Note: This review originally appeared in The Season E-Zine's September mystery section.
Scared Stiff by Annelise Ryan
Kensington, August 2010
Rating: 6 (Satisfactory) (The Season's rating scale runs from 1 to 10).
For fans of: J.A. Konrath and Kinky Friedman
When Shannon Tolliver sets up an elaborate display of Halloween decorations on her front lawn, she isn't expecting her bloody corpse to become part of the tableau. The police arrest Tolliver's estranged husband, Erik, for the crime, but Deputy Coroner Mattie Winston is positive he's innocent -- so positive, in fact, she bets oh-so-hunky Detective Steve Hurley she can prove it. Are Mattie's sleuthing skills up to the task?
Don't let the cozy-looking cover fool you -- this book is anything but. Putrefaction and maggots and feces, oh my! Scared Stiff is not a book for the squeamish; Annelise Ryan has packed her latest (the second in the series) to the gills with gory crime scenes, gooey autopsies, and leaking catheters.
Now, I have no problem with gore -- I'm well aware murder is neither cozy nor antiseptic. And there are plenty of authors out there who do gore well -- Tess Gerritsen, for example, often writes scenes that can turn even the most iron of stomachs. But Tess Gerritsen's gore serves a purpose. Almost to a detail, it's there because it's forwarding the plot in some way -- it's a clue, or it's helping to establish a setting or a mood. Not so with Ryan. Scared Stiff is full of indiscriminate gore, dropped seemingly at random and, as far as I can tell, for little reason other than shock value.
I'm not saying Scared Stiff isn't a decent book. Mattie makes an engaging protagonist -- a smart, funny, self-deprecating ice-cream-addict for whom readers will want to root -- and the supporting characters are likable, as well, from Mattie's neurotic and hopelessly old-fashioned mother to date-gone-wrong William-not-Bill. Her budding relationship with Detective Hurley is compelling series fodder (not to mention steamy enough to make the average reader's heart skip a beat or two), and the mystery is incredibly clever and well-constructed. Ryan's prose is even quite good when she allows herself a serious moment, but they're too few far and between. She writes some touching scenes -- Mattie and her husband David discussing the demise of their marriage, for example -- but the skill and poise with which she writes her characters' vulnerability is almost without fail undercut by "death goo," rancid cottage cheese, and near-constant references to her character's breasts.
Her humor starts out as irreverent -- something you'd see in a Janet Evanovich novel, maybe -- but irreverent quickly gives way to puerile and tacky. Add in a while host of farcical elements (the town's only cab service is staffed by senior citizens who can't drive after dark; an early car accident strands Mattie with a catheter-challenged, senile, dessert-obsessed sidekick/chauffeur, and then later, a used hearse for a car; and the town's only bars are named Nowhere, Somewhere, and Anywhere) and the end product feels like a good mystery novel hijacked and re-written by a twelve-year-old boy.
The book ends strongly, with tons of action and lots of romantic and dramatic tension, but for me, it was too little, too late.
REVIEW: Fundraising the Dead
Note: This review originally appeared in The Season E-Zine's October mystery section.
Fundraising the Dead by Sheila Connolly
Berkley Prime Crime, October 2010
Rating: 9 (Excellent) (The Season's rating scale runs from 1 to 10.)
For fans of: Julie Hyzy
Eleanor "Nell" Pratt has her hands full. The Pennsylvania Antiquarian Society is celebrating its 125th anniversary in grand style, and as Director of Development (aka chief fundraiser), it's Nell's job to make sure the event goes off without a hitch. It's hardly good timing, then when mere hours before the guests are scheduled to arrive, board member Marty Terwilliger bursts into Nell's office and drops a bombshell into her lap: a folder full of George Washington's correspondence has disappeared. Nell's positive the letters have been misfiled, but looks into the problem to appease Marty -- only to discover that no only are the letters nowhere to be found, but millions of dollars' worth of additional documents and artifacts have gone missing, as well. And then, to make matters worse, Alfred Findley -- the Society's archivist, and the only other staff member who knows the true extent of the thefts -- is found dead. The police are convinced the death was an accident, but Nell isn't so sure. Can Nell unmask the thief and catch Alfred's killer in time to save the reputation of her beloved society -- and to prevent herself from becoming the next victim?
Fundraising the Dead is the first in Sheila Connolly's new Museum Mystery series, and if the debut is any indication of what's to come, the cozy world is in for a treat. Simply put, this book is a fantastic read. The plot is intricate, the mystery is clever, and the clues are subtle and artfully deployed. Connolly's prose is skillful and sharp, and her character development is first-rate.
