Fiction Review

This week, The Poisoned Pen features a historical mystery as Hot Book of the Week. Will Thomas’ latest Barker and Llewelyn novel, Old Scores, is this week’s pick. Signed copies are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2fSYOwH

Here’s the summary of Old Scores.

In 1890, the first Japanese diplomatic delegation arrives in London to open an embassy. Cyrus Barker, private enquiry agent and occasional agent for the Foreign Service Office, is enlisted to display his personal Japanese garden to the visiting dignitaries.

Later that night, Ambassador Toda is shot and killed in his office and Cyrus Barker is discovered across the street, watching the very same office, in possession of a revolver with one spent cartridge.

Arrested by the Special Branch for the crime, Barker is vigorously interrogated and finally released due to the intervention of his assistant, Thomas Llewelyn, and his solicitor. With the London constabulary still convinced of his guilt, Barker is hired by the new Japanese ambassador to find the real murderer.

In a case that takes leads Barker and Llewelyn deep into parts of London’s underworld, on paths that lead deep into Barker’s own mysterious personal history, Old Scores is the finest yet in Will Thomas’s critically acclaimed series.

Did you get a chance to meet David Lagercrantz when he was at The Poisoned Pen? He was on book tour for his best seller, The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye, the latest book in the Millennium series started by Stieg Larsson. Signed copies are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2xZE9iL

Here’s the summary.

Lisbeth Salander is back with a vengeance.

The series that began with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo continues as brilliant hacker Lisbeth Salander teams up with journalist Mikael Blomkvist to uncover the secrets of her childhood and to take revenge.

Lisbeth Salander—obstinate outsider, volatile seeker of justice for herself and others—seizes on a chance to unearth her mysterious past once and for all. And she will let nothing stop her—not the Islamists she enrages by rescuing a young woman from their brutality; not the prison gang leader who passes a death sentence on her; not the deadly reach of her long-lost twin sister, Camilla; and not the people who will do anything to keep buried knowledge of a sinister pseudoscientific experiment known only as The Registry. Once again, Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist are the fierce heart of a thrilling full-tilt novel that takes on some of the world’s most insidious problems.

*****

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, interviewed David Lagercrantz, and the interview is available to watch on Livestream. https://livestream.com/poisonedpen/events/7751274

And, if you can’t get enough, you can check out Jocelyn McClurg’s interview with Lagercrantz in USA Today. https://usat.ly/2y5vxsD

Martin Limon’s mysteries set in South Korea have never been more timely even though they’re set in the 1970s. He recently appeared at The Poisoned Pen, on book tour for the twelfth book in the series, The Nine-Tailed Fox. You can order signed copies through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2hOg6PN

Here’s the summary.

Martin Limón’s series set in 1970s South Korea, an era of heightened Korean sociopolitical tension, pits Army CID agents Sueño and Bascomagainst a mysterious woman who may be the leader of a gang—or a thousand-year-old creature.

Three American GIs have gone missing in different South Korean cities. Sergeants George Sueño and Ernie Bascom, agents for the Army CID, link the disappearances to a woman locally rumored to be a gumiho, a legendary thousand-year-old nine-tailed fox disguised as a woman. George suspects that the woman is no mythical creature, but a criminal who’s good at covering her tracks.

Meanwhile, George and Ernie are caught in a power struggle between two high-ranking women in the 8th Army. Scrambling to appease his boss and stay one step ahead of a psychotic mastermind, George realizes he will have to risk his life to discover the whereabouts of his fellow countrymen.

*****

While Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, hosted, author Michael Koryta also participated in Martin Limon’s interview.

You can watch the interview via Livestream. https://livestream.com/poisonedpen/events/7775046

I know many people think of The Poisoned Pen as a mystery bookstore. It’s that, and so much more. When Scott Kelly’s memoir, Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery, is released in a couple weeks, we’ll have signed copies. You can order them through the Web Store.  https://bit.ly/2yZgKy5

Here’s the description.

A stunning memoir from the astronaut who spent a record-breaking year aboard the International Space Station–a candid account of his remarkable voyage, of the journeys off the planet that preceded it, and of his colorful formative years.

The veteran of four spaceflights and the American record holder for consecutive days spent in space, Scott Kelly has experienced things very few have. Now, he takes us inside a sphere utterly hostile to human life. He describes navigating the extreme challenge of long-term spaceflight, both life-threatening and mundane: the devastating effects on the body; the isolation from everyone he loves and the comforts of Earth; the catastrophic risks of colliding with space junk; and the still more haunting threat of being unable to help should tragedy strike at home–an agonizing situation Kelly faced when, on a previous mission, his twin brother’s wife, American Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, was shot while he still had two months in space.

