mystery

‘Off the Record’ by Sara Goodman Confino is a clever and engaging novel

/ Pamela Kramer

One of the joys of reading is starting a book and being hooked from the first page, and with “Off the Record,” author Sara Goodman Confino accomplishes that and more. This enchanting story features Judy Greenberg, who in 1962 has graduated from college with a degree in journalism. Unlike her college peers, Judy is not interested in an MRS. Instead, she is determined to have a career as a journalist — and not one who writes about “women’s issues” like getting stains out of tablecloths or child rearing.

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“The Final Chapter”: Fog, Confusion, Obsession, Puzzles, and Some Murders

/ Pamela Kramer

Regarding author C.B. Everett’s sort-of mystery/suspense novel, “The Final Chapter”: Yes, there is an element of traditional mystery novelization and, as expected, a significant group of surprises in one of the two primary stories comprising this brilliant, puzzling, confusing, two-novels-in-one work of art. And if the preceding sentence already has you a bit confused, hold onto your seat because you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.

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‘You Can Tell Me’ by Melinda Leigh is a thrilling first in a new series

/ Pamela Kramer

Melinda Leigh’s newest mystery is the first novel in her new thriller series that is set in upstate New York, where many of her series are set. In “You Can Tell Me,” there are some characters from a past series, but if, like me, you haven’t read that series, don’t worry. You won’t feel lost at all. The main character, Olivia Cruz, is a true crime writer, and she’s about to be thrust into the middle of an all-too-true crime.

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The brilliant “Short Circuit” by Wolf Haas will get inside your head as if all your electrical brain waves have been severely damaged

/ Pamela Kramer

Regarding author Wolf Haas’s novel, “Short Circuit”: It’s genre-less. It boasts much suspense, but suspense is by no means its major element. It’s certainly not a murder mystery though there are a couple of murders that play a fairly important role in the plot. It definitely is not a comedy even though I smiled and laughed all the way through it. It would be selling the novel short and missing the whole point if we were to label it a character study even though its two protagonists are wonderful characters. Can we label it anything, then? Yes. It’s a puzzle. And “puzzle” is not a genre. But reading the entire novel will, I suspect, leave you puzzled; and that puzzlement, I am quite sure, was the author’s intent.

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“The Right to Remain”; James Gripando’s 20th Jack Swyteck Novel

/ Pamela Kramer

“The Right to Remain” is author James Grippando”s twentieth Jack Swyteck novel and my first experience with the author and his protagonist, criminal defense attorney Jack Swyteck. And the very good news is that Grippando makes the reader so aware of all of the characters’ strengths, flaws, beliefs, and concerns that we get to know them well during the course of the novel and don’t for a moment miss the backgrounds provided in the first nineteen. As a stand-alone legal/suspense piece of work, it’s a riveting page-turner from beginning to end.

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‘No One Knew’ is the second in the ‘Noelle Marshall’ series by Kendra Ellliot

/ Pamela Kramer

“No One Knew” is a thriller that grabs you from the first page, wherein a lonely teenager finds a dead body. Author Kendra Elliot knows the central Oregon setting well, and through her capable descriptions, we feel the bitter cold of winter as main character Noelle Marshall, along with her coworkers and FBI boyfriend, try to figure out who is behind the murder of that man and two other dead bodies that appear in succession and why the FBI is getting whispers about something big being planned by domestic terrorists.

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‘Agnes Sharp and the Wedding to Die For’ by Leonie Swann is the last novel in this senior murder mystery trilogy

/ Pamela Kramer

When one gets to a “certain age,” it’s a kick to read novels, especially murder mysteries, in which the main character is also a person of a “certain age.” And in Leonie Swann’s very clever “Miss Sharp Investigates” series, Agnes Sharp and her fellow pensioners, who all live together in Sunset Hall, her large home, prove that age is no deterrent to fighting crime.

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‘Cat on a Hot Tin Woof’ by Spencer Quinn is the latest in the fabulous ‘Chet and Bernie Mystery’ series

/ Pamela Kramer

How can you not love a book narrated by a dog who understands a lot of what’s going on, but also — in true, believable doggy style — misses so much? Spencer Quinn has an almost supernatural ability to write like a dog. Or at least what we think our dogs really might be thinking as they go through life with us. And in his (and Chet and Bernie’s) latest story, “Cat on a Hot Tin Woof,” there’s finally a cat! Actually, as Chet might put it, “There might be two cats, but I can’t count past two.”

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‘The Hired Man’ by Sandra Dallas; historical fiction about the dust bowl and tragedy

/ Pamela Kramer

Well-written, gripping historical fiction like “The Hired Man” takes us back to another place and time and allows us to experience that setting through the eyes, and usually meticulous research of the author. Sandra Dallas takes us back to Colorado in 1937, during the time of the Dust Bowl, when instead of rain falling from the sky, dirt blew in from neighboring states blanketing the ground and covering everything with layers of dirt and grit. Thanks to her careful, detailed descriptions we can almost feel the grit in our mouths and eyes as a storm blankets the town with dirt.

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‘Storm Warning’ by Alice Henderson is a magnificent combination of thrills and conservation

/ Pamela Kramer

Alice Henderson’s thrilling and fascinating series about Alex Carter, a wildlife biologist whose past adventures have taken her to study jaguars, wolverines, polar bears, and caribou, now takes her to Hawai’i. In “Storm Warning,” Alex has been asked to monitor a beach where hawksbill turtles are laying their eggs. The timing is perfect as she was just coming off of another job and had the time. Also, returning to the island where she lived with her parents for a while brings back fond memories.

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‘I Came Back for You’ by Kate White; a mother’s love and a serial killer

/ Pamela Kramer

Kate White’s newest thriller, “I Came Back for You,” is truly an edge-of-your-seat mystery because she keeps the lid on tight over the killing that is at the center of the story. Bree Winter lives in Uruguay with her partner Sebastian on a chacra, an idyllic farm, nestled near the ocean. But in spite of her happiness with Sebastian, she’s kept a part of her past life hidden. She’s never completely shared what happened when her daughter was murdered during her junior year of college. Now, information surfaces that perhaps the serial killer whom they thought had killed Melanie didn’t do it.

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