Alphabetical by Book Title
Dispersed
Bad Memory - Lisa Gray
#2 Jessica Shaw
2019, 311 pgs.
4/8/22
Audible. It took me awhile to get through this for some reason....it was somewhat interesting, but didn't grab me. There were two mysteries being investigated that really were part of the same mystery, unbeknownst to any of the main characters. That someone could be in jail for 30 or 40 years and be completely innocent distressed me. And that inky blackness dug away in the back of my mind throughout the story. 3.5
Dispersed
Crimson Lake - Candice Fox
#1 Crimson Lake
2017, 348 pgs.
6/8/22
Number one in a series of three so far. The unique setting of northeaster Queensland along the tropical, crocodile-infested border is actually one of the characters in the story! And what a story it is, I couldn't stop listening. Police officer Ted Concaffy is falsely accused of abducting and raping a 13-year-old, which has, of course, turned hi life more than pside down. He has escaped from Sydney to this tiny town of Crimson Lake and immediately becomes acquainted with the other Crimson Lake pariah, Amelia Farrow, who was charged with the murder of a young girl when she herself was only around 17. Skinny and totally covered with tattoos, Ted never knows what she is going to be muttering. She absolutely refuses to ride in a car, always riding on her yellow bicycle. Such anger at some of the horrible characters suffused me as I read! How Ted could keep his cool when horrible things that people with vendettas against him threw at him, I'll never know. Amanda and Ted spend about a third of the book searching for the killer of a local popular author. The intricate, excellent story intertwines three or four stories so brilliantly! Read by an Australian-accented narrator, I was right there with them. Fascinating. 5
Dispersed
Fallen - Linda Castillo
#13 Kate Burkholder
2021, 320 pgs.
9/11/2021
A 29-year-old previously Amish is murdered in a motel room in Painters Mill, beaten brutally with a bat. Kate discovers that not only does she know this woman, she had babysat forRachel Schwartz many years ago. Rachel had been a wild child, leaving the Amish life when she was 17. She was still friends with her best friend from childhood. Kate, with the help of Tomasetti, solves part of the mystery quite quickly, but then discovers that there's more...much more. This was an interesting story. I liked it better than some of the more recent titles in the series. 4
Dispersed
In the Clearing - Robert Dugoni
#3 Tracy Crosswhite
2016, 335 pgs.
10/12/21 read
Tracy investigtes two different murders, one a cold case from 1976 and the other of a wife and son both claiming to kill the father. Set in Seattle near the Yakima reservation. A niteresting plot that kept my attention most of the ride from Carlisle to Trenton and even back to Portland. 4
Dispersed
The Insider - Craig Schaefer
#2 Charlie McCabe
2020, 329 pgs.
3/3/22 read
Contemporary Boston. Interesting, complicated plot of a couple of different groups of very bad guys...and one buffoon assignment (??) Bad cops a a smooth, brilliant antagonist from Charlie's past. I'm sure there's going to be a number three....but when? 4...almost a 5 but a little too dragged out.
Dispersed
Red Hot Fix - T. E. Woods
#2 Justice series/Mort Grant/The Fixer
2014, 288 pgs.
10/24/21 read
T. E. Woods can certainly spin a good tale! Same two protagonists. Mort is dealing with two different murders that are related and Lydia is dealing with her own pedophile case. Hopping back-and-forth between the two keep it totally and completely interesting. A female serial killer, a supposed prostitute name Trixie, is killing johns. A national league basketball owner is murdered halfway through the book after we follow him in his pursuits with his team. Looks like the series will continue, and I'm on it! 4.5
Dispersed
The Short Drop - Matthew Fitzsimmons
#1 Gibson Vaughn
2015, 397 pgs.
8/16/20 read
Well, this was a great purchase. I'm not a huge fan of political thrillers, but I enjoyed eing inside the head of this extremely bright ex-marine hacker who is trying to figure out what happened to a very close friend who disappeared/was kidnapped ten years previously. Along the way he makes many discoveries about questionable details of his own past. Definitely not a dull story. I wasn't crazy about the narrator, he did something wierd with the end of his words that I didn't care for. 4.5
Dispersed
Tell Me - Anne Frasier
#2 Inland Empire
2021, 285 pgs.
