Review: The Book of Candlelight by Ellery Adams

Today Kerry Hammond is throwing caution to the wind and jumping into book three in a new-to-her series.

The Book of Candlelight by Ellery Adams was published on January 28, in Hardcover, by Kensington Books. It is the 3^rd book in the Secret, Book, and Scone Society series. I had never heard of this series, but am always drawn in by a good premise. A book store owner who has a great group of female friends to help her solve a murder was right up my alley. I decided to throw caution to the wind and jump in at book three.

In the book, our protagonist, Nora Pennington, finds herself knee deep in tourists at her bookshop. The town is experiencing torrential rains and shoppers are looking for respite, not only in the stacks, but in her café. One afternoon, she heads to the local flea market to replenish her store’s stock of knickknacks and ends up buying a beautiful bowl from a local man named Danny, a Cherokee potter. The day after Nora buys the bowl, she discovers Danny’s body floating in the river. Nora enlists the help of her friends in the Secret, Book, and Scone Society to not only try and make sense of Danny’s death, but to figure out who killed him and why.

I could tell that there was more to the backstories of each of the characters, information that was presumably given in books one and two. However, I was still able to enjoy the mystery and didn’t feel like I needed to stop where I was to go back and read the earlier installments. The author gave me just enough information to allow me to follow along and enjoy the story as is.

I consider the book a cozy mystery, but Nora’s character isn’t light and fluffy. She’s been through some things in her life that she is still working out. She’s bonded with her group of friends and shared part of her secret with them, but there still seems to be more that she’s holding back. I think this character will grow a lot as the series progresses. I really enjoyed spending time with the Secret, Book, and Scone Society.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

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Review: Grace is Gone by Emily Elgar

Kerry Hammond is here today with her review of a new novel of psychological suspense with a dark twist.

Grace is Gone by Emily Elgar was published on January 7, in Trade Paperback, by Harper Paperbacks. This is Elgar’s second novel of psychological suspense. Her first, If You Knew Her, was well received in both the UK and the US.

Grace is a girl with severe health issues. Wheelchair-bound and suffering from MS and seizures, she is completely reliant on her mother, Meg, for her care. Since the two came to town, after escaping Grace’s abusive father, they have captured the hearts of everyone they meet. They are so loved, it’s hard to think who would want to hurt them. But someone does.

Cara, Grace and Meg’s neighbor, discovers Meg, murdered in her home. Grace is missing, her wheelchair left in the chaos of the crime scene. The whole town is devastated and fearful for Grace. How will she survive without her medication? Who would kidnap a helpless child? Where is her father?

I love a book that makes you wonder what you might do in a given situation. Grace’s story really makes the reader think—about the people we think we know and the truths we choose to believe.

This was one of those just one more chapter books. I’ll go to bed after I read just one more chapter. Much like a thriller, you think you know where the book is going, but you want to see how it gets there and what surprises will be laid out along the way, and trust me, there were surprises. The book was told in alternating chapters from two different points of view, but the reader also got glimpses into Grace’s life through her journal entries. It was well written and I had a hard time putting it down.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

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Sherlock Holmes and Reichenbach Falls

Kerry Hammond visited Switzerland and came across a Sherlock Holmes gem.

Are you one of those mystery lovers who goes on vacation and tries to find sights to see that relate to your favorite books? No….is that just me? Well, I have to admit that on a recent visit to Switzerland, I was too busy dreaming of fondue and raclette to even think about mysteries—other than the books I would bring to read. Luckily, I spoke to a friend on the phone prior to my flight. “Are you going to Reichenbach Falls?” she asked. “Reichenbach Falls? The one Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty fell from?” I asked. “That’s in Switzerland?”

I may have been slow in realizing I was near an iconic Sherlock Holmes sight, but once I found out, I wasted no time planning a visit. The town of Meiringen, Switzerland was one of the highlights of my trip. They had a wonderful Sherlock Holmes museum, full of period artifacts and references to Sherlock’s trip through the Swiss Alps. They even have a couple of sculptures out front, and the one of Holmes is filled with 60 hidden clues, one for each of the detective’s cases.

