Two and a half days without electricity brought back the joys of “flashlight reading” and Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann was the perfect book. McCann, not a native New Yorker, researched the world of 1974 New York City to create a vivid picture of the drugs and desolation of the Bronx and the excitement of Philipe Petit sashaying his way across the wire between the two World Trade Towers. McCann writes strong characters, each unique. He does not shy away from the gritty details of crime and prostitution or the knotty questions of faith and loyalty. He...
Detective Inspector Adam Dalgliesh made his debut in P.D. James' 1962 novel
Cover Her Face.
He has been sent out by Scotland Yard to investigate a death among the gentry at an isolated country estate.
"
I've heard of him," one of the suspects says when the tall, dark, and handsome detective arrives at the crime scene. "
Ruthless, unorthodox, working always against time. I suppose he has his own private compulsions. At least they've thought us adversaries worthy of the best."
He has since appeared in thirteen more novels, the third of which is
Unnatural Causes, written in 1967.Ruthless, unorthodox, sensitive … and a world-class poet to boot! The word "
privacy" comes up a lot in anything written about him, as well as numerous comparisons to Colin Dexter’s Inspector Morse.
He even has his own
fansite.
Join the Usual Suspects next Sunday, the 21st, at 2 pm, when they discuss
Unnatural Causes ... and whether or not P. D. James is indeed “
the greatest living mystery writer”.
I’m excited to tell you about the two new additions that we’ve just added to our
Speaking of Books collection.
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCallum was the winner of the 2009 National Book Award and has captured the praises of many book critics. McCallum was born in Dublin, but resides in NYC, and he has written a beautiful novel about New York during the 1970’s.
On March 1st, Mike Harney of Harney & Sons Tea Company presented the final program for WestportREADS 2010. Mike and his assistant provided four different kinds of tea for tasting, while he gave us an overview of tea industry. The WestportREADS connection? Japanese tea. Of course. (On April 7th at noon, Sarah Rose will be at the Library to talk about her book For All the Tea in China. It’s a fascinating history of the global business of tea.) January seemed to be the perfect time for WestportREADS. The Housekeeper and the Professor exceeded all expectations of popularity. Library copies...
The medieval mystery novel is here to stay. Medieval mysteries are generally set between between 476-1500. Another cleric has joined the ranks, although he is pushing the envelope on the time definition. In Tony Hays’
The Divine Sacrifice – sequel to
The Killing Way (2009) – Saint Patrick (ca. 387-493) joins King Arthur's counselor and series sleuth, Malgwyn ap Cuneglas, to investigate the murder of a monk. Patrick is in England hunting down heretics.
Kate White, the editor-in-chief of
Cosmopolitan magazine, is the
New York Times bestselling author of the
Bailey Weggins mystery series and numerous popular books on success for women.
Hush, her first stand-alone psychological thriller, will debut on March 2nd.
Publishers Weekly called it an effective blend of “
mommy-lit issues with murder and suspense … that generates a real sense of jeopardy while avoiding clichés.”
Romantic Times Reviews called it a "
top-notch, nail-biting thriller.”
A Night Too Dark is Edgar winner Dana Stabenow’s 17th novel to feature Alaska PI
Kate Shugak.
Global Harvest Resources has discovered 42 million ounces of gold at the Suulutaq Mine – smack in the middle of Alaska's Iqaluk Wildlife Refuge – and procured a lease on the land from the state
Dewayne Gammons, an employee of the controversial mine, leaves a suicide note and walks off into the wilderness – a phenomenon known as “
death by Alaska” – and when a search party finds bear-eaten human remains, everyone assumes it is the missing miner.
Imagine Kate’s surprise when Gammons staggers into her yard a month later.
As the
Kirkus review so cleverly puts it, “
The cute Aleut has to reconsider. ” Kate and “
Chopper Jim” really have their work cut out for them in this one.
Publishers Weekly has said “
This is a richly rewarding regional series that continues to grow in power as it grows in length.”
More opinions about recently read books. SECRETS OF EDEN: A NOVEL by Chris Bohjalian attracted my attention because the story revolves around a small-town Vermont minister. The idiosyncrasies of living “close-up” with neighbors and “frenemies” whose young pastor’s single life style and aloof manner cause discomfort are well-captured by the author. However, this book is really a murder mystery- the victims a long-time abusive husband and his battered wife. The details of spousal abuse are balanced with mother – daughter tenderness , women’s friendships and the single guy’s (the minister’s) love life. A secondary story of an enduring belief in...
Author Stuart Kaminsky died on October 9, 2009. His first novel was
Bullet for a Star in 1977, which featured Hollywood PI-to-the-stars Toby Peters.
Kaminsky was also the author of the Abe Lieberman, Lew Fonesca, and Porfiry Rostnikov series.
It was for a Rostnikov title,
Cold Red Sunrise, that Kaminsky won a Best Novel Edgar in 1989.
The recently released seventeenth Rostnikov mystery,
A Whisper to the Living, finds the distinctly idiosyncratic detective searching for a serial killer who has claimed at least forty victims, while also protecting a British journalist who is researching a story about a Moscow prostitution ring.
As the
Kirkus review points out, “
The Soviet Union's crooks are gone, but for Chief Inspector Rostnikov & Co. the felonies linger on.”
In the last six months the book that I have been asked to order most frequently for book clubs has been
The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It seems almost everyone wants to read this book. It was released just a year ago and almost immediately the buzz started.
Kathryn Stockett is a first time novelist, and her manuscript for this book had been rejected 50 times before it was published! Thankfully she persisted, and the result has been one of those memorable books that book clubs have embraced.
