I’ve been writing lately about the reissuing of my 2nd Sydney Lockhart mystery, Murder at the Luther, set in the small Texas coastal town of Palacios. All my Sydney books are set in historic hotels. Some are exquisite, some glamorous, and some are reported to be haunted. The Luther Hotel in Palacios is best described as unpretentious and comfortably quaint.
If you are a fan of the BBC’s Sherlock series, you might have been upset and shocked when Dr. Watson’s wife, Mary Morstan-Watson, died after taking a bullet for Sherlock in the third episode of 2017, “The Six Thatchers.” Played by Abigail Abbington, this Mary was my all-time favorite portrayal of Dr. Watson’s wife. She had such an impact on the series that I couldn't imagine her absence.
Once again another year has ended, and we take a look back at a few of the many books reviewed in KRL in 2017. All but one of our main reviewers share in this post their top 5 favorite books they reviewed in 2017 (well some of them may fudge on that a bit).
Kate Caraway loves her life in Kenya. She’s working on a research project involving the diminishing number of elephants and making progress until she meets up with four poachers. Things go badly, enough so, she and her husband have to leave the country in a hurry. After years away from the US, where can she call home?
You’re suspected of murder. Your alibi might be just a figment of your imagination–or so say the authorities. Another investigator appears to be interfering with you trying to prove your innocence. Your love interest and her brother, her father and two archeologists all have motives, but Scotland Yard stays focused on you. You’ve been in a pickle before, but a certain beekeeper has always saved your skin. So when another murder is committed and you, again, are the prime suspect, well even Sherlock Holmes may not be able to rescue you.
In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes novel, The Sign of Four, Mary Morstan arrived on Holmes’s doorstep seeking help solving the mysterious disappearance of her father, Captain Arthur Morstan. Upon her entrance to 221B Baker Street, Watson described her as having a firm step and composed manner.
One of the strengths of the mystery genre is that it comes in all shapes and sizes, from romantic suspense to noir. In her Sydney Lockhart series of hotel mysteries, though, Kathleen Kaska has created something special with a mash-up of screwball comedy (think 1930s movies), and Texas noir. The fourth serving of this unusual blend is the best yet.
Whew! Bouchercon is over! I put out a call to all my mystery sources for December releases. Enough authors responded to fill Santa's sack with plenty of good books.
This week we have a review of Dan Andriacco's latest Enoch Hale mystery The Poisoned Penman, along with a really fun guest post from Dan about Sherlock Holmes, who makes an appearance in the book. His post is called The Iconic Sleuth. You can also find details on how to win a copy of The Poisoned Penman and a link to purchase the book (a portion of all sales from this link go to help support KRL).
When I first met Sebastian McCabe, Jeff Cody and Lynda Teal, (No Police Like Holmes) life was rocking along in the college town of Erin, Ohio. Getting to know these delightful characters, created by author Dan Andriacco, resulted in my putting this series on my “always-read” list. That was three books ago and I’m delighted to report that the murder-solving Sherlockian trio is back, this time in London. They are searching for the infamous Mr. James Phillimore who, as many of your Holmes fanatics know, went back into his house for an umbrella and disappeared.
