Thanksgiving Recovery

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I had a great day with family for a delicious dinner and then woke up early for a day of shopping on Black Friday.

Do you plan on taking advantage of any Cyber Monday sales? Any booklovers on your shopping list or looking for something new for yourself? Here are a few great series that would make great gifts for the readers on your list or a nice way to treat yourself.

*  Sue Grafton - Kinsey Malone series -Kinsey is an intelligent, independent PI in California. This is my all-time favorite mystery series, and I have been reading the series for years. If you haven't read any of the books in this excellent, well-written series, start at the beginning and work your way through the alphabet. My favorite is "C is for Corpse", but the lastest installment V is for Vengeance on my own Christmas list.

* If you are already a fan of Grafton and looking for something similar, you may want to try Sara Paretsky's VI Washawski series, Marcia Muller's Sharon McCone series, or Linda Barnes's Carlotta Carlyle series.

* If you prefer books featuring amateur sleuths, then here are few series you may enjoy:  M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin novels (although she does go into the PI business in the later installments), but the style is far from "hard-boiled". Former London PR expert Agatha moves to an English village and infuriates many of the local residents, but has a knack for solving murders. Mary Daheim's Alpine Series featuring Emma Lord series also has a main character that has left the big city for life in a small town. Emma has taken over a small newspaper in the small town of Alpine, Washington and gets personally involved investigating murders she's writing about. Emma's latest adventure, The Alpine Winter, comes out this month.       

* My favorite British mysteries include any of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot books, but also Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse, Emily Brightwell's Mrs. Jeffries Victorian mysteries, and  Deborah Crombie's Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James series. (Duncan and Gemma are Scotland Yard partners as well as life partners).

* Alexander McCall Smith has several series, but my favorite is the #1 Ladies Detective Agency Series featuring Botswana's Precious Ramotswe and her assistant Grace Makutsi. These aren't traditional mysteries, but are wonderful stories featuring a wise detective. Any of the books in this series would make a wonderful gift for any reader on your list.

Happy Shopping and Happy Reading!

Thanksgiving Treat for Margaret Maron fans

If you are a fan of Margaret Maron, then you will want to treat yourself to her newest novel.

Title:		Three-Day Town
Publisher:		Grand Central Publishing
Pub Date:		November 21, 2011
ISBN:		9780446555784

MY RATING:  4 1/2 stars.   My Review:

It’s 1942 in New England and everyone is having fun at a gathering of Stillwater College professors and students. A student who has been ridiculed by one of the art history professors impulsively steals a “vulgar” artifact from his desk.

Skip to present-day North Carolina and Dwight Bryant and Deborah Knott are leaving for their long over-due honeymoon. They are taking the train to New York City and will be staying in a condo that belongs to Dwight’s sister-in-law. Kate has asked Dwight and Deborah to deliver a small, but heavy package on behalf of an elderly friend, Jane Lattimore. This favor of delivering what turns out to be a small sculpture leads them to Jane’s grand-daughter NYPD Homicide Detective Sigrid Harid. Soon, the couple is dealing with Sigrid in a professional capacity when the sculpture is stolen and there is a murder in the condo building. Things really heat up when it’s discovered that the murder victim had a few secrets of his own. Deborah and Dwight want to help recover the stolen sculpture and help solve the murder, but will Detective Harid accept their help?  

“Three-Day Town” is a wonderful book for Margaret Maron fans. Newer fans of the author will be most familiar with the Judge Deborah Knott series. Deborah is such a likeable character and it’s even better now that she has married Sheriff Dwight Bryant. It’s been a year since the two were married, but Deborah is still in awe of the happiness she has found when she fell in love with her long-time friend Dwight. As Deborah puts it, “It was like taking a second look at a chunk of glass and discovering a diamond.” They are a loving couple and interesting investigative team.

If you are new to both series, enough background information is given to follow the storyline and enjoy the story. Deborah has a huge family, but the author provides a family tree diagram at the beginning to help sort out all her brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, and other relatives. Long-term fans of Ms. Maron will rejoice to see Sigrid Harid back in action. This is the first time since 1995 that Sigrid has been featured in a novel. Sigrid may be a little hard for readers who haven’t read the prior books in this particular series to connect with, but those familiar with the character will enjoy seeing her again.

The story alternates between Deborah and Sigrid’s point of view. There couldn’t be two main characters created by the same author that are so different. Both are intelligent, strong, and great investigators. However, Deborah is outgoing, friendly, and has a large circle of friends and relatives. On the other hand, Sigrid is reserved, introverted, and a loner with just a few close friends. It’s interesting to see the two characters interact when trying to solve the robbery and murder cases in this novel. Deborah uses humor to try to lighten some of the situations that occur, but Sigrid barely cracks a smile. While they don’t end up best friends, they do get along and each woman seems to gain respect for the other. While I miss seeing Deborah in the courtroom and in her Southern hometown, it is interesting to see her in a completely different setting. Sigrid’s chapters read like an excellent police procedural as she and her team of detectives work to get to the bottom of the unusual case.

This is an excellent novel for old fans of Maron and those that are new to the author. If you enjoy Deborah and Sigrid, then you will definitely want to check out earlier installments in both series.

I received this book from NetGalley through the courtesy of Grand Central Publishing in exchange for a fair review.

If you are a fan of Maron's Deborah Knott series and are looking for a little more Southern flavor, try these other great Southern authors:
* Anne George
* Toni L.P. Kelner
* Charlaine Harris

Giving Thanks

It's almost time for Thanksgiving already and it seems like the summer just ended. Like every year, this one has had ups and downs, but I have a lot to be thankful for. Great family, great friends, and great books! ;)

If you need something to kick-off your Thanksgiving, here are a few titles that will get you thinking about turkey and pumpkin pie (well, pie anyway).

• "Turkey Flambe" by Nancy Fairbanks -- Features Culinary Food writer Nancy Blue
• "Turkey Day Murder" by Leslie Meier -- Stars Part-time reporter and full-time mom Lucy Stone
• "Murder She Wrote-A Fatal Feast" by Donald Bain/Jessica Fletcher
• "Lemon Meringue Pie Murder" by Joanne Fluke - Hannah Swensen make delicious desserts for her cookie shop, juggle two great boyfriends, and investigates murders

This ought to get you hungry for Thanksgiving and give you great cozy mysteries to enjoy by the fire.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and safe travels for all those visting family and friends away from home.