Review

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, says she and Anne Hillerman have been friends for years, maybe even thirty years. Hillerman appeared again at the bookstore, with her latest book in the Leaphorn, Chee and Manuelito series, Shadow of the Solstice. There are still signed copies of the book available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/42ISIGj

Here’s the description of Shadow of the Solstice.

“Anne Hillerman deserves recognition as one of the finest mystery authors currently working in the genre.”—New York Journal of Books

In this gripping chapter in New York Times bestselling author Anne Hillerman’s Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito series, the detectives must sort out a save-the-planet meditation group connected to a mysterious death and a nefarious scheme targeting vulnerable indigenous people living with addiction.

The Navajo Nation police are on high alert when a U.S. Cabinet Secretary schedules an unprecedented trip to the little Navajo town of Shiprock, New Mexico. The visit coincides with a plan to resume uranium mining along the Navajo Nation border. Tensions around the official’s arrival escalate when the body of a stranger is found in an area restricted for the disposal of radioactive uranium waste. Is it coincidence that a cult with a propensity for violence arrives at a private camp group outside Shiprock the same week to celebrate the summer solstice? When the outsiders’ erratic behavior makes their Navajo hosts uneasy, Officer Bernadette Manuelito is assigned to monitor the situation. She finds a young boy at grave risk, abused women, and other shocking discoveries that plunge her and Lt. Jim Chee into a volatile and deadly situation.

Meanwhile, Darleen Manuelito, Bernie’s high spirited younger sister, learns one of her home health clients is gone–and the woman’s daughter doesn’t seem to care. Darleen’s curiosity and sense of duty combine to lead her to discover that the client’s grandson is also missing and that the two have become ensnared in a wickedly complex scheme exploiting indigenous people. Darleen’s information meshes with a case Chee has begun to solve that deals with the evil underside of human nature.

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Anne Hillerman is the bestselling author of the Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito mysteries. The series was created by her father, Tony Hillerman. She is also an executive producer of the Dark Winds television series on AMC. When Anne’s not working, she loves to walk with her dogs, read, cook, travel and enjoy the night sky. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Tucson, Arizona.

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Enjoy the conversation with Anne Hillerman.

We’ve talked about Marie Benedict’s mystery, The Queens of Crime, when she appeared at The Poisoned Pen. In fact, there are still a few signed copies of the book available in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/4h0bWMV

But, it’s always a pleasure to share Oline Cogdill’s reviews from the South Florida Sun Sentinel, and she recently reviewed The Queens of Crime.

Book review: Clever ‘Queens of Crime’ a meticulously researched novel about women mystery writers

Marie Benedict’s “The Queens of Crime” is set in England in 1930. (Anthony Musmanno/Courtesy)

‘The Queens of Crime’ by Marie Benedict. St. Martin’s, 320 pages, $29

Mystery fiction has changed drastically since 1930, the time frame for Marie Benedict’s clever and engaging “The Queens of Crime” set in England.

Back then — in England and America — most best-sellers were written by men, who also were the major book buyers. The exception was Agatha Christie, who was and remains one of the top-selling authors.

In the novel, Christie is recruited by crime author Dorothy Sayers, who has just founded the Detection Club, “the preeminent organization of mystery writers” in England. Sayers wants more women than just her and Christie to be members, but there are “grumblings” from the men, worried about an “abundance of women” infiltrating their ranks.

That “abundance” of women authors would be the three other female mystery writers — Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy — who were best-sellers of their time and whose books still sell and are revered. When the women finally are allowed in the club, they encounter a lack of respect and blatant misogyny, with some deriding their novels and attributing success to their husbands.

But these are not women who are easily dismissed or allow themselves to be ignored. They form their own club within the club, calling themselves “The Queens of Crime.” And to further prove to their male colleagues that their stories are authentic, they plan to solve a real murder — that of British nurse May Daniels, whose body has just been found, seven months after she had vanished in France. The case is the kind of investigation each specializes in.

