Category: Popular fiction

  • Out of control

    Need a vacation novel, one that’s fun and easy to read? Paul O’Connor has a suggestion.  Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor  CITY ON FIRE. By Don Winslow. William Morrow. 351 pages. $28.99, hardcover. Danny Ryan knows trouble when he sees it.  So, when a beautiful woman emerges from the water along the Rhode Island shore,…

  • Another delicious crime entre’e

    Thanks to Bob Moyer, I have another addition to my already lengthy must-read list. Martin Walker’s Bruno novels are pure pleasure, even if they do make me hungry. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer THE COLDEST CASE. By Martin Walker. Knopf. 315 pages, $27. In a Bruno, Chief of Police novel, the past is never past;…

  • Scarpetta’s back, in fine form

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson AUTOPSY. By Patricia Cornwell. William Morrow. 398 pages. $28.99, hardback. I have to admit that my first thought upon hearing that Patricia Cornwell has a new novel out called Autopsywas: “Hasn’t she named one that already?” After all, Cornwell has written lots of popular books starring Dr. Kay Scarpetta, a…

  • A terrifying and delightful collaboration

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson STATE OF TERROR. By Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny. St. Martin’s Press. 494 pages. $30. I couldn’t get my hands on this book – a political thriller – fast enough. Louise Penny is one of my favorite all-time crime/mystery writers, and certainly one of my favorites who’s writing currently.…

  • Madness in paradise

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson   THE MADNESS OF CROWDS. By Louise Penny. Minotaur Books. 436 pages. $28.99. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is back in Three Pines, the Quebec village faithful readers know and love, for the 17th novel in Louise Penny’s wonderful series. But that does not mean that all is well. The previous novel,…

  • When murder and fiction collide

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson KILL ALL YOUR DARLINGS. By David Bell. Berkley. 416 pages. $27 hardcover. David Bell’s latest thriller has all the ingredients for a great summer read. The fast-moving plot is gripping, with plenty of twists and turns, and more than a few surprises. It’s set in academia, at a fictitious Kentucky…

  • Flag waving, patriotism and spies

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson THE HOLLYWOOD SPY: A Maggie Hope Mystery. By Susan Elia MacNeal. Bantam. 352 pages. $27. If you believe the inspiring old stories about how patriotism united America during World War II, Susan Elia MacNeal’s latest Maggie Hope suspense novel will be an eye-opener. When we last spent time with Maggie,…

  • What he left behind

    Bob Moyer takes on a different kind of mystery – not a whodunit, but a look at the strange realm of human love and relationships. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer MONOGAMY. By Sue Miller. Harper. 338 pages. $28.99     In this fine novel, filled with authentic detail of time, place and demographics, the main…

  • The boy is back

    Bob Moyer takes a look at the latest book by one of America’s most respected mystery and thriller writers. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer EDDIE’S BOY. By Thomas Perry. Mysterious Press. 274 pages. $26. Thomas Perry never fails to produce a pager-turner. His protagonists, whether in stand-alone novels or series installments, Native American females or…

  • Reacher “Just Happens” to be at it again

    Bob Moyer reviews the latest in one of his favorite series (and one of mine, also, once he introduced me to it). But, as he explains, this involves a “new Jack Reacher.” Reviewed by Robert P Moyer THE SENTINEL. By Lee Child and Andrew Child. Delacorte Press. 351 pages. $28.99 Jack Reacher is the star…