Author Topic: Mystery Corner ~ 2 (Read 897391 times)

JoanK · « **Reply #1720 on:** December 23, 2010, 03:34:33 PM »

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Pull up a comfortable chair and join us here to talk about mysteries and their authors.
We love hearing what YOU enjoy and recommend!

Links:
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Our Favorite Old Mystery Writers
Fantastic Fiction
Stop You're Killing Me

Discussion Leaders: BillH and JoanK

One more Parnell Hall, for crossword puzzle fans. If you saw the crossword puzzle movie "Wordplay" you know how the annual crossword puzzle compitition goes. It is timed -- those with the shortest times move on to the next level and the one with the shortest time in the finals wins.

Here is PH singing on it, introduced by Will Shortz:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGreYSm5R44&feature=related

roshanarose · « **Reply #1721 on:** December 23, 2010, 07:13:45 PM »

Poor Rosemary - I had one of those days on my date.

Sorry about your daughters. I don't think that girls really appreciate their mothers until they are mothers themselves.

As for the yobbos - they were probably bored and stir-crazy. Not that that excuses them or their behaviour. I have never heard the word "oiks" before, should it be "oinks"?

Or does it mean "yob in training?

Today is Xmas Eve and my thoughts are with my SL friends. Have yourselves a Merry Little Xmas, to quote a line I heard somewhere.

JoanK · « **Reply #1722 on:** December 23, 2010, 07:24:44 PM »

Merry Xmas to all you mystery fans.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #1723 on:** December 24, 2010, 03:20:35 AM »

Thanks Roshanarose

It wasn't that bad really, just came at the end of a long and tiring day battling through the crowds, sliding on the ice/slush, etc. The word is indeed "oiks" but I am not sure exactly where it comes from - I think "yob in training" is probably very accurate!

I told my elder daughter about it and said it was a good thing she had not been with me because she would have been embarrassed when I shouted back at them (though I was very restrained in what I said) - to my surprise she said she was also glad she had not been there, because she would have told them exactly what she thought of them and would probably have been reported by their feckless parents. So she is on my side, even if that didn't run to putting the kettle on!

Have a great Christmas Eve - it is that here too now. Anna and I have a day of cooking planned - tomato and mint soup, goat's cheese bread, ordinary bread, chocolate log, sausage rolls, etc - all for various stages of tomorrow. Not planning to go out farther than the post box and the bird table.

Best wishes to all,

Rosemary

Steph · « **Reply #1724 on:** December 24, 2010, 06:02:25 AM »

Teen age boys are a mystery to everyone. I had two of them, but never figured them out. However deliberate stuff like that.. I generally look them square in the eye and mention how Mothers generally know what is happening in their childrens lives and sometimes neighbors help them find out.. That tends to run them off..

Babi · « **Reply #1725 on:** December 24, 2010, 09:24:54 AM »

ROSEMARY, I respectfully disagree. It was probably wise to ignore the
rude boys; they could have gotten nastier. But if the girls don't show
you the consideration they should, I'd say you should tell them about it
just as you told us.
STEPH, I love your proposed comment to the boys. Of course, that
only works in small communities where you actuallly know the parents
of the boys.

FlaJean · « **Reply #1726 on:** December 24, 2010, 02:02:53 PM »

I finished Margaret Maron's latest Christmas Mourning. I enjoyed it. I really liked her first series with the New York detective Sigrid even better than the Deborah Knott series. In this book she mentions Sigrid in the last few pages as being a cousin to the deceased husband of Kate, Dwight's sister-in-law. There is a hint that she is going to bring Sigrid into the next mystery and that sounds really interesting.

JoanK · « **Reply #1727 on:** December 24, 2010, 02:51:21 PM »

"Teen age boys are a mystery to everyone."

My oldest grandson, the one that we worried about because he was such a "pleaser", always wanting everyone to like him, when he turned 11 discovered that being sarcastic was the way to go. I tell him that he's not allowed to be a teen-ager for two more years. No training period allowed.

joegreyfan · « **Reply #1728 on:** December 24, 2010, 08:29:11 PM »

Rosemary, I love Louise Penny's series. You're starting with the right one; Still Life is the first in the series.

My Christmas season rereads this year were Charlotte MacLeod's Rest You Merry (the funniest Christmas mystery I've ever read), A Christmas Carol (a lovely edition illustrated by P.J. Lynch), and Dean Koontz's fun little book "written" by his late golden retriever Trixie, Christmas Is Good!

A merry Christmas to all of you!

JoanK · « **Reply #1729 on:** December 25, 2010, 03:00:08 PM »

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!!!!!!!!

