Review of "A Fatal Thaw: A Kate Shugak Mystery" by Dana Stabenow

In this 2nd book in the 'Kate Shugak' series, the Alaskan private detective is on the trail of a vicious killer. The book can be read as a standalone.



*****

Private Detective Kate Shugak, a former investigator with the district attorney's office, lives on an isolated homestead in Alaska. One morning, not far from Kate's home, a psychotic killer picks up his rifle, strolls through town, and kills everyone he comes in contact with.



Kate, warned that the mass murderer is coming her way, manages to capture him with the help of her loyal (and very smart) wolf/husky mix, Mutt.



Examination of the murder victims shows that one of them - beautiful blonde Lisa Getty - was killed with a different rifle, most likely by a different killer. Kate is asked to investigate. She soon learns that Lisa had a dark side: she seduced almost all the men she met (regardless of age or marital status), grew and sold marijuana, poached animals for their valuable parts, and was generally a bad girl. In short, many of the locals - especially wives and girlfriends of cheating men - wanted Lisa gone.



Kate's detective work apparently alarms the killer, who commits more crimes to avoid capture. Meanwhile, we're treated to a peek at the culture of the Alaskan natives, including meals of moose stew;



a potlatch (a sort of pot luck assembly with native dancing);



mountain climbing on local icy peaks;



driving snow machines rather than cars, etc. One can almost feel what it would be like to live in an environment that's frozen for most of the year.



There are plenty of interesting characters, including legless veteran Bobby - who has bad memories of the Vietnam war and a soft spot for Kate; Trooper Jim - whose helicopter patrols give him a good view of things below; Jack - Kate's sometimes boyfriend; Lottie Getty - the victim's awkward sister; Ekaterina - Kate's manipulative grandmother; Bernie - who runs the local pub; and more. My favorite character is the canine Mutt, who helps herself to hidden treats, understands English, has her own opinions (and lets them be known), and is absolutely loyal to Kate.

Kate's investigation leads to a dramatic climax on a mountain, and a satisfying ending. An enjoyable mystery with a fascinating setting.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "Bone Box: A Decker/ Lazarus Mystery" by Faye Kellerman

After they became empty nesters, Detective Peter Decker and his wife Rina moved from Los Angeles to upstate Greenbury, New York - where Peter now works for the Greenbury Police Department.





It's been a quiet summer in Greenbury, crime-wise, until Rina discovers a skeletal hand near the Bogat Hiking Trail.

The unearthed remains are traced to Lawrence/Lorraine Pettigrew, a former student of Morse McKinley College - one of the schools in the local 'Five Colleges of Upstate Consortium.' The transgender woman left school seven years ago to transition, and disappeared some time afterwards.



As the police continue to dig around the Bogat Trail they discover the remains of two more college girls that were reported missing.



Moreover, a young waitress has also vanished. It seems clear that a serial killer is at work in Greensbury.

To start their investigation, Peter and his partner, Harvard law student Tyler McAdams......



.......make a list of the girls' boyfriends as well as people - teachers, students, bartenders, etc. - who had contact with the victims. These people provide a motley crew of 'persons of interest', ranging from druggies.....



......to a professor who actively supports alternative lifestyles.



Questioning the possible suspects reveals some suspicious behavior, but nothing definite. Then Rina makes a suggestion, the couple fly off to California, and there's a break in the case.

As the story unfolds, Rina - who's an 'unofficial detective' in the investigation - is harassed by a suspect. This brings a couple of favorite characters into the story: the gangster Chris Donatti (who's indebted to the Deckers).....



and former L.A. Detective Scott Oliver come to Greensbury to look out for Rina - not that she needs protection.



Rina has a gun and she knows how to use it....which she demonstrates quite effectively.



Another favorite character that helps out is L.A. Detective Marge Dunn, who lends a hand with the California end of things.



The scenes with Donatti, who shows up with an attitude and an arsenal, are quite funny and add a touch of humor to the book.

In addition to assisting with the case, Rina works at Hillel; makes tasty kosher meals; performs the rituals for the Jewish Sabbath; gets ready for the upcoming Jewish holidays; snuggles with her husband; visits her children and grandchildren; and so on. Rina's a trooper!

The police investigation at the heart of the story is interesting, but there are so many two-dimensional characters that it's hard to remember who's who. In addition, the 'solution' to the case is hard to buy and not satisfying.
  
                                                        SPOILER ALERT

[There are so many people who committed and/or covered up the crimes that it's impossible to believe all members of this cabal could 'cooperate' and keep mum.....especially once the police get involved. Bottom line: the ending is just not credible (IMO).

                                                            END SPOILER ALERT

The end of the story is so abrupt that I actually thought I missed a section.....but I didn't. I'm not sure what the author's intention is here - but I'm not a fan of incomplete or cliffhanger endings.

Other than the finale, I liked the book and enjoyed the 'personal touches' like the Deckers' Jewish lifestyle; Tyler's being accepted as 'family' by the Decker clan; Marge buying brand new pots and dishes to prepare a kosher meal for the Deckers; Rina and Peter arguing over a TV show (I took Rina's side); etc.



