December 2008 Reads (summary)

This is a cross-post from 4MA but I thought it would be nice to do a quick summary of my reading month.

BONES OF THE BURIED by David Roberts2nd of 9 featuring Lord Edward Corinth, a jaded English aristocrat,and Verity Browne, a leftist journalist, between the wars in 1930sLondon, England. "It's 1936, Spain is on the verge of civil war andLord Edward Corinth is coming to terms with the decline of his owntitled class in England made all too clear by the murder of three ofhis Eton classmates. Verity Browne she asks for his help in freeingher former lover, the communist ideologue David Griffiths-Jones, fromjail in Spain. It appears Griffiths-Jones has been framed for themurder of another Communist Party member working to resist Franco'smilitary rebellion. I prefer the country manor 1930s mystery but thisis probably more "real." Why Edward is attracted to Verity, I haveno idea.

BROTHER CADFAEL'S PENANCE by Ellis Peters20th of 20 featuring Brother Cadfael, a 12th century monk andherbalist in Shrewsbury, England. "Olivier de Bretagne, who (unknownto himself) is Brother Cadfael's son, has been taken prisoner duringEngland's dynastic war between two grandchildren of William theConqueror. Cadfael is determined to find Olivier, although to do sohe must leave the monastery without his abbot's 'leave or...blessing.' The search begins badly when, at an unsuccessful peaceconference, Yves Hugonin, Olivier's hot-headed brother-in-law, picksa fight with Brien de Soulis, a commander who may know where Olivieris held-but won't say. When Brien is found murdered, Yves is abductedby one who holds him responsible for the killing, and then Cadfaelhas two men to find. In the process, he delicately explores puzzlesrelated to Brien's death and to shadowy deeds in the larger politicalscene." This is an excellent series and I'm sad this is the last forme to read.

CONSEQUENCES OF SIN by Clare Langely-Hawthorne1st of 2 featuring Ursula Marlowe, an Oxford-educated heiress,suffragette, and aspiring journalist in Edwardian London, England."An Oxford graduate who hopes to become a journalist and an activesuffragette, she is a disappointment to her father, a self-mademagnate who would like his daughter to marry and settle down. Whenone of her friends is accused of murdering another woman, the friendcalls Ursula for help. With assistance from her father's lawyer, LordWortham, she begins investigating and, in the face of overwhelmingevidence against her friend, finds indications of a sinister plotthat endangers herself and her family." This wanted to be a betterbook. Good bones of a story just not well executed, IMHO.

DEATH AND THE CHAPMAN by Kate Sedley1st of 17 featuring Roger the Chapman, a medieval chapman (peddler)in 15th century England. "A lusty romantic interlude leads him to agrieving alderman's house in Bristol, where Clement Weaver, the son,is missing--he accompanied his sister to London to shop anddisappeared right down the lane from the Crossed Hands Inn. Sixmonths later, Roger the Chapman is in Canterbury and hears of twoother disappearances near the Crossed Hands Inn." Good to find a newhistmyst series now that I'm done with Peters'.

ECHOES FROM THE DEAD by Johan Theorin"Decades after the unsolved disappearance of a young boy, JensDavidsson, who vanished one foggy autumn afternoon in 1972 and waspresumed to have drowned, Jens's grandfather, Gerlof, a retired seacaptain, receives one of Jens's sandals in the mail. Gerlof enlistshis alcoholic daughter, Julia, who's still struggling to come togrips with the loss of her only child, to help solve the mystery. Allleads point to infamous thug Nils Kant, who was rumored to havekilled numerous people. But Kant allegedly died years before thefateful day that Jens disappeared, so who could've killed the boy?And why?" I liked it and look forward to more by this author.

FACE OF A KILLER by Robin Burcell1st of new series? "San Francisco FBI forensic artist SydneyFitzpatrick races to unravel the 20-year-old mystery of her father'smurder before the upcoming execution of his convicted killer, JohnnieWheeler. When Sydney interviews Wheeler in San Quentin against hermother's and stepfather's wishes, Wheeler's claims of innocence havea ring of truth. As Sydney begins to investigate her father's past,she uncovers unsavory secrets linking him and some old army buddies,including one who's now a high-powered U.S. senator, to a bankengaged in illegal activities. Sydney's dogged persistence andwillingness to bend FBI rules endangers her family, but an 11th-hourmeeting with Wheeler for a new forensic sketch points to the answersshe's been seeking." I was disappointed because I just didn't careabout the protagonist or the story. Just me, but I won't becontinuing with this series I think.

LEAVE THE GRAVE GREEN by Deborah Crombie3rd of 12 featuring Duncan Kincaid, a Scotland Yard superintendent,and Gemma James, a sergeant, in London, England. "Duncan Kincaid andGemma James investigate a suspicious drowning near London; theyencounter a strange situation: the victim's widow-a painter whosefather is a famous conductor and whose mother is a renowned operasinger-is oddly stand-offish and strangely unaffected by herhusband's death...creates strategic tension by both establishing aparallel between this drowning and the childhood drowning death ofthe painter's brother and by juxtaposing two protagonists who feel-but struggle against-a mutual attraction." Enjoyable.

LONELY HEARTS by John Harvey1st of 11 featuring Charlie Resnick, jazz-loving police detective inNottingham, England. "The chief focus is on divorced, PolishDetective-Inspector Charlie Resnick - who lives with four cats and acollection of jazz records and is on the brink of a tentative affairwith bristly social-worker Rachel Chaplin. Charlie and his crew aretrying to solve the brutal murders of two single womenboth advertisedin the local newspaper's Lonely Hearts' column." Having enjoyed hisFrank Elder books, I've been meaning to get to this series for a longtime.

