The Mystery, Crime, and Thriller Group discussion

Just finished by Jonathan Nasaw, and now starting by Jennifer Hillier

Kathryn wrote: "Maggie wrote: "Kathryn wrote: "I finished Prodigal Son by Dean Koontz, the first in the Frankenstein series. I really liked it and would love to continue reading the res..."

I have read the entire series and enjoyed them all.

Just finished Almost more action/adventure than mystery and a little more noir than I usually go for but this one is addictive. I worked in a VA hospital psych unit for a number of years and have *met* a number of people like this ... for me, Viet Nam era ... in the book, Afghanistan. I'm going to be looking for more by this author, for sure.

Alana wrote: "Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes"

That was a good book Alana,I enjoyed it:)

Gary wrote: "Just finished by Jonathan Nasaw, and now starting by Jennifer Hillier"

I loved Creep! Hope you enjoy it

I finished Last Known Victim. It was a new author to me. The book was good but I figured who had done the murders before it was revealed. A lot of red herrings had been thrown to keep you guessing. I have a few more to read by this author and hope they get better.

Just finished The Sleeper by Emily Barr.... I nearly gave up after the first few chapters which were so much to do with the relationship between the protagonist and her husband, but persevered - it changes completely and became a compelling thriller.

Recently finished Rain Gods by James Lee Burke, beautiful writing, Liar, Liar by K.J. Larsen, laughs aplenty, and Fox Tracks: A Novel by Rita Mae Brown, so-so.

On to The Strangler Vine by M.J. Carter, Hour of the Rat by Lisa Brackmann, and The Collectionby Gioia Diliberto.

I just finished reading by Louise Penny. A first in a series taking place near Montreal, Canada. I enjoyed the book and plan to read the series. I described it as a "cozy" mystery. This is another first time read by this author.

I finished Darkness, My Old Friend by Lisa Unger. The Hollows has a lot of troubled people. Jones Cooper, a retired police officer is in therapy and bored; Michael Holt's gorgeous mother, Marla, disappeared long ago and he asks a private detective to re-open the case; Eloise Montgomery is a psychic who sees ghosts; fifteen-year-old Willow Graves is a chronic liar and runaway; Kevin Carr is a sociopath who terrorizes his wife. Though the central mystery of the story is 'what happened to Marla?' the other residents' dramas make up a good part of the book. The characters were well-developed and the Marla story was okay (though many readers will probably guess the ending). 3 stars for me.

Finished it was amazing and now starting Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Linda wrote: "I just finished reading by Louise Penny. A first in a series taking place near Montreal, Canada. I enjoyed the book and plan to read the series. I described it as a ..."

I LOVE this series, Linda. They do get less "cozy" as they go along, but are always charming and quite well-plotted, especially later in the series. Happy reading!

Paige wrote: "OK guys I have gone a bit off my usual reading habits of Thrillers and Mysteries. This book caught my attention on the Library.. how could it now with this title "So Many Books So Little Time" by S..."

And your reading list just got longer, right? I liked that book, too.

Linda wrote: "I just finished reading by Louise Penny. A first in a series taking place near Montreal, Canada. I enjoyed the book and plan to read the series. I described it as a ..."

Hi Linda,
Welcome to the world of Louise Penny! The series only gets better and the latest hit the top of the NYT list this fall. Be prepared to all in love with Armand Gamache, Three Pines, and all the characters of these stories. Some of the stories break the mold of "cozy" and the edge only adds spice to the comfortable mix.
Happy reading,
Rob

Tim "The Enchanter" wrote: "Glad you enjoyed it Paige! Always happy when there is a new Tana French fan :) Her books in the series are such that they could be read as standalone novels. Still, I would suggest you read "In Th..."

Thanks for the tip, Tim. I read "In the Woods" and finished it so frustrated that I vowed I wouldn't read any more of hers. I wanted the underlying mystery resolved, not just the contemporary one. Does "The Likeness" answer the questions "In the Woods" leaves hanging? If so, I'll give her another try.

Janis, the future books don't deal with Rob or his personal mystery. Rob is mentioned in passing in the likeness but is not mentioned again. Tana French says she's not done with Rob. None if the other books leave a mystery hanging in the way that In The Woods did.

Tim "The Enchanter" wrote: "Janis, the future books don't deal with Rob or his personal mystery. Rob is mentioned in passing in the likeness but is not mentioned again. Tana French says she's not done with Rob. None if the ..."

Thanks, Tim. I guess I'll give her another try - she certainly writes an engaging mystery.

Linda wrote: "I just finished reading by Louise Penny. A first in a series taking place near Montreal, Canada. I enjoyed the book and plan to read the series. I described it as a ..."

Linda
"Still Life" is one of my favorite mystery novels.
This series has won numerous awards and most deservedly so! There are nine in the series so far with the most recent being "How the light gets in".
Lynne
aka Fictionophile

Struggling a little bit with my reading at the moment, but trying to make it through:

Charlotte (Buried in Books) wrote: "Struggling a little bit with my reading at the moment, but trying to make it through:

[bookcover:The Bone Collector|168..."

The Stranger Beside Me, absolutely creeped me out, especially because it's a true account..

I am actually not sure what to start next. I have yet to read Tana French's third book so I may begin with that one. Always open to suggestions.

Robert. I would definitely suggest you read Faithful Place. One of the best books I read this year.

