Arctic Chill by Arnaldur Indridason

Arctic Chill by Arnaldur Indridason

I’ve seen vacation pictures from friends who have traveled to Iceland and it’s a gorgeous place. They were also there during the “warm” months. The winters are cold and bleak, and so is their mystery fiction. Icelandic mysteries make Swedish ones seem warm and fuzzy in comparison.

In this one Inspector Erlandur is investigating the stabbing death of a ten-year old boy while still attempting to discover what happened to a woman who went missing weeks before. Two factors struck me as particularly Icelandic in this book. First, racism and immigration is seen as a threat by some Icelanders to the Icelandic heritage and culture which has been preserved, well, forever basically. It was different to see the issue of “us and them” presented as one of cultural corruption. Secondly, in the case of the missing woman, things like that happen all the time and it’s not anything the people are particularly concerned about. People seem to wander off to die on a semi-regular basis. Suicides are high, and suicide by the elements seems to be a uniquely Icelandic.

This is a well-plotted, though bleak, view of a country, and people, but the humanness of all the characters comes through on the page. Not everything in life happens for a reason, or for a good reason, and the author brings this fatalism to light in his writing.

Sister Pelagia and the Black Monk by Boris Akunin

Sister Pelagia and the Black Monk by Boris Akunin

Why is it that a nun figures out the secrets behind the strange appearances of the black monk at a distant monastery when the three men who investigate before her fail spectacularly? Simple. “Men have no curiosity about anything that they regard as unimportant, but the unimportant often conceals the most essential. When something has to be built, or even better, demolished, then men have no equals. But if patience, understanding, and possibly even compassion are required, then it is best to entrust the business to a woman.”

Set around the turn of the last century, the exact time never mentioned, but there are references to Sherlock Holmes and other things that place it in this era, this investigation into the goings-on at a very strange Russian monastery town is a gripping read. Boris Akunin is an internationally bestselling author – if you read Russian the Bridgewater Library owns many of his mysteries in the original Russian!

This book is filled with Russian history, red herrings and clever twists and turns. I’m typically not a fan of ecclesiastical mysteries, but this one was so well written and so different from the cozy mysteries I usually associate with the subgenre that I will probably give another one a chance very soon.

These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf

These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf

Told from the point of view of four women, women whose lives intersect in ways neither they, nor the reader, sees coming, this novel reveals the story at its core bit by bit. Allison is in jail for drowning her newborn daughter and is now out and trying to put her past behind her. Brynn, Allison’s sister, wants nothing more than to forget her sister and put the stigma of her sister’s crime behind her. Charm is taking care of her dying stepfather and visiting the bookstore in town as often as she can to visit the boy she gave up. Claire is the mother of little Joshua, the child she always wanted and finally received when as a newborn he was left on the steps of a firehouse.

It’s obvious that Joshua is the link between these four women, and while certain truths seem clear, the waters running through this story are murky at best. Part women’s fiction, part suspense, all well-plotted, this is quick read that has, quite correctly I feel, been compared to Jodi Picoult’s best picks.

Three Seconds by Anders Roslund and Börge Hellström

Three Seconds by Anders Roslund and Börge Hellström

Going through Swedish crime fiction withdrawal since Larsson’s Millennium trilogy has come to an end? Then I have the cure! Three Seconds, the winner of the 2009 Best Swedish Crime Novel Award, is an edge of your seat mystery/thriller that keeps you guessing until the very end.

In Sweden the police can use infiltrators, civilians working under cover, to get inside gangs and other groups of organized crime. Piet is an infiltrator. In exchange for a lesser prison sentence on a personal drug charge he has been working on infiltrating the Polish mafia, and his years of work are finally paying off. He’s been chosen by his mafia bosses to take over the drug trade within the Swedish prison system from the inside. Once the system is in place the police will give Piet and his family new identities and protection. Of course, things go horribly wrong.

This is a well-crafted edge of your seat crime novel. Piet is one of the most intelligent characters I’ve met on the page in a long time, and he gets himself in one of the most unique situations I’ve read about too. Well worth the read. I understand why it won a major award and I hope this duo’s next book is translated into English soon!

(Last year, Box 21 by Roslund and Hellström was released in the United States. We own a couple copies and I’m on hold for it right now!)

