Well-known crime fiction writer Ragnar Jonasson's new book, Reykjavík, was written with Katrin Jakobsdottir. I am completely fascinated by this duo of authors, not the least because Katrin is the Prime Minister of Iceland and has a master's degree in Icelandic literature, including a dissertation on the subject of the crime fiction of Arnaldur Indridason. I love Indridason's books and also love Jonasson's previous books, so how could I resist this one?
Reykjavík Has great pacing, plus a fascinating old case, believable characters, and the amazing cold and shivery setting of Iceland. It made me want to travel there immediately.
Iceland, 1956. Fourteen-year-old Lara spends the summer on the small island of Videy, just off the coast of Reykjavik.
In early August, the girl disappears without a trace.
The mystery becomes Iceland's greatest unsolved case. What happened to the young girl? Is she still alive? Did she leave the island, or did something happen to her there?
Thirty years later, journalist Valur Robertsson begins his own investigation into Lara's case. But as he draws closer to discovering the secret, it's soon clear that this is a mystery someone will stop at nothing to keep unsolved...
Spencer Quinn's Mrs. Plansky, a retired 70-something in a Florida retirement community, falls victim to a scam that cleans out her savings. She has no job, no husband (he's recently deceased), an elderly and difficult father, and several needy grown children with ridiculous schemes that would require big cash infusions from their mother.
She decides she can't take this blow lying down and rises to the occasion in the most charming and wildly believable way. (Hint: she travels to Romania to track down and confront the scammers.)
Since I enjoy Richard Osman's books about a foursome of senior sleuths and adore writing octogenarian Miss Gloria in my Key West mysteries, Mrs. Plansky struck me as the perfect spunky sleuth.
Mrs. Loretta Plansky, a recent widow in her seventies, is settling into retirement in Florida while dealing with her 98-year-old father and fielding requests for money from her beloved children and grandchildren. Thankfully, her new hip hasn't changed her killer tennis game one bit.
One night Mrs. Plansky is startled awake by a phone call from a voice claiming to be her grandson Will, who desperately needs ten thousand dollars to get out of a jam. Of course, Loretta obliges-after all, what are grandmothers for, even grandmothers who still haven't gotten a simple "thank you" for a gift sent weeks…
Barbara Ross writes one of my favorite mystery series, the Maine Clambake mysteries. The cast of characters feels so real, as does the scenery—a small coastal town in Maine.
A new installment in Barbara’s series feels like coming home to a favorite vacation destination with old friends. In this book, smart, loyal, hardworking Julia Snowden is asked to accompany her mother to an old friend’s memorial service on a nearby island, known as a summer refuge for old money families.
When the death begins to look more like murder than an unfortunate accident, the Snowden women can’t resist investigating. I particularly loved the mother-daughter dynamics in Hidden Beneath.
In Barbara Ross’ award-winning series featuring sleuth Julia Snowden and her family’s coastal Maine clambake business, two mysteries rock the colony of Chipmunk Island after a suspicious memorial service has Julia and her mother shifting into some family sleuthing.
Serving up mouthwatering shellfish, the Snowden Family Clambake has become a beloved institution in Busman’s Harbor, Maine. But when new clues rise to the surface five years after the disappearance of Julia Snowden’ s mother’s friend, the family business shifts to sleuthing . . .
Julia and her mother, Jacqueline, have come to the exclusive summer colony of Chipmunk Island to…
Food critic Hayley Snow and her pal Miss Gloria are overjoyed to welcome Violet and Bettina Booth, aka the Scottish Scone Sisters, to Key West. The sisters will hostThe UK Bakes! Key West Edition. But the same day they arrive, the bed and breakfast the sisters are staying in gets torched.
The contest begins the next morning featuring three local bakers. One is the inn owner’s wife, Rayna, who is not only the most talented chef of the group but now a person of interest in the fire.
The next night, a dogwalker discovers a body near the bed-and-breakfast. The victim appears to be Rayna’s husband, and the murder weapon points directly to the Scottish Scone Sisters.
