murder mystery

What happened to Ruth Zardo?

A Good Reed Review Book Review , , , ,

By Ande Jacobson

The Nature of the Beast, the eleventh mystery novel in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (of the Sûreté du Québec) series, is more than a murder mystery. It’s also a work of historical fiction. While the current day murders are works of fiction, the core discovery driving them is a bit of real history that could have changed the world in a frightening way. Penny uses what could have been the most devastating technological development ever created by man to weave a fascinating tale of intrigue and personal growth. Continue reading →

What if they really are out to get you?

A Good Reed Review Book Review , , ,

By Ande Jacobson

Imagine being a teenager and getting your fortune read. Now imagine that fortune is dark, a portent of what you believe might be your demise. What would you do? Frances Adams faced just that situation in Kristen Perrin’s novel, How to Solve Your Own Murder, first released in March 2024. It became an instant best seller and has continued to delight readers worldwide. Frances and her friends Rose Forrester and Emily Sparrow visit a fortune teller at the Castle Knoll Country Fair in 1965, an event that shapes the rest of Frances’ life. The three were longtime childhood friends, and while they suffered some of the usual teenage competition for boys and attention, they were often inseparable. Of course there’s far more to their friendship than readers suspect, much of which becomes clear as the story progresses.

The fateful fortune in question reads as follows:

“Your future contains dry bones. Your slow demise begins right when you hold the queen in the palm of one hand. Beware the bird, for it will betray you. And from that, there’s no coming back. But daughters are the key to justice, find the right one and keep her close. All signs point toward your murder.”

Continue reading →

Artistic murder

A Good Reed Review Book Review , , , , ,

By Ande Jacobson

A Trick of the Light is the seventh full-length mystery in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (of the Sûreté du Québec) series, first released in 2011. This time, Clara Marrow has finally made it as an artist, as she has her solo show at the famed Musée d’Art Contemporain in Montreal. Unfortunately, her night of celebration ends with a tragic murder that isn’t discovered until the next morning. No, Clara isn’t the one murdered, but her one-time friend turned arch enemy is, and Three Pines is again on edge as there are too many suspects that Armand and his team must sort through to find the why and how and identify the real killer. Continue reading →

Why is the question

A Good Reed Review Book Review , , ,

By Ande Jacobson

The Brutal Telling is book five of Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (of the Sûreté du Quebec) series, first released in 2010. Inspector Gamache and his team are back in Three Pines investigating a strange murder. This time, a body is found on the floor of the bistro owned by Olivier Brulé and Gabri Dubeau, and nobody appears to know who the victim was. Through the investigation, Gamache finds numerous inconsistencies, uncovers some deep seated animosities, and finds a cabin in the woods with treasures beyond comprehension. The murder victim apparently lived in the cabin, and as the investigation proceeds, it seems that despite his protestations to the contrary, Olivier knew him. Continue reading →

Can somebody be literally scared to death?

A Good Reed Review Book Review , , , ,

By Ande Jacobson

The Cruelest Month is the third Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (of the Sûreté du Quebec) story by Canadian author Louise Penny. Penny has kept a pace of one or two Gamache mysteries a year since she started the series, and this one was first released in 2008. As usual, the murder requires some setup through the first quarter of the book, and when it comes it hits hard.

Easter is fast approaching, and Three Pines has a visitor – a psychic named Jeanne Chauvet with a surprising history. She’s staying at the B&B where all visitors tend to stay, and Gabri is beside himself with excitement. He convinces Jeanne to lead a séance at the B&B on Good Friday, an activity she ostensibly hadn’t planned on as she had other plans for her time in the village. Still, Gabri is her host at the B&B, so she eventually acquiesces and holds an informal ceremony that night after most of the villagers had spent the afternoon hiding wooden eggs for the upcoming Easter egg hunt. There’s a story behind the wooden eggs that’s nicely covered in the book. For now, suffice it to say that Three Pines has some interesting creative traditions. Continue reading →

It only takes a ‘Split Second’

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By Ande Jacobson

David Baldacci’s Split Second came out in 2003 and provides the origin story behind the Sean King/Michelle Maxwell partnership. King, a former Secret Service agent, and Maxwell, a current agent, become targets of a long-running conspiracy that bring them together after similar career mishaps. King had ended his career with the service in disgrace after his protectee was executed right in front of him during a split second’s distraction. Maxwell’s charge is abducted eight years later when she leaves him alone very briefly per his request. Both were rising stars in the service. Both had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and fell victim to horrific events that were far more complicated and violent than they realized at the time. Continue reading →

Breaking the code

A Good Reed Review Book Review , ,

By Ande Jacobson

I recently read and reviewed Kate Quinn’s The Rose Code for an upcoming book club Zoom, and at the same time, I was reading David Baldacci’s Simple Genius. I had started Baldacci’s book first, but as I decided to get a jump on my book club reading, I discovered an unexpected connection. Both books feature the mystique of codebreaking and of Bletchley Park, albeit at different times in history. As mentioned in my previous review, The Rose Code takes place at the time that Bletchley Park was active during WWII and its immediate aftermath and provides the reader with riveting historical fiction. Simple Genius doesn’t qualify as historical fiction and is instead a political thriller/murder mystery, the third in Baldacci’s King and Maxwell series. Continue reading →