"Dandy Gilver and an Unsuitable Day for a Murder"

I picked up "Dandy Gilver and an Unsuitable Day for a Murder" by Catriona McPherson at my library on a whim.  I'd gone in to pick up some books I'd requested and right behind the hold shelf is a shelf containing large print books and this one was prominently displayed and was a murder mystery so I found myself checking it out, too.

I found it slow going to read and I'm not sure if that's because this is not the first book in the series and I was "lost" in terms of who the usual main characters are and how the relationships sort themselves out or if it really is a book I have difficulty getting into it.  I did finish it and will try what appears to be the first book in the series next to see if that one is an easier read for me.  Rarely do I have difficulty getting into a mystery, though, so I'm not hopeful.

Dandy Gilver was compared on the back cover to Harriet Vane, one of Dorothy Sayers' characters, but I didn't quite see the resemblance myself other than the fact that they're both English.  In this mystery, Dandy is hired to find young Mirrin Aitken granddaughter of the founders of the Aitkens' Emporium.  Mirrin has gone missing after her family has disapproved of her romance with Dugald Hepburn, grandson of the rival department store founders.  The families fear that they have eloped but when what appears to be a simple missing person case turns into a multiple murder mystery, Dandy and her assistant have their hands full ferreting out the truth.  pazt

"Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries"

"Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries" can evidently be viewed on Public Television but is a fairly new series and I'm not sure where I heard about it.  It is based on novels by Kerry Greenwood and stars Essie Davis as the Honorable Phryne Fisher.  It's set in 1920s Melbourne and the series begins with episodes that show us how Phryne became a lady detective.

She is a very glamorous thoroughly modern woman who also appears to be quite wealthy.  Starting in the beginning episode (13 total on 4 discs) Phryne begins to gather people around her who will become part of her investigative team in one way or another.  I love her character and I also really like having characters that move with her from episode to episode as everyone's story and characters are developed.  I would have to say she's probably my new favorite mystery show developed for PBS.  I wanted to see if there are more episodes coming and learned that Series 2 was due to finish filming in August of this year.  I haven't been able to locate this DVD series on Netflix or Amazon Prime  so I think it will be a while before I can move on to Series 2 but I'm hoping to check this video out again to watch with female family members who also like mysteries!  I think I'll also look for the books that they're based on.

Be patient if you can't get hold of a copy of this series right away, it's worth watiting for!  pazt 

"Wait for Me!"

Deborah Mitford, youngest sister of the famous Mitford sisters, and later the Duchess of Devonshire, has written her memoirs, "Wait for Me!"  This was a book my book club chose to read earlier this year and there was a lot of criticism of it.  I didn't get it finished before the book club met but was excited to complete it because we had returned from a visit to see our oldest daughter who lives in  England earlier this year and one of the places we visited was Chatsworth. 

Our interest in Chatsworth lied mostly in the fact that one of our favorite versions of "Pride and Prejudice" had been partially filmed there.  However, in touring the home, we found some interesting facts about the previous occupants which led to my interest in reading these memoirs.

Deborah Mitford married Andrew Cavendish, the second son of the Duke of Devonshire.  His older brother, Billy, married Kathleen Kennedy and, as a result, Deborah and Andrew met and developed life long friendships with the Kennedy family but in particular John and Bobby.  They were invited to (and attended) John Kennedy's inauguration as well as his funeral services.  I found it particularly interesting that they were probably the ones who introduced Jack to Harold Macmillan (known as "Uncle Harold" to Deborah and Andrew) and Kennedy relied heavily on advice from Macmillan in tense situations like the Cuban Crisis.  It made me wish that some of our younger politicians today would be wise enough to rely on advice from older, more experienced statesmen!

Billy was killed during the war and not long afterwards Kathleen died in a plane crash which meant that Andrew was unexpectedly thrust into the position to be the one to inherit the title of the Duke of Devonshire when his father died.  It would appear that it was not a bad thing for Chatsworth and the other family holdings.  Death taxes were enormous but Andrew and Deborah found a way to save much as well as preserve a view of the old ways of life for future generations to enjoy vicariously.

Deborah's sisters were all flamboyantly interesting and each one unique in her own way.  I'd say Deborah was the most "stable" of the bunch and she had many interesting friendships.  Although the book makes it sound like she's "name-dropping" all the time, this appears to have been her life and what an interesting one it has been.  The 93 year old widow's older brother, Tom, and five older sisters (Nancy, Pamela, Diana, Unity, and Jessica) are all deceased.  She herself has retired from her heavy involvement in the every day running of the Chatsworth estate leaving that to her son and his wife these days.  She also has two daughters.