The hotel where Holmes and Watson stayed is still standing (although the name has changed) and several other places in town have used the famous detective’s name on their doors. The references are in no way overdone, and the visit was well worth it. The tram to the falls is closed in wintertime, but I view that as just another reason to come back during warmer weather.

 

What’s your favorite mystery related vacation visit?

Review: Dead in Dublin by Catie Murphy

Kerry Hammond is here with her review of a new cozy series set in Ireland.

Dead in Dublin by Catie Murphy is the first book in the author’s new series, which features Megan Malone, a limo driver whose American heritage gives her a unique take on Ireland. The book was published on December 31, 2019, in Mass Market Paperback, by Kensington Books. The second in the series, Death on the Green, is due out this September.

I’m always in search of a good cozy mystery series and this one rates high on my scale of worthy contenders. A good cozy mystery is heavy on character development, but if you have a boring plot you won’t get the book off the ground. In Dead in Dublin, I first fell in love with the characters. Murphy does a great job of writing interesting characters, making them both vivid and three dimensional. But it doesn’t stop there, the author has created not only an interesting mystery, but managed to take me on a journey of confusion as I followed along, trying to solve the puzzle.

I didn’t solve the mystery, and that suits me just fine. I love a good surprise ending and I got just that; it was a plausible and satisfying end to a great story. As an added bonus, the author takes you on a fun trip to Ireland. If you’ve never visited, you get to enjoy a few bits and pieces of local culture and color. If you have visited, you are reminded of some of the interesting qualities you experienced on your trip, from the pronunciation of words to the fun quirks of the Irish. It’s armchair traveling at its best.

If you’re a cozy mystery fan, this is a great read. I’m glad that I got in on the ground floor, starting at book one. It’s always fun to read series books in order so that you can get to know the characters as they change and grow. I will definitely continue reading this series!

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

The Last Sister by Kendra Elliot & A Giveaway

Today Kerry Hammond reviews The Last Sister by Kendra Elliot, and we have a great giveaway. By commenting below you could get a copy of The Last Sister, and Kendra's previous bestsellers, Vanished and A Merciful Death. Just comment below to enter, US residents only. We'll pick a winner next Saturday. 

And now for Kerry's review...

The Last Sister by Kendra Elliot was published on January 14, in Hardcover, by Montlake. Elliot is the award-winning author of several mystery series that take place in the Pacific Northwest. The characters she creates, and her readers fall in love with, often cross over from series to series, allowing her fans to get their fix of their favorites in each and every book.

In The Last Sister, Elliot starts a new series with FBI agents Zander Wells and Ava McLane. Both agents arrive in the town of Bartonville to investigate the suspected murder-suicide of two of the town’s citizens. It doesn’t take long for the agents to determine that what they’re looking at is murder, and that many of the townspeople know more than they’re saying.

As the investigation continues, Zander finds a correlation between the current murders and a hanging that took place two decades earlier. He also finds out that the woman who found the bodies was the daughter of the victim of that old crime. He’s not sure how she is connected to each scene, but he’s sure that she is a link that could lead him to discovering the truth.

This was my first experience with Zander Wells and I instantly liked his character. He is diligent, hard-working, and dedicated to finding the truth. I often read a book for the setting—what better way to visit a place and get a sense of its character than to read a mystery? Elliot, who hails from the Pacific Northwest, takes advantage of everything her locale has to offer. The area can be rugged, mysterious, and unrelenting and the climate lends itself to the suspense genre. The author definitely makes the most of the setting and her stories have an atmospheric quality that adds to the great plots.  

Don't forget to comment below with your name and email address to be eligible for the giveaway for one person to get three Kendra Elliot books. 

The Last Sister is on blog tour with gifts at almost every stop. You can check out the blog tour here. 

You can find Kendra on social media  @AuthorKendraElliot (Facebook), @KendraElliot (Twitter), @Kendraelliot (IG) @Kendra_Elliot (GoodReads).

