Nominations open -- March 2018 group reads: the female sleuth

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Women have been solving crimes long before Nancy Drew appeared on the scene. This time around, nominate a book in which a woman plays the major role of detective, policeperson, or amateur sleuth.

the rules:

1. do NOT nominate your own book
2. do NOT have your publicist nominate your book
3. if you nominate the winning book, you are the moderator for the discussion. If you don't want to lead the discussion, don't nominate a book.

Have fun!!

[Carol]

I nominate The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey.

[Paul]

I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves

[Connie]

I nominate MURDER ON THE CLIFFS by Joanna Challis. This is the first in a mystery featuring Daphne du Maurier.

[Gisela]

Paul wrote: "I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves"
Can I second The Crow Trap and nominate A Killing in the Hills. Not only one women, but a mother and daughter sleuth duo.

[Denise]

I nominate The Secrets of Wishtide by Kate Saunders .This mystery is a perfect amalgam of Agatha Christie and Charles Dickens. The unlikely sleuth is Mrs. Laetitia Rodd, a middle-aged widow who unabashedly supplements her income by solving crime. The Secrets of Wishtide This is more than a cozy; it has some bite.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

1. The Widows of Malabar Hill, by Sujata Massey -- Carol

2. The Crow Trap, by Ann Cleeves -- Paul

3. Murder on the Cliffs: A Daphne du Maurier Mystery -- Connie.

4. A Killing in the Hills, by Julia Keller -- Gisela

5. The Secrets of Wishtide by Kate Saunders -- Denise

6. V is for Vengeance, by Sue Grafton -- Skye

7. Killed at the Whim of a Hat, by Colin Cotterill -- Bill

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Gisela wrote: "Paul wrote: "I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves"
Can I second The Crow Trap and nominate [book:A Killing in the Hills|1353..."

yikes! a double whammy!! ;0

[Skye]

WOW, all of these are on my TBR list; great titles.

I'll nominate V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Skye wrote: "WOW, all of these are on my TBR list; great titles.

I'll nominate V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton."

Well, if people haven't read the A book, is it an issue? That's way down the list alphabetically.

[Thomas]

Grafton's books can be read out of order, but I think that readers would enjoy them more if read in order. I have read A through Y, mostly in order.

[jennsquared]

I finished V not that long ago and this particular one does not have a lot of overlapping characters. and if a recurring character appears, there is always a summation on the person and how it relates to the character.

[Bill]

I'll nominate Killed at the Whim of a Hat, the first Jimm Juree mystery by Colin Cotterill. Jimm Juree is a crime reporter in Thailand. If this series is half as good as Cotterill's Dr. Siri Paiboun series, I'm sure it'll be excellent.

[Skye]

Thomas wrote: "Grafton's books can be read out of order, but I think that readers would enjoy them more if read in order. I have read A through Y, mostly in order."

I can change my suggestion: I just began to read this one.

[Skye]

Nancy, I have nearly all of her books prior to V...

I'll change my nomination to M is for Malice.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

I don't mind leaving V if, as others have said, it can be read more or less independently from the rest of the series, so no need to change your nomination.

In future, though, let's ALL think closer to the beginning of any series.

[Skye]

Her books can be stand alones, Nancy, and I felt a tribute was needed. It's up to you to keep it as it is; part of Grafton's charm was the recurring friends and neighbors she wrote about in a tongue-in-cheek manner.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

I'll leave your original nomination -- no problem.

[Skye]

Ok, and thanks!!!

[NancyJ]

I'll second V for Vengeance (or M for Malice) in honor of Sue Grafton's recent death. I read the first 10 or so long ago, and I would like to read one more. I don't mind skipping ahead as most of her books are fine as stand alones. (I don't want to go back to A.)

[NancyJ]

Edited:

I'm not prepared to lead a discussion yet, so I'll just mention two that have been recommended to me by multiple sources. Perhaps someone else will nominate them.

My Sister's Grave (Tracy Crosswhite, #1)
Dugoni, Robert * - edit - Skip this, the group read it already.

