Review of "Where Ravens Roost: A Kjeld Nygaard Thriller" by Karin Nordin

 

This review was first posted on Mystery and Suspense. Check it out for features, interviews, and reviews. https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/wh...


Detective Inspector Kjeld Nygaard left his home in rural Varsund, Sweden over a decade ago.



Kjeld's beloved mother was dead and his father Stenar - with whom Kjeld always had a fractious relationship - made it clear he never wanted to see Kjeld again.



So Kjeld moved 800 kilometers south to Gothenburg and climbed the career ladder to become a police investigator with the Violent Crimes Division of the Gothenburg City Police.



Now, twelve years later, Kjeld receives a disturbing voicemail from his father. The elder Nygaard says he went to feed his pet ravens in the barn and saw someone being murdered. As it happens Kjeld is on temporary suspension for irregularities in his last case, so he makes the 10-hour-drive back to Varsund. Upon arrival, Kjeld finds his sister Sara......



.......taking care of their father Stenar.



Sara insists that Stenar has Alzheimer's, gets confused, and didn't see any murder. This was confirmed by Police Inspector Gunnar Ek, who searched the barn and found nothing.



Kjeld went to police college with Gunnar, and considers him barely competent, So Kjeld searches the barn himself and finds a human tooth. Before long a body is discovered beneath the barn's dirt floor.

Once the body is exposed, Gunnar wants to question Stenar. So Kjeld calls a lawyer named Erik Norberg, whose phone number is in Stenar's old Rolodex.



As it happens Norberg is also the attorney for Roland Lindqvist, the CEO of Norrmalm Industries - a mining company that provides most of the jobs in Varsund. Roland is in the process of selling Norrmalm, and doesn't want anything to interfere with the deal.



Kjeld fears Gunnar might arrest his father for murder, so he decides to look for the killer himself. Kjeld is assisted by his police partner Esme Jansson, who drives up from Gothenburg to help.



As Kjeld investigates, he learns secrets that have been hidden for decades. Kjeld also discovers that Norrmalm may have been illegally mining on Stenar's land, which - if exposed - would create trouble for the company.



It seems that Kjeld's probe disturbs someone, because the detective is attacked by a knife-wielding assailant.



As Kjeld gets close to exposing the truth and uncovering the killer, the story threads come together in surprising ways.

The novel has an interesting array of characters, many of whom have their own concerns. For example, Kjeld has a short temper, chain smokes, and rarely gets to see his 7-year-old daughter Tove, who lives with Kjeld's ex-husband; Detective Sergeant Esme Jansson is frustrated by Kjeld taking off and leaving her to deal with the fallout from their last case; Kjeld's sister Sara is overwhelmed with the responsibilities of looking after her sick father as well as taking care of her own home, two children, and semi-employed husband; Police Inspector Gunnar Ek is worried about an event in his past; Attorney Erik Norberg knows things that weigh on his conscience; and CEO Roland Lindqvist's adult children are lazy spoiled spendthrifts.





This first book in the Kjeld Nygaard series is an excellent debut novel for Scandi-noir author Karin Nordin.

Thanks to Netgalley, Karin Nordin, and HQ Digital Publishers for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Bad Call: A Summer Job on a New York Ambulance" by Mike Scardino

Movies and television programs about emergency ambulance services are popular, as evidenced by the success of the film 'Mother, Jugs, and Speed', and TV shows like 'Emergency' and 'Ambulance.' People are inherently curious about accidents, calamities, and medical emergencies, and "Bad Call" - which details the experiences of a young ambulance worker - is a real-life peek behind the scenes.

In 1967, Mike Scardino was an 18-year-old high school graduate who needed tuition for Vanderbilt University. Mike's dad - who ran a gas station/garage that serviced many ambulances from St. John's Queens Hospital in New York - wangled Mike a job with the ambulance service. The position paid well, and the boy worked there during summers and school breaks until he graduated college and joined the National Guard.


