The Watersplash - Classic Mystery Review

Goodreads:  The Watersplash by Patricia Wentworth

Rating: Really Liked It!
Source:   Purchased

Description:  To the innocent visitor the picturesque village of Greenings would appear to be a haven of tranquility. But every place has its secrets and beneath the calm surface lurk hidden resentments and dangerous passions. When a man is found lying face down in a nearby watersplash, the verdict is death by misadventure. But Miss Silver happens to be in the neighbourhood and she suspects foul play...

Genre: Mystery - Classic

My Impression: Miss Silver is frequently compared to Christie's Miss Marple and this is definitely one that shows why.  Miss Silver is staying with a friend who of course is a Vicar's wife in a small English village where two mysterious deaths have just happened to take place.  But Miss Silver is not there by accident.  A somewhat chance encounter led a young woman to confide in Miss Silver.    When the young woman refuses to take Miss Silver's advice and is soon found dead Miss Silver can't help but become involved.  However, there is a lot of setup before Miss Silver is pulled into to the story and almost half the book has gone by before we see her.  

I really loved the characters in this book.  I especially loved Emmeline, Edward's stepmother.  She pretty much ignores what she wants to ignore and enjoy hanging out with her cats of which she has 11.  Susan Wayne is a good Wentworth heroine with plenty of common sense and the scenes between Susan and Emmeline were usually very funny.    The mystery wasn't quite as strong unfortunately.  While the whodunnit kept me guessing there were a lot of details that were glossed over or not fully fleshed out.  Why I do know the who, the why, and the how there are several issues I wanted a bit more clarification on and that kept this book from being a total winner for me.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Of course!

Would I Recommend this Book?  If you enjoy Christie's Marple books I think you would enjoy most of the Miss Silver books.

Saddled Up 4 Murder - Cozy Mystery Review

Goodreads:  Saddled Up 4 Murder by J.C. Eaton

Rating: Really Liked It!
Source:   Publisher

Description:  Spring is in the air as Sun City West gears up for its annual Bye Bye Birdie festivities, when residents bid a fond farewell to the snowbirds and happily reclaim the town for themselves. But planning comes to a screeching halt when the town curmudgeon plummets to her death from the library bell tower and sheriff’s deputies suspect foul play. With the celebration on hold—and Phee’s mother worried that she won’t get her moment in the spotlight on a local TV show slated to cover the event—Phee is thrust into the role of sleuth once again to find the killer.

As Phee soon discovers, there’s no love lost between the town and the unfortunate victim, and with the clock ticking and virtually everyone a potential suspect, she’s got her work cut out for her. Then a passel of horseflesh goes missing, and Phee starts to think the two crimes might be connected. With the town on edge and high noon approaching, she’ll have to wrangle with a band of daring desperados and lasso a lawbreaker who’s dead set on sending her to boot hill

Genre: Mystery - Cozy

Why I Picked This Book:  This is one of my favorite series so of course I had to pick this one up!

My Impression: I just love this series and this was no different.  Harriet's book club is in full swing as is life at the dog park and all the different clubs in Sun City West.  My only complaint is that Nate and Marshall have very little page time as they are out chasing horse thieves.  

Phee is in a more direct investigating role.  She's pulled into it thanks to her mother (of course!) and this time doesn't have Marshall and Nate to use and a sounding board.  Luckily, Phee is intelligent and a quick thinker and doesn't slide too much into Too Stupid To Live territory (and when she skates around the edges there's solid motivation).

This is a fun series with lots of comedic moments that never falls into too quirky.  This series is a must read if you are a cozy lover!

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Of course!  I'm a little concerned that the series is coming to an end as it recently changed publishers but if there is a next one I will be reading it.

Would I Recommend this Book?  Absolutely!  If you love cozies you really should try this series though I would start from the beginning so you can follow the character arcs.  

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *

The Man in the Queue - Classic Mystery Review

Goodreads: The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey

Rating: Not For Me
Source:   Library

Description:  Inspector Alan Grant searches for the identity of a man killed in the line at a theater and for the identity of the killer—whom no one saw.

A long line had formed for the standing-room-only section of the Woffington Theatre. London’s favorite musical comedy of the past two years was finishing its run at the end of the week. Suddenly, the line began to move, forming a wedge before the open doors as hopeful theatergoers nudged their way forward. But one man, his head sunk down upon his chest, slowly sank to his knees and then, still more slowly, keeled over on his face. Thinking he had fainted, a spectator moved to help, but recoiled in horror from what lay before him: the man in the queue had a small silver dagger neatly plunged into his back. With the wit and guile that have made Inspector Grant a favorite of mystery fans, the inspector sets about discovering just how a murder occurred among so many witnesses, none of whom saw a thing.