Kelly’s humanity, compassion, humor, and determination resonate throughout, as he recalls his rough-and-tumble New Jersey childhood and the youthful inspiration that sparked his astounding career, and as he makes clear his belief that Mars will be the next, ultimately challenging, step in spaceflight.

A natural storyteller and modern-day hero, Kelly has a message of hope for the future that will inspire for generations to come. Here, in his personal story, we see the triumph of the human imagination, the strength of the human will, and the infinite wonder of the galaxy.

*****

You can also hear about the book in Scott Kelly’s own words in the book trailer.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bcYFc1qXnU&

 

Readers who live in the Phoenix area had the opportunity to read Robert Anglen’s article about Nelson DeMille and his #1 bestseller, The Cuban Affair. It appeared in The Arizona Republic and at azcentral.com.

Here’s the link to the article. https://bit.ly/2wwvWBm

Here’s the information about the forthcoming event featuring Nelson DeMille.

What: Join author Michael Koryta in a discussion with bestselling thriller writer Nelson Demille on his new book, “The Cuban Affair”

When: 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5

Where: Doubletree Hilton, 5401 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale

Admission: Free; $28 for the book.

Details: 480-947-2974, poisonedpen.com.

*****

Can’t make it to the event? You can still order a signed copy of The Cuban Affair through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2www7g0

I hope you checked out the posts from all of the mystery writers while I was on vacation, the guest blogs that talked about their summer reading. There were some wonderful book suggestions. You can pick up most of the books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com

Those authors talked about books from the past, the present, and, even some forthcoming titles. One of the authors, Cara Black, was in Paris when I was, and I saw her at WHSmith, where she talked about her latest mystery, Murder in Saint-Germain.

That really brings me to the point of this post. Cara appears at the Poisoned Pen when her new books are released. So, do a number of other authors. Nelson DeMille, author of the current #1 title on The New York Times Best Seller list, The Cuban Affair, will be here this week. Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen. tries to bring in the greatest authors with their latest books. And, she introduces readers to new authors. That’s why it’s always interesting to pick up Marilyn Stasio’s column in The New York Times. Her recent column, “The Latest and Greatest in Crime Fiction”, featured reviews of Attica Locke’s Bluebird, Bluebird, Anne Perry’s An Echo of Murder, and Julia Keller’s Fast Falls the Night. https://nyti.ms/2yxHgOc

All of those authors appeared just recently at The Poisoned Pen. Signed copies of their books are available through the Web Store. You can see the videos of their appearances on Livestream. https://livestream.com/poisonedpen

Take advantage of The Poisoned Pen. Show up at the events to see “The Latest and Greatest”. Watch them on Livestream if you can’t get here. Buy their books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com

It’s always a treat to meet “The Latest and Greatest” at The Poisoned Pen. I hope you can make it to the bookstore someday.

As you can tell by the blog title, Nelson DeMille’s The Cuban Affair is the Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen. You can order a signed copy through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2xTOVsS

Here’s the description of the book.

From the legendary #1 New York Times bestselling author of Plum Island and Night Fall, Nelson DeMille’s blistering new novel features an exciting new character—U.S. Army combat veteran Daniel “Mac” MacCormick, now a charter boat captain, who is about to set sail on his most dangerous cruise.

Daniel Graham MacCormick—Mac for short—seems to have a pretty good life. At age thirty-five he’s living in Key West, owner of a forty-two-foot charter fishing boat, The Maine. Mac served five years in the Army as an infantry officer with two tours in Afghanistan. He returned with the Silver Star, two Purple Hearts, scars that don’t tan, and a boat with a big bank loan. Truth be told, Mac’s finances are more than a little shaky.

One day, Mac is sitting in the famous Green Parrot Bar in Key West, contemplating his life, and waiting for Carlos, a hotshot Miami lawyer heavily involved with anti-Castro groups. Carlos wants to hire Mac and The Maine for a ten-day fishing tournament to Cuba at the standard rate, but Mac suspects there is more to this and turns it down. The price then goes up to two million dollars, and Mac agrees to hear the deal, and meet Carlos’s clients—a beautiful Cuban-American woman named Sara Ortega, and a mysterious older Cuban exile, Eduardo Valazquez.

