Monday, March 18, 2024
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Bittersweet in the Hollow by Kate Pearsall
SleuthSayers: Novel to Short Story to Novel (Again)
Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Charlie Muffin by Brian Freemantle
The first of
Brian Freemantle’s books about British intelligence agent Charlie Muffin was a
contemporary spy novel at the time it was published in 1977 but today it is
definitely a historical thriller. The Berlin Wall was still standing when the
book was written and that’s where it opens. Charlie and two of his younger,
greatly despised colleagues are planning to enter the border crossing to the
West after completing their assignment in Communist East Germany. Charlie’s
department considers him a relic of the past with no current useful purpose.
They have furtively arranged to have him arrested at the Wall, thereby ridding
themselves of an embarrassment to their agency. However, Charlie has not
survived twenty-five years of danger by accident. In fulfillment of the adage
“Old age and treachery will always beat youth and exuberance”, he recognizes
their skullduggery and smoothly circumvents it.
After that
bold attempt to erase him, Charlie has no illusions about the hostility of his
workplace but he continues to do his job, convinced he can’t afford to retire.
British Intelligence recently captured a major Russian player and, gloating
over their success, decided to go after another significant figure. Bringing in
General Valery Kalenin of the KGB would be an astonishing coup, one that would
restore the reputation of British Intelligence in the world, much needed after
the scandals of the Cambridge Five and Profumo. They need Charlie’s help to do
it, though.
An excellent
look back at Cold War spycraft in all its paranoid and cutthroat detail. A
reminder of the alliances and the hostilities that formed quickly and just as
quickly shifted into something else. The competitiveness of the various
intelligence agencies, even those theoretically on the same side, is
illustrated too with the CIA anxious to take some of the credit for the British
efforts.
Charlie
Muffin is an inspired creation, a working class donkey among the Oxbridge
racehorses around him, but still head and shoulders above them in the tricks of
their mutual trade. Charlie’s debut seems originally meant to be a stand-alone
as the plot threads are tied up at the end. But fifteen books follow this first
one with the last issued in 2013, so Freemantle found a way to untie them.
Readers of John LeCarre and spy thrillers will relish these stories, as will
anyone who enjoys robust senior protagonists who believe in getting even
instead of getting mad.
·
Publisher: Jonathan Cape; First
Edition (January 1, 1977)
·
Language: English
·
Hardcover: 192 pages
·
ISBN-10: 0224013122
·
ISBN-13: 978-0224013123
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4aiQQq5
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
Sunday, March 17, 2024
Little Big Crimes: What is Your... by Mat Coward
SleuthSayers: 51 and Counting
Saturday, March 16, 2024
SleuthSayers: Plotters and Pantsers
Scott's Take: Avengers Vol 1: The Impossible City by Jed Mackay
Avengers Vol 1: The Impossible City by Jed Mackay has the tough task of creating a new Avengers roster, setting up the rest of the series, and laying out the major threats that are coming to face them. This roster led by Captain Marvel includes Thor, Iron Man, Captain America (Sam Wilson), Vision, Black Panther, and the Scarlet Witch. They are teaming up with their longtime foe Kang the Conqueror to stop a new villain from obtaining the missing moment. A lost period of time that supposedly contains some sort of treasure.
While they work with Kang to try and
stop the theft of the missing moment, they must also face off against new foes.
The Ashen Combine, a group of multiversal city killers, descend upon the Earth.
It’s up to the Avengers to stop these mass murdering psychos before they kill thousands
of innocent people in simultaneous attacks all around the globe.
Featuring a roster of familiar heroes
and great art, this is a high stakes action story. Every character gets a good
moment to shine and help solidify why they are on the roster.
For this reader, not having Steve Rogers
on the roster is strange. But, it makes sense as is currently fighting fascists
alongside the X-Men in another book. The
dude can’t be everywhere at once.
A couple of characters get costume
changes partially through the bound series. Why that occurs is never explained
or referenced since the costume changes occurred in different reads. An example
of this problem is that here, after a couple of issues, Iron Man is suddenly wearing
a stealth suit as a member of the Avengers, though his reasons that are very
clearly explained in his own series, are not stated here.
Another example is how Sam and Black
Panther have a beef from a previous series, and do not like each other, but the
reasons are not explained again in this read.
The art is great and full of interesting
action pieces with new unique villains. Avengers Volume 2: Twilight Dreaming is expected to come out in July 2024.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3UOn1ce
My reading copy came by way of the
Hoopla App and The Dallas Public Library System.