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Review: The Devil's Due by Bonnie MacBird

Kerry Hammond is on a Sherlock Holmes kick and decided to read a new-to-her author who puts her own twist on a beloved character.

The Devil’s Due is the third book in author Bonnie MacBird’s Sherlock Holmes series. MacBird got her start in the film industry and has numerous writing credits to her name—in addition to Emmy awards for three documentaries she wrote and produced. MacBird started her Sherlock Holmes series because of her love for Conan Doyle’s work, and readers in 17 languages are extremely glad she did.

In this installment to the series, we find ourselves in London in the year 1890. Watson takes his wife Mary’s visit to the country as an excuse to check in on his old friend Sherlock Holmes. He finds the detective being targeted by a slanderous media campaign; a reporter is calling Holmes the devil incarnate and blaming him for a series of deaths that Holmes is actually investigating. Prominent London citizens are being murdered and each of the deaths is suspiciously followed by another, this time a suicide, of a friend or loved one.

To add to the difficulty of the investigation, New Scotland Yard has a new chief and he is hell bent on closing cases. The problem is, he doesn’t seem to care about the actual investigation, or whether or not he’s caught the right culprit. With all of these strikes against him, Holmes is more than motivated to get to the bottom of the murders and catch the killer before he or she kills again.

I am embarrassed to say that this is my first read by Bonnie MacBird. After devouring the book, I am shocked at myself. It was a thoroughly enjoyable story and I’m not sure how in the world I managed to miss the boat on this series. MacBird does an excellent job of channeling Doyle’s detective and creating a mystery that fits in with the spirit of the original works.

I found the book entertaining, puzzling, fast paced, and just plain enjoyable. I’m thrilled to have discovered such a wonderful series. I’m a huge fan of everything Sherlock Holmes (come back next week for my post about my visit to Meiringen, Switzerland, the town at the base of Reichenbach Falls where Holmes and Moriarty plunged to their “deaths”). I highly recommend MacBird's series, whether you’re a Holmes fan or just like a good historical mystery.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: A Step So Grave by Catriona McPherson

Kerry Hammond is here with a review of the latest book in one of her favorites historical series.

A Step So Grave is the 13^th book in the Dandy Gilver mystery series by Catriona McPherson. It was published on November 5, in Hardcover, by Quercus. This series is set in Scotland in the 1920s and 1930s and features Dandelion Gilver, lady detective. McPherson is also the author of the Last Ditch mystery series as well as 10 standalone novels. To read a review of her latest standalone, Strangers at the Gate, click here.

In A Step So Grave, Dandy, her husband Hugh, and their two sons are traveling to a remote area of Scotland….in February. Dandy is not pleased to be traveling so far in the bitter cold, but she can hardly complain. They are going to meet her son Donald’s bride-to-be and her family. It’s also a celebration of said bride-to-be’s mother, Lady Lavinia, who is turning fifty.

Unfortunately, Lady Lavinia is murdered before she can celebrate her birthday and there seems to be no end of suspects in and around the house. Dandy must figure out who murdered the woman so that she can decide if she needs to step in to call off her son’s wedding—in order to save him marrying into a murderous household. When the police pin the murder on an unknown vagrant that no one even saw, it’s quite convenient, but it’s not good enough for Dandy. With the help of her detecting partner Alec, she is determined to get to the bottom of things.

This was one of my favorites in the Dandy Gilver series. It had it all: a country house murder, lots of suspects, plenty of subterfuge, strange Scottish superstitions, and family secrets. Put these all together and it made for one heck of a murder mystery. I can’t say that I solved the murder, but I enjoyed watching Dandy and Alec piece everything together and outwit the police. I really enjoy this series and always look forward to the next installment.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: Blue Moon by Lee Child

Jack Reacher is back and Kerry Hammond is here to tell us what he’s up to.

Blue Moon by Lee Child was published on October 29, in Hardcover, by Delacorte Press. It is the 24^th book in the widely read and critically acclaimed Jack Reacher series. In case you’ve been living in a cave for the previous 23 books, Jack Reacher is a former Army MP who wanders the country, standing up for the underdog and providing his own kind of justice to those who can’t find it otherwise.