You wouldn't think a historical society fundraiser would make a terribly compelling protagonist, but Connolly has created a capable and charming heroine in Nell. Nell's in good company here, too; Fundraising the Dead is full of strong, smart female characters who think and do for themselves: tenacious board member Marty, rich and seductive Libby, cantankerous bulldog Doris -- the list goes on and on. And that's not to say that the men in this book aren't marvelous characters in their own right -- sexy Society president Charles Worthington begs comparison to Thomas Crown, and Agent James Morrison may be the best fictional FBI agent/potential love interest I've read since Victoria Laurie introduced Dutch Rivers.
The Society itself never quite come to live during the course of this tale; I found I never had a clear understanding of the Society's workings, nor was I ever able to form a picture in my head as to its appearance or layout. That's a minor quibble, though, and given Connolly's attention to detail, it's one that will likely be addressed as the series progresses.
Fundraising the Dead is a rarity in today's cozy scene: a smart book populated with intelligent people. It's a wonderful and welcome entrant to the genre, and I eagerly anticipate the release of future Museum Mysteries.
Fundraising the Dead by Sheila Connolly
Berkley Prime Crime, October 2010
Rating: 9 (Excellent) (The Season's rating scale runs from 1 to 10.)
For fans of: Julie Hyzy
Eleanor "Nell" Pratt has her hands full. The Pennsylvania Antiquarian Society is celebrating its 125th anniversary in grand style, and as Director of Development (aka chief fundraiser), it's Nell's job to make sure the event goes off without a hitch. It's hardly good timing, then when mere hours before the guests are scheduled to arrive, board member Marty Terwilliger bursts into Nell's office and drops a bombshell into her lap: a folder full of George Washington's correspondence has disappeared. Nell's positive the letters have been misfiled, but looks into the problem to appease Marty -- only to discover that no only are the letters nowhere to be found, but millions of dollars' worth of additional documents and artifacts have gone missing, as well. And then, to make matters worse, Alfred Findley -- the Society's archivist, and the only other staff member who knows the true extent of the thefts -- is found dead. The police are convinced the death was an accident, but Nell isn't so sure. Can Nell unmask the thief and catch Alfred's killer in time to save the reputation of her beloved society -- and to prevent herself from becoming the next victim?
Fundraising the Dead is the first in Sheila Connolly's new Museum Mystery series, and if the debut is any indication of what's to come, the cozy world is in for a treat. Simply put, this book is a fantastic read. The plot is intricate, the mystery is clever, and the clues are subtle and artfully deployed. Connolly's prose is skillful and sharp, and her character development is first-rate.
You wouldn't think a historical society fundraiser would make a terribly compelling protagonist, but Connolly has created a capable and charming heroine in Nell. Nell's in good company here, too; Fundraising the Dead is full of strong, smart female characters who think and do for themselves: tenacious board member Marty, rich and seductive Libby, cantankerous bulldog Doris -- the list goes on and on. And that's not to say that the men in this book aren't marvelous characters in their own right -- sexy Society president Charles Worthington begs comparison to Thomas Crown, and Agent James Morrison may be the best fictional FBI agent/potential love interest I've read since Victoria Laurie introduced Dutch Rivers.
The Society itself never quite come to live during the course of this tale; I found I never had a clear understanding of the Society's workings, nor was I ever able to form a picture in my head as to its appearance or layout. That's a minor quibble, though, and given Connolly's attention to detail, it's one that will likely be addressed as the series progresses.
Fundraising the Dead is a rarity in today's cozy scene: a smart book populated with intelligent people. It's a wonderful and welcome entrant to the genre, and I eagerly anticipate the release of future Museum Mysteries.
REVIEW: Dirty Rotten Tendrils
Note: This review originally appeared in The Season E-Zine's October mystery section.
Dirty Rotten Tendrils by Kate Collins
Obsidian Mass Market Paperback, October 2010
Rating: 8 (Very Good) (The Season's rating scale runs from 1 to 10.)
Florist and law-school-dropout Abby Knight loves her small town of New Chapel, Indiana; it's clean, it's quiet, and you can always find a place to park. But when hometown hero Cody Verse returns to town, fresh off his win on America's Next Hit Single and ready to do battle in court over the rights to the song that earned him his fame, the pace that Abby holds so dear is threatened. Soon, New Chapel is overrun with screaming fans and news vans. And then, just when it seems like the media circus couldn't get any bigger, Cody's hot-shot lawyer, Ken "the Lip" Lipinski, turns up dead. The police like the Lip's opposing counsel -- and Abby's old boss -- Dave Hammond for the crime, but Abby knows Dave isn't capable of murder. Can she and her "yummy-hot" boyfriend Marco catch the real killer and prove Dave's innocence in time to prevent him from doing time?
