Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Mystery

An Editorial Review of “Double or Nothing” by Meg Mims

Murder, mystery, intrigue, and romance make “Double or Nothing” by Meg Mims a historical Western page turner. The plot twists, engaging characters, and keen writing will keep you in suspense to the very end.

The mystery is set during the rough and tumble California mining days of 1869. The author, Meg Mims, vividly brings these times to life with her accurate historical research and her clear and striking imagery of bustling towns, dangerous quicksilver mines, and rugged landscapes.

Lily, our protagonist, is a spirited and headstrong young woman who is recovering from her two-thousand mile cross-country journey by train (that was not anywhere as safe and luxurious as she had previously read about in newspapers).

She is still in mourning for her beloved father who died a few days before her twentieth birthday. Lily believes he was murdered in cold blood by one of his trusted business associates whom he was a partner with in a California quicksilver mine. Lily is determined to find the murderer and bring him to justice. She heads out immediately after the burial to Sacramento to her guardian uncle, her father’s brother, who also was a partner in the same mine with her father.

Upon her arrival, Lily’s Uncle Harrison immediately throws her (Lily will inherit her father’s fortune on her 21st birthday) into socializing, attending soirees and hosting his dinner parties. She quickly finds out he has a hidden agenda; he is intent on marrying her to a business associate in order to further his political ambitions before she comes of age and becomes independent of his guardianship. Harrison has forbidden her from seeing the one she truly desires, “Ace” Jesse Diamond. He is the ruggedly handsome gunslinger who saved her life more than once on her dangerous journey to Sacramento from her Evanston, Illinois home.

Lily is introduced to the man her uncle has planned for her to marry—Santiago—at a formal dinner soiree. Sparks and witty repartee fly when Ace enters the room and is seated next to them. He looks just as dashing in his cutaway coat and fancy white shirt as he did on horseback wearing his trail clothes. His good looks, southern drawl, and disarming smile reaffirm Lily’s feelings for him.

Ace, as it turns out, is Santiago’s business partner. Uncle Harrison then announces to the room of two hundred guests that Santiago and Lily are engaged to be married. Ace leaves the dinner party in a huff after spitting out a toast to “the couple.” And the story has just begun.

Headstrong Lily plans to use a visit to her friends in San Francisco as a way to escape the clutches of her uncle before he forces her into marrying Santiago. The rebellious Lily decides never to return to her uncle. She is also determined to find Ace so she can explain that she had no idea about the engagement and that she would never marry Santiago.

Lily’s disappearance sets off a chain of events. In way over her head, Lily’s strength is tested when she realizes just how deep the devious mine owners’ scams go and how connected they are to the politicians. She discovers just how low they will go to obtain and to keep their wealth and power when they frame Ace for a deadly explosion. And Lily is the only one who can prove his innocence.

“Double or Nothing” by Meg Mims was awarded the Laramie Awards for Western Fiction First Place for Mystery. An entertaining Western mystery read with just the right amount of romance. It is the second novel in the Lily Granville Western Mysteries series and we look forward to reading more about more of Lily’s adventures. Thank goodness that Meg Mims leaves her readers with the knowledge there is more to come!

June 19, 2014
An Editorial Review of “Fatal Induction” by Bernadette Pajer

Set against the backdrop of a national tragedy—the assassination of President McKinley—Fatal Induction by Bernadette Pajer follows Professor Benjamin Bradshaw as he scrambles to catch a killer. The year is 1901 and Seattle is a vibrant and up-and-coming city. Bradshaw, a professor of electrical engineering and a passionate inventor, has entered a new invention competition for a device that will carry the sounds of a musical theater production through telephone wires to listeners in the comfort of their own homes.

Bradshaw is unaware that a seemingly trivial domestic concern at home is about to sweep him into the underworld of Seattle. With the needling of his housekeeper, Mrs. Prouty, Bradshaw inspects a peddler’s cart that has been abandoned near his house. “Ralph’s Redeeming Restorative” is emblazoned across the side and upon further investigation, Bradshaw discovers a small and well-loved doll inside the cart that must surely belong to a young girl.