Mike Scardino

Mike either kept a journal or has an eidetic memory, because his work experiences are described in vivid and compelling detail. The book is structured as a series of ambulance calls, but Mike includes amusing anecdotes about his life, relatives, girlfriend, fellow employees, and more. Though Mike's stories hail from five decades ago - when the drinking age was 18 and there were no cell phones, texting, Twitter, etc. - most of his tales are not dated, and could well have occurred yesterday.

A 1960s Era Ambulance

Inside a 1960s Era Ambulance

It's a bit odd that Mike chose to become an ambulance worker since he had a "hair-trigger gag reflex" growing up. Young Mike got carsick all the time, couldn't eat pasta with tomato sauce (to the amusement of his Italian relatives), and was made ill by certain colors - like aqua-green. With a wonky gastric tract you'd think Mike would get sick when exposed to ambulance smells like decomposition, gangrene, and gastrointestinal bleeding, but he powered through - and could even endure visual triggers like carnage, blood, and gore.

Many of Mike's stories include tidbits about his partners, who changed all the time since Mike's schedule was erratic, and he filled in as needed. Some of Mike's more colorful co-workers were:

Fred - who hailed from the Deep South. Fred was as smart as a whip, skinny as a snake, mean as a mink, and looked like a turkey vulture. He was a good, knowledgable ambulance worker though, and Mike felt confident partnering with him.

Jose - who came from Peru. Jose was 5' 3" tall and had a strking Mesoamerican profile. He was barrel- chested, and - like many ambulance workers - extremely strong. Jose was also energetic, cheerful, and funny as hell....and being with him was like "being with an overcaffeinated clown."

Andy - who emigrated from England. Andy - a big baby-faced guy who was nicknamed Andy Panda - was one of Mike's favorite partners. Andy never graduated from college, but he was smart and well-read and knew his stuff around emergencies. Though he was only 19, Andy seemed old and wise.

Pete - who was Mike's boss. Pete was short and squat with the personality of a perpetually agitated crab. He was always angry, and he bullied his employees. Pete liked to torment his partners, especially the young ones, and - when a call came in - would always tell Mike, "Come on kid, let's go. This is probably gonna be the worst thing you've ever seen."

Big Al - who weighed over 300 pounds. Big Al had coke bottle glasses, and always kept a cigar stub in the corner of his mouth. Al's good sense of humor and claims of being connected gave him a 'Merry Mafioso' vibe. Big Al also had a prodigious appetite, and could put away a dozen weenies from the Sabrett's hot dog stand near the ambulance station.


A Sabrett's Hot Dog Stand

Over the course of Mike's ambulance career, he faced a wide variety of situations. Among other things, Mike helped deliver a baby; transported patients who were 99% dead; encountered corpses that had almost completely decomposed; saw suicides who had shot or hung themselves; transported people who'd suffered heart attacks or strokes; aided homeless people who'd been thrown out by their relatives; saw kids who'd overdosed; came across mentally ill people who were physically violent (to him); helped carry morbidly obese patients down steep, narrow flights of stairs; saw beat-up women who refused to report their abusive partners; helped at the site of a plane crash; and much more.

Among Mike's many calls, a few were especially memorable, including the following five.

- The Rule of Nines.
A call came in reporting 'an officer down in Maspeth.' An officer down call was always a rush, so the ambulance workers raced over and found a cop sitting in front of a charcoal grill. The patient was alert enough to describe what had happened: He was squirting charcoal lighter on the hot coals, and the can of lighter fluid blew up, dousing his legs in burning fluid. The cop didn't look too bad, and his legs weren't bloody, but instead were alabaster white.

The patient's injuries were assessed by the rule of nines. This refers to the fact that a burn victim's condition is assessed in units of 9%. The front of each leg is 9%, and the officer had the front of both legs badly burned, so he had third degree burns on 18% of his body. (A third degree burn is the most serious type of burn.) Eighteen percent may not sound too bad, but the officer died. The moral is, don't squirt lighter fluid on a hot grill.



