Happiness Is A Book: Friday’s Forgotten Book: A Bullet in the Ballet by Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon
Showing posts with label mystery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mystery. Show all posts
Friday, September 11, 2026
Wednesday, September 09, 2026
Tuesday, September 08, 2026
Monday, August 31, 2026
Monday, August 24, 2026
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Tricks of Fortune by Lina Chern
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Tricks of Fortune by Lina Chern: Reviewed by Jeanne When Katie True was a baby, her life was saved after a car crash by a policeman who rushed her to a hospital just i...
Friday, August 21, 2026
Saturday, August 15, 2026
KRL Update
Up on KRL this week reviews and giveaways of 3 more fun cozies for your end of summer reading TBR- "All Shell Breaks Loose" A Haunted Shell Shop Mystery by Molly MacRae, "Whose Body in the Library" A Lighthouse Library Mystery by Eva Gates, & "Malice in Puzzle Land" An Alice Pepper Lonely Hearts and Puzzle Club by Roz Noonan https://kingsriverlife.com/08/15/end-of-summer-mystery-catchup/
And a review and giveaway of "Killer Art" by Jon St. Denis, along with an interesting interview with Jon https://kingsriverlife.com/08/15/killer-art-by-jon-st-denis/
Looking for a new British mystery TV show to binge? Up on KRL this week we have a review of "Inspector Ellis" on Acorn TV https://kingsriverlife.com/08/15/inspector-ellis-seasons-1-2-on-acorn-tv/
Up on KRL News and Reviews this week we have a review and ebook giveaway of "Four on the Floor" By Gabriel Valjan https://www.krlnews.com/2026/08/four-on-floor-by-gabriel-valjan.html
And a review and giveaway of "Mr. and Mrs. Dixon Hide a Body" By Jennifer Holdich https://www.krlnews.com/2026/08/mr-and-mrs-dixon-hide-body-by-jennifer.html
And a review and giveaway of "Killer Vibes" by Jack Friday https://www.krlnews.com/2026/08/killer-vibes-by-jack-friday.html
Happy reading,
Lorie
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Publication Day Review: The Tailor: A DS George Cross Mystery by Tim Sullivan
Who would kill a bespoke tailor?
That is the initial central question for DS George
Cross of the Avon and Somerset police in The Tailor: A DS George Cross
Mystery by Tim Sullivan. This eighth book in the series opens with a
murder on a train. There is absolutely no question it was a murder.
The deceased man was found in the first-class
bathroom of a passenger train headed from Bristol to Paddington Cross in London.
Apparently, the plastic bag over his head did not fully do the job, so the
killer deeply slashed the victim’s throat. He cut so deeply that the killer
almost severed the head from the body.
That got the job done.
He also got away with it with nobody noticing
anything at all.
Because the victim was wearing a bespoke suit with
the label of “Titcomb & Titcomb’s of Park Street,” Detective Sergeant George
Cross believes there is a good chance that the deceased is one of their
clients. Within a short period of time, they learn that the deceased is one
William Titcomb.
Not a client, but one of the owners of a long
running family business. A third-generation tailor, William Titcomb was married
to Min, and had two small children. His twin sister, Gwen, is also heavily involved
in the business.
According to Gwen, he was headed to Heathrow Airport
to board a flight to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates for fittings with two
clients. Then he was to travel on to Xiamen, China, where they have a tailoring
operation and check in there. Min comes from China, has contacts, and the facility
in China has been a huge boost to the family business. Mr. Titcomb was
traveling with two suitcases, presumably full with the suits for the clients in
Dubai. Those suitcases and their
contents are missing.
Where are the suitcases? Who killed the bespoke
tailor? Was he killed for the suits?
Just some of the questions that DS George Cross and
the assembled team must answer in The Tailor: A DS George Cross Mystery by Tim
Sullivan. If the case was not enough, Cross and several others have to deal
with professional and personal upheaval in their lives. For one thing, as long-time
readers know, Josie Ottey, has been promoted. That means she is now superior in
rank to Cross.
An issue that Cross is slowly adjusting to as it has
been very hard for him as social situations are very difficult. Ottey’s
promotion means that she will no longer be with him in the field conducting
interviews and gathering information. That fact also means that she won’t be
around to manage him or smooth over awkward situations with those he talks to
as he goes about investigations. That has the potential to be a real problem
for Cross and a huge problem for the next person in that role.
Then there is a family situation for Cross that is
best left to the reader to discover. I don’t want to reveal more as it could be
construed as a spoiler as it is a major piece of the plot. However, for those readers,
like me, who have gone through the death of a loved one due to cancer and absolutely
hate cancer storylines, it is not that. In fact, the issue here is not remotely
medically related in any way, shape, or form. You can rest easy on that aspect
of the read.
