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Book Review: Three Act Tragedy

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Three Act Tragedy
Hercule Poirot #11
by Agatha Christie
read by Hugh Fraser

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Classic mystery

This Poirot mystery was quite a departure from the previous ones, in that much of the investigating is done without Poirot around—at least the investigating that we get to see. Poirot comes in during the last 3rd or so of the book to throw a wrench into the ideas of the people who had taken it upon themselves to try to get to the bottom of the recent deaths. The story really kept me on my toes. In some ways, I feel like I’m starting to get a feel for Agatha Christie’s way of creating a mystery, which leads me to take more outlandish guesses as to the solution than I probably otherwise would. But since I don’t really ever guess at the motive, I don’t feel particularly vindicated if I end up being right. And I was only part right about the killer in this case anyway. I’ve begun to enjoy these stories a lot more than I did early in the series, and I still appreciate the narration by Hugh Fraser. And bonus, this book left me with a laugh right at the end.

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Book Review: Book Scavenger

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Book Scavenger
Book #1
by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Middle grade adventure

Twelve-year-old Emily is a book scavenger. That means she takes part in a game where books are hidden to be found by other scavengers. The only good thing about her family moving (yet again) is that they’re going to San Francisco, which is where the founder of this game, Garrison Griswold, lives. But when Emily’s family gets to San Francisco, she learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in the hospital. Emily and her new friend James find a book hidden near the location of Griswold’s attack and suspect that it was hidden on purpose as part of Griswold’s next big game. But will this discovery make them the next target of Griswold’s attackers?

This book started out feeling a little like the Mr. Lemoncello’s Library series, with the wealthy benefactor of fun games for kids, the heavy book vibe, and puzzles, but add in geo-caching. It certainly takes its own path, though, so I’m not trying to say that it’s just like Lemoncello. In fact, I like this book more than the first Lemoncello, which is saying something. Besides the puzzles, reading, and hunting, this book includes wonderful themes of family, home, and friendship.

Emily and her brother remind me a little of my own kids, even though the age gap is very different. Emily and Matthew used to go book scavenging together, before Matthew got interested in other things; my kids have often gone geo-caching together. Our family has gone together a couple of times now, in fact, and it’s a lot of fun! So I had a pretty good frame of reference for the book scavenging game. And Emily’s new friendship with James—and Steve!—is the heart of the book.

There are moments in this book that are probably a little unrealistic, but who cares? In fact, some of those were some of my favorite moments in the book! I loved this book so much and highly recommend it to kids aged around 10-14 (my now-14-year-old daughter loved it when read it a year or more ago as well) but also for teens and even adults who enjoy books and puzzles.

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Book Review: The Sign of the Twisted Candles

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The Sign of the Twisted Candles
Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #9
by Carolyn Keene
read by Danica Reese

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Children’s classic mystery

Nancy gets involved in another mystery when she learns that a man’s 100th birthday is going to be ignored. The man’s relatives are waiting for him to die so they can get their inheritance, while others are taking matters into their own hands and siphoning off some of the man’s possessions early. Meanwhile, there’s a young woman caught up in the plot, who Nancy befriends and whose life Nancy turns around. It’s all a bit much for me, and some of it feels too much like at least parts of previous plots. (Does Nancy ever help a young man in need, or is it only ever women who are being taken advantage of or in some kind of messy situation?) To make matters worse, the young woman, Carol, tends to act a bit whiny and acts as if Nancy is the best thing on the planet. If I had to hear, “Oh, Nancy…” one more time…

The narration has gone completely downhill since Laura Linney’s narration ended (though this one was a bit better than the previous), and there’s only 1 more in this series that even has an audiobook (at least at my library). I think this is a good place to end my trip through the series, since I have a difficult time with the repetitiveness and Nancy as the most awesome, kind, beautiful, and generous person to ever walk the earth anyway. I guess I could handle it more with decent narration, so if they get Laura Linney to do some more, maybe I’ll listen to more. Or maybe they can get Lani Minella to narrate some! I’d be down for that.

