Category: Mysteries

  • A runaway wife, intrigue and secrets in a Depression-era tale

    Paul O’Connor reviews the latest novel – the fifth –  by North Carolina author Charles Frazier.  He finds a lot to like. Reviewed by Paul T. O’Connor THE TRACKERS. By Charles Frazier. Harper Collins. 320 pages. $19.99, softcover. In 1937, a young artist has landed his dream job. Val Welch, with the help of a…

  • The last book by one of the greats

    Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer Bob Moyer reviews the final book by one of the best mystery novelists of the late 20th century. ANOTHER DAY’S PAIN. By K.C. Constantine. Mysterious Press. 232 pages. $26.95 With the posthumous publication of his 18th Rocksburg novel, K.C. Constantine deserves more than a review, he deserves an homage. He was…

  • Murder and philosophy on a Greek isle

    Need an entertaining mystery to read? Bob Moyer has another suggestion, this one set on one of the isles of Greece. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer THE FURY. By Alex Michaelides. Celadon Press. 320 pages. $28.99. “Character is Fate.” That’s a heady premise behind a classic mystery novel with seven people trapped on a Greek island. Does…

  • Murder, mystery and wit in the Australian wilds

    Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson EVERYONE ON THIS TRAIN IS A SUSPECT. By Benjamin Stevenson. Mariner Books. 336 pages. $30. Benjamin Stevenson has a lot of nerve. It’s not every writer who would be so bold as to produce a modern spin on Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie’s masterpiece starring the inimitable Hercule…

  • News, intrigue, mystery and wit

    Bob Moyer reviews the sixth in a series of mysteries starring a woman TV news reporter. Don’t worry: He says you don’t have to read the other five before trying this one. But at some point, you might want to try those too. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer BROADCAST BLUES. By R.G. Belsky. Oceanview Publishing.…

  • Mystery and suspense, with a bow and a cup of tea

    Bob Moyer reviews something that is new to me: I’ve never read a Japanese police procedural. It sounds as though it’s worth a try. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer THE FINAL CURTAIN: A Mystery (The Kyoichiro Kaga Series, Book 4). By Keigo Higashino. Minotaur. 400 pages. $29. Don’t worry. It will all become clear. The reader…

  • A gift for mystery lovers: Hercule Poirot, on the case

    HERCULE POIROT’S SILENT NIGHT.  By Sophie Hannah. William Morrow. 362 pages. $30. Reviewed by Linda C. Brinson Yes, that’s right. Just in time for Christmas, there’s a new mystery out starring Agatha Christie’s inimitable Hercule Poirot, the eccentric, dandified little Belgian detective with the egg-shaped head, turned-up moustache and busy “little grey cells” that solve…

  • Past and present collide in Bruno’s Perigord

    Bob Moyer and I share a love for Martin Walker’s Bruno novels. Once again, he got hold of the new one before I did. I must catch up. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer. A CHATEAU UNDER SIEGE: A Bruno, Chief of Police Novel. By Martin Walker. Knopf.  308 pages.  $28. Every Bruno, Chief of Police…

  • Hell on Earth

    Bob Moyer takes a look at the latest book by an award-winning and best-selling crime novelist from southeastern Virginia, and likes what he reads. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer ALL THE SINNERS BLEED. By S.A. Cosby. Flatiron Books (Macmillan).  352 pages. $27.99 Charon County, the fictional Virginia setting of this novel, seems a typical Southern…

  • Good cop, bad system

    Bob Moyer reviews No. 10 in a popular mystery/international thriller series that provides insights into contemporary Russia along with a gripping story. Reviewed by Robert P. Moyer INDEPENDENCE SQUARE. By Martin Cruz Smith. Simon & Schuster. 272 pages. $26.99 Moscow policeman Arkady Renko has been a good cop in a bad system, surviving and fighting…