- Jesus Speaks.
A call came in as "a female psycho in Jackson Heights." The 'psycho' was a little old Italian lady whose apartment looked like the gift shop at the Vatican, filled with Blessed Mothers, Jesus figurines, and statues of saints and angels.

The patient spoke English, but had a heavy accent. The daughter had called the ambulance because her mom wouldn't take her pills, wasn't acting right, and needed to see a doctor. The ambulance workers were very solicitious with the little old lady.

Ambulance worker: "Dear, it will be okay. We'll just drive you down the street to Elmhurst hospital and you'll see the doctor."

Little Old Lady: "I no ride in ambulance."

Cop at scene: "Dear, you need to come along with these nice men and you don't want to make a fuss for your neighbors to see, do you?

Little Old Lady: "They no gonna see me go in no ambulance."

Eventually, with much persuasion, the woman is escorted into the ambulance. On the way to the hospital, Mike is getting her information - full name, date of birth, etc. - when the little old lady speaks out in a firm, loud, monotone:

"I AM THE VOICE OF JESUS CHRIST
LET GO A THIS WOMAN RIGHT NOW
SHE AIN'T GOT NOTHING WRONG WITH HER
LET GO THIS WOMAN RIGHT NOW."

Mike interrupts to ask a question.

"I AM THE VOICE OF JESUS CHRIST
DO NOT INTERRUPT."

The ambulance passed under an elevated train.

"I AM THE VOICE OF JESUS CHRIST
IF YOU DO NOT LET THIS WOMAN OUT I GONNA MAKE THESE TRACKS FALL DOWN AND KILL ALL A YOU."

The ambulance emerged from under the elevated tracks safe and sound.... and neither the patient nor Jesus had any more to say.

- All It Takes.
A call came in: Man down. Motorcycle. When the ambulance arrived at the scene, there were two big men with Harleys, one sitting on the ground. The injured guy on the ground was Hank, who explained what happened: "We came up to this stop and I bumped Frank's bike from behind. I couldn't have been going more than 2 or 3 miles per hour.....it was just a tap. It doesn't even hurt that much but I think I may have busted my ankle. I don't think I should walk on it."

Mike figured he should take a peek at the ankle, in case it needed a splint before the patient was moved. When Mike picked up Hank's pants, his foot fell off. Not completely off. It was hanging on by the thinnest pedicle (narrow strip) and was essentially amputated. There was almost no blood, Hank had almost no pain, and he had no idea what had happened.

Mike put on a splint and left it to the doctor in the ER to tell Hank the bad news.

- Erosion.
A call came in labeled DIB (difficulty in breathing) from the roommate of a sick man. When the ambulance workers entered the patient's residence the stench was overwhelming - repulsively foul. The sick man was an unremarkable-looking guy, conscious and alert....the fellow next door. However, the patient's legs were covered in maggots from his groin to his feet....probably related to tissue death from diabetes.

Mike speculated that the man would probably lose both legs immediately, and it would be touch and go to keep the tissue death from spreading up through the rest of his body. Mike's question was: "How the hell can sombody sit on his ass for what must have been a pretty long period of time and let this happen to his body, without getting help. And how could the roommate stand the smell and not call for help before this."

- Two prisoners.
A call came in: Man down at LaGuardia. Possible overdose. When the ambulance arrived, there was a man on a stretcher, out cold. Before the man was wheeled out to the ambulance, a cop handcuffed him to the stretcher, both hands to the side rails. The man was a dealer who'd been sampling his own product. The cop was the designated officer who would go along in the ambulance, to escort the dealer to the hospital.