Steph · « **Reply #1730 on:** December 27, 2010, 06:31:31 AM »

I just started a strange book.. Men and Dogs or Dogs and Men.. not sure which this morning.. She just killed her mother.. Hmm.. Is it a mystery?? or just a novel.. Oh well. I will keep going for a while

Babi · « **Reply #1731 on:** December 27, 2010, 09:37:23 AM »

On general principle, I strongly object to the idea of killing one's mother.
Still, I must admit that some truly poisonous mothers do exist and they can really mess up their children's lives.
Let us know more about this book, STEPH. I may want to be careful
to avoid it.

marjifay · « **Reply #1732 on:** December 27, 2010, 01:07:12 PM »

I'm reading Lee Child's latest Jack Reacher mystery/thriller -- WORTH DYING FOR. A real page turner as they say. I like his sense of humor. A line from page 44: "He (Jack Reacher) had been broken down and built back up by the kind of esperts who could snap your neck so fast you never knew it had happened until you went to nod your head and it rolled away down the street without you." Not for everyone, I know, but if you like thriller-type mysteries, I don't think anyone can beat Lee Child.

Marj

Steph · « **Reply #1733 on:** December 28, 2010, 06:38:12 AM »

Since I am in the reading group.. put aside the others and have brought out Little Bee.. Hmm. that is going to be an interesting discussion.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #1734 on:** December 29, 2010, 05:46:48 AM »

Good morning - thick fog here, but thankfully no more snow. Daughter and husband have gone off to Glenshee to ski, son and other daughter still in bed - one cat on lap, other one sitting on wi-fi thing (and so about to cut everyone else off

. I know this goes against all the holiday spirit, etc but I am so glad to have a bit of peace and solitude - must be something to do with having been an only child, but I really find it hard to cope with too many people for an unbroken stretch, even my own progeny! Oh well - peaceful day today (so far).

This morning - in need of some comfort, and having been woken up at 5.30am by the two of them getting ready to leave - I started Back on Blossom Street - Debbie Macomber. For the first few pages I wasn't sure that it was my kind of thing, but when I pressed on I really got into it, and was halfway through the book before I realised. I can see what people were saying about it being "tame", but sometimes that is just what I want, and I am finding the stories of the different women's lives enough to keep me turning the pages quite happily. I had a look at DM's website and see she has written many many books - I am looking forward to reading some more, although I can see that they will need to be interspersed with other things. I am not usually keen on domestic saga type books - a friend recommended Katie Ffyfe and try as I did I could not finish a single one of her books, they were just so dull, predictable and self-consciously "trendy" - but so far I find DM's style very relaxing.

Before that I read my original copy of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" - although my copy is so old it still has the original title. I hadn't read any AC for years and I enjoyed it - she's another one who knew how to keep you turning the pages. I enjoy reading writers like Ian Rankin, who put in a lot of local colour and psychological detail, but sometimes it's good just to zip through a straightforward mystery. Evidently I am in need of comfort and predictability at the moment!

Rosemary

Babi · « **Reply #1735 on:** December 29, 2010, 09:02:56 AM »

After the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, ROSEMARY, peace and
quiet are definitely to be savored. I am leisurely dividing my time between
'Little Bee', a sci-fi, and my new crossword puzzle book. We eat soup or
leftovers. Housework is pretty much confined to making the beds and tidying
the kitchen. The Christmas to New Year's week is definitely my 'down' time.

Gumtree · « **Reply #1736 on:** December 29, 2010, 09:23:22 AM »

Babi: I'm like that too -after the pre-Xmas rush and the day itself I love the quieter time between Xmas and New Year - but I definitely give the soup a miss at this time of year - too hot for that here....

January is traditionally my month to recharge. I like to catch up with friends for coffee or a meal, do a couple of art gallery exhibitions, maybe take a laid back summer school course or two, see a few extra films, go to the beach, play around in the garden, waste some time in my studio and craftroom- but mostly I like to spend the afternoons sitting out under the trees near the pool with a glass of something cold and a good book and generally just let the world pass me by.

nancymc · « **Reply #1737 on:** December 29, 2010, 10:04:19 AM »

I am just finishing reading my first Kindle book which I downloaded for free Invisible by Lorena McCourt. It started off rather slow, and as one reviewer on amazon said 'went a bit religious' but all in all I am really enjoying it and have just ordered the next three in the series.

