Mystery

Excerpt: EXTINCTION by Douglas Preston (Forge)

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PrestonD-ExtinctionUSHCIn a couple of weeks, Forge Books are due to publish Extinction, the latest thriller by best-selling author Douglas Preston. A thriller that is “in the Michael Crichton mode”, it “explores the possible and unintended dangers of the very real efforts to resurrect the woolly mammoth and other long-extinct animals.” To whet readers’ appetite for the book, we have an excerpt to share — comprised of the first two chapters! Before we get to that, though, here’s the synopsis:

Erebus Resort, occupying a magnificent, hundred-thousand acre valley deep in the Colorado Rockies, offers guests the experience of viewing woolly mammoths, Irish Elk, and giant ground sloths in their native habitat, brought back from extinction through the magic of genetic manipulation. When a billionaire’s son and his new wife are kidnapped and murdered in the Erebus back country by what is assumed to be a gang of eco-terrorists, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators.

As killings mount and the valley is evacuated, Cash and Colcord must confront an ancient, intelligent, and malevolent presence at Erebus, bent not on resurrection — but extinction.

Continue reading →

Quick Review: THE FURY by Alex Michaelides (Celadon)

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MichaelidesA-FuryUSHCA satisfying, twisty tale

This is a tale of murder.

Or maybe that’s not quite true. At its heart, it’s a love story, isn’t it?

Lana Farrar is a reclusive ex-movie star and one of the most famous women in the world. Every year, she invites her closest friends to escape the English weather and spend Easter on her idyllic private Greek island.

I tell you this because you may think you know this story. You probably read about it at the time ― it caused a real stir in the tabloids, if you remember. It had all the necessary ingredients for a press sensation: a celebrity; a private island cut off by the wind… and a murder.

We found ourselves trapped there overnight. Our old friendships concealed hatred and a desire for revenge. What followed was a game of cat and mouse ― a battle of wits, full of twists and turns, building to an unforgettable climax. The night ended in violence and death, as one of us was found murdered.

But who am I?

My name is Elliot Chase, and I’m going to tell you a story unlike any you’ve ever heard.

I hadn’t read either of Michaelides’s best-selling and acclaimed previous novels — The Silent Patient and The Maidens — but the premise for this third novel really caught my attention: a reclusive ex-movie star and a few of her famous friends take a spontaneous trip to a private Greek island, and it’s a trip that ends in murder. I dove in pretty much as soon as I received the review copy, and I very much enjoyed the ride. Continue reading →

Quick Review: THE LAST MURDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD by Stuart Turton (Raven)

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TurtonS-LastMurderAtTheEndOfTheWorldUKHCSolve the murder to save what’s left of the world.

Outside the island there is the world destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the island it is idyllic. 122 villagers and 3 scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they’re told by the scientists.

Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And they learn the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay.

If the murder isn’t solved within 92 hours, the fog will smother the island – and everyone on it.

But the security system has also wiped everyone’s memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer – and they don’t even know it…

Like many readers, I have very much enjoyed Turton’s twisty mysteries — The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Devil and the Dark Water. I was a little late to the author’s work, but when I received this for review, I didn’t wait. It’s another twisty and engaging novel, and I enjoyed it. Continue reading →

Upcoming: ASSASSINS ANONYMOUS by Rob Hart (G. P. Putnam’s Sons)

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HartR-AssassinsAnonymousUSHCThis summer, Rob Hart returns with Assassins Anonymous, a novel S. A. Cosby has described as “The best kind of thriller… Suspenseful, sentimental, and ultimately redemptive.” I haven’t had the chance to read any of Hart’s other novels, yet (despite thinking they all sound very interesting), but I think this one sounds especially interesting. It’s due out in June, to be published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons. Check out the synopsis:

In this clever, surprising, page-turner, the world’s most lethal assassin gives up the violent life only to find himself under siege by mysterious assailants. It’s a kill-or-be-killed situation, but the first option is off the table. What’s a reformed hit man to do?

Mark was the most dangerous killer-for-hire in the world. But after learning the hard way that his life’s work made him more monster than man, he left all of that behind, and joined a twelve-step group for reformed killers.

When Mark is viciously attacked by an unknown assailant, he is forced on the run. From New York to Singapore to London, he chases after clues while dodging attacks and trying to solve the puzzle of who’s after him. All without killing anyone. Or getting killed himself. For an assassin, Mark learns, nonviolence is a real hassle.

