*Ritual Murder, by S.T. Haymon (DCI Ben Jurnet)

another oldie, but still a goodie. I've been collecting these books since I was 12, so I never know what I'm going to pull off of my shelves. Actually, I don't really even know what's on my shelves, so a lot of times, it's like Christmas.

Detective Inspector Ben Jurnet, in Norfolk, is sent to Angleby Cathedral to investigate some graffiti written on one of the Cathedral walls. At the cathedral, a well-known media-loving professor is leading an excavation of the tomb of Little St. Ulf, a child who was killed and horribly mutilated in the middle ages, at which time his death was blamed on the Jews of the town. After gathering evidence and information on potential suspects for the vandalization of the Cathedral walls, Jurnet is shortly called back to the Cathedral to investigate a murder. It seems that one of the choirboys was found at the archaeological site, and his body mutilated after the fashion of Little St. Jurnet, who is studying for his conversion to Judaism (for the sake of marriage), must get to the bottom of the crime quickly, but with so many suspects, it's not going to be easy. There are other problems as well, as anti-Semitism begins to rear its ugly head in Angleby.

There is an abundance of suspects, lots of red herrings, and the core mystery is really well written. I like Jurnet's character, but I think the author gets a bit carried away at times in sharing his inner demons with her readers -- here's yet another detective whose angst is a bit off-putting at times. However, Haymon's comments about the nature of modern crime and criminals are also pertinent to today, although this book was written over 20 years ago. It is a cross between a police procedural and a cozy, leaning more toward the procedural side of British mystery, so I'd recommend it to both cozy readers and to fans of British mystery in general.

Overall -- a good mystery with a main character somewhat overly weighted down by his own problems. I'll definitely be revisiting Inspector Jurnet in the future.

*Oxford Exit, by Veronica Stallwood (Kate Ivory)

Oxford Exit is the second in the series featuring novelist Kate Ivory.

This isn't your standard cut-and-dried whodunit, because here Stallwood uses two narratives to tell the story. There is Kate's story -- she's trying to write her newest novel with a lot of interruptions, and she's asked by her friend Andrew to take on the task of tracking down some suspected thefts from some newly-computerized Oxford libraries. While Andrew is telling her about some of the library's problems, his girlfriend Isabel tells Kate the story of one her friends, coincidentally a graduate student in library science, who was killed some time back. The two cases get Kate's detective juices flowing. At the same time, Stallwood introduces the readers to the somewhat rather warped jottings of a creative writing student that interweave throughout the novel and often parallel the action that's taking place in Kate's world and which could place unknowing Kate in a lot of danger.

The alternating narratives work here, and work well. Although the writing student's narrative warns the reader not to take everything at face value, you know that you're looking into a very sick mind. I enjoyed that aspect of the book, and I enjoyed the unmasking of the killer. Kate Ivory's side of things was good, but often just a little cutesy for my taste in mysteries. I think this book might be better suited for cozy mystery readers than for more serious readers (like me), but overall it was okay. I was actually wrong in my choice of murderer so that's always a positive thing. I'd recommend it primarily to cozy readers who want something more on the criminal side, because even though the criminal's viewpoint was well done, the rest was kind of so-so.

I do have more books on my shelves by this author, and will eventually read them all, but I've definitely read better.

*The Mysterious Commission, by Michael Innes (Charles Honeybath)

Here I am, up to the letter H in my quest to read novels about a smattering of detectives from the UK in a-z order. Actually, n-z is next month, so I guess a-m is more accurate. Anyway, I've had this book sitting here for a while and decided to give it a try. I was soooo happy with it!

Michael Innes is a prolific writer and his most prolific detective was John Appleby. His first book featuring Appleby was written in 1936; the first Charles Honeybath book (this one) was written in 1974. So not only does he have a prolific pen, but Innes has longevity in the field. It shows.

Renowned portrait painter Charles Honeybath receives a request from a man who wants him to paint someone about whom he will give no information. Calling him Mr. X, the man says only that the person in mind is a bit insane, and that Mr. X's famous family (how they are famous he won't say) would like to have their relative's portrait made. He tells Honeybath that he has exactly two weeks to paint the picture, and that it must be done at Mr. X's place of residence. Honeybath is somewhat intrigued, and then he is taken away in the dark of night to his new temporary lodgings, where for the next two weeks he remains under some rather bizarre conditions. When he is dismissed, he finds himself under suspicion from the police -- it seems that during his absence, the bank next door to Honeybath's studio had been robbed. Honeybath must not only clear his name, but he wants to get to retrieve the portrait he'd painted, which he considers one of his best works.

This book is quite good. The writing is excellent and the story is strange enough to hold the reader's attention throughout. I read it in one sitting -- it gripped me from the beginning and never let up. Honeybath is an interesting character, well executed and believable. The end is a little rushed but otherwise this was a really good read. Definitely recommendable to readers of British mystery.