Bradshaw turns to good friend Detective James O’Brien for help in locating the girl and her father. He discovers the missing peddler’s body in his own neighborhood and quickly realizes that the only witness to his murder may be his missing daughter, Emily, which puts her in grave danger.

When Bradshaw finds that solving the murder of a roving peddler is not high on the police department agenda, he must rely on his own skills of deduction to locate Emily. Bradshaw finds himself delving into the seedy underbelly of Seattle, the wicked tenderloin district. Death threats are quick to follow and Bradshaw finds himself embroiled in something much larger and more far-reaching than he ever suspected. Bradshaw has something else to cope with as well—his growing affection for a young woman named Missouri, the niece of his best friend and a woman Bradshaw feels he can never be with.

Pajer’s vivid writing takes readers to this exciting time that is in the crossroads of scientific investigation and innovation, when automobiles and horse drawn carts compete for the same streets, and the United States reels with political unrest and social upheaval. Readers will warm to the curmudgeonly and reserved professor who has a heart of gold and a penchant for investigation. All four books in the series have earned the peer reviewed Washington Academy of Sciences Seal of Approval for scientific accuracy.

Like all important novels, this mystery has wider implications for the larger world than the story is set in. We posit that the Professor Bradshaw series is on its way to being considered a classic in the mystery genre.

“Fatal Induction” by Bernadette Pajer was awarded the Overall Grand Prize for Best Book in the Mystery and Mayhem Awards 2013, a division of Chanticleer Blue Ribbon Writing Competitions.

March 28, 2014
The Official List of The CLUE Awards 2013 Finalists
The CLUE Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Thriller, Suspense, and Mystery Fiction.

Finalists will compete for 1st Place Category positions. First Place Category winners will compete for The CLUE Awards Overall Best Book 2013.

The CLUE Awards 2013 for Thriller/Suspense/Mystery Fiction is a division of Chanticleer Blue Ribbon Awards Writing Competitions.

These Finalists have made it through the first 3 rounds of competition. The first sixty to ninety pages of these works have been read; they are presently making the next series of rounds. From here on out, each round is increasingly more competitive as the judges determine if the works will move forward to best of category.

We are honored to announce the Finalists of the CLUE Awards 2013.

CBR Official List of Titles & Authors Finalists for the CLUE Awards 2013 are:
- Small Town Storm by Elise K. Ackers
- An Accusing Finger by Richard E. Gower
- Death Over Easy by Toby Speed
- Forevermore by JimMusgrave
- Disappearance by Jim Musgrave
- Stray Cats by Geoffrey Mehl
- Guarding Shakespeare by Quintin Peterson
- Without Consent by Bev Irwin
- The Space Between by Sydney T. Blake
- Firetrap by Richard Mann
- Beyond the Bridge by Tom MacDonald
- Connections by Sandra Olson
- Deadly Recall by Donnell Ann Bell
- Parchman Preacher by Michael Hicks Thompson
- Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk by Stephen Kaminski
- Raggedy Man by Clyde Curley
- The Grave Blogger by Donna D. Fontenot
- Grind His Bones by Richard Newell Smith
- Buried Threads by Kaylin McFarren
- Poe, Nevermore by Rachel M.Martens
- The Last Dance by Lonna Enox
- Auditory Viewpoint by Lillian R. Melendez
- Eleven by Carolyn Arnold
- Trophies by J. Gunnar Grey
- Spiked by Sharron Gold
- Fyre & Ice by Barbie Ray
- Third Eye Witness by Kathy Bjorkman
- Too Many Violins by Mark Reutlinger
- The Politician’s Daughter by Marion Leigh
- Blue Coyote by Karen Musser Nortman
- Peete and Repeat by Karen Musser Nortman
- Blue Coyote Hotel by Dianne Harman
- Blue Coyote in Provence by Dianne Harman
Now this is something to CROW about!