Scott A. Tipple ©2024
Friday, March 15, 2024
In Reference To Murder: Mystery Melange - St. Patrick's Day Edition 3/15/2024
Beneath the Stains of Time: Murder in the Family (1936) by James Ronald
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Sleepytime by Joe Brumm
In Reference To Murder: Friday's "Forgotten" Books - Death of an Old Girl
Jerry's House of Everything: FORGOTTEN BOOK: CIRCLE OF DEATH
FFB Review: Blaze! Spanish Gold (Blaze! Western Series Book 18) by Ben Boulden
From the massive archive...
Unity, Utah, is
where Kate and J.D. Blaze were planning to celebrate their wedding anniversary.
The badlands that surround the town are home to numerous silver and gold mines.
Those mines are responsible for most of the males in the town of Unity. Some of
those miners and few others are in the saloon known as Petey’s Bucket of Blood
as is Kate Blaze. That is until a nearby gunshot draws her and numerous others
out to the dark streets like moths to a flame.
That pull leads
Katie Blaze and numerous members of the local populace to a nearby alley where
they find Sheriff Gentry holding a man at gunpoint. That man facing the deadly
blast from a shotgun should he do anything at all is her husband, J.D. Blaze.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Deputy Haskins is dead nearby and J.D. did kill him.
Why he did it is not clear and most folks don’t care and want Sheriff Gentry to
mete out justice with his shotgun. Fortunately for J. D. and his wife, Sheriff
Gentry is not ready to shoot J.D. unless he has no other choice.
Why J. D. Blaze
killed Deputy Haskins and what that had to do with the missing Spanish gold,
missing men, and an albino who seems to have nefarious purposes in mind, are
just some of the factors at work in Blaze! Spanish Gold. This is the eighteenth installment in the
adult western series started by author Stephen Mertz. Like others in the
series, including author Ben Boulden’s recent installment entry, Blaze!
Red Rock Rampage, this is a standalone entry chronicling the exploits
of the married gunfighter duo.
Those exploits
happen on the trail, in town, and are often violent in nature against those who
mean to do them harm. Those exploits are also detailed when they are in the
form of a passionate nature as a married couple. These books are billed “adult
westerns” and that means there is a high level of detail regarding intimate
moments that one rarely sees in a western.
Blaze! Spanish Gold is another solidly good western tale with a few good guys, plenty of black hats, and a lot more innocents that can’t escape the evil that has Utah, Unity in its grasp. The mystery and romantic elements add color to a fine western tale. A fast and fun read that is well worth your time.
Amazon Associate
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4ccoejP
Print copy supplied by the author late last November for my use to read and review with no expectation of a review.
Kevin R. Tipple
©2018, 2024
Thursday, March 14, 2024
Bitter Tea and Mystery: January and February Reading, 2024
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Read It Before You See It!
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: Michigan Man’s Tastes Get Him Into Trouble by Patti Abbott
This is not a review, but Patti's short story from 2013.
Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: Michigan Man’s Tastes Get Him Into Trouble by Patti Abbott.
Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: FISH AND FINANCE
Short Story Wednesday Review: Mystery Magazine: March 2024
Mystery Magazine: March 2024
opens with the cover story, “The Five Wives Book Club” by Victor Kreuiter.
Every place, no matter how small, has at least one book club. This is true of
the small midwestern farm town of Escher. When you are in a book club, you read
a lot, and get closer to the other members of the book club. That solidarity,
along with the knowledge, can lead you to places you might not visit alone.
“Someone Went And Killed Tickly Thomason” by Robert
Mangeot is next. Tickly was a legend in Nashville and beyond. Now he is dead.
Central Precinct Detective S.R. Jefferson is sure it was murder. S.R. knows
this his moment to claim fame and fortune and intends to do so by exposing the
truth and making the arrest.
As long as he keeps his anger under control and
makes his boss happy at the Super-Max Supercomputer, he takes another step
closer to getting out. That is easier said than done in “Solitary” by Leland
Neville. Good deal that they, like any other workplace, are family, according
to the boss. They even have a great softball team.
Next up is an espionage story that takes readers to
the nation of Turkey. Levon Grace is in Ankara to contact, and bring home,
Aisha Aydin. She was an informant from her job in the Turkish National Intelligence
Organization. She sent a message that she was burned and went dark. She is hiding,
somewhere in the city, and awaiting extraction. The question is where and how
to get her out in “Yellow Tulips” by Peter W. J. Hayes.