*A Shilling for Candles, by Josephine Tey (Inspector Alan Grant, Scotland Yard)

Tey is a writer from mystery's Golden Age and in general, writes wonderful novels. Her novel, Brat Farrar, is one of my favorites, as is Daughter of Time, a classic in its own right. DOT is also an Alan Grant novel, while Farrar is a nonseries book. Both are simply outstanding. But while Shilling for Candles was entertaining, it's not up to the standards of either of the two books I just mentioned.

This is the second Alan Grant book I've read and I didn't read them in order, more's the pity for me.

An actress, Christine Clay, has taken a cottage near the ocean to hide out for a while. She is joined by a total stranger to her, Robert Tisdall, who was also looking to get away from life for a while. One morning, Christine turns up dead, drowned in the sea, and Inspector Alan Grant from the Yard is called in by the local constables. He has his eye on Tisdall for doing the crime for various reasons, but his case is solidified when Clay's will is read and Tisdall comes into an inheritance. Hmm. But Grant's got a niggling doubt -- and so sets out to investigate anyone who may have had it in for Christine...and finds that there are more than a few people who would have liked to have seen her dead.

The characters are entertaining but the book is just average. Perhaps this is because it's only the second book of the series. The mystery is good and solid, and there are a number of suspects and red herrings that are thrown out for the reader's consideration, but some of the plot lines seemed a bit confusing at times. The end, truthfully, I saw coming from a long way out so that was sort of off putting. However, many people really enjoyed this one, so it's one you'll have to try yourself. I'd recommend it to fans of Tey, or to fans of Golden-Age mystery, or to readers of British mystery in general.

Overall -- not bad; not one of my favorites by this author but still a fine read.

Oh frabjous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just found out that my review of The Shimmer by David Morrell won review of the week at book army and I'm getting "a pile of top titles" sent to my house within 30 days. Hooray! I knew this hobby of mine would come in handy some day! Go over and check out the site. It's awesome.

*A Death for Adonis, by E.X. Giroux (Robby Forsyth)

....an oldie, but a goodie.


I LOVE books about murders that occurred in the past, and I love mysteries set in British country houses. This book has both elements, and the combination of the two makes for one of the better books I've read this year.

Rarely do you come upon a mystery series first novel that is as good as this one. In many ways, this book was flawlessly executed and I read this in one sitting because it was good enough that I did not want to put it down.

The story hinges on a brutal murder that had occurred in 1944. Well-known artist Sebastian Calvert was found in his studio holding the dismembered corpse of the mode for his statue of Adonis, David Mersey. It snapped his brain and sent him into a mental hospital, although he was tried and convicted of the murder. Now, 25 years later, Calvert's daughter Elizabeth (who did not grow up with him, living with an uncle instead), comes to Robert (Robby) Forsythe, to persuade him to look into the case and see if there's any way possible Calvert wasn't guilty, because she doesn't want her father's shadow following her into a new relationship. Robby, who used to be an up-and-coming barrister in London until a scandal forced him into a life of seclusion, and his faithful friend and secretary Sandy dive into the case. They discover that perhaps there's more to the story than what's on the surface.

The writing is excellent; the story will keep you glued, and truly this was an incredible mystery. In parts it reminded me of the writing of Barbara Vine (whose works I admire), and I plan to continue the series. Robby's character isn't as well fleshed out as it could have been, but this is just a first novel, so I'll expect more as the series progresses. Highly recommended, especially to readers who enjoy a good, old-fashioned murder mystery in the British country house setting.

*Evans Above, by Rhys Bowen (Constable Evan Evans)

Evans Above is a cozy mystery, a genre I do not often read. I just can't deal with all of the "cute" characters and the cutesy tone...if there's going to be murder, then it should be somewhat serious. That's why this book was a bit different: at the heart of this book is a decent mystery story, with multiple suspects, red herrings, and a pretty good solution.

Evan Evans, often known as Evans-the-Law so as to distinguish him from Evans-the-Post or Evans-the-Meat (it's Wales...Evans is a popular name), is the policeman in the small village of Llanfair, in the Snowdonia area (known in Wales as Eryri). As the story begins, he's called upon by the owner of a chalet on the mountain to look into a missing mountain hiker, but by the time Evans gets around to getting up to the mountain to check it out, he's investigating the hiker's death. puts it off One evening he is called up to the mountain to investigate a hiker's death. He's immediately suspicious, but his superiors cannot help him out because they're all involved in a child molestation case.
When another man is killed, again on the mountain, Evans knows he must solve it on his own.

Very light in tone, it was a good read. I liked the main character. I'm really not very at home with cozy mysteries, although I read them from time to time, and this is one of the better series starters I've come across in that genre. Readers of cozy mysteries will like it; readers of more edgy & serious mystery readers will find it a little light. I'd recommend it to cozy readers or those who like their mystery on the lighter side.

and...I've seen this compared to the series featuring Hamish Macbeth by MC Beaton...not even close. I've read the series opener to that one and wasn't impressed. At all. And I'm still debating on whether or not to finish that series.