The Keepsake – (Pol Proc-Rizzoli/Iles-Boston-US-Cont) – 7th in series – Tess Gerritsen Charlotte - G - I enjoyed it but not as much as some of her other books. It was a bit gruesome and creepy for me. I do feel the same about stalker mysteries as I do about serial killers. Linda F – Ok – The plot was not her sort of thing but she did like Illes. The plot was kind of mediocre; a typical psycho-killer novel. However, the characterizations were good. LJ – VG - There is a blurb on the back cover of the book which says “…likely to keep you reading into the wee hours…” Well, it certainly did that. I should know by now that a book by Gerritsen is one I have to finish the same day I start it. She know how to hook you in, take you down a very twisty road, build the suspense and keep you going to the very last sentence. Gerritsen’s medical background was in evidence through the details of ancient forms of mummification offset by present-day forensic methods. I also enjoyed the historical and archeological information, both of those being fascinating to me. The characters are interesting and fully developed. Jane Rizzola is a tough New Yorker, married and a mother; Maura Iles is refined, elegant and in a hopeless relationship. A common theme among the characters was self-delusion--wanting what you can’t have. This theme was well-played in the story with a subtlety that offset the violence. Her dialogue and sense of place supported this theme. Gerritsen is a very good writer and always a sleepless pleasure to read. Marcy G – G+ - She was disappointed in this book compared to other by Gerritsen. She did like the detail about the preservation of bodies and liked the characters. However, the plot felt contrived. In general, she does like Gerritsen’s book and will read more of them. Joyce – VG - This is my first Gerritsen and while I enjoyed it I was a teensy bit disappointed. The characters were compelling but never quite flushed out. I guess this kept the story taught. The plot was amazing and I was totally dizzy by the end even though I had figured out bits of it before hand. Corona – G – It was kind of creepy but engrossing and kept her going. The story almost seemed secondary to the mood, however.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – (Unl. Invest/Journ-Mikael Blomqvist/Lisbeth Salander-Sweden-Cont) – Stieg Larsson Charlotte - G+ - It was hard to get into at first -- I ended up skipping to page 30 or so, where I first saw Lisbeth Salander's name. From that point on it held my interest, tho I did skim when the descriptions were too long. I would have liked it more and rated it higher if it wasn't so much about abuse and torture. The part about Salander and her guardian seemed totally unnecessary and I almost stopped at that point. Mikael B's casual relationships with the various women in the book was a bit much at times. This book was written around 2004 before the financial crash, so I was impressed all the info about the financial scams, the lack of investigation, etc, toward the end of the book. LJ - - I’m about half-way into the book and finding it a bit plodding. I like the characters, even though the author has a thing about names with “B” and “S”, and that is what keeps me reading. I do wish the sense of place were stronger. The village could be set anywhere where there is winter; I don’t get a real sense of it being Sweden . I don’t dislike it enough to stop reading, but I shan’t be rating it as high as others have. Marcy G – VG+ - Enjoyed it very much. The beginning was slow, but once she got into it, she really enjoyed it. Liked the characters but was disappointed not to learn more about Salander at the end. She did hate the “Nancy Drew” moments (otherwise known as TSTL (too stupid to live). It was interesting that the author mentioned the character reading other contemporary mysteries throughout the book. She has read the 2nd book in the series and will read the 3rd. Marcy S – Ex – Loved it! She listened to the audio version. Great characterizations; they were flawed but earned her sympathy. The plot was slow, partly because of the Swedish names, and wasn’t that great, but she loved the writing.
A Rule Against Murder – (Pol Proc-CI Gamache-Canada-Cont) Charlotte - VG - I read this one first, and did enjoy it a lot. I do recall that took too long to figure out how the statue was moved and various other small details here and there. LJ – VG+ - There is a much deeper layer to Ms. Penny’s books than the normal mystery—one that makes you think and then question those thoughts; to look at things in a new way and see them differently. Ms. Penny employs incredible imagery as well as poetry interspersed through the story, and wonderful humor. Characters are another great strength of Ms. Perry. Gamache is a man of many layers. We learn much more of his personal history. I love his relationship to his wife and his investigative team. The members of his team each have their own strengths and perspectives with the cumulative result of solving their cases. The Finney family members and hotel employees are just as well drawn. Each character is significant to the story. Ms. Penny also includes a bit of history of Quebec with an interesting perspective on the success of the Quebecois in the 1960 and that many of the young people left Quebec as they didn’t speak French and found it difficult to get work. “They lost their children for the sake of a language.” None of this overshadows the quality of the mystery itself. It is tightly plotted, intricate and clever with some excellent suspense. The clues are all there to be found, but I didn’t put it together until it was presented. Ms. Penny is highly skilled in bringing together all these elements into one enormously enjoyable and satisfying read.