Rob Hart’s Assassins Anonymous is due to be published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons in North America on June 11th.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Instagram, Twitter

Very Quick Review: THE MYSTERIOUS CASE OF THE ALPERTON ANGELS by Janice Hallett (Atria/Viper)

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HallettJ-MysteriousCaseOfTheAlpertonAngelsUSHCJanice Hallett returns with another excellent epistolary mystery

A true crime journalist who revives a long-buried case about a cult — and finds herself too close to the story.

Everyone knows the story of the Alperton Angels: the cult who brainwashed a teenage girl into believing her baby was the anti-Christ. When the girl came to her senses and called the police, the Angels committed suicide and mother and baby disappeared.

Now, true crime author Amanda Bailey is looking to revive her career by writing a book on the case. The Alperton baby has turned eighteen; finding them will be the scoop of the year. But rival author Oliver Menzies is just as smart, better connected, and also on the baby’s trail.

As Amanda and Oliver are forced to collaborate, they realize that the truth about the Angels is much darker and stranger than they’d ever imagined, and in pursuit of the story they risk becoming part of it

I was a bit late to reading Janice Hallett’s mysteries. For some reason, The Appeal passed me by entirely, but I managed to read The Twyford Code shortly after it was published, which I very much enjoyed. I’ve always had a fondness for epistolary novels, and Hallett has a real gift for gradually building a mystery through distinctive and engaging voices. I very much enjoyed The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels. Continue reading →

Upcoming: GLASS HOUSES by Madeline Ashby (Tor)

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AshbyM-GlassHousesUSHCThe next novel from Madeline Ashby is Glass Houses. Pitched as a “near future whodunit for fans of Glass Onion and Black Mirror“, it certainly sounds intriguing. Due to be published in August, by Tor Books, I imagine there are a lot of people who will be interested in reading this. Here’s what it’s about:

Join a stranded start-up team led by a terrifyingly realistic charismatic billionaire, a deserted tropical island, and a mysterious AI-driven mansion — as the remaining members disappear one by one.

A group of employees and their CEO, celebrating the sale of their remarkable emotion-mapping-AI-algorithm, crash onto a not-quite-deserted tropical island.

Luckily, those who survived have found a beautiful, fully-stocked private palace, with all the latest technological updates (though one without connection to the outside world). The house, however, has more secrets than anyone might have guessed, and a much darker reason for having been built and left behind.

Kristen, the hyper-competent “chief emotional manager” (i.e., the eccentric boyish billionaire-CEO Sumter’s idea of an HR department) is trying to keep her colleagues stable throughout this new challenge, but staying sane seems to be as much of a challenge as staying alive. Being a woman in technology has always meant having to be smarter than anyone expects… and Kristen’s survival skills are more impressive than anyone knows.

Madeline Ashby’s Glass Houses is due to be published by Tor Books in North America and in the UK, on August 13th.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Instagram, Twitter

Excerpt: CALIFORNIA BEAR by Duane Swierczynski (Mulholland Books)

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SwierczynskiD-CaliforniaBearUSHCToday, Mulholland Books publishes the latest novel from Duane Swierczynski: California Bear — a “clever, moving, and surprising as it takes aim at the true crime industry, Hollywood, justice, and the killers inside us all.” I’ve been a fan of Swierczynski’s writing for some time, now (including his prose and comics work), so this has been on my most-anticipated list ever since I saw it in one of the publisher’s catalogues. To celebrate the release, we have an excerpt to share! First, though, here’s the synopsis:

Four unlikely vigilantes pit themselves against the villain behind California’s coldest case when they decide to take justice into their own hands.

NONE OF YOU ARE SAFE

“KILLER”: Jack Queen has been exonerated and freed from prison thanks to retired LAPD officer Cato Hightower. But when guilt gnaws at Jack, he admits: “I actually did it.” To which Hightower responds: “Yeah, no kidding.” You see, the ex-cop has a special job in mind for the ex-con…

THE GIRL DETECTIVE: Fifteen-year-old Matilda Finnerty has been handed a potential death sentence in the form of a leukemia diagnosis. But that’s not going to stop her from tackling the most important mystery of her life: Is her father guilty of murder?

GENE JEANIE: Jeanie Hightower mends family trees for a living, but the genealogist is unable to repair her own marriage. And her soon-to-be ex may have entangled her in a scheme that has drawn the bloody wrath of…

THE BEAR: A prolific serial killer who disappeared forty years ago, who is only now emerging from hibernation when the conditions are just right. And this time, the California Bear is not content to hunt in the shadows…

Continue reading →

Very Quick Review: JUDGMENT PREY by John Sandford (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)

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SandfordJ-P33-JudgementPreyUSHCLucas Davenport & Virgil Flowers team up to crack an unsolvable case…

Alex Sand was spending the evening at home playing basketball with his two young sons when all three were shot in cold blood. A wealthy federal judge, there’s no short list of people who could have a vendetta against Sands, but the gruesome murders, especially that of his children, turn their St. Paul community on its head. Sand was on the verge of a major donation to a local housing charity, Heart/Twin Cities, and with the money in limbo, eyes suddenly turn to his grieving widow, Margaret Cooper, to see what she might do with the money. Margaret, distraught over the death of her family, struggles to move forward, and can’t imagine how or why anyone would target her husband.