Sheryl and Myra cowrite a successful book series.
But, there is friction between the partners in “Four To Go” by Richard
Ciciarelli. Sheryl Case, responsible for all the plotting in each book, now has
to come up with a new plot by the time Myra Borne, responsible for all the
writing, gets back from vacation with her latest boyfriend. She will be back in a week.
Matthew And Jeremy have an idea for a brilliant new
app. In fact, they are an hour away from launch as “The Cold Case Geniuses” by
David Krugler begins. Instead of working on last minute fixes, they are face to
face with an intruder, hiding behind a Richard Nixon mask, and waving a gun at
them. This is a burning hot problem that quickly escalates.
As it happens, her college roommate is a real life Princess.
Amber does not make a big deal about it and neither does anyone else in “The
Princess by Janice Law. She needs her prince and they may have found each
other. Or not.
Ayden was mugged on the way home from work. Muggings
are common. Though the identity of the guy that did it in this case is mind
boggling. Ayden is going to have a hard time getting anyone to take him seriously
in “No One Will Believe You” by Paul Ryan O’Connor.
Harry Johnson needs to focus on his paper. Instead,
he has to settle a dispute his younger sister, Meghan, and her two friends are
having in “The Wisdom Of Solomon” By Eric B. Ruark. This is the “You-Solve-It” tale
of the issue.
The solution to the tale last month by John Floyd
closes the issue. In a rare stroke of luck, the two-sentence solution of “A New
Leaf” explains what this reader had thought after reading the story last month.
As one expects with the publication, Mystery
Magazine: March 2024 is another solidly good issue. Violence is to the
minimum, foul language is not present, and the tales within encompass the wide
range mystery palate in every way possible. Unlike some publications, this publication
is again open pretty much to readers of all ages and persuasions. You are once
again guaranteed to find several enjoyable tales.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3IxZXay
For quite some time now I have been gifted a subscription by the publisher with no expectation at all of a review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
Beneath the Stains of Time: Locked and Loaded, Part 4: A Selection of Short Impossible Crime and Locked Room Mystery Stories
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Erin Go Bragh! Irish series
Review: Pierce by Patrick B. Simpson
Pierce by Patrick B.
Simpson opens with the discovery of a body. College professor Danielle Hutchins
was found face down in her classroom late one day. She was found by the janitor,
Truman Pierce, who had been out on a date with her the day before. The same
janitor who turned the body over as well as lifted evidence from the crime
scene. It is a small town and he neglects to tell Detective Longhorn and
Detective Johns any of what he did upon finding her.
The 28-year-old Pierce was supposed to
have a second date with Daniele that very evening. They were supposed to go out
for dinner. Now that will never happen.
Pierce doesn’t trust the cops for
reasons that are never fully articulated so he holds back possible relevant
information, does not even tell them he touched the body, and does not disclose
that he lifted possible evidence from the scene. He also decides to start
investigating on his own beginning with where Danielle worked part time.
The visit to Danielle’s second job, a
bar, brings unwanted attention in a variety of ways. It also starts him down
the road of being a murder suspect, a useful pawn for bad folks, and on the
trial of Danielle’s killer.
Pierce is an interesting story, that
could have used the assistance of a continuity editor. Among other things, the
community college setting comes across more through various descriptions as a
public school though community college university and college are all also referenced.
Pierce goes to fill a glass with water, does so, and the drinking object is
then subsequently described as a “cup” or a “water cup.” These and other inconsistencies
in continuity are distracting in the read.
It would also have helped the read if
the backstory of Pierce and why he acts more like a cop than a janitor as well
as why he had a negative attitude towards police was explained. Both aspects
were not dealt with much at all in the read. Those details may not be an issue for readers
not well familiar with crime and mystery fiction.
Overall, despite the aforementioned
negatives, Pierce by Patrick B. Simpson is an entertaining
mystery. Published by Apprentice House Press of Loyola University
Maryland, the book is the author’s first novel. For those well familiar
with crime fiction and mysteries, that fact shows throughout the read. The book
also shows a lot of promise as the author creates and entertaining and interesting
story.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3SJHqwC
My digital reading copy came from the
publisher, Apprentice House Press of Loyola University Maryland, through
NetGalley with no expectation of a review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024