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| Miss P arrives for a job |
Alone in the Wild by Kelley Armstrong; narrator, Thérèse Plummer (2020)(audio). Detective Casey Duncan is on a camping vacation outside Rockton with her boyfriend, Sheriff Eric Dalton, when she hears a baby crying in the woods. This did not live up to the earlier books in the series: Casey spent the whole book agonizing about whether she should adopt this baby if she can provide a better life.
At Bertram’s Hotel by Agatha Christie (1965). When Miss Marple wonders if the delightful Bertram’s Hotel in London is too good to be true, she is correct - and must help solve the mystery. In the meantime, all the readers wish they could stay there and be pampered with hot buttered crumpets, conspiracies or not. My review.
Resurrection Walk by Michael Connelly (2023) (audio). At first, I did not like Harry Bosch’s flippant half-brother, Mickey Haller, but I have come to enjoy this series nearly as much as the police procedurals. Here, he and Bosch are trying to prove an incarcerated woman was innocent of her ex-husband’s murder. Although Mickey is portrayed as somewhat mercenary, he becomes emotional about this woman’s false conviction and will go to any lengths to free her. There were several narrators, including Titus Welliver, who plays Bosch in the miniseries. I haven't seen it but he is not my idea of Bosch.
Resurrection Walk by Michael Connelly (2023) (audio). At first, I did not like Harry Bosch’s flippant half-brother, Mickey Haller, but I have come to enjoy this series nearly as much as the police procedurals. Here, he and Bosch are trying to prove an incarcerated woman was innocent of her ex-husband’s murder. Although Mickey is portrayed as somewhat mercenary, he becomes emotional about this woman’s false conviction and will go to any lengths to free her. There were several narrators, including Titus Welliver, who plays Bosch in the miniseries. I haven't seen it but he is not my idea of Bosch.
The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths (2025). Detective Sergeant Ali Dawson is one of five members of the Department of Logistics responsible for investigating cold cases, but only a handful of people know that since 2020 they do so by travelling back in time. Her assignment is to go to the 19th century to research a possible serial killer – of course, there are complications. An intriguing new series from this author! My review.
Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag; narrator, Julia Whelan (2014). I was interested in this book because I thought it was about Kovac and Liska, Hoag’s appealing Minnesota detectives, but they played only a tiny part at the beginning. The unlikable protagonist was kidnapped and tortured by a serial killer and, clearly, no one would ever recover from that, but she was unpleasant, rude, and illogical for the rest of the book. The (living) villain was obvious. A disappointing listen from a usually good author.
Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell (2024). Nick Radcliffe seems like an attractive middle-aged man who reaches out to the Swann family after their husband/father dies unexpectedly. Soon he is dating Nina Swann, although her daughter thinks it is too soon and distrusts their new acquaintance. He is, in fact, a con artist with many relationships and a habit of disappearing once the money is gone. I haven’t read much by Lisa Jewell and found this to be absorbing in that I wanted to know what would happen but didn’t think it was ultimately very satisfying.
Nonfiction
Come Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie (1946). Christie took excerpts from her diary of a year she spent in Syria on a dig with her archaeologist husband, Max Mallowan. She jokes about the rough and ready conditions, how their companions adjust to them, and the personalities of the locals hired to work on the site. This was the Read Christie book for July but it took me quite a while to get to it.
Historical Fiction
Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure by Rhys Bowen (2025). When Ellie Endicott’s husband demands a divorce out of the blue, she is surprised and annoyed but wonders if she ever loved her annoying husband. She decides to get away from it all to the South of France and soon has two companions, all eager for an adventure. But it’s 1938 and just as the ladies get settled in their new home, the Germans invade France. My review.
The Spring of the Ram by Dorothy Dunnett (1987). In the second book of the Niccolò series, our hero leads an expedition to Trebizond. He expects a challenge from the Ottomans as they travel but there are also attacks from a rival entrepreneur, Pagano Doria. Unbeknownst to Nicholas, his stepdaughter has eloped with Doria, adding yet another .responsibility to his load. My review.
A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith (2025). There are two mysteries at the heart of this book, set in 1901 at the Temple, the heart of the legal world in London. One is the sudden death of the chief judge and one relates to the authorship of a children’s novel set at Temple. I enjoyed this debut historical mystery and look forward to sequel, which is already out in the UK. My review.
Fiction
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (1938). This is a fabulous story about a down-on-her-luck governess who goes to the wrong address. Instead of getting hired to mind a child, she begins an incredible day with a young singer/actress who is juggling three men. Miss Pettigrew takes charge and manages to forget her troubles in the excitement. But what will happen to her when midnight strikes? My review.