Although I didn't find this the type of book I couldn't put down (so it took me a while to finish it), I did find it very, very interesting.  If you're interested in history from someone who lived it, this is a great read.  Deborah met and had tea with Hitler before the war because he was friends with her sister, Unity.  One of Andrew's uncles was married to Fred Astaire's sister (who had been his dancing partner before her marriage). She had dinner with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor on more than one occasion due to friendships with mutual friends and, although she couldn't see what the Duke saw in his wife, she said it was clear he loved her -- guess that was a love worth giving up a kingdom for!  These are just a few of the interesting people she knew and she was a world traveler, too.  She's packed a lot of living into her 93 years!  pazt

"Pie In The Sky" - Series 3

"Pie In The Sky" is one of my spouse and my favorite British Detective Series as you can probably tell from my previous blogs about Series 1 and 2.  We just completed watching Series 3  again starring Richard Griffiths (He played Harry Potter's uncle in the Harry Potter movies) who died earlier this year.  He's a great actor and will be missed!

Griffiths is Henry Crabbe who is a police detective on his way to retirement but his boss won't let him go.  He'd rather be full-time (vs. part-time) in the cafe, "Pie In The Sky," that he owns with his wife Margaret.
Margaret earns her living as an accountant and keeps the restaurant's books but her taste in food leaves something wanting.  In this series there are a couple of episodes where Henry and Margaret appear to be on rocky footing due to their differences about how to run the restaurant.  As always, Henry's need to be available for police work gets in the way of the cooking he'd rather be doing. 

I think one of the reasons my spouse and I like this series so well is because there are so few murders.  The mysteries Henry is called on to solve are of a different nature and his creativity in getting to the bottom of them is probably why his boss won't let him retire!  We can't wait for Series 4 to arrive - pazt.

"Night Road"

"Night Road" is a novel by Kristin Hannah and it has been a while since I've read one of her books.  I found this one on the library's "best picks" shelf and am glad I checked it out.  Hannah is a great writer who brings characters to life and I become totally engrossed in the world she creates.  Hannah has written a number of bestselling novels and you can visit her web site at www.kristinhannah.com.

"Night Road" is mostly the story of the Farraday family - Dr. Miles Farraday is a surgeon and his wife, Jude, is a stay at home mother to their twins - Mia and Zach.  Jude is the ultimate hovering "helicopter" mom who has a successful life planned for her children complete with where they'll attend college.  Although the twins are very close, Zach is the outgoing one while Mia is shy and lets her brother steal the limelight.  Jude is the perfect mom doing all the things she thinks perfect moms do -- chaperoning, baking, making a home that is welcoming to all their friends, the "hostess with the mostest!" 

The other side of Jude is the daughter who lost a father she loved dearly and, when her father died, she also lost her mother emotionally.  Her mother is a successful businesswoman and their regular meetings are controlled and stilted.

Into this perfect family comes a newcomer to town, Lexi Baill, who had a mother who was the opposite of Jude.  Her mother was in and out of trouble and prison and into drugs and alcohol so Lexi spent most of her life in and out of foster homes until it was discovered she had an aunt in the Pacific NW who was willing to take her in.  On her first day at her new school, Lexi does what she always does -- tries to not be noticed.  However, she does notice another girl eating lunch on her own outside and strikes up a conversation with this loner - Mia.  They become fast friends and Jude is so happy for the friendship Lexi has given Mia that she welcomes her into their family, too.  Lexi is loved and cared for by her aunt who doesn't have a lot of money and she is also loved and cared for by Jude and her family.  There are some differences -- Lexi has a job after school because her dream is to go to college and she needs to save money for tuition while Mia and Zach will have their education paid for by their parents.

As they mature, Zach and Lexi fall in love and at first it threatens the friendship Lexi has with Mia -- something she doesn't want to put at risk.  However, they're able to get past that and all three are enjoying their senior year and round of parties but everything changes one night and the Farradays and Lexi will never be the same again.

