M Reviews - Not in Alphabetical Order
Sharyn McCrumb - The Songcatcher
This is the first book I've ready by Sharyn McCrumb. I think I ordered this from the Mystery Guild, so I was expecting a traditional mystery. Instead, we get a story about the search for a song! We are introduced to several characters, and are taken back through time to follow the path of the song from old Scotland to the New World, and the mountains of North Carolina. It is also the story of a family and their disconnect with each other, not just currently, but through history. I was surprised and actually did enjoy the story. I have always liked folk music, and I like stories with snippets of characters and history, and I think you will enjoy this story as well. Now the characters are really all that likable, but their story is interesting and the theme that ties them all together is the song. I'd recommend that you look for this book and give it a try!
Ngaio Marsh - Scales of Justice
This is another Inspector Alleyn investigation. I really like him and this is an exceptionally good story! Sir Lacklander dies and asked a neighbor to see that his memoirs get published. But then the neighbor is murdered and a fish is the clue! This summer we went to England and I saw the valleys Ngaio Marsh described! Not the exact ones, but I could visualize her descriptions as the bus passed through the country side. I loved it! This is a great story, and if you haven't read it yet, you should put it on your list.
G. A. McKevett - Cooked Goose
This is another series starring ex-cop, Savannah Reid. The setting for this book, and the whole series I'm guessing, is San Carmelita in Southern California. Since I live in Southern California, I especially enjoyed the story. I would guess someplace like Ventura or Santa Barbara are the models for San Carmelita, both places are places I've been to a lot through the years. In this story Savannah, and her ex-partner, Dirk, are trying to get a serial rapist. The characters are realistic I think and fun, in some instances, and very scary in others. It is sometimes hard to tell the good guys from the bad, and that is where the excitement and the solution of the mystery in this story lies. I enjoyed this story, I like Savannah and her downhome philosphies and definitely think you will too. She is from the south, named for Savannah, Georgia, and is the oldest of I believe 9 children. We meet one of her younger sisters throughout the course of this story. Quite a family! Look for the other Savannah stories, I certainly will.
Updated September 23, 2001
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