The Crack in the Lens by Steve Hockensmith

 

The plot:  October, 1893. Gustav "Old Red" Amlingmeyer, Sherlock Holmes-loving cowboy detective, and his younger brother, Otto "Big Red" Amlingmeyer, are on another case. Only this time it's personal. Five years ago Gus's sweetheart was murdered, but back then he didn't know how to 'deducify' the truth about what happened to her. Now that he knows Sherlock Holmes' Method for solving crimes, he's hoping to track down  the real killer. Only San Marcos, Texas, is not the same town it once was; and no one there is glad to see the Amlingmeyer brothers. But they're about to stir up some trouble, because Gus isn't going anywhere until he finds out the truth. 

My thoughts:  What a fun read! Otto, who narrates their adventures with amusing sarcasm and homespun humor, and his much more serious, even grumpy, brother, Gus, are the best characters. I loved getting a glimpse into Gus's past in this book. And the way these two get into and out of impossible situations is always entertaining. They're such a great team. And the time period is one of my favorites. Plus, I find the whole premise of these two cowboy sleuths acting like a Western version of Holmes and Watson irresistible. This is the fourth book in this series (though it could easily be read as a standalone), and just as good as all the others. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Other Steve Hockensmith reads:

Holmes on the Range

The White Magic Five and Dime

Haiku reviews...

 

Track Her Down by Melinda Leigh

Dark secrets come out

as Bree investigates the

murder of Claire's parents.

Mystery .... 304 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(This is the 9th Sheriff Bree Taggert mystery and it's another good one, mostly because Bree and her partner, Matt Flynn, are such great characters.)

Only In Your Dreams by Madison Wright

Grey's loved Finley for

years. So when she needs a fake 

boyfriend, he's ALL in!

Romantic comedy .... 351 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(I loved this charming, clean romance! It's as delightfully sweet and fun as her previous novel, Off the Beaten Path.)

The Wrong Lady Meets Lord Right by Suzanne Allain

Cousins switch places

during London Season. Each find love.

But will their love survive the truth?

Regency romance .... 257 pages .... 3.5/5 stars.

(Cute and clean romance; a little silly and a bit shallow, but still fun.)

Happy Reading!

The Sorority Murder by Allison Brennan

A popular sorority girl.

An unsolved murder.

A campus podcast with chilling repercussions. 

From the blurb: 

"Lucas Vega is obsessed with the death of Candace Swain, who left a sorority party one night and never came back. Her body was found after two weeks, but the case has grown cold. Three years later, while interning at the medical examiner's, Lucas discovers new information, but the police are not interested.

"Lucas knows he has several credible pieces of the puzzle. He just isn't sure how they fit together. So he creates a podcast to revisit Candace's last hours. Then he encourages listeners to crowdsource what they remember and invites guest lecturer Regan Merritt, a former US marshal, to come on and share her expertise.

"New tips come in that convince Lucas and Regan they are onto something. Then shockingly one of the podcast callers turns up dead. The pressure is on to solve the murder, but first Lucas must come clean about his real motives in pursuing this podcast—before the killer silences him forever."

My thoughts:  This mystery is well-written and compelling. I liked both Lucas, who's young and naive but well-intentioned and determined, and Regan, who's tough and smart; and I quickly got drawn into Lucas's podcast and subsequent murder investigation. The who and why of Candace's disappearance and death did not come as a total surprise, but there was good suspense right up to the end. I enjoy Brennan's mysteries and this one is no exception. She does an excellent job of weaving together all the various elements. And I also really liked the Flagstaff, AZ, and college campus setting. Altogether, a very fun read.

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday...

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme:  BOOKS ON MY SPRING 2025 TO READ LIST. 

Though my spring To Read list is certainly not set in stone; it's more a list of possible reads, and might change at any moment as my mood changes. But here are twelve books I'm thinking about reading this month and next. 

World's Greatest Sleuth! by Steve Hockensmith

The Family Experiment by John Marrs

Cloaked in Beauty by Karen Witemeyer

A Lady's Guide to Scandal by Sophie Irwin

A Whisper of Death by Darcy Burke

Deep Freeze by Michael G. Grumley

Starter Villain by John Scalzi

In the Hour of Crows by Dana Elmendorf

Lying Beside You by Michael Robotham

The Ornithologist's Field Guide to Love by India Holton

Nemesis by Gregg Hurwitz

Cold As Hell by Kelley Armstrong

Happy Reading!

The Penguin Pool Murder by Stuart Palmer

 

First line:  Two little black penguins were the first to know the secret.

First published:  1931

The plot:  Hildegarde Withers, 39, pragmatic, no-nonsense, single teacher of third graders, teams up with New York City detective, Oscar Piper, to solve the murder of Gerald Lester, who she discovers floating, dead, in the penguin pool at the New York Aquarium. And playing detective is what she's always wanted to do.

"I can get a substitute for a few weeks," suggested Miss Withers eagerly. "I'm having the time of my life. ... That's why I came to New York ten years ago, instead of keeping on teaching school out in Iowa. I wanted a little excitement, though it's little enough I've got at Jefferson School. This is great fun, and better than any detective story I ever read....It's the ambition of my life to play detective."