Congratulations to the CLUE Awards 2013 Finalists!
- Good luck to all in the next competitive rounds for 1st Place Categories!
- 1st Place Category winners will be announced in approximately two months.
We are now accepting entries into the Clue Awards for 2014. Click here for more info.
March 3, 2014
An Editorial Review of “The Blue Virgin” by M. K. Graff

Being very fond of British murder mysteries, in print and movies, and on PBS Mystery Theatre (most relevantly, the Inspector Lewis series), I was immediately drawn to M. K. Graff’s The Blue Virgin. Thanks to her personal experience while studying literature at Oxford University, Graff is able to set her first published novel in the historical university town with great accuracy.

Graff’s considerable literary talent enables her to develop an intriguing cast of British characters—with one national exception: the feisty, attractive, and pregnant protagonist, Nora Tierney, an American writer. Having recently lost her fiancé in an accident, Nora’s spirits are raised by winning, as an essay contest prize, the opportunity to collaborate with British artist Simon Ramsey as an illustrator for her children’s book about fairies.

As the story begins, the murder victim is still very much alive: Bryn Wallace, a gorgeous former fashion model turned talented photographer, is enjoying a glass of Merlot in The Blue Virgin, Oxford’s favorite alternative-lifestyle spot. Her lover Valentine Rogan, a textile artist, joins her, and the two soon head to Bryn’s trendy flat. Despite the excellent gourmet dinner Bryn concocts, the two later argue about their plans to move in together, and a morose Val leaves. A bit later, Bryn interrupts her kitchen cleanup to answer a knock at the door. “What…?” she exclaims. “You’d better come in….”

Dawn is breaking when Detective Inspector Declan Barnes is called to Bryn’s flat and finds her lifeless body seemingly artfully arranged in the blood-spattered kitchen. After a bit of investigation, it isn’t long before he calls on Val Rogan as a suspect,

Later that morning, Val calls her American friend Nora, who is staying at Ramsey Lodge in Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria. Her host, illustrator, and admirer, Simon, insists on driving her to Oxford to stand by Val. Much to his dismay, Nora immediately turns sleuth, determined to clear her friend Val of murder charges.

The pace quickens as the plot thickens, when not just one but two more bodies are discovered! Nora is determined to continue sleuthing; Declan is equally adamant that she not intervene in his work, and Simon is plainly worried about Nora’s safety. The tension builds as the plot twists and turns on its way to a surprising ending.

You’re in for a pulse-raising solid read that will leave you eager to delve into Graff’s next Nora Tierney mystery—with hopefully more to come! Graff’s sophisticated writing interweaves eccentric characters, visually rich locales, epigraphs, and well-crafted dialog that together create a delightfully clever and intriguing mystery.

“The Blue Virgin” by M. K. Graff is a First Place Category winner for British Cozy Mysteries in the Mystery & Mayhem Awards for Cozy Mysteries 2013, a division of Chanticleer Writing Competitions.

January 28, 2014
An Editorial Review of “Tea Leafing” by Weezie Macdonald

In her debut novel, Tea Leafing, Weezie Macdonald demonstrates extraordinary skill in deftly weaving the multifaceted personalities and lives of a quartet of friends—exotic dancers (or strippers, as you will) at a high-end gentlemen’s club in Atlanta. It is an intriguing thriller of local graft, mafia-style murder, international drug rings, money laundering, and revenge.

Juxtaposed with the shadier side of Tea Leafing is the story of these women’s’ loyalty to each other, clever sleuthing, and determination not to let their co-worker and friend’s unjust and gruesome death go un-avenged.

Macdonald masterfully develops the rich and distinctly different characters of Sam, Grace, Mary Jane, and Birdie both on and off stage at the Pink Pussycat, yet enables them to mesh within the close bonds of their friendship, especially when they resolve to face the dangers of joining forces to solve Lena’s murder. Tears of loss and compassion flow as they mourn their friend’s death, though they purposefully maintain a discreet distance from Lena’s high-society Savannah family and friends—all except her younger sister Amanda, who provides a key clue.

