How to Murder a Millionaire by Nancy Martin

We’re pleased to re-post this book review of the first in Nancy Martin’s Blackbird Sisters Mysteries; we first ran it last year when Nancy was scheduled to visit our libraries, and we’re running it again because she’ll be here this week!

The Blackbird sisters come from an old, respectable, wealthy Pennsylvania family. At least, they did until their parents fled the country. Now they just come from an old family with a somewhat murky reputation. Their parents left a mixed legacy for the three sisters. Libby got the antique furniture, Emma got the artwork, and Nora was left the old homestead. This sounds great, except Nora also inherited the two million dollar tax bill that goes with the land. Of course, like most sisters, they rarely agree and each thinks the others got the better deal.

Nora, the one with the land, has taken a job as an assistant to the gossip columnist of the local newspaper. She’s trying to make a go of it, despite a boss who hates her, when she finds the body of Rory Pendergast. Rory was a close friend to the Blackbirds who also owned the newspaper and gave Nora her job, so Nora is determined to find out what happened to him. Because of the standing of the Blackbird family, the police agree that Nora might be better placed to find inside information about the elite families of Philadelphia.

How to Murder a Millionaire is a fast and fun beginning to The Blackbird Sisters Mysteries. It has an intriguing mystery and the author’s descriptions of fabulous parties and the stylish clothes worn by the well-to-do give you a glimpse into another lifestyle. The historical notes about Philadelphia were also interesting to me. There is a young police detective and a shady character Nora sells some land to who sometimes help her with her investigations.  Both of them are also potential love interests for Nora. In addition, the rivalry between the sisters is very true to life. You can actually want to protect and kill one of your siblings at the same time (not that I am speaking from experience!). I look forward to reading the rest of this series.

Nancy Martin is the author of many mystery, suspense, historical and romance novels. Nominated for the Agatha Award for Best First Mystery of 2002, How to Murder a Millionaire won the Romantic Times award for Best First Mystery and was a finalist for the Daphne DuMaurier Award. Nancy has also written the Roxy Abruzzo mystery series.

Nancy will appear at several Wake County Libraries in this week on a mystery author panel hosted by Raven award winner Molly Weston She will be joined by fellow mystery writers Deborah Coonts and Brad Parks.

Find and reserve this book in the catalog.

In A Dry Season by Peter Robinson

Detective Chief Inspector Banks is currently in trouble for insubordination, not an unusual occurrence.  However, this time was much worse because he actually punched his boss, Jimmy Riddle. Banks was suspended at first, but the powers that be forced Riddle to reinstate him.  Since then Riddle has made sure Banks was limited to the drudgery of desk duty and other mundane tasks.  Now Riddle has a new kind of punishment in mind. He appoints Banks to lead the investigation of a fifty year old murder that he doesn’t think can be solved.

To complicate matters, Riddle assigns Banks to work with the local DS, Annie Cabot, an officer with a reputation as a troublemaker.  Cabot took the position in a small town force where there is little activity because it was made clear to her she would not be in line for promotion any time soon.  She has been branded a loner who doesn’t work well with others on the force.  What Riddle doesn’t expect is that once Banks sinks his teeth in, he will do everything in his power to uncover the truth. Not only that, it turns out he and Cabot work well together, both on and off duty.

While this book is part of the Inspector Banks series, there is more to it than a straightforward detective story. The victim was discovered when a drought caused a reservoir to dry up, exposing a village which had been evacuated and flooded in the early 1950s. The woman was not buried by the flood, though; she was murdered and placed under a stone slab. Banks 1st task is to figure out when the body was buried before he can begin to find out why she was murdered.

Robinson’s novel switches back and forth between World War II, when the village was last occupied, and the present day investigation.  Telling the story this way makes the mystery more suspenseful, and  Robinson is able to make a very cold police case have relevance and urgency for the characters today; and I found the description of life during the war to be fascinating. This is my favorite book in the Inspector Banks series, although I would recommend all of them.  The series has also been recently made into a television series that was shown on WUNCTV in January.  Hopefully, they will repeat it soon!

