January 2024's Reading Summary

And we are one month into 2024 already.  How crazy is that?  I feel like I just took my Christmas decorations down a week and a half ago.  Oh wait, I did.

Seriously, I hope that your 2024 is off to a good start.  For now, it is time to take a look back at what I read in January.

Yes, I got the index updated this month.  Finally, right?

All ratings are on a scale of 1 (bad) to 5 (great). As always, the links will take you to my full review.

Partners in Crime by Steve Hockensmith (Holmes on the Range #6.5) – 5

This book collects five stories featuring Old Red and Big Red, the stars of the Holmes on the Range series.  They are set during late fall 1893 and winter 1894, and find the brothers solving a variety of cases.  The first story finds the brothers returning to their home town in Kansas with mixed results.  When the brothers set out to find a Christmas tree for their landlady, they find a dead body instead.  A series of strange events leads them to go to Idaho to try to help the sheep ranchers involved.  A request in Colorado finds them in the middle of newspaper wars.  Finally, they have to clear their own names when their landlady thinks they are responsible for the things that have been disappearing around their boarding house.

Combined, these five stories reach novel length.  Individually, they vary in length.  The first one seems to wander a bit at first, but as a fan of the series, I didn’t mind.  The stories take place around two of the novels, but there aren’t any spoilers.  Instead, we get Big Red and Old Red and some great new characters in each story to keep us engaged.  The crimes don’t always involve murder, which I enjoyed seeing.  If you haven’t tried the series yet, this would be a fun way to sample the characters.  If you’re already a fan, you’ll enjoy seeing what the brothers get up to here.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

 

Dead and Gondola by Ann Claire (Christie Bookshop Mysteries #1) – 3

Ellie Christie (no relation to the famous author) has returned to help run the family's bookstore in a Colorado resort town.  One day, a stranger comes into the store, hangs out for several hours, then takes off, leaving behind some belongings.  The next time Ellie and her sister see the stranger, he is getting on the gondola that separates the two parts of town.  But when they reach the bottom, he is dead.  What happened to him?  Who was he?

The premise of the setting and the mystery itself both intrigued me, so I was hoping to like this one.  While the mystery started out strongly, it became uneven as the book went along.  There are some good surprises along the way, and I was happy with the solution.  It took a while for me to get to truly know the characters and setting.  By the end, I felt at home, however.  The result was a mixed debut.  I'm not sorry I read the book, but I felt like I had to work at it a little more than I should have.

 

The Burning Room by Michael Connelly (Harry Bosch #17) – 4

As this book opens, Harry Bosch is still working in the cold case unit of the LAPD with a year left until his second retirement.  He and his new partner have caught a cold case with a fresh corpse.  The victim, Orlando Merced, was hit with a stray bullet ten years before.  His shooting was never solved, and he has finally died due to complications from his injury.  Bosch is hoping that the bullet, which wasn’t able to be removed before now, will be the break they need to solve the crime.  However, Bosch still finds himself dealing with a lack of clues or evidence.  Will he get lucky and find a new lead?  Meanwhile, there is a second case in this book involving a crime from twenty years before that involved Bosch’s new partner, Detective Lucia Soto.  Will they be able to solve it as well?

With two storylines, there was plenty of keep the story moving forward.  I enjoyed seeing Bosch’s relationship with his new partner, which wasn’t a cliché from previous entries in the series.  Unfortunately, there were still plenty of recycled things I did see coming.  Don’t get me wrong, I still got caught up in the story, and old fans will still want to read it.  But hopefully, we can get some fresh complications moving forward.  Both stories were wrapped up well, and that left me feeling satisfied when the book ended.  Even with some familiar plot points, fans will still enjoy this book.

 

Mushroom Capped by Cathy Wiley (Fatal Food Festival Mysteries #2) – 5

Former celebrity chef Jackie Norwood has landed in Conway, Maryland, for their second annual mushroom festival.  She’s especially excited about connecting with her friend, Marshall.  However, she quickly discovers that there’s lots of tension in town thanks to a big farming company trying to buy up the mushroom farms in the area.  When Jackie finds the owner of the company dead, Marshall becomes the prime suspect.  Can Jackie clear him?