In Blue Moon, Reacher gets off a bus and helps an elderly man from an attempted mugging. He soon gets wrapped up in a turf war between two groups; the Albanians rule one part of the city and the Ukrainians the other. Local law enforcement can do nothing to stop them, or are currently being paid off, and the citizens are powerless. Reacher does not like this. Reacher feels he needs to even the playing field. It’s one man against two powerful organizations, but if anyone can do it, Reacher can.

I always enjoy these books. The reader is always guaranteed that the good guys will prevail, the bad guys will die a horrible death, and law and order will be re-established in whatever part of the country Reacher has just visited.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein

Debra H. Goldstein has a new cozy mystery out and Kerry Hammond is here with her review.

Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein released in Mass Market Paperback on September 24 by Kensington. It is the second book in the Sarah Blair mystery series and my first read by Goldstein, who is also the author of two other mystery novels and quite a few short stories. I love to try out a new cozy series and thought I’d give Sarah Blair a try.

In Two Bites Too Many, we find Sarah divorced and settling in with the Siamese cat she inherited named RahRah. Sarah works at a law office but her twin sister, Emily, is a professional chef who is trying desperately to open a new restaurant. The bank loan has been denied and Sarah and Emily’s mother, Maybelle, ropes Sarah into a visit with Lance, the bank president, to try and make him reconsider.

After some coaxing, Lance agrees to look at the loan application again, but dismisses the ladies to prepare for a city council meeting. Maybelle, never one to let things go, decides to go back and speak to him, entering through the alley door to his office where good friends and close business associates sometimes enter. What Maybelle finds is Lance’s dead body and a murder weapon with her fingerprints on it. Caught between her sister’s struggle with the restaurant and her mother’s possible arrest for murder, Sarah finds herself looking into each and every townsperson who had a grudge against Lance. If she doesn’t prove her mother’s innocence, who will?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Jumping into book two wasn’t a problem at all, I felt that the author did a good job of alluding to past events without giving away too much information, so I can now go back to book one without any spoilers. I liked the cast of characters and the mystery provided enough of a challenge that there were surprises for me in the end. Another cozy series that I can look forward to following.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage.

Review: Strangers at the Gate by Catriona McPherson

Catriona McPherson has released a new standalone novel and Kerry Hammond is here with her review.

Strangers at the Gate by Catriona McPherson was published on October 22, in Hardcover, by Minotaur Books. I am a fan of all of McPherson’s books, from her Dandy Gilver series to her standalones. I look forward to each and every one of her new releases because you just never know where she’s going to take the reader.

When I started Strangers at the Gate, I wasn’t sure if McPherson could pull it off. We start with a young couple who have landed dream jobs in the quiet countryside. Paddy is a new partner of a law firm and Finn has gotten a position as deacon of a church. It’s almost too good to be true and they set off to live in the gate house of the property owned by Paddy’s new boss.

The young couple seems to be on track and I, as a reader, wondered where this could all go. Then they get invited to dinner at the boss’s house and have a great night getting to know him and his wife. When Finn forgets her purse and goes back to the house to get it, she finds their hosts' bodies—stabbed and bloodied on the kitchen floor. Any normal couple would call the police and report the crime. But not Paddy and Finn, they go home and panic.

What follows is what happens when you don’t report a crime, when you learn that your significant other has even more secrets than you do, and when you find out that there is way more to the new jobs and new life than you originally thought.

I got sucked in right away. At first I thought it was unbelievable that the couple wouldn’t just call the police and report the death—for at the time they didn’t know if it was murder or suicide. But the more I leaned, the more I understood what drove them to wait. They were basically digging themselves deeper and deeper into a hole and I really wanted to see how they would get out. I really enjoyed the ride!

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: Little Voices by Vanessa Lillie

Kerry Hammond is here to give us her review of a new psychological thriller by a debut author.