Benedict skillfully shows how these women writers differ in their writing, lifestyles and approaches to dealing with each other. They are a bit prickly, but who wouldn’t be, given the challenges of the times and working in a male-dominated field. And while their relationships with each other aren’t always smooth, each respects and supports the other.

They draw on their methods of writing to solve the nurse’s murder. Readers will recognize many devices these writers used. Gather all the suspects into one room? Of course.

It’s hardly a spoiler to say they succeed. After all, they are “The Queens of Crime,” and readers know how these stories end. But the joy is spending time with Sayers, Christie, Marsh, Allingham and Orczy.

Benedict’s “The Queens of Crime” demands readers rediscover these masters’ works, which continue to inspire new generations of writers. It is a meticulously researched novel based on historical fact and featuring real people.

The Detection Club was a real group. G.K. Chesterton, author of the Father Brown mysteries, was The Detection Club’s first president. Christie and Sayers were the first women members. The club continues to exist; its oath and rules are definitely worth looking up.

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If you’d like to hear Marie Benedict talk about The Queens of Crime, check out the YouTube video from her appearance at The Poisoned Pen Bookstore.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Adam Plantinga to the bookstore. Plantinga’s new book, Hard Town, is the current Hot Book of the Week. There are signed copies of the book available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3RYcf0o

Here’s the description of Hard Town.

From the author of the USA Today bestseller The Ascent, a retired Detroit cop must unravel the mystery of a small desert town.

After surviving a deadly prison break, ex-Detroit cop Kurt Argento is ready for some quiet. Still working through his grief over the passing of his wife, Argento finds himself house-sitting for a friend with his loyal companion, Hudson, a Chow Chow-Shepard mix. It’s a simple life, but it’s one that Argento is content to live. Then Kristin Reed shows up, begging Argento to find her missing husband and son. 

Argento starts to notice that Fenton, Arizona is more than meets the eye. First there’s the large, overly equipped public safety team complete with specialized tactics and sophisticated weaponry. Then there’s the unusual financial boosting of failing small businesses by the U.S. government. Finally, there’s a man with no name with unprecedented control over the town. Argento finds himself unraveling not just the truth behind the disappearance of a family, but a conspiracy that’s taken a whole town to cover up. 

Fenton, Arizona is going to push him further than he’s ever had to go. And along the way, he may just lose a part of himself. Because justice isn’t as black and white as Argento would like to believe.

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Adam Plantinga is a patrol sergeant with the San Francisco Police Department whose first two nonfiction books— 400 Things Cops Know and Police Craft— have become his calling cards to the world of thrillers. 400 Things was nominated for an Agatha, a Macavity, and was deemed “the new Bible for crime writers” by the Wall Street Journal. Adam’s fiction debut, The Ascent, was published in 2024 and became a USA Today bestseller.

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Enjoy the conversation with Adam Plantinga.

Oline Cogdill recently reviewed Sara Sligar’s Vantage Point for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The Poisoned Pen still has copies in stock in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/4cIrR1G

Book review: April is the cruelest month in Sara Sligar’s perceptive ‘Vantage Point’

Author Sara Sligar skillfully upends her story in every chapter of “Vantage Point.” (Honora Talbott/Courtesy)

Vantage Point’ by Sara Sligar. MCD/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 400 pages, $29

April has been called the cruelest month, and it certainly feels that way to the wealthy, fractured Wieland family at the center of Sara Sligar’s perceptive “Vantage Point.” That’s because April is when the family’s so-called curse kicks in.

For more than 100 years, descendants of self-made steel tycoon Thomas Wieland have died or suffered other trauma during this month. Some Wielands have dismissed this “curse” as a myth or a coincidence, but these naysayers still suffered the effects of the prophecy.

Clara Wieland believes that her family is jinxed during April. Her brother, Teddy, and his wife, Jess, do not agree with this theory. Clara became a believer when she witnessed her parents die in a freak accident when she was 16 years old.