I loved the first book in the series, and it was great to be spending time with Jackie again.  All of her family and friends from the last book are back as well.  While it would have been nice to see a bit more development for them, I still enjoyed spending time with them and loved the humor they brought to the story.  The story started quickly, and when I reached the end, I appreciated just how the clues and motives were layered into the story.  I was engaged the entire time, and the ending made perfect sense.  If you like mushrooms, you’ll be interested in the five delicious sounding recipes at the end of the book.  This is looking to be a great culinary cozy mystery series, and I’m looking forward to finding out what happens at Jackie’s next festival.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

 

Knot of This World by Mary Marks (Quilting Mysteries #8) – 4

Martha Rose’s friend Birdie Watson is back in town with news.  She and her new husband are selling everything to join a spiritualist commune in nearby Ojai.  Martha is concerned for her friend’s safety, especially when she learns that several people have gone missing.  When Martha goes with Birdie and some other mutual friends to check it out, they wind up finding the leader dead.  What had Birdie gotten them into?

While spiritualism isn’t new to the series, this is the strongest it’s ever been as an element.  That didn’t make me happy, although Martha is as skeptical as I am, which helped.  It also helped that the plot is driven by Martha’s investigation, and we got several good twists along the way.  While the ending does explain everything for us, I did feel like it was weaker than it could have been.  Also weak are some of the supporting players we’ve met along the way who could really use some development.  Still, I do like them and love Martha and her fiancé.  I enjoyed the Southern California setting as always.  Plus there are some quilting tips at the end.  I have one more book in the series, and I’m looking forward to reading about Martha’s final case soon.

 

The Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #6) – 5

Percy Jackson is now a senior in high school, but in order to get into college, he has a special requirement – letters of recommendation from three gods.  And to get them, he has to go on quests, of course.  The first comes from Ganymede who is missing the special goblet he uses to serve the gods.  Can Percy find it before the next big feast?

It’s been years since I read any of the Percy Jackson books, so I wasn’t sure how easily I’d slip back into his world.  I needn’t have worried.  The book focuses on a smaller cast of characters, which made it easy, and I enjoyed spending time with them again.  The story is episodic at times, but I was always engaged, dying to know what would happen next even if the stakes were a little smaller than in other books.  I’d forgotten just how funny the books could be, and I was smiling and laughing throughout.  Yet we also got some wonderful character moments that were very emotionally satisfying.  I’m so glad I picked up this book, and other fans of Percy will be glad they picked it up, too.

 

The Kill of It All by Diane Vallere (Madison Night #9) – 5

Madison Night has recently shot a commercial to drum up customers for her recently reopened business.  But she regrets it when she gets talked into filming a public service commercial for the local police department.  Madison is replacing an actress who wasn’t working out, but she doesn’t expect to find the woman dead behind the building where they are supposed to film.  Suddenly, the crew are looking like suspects.  Can Madison figure out who committed the crime?

I let a little more time than normal go between visits with Madison, but it was wonderful to be back in her presence.  The story starts quickly and doesn’t let up, with several great surprises on the way to the logical climax.  The characters, both returning and new, are as strong as always, and I enjoyed seeing Madison grow a bit more here.  Fans of Doris Day movies will recognize the setup from one of them, but that movie wasn’t a murder mystery.  There are plenty of great surprises along the way (and another couple of fun homages).  Unfortunately, there are still a few things that I wish had been caught in an edit, but they are minor irritants.  If you are looking for a fun mystery, be sure to pick up this series.

 

The Raven Thief by Gigi Pandian (Secret Staircase Mysteries #2) – 5

Tempest Raj’s family’s specialty construction company has just finished a project for a family friend.  Lavinia Kingsley wanted to redesign a space her ex-husband had used.  She’s planning an open house followed by a séance, overseen by Tempest’s friend Sanjay, to ceremonially get her ex out of her life.  However, when the lights come on in the middle of the séance, the group finds Lavinia’s ex’s very real body on the table in their midst.  With the police looking at her grandfather, Tempest jumps into the case.  But she realizes there are four impossible things that she needs to figure out in order to solve the case.  Can she figure out not only who did it, but how?