I too always relish the quiet time after Christmas Day when the phone does not ring and you do not feel guilty if 'doing nothing' but I just left my son off at the airport home from Spain for Christmas and my daughter and her partner and my grandson are arriving shortly from Paris....all I can is 'What quiet time after Christmas'

Nancy

Steph · « **Reply #1738 on:** December 29, 2010, 10:14:27 AM »

I am home alone, but this time for me is intense thought and decision time. I have always used this week to think of my life.. Do I want to change things?? Am I sure this is where I want to be and am I doing what I want to do.. This year, I have the extra duty to try very hard to put aside the grief, concentrate on the wonderful memories.. MDH was always so full of plans and joy for the new Year. I do miss that.

joegreyfan · « **Reply #1739 on:** December 29, 2010, 07:13:40 PM »

Marjifay, I'm a big Jack Reacher fan too. I discovered him fairly recently, so I haven't read the newer ones yet. My next one will be The Enemy.

I recently read two excellent thrillers by British authors, both serial-killer thrillers. I know some of you don't want anything to do with this sort of book, but if you do enjoy one occasionally, these are far superior to the usual book in this subgenre. One of them is Dead Like You by Peter James. He's well known in the U.K., but this is the first of his books to be published in the U.S. The other, which is really outstanding, and extremely hard to put down, is Oliver Stark's American Devil. It hasn't been published here yet, but I ordered a paperback of the British edition from Book Depository, after it was highly recommended by a retired Englishwoman whose book blog I follow. Stark sets his story in New York City, and does a fine job with the American setting and dialogue, though a few Briticisms slipped through, which I expect an American editor will fix when it's published here.

Now for something completely different ... I'm now reading Susan Wittig Albert's Beatrix Potter cozy The Tale of Hawthorn House. Quite a contrast! Yes, I do read a wide range of mysteries and thrillers.

JoanK · « **Reply #1740 on:** December 30, 2010, 01:28:49 AM »

"I really find it hard to cope with too many people for an unbroken stretch, even my own progeny!"

I'm the same way, and I'm not an only child. I've always needed a balance of social time and alone time which is very hard to achieve.

I picked up one of Susan Wittig Albert's "Darling Dahlia" mysteries, and it looks like I'm going to enjoy it. I know that some of you don't like them. I've never been able to read her beatrix Potter series for some reason.

Babi · « **Reply #1741 on:** December 30, 2010, 08:46:26 AM »

Aren't the Beatric Potter stories delightful? I've enjoyed them so much, and hope she is busily writing more.
I've just started the third of Victoria Thompson's Sarah Brandt series.
I'm really enjoying them; like them better than the other period New York
series that were mentioned here. Don't remember the author; I only
read the first of that series.

Steph · « **Reply #1742 on:** December 30, 2010, 09:09:18 AM »

Ilove Victoria Thompson. She really makes you feel you are there during a complicated period. She also portrays each character with good and bad feelings. Amazing.
I have met a widower from our widows club, whose wife was murdered over 40 years ago. Two books were written about the doctor who killed so many patients and was not discovered for over 10 years.. Anyway Rene brought me one of the true crime books and I am eager to read the story..

jeriron · « **Reply #1743 on:** December 30, 2010, 02:10:20 PM »

Steph

Do you have a shield for your IPAD?

JoanK · « **Reply #1744 on:** December 30, 2010, 03:07:02 PM »

"the other period New York series that were mentioned here."

The series with Theodore Roosevelt as one of the detectives? I think the author is Caleb Carr.

I've been trying new (to me) authors. One I liked was Christopher Fowler and his Peculiar Crimes Unit. The one I read was "Bryant and May on the Rails." It features a zany unit of the London police. A mixture of humor and a good detective thriller. This one had a lot of information about the London Underground.

JoanK · « **Reply #1745 on:** December 30, 2010, 03:10:50 PM »

Yes, it's Caleb Carr. The first in the series is "The Alienist". FF lists only one sequel -- I thought I had read more.

joegreyfan · « **Reply #1746 on:** December 30, 2010, 07:39:00 PM »

I've just finished Susan Wittig Albert's The Tale of Hawthorn House. I know a lot of readers can't accept the talking animals in this series (and other series, such as Shirley Rousseau Murphy's Joe Grey series and Rita Mae Brown's cat mysteries). I've loved the idea of talking animals, probably ever since I read Beatrix Potter's tales and the Winnie-the-Pooh stories as a young child, plus the Chronicles of Narnia, which I read in my 20s (they hadn't been written yet when I was a child).