Genre: Mystery - Classic

Why I Picked This Book:  I'm trying to read more classic mystery and Tey is an author that I have read very few books from.

My Impression:  The premise in this one is absolutely fantastic.  A man dies in a tightly packed queue.  Even though a crowd of people is all around the victim no one one knows what happened.  It's up to Inspector Grant to figure out who the victim was and who would want him dead.  

While the premise was interesting the rest of the book fell a bit flat.  I was not impressed with Grant as an investigator.  He has neither the detail oriented brilliance of Hercule Poirot, the ability to get people to talk of Miss Silver, or the original and flexible mind of Lord Peter Wimsey.  Early on Tey describes him as plodding but I'm not sure I would even call him that.  Other then rare moments of clarity he spends most of his time jumping to conclusions and hanging onto them for dear life despite information that seems to prove his conclusion is wrong.  As well this may be the most dated classic I've ever read.  The primary suspect is referred to in a derogatory slur towards people of Italian descent throughout the entire book and his looking Italian seems to be all the proof that anyone needs that he could have committed murder.  This got old pretty quickly and definitely dampened my enjoyment of the read.  

The mystery reveal itself wasn't jaw-dropping or interesting enough to redeem this book.  I have enjoyed a later book involving Inspector Grant and am hoping the series improves as it goes along.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  I will but not based off of this book.

Would I Recommend this Book? No.  I have enjoyed Daughter of Time by this author but this one just didn't feel worth it.

Friday Five - Five Series I'm Going to Roll Into My Series Project Next

I'm taking a bit of a break from my usual Friday Linkups to try something a little different.  I'm in a list making kind of mood so I thought I'd start making random five lists.  Sometimes they'll be bookish other weeks not so much. These are all series I've read a book or two (or more in) and would really like to read more from - once I finish the other 10 I've got going!

Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mysteries by Gigi Pandian - I listened to the first book in this series and it was such fun!  I really want to read more from this as I love the archeology/treasure hunting aspects.

Magical Bakery Mystery by Bailey Cates - I've read the very first book and the most recent couple of books and want to read the ones in the middle.  

Secret, Book, & Scone Society by Ellery Adams - I had picked up the first book in this series on the Audible sale and it ended up being one of my favorite books in January.  I'm really looking forward to reading/listening to more of it.

Abby McCree Mystery by Alexis Morgan - I've read or listened to the first two books in this series and enjoy it - especially the fact that it's a dog cozy series!  There are only a few books left and I'm looking forward to finishing it up.

Mrs. Jeffries Mysteries by Emily Brightwell - I have read the most recent few and really loved them and then I listened to the first book and was surprised by how different it was.  I'm looking forward to reading the ones in between to see how the series evolves.

Are you  a series reader?  If so, what series do you want to finish?

Books from the Backlog - Mr. Zero

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  Mr. Zero by Patricia Wentworth

Blurb:  A high society house party in the country sets the stage for blackmail, sabotage, illicit passion, and murder in this witty, classic British mystery with a touch of political intrigue
The last thing London debutante Gay Hardwicke wants is to become involved in another one of her cousin’s messy jams. But Lady Sylvia Colesborough is in over her head this time: She claims she’s being blackmailed by the mysterious Mr. Zero. If she doesn’t steal important government papers from the safe of her politically connected husband, the distinguished Sir Francis, her gambling debts will be exposed. Gay’s reluctant attempts to help Sylvia backfire when a murder raises the stakes—and Gay’s boyfriend, Algy Somers, becomes the prime suspect.

Enlisting the aid of her society friends, Gay races to clear Algy’s name and catch a cagey killer before her own days are numbered.

Why It Needs To Come Off The Shelf:   This is one of Wentworth's stand alone mysteries that I have yet to read and it looks really fun.  As well it has the letter "Z" in the title and I like to read books that start with as many letters as I can (though I do have to cheat a little with some of them!).  

Two Historical Mystery Reviews - The Other Lady Vanishes + A Wicked Conceit

 

Goodreads:  The Other Lady Vanishes (Burning Cove #2) by Amanda Quick

Blurb:  After escaping from a private sanitarium, Adelaide Blake arrives in Burning Cove, California, desperate to start over. Working at an herbal tea shop puts her on the radar of those who frequent the seaside resort town: Hollywood movers and shakers always in need of hangover cures and tonics. One such customer is Jake Truett, a recently widowed businessman in town for a therapeutic rest. But unbeknownst to Adelaide, his exhaustion is just a cover.
In Burning Cove, no one is who they seem. Behind facades of glamour and power hide drug dealers, gangsters, and grifters. Into this make-believe world comes psychic to the stars Madame Zolanda. Adelaide and Jake know better than to fall for her kind of con. But when the medium becomes a victim of her own dire prediction and is killed, they'll be drawn into a murky world of duplicity and misdirection.