Little Voices by Vanessa Lillie was published on October 1, in Trade Paperback, by Thomas & Mercer. It is the author’s debut and promised to be a gripping novel psychological suspense. How could I pass up the chance to check out a new author?

Devon didn’t plan for motherhood to happen quite the way it did, with a premature birth and a traumatic delivery that threatened to take both her life and that of her baby girl. When she is finally released from the hospital, rather than enjoy her new family and motherhood, she learns that her friend Belina has been murdered. It happened on the very day she went into labor, the last day she saw Belina. Devon can’t seem to stop thinking about what might have happened and when the police accuse her college friend, Alec, of Belina’s murder, she feels she needs to step in. The problem is, the police are telling her to stay out of it, the voices in her head are telling her she’s a horrible mother, and Alec isn’t telling her the information she needs to clear his name.

Devon was like a dog with a bone as she tried to solve her friend’s murder. We didn’t learn as much about the women’s friendship as I would have liked, but it was clear that Devon’s need to find the killer came from something inside her, some inner turmoil, as much as it did her connection to Belina. As the story progresses, we learn more about Devon’s struggle with the voices in her head and what is really driving her to obsess about the murder.

The novel is set in and around Providence, Rhode Island, amid the fishing boats that struggle to make a living and what appears to be the class structure that exists depending on which side of the city you live. The author drew me into the setting as much as she did the characters and plot. Just when it seemed that every novel takes place in New York City, this one was a pleasant switch to a state that many, like me, know next to nothing about. I could visualize the harsh winter, the sea air, and the fishermen who brave the weather for their next catch. I will definitely look forward to the author’s next book.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: Buried in the Stacks by Allison Brook

Kerry Hammond is here today to give us her review of the third book in a haunted cozy mystery series.

Buried in the Stacks by Allison Brook was published on September 10, in Hardcover, by Crooked Lane Books. It’s the 3^rd book in the Haunted Library Mystery series featuring librarian Carrie Singleton and her library cat Smokey Joe. I’m always game for a cozy mystery set in a library so I decided to jump right in with book three to check it out. Besides, you had me at library cat.

In Buried in the Stacks, Carrie is pining for her boyfriend, Dylan, who is out of town investigating art theft. As much as she misses him, her job as a librarian has been keeping her busy. Several homeless people have taken to seeking refuge in the library, and unfortunately some of them are causing disruptions. Adding to that, her boss has asked her to take on the role of Sunshine Delegate, whose job it is to send good wishes to sick employees. Her first recipient is none other than her least favorite colleague, Dorothy, a woman who has caused Carrie a lot of trouble in the past. Dorothy has had a slip and fall at the supermarket and is laid up in the hospital.

Carrie does her duty and Dorothy is soon released from the hospital. She seems to be on the mend when, just a few days later, someone runs her off the road and the police find themselves investigating a murder. Dorothy’s penchant for blackmail is soon uncovered and the pool of suspects is a mile long. Carrie once again sticks her nose into police business and starts investigating Dorothy’s murder. In her defense, it’s at the insistence of Evelyn, Dorothy’s aunt. Evelyn died a few years back and her ghost lives at the library. Carrie and her young niece are the only ones who can see her.

It sounds like a lot to follow but the story flowed very smoothly. I liked the characters and had no problem with the fact that Evelyn appeared now and then to communicate with Carrie. The murder couldn’t have happened to a more deserving person, and I enjoyed following along with Carrie as she looked into all the suspects. This is a fun series and an enjoyable read.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

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Review: The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen

The weather has turned cool and the leaves are falling, so it's time to curl up with a good book. Tess Gerritsen's latest is a chilling ghost story and Kerry Hammond is here with her review.

The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen released on October 1, in Hardcover, by Ballantine Books. Gerritsen is the author of the bestselling series featuring homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles. The Shape of Night is her seventh standalone novel. I’ve been a long-time fan of Gerritsen’s work, both her Rizzoli and Isles series and her standalone novels. 

