What mysteries are you reading at the moment? Old thread Showing 2,751-2,800 of 4,475

[Sandysbookaday (taking a midwinter break)]

Recently finished a very entertaining golden age detective story, Seven Dead by J. Jefferson Farjeon and republished by Poisoned Pen Press. My review can be read at https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/... or https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Judy]

I've just started A Man of Some Repute by Elizabeth Edmondson - was it Jan who recommended her? I'm enjoying it so far - it's set in the early 1950s and involves a missing aristocrat and a castle.



I see this is the first in the A Very English Mystery series, but sadly the author died in 2016, after completing only two full-length books in this series - she had also startied a third, which has now been completed by another author. She wrote quite a few other books though, including some under the name Elizabeth Aston.

[Judy]

Sandy and Sandy, I've been meaning to try Anne Perry again - I read one of hers many years ago but don't really remember it now - and am also keen to try Seven Dead. Visiting this thread is bad for my TBR ;)

[Jay-me (Janet)]

Judy wrote: "I've just started A Man of Some Repute by Elizabeth Edmondson

I see this is the first in the A Very English Mystery series, but sadly the author died in 2016, after completing only two full-length books in this series - she had also startied a third, which has now been completed by another author."

It could have been me that recommended this author - I've read this series and several other of her books.
The third book was completed by her son.

[Judy]

I’m grateful for the recommendation of Elizabeth Edmondson, Jay-me - enjoying her book so far.

[Susan]

I am re-reading a future buddy readThe Beast Must Die

[Elinor]

I'm still at the very begining of the second Alleyne, but I've also started a French historical mystery, The Man with the Lead Stomach (reading it in French since that's my native language :))

[Carolien]

Elinor wrote: "I'm still at the very begining of the second Alleyne, but I've also started a French historical mystery, The Man with the Lead Stomach (reading it in French since that's my native la..."

I really enjoy this series. I've read the first two books and I must get back to it.

[Susan]

Ooh, me too, Carolien. I read a few of the series some years ago and you have reminded me that I would like to re-visit.

[Leslie]

I am trying to read my Cyril Hare books in order (I got several of these when my parents moved and already owned a few). I discovered that I was missing the second Inspector Mallett book which was not available at the library (even with interlibrary loan). So sad...

but I used some of my Xmas gift card to buy myself a paperback copy (~$20!!). It arrived Tuesday and I finished it today. Death is No Sportsman was a convoluted but fair mystery -- no clues hidden from the reader. And I guess that fly fishing hasn't changed much since the 1930s as it didn't strike me as very dated.

[Susan]

I haven't read many Cyril Hare's, Leslie, but have liked the ones I have read.

I'm currently reading Hangman the sequel to Ragdoll

[Jill]

Just started The Nursing Home Murder by Ngaio Marsh

[Paperbackreader]

Since I seem to prefer Ngaio Marsh books in audio book form, I am trying to see if it is the same with Dorothy L. Sayers. I was not much impressed with Clouds of Witness. Am trying The Nine Tailors read by Ian Carmichael to see if it makes me feel better about Sayers.

[Annabel]

IMO Clouds of Witness is fun (if you don't mind cartoonish characters and some absurd gothic nonsense) but flawed. Nine Tailors is much better, one of my favourites. (view spoiler)[My big problem with COW is the ludicrous Gothic depiction of the Grimethorpe menage, which feels like such utter male fantasy (violent farmer, beautiful wife who's annoyingly responsive to upper-class male visitors) that it's surprising to remember it was written by a woman. The really hateful thing about it for me though is the way in which the Grimethorpes' young daughter is mentioned briefly in the first scene at the farmhouse but then no one, not her father, her mother, Lord Peter or the author bothers to think about her welfare ever again. (hide spoiler)]

I am re-reading A Tale of Two Cities, since Our Mutual Friend has put me into a Dickensian frame of mind. First time I've read it in decades. So far, the writing's not as good as OMF IMO but the plot is faster-paced and more exciting - I'd almost say taut, if you could ever say that of one of Dickens' doorstop tomes!

