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Murder in wintry Oslo
No, to my knowledge, the frequent flyer Bob Moyer has not visited Oslo in recent months – except through the excellent fiction of Jo Nesbo. But that was quite a trip. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer THE REDEEMER. By Jo Nesbo. Alfred A. Knopf. 397 pages. $25.95. Also available as a Random House Audio book,…
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W Is for Wonderful
The only bad thing about the arrival of Sue Grafton’s W Is for Wasted is the anxiety that arises because there are only three letters left in the alphabet. What’s she going to do with Kinsey Millhone after the series reaches Z? Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson W IS FOR WASTED. By Sue Grafton. Random…
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The lowdown on the blues
Stephen Wishnevsky, a musician himself as well as a luthier and an author, has discovered a 2004 book well worth the reading. Reviewed by Stephen Wishnevsky ESCAPING THE DELTA: ROBERT JOHNSON AND THE INVENTION OF THE BLUES By Elijah Wald. Amistad, 2004. 368 pages. Elijah Wald is that rarity, a music writer who is a…
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Reality’s out; hilarity’s in
Bob Moyer knows a delightfully crazy crime novel when he reads one, and he’s just read the latest zany book by Carl Hiaasen. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer BAD MONKEY. By Carl Hiaasen. Alfred A. Knopf. 336 pages. $26.95 Take a severed arm, recently owned by a man suspected of massive Medicare fraud. Toss it…
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Piracy, smuggling and other great American traditions
Steve Wishnevsky finds a good dose of cold, hard, enlightening facts in a recent history that describes the growth of America in terms other than those we celebrate on the Fourth of July. Reviewed by Stephen Wishnevsky SMUGGLER NATION: HOW ILLICIT TRADE MADE AMERICA. By Peter Andreas. Oxford University Press. 472 pages. Here is another…
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New battles, old murders
Charles Todd, the mother-son writing team that’s had considerable success with the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries set after World War I, is back with another novel in their newer series starring Bess Crawford, a nurse in that Great War. Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson A QUESTION OF HONOR. By Charles Todd. William Morrow. 309 pages.…
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The magic is in the writing
Steve Wishnevsky takes a look at what happens when J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame tries writing a detective novel. He likes what he sees. Reviewed by Stephen Wishnevsky THE CUCKOO’S CALLING. By J.K. Rowling, writing as Robert Galbraith. Mulholland Books. 464 pages. Struggling London Private Investigator Cormoran Strike has more going against him than…
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Forgotten history
History is important not only in itself, but also in the way it affects the present. Paul O’Connor reminds us of that in his review of a “fascinating“ book about a part of history Americans have too often overlooked. Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor FREEDOM NATIONAL: The Destruction of Slavery in the United States, 1861-1865.…
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“A true masterpiece”
Steve Wishnevsky, who knows a lot about the subject, takes a look at a classic collection by one of the giants of science fiction and fantasy. Reviewed by Stephen Wishnevsky THE COMPLETE LYONESSE. By Jack Vance. Gollancz. 1,040 pages. Hardcover, 2000. (The trilogy was first published separately in the 1980s.) The late Jack Vance, who…