Talking to the Dead-Harry Bingham

Talking to the Dead


Harry Bingham

Delacorte, Sep 25 2012, $26.00

ISBN: 9780345533739



In Cardiff, Detective Constable Fiona Griffiths works on the tedious Pentry embezzlement case in which everyone knows the culprit eventually will confess, but for now every T must be crossed and every I dotted. Detective Sergeant David “Buzz” Bryden shows Fiona the expired credit card of affluent Brendan Rattigan who died in a plane crash nine months ago, but his body never was found. The card was found in the rubble of a house containing the corpses of a twentyish drug using female and a six years old girl in which a sink crushed her head. They investigate the deaths as everyone ponders why a hooker had the deceased steel king’s credit card.



Her peers believe Griffiths is wired differently as she obsesses on cases with an intensity that leads to burnout; which most cops believe she suffered when she vanished for a couple of years. Still, though she fails in office politics and socialization as she misses all non-verbal communication, Fiona believes that the little girl April, who Fiona believes is in a better place, is the key to solving the Mancini mother and daughter murders even as she learns of a second dead prostitute.



This is an engaging Wales police procedural made fresh by the unique heroine. Fiona reminds this reader of a high functioning Aspie; as she feels empathy but cannot show it, fails to “read” social messages, and prefers detailed procedures to interpret in her different but very moral way; though her wiring comes from a different cause. Filled with action made fun by the heroine’s unorthodox methods that makes one wonder how she was hired as a copper, readers will enjoy Fiona’s inquiry.



Harriet Klausner

Nowhere To Hide-Nancy Bush

Nowhere To Hide


Nancy Bush

Zebra, Aug 28 2012, $7.99

ISBN: 9781420125023



Her law enforcement twin brother August was born six minutes before her on August 31 while Police Detective September “Nine” Rafferty came into the world on September 1. Like their older siblings (March, May and July), they are named for their birth months.



However, September has no time to celebrate her birthday as she and her partner Detective Gretchen Sandler lead the inquiry into the “Do Until Others As She Did To Me” serial killing case. The two cops know the third victim Glenda Tripp had ties to the Zuma case that Augie worked (see Nowhere to Run). However, the investigation takes a strange personal spin that has Nine believing she knows the culprit who apparently has targeted her. The prime suspect is Jake Westerly who she shared a brief interlude back in high school.



The latest Rafferty siblings’ police procedural (see Nowhere To Run) is an exciting investigative thriller. The storyline is action-packed as the hunted hunts the hunter. The relationship between Nine and Jake fails to ring true in several ways; such as the civilian protects the cop and what happened the day after back in high school is not confronted; besides which a romance feels forced and unnecessary. Still fans will enjoy Nowhere To Hide as a psychopath stalks the cop who is trying to end the killings.



Harriet Klausner

The Lincoln Conspiracy-Timothy L. O’Brien

The Lincoln Conspiracy


Timothy L. O’Brien

Ballantine, Sep 18 2012, $26.00

ISBN: 9780345496775



One month after the assassination of President Lincoln, Metropolitan Police Detective Temple McFadden limps with a cane to the platform where the B&O train to Baltimore waits. There he is to meet Stump a courier with a package for him. As he gets closer, men accost and kill Stump, but Temple with help from a soldier, who gets shot, takes the package that contains two diaries.



One diary is written by the late president’s widow Mary Todd Lincoln; while the other is the words of the killer John Wilkes Booth. A quick read stuns the cop as each diary implies that the assassination was much greater than what was told to the public. Now Temple is caught in the middle of two rival groups who will harm anyone even the detective’s beloved wife Fiona to possess the damning documents.



Using real persona and incidents from 1865 to anchor time and place, The Lincoln Conspiracy is an exciting thriller built on the premise that the official account of the assassination is a cover-up of a more sinister subversive scheme. Though the suspense is somewhat muted by the historical tidbits supporting the fascinating conspiratorial concept, this is a delightful twisting tale.



Harriet Klausner

A Death in Valencia-Jason Webster

A Death in Valencia


Jason Webster

Minotaur, Sep 18 2012, $24.99

ISBN: 9780312581848



Someone murders highly regarded paella chef Pep Roures. As the cops pull Chef Pep’s battered body from the sea, Spanish National Police Chief Inspector Max Cámara is angry as he frequently dined at the victim’s La Mar restaurant on Valencia.