[Teri-K]

Paperbackreader wrote: "Since I seem to prefer Ngaio Marsh books in audio book form, I am trying to see if it is the same with Dorothy L. Sayers. I was not much impressed with Clouds of Witness. Am trying [b..."

I think some Sayers are much better than others. I like Gaudy Night, Strong Poison, Busman's Honeymoon, Murder must Advertise, Clouds of Witness (mixed feelings about this one), Nine Tailors (but I used to be a bell ringer and that helps). Some of the others are better after you've developed a taste for Whimsey.

It is interesting to see how he evolves in the books. He's an idiot in the early ones. I actually like Harriet, Parker and Miss Climpson better than Peter.

[Judy]

I’ve finished A Man of Some Repute by Elizabeth Edmondson - I enjoyed the main characters more than the mystery. I might read more by her in future.

Now on to The Nursing Home Murder for our challenge!

[Leslie]

I finished the first Maigret book yesterday - Pietr the Latvian. While I didn't think it was as good as some of the later Maigret books, it was interesting to see how Simenon originally envisioned him.

[Jan C]

I received The Complete, Annotated Whose Body? yesterday. I haven't looked at it very carefully yet though. Looking forward to it and hope the author gets working on annotating the other books.

[Frances]

The Secrets of Wishtide-I'm enjoying it so far-a serendipitous find at my local library.

[Lady Clementina]

Frances wrote: "The Secrets of Wishtide-I'm enjoying it so far-a serendipitous find at my local library."

That one's on my 'wishlist'- good to know you're enjoying it.

[Sandy]

Frances wrote: "The Secrets of Wishtide-I'm enjoying it so far-a serendipitous find at my local library."

That is how I found Wishtide as well. Browsing is such fun.

[Paperbackreader]

Teri-K wrote: "I think some Sayers are much better than others. I like Gaudy Night, Strong Poison, Busman's Honeymoon, Murder must Advertise, Clouds of Witness (mixed feelings about this one), Nine Tailors (but I used to be a bell ringer and that helps). Some of the others are better after you've developed a taste for Whimsey.

It is interesting to see how he evolves in the books. He's an idiot in the early ones. I actually like Harriet, Parker and Miss Climpson better than Peter."

Most of the bell ringing stuff in The Nine Tailors is flying over my head. I am probably not paying as much attention it though, as it has been a rather busy few weeks.

Incidentally, I have started The Golden Age of Murder, intending to finish it over the weekend. Right now, I am reading about Sayers. Reading/listening these two books around the same time is an interesting experience.

[Teri-K]

Paperbackreader wrote: "Most of the bell ringing stuff in The Nine Tailors is flying over my head. I am probably not paying as much attention it though, as it has been a rather busy few weeks.
..."

That's one of the great things about reading, isn't it? You can skim some parts and linger over others. I skip sex scenes, myself.

Back when I was handbell ringing I was asked to give a talk on the history of it at a conference and I used some of Nine Tailors in my talk. It went over quite well and I met some other mystery readers in the bargain. The descriptions are historically accurate and detailed. But not essential to the plot, thankfully for those who aren't interested. :)

[Jill]

Just starting Poirot Investigates Not usually keen on short stories but there are some I have read lately that are beginning to change my view. Hope this adds to them

[Pamela]

I'm reading The Snack Thief, the 3rd Montalbano book. An excellent mystery plot, but a bit too much of Montalbano's personal life for my liking.

[Susan]

I am reading the new Sharon Bolton The Craftsman
Loving it so far.

[Gary]

Currently reading Southern Peach Pie and a Dead Guy by A. Gardner.

[Jill]

Starting Blood in the Cotswolds by Rebecca Tope

[Leslie]

Pamela wrote: "I'm reading The Snack Thief, the 3rd Montalbano book. An excellent mystery plot, but a bit too much of Montalbano's personal life for my liking."