4/14/22 read
Audible and Kindle. A good mystery told from both the inside and outside of the investigation, from bad guys and good guys point-ov-views. Nice twists that I didn't see coming. I really do enjoy Frasier's writing, characters, and plot twists. 4
Dispersed
Whispers from the Dead - Karen Ann Hopkins
#2 Amish Sheriff Serenity Adams
2015, 282 pgs.
7/6/22 read
Audible and Kindle. Serenity is asked to travel to another Amish/English community in northern Indiana to figure out why a series of barn burnings are taking place. I don't like the way the reader does Amish OR men's voices, she has a slowness to them that makes them sound like they've got some medical disabilities, lol. The story is okay. There are some questionable Amish cultural factors that don't quite meet what I've come to know about the Amish, but I realize there are many big AND small differences between communities. Also, some of the things that Serenity does seem pretty questionable to me. 3. Sequel on hand.
Dispersed
The Woman in Blue - Elly Griffiths
#8 Ruth Galloway
2016, 370 pgs.
7/23/22 read
Audible. This one was all about the Catholic Church and priests and religion, something that makes Ruth Galloway uncomfortable. Too many coincidences and reasong for thigs happening that are iffy to say the least. This was okay, but not one of my favorites. And this isn't so much Ruth's story as it is a compilation of everyone's. So many different characters to remember! 3.5
Dispersed
Secrets in the Grave - Karen Ann Hopkins
#3 Serenity's Plain Secrets
2015, 253 pgs.
7/22/22 read
Audible and Kindle. So many names, confused all the time because she keeps pulling back people from the first two novels -- which I don't remember. I still don't like her very much, Daniels is okay. Don't get their relationship at all. The mystery was so-so, I figured it out early. Okay for driving, though. 3
Dispersed
Hidden in Plain Sight - Karen Ann Hopkins
#4 Serenity's Plain Secrets
2016, 217 pgs.
August, 2022 read
Kindle. Another Serenity Adams, Amish community in Indiana, who takes off all sorts of time to take a supposedly {quick" trip - many times back-and-forth to Lancester County , Pa to help them solve a 15-year old cold case. I don't get the same feeling about the way the Amish are portrayed in this book as I have in many of the others, both Christian and non-Christian base that I've read. Don't think I'm going to read any more of them. 3
9/13/2022
No Mercy - Blake Pierce
#1 Valerie Law
58. on September 2022 list, but no summary? Perhaps in another dump?
62. Hatchet Island (#13 Mike Bowditch) - Paul Doiron, Audible (5) 9/22/22
64. The Midnight Man - Kindle (#1 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell 2021 (3.5) 10/4 GR
65. The Night Whispers (#2 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell - 2022 Audible&Kindle (3) 10/6 GR
dispersed
Desert Star - Michael Connelly
#5 Renee Ballard
2022, 400 pgs.
December, 2022 read
OMG, what has Michael Connelly done? He's killing off Harry Bosch? He's made him an old man with a terminal illness. Might this be happening to Michael Connelly himself? This was a very interesting story because of all-of-a-sudden Harry was depicted as being older...being called "old man" constantly. And I hated that. The storytelling was good, finding a cold case murder from many years previously, but it's left me with a totally unsettled feeling, because I don't know in what direction Harry Bosch will be going. Reading about him and watching him on Amazon Prime has sort of been a big part of my life in recent years, and always brings me closer to Steve. Connelly even brought Mickey Haller int the mix at the very end, almost like he was wrapping up loose ends. Is this the last Harry Bosch? How can I evev rate this one?
Dispersed
Exiles - Jane Harper
#3 Aaron Falk, Australia
2022, 356 pgs.
3/25/23 read
Grew on me more and more as the story progressed. At first it just seemed to jump all over the place (it actually did this throughout the story), but once I got used to it, it was easier to follow along a little more esasilty. A complicated story that kept you wondering all the time - which I like. Definitely a good mystery. Happily every after...no more Aaron Falk to come. Ever. 4
Dispersed
Beyond Reason - Molly Black
#1 Reese Link
2023, 201 pgs.