What Mac learns is that there is sixty million American dollars hidden in Cuba by Sara’s grandfather when he fled Castro’s revolution. With the “Cuban Thaw” underway between Havana and Washington, Carlos, Eduardo, and Sara know it’s only a matter of time before someone finds the stash—by accident or on purpose. And Mac knows if he accepts this job, he’ll walk away rich…or not at all.

Brilliantly written, with his signature humor, fascinating authenticity from his research trip to Cuba, and heart-pounding pace, Nelson DeMille is a true master of the genre.

*****

Nelson DeMille fans are invited to meet him on Thursday, October 5 at 7 PM at the Paradise Valley Doubletree Hilton, 5401 N. Scottsdale Road. Michael Koryta will interview DeMille, followed by the book signing. The program itself is free. Call the Poisoned Pen at 480-947-2974 for details.

Before turning to crime, Betty Webb was a journalist. She’s the author of the Lena Jones series set in Arizona, serious mysteries featuring a private investigator. Desert Vengeance is the most recent title from Poisoned Pen Press. On the lighter end of the scale, the Gunn Zoo mysteries are set in California. Betty’s volunteer work at the Phoenix Zoo led to these books. Puffin of Death is the latest title. Her website is https://www.bettywebb-mystery.com/. Webb’s books are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2jKnUCX

Thank you, Betty, for sharing the books you read.

*****

I read these books during my 9-day trip to Casper, Wyoming, to see the total eclipse.

 

“Sleeping in the Ground,” by Peter Robinson

I’ve always been a sucker for British mysteries, especially Robinson’s. Since I live in the desert, where the summer temps can ““ and often do — reach 120 F, Robinson’s chilly Yorkshire moors help cool me down. For the same reason, I’m a sucker for the Nordic authors, such Yrsa Sigurdardottir’s “My Soul to Take,” and Arnaldur Indridason’s “Silence of the Grave.” They’re all freezing up there.

“The Wine of Angels,” by Phil Rickman

I was turned onto Rickman by mention of his work in DorothyL. Again, a wonderful British mystery, this time using a female vicar for protagonist. Murder, sexism, class snobbery ““ this novel’s got them all. Rickman’s books also includes a certain amount of woo-woo, a genre I’ve always enjoyed, so this was a double delight.

“The Girl with all the Gifts,” by M.R. Carey

Since I mentioned woo-woo, I might as well mention one of the most popular of all the woo-woos ““ ZOMBIES! This terrific novel stars a young zombie child and her interaction with her teacher (whom she promises not to bite). It’s my favorite of the We’re-All-Doomed genre. Spoiler alert: I love happy endings, so I’m happy to tell you that both the zombie child and her teacher are still alive in the end (although a lot of other characters aren’t).

*****

Thank you, Betty. Check the Web Store for Betty Webb’s selections. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

As I recently mentioned, Naomi Hirahara will be a Guest of Honor at Left Coast Crime in Reno in 2018. Her final Mas Arai book, Hiroshima Boy, will be out by then. Because both of Hirahara’s parents were in Hiroshima at the time of the atomic bombing of the city, this book has a close connection. Her books are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2fiCuQn

Naomi Hirahara is the Edgar Award-winning mystery writer based in Southern California. Her final and seventh Mas Arai mystery, HIROSHIMA BOY, will be released in March by Prospect Park Books. Her third Officer Ellie Rush mystery, TROUBLE ON TEMPLE STREET, is being presented as an online monthly serial for Discover Nikkei (www.discovernikkei.com). She is a co-guest of honor with William Kent Krueger at Left Coast Crime Reno next year.

Naomi Hirahara’s website is www.naomihirahara.com

She’s another author who took time from a very busy schedule to write for us. Thank you, Naomi. (You’ll want to check the Web Store for Naomi’s book suggestions.)  https://store.poisonedpen.com/

*****

Truth be told, I haven’t been able to do much mystery reading this summer. With two books due ““ one fiction and the other nonfiction, it was a furious race on two different tracks. While one project was idling, the other required me to be at the steering wheel. I was able to read a few books while traveling on trains and taking breaks.
Brooklyn Wars by Triss Stein

I’m a big fan of Triss’s amateur sleuth, Erica Donato. She’s a history scholar who works at a small museum; I can certainly relate, even though Erica’s home base is in Brooklyn and I’m firmly planted on the left coast. The latest novel involves the redevelopment of the old Navy Yard. Since I’ve written a book for the Port of L.A., I’m a sucker for untold shipping tales and Brooklyn Wars doesn’t disappoint.

