November's Books

 
Watching your once independent parents age isn't easy, and Roz Chast, cartoonist for the New Yorker, believed them when they denied having problems. Can't We Talk about Something More Pleasant? was their motto. But harsh discoveries were made and painful discussions were needed, even though her parents continued to head them off. A mix of brutally honest insight and humor, Chast takes the reader on her parents' final journey. Anyone with aging parents and a sense of humor will identify with Roz Chast.  
 
Georgiana Darcy's Diary by Anna Elliott
Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast
Novelist's Book Camp by Todd A. Stone
The Burnt Orange Sunrise by David Handler
The League of Frightened Men by Rex Stout
The Cold Blue Blood by David Handler
Clam Wake by Mary Daheim

October's Books

Graham Nash, member of the British invasion group the Hollies and later of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, survived the rock and roll life with his life and, surprisingly, his fortune, intact. Some of his bandmates, particularly David Crosby, weren’t so lucky. In Wild Tales: a rock and roll life, Nash chronicles his life and the music scene in Britain and the United States without omitting the unscrupulous managers and promoters, the self-destructive musicians, and the drug scene that was rampant. It’s not all gloom and doom; it’s an entertaining trip through the sixties and seventies. An added bonus are the music tracks embedded in the Kindle edition.

 
Phule's Company by Robert Asprin
Body in the gazebo by Katherine Hall Page
Somebody else's music by Jane Haddam
Unsinkable: a memoir by Debbie Reynolds
Wild tales: a rock and roll life by Graham Nash
The body in the boudoir by Katherine Hall Page
The old buzzard had it coming by Donis Casey
Deadly harvest by Michael Stanley
The weed that stings the hangman's bag by Alan Bradley
Hornswaggled by Donis Casey
The sky took him by Donis Casey
The drop edge of yonder by Donis Casey
A Demon Summer by G.M. Malliet
Wrong hill to die on by Donis Casey
The hot pink farmhouse by David Handler
Beside still waters by Debbie Viguie
For his name's sake by Debbie Viguie
Crying blood by Donis Casey
In the paths of righteousness by Debbie Viguie
I am half sick of shadows by Alan Bradley

September's Books

The farming community of Boynton, Oklahoma, in 1916 is like most of small town America, with parents wondering of their sons will be going off to fight in the War. In Hell with the Lid Blown Off,  Alafair and Shaw Tucker have ten children and have additional worries—two of their older daughters are about to deliver babies, and daughter Ruth is living in town with the piano teacher, Mrs. MacKenzie.

During a terrifying tornado, the Tucker homestead is damaged. Their son-in-law is seriously hurt, and some of their neighbors are killed, including local troublemaker Jubal Beldon. It’s when the undertaker is preparing Beldon’s body for burial that he discovers that Beldon was dead before the twister hit. Beldon had plenty of enemies, including his own brother. The question is: who didn’t want him dead?

It’s easy to get caught up on the lives of the Tucker family members—Ruth has a budding romance with the deputy sheriff, the Tucker’s take in a young cousin, and  they find a baby amidst the debris of the tornado. Seventh in the series, the appeal of a close knit and loving family draws the reader in. If you loved the “Little House” books as a child, you’ll find much to like in this appealing series.

The third secret by Steve Berry
Edge by Jeffrey Deaver
Deadly ruse by E. Michael Helms
Sweetness at the bottom of the pie by Alan Bradley
The Victoria vanishes by Christopher Fowler
Ten second staircase by Christopher Fowler
Hell with the lid blown off by Donis Casey
Clubbed to death by Elaine Viets
Bright silver star by David Handler
Wreck the halls by Sarah Graves

The Books of August

In Diane Mott Davidson's long running series, caterer Goldy Schultz fears that her friend Holly's death following a birthday party may have been caused by something she ate, a caterer's worst nightmare. But Holly, who like Goldy and their mutual friend Marla, was a member of a domestic violence support group, died from a medication overdose. Was it accidental, or was someone trying to silence Holly? Readers who enjoy culinary mysteries, like Joanne Fluke's, will find much to their taste in this series. Mouth watering recipes included.


The Library Policeman by Stephen King
Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King
Love Among the Chickens by P.G. Wodehouse
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse
First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde
Murder Unprompted by Simon Brett
Fatally Flaky by Diane Mott Davidson
The Whole Enchilada by Diane Mott Davidson
Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate by M.C. Beaton
Top Secret Twenty-one by Janet Evanovich

July's Books

  In Loren Estleman's Alive!, film historian Valentino is contacted by an old friend who asks for help, but before Valentino can track him down, the friend is killed. Hoping to score big, the friend got involved with some high profile movie memorabilia collectors and mobsters, and only a stack of books about Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff gives Valentino a clue. A great series for fans of classic movies. 