Chunks of humor lighten the story—in the shenanigans and uninhibited dialog of the feisty-tongued, Irish-born, Manchester-raised Birdie, and vignettes of the club manager’s outlandishly dressed and coiffed mother, Pietra Maria Speranza DiFrancesco, who sails through the crowded club like a battleship, bellowing for her son Gio. Macdonald’s colorful descriptions enable us to smell the smoky air of the club, the whiskey, the perfume, even the sweat. We feel ourselves to be a part of the scene, and of the lives of those within it. Her multifaceted characterizations make us aware that people are not only, or perhaps not at all, what or who they appear to be.

The story accelerates at a heart-stopping pace, as the clues build and the quartet construct their plan of action. Additional colorfully drawn characters join the cast, and the scene explodes to cover the globe—the Caribbean, Russia, Switzerland, Japan, Singapore. The suspense builds as money launderers, the Russian mob, and the underworld of Atlanta come into play. The urge to turn the pages faster and faster fights the need to absorb the intricate detail of the story. Heed that warning, readers, or you’ll find yourselves back in Atlanta not quite sure what happened.

Tea Leafing by Weezie Macdonald is an entertaining and captivating mystery that will take you on a great ride on the wild side.

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][Editorial note: If you, like this reviewer, feel as though you’ve made some very good friends only to have to tell them goodbye, Weezie Macdonald is not going to let that happen. This quartet will entertain us again in the next book of Macdonald’s series. And, yes, you will discover what “tea leafing” is all about.]

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October 30, 2013
POE: Nevermore by Rachel M. Martens – Horror, Paranormal, Thriller, Mystery

Poe: Nevermore, by Rachel M. Martens, is a contemporary suspense thriller with a nod to paranormal elements of the Romanticism Movement. This dark and dense novel that borders on horror is told in the first person by a young woman, Elenora Allison Poe, known simply as ‘Poe.’

The story begins innocently enough; it seems that the characters and the plot are driven by mental illness (even Poe) until the impetus is revealed. That is the hook of Martens’ writing—just when you think you’ve got it figured out, the game changes. The plot twists and turns as it sinks its hook deeper into you. At first, as I read, I thought that this novel might be another variation of Fight Club or the Dragon Tattoo series. It is not.

For some, it may be too haunting a tale. The author skillfully builds tension and anticipation with complex characters that are not easily dismissed. The antagonists are evil incarnate. The scary part is that they could be someone you speak with every day, the next date that you are on, the person you work with….

The beginning of the story manifests Poe’s awkwardness of Poe in trying to make her way in the world alone, as many young adults do. The ordeals Poe has survived so far in her young life have reduced her to perilously low levels of self-worth and confidence. You think to yourself that Poe needs to get a grip on herself, to stop feeling sorry for herself. But soon enough the reasons for her self-defeatist attitude are divulged and you will wonder how she functions at all and why, … indeed, why she is still alive.

Poe learns that her family has been accursed since Edgar Allan Poe’s foster father had a witch invoke it. The curse destroys the victim psychologically and emotionally. It will destroy everything and everyone to torture its victim, to make the victim’s life a living hell.

Poe must unravel the details of the family curse in order to save the few loved ones she has left in this world. She pursues this with the help of a budding relationship with Frost, a homicide detective who sees something worth saving in her, and shares her interest in the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. Edgar Poe himself aids her pursuit, explaining the curse, and presenting himself as her spirit guide.

The 19th century Romantic Movement, a revolt against societal norms in art, was represented by deep emotional response to experience, including emphasis on terror, horror, and the supernatural. Edgar Allan Poe’s writings, known for their mystery, their macabre methods of death, and his delving into the human psyche, were part of this movement. The parallels between our heroine’s life and that of Edgar Allan Poe are brilliantly developed by the genre and style in which Poe: Nevermore has been written.

Be warned; Poe: Nevermore is not a cozy mystery. Ms. Martens succeeds at painting dark, suspenseful, sometimes horrific pictures. It is the type of psychological horror that locking the doors and windows and reading with the lights on will not keep out.

I highly recommend this book for my fellow edge-of-our-seat junkies—those of us who are constantly seeking the book we ever so briefly fear picking up, then can’t put down in the relentless pursuit of discovering whatever comes next! Martens’ Poe: Nevermore deliciously feeds these cravings along with satisfying those with classical literary interests. I anxiously look forward to reading Marten’s next installment of Poe.