Trail of Echoes by Rachel Howzell Hall

I know that this mystery is not Rachel’s latest, but I’m a little behind. Rachel’s homicide detective Elouise “Lou” Norton has such a likeable quick wit. Here her observation skills and experience are vital in solving the death of a teenager who lived in the same Los Angeles housing projects that Lou left behind.

Colorado Boulevard by Phoef Sutton (December release)

I kind of cheated on this one because Phoef’s third Crush novel won’t be out until December, perfect timing because the mystery has a connection to Pasadena’s Rose Parade. I read an ARC and I admit that I’m biased because I live in the town he writes about. Jumping from different character’s POV, Colorado Boulevard brings new depth to the story of the tall, taciturn bodyguard.

Good Byline by Jill Orr

It seems to me that there’s a dearth of new cozy amateur sleuths this season, but Jill Orr’s Riley Ellison, a library assistant in a small town in Virginia, may whet your appetite. She’s young, perky and, yes, a little impetuous, but that makes it fun, yes? Here Riley must discover the real reason why her childhood best friend passed away.

The Silent Second by Adam Walker Phillips

There aren’t that many new male authors attempting to write the comic mystery ““ that’s why Adam Walker Phillips’ human resource company drone, Chuck Restic, is so refreshing. I’m fascinated by corporate politics, so this debut mystery definitely delivers.

 

Since my schedule is slowing down a bit, I can’t wait to do some heavy-duty reading this fall. There are two mysteries written by Japanese Americans that I look forward to dig into: Joe Ide’s critically acclaimed IQ and Julie Shigekuni’s In Plain View, which is more literary than genre.

Happy reading with your pumpkin cheesecake Ben & Jerry’s ice cream! (At least that’s my food of choice.)

Con Lehane has done a little bit of everything in his life. He has been a college professor, union organizer, labor journalist, and has tended bar at two-dozen or so drinking establishments. He teaches fiction writing and mystery writing at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The bartending experiences came in handy when he wrote his mysteries featuring New York City bartender Brian McNulty. McNulty also appears in Lehane’s current series featuring a librarian at the building everyone thinks of as the New York Public Library, the library on 42nd Street. In November, the first in the series, Murder at the 42nd Street Library, will be followed by Murder in the Manuscript Room. Both books can be ordered through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2jGAT8u

Con Lehane’s website is www.conlehane.com

Thank you, Con, for writing a guest post and helping out a librarian.

*****

An early-fall question from Lesa: What did you read this summer? Fair enough for a blog post.

I read mostly mysteries—but other things, too. I do a lot of reading and rereading of classic mysteries, though I also have a bookcase filled with books of my contemporaries.

Recent reads include Ross Macdonald’s The Chill, one of my favorites that I reread periodically. It features Lew Archer, Macdonald’s loner private detective, who’s hired by a distraught young man to find his brand new wife who disappears virtually on their wedding night. She’s running from reverberations of a tragedy in her past that have caught up with her in the present. Before Archer can find her a murder takes place—one that Archer might have prevented—and the young bride is the prime suspect. As is his wont, Archer traces the complex stories of a number of people’s lives to uncover the twisted relations in the past that have led to dire consequences in the present. What I like about the Macdonald stories is that sense of how misdeeds in the past haunt the present.

Another book I began this summer and am still reading now into the fall also has to do with coming to grips with the past, or the past having its grip on you, Absalom, Absalom!  by William Faulkner. He’s the author of the much quoted line: “The past is never dead; it’s not even past,” which might well describe Ross Macdonald’s stories as much as his own. This complex and difficult book from the 1930s, thought by some to be a masterpiece, takes place before during and after the Civil War, and though told from multiple points of view, is essentially about one ruthless, vulgar man, Thomas Suptkin, his rise from nothing to wealth while wreaking havoc on his family and ultimately bringing about his own destruction when his dark past catches up with him.

Finally, a recent discovery of mine is Donna Leon—recent for me despite the fact she’s been writing her Commissario Guido Brunetti Venice-based mysteries for a quarter century. I started with her first book,  Death at La Fenice, in which the commissario investigates the death by poisoning of a renowned orchestra conductor. This story too revolves around terrible deeds in the past resolving themselves in murder in the present. I liked how Brunetti conducted his investigation. More than that, I liked how he viewed the world and the people around him as he did it.

*****

Check out the Web Store to find the books Con Lehane read. https://store.poisonedpen.com/