6/17/23 Read
Kindle. A brand new rookie police officer in a coastal Maine town gets assigned her first case - a homicide - and is paired up with a young but seasoned state police officer. Very unbelievable, as are all the stunts and judgment calls that she makes. Perhaps if she was more seasoned I would believe more, but I kept shaking my head. 3
Dispersed
Hallowed Ground - Linda Castillo
#14.5 Kate Burkholder Short story
6/23/23 Read
Human bones are found and then Burkholder and Tomasetti discover cemetery graves have been dug up. They solve it quite easily. 4
Dispersed
Close to Home - Robert Dugoni
#5 Tracy Crosswhite
2017, 362 pgs.
6/24/23 Read
Set in Seattle and across the ferry in Bremerton, this one follows Tracy and her fellow detectives on two interesting cases- one a hit and run, the other a drug overdose of one of Dell's nieces. Much of the story involves the Navy, including some of its personnel - lawyers - from the Navy base in Bremerton. There's a lot of back-and-forth on the ferry. Also, Tracy is constantly trying to get pregnant since she's at the end of the line for that possibility ... and the story ends with a possible HEA. 4
Dispersed
Dead Man's Wake - Paul Doiron
#14 Mike Bowditch
2023, 320 pgs.
7/31/23 finished
This one takes place completely on an island, Moose Island, on Belgrade Lake. Mice and Stacy are on one side of the lake at Mike's stepfather's summer place when they hear a crash from near the island across the lake. Since Charlie Stevens is also present at the engagement celebration, he is a participant in most of the story, as is his airplane. Good story, kept my attention, made sense, and was definitely full of MAINE! 4
Dispersed
AN Evil Heart - Linda Castillo
#15 Kate Burkholder
2023, 320 pgs.
8/27/23 Finished
Libby. Pretty gross murder of a young Amish guy with two close-up arrows, both through and through. Plus....Tomasetti and Burkholder get married at the very end of the book, in the last four minutes or so! 4
Dispersed
The Final Equinox - Andrew Mayne
#2 Theo Cray & Jessica Blackwood
2022, 336 pgs.
9/3/23 Finished
This was interesting but had far too much scientific jargon that totally made no sense to me at all. I ended up skimming about 1/3 or the book. I couldn't keep all of the characters straight - who could have been the bad guys, who could've been the good guys, who was on what side..... It will be interesting to see what other people have rated and reviewed about this book, perhaps it's a better actual READ than LISTEN? 3
Dispersed
9/19/23
Nearly Mine - Molly Black
#1 Grace Ford
2023, 170 pgs.
Kindle. I don't think I really liked the protagonist in this one. She was a little too cocky sure of herself all the time, just a little better than everybody else. The murders were a little far-fetched as well. If I'm able to get book 2 on the cheap I'll probably try it out. Will be easy to pass. 3
Disbursed
11/25/23
The Spy Coast - Tess Gerritsen
#1 The Martini Club
2023, 341 pgs.
Audible and Kindle. Ex CIA agent Maggie lives on a small farm on the coast of Maine near four of five other ex-CIA agents that she had worked with years before. She both quit the CIA and lost her beloved husband 16 years before. But somehow, the bad guys from her last case (you guessed it - 16 years before) found her. The story was fun to follow and try to figure out. Set in Maine and Bangkok with quick side trips to other glamorous places. Two time periods. 4
NOTE: Tess Gerritsen lives in Camden, ME
Disbursed
12/10/23
The Bones at Point No Point - D. D. Black
#1 Thomas Austin
2022, 264 pgs.
Audible. The serial killer in this book does some pretty horrible stuff - killing newborns and leaving their bones in a bag on the beach. This book introduces Thomas Austin, the NYC cop who caught the original baby killer and has now retired to the coast of Washington state to run a small hamburger joint in a small town near Seattle. When similar baby bones are discovered on the beach of his new community, Austin is asked by the police to consult. There are some interesting characters, and the story moves right along. Not bad, but not great. I will read more because I want to see how this character is going to develop. 3.5
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