Review of "Before She Knew Him: A Novel of Suspense" by Peter Swanson

Henrietta (Hen) and Lloyd Mazur recently moved to a Boston suburb called West Dartford.

There, Hen, who's an artist, can rent a workspace in a nearby artist's studio and Lloyd can take the train to his job in the big city. Hen is bipolar, and - before she was properly medicated - sometimes acted out in bizarre ways.



In college, for example, Hen attacked a fellow coed she thought was trying to kill her. And more recently, Hen became obsessed with the unsolved murder - two years ago - of a man named Dustin Miller. Hen compulsively followed the story in the media and and ceaselessly talked about it to her husband. Hen has the correct prescriptions now, and seems to be doing well.

Hen and Lloyd have no children and are drawn to their new next-door neighbors in West Dartford, Matthew and Mira Dolamore, who are childless as well.



The Dolamores invite Hen and Lloyd to dinner, and when Hen admires the Dolamore's decor, are given a tour of the house.



In Matthew's study, Hen observes an object that shakes her to the core. Matthew is displaying a fencing trophy that (Hen believes) was stolen from homicide victim Dustin Miller by his killer....as reported in newspapers.



Hen is certain Matthew murdered Miller, spurred on by the fact that - many years ago - Miller attended the high school where Matthew teaches history. Hen goes to the police with her 'evidence', but given her bipolar illness and previous behavior, the police are VERY skeptical of her 'discovery.'



Hen can't let it go, and starts stalking Matthew, watching him from her window and sneaking out at night to follow him in her car.



More murders follow, and - at one point - it seems like Hen herself may become a suspect.

The book is narrated in the rotating voices of the main characters, some of whom aren't reliable, so it's hard to predict the surprises that are coming.



I enjoyed the book and recommend it to fans of dark psychological thrillers.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Pest Control: A Comic Novel" by Bill Fitzhugh

In this comic thriller New York City exterminator Bob Dillon loses his job when he refuses to use high concentrations of bug-killing chemicals, fearing they'll harm the environment.



Instead, Bob has a home lab where he experiments with 'assassin bugs' - natural predators of termites, roaches, etc. - in an attempt to find a strain that can wipe out pests naturally and efficiently.


Assassin bug and prey

Wanting to advertise his natural pest control business Bob distributes flyers with a photo of himself in a cap emblazoned 'Exterminator'.



This falls into the hands of Marcel, a middleman who connects hit men/women with people who want to hire them. Marcel, marveling that Bob advertises himself so freely, hires the NY exterminator to kill someone - thinking Bob's assertion that he only kills bugs is a 'wink wink' code.



Before long a couple of Bob's 'hits' are killed - without his participation or knowledge - and his lucrative payments for the jobs go astray. Thus, though Bob is a rising star in the assassin business, he remains completely oblivious to what's going on.



So Bob continues his experiments, breeding assassin bugs and placing them in roach-infested buildings to test them out. Meanwhile, Bob's usually devoted wife Mary - hoping to spur Bob into getting a real job that helps pay the bills - takes their daughter and leaves.



Things get even more confused when the CIA - which maintains a top ten list of the world's best assassins - becomes aware of Bob and hires him for a job.



Before long a Bolivian drug lord puts a ten million dollar bounty on Bob's head and things get really out of control. The world's best assassins - as well as a few amateurs - flood into New York searching for the exterminator. These assassins, each having a unique (sometimes quite unusual) appearance and technique, are hilarious.



There's a lot of action in the story, with people running around, shooting, stabbing, getting mobbed by savage insects, and so on. Even Mary, sympathetic but confused, returns to help out. The slew of characters in the story are amusing, exchanging plenty of fun dialog and remarks.

I liked the story as well as the descriptions of Bob's experiments. His attempts to breed bugs with specific roach-killing characteristics is interesting and informative. Good book, recommended for thriller fans who want a light, easy read that's 'out of the box'.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Dead Space: A Sci-Fi Novel of Suspense" by Kali Wallace

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

Dead Space opens in the distant future, when humans have inhabited Mars;



exploration of moons in the outer solar system is ongoing;



and rich corporations are mining planetoids in the asteroid belt.



