Greg’s
Comments
(group member since Aug 01, 2020)
Greg’s
comments
from the Death on the Shelf group.
Showing 1-15 of 15
That sounds good to me. I wasn't aware it was on Hoopla, and its a book I've heard good things about. Also, this is probably as good a time as any to bring this up: after what happened in November 2019, I've decided to retire early, effective February 1. Focus on some lingering health issues. I'm not sure what the future will be for me with the group, but there will be time to figure that out. I just wanted to give a heads-up. Thanks!
OK, January will be Murder at the Flamingo, and February will be Gaudy Night. I think those are good choices, and I'm looking forward to reading them. Thanks!
I could see us doing it at a later date, if that's what people want. Honestly, I've never read either one, although I've seen TV productions of "A Murder is Announced." Some of the other months are a little light on choices, so we could easily switch it to one of them. Thanks!
April 2021:Last Pen Standing (Vivian Conroy)
Murder Can Confuse Your Chihuahua (Rose Pressey)
A Crafter Quilts a Crime (Holly Quinn)
Thread and Buried (Lea Wait)
March 2021:The Key Lime Crime (Lucy Burdette)
Marshmallow Malice (Amanda Flower)
Sealed Off (Barbara Ross)
Southern Sass and a Crispy Corpse (Kate Young)
January 2021: Sister Eve and the Blue Nun (Lynne Hinton)
Murder at the Flamingo (Rachel McMillan)
Just leave a comment saying which one appeals most.
Selections for the first four months of 2021. I'll be making some suggestions, based on what's available to us through Hoopla. Let me know which one sounds best, and that's what we'll do. I have suggestions for the rest of 2021 also, but I'm hoping we'll be back live before May. We'll see. Thanks!
Ben wrote: "From Linda:The Little Bookshop of Murder was a fluffy, lightweight mystery plot but I stuck with it and I had no objection to the change of pace. The characters were a bit unrealistic in that the..."
I didn't try the pie recipe. I don't bake much myself, but it did sound interesting to me.
Things have been a little hectic for me recently, and today (of course!) is the first day of the Indiana Library Federation's annual conference. It's being done virtually, like everything else this year, but I hope to be able to get some stuff done here, too.Honestly, this wasn't my favorite book of the year, although it wasn't the worst I read, either. I'd say about average. I do like most cozies, so I knew what to expect. I was also fine with the romance side, since I've come to expect that in cozies published in the last 10 years or so. Not terribly surprised that it wasn't resolved. I think that's a carryover from television, where a lot of programs build up and prolong romantic tension to attract viewers' attention. I'm sure it'll be taken care of in a later installment, since I think this is definitely a first in a series.
I thought the paranormal aspect was fine, although I feel others have done it better. Maybe I'm just more used to vampires, ghosts and shifters in my paranormal cozies, though.
As Ben pointed out, a number of plot points felt confusing to me. I'm not sure if they were left intentionally unresolved for a later volume or what. I did feel that the arachnophobia thing was overplayed. But then, spiders don't really scare me. One thing that did bother me, and it may be due to my misreading of the book, is that the setting never really felt to me like North Carolina. It had more of a New England feel to me. As I said, could be my own reading and no fault of the author's.
A lot of the characters felt a little unformed to me. But that's the case with quite a few modern cozies, so I was willing to overlook it. Surprisingly, I did figure out who the murderer was (although not the reason). It kind of surprised me that the investigating characters didn't pay more attention to here, and chased after red herrings instead.
Overall, a good first effort. I've certainly read worse! I don't recall what rating I gave it when I read it, probably a 4, since that seems to be my default this year. I'll check back in later in case anyone has more comments, and to suggest a couple of possible picks for January 2021 (I really hope it's a better new year than this one has been). Thanks everyone for reading this! I hope we can do some more recent books in the future, and hopefully in person too!
Yes, this will be the book for November. I’ll read it again, just because I’ve finished 5 or 6 since I read it. It is available on Hoopla as ebook and downloadable audio, and the library has a print copy on order. Not sure when that will be in though.
Well, that sounds interesting!
I know it's a little early, but the library has this book on order, and I put it on hold. Then I found it's available both as ebook and audio through Hoopla. It's Little Bookshop of Murder by Maggie Blackburn. Take a look and let me know what you think. I'll continue looking for other possibilities, or if anyone has a suggestion, I'd love to hear it. Thanks!
Boy the third Tuesday in September really snuck up on me. I finally got my account straightened out (by making a new one). I will have to agree with Linda that Corte is analytical and secretive, but given his profession that isn't surprising. Personally, I love the game theory discussion. It's always been kind of a secret passion of mine, even though I'm not that good at it. I'll admit, I had never read a Deaver book before, but I enjoyed it a lot. I especially liked the end, that showed a completely different side of Corte than we had seen before. Also, I found it to be an unexpected pleasure to read a book that wasn't part of a series. I didn't have to worry about things I might have missed in earlier books, or plot lines that might be carried to resolution in a following book. Everything was (very neatly) wrapped up in one volume, and a lot of it unexpectedly so. Deaver clearly keeps a close watch on all his plot threads, and made sure that things were wrapped up that I'm used to not being resolved.
Personally, I prefer more on the traditional mystery/cozy side, but I do enjoy a good thriller every now and then, and this was one of the best I've read in a long time!
In related news, I have heard that library administration is looking at extending our hours and opening up more of the library to the public. Right now, everything is rumor, and probably depends on what the governor does toward the end of September. Personally, I'm at least slightly hopeful that we'll be able to have an in-person meeting soon. If not October, then maybe November. In any event, we'll keep this going just in case, and for anyone who can't attend (or doesn't feel comfortable with attending) an in-person meeting. As soon as I hear anything official, I'll be sure to let everyone know.
Ben, I know Melinda is looking at some titles, but I haven't heard any possibilities yet. I suspect it will be more on the traditional mystery side. I'm sure she'll post something here soon, and I'll keep your feelings about thrillers in mind for the future. Thanks!
An interesting book. I tend to play around in the cozy shallows, but sometimes I get into the deep end with dark, disturbing thrillers. This is definitely in the deeper end. I'm enjoying it, though.And I'm very glad to finally be able to get back into my account. Well, not the same account, I had to make a new one. It'll be ok.
