Tag Archives: Mystery

The Sweet Dead Life by Joy Preble

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Synopsis:
After a car accident, Jenna’s stoner older brother starts acting really weird, like all perfect and helpful and otherworldly–and then announces that someone is trying to poison her.

Review:
The plot mechanism behind The Sweet Dead Life was a little clunky in parts, but the voice that Joy Preble came up with for Jenna absolutely won me over. I also loved that the story was set in Houston, not just because my mother-in-law lives there but more because it gave the book a great sense of place that tends to be an afterthought in a lot of YA novels. The book is funny, sweet, edgy, suspenseful, and ultimately satisfying–though a huge part of me wished the door had been cracked a bit wider for a sequel. I loved the relationship between Jenna and Casey and would totally keep hanging with them.

Many thanks to Soho Teen for the review copy.

Escape Theory by Margaux Froley

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Synopsis:
After the apparent suicide of a popular senior, boarding school peer counselor Devon starts wondering if there was something more going on and decides to find out the truth about the boy she loved from afar.

Review:
Escape Theory is smart and well-written, with varied characters and an interesting setting. Devon is haunted by an encounter she had with Hutch, the suicide whose friends and girlfriend she’s now counseling, and because that one night stands out in her mind as a defining moment, she can’t let Hutch go without figuring out what exactly happened to him. She just can’t believe he killed himself–and neither can anyone else. It’s a great hook for a story, the burning question of whether a connection you made with someone was as meaningful to them as it was to you, and Devon’s role as peer counselor gives her access to the other characters in an organic and compelling way.

Thea Gallas Always Gets Her Man by Kristen Panzer

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Synopsis:
Aspiring lactation consultant Thea just wants to help moms and babies breastfeed, but her knack for observation gets her in over her head when a neighbor goes missing.

Review:
As an international board-certified lactation consultant and La Leche League Leader myself, I instantly fell for Thea. At last, a protagonist after my own heart. I loved seeing my passion represented by such a feisty, smart woman as Thea and it was so fun to read actual facts about breastfeeding in a mystery novel. And the best part is that author Kristen Panzer has a knack for entertaining prose and gives Thea a great voice. Thea Gallas Always Gets Her Man is a real treat for lactivists and mystery lovers alike.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

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Synopsis:
When his wife goes missing, an angry writer-turned-bar-owner struggles with feelings of guilt, as the circle of suspicion hones in on him.

Review:
Gone Girl is the kind of thriller I swoon for–a killer hook, messy interpersonal dynamics, and the kind of twists that feel inevitable and fresh at the same time. I was definitely drawn into the game in a big way, and was glad I didn’t know much about the book beyond the blurb. I am not sure it ever hit the level of anything by Superfast favorites Barbara Vine and Tana French, but it certainly kept me riveted.

Don’t Look Back by Karin Fossum (Inspector Sejer)

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Synopsis:
When a popular teenage girl is found dead by a mountain lake, the innocence of an idyllic town is shattered.

Review:
While I enjoyed Don’t Look Back, I wasn’t hooked on the series. The mystery is very well-plotted and kept me guessing to the end, but the psychological complexity wasn’t there the way I wanted it to be. And the reveal at the end had some elements that felt forced and overly dramatic. However, I loved the Norwegian setting and the mention of Sigrid Undset’s The Wreath, one of my all-time favorite books, because I’m a nerd that way.

The Girl in the Green Raincoat by Laura Lippman

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Synopsis:
On bed rest and housebound, detective Tess Monaghan gets concerned and starts an investigation when she stops seeing a stylish woman walking her dog.

Review:
I do love Laura Lippman, who sets her stories in Baltimore, where I was born and raised, but haven’t lived since 1991. Reading her books is at once nostalgic and fresh, and I enjoy trying to figure out the geography and have a thrill when I recognize a reference.