In the ambulance, the cop looked at Mike with an icy stare, and started to undress the patient....to Mike's astonishment. The officer pulled something out of the dealer's underwear, which turned out to be long, thick, flexible money belt....presumably filled with cash. Lots and lots of cash.
Mike was nervous and scared. He was a witness, and the cop was a crook.....committing a major felony. The cop slipped 'a tip' into Mike's hand....presumably to shut him up. It turned out the tip was only a lousy twenty bucks - for which Mike experienced "intolerable personal stress and laid his integrity on the line (under duress)."

Mike's parents wanted him to be a doctor, but his college drinking, poor study habits, bad grades, and unpleasant ambulance experiences put the kibosh on that idea....and Mike eventually went into advertising. Still, Mike's ambulance adventures gave him a treasure trove of material to write about, and I enjoyed the stories in this book.

I'd highly recommend the book to readers interested in the subject matter.

Thank you to Little, Brown and Company for a copy of the book.

Rating: 4 stars

Review of "The Diva Serves Forbidden Fruit: A Domestic Diva Mystery" by Krista Davis

This review was first posted on Mystery and Suspense. Check it out for features, interviews, and reviews. https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/th...


In this 14th book in the 'Domestic Diva' series, amateur detective Sophie Winston investigates two murders. The book can be read as a standalone.

*****

Event planner/amateur sleuth Sophie Winston lives in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, a cozy enclave that harbors an eclectic group of residents.

 ;

A cadre of Old Town citizens just returned from a trip to Portugal, right in time for the DIY Festival organized by Sophie.



The festival venue will be comprised of a large tent for hourly DIY demonstrations, like re-finishing furniture and quilting.....



.....and small tents for vendors selling everything from wreaths and children's rockers to golden Oreos, plants, and fresh herbs.



On the first morning of the DIY Festival Sophie strolls over to see how things are going and stops at the home of socialite Lark Bickford, one of the visitors to Portugal. Lark's daughter and son-in-law, Paisley and Frank Eames, are setting up their tent in front of Lark's house while their six little boys are running around playing and fighting.



Needing help, Paisley asks Sophie to please get Lark, but that turns out to be impossible......because Lark is lying dead beside a ladder in her backyard. Lark's death is clearly meant to look accidental, but Sophie is certain Lark was murdered, and the police agree.



That night Sophie's best friend Nina, who also went to Portugal, gets a fright when someone tries to break into her house.



And the next day another member of the Portugal expedition is murdered. Unable to fathom what's going on, and being concerned for Nina's safety, Sophie, her ex-husband Mars, and their friend Bernie form a protection squad for Nina.



When they're not working, the threesome - plus two dogs and a cat - hang out together, share delicious meals, and look out for intruders.

Though Sophie is friendly with the police, she's unable to finagle much information out of Officer Wong.....



.....or Detective Wolf Fleishman.



So Sophie looks for a connection between the Old Town deaths and the jaunt to Portugal. Nosing around Sophie hears something about crown jewels and gold coins, and comes to suspect one person after another of the murders.

The mystery at the center of the story is engaging, but much of the book's fun lies in Sophie's fashion sketches, culinary descriptions, and home improvement tips - which are scattered through the narrative. For instance, Sophie depicts people's outfits (Lark was fully dressed in blue pedal pushers, a blue and white tunic top with three-quarter-length sleeves, a chunky white necklace, two bangle bracelets, one blue, one white, and lapis earrings);



dinners (pork tenderloin with mango salsa and berry trifle for dessert);



and home tips (to spruce up an old blue lamp, paint it to match your décor and put a pretty finial on it).



The novel has a rich array of interesting characters including Sophie's dog Daisy and cat Mochie. The animals are cute and coddled, and when Sophie stops at Bean Time for a mocha latte, Daisy gets a Puppucini.



This enjoyable cozy mystery is perfect for light reading.