I'd recommend the book to fans of the Peter Decker series.

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "End of Watch: Bill Hodges #3" by Stephen King

 

This is the third book in Stephen King's "Bill Hodges Trilogy."

SPOILER ALERT

This review contains information about the first two books in the trilogy. So if you haven't read them yet you might want to stop reading now.

In the first book, Mr. Mercedes, a sociopath named Brady Hartsfield drives a Mercedes into a crowd, causing numerous deaths and injuries.



Retired detective Bill Hodges makes it his mission to nab the culprit and puts together a sort of ragtag team to do the job.



This includes Holly Gibney - a computer whiz who probably has Asperger's syndrome;



and Jerome Robinson - a black, whip-smart teen.



The three 'partners' eventually form a tight, affectionate, and lasting bond. At the end of the book Brady Hartsfield is severely injured, with a brain injury that leaves him in a coma.

The second book in the trilogy, Finders Keepers, takes a different direction, focusing on an obsessed literary fan. Hodges and his team show up late in the story, to help a kid who's gotten himself into big trouble. Brady Hartsfield, meanwhile, is rotting away in a hospital - seemingly unaware of his surroundings, with minimal brain function. Retired detective Hodges, however, suspects that Brady might have more going on upstairs than he lets on, and - as things turn out - Hodges is right!

In this third book in the trilogy, End of Watch - which takes place five years after the events in Mr. Mercedes - Brady Hartsfield has come out of his coma, is somewhat aware of what's going on around him, and can even say a few muddled words. Physically Brady is almost completely helpless, but there's A LOT going on in his head.



Brady's unethical doctor has been giving him experimental drugs and the medicine (or maybe something else) has altered Brady's brain....and he now has paranormal abilities. The hospital staff notes that minor odd things happen in Brady's room - like his IV bag swinging back and forth - but no one has an inkling of his true capabilities.



Brady secretly puts this new talent to use using a cache of obsolete hand-held computer game consoles called 'Zappit.'



As it turns out, Zappit contains a strangely hypnotic child's fishing game. I don't want to give too much away, so I'll just say Brady - who has an obsession about suicide - manipulates a few people into killing themselves. Thrilled with his success, Brady embarks on a plan to cause mass suicide among local teenagers. And finally, Brady means to completely destroy Bill Hodges, whom he REALLY hates.

The stakes are very high in this book. Hodges is seriously ill and Holly is on his case - insisting that he go to the hospital to get appropriate treatment.



However the detective desperately wants to stop Brady first. Hodges is sure that Brady caused a number of recent deaths, but can't figure out how - since Brady is a decrepit husk in a hospital room.



It takes the combined brain power of Hodges, Holly, and Jerome - with some help from a cop and a spot of luck - to reveal exactly what's going on. All this leads to a doozy of a climax in the middle of a winter storm...very exciting!

I enjoyed the book, which is well-written with memorable characters. Brady makes an especially demented and evil villain, while Holly makes an endearing 'good guy', with sweet affection for her partner and friend, Bill Hodges. In fact Holly is probably my favorite character in this story.

This book provides a very satisfying finale to a good trilogy. Highly recommended.

Rating: 4 stars

Review of "Backlash: A DCI Anna Travis Mystery" by Lynda La Plante

In this 8th book in the 'Anna Travis' series, the DCI investigates murders perpetrated by a serial killer. The book, essentially a police procedural, can be read as a standalone.

*****

A routine traffic stop of a party supplies truck in London leads to the discovery of a woman's body in the back and the arrest of the truck's driver, skeezy Henry Oates.



Upon interrogation at the police station Oates admits to killing the woman and talks about having killed a couple of other people in the past. One of Oates' supposed victims is a young girl of 13 who disappeared five years before, a cold case that was never resolved.



Detective Chief Inspector Anna Travis is on the team tasked with looking into Oates' claims.



The case takes on a very high profile because Anna's former boss/mentor - Detective Chief Superintendent James Langton - was in charge of the unsolved missing girl case and can't get it out of his mind. Though Langton is currently at home recuperating from an injury he insists on keeping up with the Oates investigation and - during a critical police action - shows up and starts giving orders. This has unfortunate consequences.



Anna and the rest of the team unearth a lot of informaton about Henry Oates, who may well have killed even more women than he's admitted to. Oates, with his smashed nose, dirty clothing, and appalling hygiene, seems stupid (and perhaps insane) at first. However, he turns out to be a very clever criminal who enjoys playing mind games with the police.

In essence the story is a very long police procedural. As the story proceeds the cops discover and follow various clues in an attempt to locate the bodies of Oates's victims and to find the evidence that will convict him. Some of this is too drawn out. For instance, a scene where the police search a quarry is excessively detailed and seems to go on forever. Also, the story has a large number of characters, some of whom tend to blend together. 

All in all, an okay book that many suspense fans will probably enjoy.

Rating: 3 stars