I’m not sure why I didn’t get to this book sooner, but I’m glad I finally did.  I was quickly hooked, and the locked room aspect really added to the plot.  The complications and twists just made the book harder to put down, but I was completely satisfied when I turned the last page.  I fell in love with the characters even more here, as well.  We get some advancement to the overarching storyline related to Tempest’s family, which made me glad the next book is coming soon.  There are even three recipes at the end.  If you haven’t read this book yet, fix that today.

 

Easter Basket Murder by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, and Barbara Ross – 4

Kensington has called on their go to trio for three new holiday themed mysteries, this time featuring Easter.  Up first, Leslie Meier’s Lucy Stone gets involved with a promotion for the local businesses leads to the theft of a golden Easter egg.  Then Lee Hollis’s Hayley Powell finds the Easter Bunny dead at a community Easter egg hunt.  Finally, Barbara Ross’s Julia Snowden’s Easter on the family island off the coast of Maine is interrupted when she finds a man in coat tails dead in the garden.  Then, a few minutes later, he’s gone.

All three stories have fun with the theme, and present it in some clever ways.  As is often the case, I found the first story the weakest, but the mysteries in the other two stories are strong.  Still, I was engaged no matter which story I was reading.  All three have some great Easter elements that made me feel like it was spring.  And I love the community aspects we get.  I’m only a regular reader of Barbara Ross’s series, and I was interested in the updates we got on the characters there.  If you are looking for some new dishes to serve this year, you’ll be interested in the recipes we get with the second and third story.  Each story is roughly 100 pages, so you can read them in a sitting or two.  Overall, this is a fun anthology you’ll be happy hopped on to your to be read pile.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

 

The Case of the Canterfell Codicil by P.J. Fitzsimmons (Anty Boisjoly Mysteries #1) – 5

When Anty Boisjoly gets a telegram from his friend Fiddles, he can’t help but be intrigued.  Fiddles’ uncle has recently died under mysterious circumstances, and Fiddles wants Anty to come and help.  It isn’t long after Anty arrives that Fiddles becomes the prime suspect.  Who was with the victim in the locked room?  Can Anty figure it out in time to save his friend?

I was intrigued by this series when I saw it described as Dorothy L. Sayers meets PG Wodehouse.  If you take those two authors’ output and put it in a blender, you have a pretty good approximation of this series.  It did take me the first chapter to adapt to the writing style, which mimics the 1920’s when the book is set.  But once I did, I was hooked.  The mystery was intriguing, with plenty of twists on the way to the logical climax.  Anty makes a fantastic lead character, and picks up on quite a few things I missed.  The rest of the cast are equally fleshed out.  And the humor was wonderful.  It’s very dry British wit, so it might not be for everyone, but I was as hooked for the laugh as I was the twists.  And the book had plenty of both.  I will be reading the next one as soon as I can.

 

Of Hoaxes and Homicide by Anastasia Hastings (Dear Miss Hermione #2) – 4

It’s been a few months since we last checked in on half-sisters Violet and Sephora Manville, and they are finding themselves a bit bored after the excitement of solving their first murder.  That changes when Violet’s alter ego, advice columnist Miss Hermione, receives a letter from a distraught mother whose daughter has run off and joined a cult.  When Violet starts to investigate, she realizes that she knows someone in the group.  Violet goes undercover in the cult right before a murder happens.  Can she figure out what is going on?

I enjoyed the first, and this was another good entry.  We get the story most from Violet’s first-person point of view, but we occasionally transfer to Sephora’s.  These breaks are always obvious, and they are also used to good effect to advance the story.  The plot could have used a bit more, but there are still some good twists, and I was engaged the entire time.  Part of that is because of the characters, who I enjoyed.  I also liked seeing both Violet and Sephora not only grow, but grow their relationship as well.  If you are looking for a fun historical mystery, you’ll be glad you picked this one up.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.