Review of "The Kingdom: A Novel of Suspense" by Jo Nesbo

Norwegian author Jo Nesbo - who's probably best known for his Harry Hole crime novels - goes in a different direction with this book.

*****

Brothers Roy and Carl Opgard grew up in a Norwegian mountain town called Os. Big brother Roy was always very protective of his sibling. Thus, when little Carl cried, Roy comforted him.



When young Carl couldn't kill a mangled dog, Roy did it for him; And when teen heartthrob Carl was attacked by jealous boys, Roy beat them up.

Carl knows he only has to call, and Roy will rush to his side and do what has to be done. Carl relies on this, expecting to be rescued no matter what.



Roy and Carl were young teens when their mother and father were killed in a horrible road incident.



This causes reverberations down through the years, which are slowly revealed as the story unfolds.

After their parents died, Roy and Carl were looked after by an uncle, but mostly raised themselves. Then, when the boys became young adults, Carl went off to school in America and Roy remained in Os. Carl became a real estate tycoon/property developer.....



and Roy became a car mechanic/service station manager.



It's now fifteen years later, and Carl returns to Os with his beautiful bride Shannon, who's an architect.



Carl and Shannon plan to use the mountaintop Opgard property to build an upscale hotel, spa, ski resort complex.



Carl hopes to get most residents of Os to invest in the project, believing everyone will get rich, especially himself and Roy.

Not everyone in town has warm feelings towards the Opgards, however, and some people would be more than happy to derail the hotel project. In part, this is because Carl left broken hearts behind when he exited Os to go to America;



Roy's teenage beating victims are now men with a grudge;


Carl is reputed to have cheated partners in a previous real estate scheme;



the sheriff suspects the siblings of various kinds of wrongdoing; and more.



Moreover, Os is not an idealic Norwegian village. Dark undercurrents permeate the story, including child abuse; incest; unfaithfulness; adultery; blackmail; malfeasance; murder; arson; and more.

There's also some plain bad behavior. For instance, Roy is thought to have little interest in women, and his fifteen-year-old service station employee, Julie, seems bent on rectifying the situation. Julie's attempts to seduce Roy are both funny and disturbing.



It's mesmerizing to see the secrets of Os revealed, one by one, and to observe the dark depths of the human soul. There are truly horrific revelations in the book, which - if you're familiar with Nesbo's work - won't come as a surprise.

This is an excellent suspense story, highly recommended.

Rating: 4 stars

Review of "The Trouble With Charlie: Elle Harrison Mystery # 1" by Merry Jones

This first book in the 'Elle Harrison' series - set in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - is a fun cozy mystery with a touch of the paranormal.

*****

Even before her husband Charlie was killed, second-grade teacher Elle Harrison liked to read the obituaries every day - perhaps compelled by her secret wish that Charlie was dead.



Having learned that Charlie was a liar and adulterer who had stolen her sizable inheritance, Elle had given Charlie the boot, and their divorce was about to be finalized.

Elle had even joked about murdering Charlie with her three best friends: Susan, a defense attorney; Jenny, a wealthy housewife; and Becky, a kindergarten teacher.



Susan had advised an overdose of blood pressure medicine - so it looked like an accident; Jenny had suggested shooting - so it looked like an RGB (robbery gone bad); and Becky had advocated poison.....because that wasn't too violent. In the end, Charlie was stabbed in the back.

Elle discovered Charlie's body in her house, a few days after the jocular 'how to murder Charlie discussion.'

Elle had gone to a club, where she'd sipped a few drinks and flirted with an amateur magician named Joel, who'd given her a red rose. Upon arriving home, Elle smelled Charlie's 'Old Spice' cologne in the house and felt a light kiss on the back of her neck, but - turning around - didn't see anyone. Elle even heard Charlie murmur her nickname, 'Elf.'



Elle called out repeatedly and strode from room to room, convinced that Charlie was playing a bizarre joke....especially when the red rose moved from the kitchen counter to the kitchen floor to the bedroom. Frustrated, angry, and getting a headache, Elle went to the study to get a drink.....and found Charlie's dead, blood-soaked body on the couch, where - according to an autopsy - it had been for HOURS.



Of course Elle became a suspect for the murder since she was the victim's spouse, and Charlie was killed in HER house with HER kitchen knife. Unfortunately, Elle was hazy about her movements on the night of the murder, both because she'd been drinking AND because she had a habit of 'spacing out' when she was bored or stressed - a behavior her friends called 'pulling an Elle.'

So - for all she knew - Elle might actually have stabbed Charlie!

After Charlie dies, a number of odd events occur.

- Charlie's business partner, Derek, claims Charlie took something from the firm, and asks Elle if he can search her house. (She refuses.)
- Charlie's employee, Sherry, confronts Elle at the funeral and makes outlandish accusations. Sherry then proceeds to stalk and harass Elle.
- Elle finds evidence that Charlie and his friends were involved in an unsavory, illegal enterprise.

Elle's lawyer friend Susan represents her, and warns the schoolteacher to lay low, but Elle doesn't listen. In an attempt to solve the case herself, Elle bumbles around, finds more dead bodies, and almost becomes a victim herself.