One of my brothers gave me (for Christmas) the sequel to Hawthorn House, The Tale of Briar Bank, which I'm looking forward to reading. But first I'm going to read some of the books I just received from Amazon (thanks to gift certificates from my two best friends), which include Dean Koontz's latest, several other thrillers, Terry Pratchett's I Shall Wear Midnight and Charles de Lint's new YA fantasy, The Painted Boy.

mabel1015j · « **Reply #1747 on:** December 30, 2010, 08:05:12 PM »

Went to the library today and got about eight mysteries, including some you have led me to, thomas Perry, Linda Fairstein, Parnell Hall, Nancy Atherton, Charlotte Macleod, Joanne Fluke and someone i never heard of, but she has interesting titles and book covers - Kerry Greenwood - this title is Cocaine Blues. The covers all have "1920's" style women figures on them. I also picked up an Emilie Richards book on the " oldies, but goodies" shelf titled Touching Stars. I'm starting with Margaret Maron's Storm Track. Sooooooo much to look forward to!!! .......... Jean

Steph · « **Reply #1748 on:** December 31, 2010, 06:05:54 AM »

Yes, I bought the cover for the IPAD. Was afraid it would get scratched when I put it in my briefcase, etc. It also folds all the way back and you can use it as a tripod. Handy when in my lap and I am reading the newspaper from it. I do love the newspapers..New York Times, Washington Post. and an online thing called Slate..

Babi · « **Reply #1749 on:** December 31, 2010, 09:27:54 AM »

No, JOANK, there was a series featuring a young Irish immigrant girl,
and the first book was about a murder among the immigrants on Ellis
Island. That's the series I was thinking about.

I hadn't heard of the Terry Pratchett book, JOEGREYFAN. I'm a great
fan of his and appreciate the tip. I haven't tried Charles de Lint yet.
Looks like you're all set, JEAN. Have fun!

jeriron · « **Reply #1750 on:** December 31, 2010, 09:57:05 AM »

Steph
I haven't bought the cover yet but I am going to. But what I mean was this screen protector. They say it's very hard to put on.
http://www.amazon.com/9-7-Screen-Protector-Apple-iPad/dp/B003C6SETS

also there is a drop down menu that has the newspapers but I can't seem to find out where it is.

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #1751 on:** December 31, 2010, 11:10:37 AM »

When you get ready to buy your cover, do shop around, even in Amazon, as there are several that are much cheaper than than $84.00+ because they have someone's "fashion name" on them.

jeriron · « **Reply #1752 on:** December 31, 2010, 11:17:12 AM »

The Apple IPad cover is $39.99. and the few people I know that have that one like it. plus I have a Best Buy gift cert. so I'll get it there.

mabel1015j · « **Reply #1753 on:** December 31, 2010, 11:21:14 AM »

Jeri - i also have the cover and recommend it. I got the ipad in Oct and got the cover for C-mas, so i got to experience with and without it and i'd say a definite yes. I don't have the prote tor, but for $2 why not?.........Jean

jeriron · « **Reply #1754 on:** December 31, 2010, 12:06:07 PM »

Mabel

I'm glad to hear you like the cover too.

I hadn't seen that change in price on the protector. But at the regular price it sure got a bad review. It's kind of like what you put on car windows and trying to get it flat whithout bubbles.

FlaJean · « **Reply #1755 on:** December 31, 2010, 12:36:32 PM »

I have a cover for my iPad but didn't buy the protector. I did get a protector for my iPod as there is no cover. My husband put it on for me as I was afraid I'd make a mess of it.

nancymc · « **Reply #1756 on:** January 01, 2011, 06:55:46 AM »

Happy New Year to all the Bookworms.

I got three books by a Swedish crime author Camilla Lackberg, I started the first one in the series 'The Ice Princess' and am finding it hard to put down...can seriously recommend it.

Nancy

Steph · « **Reply #1757 on:** January 01, 2011, 09:42:36 AM »

Hmm, The little protector looks good, but I bought a chamois to clean my screen,that is working well. But the cover is great. I bought mine from Apple.

jeriron · « **Reply #1758 on:** January 01, 2011, 03:30:47 PM »

I bought the apple cover and like it. I didn't get the protector.

JoanK · « **Reply #1759 on:** January 01, 2011, 04:59:13 PM »

Did I already post about Foster and the Peculiar Crimes Unit? Senior moment -- I can't remember.

Anyway, the one I read is "Briant and Mays on the Rails". Humor plus a good thriller. I'll certainly read more.

I finished the "Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree" by Albert and liked it. I think only a woman would like it -- all the women are portrayed as nice and all the men sound like jerks ("Don't worry your pretty little head about that").

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Author Topic: Mystery Corner ~ 2 (Read 897391 times)