In the book, Ava is a food writer working on a new book. Her manuscript is long overdue and her editor is breathing down her neck, so she leaves her Boston apartment and rents an old house, Brodie’s Watch, that sits on the ocean in a small town in Maine called Tucker’s Cove. As we learn more about Ava, we realize that her book isn’t the only reason she’s decided to spend the summer in Maine, she is also struggling to forget something horrible that happened in her recent past, something she can’t seem to get over.

There are rumors that Brodie’s Watch is haunted, but Ava doesn’t believe in ghosts. Her research tells her that the original owner of the house was a sea captain named Jeremiah Brodie and she finds journals written by and about him. Perhaps it’s the research she’s done, or the wine and whisky she drinks so much of every night to drown her sorrows, but one night Ava sees Captain Brodie. But he doesn’t appear to be an apparition, he appears to be flesh and bone and he’s set his sights on her. Ava isn’t sure why the previous occupant, a woman very similar to herself, left the house in such a hurry, but she starts to wonder if Brodie is disguising more evil intentions.

What a great time for this book to come out, just in time for fall weather when you want to curl up on the couch under a blanket with a good book. Once I started reading, I didn’t want to put the book down. The Shape of Night is a ghost story, a love story, and a mystery—all rolled into one. Gerritsen is a great writer and she kept the pace of the story going, revealing more and more as you went along. I was able to picture the house, the sea, and even the ghost. I really enjoyed the story.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

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Review: Sins of the Fathers by J.A. Jance

Kerry Hammond is here with a review of the latest book in a long running series by author J.A. Jance.

Sins of the Fathers by J.A. Jance was released on September 24, in Hardcover, by William Morrow publishers. It is the 24^th book in the J.P. Beaumont series. Beaumont is a former Seattle cop who has decided to work as a private investigator, but doesn’t feel the need to really chase after a case. But one lands on his doorstep in the form of an old friend, holding a baby, trying to find his missing daughter, who just happens to be the baby’s mother. Dale, the old friend in question, brings with him old memories and Beau finds that there are stories from his past that he never knew.

I think we need to address the elephant in the room. Yes, this is book twenty-four! To be completely honest, I started this book after reading the book jacket. Nowhere did it mention that this was book 24, and I’m glad. I might have gone in with reservations, or at the very least been intimidated by how much past this series must have. After finishing, I went to the author’s website and Jance has been writing this character for almost 20 years.

So you might wonder how I fared with the book, not knowing what I didn’t know. I have to say, I immediately fell in love with Beau. There were a few pages in the beginning that contained some backstory, and I could tell that this man had had several professional chapters in his life, but it never occurred to me they’d all been on the page. I thought I was reading about a retired cop who had just turned private investigator. I honestly thought his story had just started.

This says a lot about the author. She was able to draw me into a long running series as if it were the first book. I didn’t feel lost at all, the characters were engaging, and the writing was smooth and easy. I’ve read Jance before, but it’s been awhile—and it was another series. After finishing this book I wondered why I let her fall off my reading list. I won’t let that happen again.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

Review: The Last Seance by Agatha Christie

Kerry Hammond is here today with her review of a newly published short story collection by the Queen of Mystery, Agatha Christie.

The Last Séance: Tales of the Supernatural is a collection of short stories by Agatha Christie. Each story has an otherworldly theme, chosen to fit the compilation that was published on September 24, in Trade Paperback, by William Morrow Paperbacks.

The book is just in time for Halloween and contains the spookiest of Christie’s stories. It’s got a little bit of everything: a Poirot story where he investigates the death of a man who was having strange dreams, a medium who dares to perform one last reading, and Miss Marple solves what seems to be an impossible murder, just to name a few.

Most of the stories appear in other anthologies, but there’s just something about having these all in one place. For those of us who enjoy everything Christie, it’s a new book for the collection with a great theme. Of the twenty stories, one has never before been published in the U.S., which makes this a must have book.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

You can always find Mystery Playground on Twitter @mysteryplaygrnd and on Facebook. You can also follow the blog by clicking the link on the upper right-hand corner of this webpage. 

The Hunting Party and a Rusty Nail

It's been a hot summer, so I thought I'd try and cool off with a snowy thriller by Lucy Foley.

