Honestly. Just so ridiculous. Nina Simons’ Mother Daughter Murder Night imagine a grandmother on chemo, a working mom and a teenage girl as the intrepid detectives that will solve a murder in a sleepy seaside town. Because the well qualified female police officer is bossed around by her mansplaining partner and so can’t pursue the leads she know she should? And because somehow the crew of ill-qualified women are just able to find key evidence, interview witnesses and locate unexpected This and That. Were it not for the fact that it was an audiobook and I was batch cooking endless soups (#winteriscoming) and couldn’t be bothered to turn it off, I would have absolutely thrown it out a window. Do not bother! Despite how catchy the back of the book makes it sound or how tempted you are by Strong Women Doing Things.
Category Archives: Mystery
The Club: Driving book
Ellery Lloyd’s The Club is equal parts forgettable murder mystery and entirely engrossing distraction. Very fancy private club for the richest celebrities – there’s blackmail, murder attempts, hidden identities, adoptions gone wrong. All the best things you might hope from a soap opera among the rich and famous. I can’t say the book does much to explore deep themes (maybe you could stretch at something about women’s autonomy or objectification or power), and probably that is fine for what it is. A glossy magazine turned novel. A novel destined to be adapted for HBO. So enjoy it as an audiobook, or on a beach, or on a rainy Saturday morning (while your kids tear your house apart and the book lets you absolutely ignore the chaos: a true gift).
Filed under Book I'll Forget I Read, Fiction, Mystery
The Grey Wolf: Weird with time and maybe place
I won’t dwell on my love of Louise Penny, nor recapitulate my reasons for enjoying the Gamache character and mystery series. Suffice to say it is comforting and I will never be critical of the books because they are warm tea and cozy socks.
The latest instalment takes on political corruption, international and domestic terrorism in aid of political instability and the church. So here we are, 2025.
It was – as the books always are – engrossing and fun and cozy. There were, however, some odd experiments with bringing the reader forward and back in time and place – within single chapters – that were – I think – unsuccessful. Maybe a tired editor. Maybe an effort to be more Literary. But for this reader ultimately confusing and strange.
That’s all I’ll say because you are not really here to find out whether you should read a Louise Penny mystery. If you don’t know by now: you should.
Filed under Canadian Literature, Fiction, Mystery
Literary Vice 