Along the way Elle does some very foolish things, like destroying A LOT of evidence and neglecting to tell the cops about someone she spots near a crime scene. In fact Elle's behavior invites the observation 'there's a village somewhere missing its idiot.'

In any case, Elle's friends are supportive; Charlie's ghost (or Elle's subconscious) is accusatory; and there's plenty of action....and a lot of laughs.

In the end, the crimes are solved and all becomes clear, except whether or not Charlie's ghost is real or a product of Elle's imagination. I vote real. 🙂



This is an enjoyable start to the Elle Harrison series, recommended to fans of cozies. 

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "When Ghosts Come Home: A Novel" by Wiley Cash

It's 1984 and 63-year-old Winston Barnes is the sheriff of Oak Island, North Carolina, a narrow isle just off the mainland.

The region experienced violence and riots during school desegregation, and racial tensions still run high. Thus, when an unscheduled plane lands at Oak Island's tiny airport at 3:00 AM.....



....and Sheriff Barnes finds an empty aircraft with a dead black man nearby, it's a recipe for trouble.



Oak Island residents speculate that the aircraft was laden with drugs and the dead man was helping to bring them in. Sheriff Barnes isn't so sure. He knows the deceased man, a 26-year-old husband and father named Rodney Bellamy. Rodney is the son of Ed Bellamy, the only black high school teacher in the area, who - along with Winston - tried to keep peace during school integration.



When the sheriff interviews Rodney's wife Janelle, she says her husband went out the night before to buy diapers for their infant, and never returned.



The airplane incident adds an additional worry to Sheriff Barnes' already full load. Winston's wife Marie has cancer; his daughter Colleen is mourning the birth of a stillborn baby; and Barnes is in a contest for sheriff against Brad Frye - an arrogant racist with a rich daddy. Barnes' fears he'll lose the election, and with it the health benefits so vital to Marie.

When entitled candidate Frye hears about the mystery plane he rushes right over to offer his 'help.'



To further Winston's irritation, the chair of the county commission calls in the FBI - which insures Winston won't get credit for discoveries about the aircraft. And all this when the election is just a week away!



Sheriff Barnes' job is made even harder by a group of white supremacists......



.....who terrorize Janelle and her 14-year-old brother Jay. Jay's parents sent him to Oak Island because he got into trouble in his home town of Atlanta.



The white supremacist incident opens a rift in the sheriff's department, where a deputy and an office manager side with the racists.



For his part, the victim's father Ed is furious. He wants to help his daughter-in-law, and isn't about to take flak from white supremacists any more.



Ed tells the sheriff - in no uncertain terms - that he won't put up with harassment, and a showdown seems inevitable.

Two tangential story lines add interest to the story. In one, Janelle's brother Jay becomes friendly with a white teenager who's a bad influence.



In another, Winston's daughter Colleen - who lives in Texas with her husband - can't cope with her baby grief, drinks too much, and returns to Oak Island.



This is a character driven novel, with a wide array of protagonists. Unfortunately, some of the characters don't always use good judgement, and the story's ending is not totally satisfying (to me).

Nevertheless, this is a good book that would appeal to many readers.

Thanks to Netgalley, Wiley Cash, and William Morrow Publishers for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Blueberry Muffin Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery" by Joanne Fluke

 

In this 3rd book in the Hannah Swensen series, the baker/amateur sleuth investigates the murder of a cooking show host. The book can be read as a standalone.

*****

Hannah Swensen, who owns the 'Cookie Jar' bakery in Lake Eden, Minnesota.....



......has two beaus: dentist Norman and detective Mike.





Other regular characters in the books are Hannah's fashionista sister Andrea.....



and Hannah's mom Dorothy, who's constantly plotting to get Hannah married.



As the book opens Lake Eden is planning a winter carnival. TV star Connie MacIntyre (Connie Mac) - who hosts a cooking show, writes cookbooks, and own cookery shops - is in town for the festivities.



Connie Mac is haughty, conceited, and bossy. When her winter carnival cake suffers a mishap she commandeers the Cookie Jar to bake a replacement and is soon found dead on the premises - apparently clubbed with a baseball bat. There are plenty of possible suspects, including Connie Mac's husband, her harassed employees, and even Norman - who was asked to photograph her.

Though warned by detective Mike to stay away, Hannah jumps in to investigate the murder with the help of her sister. The lady sleuths question one person after another, hoping to establish alibis for the people they like. As usual in this series, the actual police investigation is a miniscule part of the story.

Some of the winter carnival activities like the family snowman contest.....



and the ice fishing contest add interest to the book.



So does Hannah baking and distributing cookies around town. The book includes several recipes for Hannah's cookies; the multiple choice cookie bars seem particularly intriguing.



Amidst her mother's maneuverings and her romantic forays with Mike and Norman, Hannah carries on and solves the crime. If you're a fan of cozies you'll probably enjoy this book.

Recipes in the book include:


Peanut Butter Melts


Blue Blueberry Muffins


Twin Chocolate Delights


Little Snowballs


Grilled Cream Cheese Sandwich


White Chocolate Supremes


Short Stack Cookies


Multiple Choice Cookie Bars

Rating: 3 stars