Dirty Rotten Tendrils is the eleventh in Kate Collins' Flower Shop Mystery series. I've only read one other of Collins' books (her debut, Mum's the Word), and I liked it well enough, but if Dirty Rotten Tendrils is any indication, Collins' storytelling ability has progressed along with her series. Collins paints vivid pictures with her prose, and her dialogue sparkles. Her characterization is strong, and major and minor characters alike are fully formed on the page. Abby's relationship with private-detective-by-day-bartender-by-night Marco is well-developed and realistic, and with Marco, Collins has devised the perfect vehicle to get Abby involved in her investigations.
Collins' book unfortunately lacks some of the intensity I look for in a mystery; yes, the D.A. is hell-bent on charging Dave with the Lip's murder, but at no point do you ever really doubt that Abby and Marco will exonerate him, and no one else is ever in any danger of being killed. That's a minor complaint, though, and the mystery in Dirty Rotten Tendrils is really quite clever -- complex, but not too, and it kept me guessing until the very end.
Also, while I appreciate that Collins take the time to flesh out her B-story, and I love that she ends Dirty Rotten Tendrils with a B-story-related sucker-punch of a cliffhanger, the book feels a bit long at 315 pages. I think she could have dropped a couple of the less integral events from her tale -- her assistant Lottie's makeover at the hands of her ditzy fashionista cousin Jillian, for example -- and it would have made for a tighter book. That being said, however, Dirty Rotten Tendrils has great narrative drive, and the book barrels right along despite its length.
All in all, Dirty Rotten Tendrils is a great read. Kate Collins successfully puts a young, hip spin on the traditional small-town mystery (her style is very evocative of Madeline Alt), and I fully intend to run right out and mine her back catalog while I await Abby's next adventure.
Dirty Rotten Tendrils by Kate Collins
Obsidian Mass Market Paperback, October 2010
Rating: 8 (Very Good) (The Season's rating scale runs from 1 to 10.)
Florist and law-school-dropout Abby Knight loves her small town of New Chapel, Indiana; it's clean, it's quiet, and you can always find a place to park. But when hometown hero Cody Verse returns to town, fresh off his win on America's Next Hit Single and ready to do battle in court over the rights to the song that earned him his fame, the pace that Abby holds so dear is threatened. Soon, New Chapel is overrun with screaming fans and news vans. And then, just when it seems like the media circus couldn't get any bigger, Cody's hot-shot lawyer, Ken "the Lip" Lipinski, turns up dead. The police like the Lip's opposing counsel -- and Abby's old boss -- Dave Hammond for the crime, but Abby knows Dave isn't capable of murder. Can she and her "yummy-hot" boyfriend Marco catch the real killer and prove Dave's innocence in time to prevent him from doing time?
Dirty Rotten Tendrils is the eleventh in Kate Collins' Flower Shop Mystery series. I've only read one other of Collins' books (her debut, Mum's the Word), and I liked it well enough, but if Dirty Rotten Tendrils is any indication, Collins' storytelling ability has progressed along with her series. Collins paints vivid pictures with her prose, and her dialogue sparkles. Her characterization is strong, and major and minor characters alike are fully formed on the page. Abby's relationship with private-detective-by-day-bartender-by-night Marco is well-developed and realistic, and with Marco, Collins has devised the perfect vehicle to get Abby involved in her investigations.
Collins' book unfortunately lacks some of the intensity I look for in a mystery; yes, the D.A. is hell-bent on charging Dave with the Lip's murder, but at no point do you ever really doubt that Abby and Marco will exonerate him, and no one else is ever in any danger of being killed. That's a minor complaint, though, and the mystery in Dirty Rotten Tendrils is really quite clever -- complex, but not too, and it kept me guessing until the very end.
Also, while I appreciate that Collins take the time to flesh out her B-story, and I love that she ends Dirty Rotten Tendrils with a B-story-related sucker-punch of a cliffhanger, the book feels a bit long at 315 pages. I think she could have dropped a couple of the less integral events from her tale -- her assistant Lottie's makeover at the hands of her ditzy fashionista cousin Jillian, for example -- and it would have made for a tighter book. That being said, however, Dirty Rotten Tendrils has great narrative drive, and the book barrels right along despite its length.
All in all, Dirty Rotten Tendrils is a great read. Kate Collins successfully puts a young, hip spin on the traditional small-town mystery (her style is very evocative of Madeline Alt), and I fully intend to run right out and mine her back catalog while I await Abby's next adventure.