| Mystery April 2006 |
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"Where there is mystery, it is generally suspected there must also be evil."
~Lord Byron, British poet |
| New and recently released! |
| North by Northanger, or, the Shades of Pemberley: A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery - by Carrie Bebris |
| Publisher: St. Martins Press |
| Pub Date: 03/21/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 076531410X |
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Historical Cozy Mystery. Jane Austen fans may be prejudiced towards this mystery since it features two of her most beloved characters, Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam Darcy. The couple makes a friendly visit to Northanger Abbey only to be accused of a jewelry theft. They must then ask Darcy's imperial-minded aunt for aid. Adding to the tension, the couple are expecting their first child and Elizabeth finds a compelling letter from Darcy's deceased mother. Library Journal says the author "captures Austen's style and the Regency period perfectly." 3rd in the series after Pride and Prescience and Suspense and Sensibility. | |
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| The Big Bamboo - by Tim Dorsey |
| Publisher: Morrow |
| Pub Date: 04/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060585625 |
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Dark Humorous Mystery. Florida and wacky mysteries go together like palm trees and sand, but loveable serial killer Serge Storms and his stoned-out sidekick Coleman head west in this one. Don't worry though--you can take the boy out of Florida, but you can't take Florida out of the boy. Serge feels the Sunshine State needs to be put back on Hollywood's radar and hilarious events ensue involving film production, kidnapping, and murder amid the glamour of Tinseltown. Oh, and Serge is working on a screenplay too. Anyone who appreciates both the absurdity of Hollywood life and the tartness of black humor will enjoy this book. Library Journal calls it "howlingly funny!" 8th in the series after Torpedo Juice. | |
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| Dark Assassin: A Novel - by Anne Perry |
| Publisher: Ballantine Books |
| Pub Date: 03/28/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0345469291 |
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Victorian Mystery. Inspector William Monk, a superintendent with the Thames River Police, is on patrol with his men near the Waterloo Bridge when they witness a young couple going over the edge of the bridge. As Monk tries to determine if the deaths were the result of an accident, suicide, or murder, he stumbles into the middle of a conspiracy with ties to the highest levels of government. Publishers Weekly says readers "will relish the last-minute twists." 15th in the Inspector William Monk series. If this one is checked out already, be sure and see our Anne Perry suggestions located lower on the list! | |
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| Tomb of the Golden Bird - by Elizabeth Peters |
| Publisher: William Morrow |
| Pub Date: 04/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060591803 |
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Historical Mystery. In 1922, Amelia Peabody's Egyptologist husband Emerson believes he may know where Tutankhamen is buried. Emerson tries unsuccessfully to persuade his rival Howard Carter to turn over digging rights in the Valley of the Kings to him. No matter, Amelia and her family head for Luxor anyway. Kidnapping, possible curses, and intrigue that involves Emerson's charming half-brother soon follow. 18th in this popular series; the 1st is Crocodile in the Sandbank. Fans of Amelia who don't mind a modern setting may also want to meet Sharyn McCrumb's Elizabeth MacPherson. Elizabeth is another quirky but intelligent heroine. She first appears in Sick of Shadows. | |
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| Hello, Stranger - by Virginia Swift |
| Publisher: HarperCollins |
| Pub Date: 03/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060543337 |
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Mystery. "Mustang" Sally Alder, an unconventional amateur sleuth and Wyoming college professor, searches for one of the students in her women's history class, Charlie Preston. The injured coed had recently come to Sally for help, but now her abusive father has been murdered and Charlie's nowhere to be found. The police zero in on the young woman as the prime suspect, but Sally's not so sure. Toss in a love triangle for Sally, and this one is sure to please old fans and gather new ones. 4th in the series after Bye, Bye Love. | |
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| Is the new Anne Perry checked out? Try one of these... |
| The Alienist - by Caleb Carr |
| Publisher: Bantam Books |
| Pub Date: 08/01/1996 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0553572997 |
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Historical Mystery. If you like the historical details of Perry's books and don't mind a book set across the pond, this bestseller will please. In 1896, New York City Police Commissioner Teddy Roosevelt asks his old friend Laszlo Kreizler, an alienist (a psychologist today), to help solve the horrendous murders of some of the city's lost children. Kreizler agrees and joins forces with a team of folks, including journalist John Schuyler Moore and an aspiring policewoman. The team uses radical techniques such as fingerprinting and psychological profiling to capture a killer. Anyone who loves old New York should love this book too. There's a sequel also: The Angel of Darkness. | |
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| The Great Stink - by Clare Clark |
| Publisher: Harcourt |
| Pub Date: 10/13/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0151011613 |
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Historical Mystery. For Perry fans who love the historical details and can't get enough of Victorian life, this book gets down to the nitty gritty. Not only does it feature a Crimean War veteran like Perry's nurse Hester Latterly, but readers get to explore the bowels of London. Fresh from the battlefields of 1855 Crimea, surveyor William May returns home to his wife. He struggles to recover from his harrowing experiences but begins work assessing London's sewer system anyway. The job makes things worse as corruption, cholera outbreaks, and a murder accusation strain May's tenuous hold on sanity. Luckily, a scavenger named Long Arm Tom is around to help. This first novel got great reviews. | |