LOST IN A GOOD BOOK by Jasper Fforde2nd of 5 featuring Thursday Next, an agent of the Special OperationsNetwork, Literary Division, in Great Britain a funny sci-fi,alternate history series. "When Landen, the love of her life, iseradicated by the corrupt multinational Goliath Corporation, Thursdaymust moonlight as a Prose Resource Operative of Jurisfiction—thepolice force inside books. She is apprenticed to the man-hating MissHavisham from Dickens's Great Expectations, who grudgingly showsThursday the ropes. What she really wants is to get Landen back.Thursday finds herself the target of a series of potentially lethalcoincidences, the authenticator of a newly discovered play by theBard himself, and the only one who can prevent an unidentifiable pinksludge from engulfing all life on Earth." Love love love this seriesespecially in audiobook where the Brit humor really shows.

SATAN IN ST. MARY'S by P.C. Doherty1st of 16 featuring Hugh Corbett, a spy for King Edward I in England."1284 and Edward I is battling a traitorous movement founded by thelate Simon de Montfort, the rebel who lost his life at the Battle ofEvesham in 1258. The Pentangle, the movement's underground societywhose members are known to practice the black arts, is thought to bebehind the apparent suicide of Lawrence Duket, one of the King'sloyal subjects, in revenge for Duket's murder of one of theirsupporters. The King, deeply suspicious of the affair, orders hiswily Chancellor, Burnell, to look into the matter. Burnell chooses asharp and clever clerk from the Court of King's Bench, Hugh Corbett,to conduct the investigation. Corbett -- together with hismanservant, Ranulf, late of Newgate -- is swiftly drawn into thetangled politics and dark and dangerous underworld of medievalLondon." Though obviously a first in a series, I like the time periodand character. New series to follow!

THAI DIE by Monica Ferris12 of 12 featuring Betsy Devonshire, a needlework shop owner inExcelsior, Minnesota. "As full-time owner of the Crewel Worldneedlework shop and part-time sleuth, Betsy Devonshire has becomeskilled at weaving suspicious threads. But when one of her regularsunwittingly becomes involved in a deadly delivery of exoticantiquities, Betsy fears something is seriously warped." Too muchexposition of the crafts and too little mystery; this is my last oneI'm going to read of this author.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Steig LarssonI think everyone knows about this one so I'll skip the description.I had gotten it when it was first hyped but didn't get around toreading it until last week. I'm glad I waited until most of the hypedied down so I could read it on its own merit. I truly liked it.The strength was in its plotting and interesting characters. A lot ofstory is packed in those pages. I look forward to the next one.T

HE HARPER'S QUINE by Pat McIntosh1st of 5 featuring Gil Cunningham, a notary in 15th century Glasgow,Scotland. " Gil is a recently qualified lawyer whose family stillexpect him to enter the priesthood. When he finds the body of a youngwoman in the new building at Glasgow Cathedral he is asked toinvestigate, and identifies the corpse as the runaway wife of cruel,unpleasant nobleman John Semphill. With the help of Maistre Pierre,the French master-mason, Gil must ask questions and seek a murdererin the heart of the city." I liked it though the language slowed medown a bit. Kind of like having slang spelling to capture theaccents of the South.

THE SANCTUARY SEEKER by Bernard Knight1st of 12 featuring Sir John de Wolfe, the crowner (coroner), in 12thcentury Devon, England, in the Crowner John series. "in 1194, as SirJohn de Wolfe criss-crosses Devon, the first coroner appointed byKing Richard the Lion-hearted. Assisted by the imposing CornishmanGwyn and the dour defrocked priest Thomas de Peyne, who serves as hisclerk, Crowner John records all crimes and legal events. He begins aninvestigation when an unidentified corpse is found facedown in astream in the moorland village of Widecombe. Though localsunconvincingly claim ignorance of its identity, the body isidentified as that of a young nobleman recently returned from theCrusades. Richard de Revelle pressures Crowner John to prosecute anapparently innocent man, but the evidence points to quite a differentkiller." Another series for me to follow.

THE STATE OF THE ONION by Julie Hyzy1st of 2 featuring Olivia (Ollie) Paras, White House assistant chefin Washington DC. "White House Assistant Chef Olivia Paras faceschallenges aplenty: a heated competition for the soon-to-be-vacanttop chef's job, the sneering antagonism of the president's newlyappointed sensitivity director and, of course, the mysteriousintruder she unwittingly stops on the White House lawn with a coupleof swift blows from a frying pan—an unarmed man with news of a threatto the president. Though the Secret Service disapproves of herinterference, Ollie soon takes on the mantel of amateur sleuth. Thetension mounts as the president negotiates a major peace plan for theMiddle East, Ollie stumbles on the path of a nearly invisible enemyknown as the Chameleon, and obnoxious TV celebrity chef Laurel AnneBraun shows up to threaten Ollie's career." Yes, it's a cosy but itwas recommended by reviewer David Montgomery so I gave it a try.Interesting for its setting.

THE WESTMINSTER POISONER by Susanna Gregory4th of 4 featuring Thomas Chaloner, a reluctant spy for the Secretaryin Restoration London. "After the Puritan ban on Christmasfestivities, Restoration London is awash with excess betweenChristmas Eve and Twelfth Night, but the two men found in WestminsterHall had not died from a surfeit of gluttony, but from poison. TheLord Chancellor appoints Chaloner as his investigator into thekillings, believing them to be of scant importance to the affairs ofstate he deals with. But Chaloner reveals a stinking seam ofcorruption in the Palace of White Hall, where even the Queen is avictim to the greed of courtiers and functionaries. And the pickingsare so rich that men are prepared to go to any lengths to save theirown skins and their stolen fortunes." Without a doubt, I love this series.

Overall in 2008, I read 111 books.