Now, 16 years later, Clara thinks her time has come when a humiliating and graphic sex tape showing her is released on the internet. The video is personally embarrassing and could also derail Teddy’s run for the Senate to represent their part of Maine. Teddy wants the police involved, but Clara, who doesn’t recognize the man nor remember the incident, refuses. When additional tapes featuring Clara, Jess and Teddy are released, Teddy’s team try to prove these videos are deepfakes.

“Vantage Point” unfolds during one month — April, of course — heightening the suspense as May draws closer. Themes of classism, entitlement, revenge, survivor’s guilt and betrayal seep through the novel.

Sligar uses the tapes to unearth the fault lines that run through the family as “Vantage Point” becomes an insightful character study. To outsiders, the Wielands are a solid family, committed to each other and to improving their community as well as the state of Maine. They’ve held on to their family wealth, are respected locally, seem compassionate.

Clara and Jess were best friends as children, as close as sisters; now they are truly sisters since Jess married Teddy. But Clara has been hospitalized a couple of times because of eating disorders, giving Teddy control of her money. Jess begins to realize how little she knows Teddy, who has repressed anger issues.

The title “Vantage Point” works on several levels, showing how points of view can differ among people.

The novel works well as a psychological thriller and a dark domestic tale as Sligar skillfully upends her story in every chapter.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed debut author Elizabeth Kaufman to the bookstore. Peters likes to remind readers if they show up for a debut author, or buy that author’s book, they can say they were there or knew to buy the first book when the author first appeared at the bookstore. There are signed copies of Ruth Run, the debut, available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3GbhW8R

Here’s the description of Ruth Run.

“A wildly fun and thrilling read in this age of digital theft, Ruth Run introduces us to an irresistible heroine and, in Elizabeth Kaufman, a scintillating new voice in contemporary fiction.” —Maria Semple, author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette and Today Will Be Different

Cybercrime leads to a cross-country pursuit as an ambitious, misfit young thief exploits a hacked microchip to rob banks, and learns too late that the wrong people have been watching her

Twenty-six-year-old Ruth excels at microchip design but decides to get rich the old-fashioned way: robbing banks. She becomes a cybercriminal and devotes five years to siphoning more than $250 million out of the banking system using a hacked firewall chip that she created and only she knows how to access. Then one night an alarm goes off and she realizes she’s been discovered.

Five hours later she’s on the run, chased across California and the West by a slew of government agents who see her as both a high-level national security threat and a potential intelligence asset. They’ll catch her dead or alive—whatever it takes to make sure no one else discovers what she knows. Each of these men is obsessed with the woman he’s hunting, certain he knows what makes her tick. But Ruth, always a step ahead, armed with her ironic wit and a reluctant dog, eludes their understanding; can she elude their capture, too?

A nonstop oddball thriller for the age of digital theft, Ruth Run introduces an irresistible new heroine and a fantastic new voice in contemporary fiction.

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Elizabeth Kaufman had a career in data networking, specializing in network security products and architectures. She now lives in rural northern Colorado.

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Enjoy Elizabeth Kaufman’s first appearance at The Poisoned Pen.

Fans of Nils Shapiro, Matt Goldman’s series character, will be pleased to hear Nils will be back in his own book, Dark Humor, in December. Shapiro appears in a few chapters in Goldman’s latest book, The Murder Show, the book he talked about at The Poisoned Pen Bookstore. There are signed copies of The Murder Show available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3RnWSOF

Here’s the description of The Murder Show.

The Murder Show is a pulse-racing novel about secrets, old friends, and how the past never leaves us by New York Times bestselling and Emmy Award winning author Matt Goldman!

Showrunner Ethan Harris had a hit with The Murder Show, a television crime drama that features a private detective who solves cases the police can’t. But after his pitch for the fourth season is rejected by the network, he returns home to Minnesota looking for inspiration.

His timing is fortunate — his former classmate Ro Greeman is now a local police officer, and she’s uncovered new information about the devastating hit and run that killed their mutual friend Ricky the summer after high school. She asks Ethan to help her investigate and thinks that if he portrays the killing on The Murder Show, the publicity may bring Ricky’s killer to justice.