August 28, 2013
An Editorial Review of “Her Boyfriend’s Bones” by Jeanne Matthews

Dinah Pelerin, cultural anthropologist and world traveler, is ready for romance and relaxation. Her Norwegian police force boyfriend, Thor, has invited her to join him at a Greek villa that he rented for his sabbatical holiday.

The villa is located on the island of Samos—famous for its sweet wine, birthplace of Pythagoras and Hera, queen of the Olympian gods. Dinah plans on joining an archaeological dig in Turkey at the end of summer after basking in the land of the Greek mythology. The perfect summer vacation awaits her. Or, so it seems.

Idyllic as the setting is, Dinah’s dream vacation is startlingly interrupted on day one of it. She and Thor spotted a body as they were walking home from the village taverna—the same man who they just saw arguing with an old man—is now sprawled on the ground with a gaping hole in his chest. The murder was so recent that the body is still warm. Dinah starts to believe that trouble follows her wherever she goes. Thor goes back into “policeman mode full-throttle.”

Dinah has also learned that their vacation villa was the home of the local movie star of the 60s, Marilita Stephan, who was accused of committing three murders on a remote beach on Samos: her boyfriend, his mother, and a powerful colonel in the military junta. Marilita was arrested and tried for the crime, and executed later by a firing squad in nineteen-seventy-three—several days before her fortieth birthday. Dinah is more than a little perturbed when she also discovers that Thor is fascinated by the circumstances of the event and that is why he chose this particular Greek island and this particular villa for their romantic holiday.

To add to the complications, Dinah’s troubled and out-of-hand sixteen-year-old niece, K.D., turns up on their vacation villa’s doorsteps. K.D. adds her own lively dimension into the storyline as only a sixteen- year-old teenager could. The rosiness of Dinah’s romantic getaway is turning as blue as the Aegean.

Enter the CIA and Interpol, false identification papers, the Norwegian Intelligence, terrorist guns, suspicious locals, and old grudges, secret letters, and “evil eyes” everywhere—all seemingly connecting back to Marilita Stephan.

Thor disappears, but his car is found plunged off a cliff. Contrary to what everyone tells her, Dinah believes that Thor is still alive and that she must find him before it is too late. Dinah doesn’t know who to believe or trust—especially the local police. The suspense rapidly intensifies as she starts piecing the clues together, which place Dinah and her niece in peril as they frantically search for Thor.

Ms. Matthews is adept at placing the reader into the hardships of the current Greek economic debt crisis as well as interjecting bits of history and mythology into her compelling story-line. By doing so, she captures the essence of the day-to-day life of modern Greeks who must eke out a living in exacerbating politico/economic circumstances as they live and work in the shadows of the temple ruins of the golden age of Greece.

Feel the Mediterranean heat, the treacherous traverses of the island’s landscape, the scent of the wild thyme, and the ever changing colors of the Aegean Sea as Ms. Matthews’ evocative descriptions take you to Samos. She places you at the local village taverna where you hear the buzz of gossip and feel the rumble of the “Tourkos” F16s as they roar overhead.The colorful characters and intriguing plot twists make Her Boyfriend’s Bones a gratifying and diverting page-turner.

Her Boyfriend’s Bones, is the fourth novel in the entertaining and marvelously researched Dinah Pelerin mystery series. Readers need not look any further to be transported to adventures faraway.

July 11, 2013
The Only Witness by Pamela Beason

Seventeen-year-old Brittany Morgan’s infant daughter was taken from her car—an apparent kidnapping. Brittany’s young mind is quaking in attacks of hope, fear, guilt and desperation. Why would anyone take little Ivy from her? Where can Ivy be by now? Is she being held for ransom? Is she still alive?