With public pressure mounting and both the local police force and FBI hitting dead end after dead end, Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers are called in to do what others could not: find answers. With each potential lead flawed, Davenport and Flowers are determined to chase every theory until they figure out who killed the Sands. But when they find themselves being stonewalled by the most unlikely of forces, the two wonder if perhaps each misdirection could lead them closer to the truth.

In Judgment Prey, the 33rd novel in John Sandford’s best-selling Prey series, star investigators Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers are convalescing back in Minnesota and Wisconsin, after being injured during their most recent case. A strange murder, however, has them brought in to. Sandford remains one of the most consistently good crime writers, and I thoroughly enjoyed this. Continue reading →

Quick Review: CALIFORNIA BEAR by Duane Swierczynski (Mulholland Books)

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SwierczynskiD-CaliforniaBearUSHCAn intriguing, quirky serial killer mystery

NONE OF YOU ARE SAFE

“KILLER”: Jack Queen has been exonerated and freed from prison thanks to retired LAPD officer Cato Hightower. But when guilt gnaws at Jack, he admits: “I actually did it.” To which Hightower responds: “Yeah, no kidding.” You see, the ex-cop has a special job in mind for the ex-con…

THE GIRL DETECTIVE: Fifteen-year-old Matilda Finnerty has been handed a potential death sentence in the form of a leukemia diagnosis. But that’s not going to stop her from tackling the most important mystery of her life: Is her father guilty of murder?

GENE JEANIE: Jeanie Hightower mends family trees for a living, but the genealogist is unable to repair her own marriage. And her soon-to-be ex may have entangled her in a scheme that has drawn the bloody wrath of…

THE BEAR: A prolific serial killer who disappeared forty years ago, who is only now emerging from hibernation when the conditions are just right. And this time, the California Bear is not content to hunt in the shadows…

I’ve been a fan of Swierczynski’s work for some time — I’m more familiar with his comics work than his prose, but I was nevertheless very much looking forward to reading California Bear. The publisher was kind enough to send me an early DRC of the novel, and it was my final read of 2023. It’s an intriguing serial killer mystery with a difference, and I very much enjoyed it. Continue reading →

Quick Review: THE SPY COAST by Tess Gerritsen (Thomas & Mercer/Bantam)

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GerritsenT-SpyCoastUSHCIntroducing Maggie Bird and the Martini Club…

A retired CIA operative in small-town Maine tackles the ghosts of her past…

Former spy Maggie Bird came to the seaside village of Purity, Maine, eager to put the past behind her after a mission went tragically wrong. These days, she’s living quietly on her chicken farm, still wary of blowback from the events that forced her early retirement.

But when a body turns up in Maggie’s driveway, she knows it’s a message from former foes who haven’t forgotten her. Maggie turns to her local circle of old friends — all retirees from the CIA — to help uncover the truth about who is trying to kill her, and why. This “Martini Club” of former spies may be retired, but they still have a few useful skills that they’re eager to use again, if only to spice up their rather sedate new lives.

Complicating their efforts is Purity’s acting police chief, Jo Thibodeau. More accustomed to dealing with rowdy tourists than homicide, Jo is puzzled by Maggie’s reluctance to share information — and by her odd circle of friends, who seem to be a step ahead of her at every turn.

As Jo’s investigation collides with the Martini Club’s maneuvers, Maggie’s hunt for answers will force her to revisit a clandestine career that spanned the globe, from Bangkok to Istanbul, from London to Malta. The ghosts of her past have returned, but with the help of her friends — and the reluctant Jo Thibodeau — Maggie might just be able to save the life she’s built.

This is the first novel in Tess Gerritsen’s new series, the Martini Club. It is also, somehow, the first of Gerritsen’s novels that I’ve ever read — not entirely sure how this happened, given that the Rizzoli & Isles series looks like it should definitely appeal. (I also enjoyed the first season of the TV adaptation). Anyway, I digress: The Spy Coast is a really good start to a series, which I really enjoyed, and it will definitely not be my last Gerritsen read. Continue reading →