Ethan is skeptical that Ricky’s death was anything but a horrible accident, but with the clock running out on his career, he’s willing to try anything. It doesn’t take long for them to realize they’ve dug up more than they bargained for. Someone is dead set on stopping Ethan and Ro from looking too closely into Ricky’s death — even if keeping them quiet means killing again…

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New York Times bestselling author MATT GOLDMAN is a playwright and Emmy Award-winning television writer for Seinfeld, Ellen, and other shows. Goldman has been nominated for the Shamus and Nero Awards and was a Lariat Adult Fiction Reading List selection. He lives in Minnesota with his wife, pets, and whichever children happen to be around.

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Enjoy Matt Goldman’s discussion.

If you’ve read Nita Prose’s Molly the Maid books, you’ll be eager to hear what she says about the latest book in the series, The Maid’s Secret. Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Prose to the bookstore to talk about her latest book. There are signed copies of The Maid’s Secret available through the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3E90L7f

Here’s the description of The Maid’s Secret.

A daring art heist on the eve of Molly’s wedding reveals long-buried secrets in this intriguing and heartwarming novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid and The Mystery Guest.

”A big-hearted examination of wealth and social class.”—Oprah Daily

”A glorious read . . . intrigue, heart, and humanity in spades.”—Lucy Foley

Molly Gray’s life is about to change in ways she could never have imagined. As the esteemed Head Maid and Special Events Manager of the Regency Grand Hotel, two good things are just around the corner—a taping of the hit antiquities TV show Hidden Treasures and, even more exciting, her wedding to Juan Manuel.

When Molly brings in some old trinkets to be appraised on the show, one item is revealed to be a rare and coveted artifact worth millions. Molly becomes a rags-to-riches sensation, and a media frenzy swirls as she prepares to sell her priceless treasure. Then, on auction day, the treasure suddenly vanishes. and Molly and her friends find themselves at the center of the boldest art heist in recent memory.

But the key to this mystery lies in the past, in a long-forgotten diary written by Molly’s Gran. For the first time ever, Molly learns about her grandmother’s secrets: how she was born into a wealthy family and fell head-over-heels in love with a young man her parents deemed below her. As fate would have it, Gran’s greatest love was someone Molly knows quite well.

A spirited heist caper and an epic love story, The Maid’s Secret is a spell-binding whodunit that will capture your heart.

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Nita Prose is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid, which has sold more than two million copies worldwide, The Mystery Guest, and The Mistletoe Mystery. A Good Morning America Book Club pick, The Maid won the Ned Kelly Award for International Crime Fiction, the Fingerprint Award for Debut Novel of the Year, the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, and the Barry Award for Best First Mystery. The Maid was also an Edgar Award finalist for Best Novel.

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Enjoy Nita Prose’s discussion of The Maid’s Secret.

Not Dead Yet is Jeffrey Siger’s fourteenth book featuring Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis. If you’re looking for exciting novels set in Greece check out his books. Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Siger to the bookstore. You can order a signed copy of Not Dead Yet, and copies of Siger’s earlier books through the Webstore. https://bit.ly/4cG6aiU

Here’s the description of Not Dead Yet.

A corrupt millionaire. A suspicious plane crash. A sole survivor. Chief Inspector Kaldis is on the case in the latest installment of the internationally bestselling, critically acclaimed mystery series set in Greece

“Thoughtful police procedurals set in picturesque but not untroubled Greek locales” New York Times
“A new Kaldis case is always a treat” Booklist (Starred Review)
“Terrific novels which take place on the Greek islands” Readers Digest

Wealthy Greek businessman Dimitris Onofrio is known to be corrupt to the core, but the police have never been able to make his crimes stick. Powerful, influential and extremely dangerous, Onofrio is not a man to cross, and every witness prepared to come forward against him has died before they could testify.

So when Onofrio’s private jet crashes, seemingly with no survivors, the police breathe a sigh of relief – quickly replaced by horror when Onofrio is found alive but catatonic on a remote Ionian beach, beside the body of his beloved wife.

