Mystery Magazine: August 2024 opens with the
cover story “A Tale Of Trucidation” by Tracy Falenwolfe. Daphne Peters just escaped
a nearby house and is contemplating the closed Edgar Warner Memorial Library.
The three story Victorian mansion is dark and she could hide in the bushes
around it. First, she needs to swipe a bottle of water or three as she sees
cases are stacked on the porch. Once she gets some water in her, she can think
and make a plan. Whatever happens, she can’t get caught as she is in
considerable danger. She isn’t the only one.
Leah is at her neighbor’s apartment when
the detective came to say that the body of Sarah’s husband, Paul, had been found.
How that came to be and a lot more is revealed in “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”
by Matt Kingcroft.
Next up is “The Poppy Flower Forgeries”
by Richard D. Hallows. Leaving the antiquities shop in the hands of Jonathan
might have proved to be a serious mistake. He isn’t the brightest nephew. Now
she has a serious problem that she did not need. What to do with a stolen Van
Gough?
Readers go back in time with the next
short story, “The Eyes Ff St. Thomas” by S. B. Watson. People in the area know
that a local establishment, The Masse D’armes, is full of bad folks, doing bad
stuff. Among the various things that happen there, fake relics are bought and sold.
A knight has just ridden to the place and gone inside. He can’t be there for
any good reason.
An antiquity of sorts, is also at work
in the next tale where a young teen, Draymond, is poking around a hole in a
riverbank. He works at the hole and soon finds a soggy old candy box. Inside
that he finds a confession on a sheet of paper dated 1998. There is a mastery
to solve. Draymond is on the case in “a Small Town Mystery, Solved” by M.C.
Schmidt.
He likes to hide out in a certain very
isolated spot in the park. He is always alone until that day when she first
shows up. Pretty soon, they meet up every day in “Here Is Where My Amy Lies” by
April Kelly. The place is pretty, peaceful, and isolated--- much like their
evolving relationship.
It is off to Italy in “The Trade” by
Dale Phillips. This final story features the Italian Mafia, a man who is in great
fear of being killed, and a smart investigator, Dante LaGuardia. Vincent has
managed to cross Roberto Pazzi, the most dangerous man in Florence, and needs
LaGuardia’s help. Good thing LaGuardia has an idea.
Mystery Magazine: August 2024 is another fun
filled issue. Plenty of interesting characters, complex storylines, and twisty
tales make the issue entertaining. As always, things are not excessively dark,
violent, or too much in terms of language. All in all, a good read and another
issue sure to have at least a couple of stories, you will really like.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4g0TkwV
For quite some time now I have been
gifted a subscription by the publisher with no expectation at all of a
review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024
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