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Good Bait by John Harvey

John Harvey’s new novel is a fast paced story about two parallel cases, both related to a vast criminal underworld in London.  The main story is Chief Inspector Karen Shields’ investigation into the death of a young immigrant found in a frozen pond on Hampstead Heath.    The more Shields looks into the case, the more complicated it becomes.   Another murder in the same area seems to involve some of the same people, and Shields is suddenly called to the office of superior officer to discuss the crimes with a major task force.  Shields and her team can’t determine if the young man’s murder is related to the suddenly escalating violent incidents between rival gangs in the neighborhood, or if there is a more personal element.

The other case is an unofficial one.  Detective Trevor Cordon has come to London from Cornwall out of a sense of guilt.  Maxine, a woman he had arrested many times, asked for his help locating her daughter, Letitia.  Cordon had tried to help Letitia out in the past by giving her a job, but tells Maxine there is nothing he can do this time.  So Maxine goes to London herself.  Now Cordon hears Maxine was killed by a train and no one knows whether she fell, was pushed, or committed suicide.  Cordon decides to track down Letitia and make sure she is okay.  The trouble is he is not the only person looking for her.  Cordon’s case will eventually cross with Shields’ investigation in an unexpected way.

I enjoyed this book, although at times it was difficult to keep the characters straight.  But this actually makes it seem more realistic since the real world is rarely as neat as detective novels.  Also, Harvey is good at the details of police organizations and investigations and his characters are as interesting as the plot lines. What makes a woman born in Jamaica become an officer in the British police force?  Why would Cordon feel ties to this particular child, and not the children of other folks he has run across in the course of his job?  Fans of Harvey’s other series’ will enjoy this new book, as will fans of British mysteries.

Find and reserve this book in our catalog.

How to Murder a Millionaire by Nancy Martin

The Blackbird sisters come from an old, respectable, wealthy Pennsylvania family. At least, they did until their parents fled the country. Now they just come from an old family with a somewhat murky reputation. Their parents left a mixed legacy for the three sisters. Libby got the antique furniture, Emma got the artwork, and Nora was left the old homestead. This sounds great, except Nora also inherited the two million dollar tax bill that goes with the land. Of course, like most sisters, they rarely agree and each thinks the others got the better deal.

Nora, the one with the land, has taken a job as an assistant to the gossip columnist of the local newspaper. She’s trying to make a go of it, despite a boss who hates her, when she finds the body of Rory Pendergast. Rory was a close friend to the Blackbirds who also owned the newspaper and gave Nora her job, so Nora is determined to find out what happened to him. Because of the standing of the Blackbird family, the police agree that Nora might be better placed to find inside information about the elite families of Philadelphia.

How to Murder a Millionaire is a fast and fun beginning to The Blackbird Sisters Mysteries. It has an intriguing mystery and the author’s descriptions of fabulous parties and the stylish clothes worn by the well-to-do give you a glimpse into another lifestyle. The historical notes about Philadelphia were also interesting to me. There is a young police detective and a shady character Nora sells some land to who sometimes help her with her investigations.  Both of them are also potential love interests for Nora. In addition, the rivalry between the sisters is very true to life. You can actually want to protect and kill one of your siblings at the same time (not that I am speaking from experience!). I look forward to reading the rest of this series.

Nancy Martin is the author of many mystery, suspense, historical and romance novels. Nominated for the Agatha Award for Best First Mystery of 2002, HOW TO MURDER A MILLIONAIRE won the Romantic Times award for Best First Mystery and was a finalist for the Daphne DuMaurier Award. Nancy has also written the Roxy Abruzzo mystery series.

Nancy will appear at several Wake County Libraries in September on a mystery panel hosted by Raven award winner Molly Weston She will be joined by fellow mystery writers Deborah Coonts and Hank Phillippi Ryan.

Find and reserve this book in the catalog.