The Girl in the Green Raincoat was a satisfying entry in the life story of Lippman’s recurring character Tess Monaghan, but I found the mystery itself to be a bit thin. I loved the emotional and character development, though–Lippman came up with a nice psychological angle on a familiar crime trope. Yet I was wishing it were 50 pages longer so we could get a few more twists and turns.

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

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Synopsis:
A bereft Australian woman travels to Cornwall to uncover the mystery behind her grandmother’s mysterious appearance on a dock in Maryborough at the age of 4, her identity completely unknown.

Review:
While I had some minor quibbles with some of the stock characterizations in The Forgotten Garden, on the whole I was absolutely riveted by the storytelling. Morton expertly weaves together the stories of three women: Cassandra, a contemporary Australian woman who has received an unusual bequest from her grandmother Nell; that of Nell, who learns at age 21 that in 1913 she was discovered a pier, having arrived on a ship from England with no identity to speak of; and Eliza Makepeace, a writer who crafted a book of fairy tales while living in a cottage in Cornwall at the beginning of the 20th century. She also includes three of Eliza’s stories, which are hypnotic and absolutely convincing. And in Eliza’s story, we also get the points of view of several other characters.

It’s quite a masterpiece of jigsaw puzzle storytelling, because while the reader is privy to information that Nell and Cassandra are not, the conclusions that Cassandra and Nell draw from the information on hand are plausible and convincing. The mystery is truly engaging–even though figured it out about halfway through, I was sufficiently enthralled to want to carry on.

And, oh–how badly do I want to live in a windswept cottage on the Cornish coast–complete with maze and hidden garden! All I would need is a big storm and I’d be as happy as I can be.

Another Pan by Daniel and Dina Nayeri

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Synopsis:
When Peter Pan and his Lost Boys descend on a chic Manhattan boarding school, a brother and sister become embroiled in his plan to reclaim 5 ancient mummies who hold the secret to eternal life.

Review:
In the interest of full disclosure, I sometimes work with Daniel Nayeri, and have even had him and his lovely wife over to my house for dinner. So please don’t expect anything resembling objectivity. I’m a big fan of Daniel and his sister Dina’s unique brand of classic retellings, and I’d love for everyone to buy Another Pan.

Another Pan is an intriguing mash up of Peter Pan and ancient Egyptian mythology, all set in a deliciously snooty boarding school. It’s not as tidy as some other YA retellings I’ve read, and I like that about it. The Nayeri siblings are ambitious storytellers with a high regard for the intelligence of their readers. They’re also damn good writers. (Yes, I’m a bit jealous.)

Many thanks to Candlewick for the review copy.

Faithful Place by Tana French

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Synopsis:
When the body of his first love is discovered 22 years after she failed to show up and elope to England, undercover detective Frank Mackey is sucked back into his dysfunctional and dangerous family.

Review:
Faithful Place is yet another perfect read from Tana French. As Frank navigates the crime scene, even after being ordered to stay away from the case, his grief, nostalgia, and brokenness threaten to consume him. Nobody does bittersweet regret like Tana French. My heart ached for all these poor lost characters, whose dreams were all thwarted by the accident of birth and the ties of family.

I did guess the murderer’s identity pretty early on, but I think that was the point, to place us completely in Frank’s point of view. He missed it, even if I didn’t, and that says volumes about who he is. A romantic to the end, when he says that he and Rosie Daly lost the chance to be the happiest two people on earth, you believe him utterly.

I also have to give props to Tana French for her exquisitely musical dialogue. Her use of slang, profanity, and imagery perfectly limns the subtle class distinctions between her characters, which is another huge part of the story.

Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

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Synopsis:
Freed from the clutches of the madman who abducted her, a broken young woman tries desperately to make sense of what happened to her.

Review:
I find it really strange that the New York Times gave Still Missing such a glowing review, because while I enjoyed the read I didn’t think it rose above genre expectations at all. The prose is pedestrian and the revelations contrived. Oh well.