In The Hunting Party, group of friends spends New Years in a remote hunting lodge in the Scottish Highlands. They've been getting together for years and many of their relationships go back to their days at Oxford, where they met as students.

Emotions run high, old resentments resurface, and one of the friends does not live through to the New Year. It's clear that someone at the lodge is the murderer, but which one?

The Hunting Party is a great closed universe thriller where the characters are stranded in a remote place (much like And Then There Were None) and it's clear that one of them is the killer. 

If you're an audio book fan, you can't go wrong with the audio version of this book. It's read by 5 different people, each playing a character whose point of view we experience in the book. The accents are wonderful and the actors really portray the essence of each character. 

I chose a Rusty Nail to go with The Hunting Party for two reasons. First, I needed something to sip on to keep me warm while I read about the snowy countryside, and second, with a book set in the remotest area of the Scottish Highlands, it just had to contain Scotch.

The Rusty Nail
2 ounces of Scotch
3/4 ounce Drambuie

Add Scotch and Drambuie to a cocktail mixer filled with ice. Stir to chill and then pour into a rocks glass and enjoy.

Review: Too Close by Natalie Daniels

Natalie Daniels just published a new novel and Kerry Hammond is here with her review.

Too Close by Natalie Daniels was published on July 30, in Trade Paperback, by Harper Paperbacks. The book is described as a haunting psychological thriller about a woman who is accused of a crime and a psychiatrist who is trying to unravel the truth. I was intrigued.

Emma is a psychiatrist who has been tasked with trying to get through to Connie, who is being held in a psychiatric hospital after attempting to end her own life. Emma gains Connie's trust and begins to unravel the events that led up to the fateful day, but the story is way more complicated than she initially expects. Connie may not remember what happened, but she is more astute that Emma expects; she sees that Emma hides her own feelings of inadequacy behind the facade of her profession.

I often start a book, thinking it's a mystery, only to find out later that it's not. There are no dead bodies, no murder investigation, and no criminals are unmasked. It can be quite disappointing when you are expecting all of those elements and you get none of them. I started this book thinking it might be a mystery, but by the time I realized it wasn't, I didn't even care. I was drawn in by the characters, mesmerized by the writing, and captivated by the story.

I liked Daniels' writing style and her keen observations about human nature are all too real. Her portrayal of her characters' inner thoughts, fears, and inadequacies are raw and disturbingly accurate. I look forward to what the author will come up with next.

Review: Killing with Confetti by Peter Lovesey

Kerry Hammond is here to review a new-to-her author and his 18th book in a popular series.

Killing with Confetti by Peter Lovesey is the 18th book in the Detective Peter Diamond mystery series. It was published on July 9, in Hardcover, by Soho Crime. I was a bit skeptical about starting a series on book 18, but I have heard great things about both the author and the series, so I decided to bite the proverbial bullet and just dive right in. 

In Killing With Confetti, Joe Diamond is recruited by the Deputy Chief Constable to handle security duty of sorts. You see, the DCC's son is getting married, and his wife-to-be is the daughter of notorious crime boss, Joe Irving. There is no shortage of criminals who would love to see Joe dead, and the DCC fears that one will take advantage of the fact that he is scheduled to be at the wedding. 

Diamond is not pleased to have to babysit a crime boss, but feels he has no choice. His bodyguard duty soon turns into a murder investigation and he finally feels like he can do what he does best, catch a killer.

I absolutely loved Peter Diamond. He's a no nonsense policeman and Lovesey is a no nonsense writer. I felt like I was watching an episode of a British crime series and enjoyed every minute of it. I completely forgot that I had jumped in at book 18. The book stood on its own and could have been a standalone novel. I didn't feel like I was missing backstory and none was even offered. It was just an entertaining installment that was all about the crime and the crime solving.

There's a quote on the cover of my copy of the book by Sara Paretsky and it reads, "I'm jealous of everyone discovering Lovesey and Diamond for the first time." So true, I feel lucky that I have 17 more books to immediately enjoy.

This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.

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