The autopsy proves that Chef Pep was stabbed in the kidney before drowning. Cámara looks initially at paella chef warfare, but quickly changes his mind when he finds a money angle. The deceased strongly opposed, as the last major hold-out, the city’s renovation plans in the El Cabanyal zone that included La Mar. Distractions like the Pope is coming and an abduction occur while Cámara suddenly is homeless when the entire block he lives on collapses.



The latest Valencia Spanish police procedural (see Or the Bull Kills You) is an enjoyable whodunit as the hero is a fabulous protagonist who to quote the Wide World of Sports tastes “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.” The storyline is fast-paced and bleak as Cámara finds himself at odds with the city’s leaders at a time when he is overworked on the job and overwhelmed in his personal life with no home and a woman he wants (in Madrid) who seems to have moved on.



Harriet Klausner

Outrage-Arnaldur Indridason

Outrage


Arnaldur Indridason

Minotaur, Sep 18 2012, $24.99

ISBN: 9780312659110



In Reykjavík, a young man wearing a San Francisco t-shirt enters a bar and tries to pick up a woman. The next morning, Runólfur is found dead in his home wearing a San Francisco T-shirt that is too small. With Inspector Erlendur suddenly on leave, Detective Elínborg leads the homicide investigation.



The victim’s throat was slashed and they find the date rape drug Rohypnol on him as well as in his body. Assuming the date rape drug is the key to the motive, Elínborg begins her inquiry with Runólfur’s mom who offers little pertinent information. She and her team find evidence that strongly suggest Runólfur was a serial rapist with no friends except Edvard, who appears to be the deceased’s sidekick. Elínborg works the case without help from her incognito boss and while worrying about one of her three children Valthór addicted to computers.



The latest Iceland police procedural (see Hypothermia) is an engaging thriller that provides a deep look at the nation’s culture in Reykjavik and in a small remote village. The fascinating storyline is fast-paced except when the focus is on the lead cop’s family, which detracts from the case.



Harriet Klausner

Lucky Stuff-Sharon Fiffer

Lucky Stuff


Sharon Fiffer

Minotaur, Sep 18 2012, $24.99

ISBN: 9780312643034



Antiques picker Jane Wheel feels good her divorce from Charley, who is mostly in Honduras, is final; while she has mixed feelings about her son Nick going to a boarding high school that specializes in science and math. No longer needing her house in Evanston, Illinois, Jane forwards her collections to her friend Tim Lowry for storage in her hometown Kankakee, and places their home on the market. However, she is unprepared for how fast the house sells so moves back to her parents’ home in Kankakee.



Also returning to Kankakee to film a self-roast is B level comedian Lucky Miller though he stayed in town for a relatively short time. Lucky spends a lot of money to restore the businesses to what he remembers them as he fears he did something terrible here but cannot recall what he did. Adding to his belief is someone sending Lucky notes accusing him of crimes. While Lucky has sent many customers to the EZ Way Inn, owned by Jane’s parents, her mom Nellie scorns the comedian. Meanwhile a crew member is killed just after he and Lucky got into an argument. . With her mom in the middle, Jane investigates.



The latest Jane Wheel amateur sleuth (see Backstage Stuff) is an enjoyable lighthearted mystery as the heroine wonders why her mom disdains Lucky. Although the whodunit is thin, fans will enjoy Lucky Stuff as Jane “knew something like this was going to happen” when she came home.



Harriet Klausner

A Fistful of Collars-Spencer Quinn

A Fistful of Collars


Spencer Quinn

Atria, Sep 11 2012, $25.00

ISBN: 9781451665161



Valley Mayor Trimble establishes the Millennial Cultural Initiative to attract Hollywood money. Trimble succeeds in getting the producers of the next Thad Perry blockbuster action flick to use his town as the location for the shoot. He hires the Little Detective Agency to watch over Perry known for his bad boy excesses.



Little Detective Agency investigators Bernie Little and his associate Chet the canine meet Perry who challenges the human to a fight and Brando the feline who challenges the dog. As the location filming begins, murder occurs. Thus the private detectives keep a vigil on Perry and Brando while also investigating the homicides, which they wonder if the killings connect to the secret that ties Thad to the Valley.



The latest Chet and Bernie Mystery (see The Dog Who Knew Too Much) is a terrific whodunit. Chet narrates the investigation enhanced by his wry asides on his relationships with his human sidekick and his species war with Brando. Although the villain seems obvious, fans will appreciate this sleuthing partnership as Hollywood goes Valley.



Harriet Klausner