Mark Pghfan’s Comments (group member since Mar 06, 2014)

Mark Pghfan’s comments from the The Parlor PI's group.

The book needs to go back to the library tomorrow, so I won't be able to read either of the other two novellas.

Well, I finished and there is no murder. No mystery solved, and a kind of wussy ending.

I guess I will just get this started.

The intrepid Lucy Stone now has her 8 year old grandson staying with her and keeping her running all the time, with school, soccer practice and eating! In he limited spare time, she is worried about an old dilapidated house, recently purchased by my apparently nasty people, Ty and Heather moon. They are rejecting all attempts at welcoming them to the neighborhood, and Lucy now thinks Heather might be suffering from some type of abuse by Ty.

I know the (100 page) story is called Haunted House Murder, but I'm on page 73 and there is still no hint of a murder. A whole heck of a lot about taking care of the grandson, though.

I thought the repeated antagonism (and fight) between the family members was a little too much. Are people really this antagonistic toward one another?

I've started Haunted House, the Lucy Stone story (there are three novellas in the book--I doubt given the library constraints, I'll get to all three!)

Is anyone going ahead with Leslie Meier's Haunted House Murder? Now that the previous book is done, I want to dig into this, and I have a short time with it from the library!

I had to read this book pretty quickly as it was from the library and there is a waiting list, so I can't renew it. The other books in the series are interesting me, though.

LovesMysteries: I am listening to the unabridged Hallowe'en Party CDs in my car right now. I do this every year. Not the best book, but I like it anyway!

I've got two loaves of zucchini bread in the freezer. A former co-worker's wife gave me a wonderful recipe where there is a brown sugar and cinnamon streusel in the middle of the loaf and on top! A winner!

I also have some pumpkin bread and snickerdoodles in the freezer. I've shocked at the canned pumpkin thing. I've made pumpkin pie from both the canned stuff and real pumpkin and frankly I couldn't tell the difference.

I finished last night and I admit I did like the tricks at the ending--just when you though you had already heard the finish!

I guess the deaths in the car were unrelated to the main mystery, other than to provide another opportunity to embarrass Mattie! Or perhaps just to provide some possible challenge to Hurley, for Mattie's affection.

I guess there are a number of books in the series following this, the second one. Anyone read any of them yet?

I thought I'd start this final section a little early. I am not quite finished, but we've identified the guilty party.

I will leave it there for the moment (till I've actually finished), and just comment on how I am adoring the newly found stray dog, and his friend, the cat Rubbish!

I am enjoying our cooler weather, finally! Mid 60's during the day and 50 or so at night. I've been doing a lot of baking and stashing stuff in the freezer.

Did anyone notice the (possibly unintentional) pairing of Lucien and Desi? (Read it out loud.)

It's week two and time to start the second portion of the discussion.

As we open this section, Mattie is waking up after being in a car accident. The discussion by the attending EMTs sounds pretty gross, but, as it turns out, the injuries are much less serious that initially discussed.

The investigation takes a turn addressing the two additional bodies that were found found, in pretty nasty condition, following a car crash.

I am having a difficult time trying to connect the two situations with one another. I assume that there must be one!

Hello, Annelise. Welcome to our discussion!

I'm into the second section and am wondering whether there is a point in all the gross detail she is giving us in this book. Yes, I understand that Mattie is a deputy coroner and the author knows a lot about gross related details. But do they have a point in the mystery??

It is not so much that I was turned off by the detail of the corpses, but wondered why the author is hell bent on including such detail. It certainly can't be to forward the mystery. And also why she feels the need to embarrass Mattie all the time. Yes, we know this must be a messy business, but why dwell on it so much.

I am through this first section and just as Mattie appears to have been hit by a car and knocked out...

I'll start part two early next week, if that works.

When we were talking about Leslie Meier's Haunted House Murder, I put a hold on it at the library. It looked like a zillion people ahead of me and that I'd never get it in time. Well, its here! Are we going to discuss this book as well? I better get moving on my reading, if, so!!

I'm a little further into the story now. But I have to think the part about Mattie's date with WIlliam-not-Bill was hilarious!

And Nicole, thanks for catching us up on the previous book(s). Were there three? From the jacket, it sounded like there was just one. Are the previous worth a read?

Well it is October 1st and here in Pittsburgh, it is 89 degrees. Time for a good fall mystery!

So far, I am enjoying the book, though I'm not all the way through this first section yet.

Our heroine is Mattie Winston and Deputy Coroner of a small town in Wisconsin. On Halloween night, dressed is a huge poofy dress, she gets called to the site of a murder, the somewhat delayed finding of a neighbor's bloody body. Accompanied by her gay friend and boss, Izzy, she gets to be first on the site (other that the poor kids who found the body), along with the probably future boyfriend, the hunky homicide detective, Steve Hurley.

There are a lot of Mattie's observations, which may be clues to the murder. There is a bit of tension between Hurley and Mattie, from a previous book in the series (this seems to be only the second book.)

Some funny prose and enjoyable characters make my happy!