Romance
The Love Haters by Katherine Center (2025). Katie Vaughn, a videographer of quirky stories, takes an assignment making a video profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. She can’t swim. He has a reputation as a “love hater”. The results are inevitable but not as charming or original as Center’s books usually are.
A Certain Crossroad by Emilie Loring (1925). Judith Halliday comes to visit friends in a small new England town to forget her romance with Neil Peyton, an idealistic young doctor, which ended badly. Surprise! He is practicing medicine right there in Maine and is called to tend to her when she falls out of a tree, as one does. I decided this was not one of Loring's best so did not review it for the #1925Club.
Juvenile
The League of the Smallest by Clare Mallory (1951)(reread). When the new games mistress (gym teacher) at St. Margaret's reorganizes the girls by size during their weekly walk to church, some of the smaller girls start getting bullied. Angel and some of her friends start a “League” to defend their rights. I relate – I still remember being forced to lead a line of 7th graders as the smallest during a fire drill.
The Steam Whistle Theatre Company by Vivian French (2019). This story had a Joan Aiken-like feel – it’s about the irrepressible Pringles, a theatrical family in 19th century London who decide to head north for fame and fortune in a less expensive part of the world. There, they find an aristocratic family that is also down on its luck and a spunky kitchen maid, Edie Boiler, who realizes both parties can survive together. This was one of my 20 Books of Summer - I'm still working on it! My review. 
Snoop by Gordon Korman (2025). Maybe this is an homage to Rear Window? When preteen Carter breaks both legs and is confined to bed, he starts snooping on friends and strangers with police camera feeds and a drone. When he discovers a possible crime, no one will believe him. Korman is always amusing.
Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag; narrator, Julia Whelan (2014). I was interested in this book because I thought it was about Kovac and Liska, Hoag’s appealing Minnesota detectives, but they played only a tiny part at the beginning. The unlikable protagonist was kidnapped and tortured by a serial killer and, clearly, no one would ever recover from that, but she was unpleasant, rude, and illogical for the rest of the book. The (living) villain was obvious. A disappointing listen from a usually good author.
Nonfiction
Come Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie (1946). Christie took excerpts from her diary of a year she spent in Syria on a dig with her archaeologist husband, Max Mallowan. She jokes about the rough and ready conditions, how their companions adjust to them, and the personalities of the locals hired to work on the site. This was the Read Christie book for July but it took me quite a while to get to it.
Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure by Rhys Bowen (2025). When Ellie Endicott’s husband demands a divorce out of the blue, she is surprised and annoyed but wonders if she ever loved her annoying husband. She decides to get away from it all to the South of France and soon has two companions, all eager for an adventure. But it’s 1938 and just as the ladies get settled in their new home, the Germans invade France. My review.
The Spring of the Ram by Dorothy Dunnett (1987). In the second book of the Niccolò series, our hero leads an expedition to Trebizond. He expects a challenge from the Ottomans as they travel but there are also attacks from a rival entrepreneur, Pagano Doria. Unbeknownst to Nicholas, his stepdaughter has eloped with Doria, adding yet another .responsibility to his load. My review.
Fiction
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (1938). This is a fabulous story about a down-on-her-luck governess who goes to the wrong address. Instead of getting hired to mind a child, she begins an incredible day with a young singer/actress who is juggling three men. Miss Pettigrew takes charge and manages to forget her troubles in the excitement. But what will happen to her when midnight strikes? My review.
The Love Haters by Katherine Center (2025). Katie Vaughn, a videographer of quirky stories, takes an assignment making a video profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. She can’t swim. He has a reputation as a “love hater”. The results are inevitable but not as charming or original as Center’s books usually are.
A Certain Crossroad by Emilie Loring (1925). Judith Halliday comes to visit friends in a small new England town to forget her romance with Neil Peyton, an idealistic young doctor, which ended badly. Surprise! He is practicing medicine right there in Maine and is called to tend to her when she falls out of a tree, as one does. I decided this was not one of Loring's best so did not review it for the #1925Club.
The League of the Smallest by Clare Mallory (1951)(reread). When the new games mistress (gym teacher) at St. Margaret's reorganizes the girls by size during their weekly walk to church, some of the smaller girls start getting bullied. Angel and some of her friends start a “League” to defend their rights. I relate – I still remember being forced to lead a line of 7th graders as the smallest during a fire drill.
Miss Pettigrew illustrations copyright to Persephone Books
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