Montalbano's personal life is always in the books but to varying degrees. Take heart that the further books in the series won't all have that much.

I will be starting Game of Mirrors (#18 in the Montalbano series) tomorrow or the next day.

[Paperbackreader]

Jill wrote: "Just starting Poirot Investigates Not usually keen on short stories but there are some I have read lately that are beginning to change my view. Hope this adds to them"

I love short stories, especially if they are detective/mystery/horror ones! Just re-read Poirot Investigates a few weeks ago. Hope you enjoy it.

[Judy]

I am another one who enjoyed Secrets of Wishtide and am looking forward to future books in the series being published.

I've just started another 19th-century mystery, Fool's Gold: A Victorian London mystery by Caro Peacock - really like this series.

[Susan]

I started to re-read The Murder at Sissingham Hall, which I read when it first came out. That was when it was touted as a re-discovered GA novel, before the author came clean!

[Sue]

Sandy, following up on your comment in the thread for And Then There Were None you asked "how are Marsten's railroad detective stories? Have you read the series from the start? I really like Andrew Martin's Jim Stringer series (The Necropolis Railway), but there hasn't been a new one for quite awhile and I'm looking for a replacement series. "

Railway to the Grave This is the first one I've read, and it's number 7 in the series. Now, I never, never normally start a series in the middle! But I've had three of them sitting on my shelves for a couple of years or more, and 2018 is the year of "for goodness sake Sue either read them or ditch them!"

I'm enjoying it. It doesn't suffer too much from being number 7, although there are references to earlier crimes that he solved and there is some character development (I won't spoil it by saying what that is) which started in earlier books.

The plot is interesting, there seem to be plenty of different ways it could go (I'm about half-way through) and the characters are believable. Occasionally the writing is a bit clunky and I'd say the word 'train' is inserted more often that strictly necessary, as in 'he's gone by train to interview the deceased's solicitor' - that sort of thing, but it's not a big problem. I'm enjoying it enough to say I will definitely read the other two.

I don't know anything about the Necropolis Railway series - what's it like?

[Roy]

I've just finished Maigret and the Old Lady, by Georges Simenon. After Dorothy L Sayers, Simenon is my favourite detective writer.

this novel is set outside of Maigret's usual Paris setting. Following the annual gathering of a dysfunctional family in the widows seaside home a body is discovered. The maid has been poisoned. Arsenic was found in the widows glass which Rose, the maid, took instead of the intended victim.

Send for Poirot! er I mean, Inspector Maigret. Can he prevent a second murder? The novel ends with a final reveal as Maigret confronts all the possible suspects.

Has Simenon placed Maigret in Christie country? I suspect he is having fun playing with the classic British whodunnit format, even allowing Maigret to get a little tipsy before sobering up for the big reveal.

[Sandy]

Sue, thanks for the very complete answer. The Jim Stringer series is good for Edwardian period atmosphere with lots of railroad detail. Some of the issues of the day, i.e. suffragists and labor relations, are raised but not a major part of the plot. The mysteries are well plotted. Stringer's life changes regarding family and employment but he is not introspective so not much character development. I recommend them.

[Sandy]

I am reading Acceptable Loss, the next Monk book after Execution Dock, which I read last month. The story continues from the prior book so decided I should read it soon, before I forget the plot details. Execution Dock is not a cliff hanger which I dislike, especially if I'm reading the series as it is published. There are only a few series where I am current, but two are Elly Griffiths Ruth Galloway series and Jacqueline Winspear Maise Dobbs. I am on the library wait list for the next books.

And, on audio, I'm reading The Grave's a Fine and Private Place, the latest Flavia DeLuce: child chemist and detective set in the 1950's. Another series where I am current.

[Hannah]

I'm reading The Postmaster's Daughter by Louis
Tracy. It's a classic murder mystery and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.