I'm reading Dirty Work by Stuart Woods which is a Stone Barrington novel. So far it has been enjoyable. Before that I finished What the Cat Saw by Carolyn Hart. It's a cozy mystery with lots of interesting characters. I really liked it and found the person "whodunit" surprising.

I'm currently reading by Mo Hayder and by Ellis Peters.

Lori wrote: "Linda wrote: "I just finished reading by Louise Penny. A first in a series taking place near Montreal, Canada. I enjoyed the book and plan to read the series. I desc..."

Thanks for telling me about the series.

I just picked up The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries and am loving it. I'm only about 100 pages in and so far there have been funny stories, noir stories, and cozy stories.

Bill wrote: "I'm currently reading by Mo Hayder and by Ellis Peters."

how is Birdman? i recently put this book on my tbr but haven't read anything by Mo Hayder yet.

have a great holiday Bill :)

I'm reading This Body of Death by Elizabeth George. I was disappointed with her last couple of books so I'm hoping George has regained her mojo with this one.

I have just finished reading "Monet Talks" by Tamar Myers. It was a excellent "cozy mystery". Thanks to whoever recommended this author! I am now searching for more of her books to read.

Not sure where this fits into the bigger scheme of mysteries, but I have just finished a book edited by Otto Penzler containing pulp short stories that included women in some capacity other than "molls." These stories are hard to find as this was not a genre (or a time for that matter) where women were portrayed as having any ability to think on their own.

Still interesting that most of them are knockout gorgeous, but have brains as well. (A winning combination even in today's stories.)

has just been finished - it was OK but nothing to write home about. Not that my mother would be interested in what I've been reading.

Also finished , , and which were all terribly enjoyable.

Time now for something a bit more serious with

Hi I have just started "Criminal" by Karin Slaughter I think it is going to be a good one! I am already on pg. 56.
Paige

Malina wrote: "Finished it was amazing and now starting Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children"

I absolutely LOVED this book. It was just so original and quirky. I'm really looking forward to the next instalment.

Finished reading The Cabinet of Curiosities by Preston and Child.

I liked Mrs P's Children too! I also liked Dr Sleep!
Paige

Rachel wrote: "Bill wrote: "I'm currently reading by Mo Hayder and by Ellis Peters."

how is Birdman? i recent..."

It's my first Mo Hayder, Rachel. It sat on my TBR shelf for a couple of years I think. I'm glad I started it, so far a real page turner, definitely creepy. Happy Holidays to you as well. :)

Jeff wrote: "Barbara wrote: "I'm reading This Body of Death by Elizabeth George. I was disappointed with her last couple of books so I'm h..."

@Jeff...I agree that Elizabeth George takes her time getting to the nitty gritty detective work in her books but that mostly doesn't bother me.

I finished . A couple days ago. It was a good book. It was a tad confusing in the beginning because she switched from past to present within the same chapter. You tend to wonder if Anna/Ophelia is crazy or if these things happened to her. I got so caught up that I had to keep reading to see of she was insane. Good book.

I just started which is a new author for me. I am having a hard time getting into it.

Just starting , I've heard so many good things about this author, I'm excited!

Jeff wrote: "Barbara wrote: "I'm reading W is for Wasted by Sue Grafton."

Is it any good? I've read all of her other books in the series"

It's a good book Jeff; one of the best in the series.

Villa Lipari
Hello Bill and everyone!
I'm a new member to the group. So, I thought I would introduce myself as well as answering Bill's question. I'm a psychological suspense writer and gravitate to that genre.
I'm currenting re-reading MISSING by Karin Alvtegen.Bill wrote: "Hey y'all. I don't know if you've been experiencing any difficulties with the old Currently Reading thread, but lately, I'm finding that no matter what I do, when I click on the new posts, I'm brou..."

Rob Kircher
I'm a new member to the group. So, I thought I would introduce myself as well as answering Bill's question.
I'm currenting re-reading MISSING by Karin Alvtegen

Welcome Rob!
I will put "Missing" on my list..
Paige

Jeff wrote: "Barbara wrote: "Jeff wrote: "Barbara wrote: "I'm reading W is for Wasted by Sue Grafton."

Is it any good? I've read all of her o..."

Jeff, this is a series that in my opinion gets better and better as it goes on. The only thing I have been missing is the humor that was in some of the earlier books. I'm looking forward to unwrapping this book on Christmas morning.

I thought I'd posted this before, but maybe not. I'm about done with Nick Tosches' biography of Dean MartinDino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams (and it's definitely group appropriate--it provides factual background to some things about which James Ellroy has written).

I'm in the middle of Adrian McKinty's I Hear the Sirens in the Street. It's the second book in his "Troubles Trilogy" and takes place in early 1980s Belfast.

I have just begun but am not really enjoying it so far.

I've also got ready to go and am thinking of giving up on the former in favour of it.

I'm about 100 pages into and I am already dreading finishing it.. I can't believe how great it is. Before that I read which was okay. Cliff McNish is fun and all, but hardly the greatest writer of our time.

reading Drop Shot

i'm currently reading Stephen Kings, The Shining.. next up is part #2 Doctor Sleep. my first book of 2014 :)

Paige wrote: "Welcome Rob!
I will put "Missing" on my list..
Paige"

You're welcome. I believe you'll enjoy it.