Detective Matt Finn hopes so. As a recent transplant from the mean streets of Chicago, where experience taught him to expect the worst, to the relative innocence of a small town in the Pacific Northwest, where everyone already has an Ivy-fate theory, he knows that this investigation is not going to go smoothly. His clue file is empty and the clock is his enemy. If only he could find a witness to the crime! Well, Dr. Grace McKenna over at the “Talking Hands Ranch” just left what she hopes was an anonymous tip that might be able to help the investigation. It seems that one of her charges witnessed the snatching of baby Ivy.

In The Only Witness author Pamela Beason employs knowing doses of drama, humor, adventure and romance to polish her clever premise into a sparkling jewel; a friendly persuasion of plot and character development that maintains a high level of reader interest and fascination.

Beason’s linguistic skills are evident in the often endearing scenes in which Dr. McKenna is patiently trying to coax some useful testimony from the agitated Neema who has a story to tell. Neema is the endearing gorilla that Dr. McKenna is teaching sign language to at Talking Hands Ranch. She is a dangerously strong and potentially aggressive “witness” with the IQ and attention span of a human five-year-old. Nevertheless, Neema knows how to negotiate for a banana and steal your heart while doing it.

Beason manages to plunge deeply into the hearts and minds of her main characters without creating any interruption of narrative flow. Brittany Morgan’s teen angst, Matt Finn’s dealing with his wife leaving him as he adjusts to being a cop in a rural town, Grace McKenna’s worries about the future of her underfunded project, Neema’s feverish need to communicate: all intriguingly support and contribute to the smart pace of Beason’s hip and socially relevant who-done-it. Indeed the author has a good time taking well-aimed shots at some of the peculiarities of our priority-challenged culture.

The Only Witness is a marvel of story-telling. Pamela Beason’s novel is one of those rare gems that is intelligent and informative but also embracing and charmingly accessible. The Only Witness is the Grand Prize Award winner of Chanticleer Book Reviews Blue Ribbon Novel Contest.

November 1, 2012
The Inn at Little Bend by Bobbi Groover

Hardship has followed Grayson Ridge, a motherless girl named for the orphanage that took her in, from the moment she fought for her first breath. At fifteen, fearing she’s killed the man who “adopted” her as slave labor, Grayson bolts into the wilderness, where she steals clothes and cuts her hair to become River, a homeless boy on the run. Rescued from vicious vagabonds by a kinder, gentler drifter, River attaches to taciturn Drake Somerset—temporarily, she thinks, but their history has only just begun.

What follows is a story of false identities, gender bending, and impassioned—if at times confused—love; Shakespeare’s As You Like It served up romance-style. Grayson’s many personae end up in classic predicaments, some truly horrifying and many nearly fatal, and she and Drake spend a good amount of time patching up each other’s wounds. That is, when they’re not challenging, exasperating, tormenting, and misinterpreting each other. The author has a fine ear for natural, quick-witted dialogue, and it’s one of the pleasures gleaned from reading this well-crafted tale.

Ms. Groover has structured her narrative against backdrops that move effortlessly from Virginia’s plantations to the West and back again, fashioning her framework with details that are as unobtrusive as they are knowledgeable. The love story is rather refreshingly old-school: this is no thin plot on which to hang a string of bedroom romps. Instead, it is the untangling of Grayson and Drake’s many masquerades and misunderstandings that intrigue the reader, although each character’s passions are given plenty of consideration—and yes, heat.

Despite the quintessential American settings and psyches, a whiff of “Jane Eyre” blows through: the orphanage and the search for home; the young and moral woman resurrecting the heart and soul of a man who has closed himself off in tormented guilt; the themes of forgiveness and conscience over passion. What is decidedly different: the raw, almost desperate feistiness of River, the abundant humor, and the wonderful secondary character of Aggie, whose unrequited love for Drake never stops her from being Grayson’s friend and mentor.

The Inn at Little Bend won first place in Chanticleer Book Reviews’ Published Novels Romance Western-Mystery category.

October 31, 2012
Murder One by Robert Dugoni

In Murder One, lawyer turned novelist, Robert Dugoni has conjured up an intense page-turner that deftly mixes drama, mystery and suspense that will keep you guessing until its final pages. Dugoni’s vivid characters in his novel are marvelously believable, as are the Seattle locales that are described. (more…)

May 31, 2012