Question of Murder by Jessical Fletcher and Donald Bain
Alive! by Loren Estleman
Robert B. Parker's Cheapshot by Ace Atkins
Murder on the QE2 by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Murder of the Bride by C.S. Challinor
Queen's Jewels by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Murder on the Moor by by C. S. Challinor
You're Nobody Til Somebody Kills You by Robert Randisi
The Library Policeman by Stephen King
Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King
Love Among the Chickens by P.G. Wodehouse
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse
First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde

June's Books

June's Books

In Steeled for Murder, author KM Rockword tells the story of Jesse Damon spent twenty years in prison for murder—and he’s only thirty-six. He’s got a job in a plating factory and a shabby basement apartment, but he’s free and plans to stay that way. When a co-worker is killed, the police consider Jesse their prime suspect.

The author has an authentic feel for the blue collar characters and their dialog. Jesse may have the odds stacked against him, but he refuses to let the system get him down. This is the first book in a five book series.

 

Turtle Recall: the Discworld Companion...So Far by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Briggs
Steeled for Murder by KM Rockwood
Death of an Irish Diva by Mollie Cox Bryan
Buried Biker by KM Rockwood
Fostering Death by KM Rockwood
Eric by Terry Pratchett
The Cat Nappers by PG Wodehouse
Robert B. Parker's Bull River by Robert Knott
The Code of the Woosters by PG Wodehouse
Carry on, Jeeves by PG Wodehouse
Foul Play by Tori Carrington
Junkyard Dogs by Craig Johnson
Bunker Hill: a City, a Siege, a Revolution by Nathaniel Philbrick
Scalping the Red Rocks by Greg Lilly
Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich
Bryant and May on the Loose by Christopher Fowler
Poison Pen by Sheila Lowe
Brothers in Crime by KM Rockwood
Frames by Loren Estleman
The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can Eat  by Edward Kelsey Moore

May's Books

Jeeves and the Wedding Bells by Sebastian Faulks
Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett
Murder in the Ball Park by Robert Goldsborough
Cruel and Unusual by Patricia Cornwell

April's Books

In Kim Foster's "A Beautiful Heist," Cat Montgomery is a thief—a jewel thief who steals on assignment for an agency. Even though she loves her job, she’s conflicted because she believes she caused the death of her sister. When Cat is approached to steal a missing Faberge egg, she accepts the assignment.  more to return the egg to its rightful owners than for the money. I enjoyed this book because not only was Cat an interesting and highly skilled thief (and I love a good heist), but other major characters were also strong women. This has “Soon to made into a major motion picture” written all over it.

Sendoff for a Snitch by KM Rockwood
A Beautiful Heist by Kim Foster
Task Force Bride by Julie Miller
Pyramids by Terry Pratchett
Mrs. Queen Takes the Train by William Kuhn
The Woman who Died a Lot by Jasper Fforde
The Day the Music Died by Ed Gorman

Searching for the Queen

Mrs. Queen Takes the Train by William Kuhn

Queen Elizabeth II is feeling her age and remembers a time when the weight of the world wasn’t as burdensome—holidays on the former royal yacht, now moored in Edinburgh. By a chain of unlikely events, she finds herself on a train to Scotland to visit the yacht and her staff has discovered she’s missing. But Rajiv Laroia, an unpublished poet clerking  at the local cheese shop around the corner from Buckingham Palace recognizes her, and follows her on to the train.

When The Queen is discovered missing, members of the staff join forces to discover her whereabouts and return her to the palace. The Queen’s senior dresser, Shirley MacDonald, is nearing retirement with some trepidation, and wonders where she will live when pensioned off. William de Morgan, formerly Bill Morgan of a rough industrial city, loves everything royal, and takes his position as butler seriously. Lady Anne Bevil, a lady-in-waiting, widowed and estranged from her only child, is impoverished nobility, her share of the family fortune lost by her late husband. Major Luke Thomason, an equerry, is one of the younger members of the staff, and still new to his position. Stable worker Becky, who prefers animals to people, is the last person to have seen The Queen

.

A charming, funny story—a first novel from an author well-known for his nonfiction. If you enjoy fiction about royals, try “Di and I,” by Peter Lefcourt. Written before her death, the story tells how Di falls for an American tabloid reporter and escapes with the boys to California, where she begins a happy life as a McDonald’s franchisee. If only.