A rebellion by discontented residents of Mars has been subdued, and the horrific weapons used in that conflict have been outlawed.



In this atmosphere, AI specialist Hester Marley was looking forward to a bright future. She was one of two hundred people aboard the spaceship Symposium, on their way to establish the first human settlement on Saturn's moon Titan. It was to be a research colony, for scientific exploration and discovery.



To aid in exploration, Marley and her colleagues had built an AI called Vanguard, whose complex mind and innumerable lifetimes' worth of learned experience would be invaluable for reconnaissance and research. Vanguard had a quirky streak as well, and liked to take on the shape of a praying mantis, resulting in its nickname Bug.



Tragically, an anti-expansion terrorist group blew up Symposium en route, killing almost all the passengers and destroying Vanguard.



The explosion left thirty-one survivors, including Hester, all of whom were rescued by cargo ships belonging to Parthenope Enterprises, which has mining operations in the asteroid belt.

Hester's hideous injuries required her to be fitted with a prosthetic left arm, left leg, left ear, and left eye and the medical expenses left her hugely indebted to Parthenope, which could repossess the prosthetics for non-payment.



Thus - two years after the disaster - Hester is working as a Safety Officer at Parthenope's headquarters on the asteroid Hygeia, which oversees commercial operations in the region.



Hester's job is to make criminals and troublemakers vanish before they can affect the company's profits, so wrongdoing is usually whitewashed and wrongdoers are generally expelled.

Hester is in constant discomfort from her prosthetics, and misses her family, friends, colleagues, and the Vanguard AI - who was almost like a child to her. Then one day, out of the blue, Marley gets a video message from another Symposium survivor, robotics expert David Prussenko, who was a close friend on Earth.



David is a sysadmin for the Overseer AI that manages Parthenope's asteroid mine Nimue, which produces water, fuel, and rare metals.



In his missive, David seems to misremember things that happened in the past, and Hester concludes that he's sending a coded message. Before Hester can respond, David is killed, and Hester joins the team investigating his death.

The detective squad going to Nimue consists of Hester; lead investigator Mohammad Adisa, a native of Mars; non-binary security tech Avery Ryu; and Parthenope lawyer Hugo van Arendonk, who represents the company's interests.



The investigators expect to find the culprit quickly and close the case before it generates any adverse publicity.

Things don't work out that way though. Nimue foreperson Yevgenya Sigrah is obstructive;



David's co-workers, including his fellow sysadmin Mary Ping, are evasive;



operational problems on Nimue are suspicious;



and it becomes clear David was investigating something.

As Hester assists with the investigation, examines David's quarters, and delves into David's activities on Nimue, she uncovers a monumental conspiracy. At this point the story morphs from mystery to thriller, and Hester must race against time to head off further tragedy.

This story is an intriguing blend of science fiction and mystery that leaves the reader wanting more.

Thanks to Netgalley, Kali Wallace, and Berkley Publishers for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Murder With Peacocks: A Meg Langslow Cozy Mystery" by Donna Andrews

This is the first book in the Meg Langslow cozy mystery series, which has been going strong for many years. The story arc has come a long way since this initial tale, and I enjoyed seeing where it all began.

Virginia native Meg Langslow is an ornamental blacksmith who agrees to spend the summer in her hometown of Yorktown, Virginia.



Meg has agreed to be the maid of honor for three Yorktown brides: her best friend Eileen, her brother Rob's fiancé Samantha, and Meg's own mother, who's marrying for a second time.



To these bridezillas, maid of honor is synonymous with wedding planner, and Meg is expected to do EVERYTHING: send invitations, order food and flowers, oversee fittings of wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses, open wedding gifts, supervise thank you cards, obtain peacocks for the festivities, organize pre-wedding parties and rehearsals, and so on. Meg can hardly catch her breath among all the requests and instructions.



When Meg discovers that her friend Eileen hasn't managed to choose a wedding gown or bridesmaid dresses, though the nuptials are mere weeks away, she hustles over to the Yorktown bridal salon to make arrangements. There Meg meets a dramatic arts professor named Michael, who's supervising the shop while his mother recovers from an accident.