I'm also reading Raspberry Danish Murder by Joanne Fluke, but I'm not so fond of it. The narration keeps telling things the conversationists already observed together and explaining simple everyday life as though no one lived it before. Odd, to say the least.

[Tania]

I'm not sure yet that it qualifies as a mystery, it seems we already know who is going to do it, but I'm reading Antidote to Venom which is one of the British Library Crime Classics. Very readable so far.

[Carolien]

We went away for the weekend and I had quite a bit of time to read, so ended up doing a bit of a European tour. One general comment on all these books - they all end up making me hungry as descriptions of good food are part of the plot.

The best of the bunch was Crossing the Line. This is the second in the series and the process to discover the murder is extremely clever. I love the setting (who can resist Paris) and the characters are interesting. Highly recommend this series and I am thankful to publishers like https://www.lefrenchbook.com/ for expanding the audience for these books.

The Smell of the Night is the 6th book in this series. Probably the weakest of the bunch to date, but still a really good plot and lovely characters. I enjoy these very much.

The Square of Revenge involves a kidnapping and robbery and old family secrets involving abuse. I really like the characters and enjoyed the tone of the book - a European kind of Robert B. Parker feel. It was published in the 1990's and it is quite interesting how much darker in tone this genre has become over the past few decades.

[Sue]

Sandy wrote: "Sue, thanks for the very complete answer. The Jim Stringer series is good for Edwardian period atmosphere with lots of railroad detail. Some of the issues of the day, i.e. suffragists and labor rel..."

Thanks Sandy - I've added Necropolis Railway to my list! :-)

[Brina]

The two I have on tap this month are
Murphy's Law by Rhys Bowen
Murder in the White House by Margaret Truman

[Susan]

I am reading Tangerine
Quite good so far - Fifties style noir...

[Judy]

I really enjoyed Necropolis Railway and the others I've read so far in the Jim Stringer series - must get back to them soon.

Brina, I will be interested to hear what you think of Murphy's Law. I haven't tried that series yet but enjoyed listening to the first one in the Welsh detective series by Rhys Bowen, Evans Above, and I also liked her standalone historical saga/mystery In Farleigh Field.

[Annabel]

Just finished a long overdue reread of A Tale of Two Cities and am sighing over Sydney Carton.

[Brina]

I'm a third of the way thru and Molly Murphy has Irish spunk. I have a feeling this will be my new contemporary series because I finished/ caught up with Vi Warshawski and Peter Decker for the moment. Bowen is a new author for me and I heard about Farleigh Field but it didn't catch my attention at the time.

[Judy]

Sounds good, Brina. I got In Farleigh Field as a past freebie ( a Kindle First selection), which certainly grabbed my interest. A lot of the time they don't offer anything I fancy reading in their monthly selections.

[Jan C]

Brina wrote: "I'm a third of the way thru and Molly Murphy has Irish spunk. I have a feeling this will be my new contemporary series because I finished/ caught up with Vi Warshawski and Peter Decker for the mome..."

I enjoyed the first two or three of the Molly Murphy books and the third or fourth just seemed too sweet for me.

[Jay-me (Janet)]

I've just read The Allingham Case-Book (which someone mentioned somewhere a few days ago - possibly on the free books/deals thread)
I'm not ususally a fan of short stories - particularly when the whole book is just one short story, but this is quite a good collection.

I was a bit confused by the last story - in my kindle edition it just followed on from the previous story. So it was not obvious that it was in fact an excerpt from Traitor's Purse until I saw it wasn't included on the table of contents on the last page.

Perhaps if I wasn't feeling in need of a good rest it might have twigged sooner.

I'm now readingNo Stranger to Death which will tick Berwickshire in my Counties challenge. I'm almost halfway through (according to the percentage read on my kindle) and enjoying it so far

[Marwan]

Started reading C Is for Corpse by Sue Grafton

[Jill]

Am starting The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith Book 8 in Ladies Detective agency series

Also The Red Box by Rex Stout Book 4 in Wolfe series