Charlotte - G - I enjoyed it but not as much as some of her other books. It was a bit gruesome and creepy for me. I do feel the same about stalker mysteries as I do about serial killers.
Linda F – Ok – The plot was not her sort of thing but she did like Illes. The plot was kind of mediocre; a typical psycho-killer novel. However, the characterizations were good.
LJ – VG - There is a blurb on the back cover of the book which says “…likely to keep you reading into the wee hours…” Well, it certainly did that. I should know by now that a book by Gerritsen is one I have to finish the same day I start it. She know how to hook you in, take you down a very twisty road, build the suspense and keep you going to the very last sentence. Gerritsen’s medical background was in evidence through the details of ancient forms of mummification offset by present-day forensic methods. I also enjoyed the historical and archeological information, both of those being fascinating to me. The characters are interesting and fully developed. Jane Rizzola is a tough New Yorker, married and a mother; Maura Iles is refined, elegant and in a hopeless relationship. A common theme among the characters was self-delusion--wanting what you can’t have. This theme was well-played in the story with a subtlety that offset the violence. Her dialogue and sense of place supported this theme. Gerritsen is a very good writer and always a sleepless pleasure to read.
Marcy G – G+ - She was disappointed in this book compared to other by Gerritsen. She did like the detail about the preservation of bodies and liked the characters. However, the plot felt contrived. In general, she does like Gerritsen’s book and will read more of them.
Joyce – VG - This is my first Gerritsen and while I enjoyed it I was a teensy bit disappointed. The characters were compelling but never quite flushed out. I guess this kept the story taught. The plot was amazing and I was totally dizzy by the end even though I had figured out bits of it before hand.
Corona – G – It was kind of creepy but engrossing and kept her going. The story almost seemed secondary to the mood, however.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – (Unl. Invest/Journ-Mikael Blomqvist/Lisbeth Salander-Sweden-Cont) – Stieg Larsson
Charlotte - G+ - It was hard to get into at first -- I ended up skipping to page 30 or so, where I first saw Lisbeth Salander's name. From that point on it held my interest, tho I did skim when the descriptions were too long. I would have liked it more and rated it higher if it wasn't so much about abuse and torture. The part about Salander and her guardian seemed totally unnecessary and I almost stopped at that point. Mikael B's casual relationships with the various women in the book was a bit much at times. This book was written around 2004 before the financial crash, so I was impressed all the info about the financial scams, the lack of investigation, etc, toward the end of the book.
LJ - - I’m about half-way into the book and finding it a bit plodding. I like the characters, even though the author has a thing about names with “B” and “S”, and that is what keeps me reading. I do wish the sense of place were stronger. The village could be set anywhere where there is winter; I don’t get a real sense of it being Sweden . I don’t dislike it enough to stop reading, but I shan’t be rating it as high as others have.
Marcy G – VG+ - Enjoyed it very much. The beginning was slow, but once she got into it, she really enjoyed it. Liked the characters but was disappointed not to learn more about Salander at the end. She did hate the “Nancy Drew” moments (otherwise known as TSTL (too stupid to live). It was interesting that the author mentioned the character reading other contemporary mysteries throughout the book. She has read the 2nd book in the series and will read the 3rd.
Marcy S – Ex – Loved it! She listened to the audio version. Great characterizations; they were flawed but earned her sympathy. The plot was slow, partly because of the Swedish names, and wasn’t that great, but she loved the writing.
A Rule Against Murder – (Pol Proc-CI Gamache-Canada-Cont)
Charlotte - VG - I read this one first, and did enjoy it a lot. I do recall that took too long to figure out how the statue was moved and various other small details here and there.
LJ – VG+ - There is a much deeper layer to Ms. Penny’s books than the normal mystery—one that makes you think and then question those thoughts; to look at things in a new way and see them differently. Ms. Penny employs incredible imagery as well as poetry interspersed through the story, and wonderful humor. Characters are another great strength of Ms. Perry. Gamache is a man of many layers. We learn much more of his personal history. I love his relationship to his wife and his investigative team. The members of his team each have their own strengths and perspectives with the cumulative result of solving their cases. The Finney family members and hotel employees are just as well drawn. Each character is significant to the story. Ms. Penny also includes a bit of history of Quebec with an interesting perspective on the success of the Quebecois in the 1960 and that many of the young people left Quebec as they didn’t speak French and found it difficult to get work. “They lost their children for the sake of a language.” None of this overshadows the quality of the mystery itself. It is tightly plotted, intricate and clever with some excellent suspense. The clues are all there to be found, but I didn’t put it together until it was presented. Ms. Penny is highly skilled in bringing together all these elements into one enormously enjoyable and satisfying read.