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The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke

This week we’re featuring some of our favorite Audio Books, just in time for planning your summer road trips. You can also click the Audio Books tag at the bottom of this post or at the top of the tag cloud on the right hand side of our blog’s home page for more great audio book suggestions!

Are you intrigued by the magical city of Venice? Did you love Peter Pan as a child? If so, then the juvenile novel, The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, is a book you’re sure to enjoy this summer, either reading the book to yourself on the beach, or listening to the audio in the car with the entire family. The winner of several European Children’s Book Awards, it is a captivating read both for its story and its immersion into the mysterious and beautiful city of Venice which is, in its own way, another character in this story.

The book follows the story of two brothers, Bo and Prosper, who run away to Venice after their mother dies and they are put in the care of their cruel aunt and uncle who only want to keep Bo, the younger boy. In Venice they are befriended by a group of orphans who are supported by an enigmatic young man who calls himself the Thief Lord. The Thief Lord keeps them sheltered in an old movie theatre and fed by stealing goods from the wealthy homes in Venice and selling them to an unscrupulous shopkeeper. The Thief Lord is soon commissioned to steal an unusual article that leads the story into many twists and turns. Finally, it comes to a magical/fantastical climax on the Isola Segreta where a relic is enshrined that will change their lives forever. I first listened to the book driving back and forth to work and then reread it for a children’s book club selection, totally enjoying it both times. All the children and adults I know who have read it have also felt the same way about this exceptional book – an enjoyable escape.

Find and reserve this book in our catalog.

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

When this book opens, Maisie Dobbs is setting up her own agency with a sign on the door that says “Psychologist and Investigator”. She is hoping to carry on the work of her former mentor, a man who coached her through her education and trained her in his own detective agency. Maisie is the daughter of a former vegetable vendor who went into service at the age of 14. When the Lady of the house caught her reading in the library on her off hours, she offered to sponsor the young girl’s education. That was 15 years before. Since then, Maisie has served in WWI and graduated from Cambridge University.

Winspear has broken the book into three parts. The first introduces Maisie as an investigator and shows how she solves her first crime. The second part tells the story of Maisie’s youth and how she came to be in service, and of her time as a nurse in WWI. The third section tells about the mystery she stumble across while investigating her first case. It seems initially to be a routine case of possible infidelity, but Maisie quickly discovers that the wife is not seeing another man. In discovering the wife’s secret, she also finds that unknown numbers of veterans are disappearing into a care center and never being seen again. Is this a legitimate therapy center, or is someone taking advantage of men who served their country and came back damaged?

Overall, the book is as much about the impact of WWI the soldiers and civilians of England as it is detective story. The details and descriptions of life in the 1920’s are fascinating. I find it difficult to imagine the amount of losses Great Britain suffered in the war, and how long these effects lingered. I am looking forward to reading the rest of this series (there are nine in the series now).

Find and reserve this book in our catalog.

One Last Breath by Stephen Booth

Following in the tradition of P.D. James and Reginald Hill, Stephen Booth also writes about a crimes set in rural England. But the story is not just about the crime itself, it is a study of the interaction between the families involved, the police who are investigating and the local history and traditions. Booth writes about Detective Constable Ben Cooper, a native to the Peak District and son of a local policeman who died while on the job; and Detective Constable Diane Fry, a woman who is still an outsider despite the fact she has been in the area for years.

Their latest case involves a man who goes missing as soon as he is released from prison after serving 13 years for murdering his lover. Shortly after he disappears, his ex-wife is found dead. Is he the guilty or is he hiding from the real killer? Complicating the investigation is the fact that Ben’s father was the arresting officer in the original case so Ben himself may be a target this time. Fry has to deal with preventing Cooper from going off on his own while worrying about her sister, who is a recovering addict and has recently come to live with her.

The hunt for the killer takes place in and around the many caves that lie underneath the hills in the Peak District of central England. Booth excels in describing the landscape and the creepiness of the unused mining tunnels. Throw in a dense fog, rumors of bodies appearing in the caves, and a murderer bent on revenge and you get one very suspenseful book. It certainly kept me up late!

