Mystery/Thriller Reading Friends discussion

Toxic Prey: John Sanford
Imagine that, 2 books in a row with the authorities trying to stop attacks by weapons of mass destruction. The tale features Lucas and Letty, and some of the trademark humor is evident, but less than I am accustomed to. (A)

Pay Dirt: Sara Paretsky
The kidnapping and murder kept her in town, but the solution was in the secrets the town wanted hidden. (A)

A Calamity of Souls: David Baldacci
I wondered about this at first, a book he had written decades ago, but just released. Set in 1968, it does not tell a new story. You could look back to “To Kill a Mockingbird” or various works by Grisham and others. My conclusion was that he released it to be a parable about where we are as a country today. To say more would be to delve further in politics than I would on this forum, but you can make your own mind up. (A)

Catchpenny: Charlie Huston
Nobody would ever accuse Huston of writing a mundane novel, and again, he does not disappoint. Perhaps this is a strange world he brings us to, where mirrors can be portals for transportation, where in some instances, magic works, and where your reflection can be animated and walk the earth. Catchpenny, the protagonist, is a loser in almost every sense, but he senses something amiss in the world, and sets out to fix it with some talent, some wit, and little else. (B+)

The Last Kind Words: Tom Piccirilli
A book most certainly populated by criminals, and some ideas that they may not be right in the head and not as opposed to murder as they thought. Strange premise, a serial murderer calls his brother to prison to ask him to investigate why he is accused of one more murder than he committed. The brother, a second story man, looks into the situation, learning many things he really does not want to know. (B+)

Matterhorn: Christopher Reichs
A respectably good spy book.When a “retired” spy’s son is killed, he unretires himself to find out why. (B+)

Compulsion: Jonathan Kellerman
Alex Delaware and Milo Sturgis. An unusual sting of murders stretching back years, and even more unusual people involved in the investigation. (B)

Savage Season: Joe Lansdale
Hap and Leonard, two down on their luck friends, get involved with recovering cash from a long forgotten robbery. Then they get double crossed, then the double crossers get double crossed, and on and on. (B)

My Favorite Terrible Thing: Madeleine Henry
An Amazon first. An unconventional detective is hired to find a missing author. She does, but that is where things get very strange. (B)

One Fine Day the Rabbi Bought a Cross: Harry Kemmelman
More wide ranging and expansive than the earlier books, ranging between Massachusetts and Israel, investigating the murder of an American in Israel. (B)

Dead Inside: Kate Bold
Amazon First. An FBI agent is exiled to North Dakota just as a serial killer begins to ply his trade. To fail is to no longer be an agent, so she must succeed, (B)

The Thief Who Couldn’t Sleep” Lawrence Block
AN Evan Tanner story, the thief who never sleeps following a war injury, and wanders the world almost seemingly at random, but always in pursuit of the big score. (B)

Nice month Barry! I have had my eye on the new Paretsky - #22 VI Warshawski !! I have not yet read #'s 8, 16, 17, 18, 19 or 20, so I will drive Carol crazy by saying I am tempted to read this one out of order when I get my turn at the library :) Pay Dirt.
Two others look quite intriguing - Catchpenny and A Calamity of Souls (based on your speculation on why he released this now and the comparisons)


BarryP wrote: "Pay Dirt: Sara Paretsky
The kidnapping and murder kept her in town, but the solution was in the secrets the town wanted hidden. (A)

Great month! And now I have to read Baldacci's. One, because I loved his early stuff and two, your provocative comment!

another great month for you, barry. at our event with alex michaelidis he recommended A Calamity of Souls to the audience.

Matterhorn was certainly helped by the unusual location. I enjoyed the book but thought the number of relatives was a little unbelievable .