The Crossing Places (Ruth Galloway, #1)
Griffiths, Elly *

[Skye]

NancyJ wrote: "I'll second V for Vengeance (or M for Malice) in honor of Sue Grafton's recent death. I read the first 10 or so long ago, and I would like to read one more. I don't mind skipping ahead as most of h..."

:)

[Ellen]

Paul wrote: "I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves"

I'm with you Paul for the Crow Trap.

[Skye]

I love Ann Cleeves!

[Nell]

Bill wrote: "I'll nominate Killed at the Whim of a Hat, the first Jimm Juree mystery by Colin Cotterill. Jimm Juree is a crime re..."

I second Killed at the Whim of a Hat

[NancyJ]

Paul wrote: "I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves"

Paul, does The Crow Trap have another name? My library has a long list of Ann Cleeves, titles, but not this one. They have several DVDs too.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

I'll be leaving this thread open for nominations until tomorrow; poll up on Wednesday.

[Bill]

NancyJ wrote: "Paul wrote: "I'll nominate The Crow Trap, the first of the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves"

Paul, does The Crow Trap have another name? My library has a long list o..."

As far as I can tell, it's only ever been called The Crow Trap

[NancyJ]

OK thanks. I'll look through the paperbacks because they're not all searchable online.

[Skye]

I can't find this at Barnes and Noble.

[Kathy]

Skye wrote: "I can't find this at Barnes and Noble."

Amazon has it in five different formats.

https://www.amazon.com/Crow-Trap-Firs...

[Skye]

Thanks, Kathy~

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

All righty, the seven books going to the poll tomorrow can be found in message #7.

NO MORE NOMINATIONS, PLEASE!

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

The poll is now active. You can get there via the "polls" link at the top right hand corner, or you can use this link:

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/1...

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

And we have winners!!

V is for Vengeance, by Sue Grafton and
The Crow Trap, by Ann Cleeves.

You may want to start lining up copies, and I'll be contacting Skye and Paul.

[Gisela]

Nancy wrote: "And we have winners!!

V is for Vengeance, by Sue Grafton and
The Crow Trap, by Ann Cleeves.

You may want to start lining up copies, and I'll be contacting Skye and Paul."

Excellent have already ordered the Crow Trap from the library and should be here on time.

[Skye]

I just saw this, Nancy!!!

[Bill]

Excellent choices. I've been enjoying both series.

[Skye]

Me, too!!!!!!!!!, but not the Vera Stanhope series, however, I will order one, just to see.

[Arthur Peter, Jr.]

Nancy wrote: "Women have been solving crimes long before Nancy Drew appeared on the scene. This time around, nominate a book in which a woman plays the major role of detective, policeperson, or amateur sleuth.
..."

Cordelia Gray in the P.D James novels....an unsuitable job for a woman and the skull beneath the skin.

[Bill]

Arthur Peter, Jr. wrote: "Nancy wrote: "Women have been solving crimes long before Nancy Drew appeared on the scene. This time around, nominate a book in which a woman plays the major role of detective, policeperson, or ama..."

The nominations and poll have been completed, Arthur. Thanks.

[Gretchen]

Hi all... I am on my way from Washington state to mid California. Thought I'd get an audio book since radio reception is sketchy. I am new to goodreads so would like to know if audiobooks "count" toward challenges. If so, I picked up v for vengeance. I haven't read the last two books so hope I didn't miss too much. Thanks all for your feedback. Another unrelated question: what do we vote for when we vote? Thanks again.

[Skye]

Gretchen; all of Sue Grafton's books can be read as stand alones. She usually gives an update on who she is, what she has done in the past and it's easy to read along.
Her earlier books, A through perhaps M had enormous funny moments, but they began to take a slight turn.
Nevertheless, sure hope you enjoy it.

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

Gretchen wrote: "Hi all... I am on my way from Washington state to mid California. Thought I'd get an audio book since radio reception is sketchy. I am new to goodreads so would like to know if audiobooks "count" t..."

Welcome, Gretchen. You can read in any form you like.
Once the current nominations thread is closed, Bill will post a poll and let you know when it's time to vote.

Here's the link to the April nominations:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...