Their lives are filled with grief, fear, pain and it seems almost impossible that their love for one another will survive.  Hannah writes with such realism that it's hard not to have empathy for what this family is going through.  Will they be able to survive?  You'll have to read the story to discover that and I highly recommend that you do...pazt

"Little Shop of Homicide"

"Little Shop of Homicide" is the first book in Denise Swanson's new mystery series.  She is the author of the Scumble River Mysteries and has now added Devereaux Dime Store Mysteries.  The heroine of the new series is Devereaux Sinclair who has quit her high powered city job to purchase the old-fashioned five-and-dime in her small Missouri hometown.  She's ready for a change but she also wants to be near her Grandmother whose health seems to be failing.

In her new life (and in addition to running the five-and-dime) Devereaux creates gift baskets for special occasions and one of her recent creations was a gift basket put together for a murder victim.  Devereaux finds herself in the crosshairs of a big city cop out to prove she did it and not really open to looking at any evidence to the contrary.

Devereaux calls on her two longtime friends, Poppy and Boone, to help her clear her name and find the real killer.  There's also a new guy in town, Jake DelVecchio, who happens to be a U. S. Marshal.  Will he distract her from clearing her name because she finds him very attractive -- or will he be more of a help than a hindrance.  This is a fun new series and a quick read -- perfect for my summertime reading.  pazt 

"The Black Box"

"The Black Box" is the most recent, I believe, of a series of novels written by Michael Connelly featuring L. A. Detective Harry Bosch.  As far as I can remember, this is the first Bosch novel I've read but it definitely won't be the last.  I've already requested the first book in the series so I can start reading them in order.

In this latest book, Bosch is part of the Open-Unsolved Unit and the 20 year anniversary of the L. A. Riots is approaching.  At the time of the riots, the police were totally unprepared for what was to happen as well as slow to respond.  There were many unsolved deaths and Bosch was part of the Homicide Squad that responded to reports of these deaths and secured crime scenes.  However, due to the riots and the number of calls, the investigations were minimal to say the least.  One case particularly haunts Bosch -- that of a young woman, Anneke Jespersen, a journalist found by a California National Guard unit in a dark alley.  The fact that she'd been shot execution-style didn't seem to fit with the series of other killings during the riots.

With the riot anniversary approaching there is pressure to solve some of these unsolved crimes to put a better "face" on the L. A. police force.  Bosch gladly takes on the investigation into Jespersen's death.  Since she was Danish, there is a language barrier between him and her remaining family and the newspaper she worked for in Denmark but Bosch is persistant and the computer age offers him many new tools that were unavailable twenty years ago.  He's dogged in his pursuit of the truth but where it takes him and what he discovers reveals more crimes that have been covered up during the past twenty plus years and puts his life in danger as he comes up against some prominent and dangerous masterminds.  A great read!  pazt

"The Bean Trees"

A friend suggested many years ago that I might like reading Barbara Kingsolver but I just never seemed to get around to it until my book club chose "The Bean Trees" as our September read.  It was an easy read -- finished it in one day -- and I love Kingsolver's way with words and her ability to describe in such a way that you can see, hear, smell, and taste her scenes.  "The Bean Trees" was her first novel published in 1988 and a tenth anniversary edition was published in 1998.

The story follows a young woman, "Missy" Taylor Greer, from her high school days and early working days in Kentucky where she lived with her mother to a road trip that leads her to Tucson, AZ, and a new life. 
Taylor is a strong young woman with a supportive mother and she is one of the few young women in her high school who manages to finish school without getting pregnant and married.  When she decides it is time to take her life on the road, she purchases a run down car and starts her journey.  It's a journey that brings a child along the way and a host of new friends.  It's not an easy life but it's a life she chooses and she builds a family in Tucson with the people she meets and loves.

In addition to weaving a moving story, Kingsolver takes on issues of the time in which she was writing which still ring true today.  She talks about immigration issues and particularly sanctuary houses for individuals who might be killed if they're deported to their home country.  She talks about child abuse, neglect, poverty and much, much more but throughout the book there is a spirit of resiliance that shines through.  I look forward to reading another one of her books.  pazt

"The Ugly Truth"

"The Ugly Truth" stars Katherine Heigl as Abby, a morning show producer who has high expectations when it comes to choosing a male life partner.  Gerard Butler stars as Mike, an obnoxious TV star who is the antithesis of the kind of man Abby is looking for.  However, when he's brought in to boost the station's ratings, Abby and Mike are thrown together at work and sparks fly -- not always in a bad way.

This is a fun, romantic comedy but leaves something to be desired in my opinion.  I liked Katherine Heigl playing Stephanie Plum in Janet Evanovich's "One For The Money" and wish she'd do another Stephanie Plum film!  pazt