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Book Review: Leader of the Pack

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Leader of the Pack
Andy Carpenter #10
by David Rosenfelt
read by Grover Gardner

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Mystery

A visit to a client whose case Andy lost years in the past turns into Andy and wonder dog Tara visiting the client’s uncle, an elderly crime family member, for a dog therapy session. Andy is surprised when the old man makes comments about his nephew in jail that turn Andy onto a new track for his client’s defense case. When people related to this new line of investigation begin dying, Andy believes he just may be onto something.

This book follows a similar formula to the previous books in the series, with the exception of the way that Andy comes across his new case (which is one of the main things that varies most from book to book anyway). The case is as twisty as normal, though the stakes and destruction are considerably higher this time. I particularly enjoyed Sam in this book, and enigmatic Marcus is always nice to have around. Even Hike made me smile a time or two.

The ending, though…not only did it break the formula, I never saw it coming. Things like that keep a series fresh, and though I do find comfort in the formula, I also enjoy a good shaking up. Andy’s wit and snark bring me coming back to these books, and Grover Gardner’s narration brings it to life. I love this series and recommend the book (especially the audio) for fans of mystery, crime fiction, and courtroom dramas.

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Book Review: Murder on the Orient Express

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Murder on the Orient Express
Hercule Poirot #10
by Agatha Christie
read by David Suchet

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Classic mystery

Up front, I’ll say that some time in my life, though I have no idea when or where, I heard a spoiler for this novel. I’ve never seen any adaptations for it or read it before now, but somehow I’ve known the basic solution for a while (the who but not the why or the how). I have no idea if not knowing it would have affected my reading experience. I’m absolutely certain that I would not have figured out the mystery without foreknowledge. This story was one of the more engaging Poirot novels I’ve read so far, not feeling as bloated as some of the earlier ones. Though I do miss Poirot having a sidekick to discuss his thoughts with, at least it means we don’t have to listen to him putting poor Hastings down while extolling his own virtues. Yes, Poirot is brilliant…but he’s not always very nice. On the other hand, his decision at the very end of this book shows much compassion, even if I don’t necessarily agree that it was the right decision.

I definitely understand why this is the most famous Poirot mystery, and I think I’ve gotten to a point in the series that the writing has gotten better and tighter than early on, when I struggled to engage in the mysteries. My expectation is high as I continue on!

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Book Review: Nancy’s Mysterious Letter

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Nancy’s Mysterious Letter
Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #8
by Carolyn Keene
read by Jessie Birschbach

My rating: 2.5 / 5
Genre: Children’s classic mystery

Coincidences abound when Nancy is contacted by a firm in England looking for a Nancy (Smith) Drew and thinks maybe this Nancy is the one they’re looking for. She’s not, but since the firm had tracked the other Nancy Drew to the United States, it only makes sense that she would be found somewhere in the vicinity of our Nancy Drew. The United States isn’t very big, after all, and same-name people tend to gravitate toward each other. My sarcasm aside, how hard would it have been for the author of this story to have given at least a somewhat more plausible explanation for why this other Nancy Drew happened to have connections to River Heights?

The rest of the story was decent enough, though not outstanding. What brought my rating down more was the narrator. Laura Linney was a great choice for narrating these books, and she was going to be a tough act for anyone to follow. But this narrator was objectively not great. Some of her voices were outlandish or ridiculous, and I’m glad to see she doesn’t narrate any more of these books (though apparently there are only a couple more ND books that even have audiobook editions). My reading of this long series may be coming to a close much sooner than I expected.

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Book Review: The Fate of Ten

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The Fate of Ten
Lorien Legacies #6
by Pittacus Lore

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: YA sci-fi

Spoiler notice: The following review will contain some spoilers for the previous books in the series, starting with I Am Number Four.

Once again split up, the Garde are unable to work together as intended to deal with the Mogodorian invasion of Earth. But whether or not the excursion to Mexico will be as helpful as they had hoped remains to be seen. Meanwhile, fighting amongst some of the Garde makes it difficult for John to focus on stopping the Mogadorians.

