MOONFLOWER MURDERS by Anthony Horowitz

 MOONFLOWER MURDERS

(Susan Ryeland #2)

by

Anthony Horowitz

    Moonflower Murders is the second installment in the Susan Ryeland series by Anthony Horowitz. Like its predecessor, Magpie Murders, this installment also involves a book within a book. And like its predecessor, it is a smash!

    Susan Ryeland had retired from publishing and moved to a Greek island with her boyfriend, Andreas. One day, the Trehearnes appeared. One of the Atticus Pund novels on which Susan had worked - Alan Conway's Atticus Pund Takes the Cake - portrayed a murder that had taken place at the hotel that the Trehearnes ran in England. Their daughter, Cecily, read Conway's book, concluded that the wrong person had been convicted and jailed for the crime, and then disappeared. Susan returns to England to assist in locating the missing Cecily.

    Moonflower Murders is delightful. It is well written and engaging; clever and convoluted. Susan Ryeland is not my favorite of Horowitz's characters; nonetheless, I soaked up every word. 

    Anthony Horowitz is clearly one of the best classic mystery writers of our time. I cannot wait to read more of his work.

    Highly recommended.

THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY by Matt Haig

 THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY

by

Matt Haig

    In The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig, we meet Nora Seed. Nora was going through a rough patch in her life. In fact, she hated her life and wanted to die. When she took steps toward that end, Nora ended up in the midnight library, a place "in between." The books in the midnight library are all the possible lives of Nora Seed, lives that might differ from Nora's "root life" because of decisions that she made. Nora is able to visit all these alternate lives; however, as the librarian explains, you cannot take out the same book twice.

    One of my favorite things while studying philosophy was thinking about other possible worlds, and this book kept taking me right back there. The Midnight Library is a treasure. I thoroughly enjoyed this creative, refreshing reading experience.

THE SEARCHER by Tana French

 THE SEARCHER

by

Tana French

    Tana French's latest novel is The Searcher. Like her last novel, The Witch Elm, and unlike her Dublin Murder Squad series, it is a standalone novel. And, it is another blockbuster. 

    In The Searcher, we meet Cal Hooper, a retired police officer from Chicago. As Cal wanted a change, he bought a place to fix up in a remote Irish village. Although he finds the beauty and relative simplicity he is seeking, an unsolved mystery nonetheless finds him.

    Tana French is a master of character development. Not only does she create and beautifully describe complex characters, but she demonstrates an understanding of the seamy underside of humanity. And, The Searcher further epitomizes French's ability. Although The Searcher is considered a mystery, it seems to me that the mystery that finds and occupies Cal is incidental to French's magnificent character study.

    The Searcher is a fabulous read, and I highly recommend it.

THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO by Chris Cander

 THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO

by

Chris Cander

       The Weight of A Piano is the story of a Bluthner piano, beginning in the Soviet Union and ending in California, and some of the people whose lives it touched. The book is well written. The characters are well developed, although I am not sure that any are particularly likable or that I felt connected to any of them. Except perhaps the piano. It does raise the interesting question whether the piano has its own separate existence, whether it is more than the sum of its parts. Nonetheless, it feels like the story has been done before; it reminds me a bit of Annie Proulx, Disappearing Earth, and The Red Violin. Although it is novel in its application to a piano, I am not sure that it adds anything to what has been done before.

HEAVEN, MY HOME by Attica Locke

HEAVEN, MY HOME

by

Attica Locke

    Heaven, My Home is Attica Locke's second Highway 59 novel. In this book, a nine year old boy from a small town along Highway 59 has gone missing. Darren Mathews, an African American Texas Ranger, is assigned to the search for the boy, who is the son of a white supremacist.

    As with the first Highway 59 novel, Bluebird, Bluebird, I feel conflicted about Heaven, My Home. I did not really care for either book, yet I am drawn to read them. I am taken by the mythos of the Texas Rangers. I love the idea of the main character, I love the locality of the books, and I love the rich history that Locke includes. 

    Nonetheless, I do not like how the character is drawn. I find it difficult to believe that someone who had been capable enough to complete a portion of law school and to become a Texas Ranger could be so stupid as Mathews appears to be in this book. I also am not fond of the writing style. In my opinion, Locke overuses simile, and the similes that she uses are often not apt.

    Overall, I was disappointed with Heaven, My Home. I think Darren Mathews and Highway 59, as glimpsed through Locke's eyes, has such rich potential. But, Heaven, My Home falls short of actualizing that potential.

TROUBLED BLOOD by Robert Galbraith

 TROUBLED BLOOD

by

Robert Galbraith

 

 Wow. 

    When I finish a book like Troubled Blood, I usually like to let it sit for a while - to let the experience steep, or percolate - before I begin to write my review. This is especially true with a book like Troubled Blood, as the Cormoran Strike series by J. K. Rowling (writing as Robert Galbraith) is one of my very favorite series of all time. As I love Cormoran Strike, it is important to me to do my very best so that one who might happen to stumble upon my review will learn the gospel about this great series.

    But, as I finished this wonderful new addition to the series, all I could think was Wow. So, I waited a day or two - waiting to wax eloquent (or, perhaps, wax poetic) - but I cannot seem to get beyond Wow. I could summarize the plot - or explain a little about the characters - or describe how I think Troubled Blood, the fifth installment in the Cormoran Strike series, is the best one yet. But, when I think about so doing, my inclination is that these would be better achieved were I to stand on a corner and hand out copies of the book (though I would recommend that a reader unfamiliar with the series read them in order).

    So, for now, my review is simple:

Wow. Just Wow.

THE NIGHT WATCHMAN by Louise Erdrich

 THE NIGHT WATCHMAN

by

Louise Erdrich

        The Night Watchman is Louise Erdrich's latest novel, based on the life of her grandfather, Patrick Gourneau. Like Erdrich's grandfather, the main character, Thomas Wazhashk, works as the night watchman at the jewel bearing plant near the Turtle Mountain Reservation where he lives. Like Gourneau, Wazhashk is a Chippewa council member. Between the two, like Gourneau, Wazhashk hardly sleeps. And, circumstances are not going to change anytime soon. There is a new bill before Congress to terminate the Native Americans, viz., inter alia, to abrogate treaties, to cut off all aid, and to take their land. The Turtle Mountain Reservation Chippewas were among those the bill included for immediate termination. We follow Thomas as he works to protect the Chippewa and to challenge the termination legislation.

        Along the way, we also meet an assortment of family, friends and acquaintances, neighbors, and ghosts in Thomas's life. We get to know Patrice, who supports her mother and younger brother by working at the jewel bearing plant. Her older sister, who allegedly moved to Minneapolis and had a baby, has disappeared. Patrice travels to Minnesota in an attempt to locate her sister and returns with the baby. We also meet Wood Mountain, a young Chippewa who is trying to become a boxer.

        In addition to the interesting characters, and typical of the other Erdrich books I have read, The Night Watchman is full of life. But, this book feels a bit different to me than my earlier Erdrich experiences, as if Erdrich has become more comfortable writing about the Chippewa. I am cognizant, however, that it is undoubtedly I who have become more comfortable reading about the Chippewa. Either way, it seems like a more mature, more settled reading experience.

        I have always enjoyed Erdrich's work - though perhaps "enjoy" is not the appropriate word, as the books I have read were dark (or included some darkness). The Night Watchman, like these earlier books, demonstrates Erdrich's superb writing and provides a powerful reading experience. I highly recommend it.