The Tailor: A DS George Cross Mystery
by Tim Sullivan is a complicated, fast moving, and highly entertaining read.
Much is going on in many different ways in the latest book in this long running
series. This review just skims the surface of this very good book.
Strongly Recommended.
Author Website: https://timsullivanusa.com/
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4fjUNAD
My digital ARC came from the publisher, Grove Atlantic, of Atlantic Crime,
through NetGalley, with no expectation of a positive review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Monday, August 10, 2026
Friday, August 07, 2026
In Reference to Murder: Friday's "Forgotten" Books: The Spoilt Kill
In Reference to Murder: Friday's "Forgotten" Books: The Spoilt Kill: Mary Theresa Coolican Kelly (1927-2017) was born in London but ended up a Scotland gal. She received an M.A. degree from University of Edinb...
Wednesday, August 05, 2026
Friday, July 31, 2026
Thursday, July 30, 2026
Thursday Treats: 7/30/2026
Some reading opportunities of interest this week.
SMFS
list member Armand Rosamilia
announced that his flash fiction short story, Coffee And A Glazed Donut, was
published online at The Yard: Crime Blog. You can read it for free here.
SMFS
list member Chuck
Brownman announced that his short story, Rendering
the Truth, was released as Episode 13 of Season 9 of the Mysteries to Die
For podcast anthology series. You can listen for free at https://m2d4podcast.com/. As is done at the close of the season each year, a book
will be generated of all the episodes and available at a variety of vendors.
Black
Cat Weekly #256 is out and includes short stories by SMFS
list member Michael Bracken (Satan’s Wings) and others. You can pick up the
latest issue here.
SMFS
list member James
W. Ziskin
latest novel, The Prank, is now out. “Set in Christmas
1968, a thirteen-year-old sociopath befriends his teacher, unaware she loved
the man his prank accidentally killed.” Published by Level
Best-Historia, the read is available in both digital
and print formats at Amazon and other
vendors.
Also
now out is the new anthology, What the World Needs Now: Mystery Stories Inspired by the
Music of Burt Bacharach. SMFS list members
Joseph Goodrich (The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance) and Josh Pachter (Me
Japanese Boy) are included in the charity anthology edited by Martin Edwards.
Funds raised are for autism charities in the US and UK. It is available at Amazon.
Speaking
of musical themed anthologies, In Too Deep: Crime Fiction Inspired by the
Songs of Genesis, is once again released into the world. Edited by Adam
Meyer, the new publisher is Audecyn
Books. The read contains short stories by Kathleen
Barber, Eric Beetner, Michael Bracken, Austin Camacho, Barb Goffman, Debra H.
Goldstein, James A. Hearn, Smita Harish Jain, Hugh Lessig, Adam Meyer, Tom
Milani, Alan Orloff, Josh Pachter, Rob D. Smith, Joseph S. Walker. You can get
it at Amazon or other vendors.
As Gigi
Pandian posted to the SMFS list recently and I quote: “We've got several SMFS
members in the anthology. Josh mentioned his story, "The Allegory of the
Five Senses," which is terrific. Tom Mead and I wrote "The Problem of
the Poison Garden" as a nod to our favorite author, John Dickson Carr. I
had no idea co-writing could be such fun!”
Until next time….
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Short Story Wednesday Review: Forget Me Not by Stephen Ford (Thriller Magazine: June 2026 issue)
The plan was complicated and yet simple. Sir
Alistair Pembroke was willing to pay in the short story, Forget Me Not, by
Stephen Ford (Thriller Magazine: June 2026 issue). Sir Pembroke claims
to have heard of Mr. Frost and the services he can provide clients by way of discreet word of mouth. What he wants is
simple on the face of it--“’Find Your Item. Steal it back. Leave a gift.’”
The item to be retrieved is a certain book. The item
to be left behind is some sort of flower petal.
Nobody said a word about the dead body in the target
location. But, that is exactly what awaits Mr. Frost and his team at the home
of Jarvis Stowe somewhere in England. And a caravan of police vehicles is
closing in rapidly.
What follows is a story of twists, turns, and deceit
that has the roots in what was once called “The Cold War.” It is also a mighty
good read in an issue I enjoyed.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4futRwr
My digital reading copy came by way of my ninety-day free Kindle Unlimited trial.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Friday, July 24, 2026
Thursday, July 23, 2026
Jerry's House of Everything: SUSPENSE: THE BLACK CURTAIN (NOVEMBER 30, 1944)
Jerry's House of Everything: SUSPENSE: THE BLACK CURTAIN (NOVEMBER 30, 1944): Cornell Woolrich's classic 1941 mystery novel of a man who wakes up with three year's of amnesia, finding himself accused for a crim...
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