I really did not expect this series to get to the point it has—full-scale invasion. It’s a lot for a small number of newly powered teenagers to handle, so it’s a good thing they’re gaining some unexpected allies. I’ve also enjoyed most of this series more than I thought I would, considering that it’s overall fairly shallow and action-based. I like some of the characters and their friendships (though there are a couple of characters and relationships I couldn’t care less about), and Adam is really growing on me. I’d really like to know more about his “relationship” with One.

It seemed to me that the language was suddenly ramped up in this book. I’m not going to go back and check past books, but to my recollection at least, it feels like, on a scale of 1 to 10, we went from a 1 or 2 to a 7, which is quite a leap. Overall, though, I’m enjoying the ride. Taken as a fun, sci-fi romp and not any kind of deep literature, it’s kept me engaged pretty solidly since book #3 (I enjoyed book #1 but found #2 pretty boring). I’m looking forward to reading the final one, and though I didn’t originally intend to bother with the novellas, I’m starting to think I should really check them out.

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Book Review: One Dog Night

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One Dog Night
Andy Carpenter #9
by David Rosenfelt
read by Grover Gardner

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Mystery

When a man who once broke into Andy Carpenter’s home is arrested for murder, nothing could make Andy care or want to defend the man. Nothing except finding out that Andy’s beloved dog Tara was previously owned by the accused, Noah Galloway. That connection is enough to get Andy digging, and before long, Andy is doing what he does best—unearthing a conspiracy.

Conspiracies are definitely the norm in this series, but this one seemed a bit more bloated and unnecessary than usual. Maybe it just seemed that way because it took so much 3rd-person storytelling to keep the reader on track with what was going on that Andy wasn’t privy to at the time. It seemed like every other scene was 3rd-person, an addition to the normally all-1st-person format that just started in the book previous to this. I still enjoyed the story overall, but since Andy’s personality is a lot of what drew me to this series in the first place and there’s much less of that when Andy isn’t in the scene it does tend to diminish my enjoyment. But not a ton.

I especially liked some of the side characters in this book, the people who make up Andy’s investigative and legal team. Willie Miller shines, and even Hike gets a good moment or two. Despite my complaint above, I still had fun listening to the book. These books have become comfort reads for me; even my least favorite can never be lower than 4 stars. I recommend the book (especially the audio—Grover Gardner makes Andy’s sarcasm and wit come to life) for fans of mystery, crime fiction, and courtroom dramas.

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Book Review: The Dead of Night

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The Dead of Night
The 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers #3
by Peter Lerangis

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Middle grade mystery, adventure

Spoiler notice: The following review may contain some spoilers for the previous books in the series, starting with The Maze of Bones.

Amy and Dan Cahill finally get a chance to take the fight to Vesper One, though somehow he still always ends up ahead. With seven of their loved ones still being held hostage and Vesper One making impossible demands of Amy and Dan, Dan is more determined than ever to create the Cahill serum so that he can stop the Vespers.

I enjoyed the main 39 Clues series, but I’ve been liking this one all the more. It’s a little darker, and our heroes have a seen-too-much kind of maturity. They’ve grown and changed since the original series in a way that’s completely realistic. I love the allies they’re picking up along the way, though I could do without the love triangle…or square? There are some questions and mysteries that come up or advance in this book that have me really engaged. I’m halfway through this series now, and I don’t have any theories about what’s going on or what might happen. This book ends with with a shocking moment, and I can’t wait to continue. I can really see this book (and series) being a fun read for anyone who enjoys mystery and adventure for a younger audience, no matter their age.

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Book Review: Lord Edgware Dies

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Lord Edgware Dies
Hercule Poirot #9
 by Agatha Christie
read by Hugh Fraser

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Classic mystery

I enjoyed the twists and turns in this Poirot novel. As Poirot fixates on five questions that he thinks, when answered, will solve the mystery, I’m way too easily carried along for the ride. I actually did suspect the correct murderer early on, but it wasn’t much of a win, since I had no idea how it worked out. I think the guess was more about having read a few of these books now and getting a feel for how Christie wrote. I liked this book more than most of the others in the series and didn’t feel it was as bloated as many of the others are. Huge Fraser, as always, does a great job narrating, and I’m a little nervous about the next book (Murder on the Orient Express), which is almost definitely the most famous Poirot story. I hope it lives up to the hype.

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