Recipes in the book include:

Freezer Chocolate Chip Cookies


Bourbon Chocolate Chip Blondies


Pork Tenderloin with Mango Peach Salsa


Oven Roasted Potatoes with Bacon


Sugar Snap Peas


Chocolate Mayonnaise Cupcakes


Pear Upside-Down Skillet Cake


Berry Pecan Coffee Cake


Rum Runners


Thanks to Netgalley, Krista Davis, and Kensington Publishers for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Couple Found Slain: After a Family Murder" by Mikita Brottman

Mental illness ran in Brian Bechtold's family, with an uncle who suffered from delusions, a cousin who went nuts, and a grandmother who spent time in a mental institution. This may help explain why Brian's mother and father were abusive parents who alternately neglected or tormented and beat their children. It may also help explain why in 1992, when Brian was twenty-two years old, he picked up a shotgun and killed his parents. Brian confessed to the police, and explained that he went temporarily insane.

*****

From a 1992 article in the Baltimore Sun:

On a quiet, tree-lined street in Silver Spring, shaken neighbors were still struggling yesterday to understand the deaths of Dorothy and George Bechtold, whose bodies were found after their son walked into a Florida police station and confessed he had killed them.

The youngest of the couple's five children, 23-year-old Brian Antonio Bechtold brought his Rottweiler dog named Ox when he walked into the police station in Port St. Joe, a town about 30 miles east of Panama City, and told Sgt. Timothy Hightower he wanted to turn himself in for murder.

"He said he was possessed by the devil and the devil made him do it," Sergeant Hightower said yesterday. "We talked for several hours at his request. He mentioned that he had been possessed for a while and five days before . . . he became religious and Jesus told him to turn himself in."

*****

Brian was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic who was incompetent to stand trial. So instead of prison, Brian went to the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center in Maryland, whose mission is to help patients get better and re-enter society (if possible).






The Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center

At first, Brian seemed to make good progress. In 1994, two years after admission, a psychological evaluation found Brian to be appropriately dressed and groomed, of average intelligence, with relatively clear thinking. Brian thought he was cured, but psychiatrists thought Brian was cleverly ACTING sane while strategically hiding his emotions and distorted thoughts. Brian's doctors believed Brian had to confront his inner demons before he could 'get better', and Brian consistently avoided doing this.

In any case, Brian thought he should have fewer restrictions and less medication, and his doctors - thinking Brian was being sneaky and manipulative - prescribed more restrictions and more medication. This became a vicious cycle and drove Brian to depression and acting out. Over time Brian made two attempts to escape from Perkins, the second time with a homemade weapon and a hostage.

The author, Mikita Brottman, has a Ph.D. in English literature and conducts fiction workshops in the Maryland prison system and in forensic psychiatric hospitals. When Brottman met Brian at Perkins, he had been a patient for decades. Brottman became interested in Brian's story - as well as the tales of other patients at Perkins - and did extensive research for this book.


Author Mikita Brottman

The narrative is a shocking exposé of Perkins, detailing poorly trained staff; workers who goof off and don't do their jobs; employees who abuse patients; rape and murder among residents; seeming random re-assignment of patients between minimal, medium, and maximum security; and more. In addition, most of the psychiatrists spend little time with patients, and just 'pass on' a diagnosis year after year.....without doing a re-evaluation.

As for Brian, Brottman tells his story in detail, with a concentration on his years at Perkins. Brian frequently wishes he went to prison instead of the hospital, because you get out of prison after serving your sentence.....but a psychiatric hospital can keep you forever.

For the reader, it's hard to determine if Brian is cured (as he believes) or is too sick to re-enter society (like his psychiatrists think). Brottman seems to come down on Brian's side, but I'm not convinced. Brian did, after all, kill his parents and do criminal things while at Perkins. In addition, Brian has an aversion to taking his medication. Psychiatric patients who get out and stop taking their prescriptions can relapse.

If nothing else, Brottman's book shines a light on mental institutions, which can certainly use improvement.

The narrative is well-written, interesting, and informative, though a bit too detailed in places. Highly recommend to readers interested in the topic.

Thanks to Netgalley, Mikita Brottman, and Henry Holt and Company for a copy of the book.

Rating; 3.5 stars