Bed with Books

Psych: A Mind is a Terrible to Read is a contemporary mystery based on the USA television series and written by William Rabkin. Brilliantly showing up a detective in court by causing someone other than the defendant to confess to a murder, therefore throwing out the whole case, is not the best way to get in someone’s good graces. Though Shawn, man-child of excellent deduction skills who has convinced most of Santa Barbara that he is actually psychic, may be convinced that the end justifies the means in this case, the detective in question is not so sure. In fact, he’s so irritated that he gets Gus, Shawn’s best friend since childhood, and Shawn’s car impounded over something as silly as eighty-seven parking tickets. Petty man! But when the duo go to pick up the car, they find they’ve stumbled across a criminal conspiracy and nearly get run over by a Mercedes. Not that surprising, really. Once Gus wakes up in the hospital, not only does he find himself in the midst of another crazy ca...

Scarlett Undercover is a YA contemporary mystery by Jennifer Latham. Independent, shrewd fifteen year old Scarlett finished high school two years early and now spends her time as a private investigator. When she agrees to investigate the concerns of a little girl after her older brother seems to be “off” following a friend’s suicide – she doesn’t expect it to be a long investigation, more of a feel good case for a kid. Yet when it becomes clear the suicide may have actually been murder, Scarlett finds herself getting entangled in a world of cults, curses and secrets that may tie into her own family tragedy… Scarlett Undercover is trying to be a lot of things. It is trying to be diverse, by bringing a biracial, non-traditional Muslim main character into the limelight. It is trying to be clever and sassy, with a Veronica Mars angle with the teenage detective plot and droll protagonist dealing with a personal, unsolved crime. It’s trying to be slyly supernatural in a magical realism way...

Jane and the Madness of Lord Byron is the tenth historical mystery in the Jane Austen Mystery series by Stephanie Barron. As I said last week regarding Jane and the Barque of Frailty , these are really books best read in order to get the full impact and understanding of relationships and such. However, I believe they could potentially work as stand-alone stories, as well. When Henry’s adored, animated wife Eliza passes away from illness, Jane and Henry mourn her deeply. Calling on the recuperative, distracting power of the ocean and sea air, the pair head to Brighton to enjoy the teeming, dazzling resort life favored by so many. It is not long before Jane’s path crosses with the famous, possibly mad, undeniably magnetic poet and seducer of women: Lord Byron. His reputation is known to Jane, but even she cannot help but be shocked by the circumstances in which she meets him. So, when a beautiful young girl barely out in society is found murdered and placed in Lord Byron’s bed, there a...

Jane and the Barque of Frailty is the ninth in Stephanie Barron’s Jane Austen Mystery series. I thoroughly recommend reading this fantastically imagined, Regency whodunit series from the beginning. You would want to start with Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor . I’ve been a huge enthusiast of this series from the beginning as a fan of both Jane Austen and mysteries! It’s 1811 in London and Jane Austen is enjoying a month-long visit with her brother Henry and his lively wife Eliza. She’s awaiting publication of her first novel, Sense and Sensibility and spending her free time socializing during the height of the Season. When a mysterious, exiled, lovely Russian princess is found dead outside of the abode of a notorious Tory minister, though – even Jane is surprised. The determination of self-murder does not sit right with Jane, and she is happy to investigate further. What is more surprising, however, is that Jane and Eliza manage to thrust themselves into the case – as ...

The Dresden Files: Grave Peril is the third book in the adult urban fantasy series by Jim Butcher. To get the maximum reading enjoyment, I suggest reading these books in order – therefore reading Storm Front first and then Fool Moon . I wouldn’t say that this review will really spoil anything from the first two books, but you can never be too careful!!! Ghosts are going haywire lately. Becoming more menacing, more violent and more… more … Harry has his work cut out for him lately. Unfortunately it’s not the paying kind – it’s the moral wizard responsibility kind. But when Harry and Michael – a knight, literally – attempt to rid yet another location of an unruly ghost, it becomes clear that someone is causing this. Someone is stirring up trouble purposely. And the fact that many of the victims have ties to Harry cannot be ignored… As I’ve said before, I loved the TV show The Dresden Files – based on this book series. I’m still not feeling as much love for the book series… yet. I’m still...