Neither Adelaide or Jake can predict that in the shadowy underground they'll find connections to the woman Adelaide used to be—and uncover the specter of a killer who's been real all along...

My Thoughts:  I really enjoy Amanda Quick/Jayne Ann Krentz's books and I think this book is a great example of why.  I really liked by Adelaide and Jake as well as Rayna and the rest of Adelaide's friends in Burning Cove.  As well the plot had a good helping of suspense with enough twists and turns to keep it a fast paced read without getting confusing.  For the most part we know who the bad guys are from the beginning so the main question is who is the worst of the bad guys and just what are they up too.  As well there are a few surprises along the way.  This isn't a book I'll be able to recall in detail in a few months but it is one I will remember enjoying reading.  My Rating:  Really Liked It!

Goodreads:  A Wicked Conceit (Lady Darby Mystery #9) by Anna Lee Huber

Blurb: Edinburgh, Scotland. March 1832. Kiera and Gage have been eagerly awaiting their bundle of joy, but trouble has been brewing in the form of the roguish criminal, Bonnie Brock Kincaid. A new book and subsequent play features some of Kincaid's daringly heinous exploits, although he swears he had nothing to do with it or the characters which are obvious representations of Kiera and Gage. While the scoundrel's fury seems genuine, as well as his determined quest to uncover the real identity of the author, the Gages still hold doubts about his innocence.

A rash of crimes break out across the city, seemingly inspired by the play and book. When the publisher is found brutally murdered—in an imitation of a gruesome scene—the finger not only points to Bonnie Brock as the possible culprit, but also the Gages, who have been outspoken in their condemnation of the tale. Now, the Gages are on a hunt to unmask the killer. Between the infamy garnered by the play, the cholera outbreak still wreaking havoc throughout the city, and the impending birth of their child, they will need all the resources they can garner.

But family quarrels and the revelation of a secret Kiera has been keeping from Sebastian threaten to undermine everything they have overcome. When they find themselves in the crosshairs of the killer, trapped in the squalid underground vaults of the city, they will soon discover that the truth does not always set you free, and death can lurk around any corner.

My Thoughts:  If you have never read this series this is NOT the book to start with.  The plot relies heavily on situations that occurred in the last book or two and I found it a bit confusing and I've read those books!  Kiera is incredibly pregnant and is pretty angsty both regarding the secret she is keeping from her husband and her relationship with her sister (they're both behaving like children and could both use a time out).  The book felt a bit disjointed with bits of plots from previous plots being brought up and Kiera and Gage kind of bouncing around interacting with various people without a strong rhyme or reason.  Once the first murder occurs things get much better and the story feels like it really starts to gain traction and pulled me in.  I love Anna Lee Huber's books but this wasn't her strongest.   My Rating: Liked It

Ten Books Set in Ireland On My TBR

The Becoming by Nora Roberts - Only a portion of this is actually in Ireland.  The rest is in another realm but it feels like Ireland so it counts.

The Lilac Bus by Maeve Binchy - I've only read one Maeve Binchy book but I absolutely loved it and I bought this one a little while ago but haven't gotten to it.

The Mountain Wild by Sarah Stewart Taylor - This one has been on my TBR for ages and it sounds fantastic.

The Library at the Edge of the World by Felicity Hayes-McCoy - I can't resist library books and a library in Ireland sounds even better.

The Guest List by Lucy Foley - I'm not entirely sure this one is set in Ireland but I read somewhere that it was so I'm counting it.

The Book of Killowen Erin Hart - This is kind of a last chance book for this series.  I really enjoyed the first book or two in the series but the last book was painful.  If I don't like this one I think it's time to call it done.

The Likeness by Tana French - I read the first book in the Dublin Murder Squad and had very mixed feelings about it but I've heard great things about this one.

The Faraday Girls by Monica McInerney - I'm kind of surprised I've never read this author because this one is all about sisters and family secrets and it sounds fantastic.

The Girl on the Cliff Lucinda Riley - I've only read the Seven Sisters series by Riley but this one looks great.

Murder at an Irish Wedding Carlene O'Connor - I read the first book in the series and really enjoyed it so I need to continue the series.

Do you have any books set in Ireland on your TBR?