Meg is attracted to Michael - who's tall, hunky, handsome, and personable - but town gossips tell her he's gay. So Meg and Michael become friends, and he practically becomes a member of Meg's extended family. Meg is pursued by other eligible bachelors, though, especially a doofus named Barry who has a big crush on her.



Meg is willing to plan her mother's wedding, but she's not happy about it.



Meg's parents recently got an amicable divorce, and her father - a retired physician - is still around the family home all the time. He mows the lawn, takes care of the garden, and grows poisonous plants, which are his hobby.



Now Meg's mom is marrying a bland boring widower from down the street, and Meg doesn't get it.



The stress of all the wedding prep is heightened by the arrival of a guest from Florida, who has something nasty to say to everyone, even children.



This woman is soon found dead, and the sheriff calls it an accident. Meg's father, however, thinks the victim was murdered, and he sets out to prove it with Meg's help. A series of deadly 'accidents' follows, and it seems a killer is on the loose.

Though the mystery is interesting enough, the book's main strength is the array of quirky characters, including Meg's mother - a southern lady who gets things done; Meg's father - who has many oddball pastimes and interests; the Yorktown sheriff - who's clueless about murder investigations; Meg's uncle - who likes to wear a gorilla costume; Meg's friend Eileen - who wants renaissance style wedding garb; and more.



The book's final chapters hold some surprises, but wily readers will suspect what's coming. This doesn't spoil the fun though, and I recommend the book to fans of cozy mysteries.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Spin: A Captain Chase Thriller" by Patricia Cornwell

This second book in the 'Captain Chase' series opens soon after the dramatic conclusion of the first novel Quantum. The stories should be read in order.

*****

Captain Calli Chase and her identical twin sister Carme are savants who have an interest in aerospace science and aspire to be astronauts. Both women are pilots, but their careers have taken different paths.



Carme is in the Air Force and Calli is a scientist and NASA investigator. Since they were born, Calli and Carme have been groomed to be prototypes for merging cutting edge technology and AI with humans, and that plan is now being brought to fruition under the auspices of four-star Space Force General Richard Melville (Dick).....



.....and the girls' parents, both of whom are employed by NASA.



It's critical to 'upgrade' Calli and Carme now because evil billionaire Neva Rong, who runs a corporation called Pandora, is poised to co-opt the internet, industry, technology, and space for her own nefarious purposes.



Neva has inveigled powerful people into her schemes - including government bigwigs - and is able to steal, murder and manipulate without any blowback.

Dick is trying to stop Neva, and he needs Calli and Carme to assist him. Thus both women are implanted with advanced technology throughout their bodies, including an AI called ART. ART is connected to a quantum computer, and can pull up and analyze information in milliseconds.



ART relays information by way of 'talking' on a mobile phone or - if there's a need for secrecy - displaying information on special contact lenses worn by Calli and Carme. (Note: the implanted technology, and what it does - like monitoring body functions, opening locks, functioning as a GPS, communicating with drones, sending information to Dick, and so on - is described in detail.)

Neva Rong knows that Calli, Carme and their parents are involved in a plan to neutralize her, and she means to wipe them out.



To get inside information about the Chases, Neva is trying to use a 10-year-old boy genius named Lex, who's being mentored by Calli and Carme's father.



Mr. Chase always wanted a son and tends to share more with the boy than he should. Though Lex is exceptionally gifted, he's also a mischievous kid, and his shenanigans cause BIG trouble at NASA's Langley Research Center.



Calli narrates the story, and she describes one dramatic situation after another as she chases an errant Lex; is repeatedly stalked and attacked by killers;



goes to a meeting in the White House;



is sent on a mission that could alter the future of humanity; and more.



Calli also talks about her food cravings, body image, conversations with Dick, Carme and her parents, Lex's less-than-ideal home situation, and so on....all of which serves to personalize Calli and make her more interesting.

The author clearly did intensive research for this novel, and Cornwell describes myriad kinds of engineering, satellites, aircraft, spacecraft, etc. in detail. Cornwell also employs innumerable acronyms, which are hard to remember. I could have done with less of this tech talk, as it doesn't always advance the story. That said, this is an exciting futuristic tale that many sci-fi fans would enjoy.

Rating: 3 stars