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| Death Comes as Epiphany - by Sharan Newman |
| Publisher: St Martins Press |
| Pub Date: 01/01/2002 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0765303744 |
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Medieval Mystery. Like Perry's books, Newman's historical Catherine LeVendeur tales deal with family issues as well as church problems and politics. Catherine LeVendeur is a twelfth-century French novice at the Convent of the Paraclete, but someone is trying the smear the convent's reputation. Catherine is asked to go undercover as a failed novice to help uncover the trouble. She travels to the Great Abby of St. Denis where she finds evidence of an altered Psalter, mad monks, and murder. 1st in the series. | |
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| Shinju - by Laura Joh Rowland |
| Publisher: HarperPaperbacks |
| Pub Date: 03/01/1996 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0061009504 |
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Historical Mystery. Another change in time and place, but Perry fans will find that Rowland's books share her historical and social details and have the same serious tone. In 17th century Japan, Sano Ichiro, a samurai and police detective, goes against his superior's orders in order to investigate a suspicious double drowning of a peasant and a noblewoman. The two were supposedly star-crossed lovers and the official reason for death is shinju, a double love suicide. But as Sano looks deeper, he uncovers an intricate plot of political intrigue and murder. 1st in the series and the 1st novel by the author. | |
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| Murder on Astor Place - by Victoria Thompson |
| Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime |
| Pub Date: 05/01/1999 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0425168964 |
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Historical Mystery. Those who enjoy reading about the professions of Perry's protagonists will want to meet Thompson's pair: Sarah Brandt is a midwife and her partner is Sergeant Frank Malloy. Following a routine delivery in a turn-of-the-century New York rooming house, Sarah discovers that another boarder, a young girl, has been murdered. Despite the hindrance of the girl's powerful family, Sarah and Frank team up to hunt the killer, forcing Sarah to revisit the upper class background she disdains. 1st in the Gaslight series. | |
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| Focus on: Athletes and Sports in Mysteries |
| On the Fringe - by Aaron J. and Charlotte Elkins |
| Publisher: Ingram Pub Services |
| Pub Date: 10/13/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0727862863 |
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Sports Mystery. Lee Ofsted, a female pro golfer, is in Hawaii for the Mauna Kea Country Club's centennial celebration and to get married to her love Graham Sheldon. Weddings never do go like one plans and before the happy couple can even get to theirs, a murder takes place. Library Journal says the authors "know their way around a golf course" and Booklist says the book has a "well-formed plot." If you like golf, and you like mysteries, give this one a swing. 5th in the series after Where Have All the Birdies Gone? | |
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| Bahamarama - by Robert Morris |
| Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur |
| Pub Date: 10/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0312328893 |
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Mystery. Zack Chasteen, former professional football player for the Dolphins and a fresh ex-convict (for a crime he did not commit), is being hit from all sides. He's dumped by the limo that picked him up from prison, has more trouble getting to his Bahamian rendezvous point to meet his girlfriend Barbara Pickering, and then his plans are further thwarted when Barbara is kidnapped and her ex-lover is murdered. Zack turns to a police superintendent (another ex-pro footballer) and a Taino mystic for help. Oh, and there's a hurricane on the way. 1st in a series. | |
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| The Distance - by Eddie Muller; featuring Billy Nichols; introduction by Leonard Gardner |
| Publisher: UglyTown |
| Pub Date: 10/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0972441271 |
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Historical Noir Fiction. In 1949 San Francisco sportswriter Billy Nichols is at the top of his game when, in a regrettable split-second decision, he changes his entire life--by agreeing to help cover up a killing. Boxer Hack Escalante claims the death was an accident and Billy agrees to aid the boxer, thereby hurtling himself into a conspiracy that could well end his career as a journalist, and perhaps cost him his life. This one got a starred review from Kirkus Reviews and won a Shamus Award. Don't miss the sequel, Shadow Boxer. | |
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| Murder at the Foul Line - edited by Otto Penzler |
| Publisher: Mysterious Press |
| Pub Date: 01/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0892960167 |
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Mystery. Basketball fans mourning the loss of college hoops can at least still read about action on the court. This original collection of short basketball tales contains stories written by some of the mystery genre's top authors such as George Pelecanos, Lawrence Block, Jeffery Deaver, and Robert B. Parker. Booklist says "the writing is uniformly excellent." | |
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| Winter and Night - by S. J. Rozan |
| Publisher: St. Martins Press |
| Pub Date: 03/01/2003 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0312986688 |
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Mystery. Private detective Bill Smith has a reunion with his teenage nephew. But it's not so heartwarming since the meeting occurs in a NYPD station and then the kid takes off. Bill and his partner Lydia Chin set out to find the teenager by going to his small New Jersey town where high school football reigns supreme. The duo soon stumbles across a murder that may be linked to the past. Bill confronts dark secrets, both the town's and his own, in this the 8th in the series after Reflecting the Sky. Booklist says "don't miss this one." | |
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