 My thoughts:  This is not a mystery to be taken too seriously, but it is an entertaining step back in time. Oscar Piper and Hildegarde Withers are amusing characters. I enjoyed how they worked together to figure out the murder; their disagreements and arguments were equally amusing. Derbys and hat pins, the stock market crash, guesses and interrogations, all play a role in this fun 1930s mystery. I liked it, and wouldn't mind reading some of Palmer's other Hildegarde Withers mysteries. 

Happy Reading!

I won a free book!

 

Got it in a Goodreads giveaway! Out of Air by Rachel Reiss. It sounds very exciting. Treasure hunters. A sea cave. Strange changes when the divers surface. Maybe something supernatural? Mystery & suspense. Everything I enjoy in a book. And I can't wait to read it. I just need to finish a few library books before they're due first. 

Happy Reading!

March's Bookish Art...

 

Charles Edward Perugini -- Girl Reading

"Books are such an underrated essential. Every book is a key that unlocks another world, leads us down the path of a different life and offers the chance to explore an unexpected adventure. Every one is a gift of either knowledge, entertainment or pure escapism."

--Bella Osborne, The Library

Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie

 "I would answer violence with art."

"At a quarter to eleven on August 12, 2022, on a sunny Friday morning in upstate New York, I was attacked and almost killed by a young man with a knife just after I came out on stage at the amphitheater in Chautauqua to talk about the importance of keeping writers safe from harm. ... On that beautiful morning in that attractive setting, violence came running at me and my reality fell apart."

In just 27 seconds, Salman Rushdie was stabbed 15 times in the face, neck and chest; the tendons in his left hand were severed, and he was blinded in his right eye. Miraculously, he survived. This book is his musings on that day, and on his recovery, his love for his wife, sons, and friends, the importance of free speech, writing as art, and on his getting a second chance at life. It's quietly thoughtful, emotional, and smart. Rushdie has such a gift with words. And his writing is always literary and meaningful. This short memoir is no exception. I'm really glad I chose it for my nonfiction read this month. 

"Language, too, was a knife. It could cut open the world and reveal its meaning, its inner workings, its secrets, its truths. It could cut through from one reality to another. It could call bullshit, open people's eyes, create beauty. Language was my knife."

Happy Reading!

The Next Grave by Kendra Elliot

 

First line:  The breeze carried the scent to Detective Evan Bolton's nose, and he instantly knew his day was going to suck.

The case:  First, retired cop Rod Mcleod, Detective Evan Bolton's friend and mentor, is murdered. Then Rod's daughter, Sophia, goes missing. As Evan investigates the murder, he discovers that Rod was looking into some old cases. It's puzzling. Could the killer be someone in law enforcement? And is Evan next on his hitlist? 

My thoughts: This mystery has great writing, likable characters, and some nice twists. The suspense really mounts as Evan's investigation puts his own life in danger. Rowan and her search-and-rescue dog, Thor, are also on the scene. She and Evan are so great together; I love how they support each other both on the job and at home. And I really like how Kendra Elliot writes mysteries. She's become on of my most favorite authors. And this book? As compelling and entertaining as all her others.

Happy Reading!

Previous book about Rowan and Evan:  The First Death

Top Ten Tuesday...

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme is supposed to be THINGS CHARACTERS HAVE SAID.  But I haven't really been keeping track of that, and while I do collect quotes from the books I read, none of them seemed to fit this prompt. So, I'm going rogue.

Last year, my blogging friend and reading buddy, Melody Lee, passed away. And I have really missed her this year. I've missed chatting with her about books, and reading her posts, and most of all, I have missed our buddy reads. Over the years we must have read over 30 books together. So for this week's TTT, in honor of my friend, I decided to post MY FIRST TEN BUDDY READS WITH MELODY.

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

Only Daughter by Anna Snoekstra

Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards

The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor

The Wolves of Winter by Tyrell Johnson

An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena

The Hunger by Alma Katsu

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

Happy Reading!

Randomness...

 TV shows & series that I really miss:  

⏺Dwight in Shining Armor

⏺The Big Leap

⏺The Eco Challenge (which was the best adventure race ever!)

TV shows I'm very happy are coming back soon:

The Amazing Race

Project Runway

New album I am totally loving:

(Nate Smith:  California Gold)

 

And my list of 'glad things' from last month: 

• 
  One of the fourth graders I work with told me I was her favorite teacher.
• I bought a new game called Trails that is a lot of fun to play.
• My nephew got his first 'grown up' engineering job which made my entire family cheer.
• I got a cute dragon squishmallow for my half birthday that totally makes me smile. 
  
• A friend gave me daffodil bulbs about twenty years ago and I planted them in the front of my house, and every year they're the first flowers to come up; they remind me spring is on the way. I'm always grateful and glad to see Susie's daffodils blooming.
• And Beth Brower's Emma M. Lion books continue to amuse and delight; I've now read the first seven books in the series and loved them all. Though I am sad there's only one more to go.