Claws by Stephen Booth My rating: 3 of 5 stars Only Ben Cooper appears in this nicely short story. I like the interplay befween Cooper and Uddal; the mystery itself is Intriguing; and the ending satisfies. But this is a mystery with a message. And that message is hammered home in Cooper’s thoughts, a policeman’s [...]

Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith My rating: 4 of 5 stars I find it a pleasure to read mysteries set in a country other than UK or US (yes, I didn’t include Canada because it’s not a big setting either), and I like this series because not only is the setting — [...]

Ill Wind by Nevada Barr My rating: 4 of 5 stars Another good read by Nevada Barr. What made me admire her more as a writer is that she had a scene where a lesser author, going for the easy titillation, would’ve thrown sex in. Instead Barr adds credibility and excitement and interest by not [...]

The Dead of Winter by Rennie Airth My rating: 1 of 5 stars OK, it’s rare for me not to finish a book. I’m endemically inclined to finish any book I pick up, even if it takes me years. But this writer has a really annoying habit of jumping around in time. At first, I [...]

A Superior Death by Nevada Barr My rating: 5 of 5 stars This book won’t leave my head. I keep feeling the coldness of a Lake Superior summer, the lushness of a temperate climate, the aliveness of the protagonist Anna Pigeon. I’m sure I’ve read Nevada Barr before — I have memories of reading a [...]

Prisoner of Tehran by Marina Nemat My rating: 4 of 5 stars I had heard great reviews of this book, but I found it a difficult read — not style-wise but content-wise. And so at first I read it on and off. “People just don’t talk about it,” [the Iranian woman] said. That’s true for [...]

Homicide Trinity by Rex Stout My rating: 4 of 5 stars The thing about Rex Stout’s writing is that it’s tight, matter-of-fact yet visually, auditorally, and smell-o-vision live. The characters are so strong it’s like they’re standing in front of you. By the time you finish your first Nero Wolfe mystery, you know Archie, Nero, [...]

The Torso by Helene Tursten My rating: 4 of 5 stars I’m enjoying this series set in Sweden. The Torso is rather gruesome but not relentlessly so. Humour, personal conflict, doggies, and vivid descriptions of Goteberg and Swedish life add welcome counterpoints and keep one engaged. I also like the peek this series gives into [...]

Dying Light by Stuart MacBride My rating: 2 of 5 stars This is a needlessly big book and it’s filled with visual imagery that so realistically conveys the grimness of life and its grossest aspects that you just want to go kill yourself or hide under a rock. The day I got to the point [...]