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A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

London, 1881. The British Empire, ruled from 1837 to 1901 by the mighty Queen Victoria, is in the midst  its Imperial Century (1815–1914) which would add roughly 400 million people (!) to the kingdom, and as a result of this, a war injured, lonely, and poor John H. Watson, M.D., returns home from the war in Afghanistan.

In London, he encounters a certain Sherlock Holmes – a deduction-thumping monster – and after making sure that the two can tolerate living together, the two bachelors share apartment at 221B Baker Street. Before long, the duo also shares adventures, even though the doctor’s role mainly is that of the observer.

A man is found dead in a house in the south of London. The man turns out to be a rich American, but he has not been robbed. The police discover a word – “Rache” – written in blood on one of the walls, and they suspect that a Rachel is involved in the misadventure. But who is this Rachel? How was the man killed? And who did it? The Scotland Yard cannot find any answers, and turn to Mr. Holmes – who brings Dr. Watson with him. Their first case is deeply tragic, and includes an unexpected American detour, but Mr. Holmes is at least as fascinating as the plot and the scenery. The relationship between Dr. Watson and the consulting detective is instantly charming, and equally irresistible in the city and the era – London, 1881.

Intrigued? Read another review of A Study in Scarlet posted on this blog in 2010.

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The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall-Smith

The last time I read anything that could be considered a mystery, I was seven years old and it was a Nancy Drew book. It creeped me out and I swore off mysteries, presumably forever. Recently, however, I decided to give them one more chance and started to read The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith.  This is the beginning of a very popular series about Mma Ramotswe, the first and only lady detective in the small Botswana town of Gaborone.  McCall Smith introduces Mma Ramotswe as she is first opening her detective business, and uses flashback to give the reader insight into her past.

McCall Smith divides the novel into several individual cases that Mma Ramotswe solves through clever observation, well-meaning manipulation, and a bit of luck. She deals with unfaithful husbands, an elusive teenager, and an insurance con man, but one case puts to the test her commitment to the truth.  The case of a missing boy threads throughout the novel. Mma Ramotswe dismisses it at first, once she detects the tell-tale signs of the work of witch doctors. But when her friend and would-be suitor, Mr. J.L.B Matekoni, discovers a child’s finger bone in the glove compartment of an influential Gaborone man, Mma Ramotswe is moved to action.

I always enjoy books that describe the essence of a place and The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency definitely does that. By writing from Mma Ramotswe’s perspective, McCall Smith is able to use the local style of speech and to describe the setting with fond familiarity. The mystery aspect of this novel was just enough to keep me turning the pages, but not so much that I dreamed about corpses and murder weapons.  I’d recommend this to anyone who is hesitant to read a traditional mysteries and who enjoys discovering new places through literature.

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Ratking by Michael Dibdin

Book lovers often roll their eyes when they hear a favorite title is soon to be transferred to the screen, whether big (movie) or small (television), and I admit to occasionally being such an eye-roller.  But the mysteries produced by the BBC and shown in the United States on PBS as part of Masterpiece Theatre have always been an exception for me.  Whether it’s Morse or Poirot, Miss Marple or Wallander, I have always been a sucker for these series.

So imagine my delight when I heard Alan Cumming announce a new production based on one of my all time favorite mystery series.  But I still recommend reading the books first and fortunately there’s time to do so before Rufus Sewell makes his debut as Zen this summer (starting this Sunday, July 17).

It’s best to read this series in order, and the first title is Ratking (winner of the 1988 Gold Dagger Award).  As the story opens, Commissario Aurelio Zen is surprised to find himself assigned to a kidnapping case in Perugia.  Zen has spent the last four years idling behind a desk in Rome, ever since he fell into disfavor with his superiors.  So why the sudden change of heart?  Could it be that a scapegoat is needed?

When the case unfortunately changes from one of kidnapping to homicide, Zen knows it is going to take all his skills, both as a detective and as a politician, to solve it.  Tightly plotted, with a streak of cynicism and evocative atmosphere, Ratking is a great introduction to a great series.

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