Was the crash an accident . . . or sabotage? Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis, head of Athens’ Special Crimes Unit, knows that unless he can discover the truth before Onofrio recovers, the tycoon will be out for bloody revenge on all involved. Including Kaldis’ own beloved wife, who is more mixed up in the accident than anyone would ever have suspected . . .

With its gorgeous Greek locations, engaging characters and fast-paced plotting, this international crime series is a perfect pick for fans of Donna Leon, Louise Penny, Martin Walker and David Hewson.

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Jeffrey Siger is an American living on the Aegean Greek island of Mykonos. A former Wall Street lawyer, he gave up his career as a name partner in his own New York City law firm to write the international best-selling, award recognized Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis series of mystery thrillers telling more than just a fast-paced story. The New York Times described his novels as “thoughtful police procedurals set in picturesque but not untroubled Greek locales” and named him as Greece’s thriller novelist of record. Athens Insider Magazine hails him as “a literary star,” the Greek government selected him as the only American author writing novels serving as a guide to Greece, and Reader’s Digest calls him “one of our new favorite authors.” He’s also served as Chair of the National Board of Bouchercon, America’s largest mystery convention, and as Adjunct Professor of English at Washington & Jefferson College, teaching mystery writing.

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Enjoy the conversation with Jeffrey Siger.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Bryan Gruley back to the bookstore to talk about his latest book, Bitterfrost. The Pen sold out of the signed books, but you can still order a copy of the book through the Webstore. https://bit.ly/4ib8gs4

Here’s the description of Bitterfrost, a book with terrific reviews. Peters reads a few of the reviews.

The first in a brand-new crime thriller series from Edgar nominee and Pulitzer Prize–winning author Bryan Gruley. Feisty defence attorney Devyn Payne faces off against veteran detective Garth Klimmek as they work to solve a vicious double homicide in their small, icy town of Bitterfrost.

Thirteen years ago, former ice hockey star Jimmy Baker quit the game after almost killing an opponent. Now, as the Zamboni driver for the amateur team in his hometown of Bitterfrost, Michigan, he’s living his penance. Until the morning he awakens to the smell of blood . . .

Jimmy soon finds himself arrested for a brutal double murder. The kicker? He has no memory of the night in question. And as the evidence racks up against him, Jimmy’s case is skating on thin ice. Could he have committed such a gruesome crime?

As his defence attorney Devyn Payne and prosecuting detective Garth Klimmek race to uncover the truth, time is running out for Jimmy. Because all he can really be sure of is that he is capable of taking a life. The question is, in his blacked-out state, did he take two?

This gritty drama is the first in the Bitterfrost series, perfect for fans of Dennis Lehane!

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Bryan Gruley is the Edgar-nominated author of six novels and one award-winning work of nonfiction. A lifelong journalist, he shared in The Wall Street Journal‘s Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the September 11 terrorist attacks. He lives in northern lower Michigan with his wife, Pamela.

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Enjoy the conversation with Bryan Gruley.

It seems as if I’m only writing tributes in the last weeks, to Kerry Greenwood, Peter Lovesey, and now Andrew Gross. May they all rest in peace.

A personal Arizona story. I met Andrew Gross and his wife, Lynn, at a birthday party in Tucson. We had dinner. The next day, I went to see Andrew at the Tucson Festival of Books. Andrew looked awful, but he managed to make it through his program. He had food poisoning from the night before.

Gross appeared at The Poisoned Pen several times. He wrote some books with James Patterson before he wrote thrillers on his own. But, I want to share an interview for Gross’ most personal book, Button Man. It’s based on the story of Gross’ own family, a Jewish family working in the garment industry. You would have to place a special order for Button Man. https://bit.ly/3YvwrdJ

Andrew Gross said Button Man is really a depiction of the origin of an industry, but also a depiction of organized crime in New York.

Patrick Millikin did an excellent interview with Andrew Gross. It’s a pleasure to hear him talk about his family and New York City history. It’s worth watching, one last time.

Andrew Gross. May he rest in peace.