Swamplandia! by Karen Russell

Swamplandia! by Karen Russell

Want to experience the swamps of Florida, the poisonous snakes, murky waters and massive alligators, without getting a single mosquito bite? Then visit Swamplandia! the home of the famous Bigtree family of alligator wrestlers! Things aren’t going so well for the former main attraction of Loomis County. The Chief is acting as if nothing is wrong even though no tourists have arrived for weeks and starts crafting plans to save Swamplandia! Older brother Kiwi gets a job at their main competitor, World of Darkness, and dreams of a normal high school life. Older sister Osceola is dating a ghost she met on a wreck in the swamp. And the youngest Bigtree, twelve-year old Ava, is trying to keep Swamplandia! going by caring for their 98 ‘gators and trying to run a failing household.

This is an interesting read, by turns hilarious, haunting and heart-warming. There are moments of light in a world surrounded by darkness. This is the coming of age story of three teenagers all forced to experience the world, its pitfalls, and horrors, on their own.

Typically I don’t notice the writing style of an author, but Russell grabbed my attention. This is a beautifully crafted tale, and just for her use of words I am looking forward to wherever she takes me next.

The Orchid Affair by Laura Willig

The Orchid Affair by Laura Willig

Laura Grey joins the Selwick Spy School to put a little excitement in her dull life, and serve her country of course. She’s spent half her life as a governess and knows that life is passing her by, that’s why she decides to enroll in spy classes and change her life. She is not happy with her first assignment as the Silver Orchid. She’s to go undercover at the Parisian home of Jaouen, a top member of the Ministry of Police, as his children’s governess. She can’t seem to leave her past in the past. But a job is a job and she’s determined to make the most of it.

The backdrop of Paris in the Napoleon era and the conspiracies that abounded during that time flourish in this novel. The chemistry between the stubborn protagonists, Jaouen and Laura, keeps you guessing about their loyalties while hoping they will be able to overcome their differences and possibly be happy together one day.

This is the eighth novel in the Pink Carnation series and I have listened to every one. If you’re a fan of historical adventure, romance or spy thrillers give this series a try. You’re going to want to start from the beginning with The Secret History of the Pink Carnation because there are two storylines in each book; the historical spy storyline and the current storyline featuring an American historian working on her Doctoral thesis (about flowery spies of course) and her English beau.

Plum Island by Nelson DeMille

Plum Island by Nelson DeMille

Looking for a complex mystery/conspiracy to sink your teeth into? Try Nelson DeMille. His books are long, but don’t let that deter you. These are the type of books that you’re okay with being long, and would even be okay with them being longer.

Plum Island, published in 1997, is about two scientists who work at the government animal disease center on the secluded island off the North Fork of Long Island who are found murdered on their back deck. The island is rumored to be a top-secret biological warfare laboratory and now that these two have ended up brutally murdered people are getting concerned that some killer bug may have been stolen and is now on the loose.

I can’t believe that I didn’t start reading these until now. I have to admit I was a bit intimidated by their doorstopper looks, but I shouldn’t have let that stop me. Even though Plum Island is by no means funny, I found myself smiling because the speech patterns are so Long Island. I didn’t realize that there was such a thing but this book felt like home and now I plan on reading a lot more DeMille in the future.

Yes, Plum Island has been at the center of some wild government conspiracy theories, and yes, they do have anthrax and other scary things there, but it is in the process of moving, so this interesting piece of Long Island real estate could be on the market one day soon…

At First Sight: A Novel of Obsession by Stephen J. Cannell

At First Sight: A Novel of Obsession by Stephen J. Cannell

In the mood for something creepy? Then this is the book for you. Charles “Chick” Best Jr. was on top of the world, but his star is falling: his dot-com is on the brink of bankruptcy, his wife is only concerned with her biceps and her personal trainer and his daughter is dating the head of a biker gang. While this very unhappy family is on vacation in Hawaii Chick meets the woman of his dreams. He knows at first sight that she is the one for him.

So begins a novel of obsession made all the creepier from being told from the stalkers point of view… This was a great listen – Scott Brick is one of my favorite readers and he does a great job. I have to admit, I don’t think I would have enjoyed this tale so much if I read it.

Stephen J. Cannell, a regular on the television show Castle, and the co-creator of television shows such as The A-Team, Hunter, 21 Jump Street and more, passed away late last year, but I recommend reading some of the books he managed to squeeze in and write while creating extremely popular television shows.

The Motive by John Lescroart

The Motive by John Lescroart

Review by Carolyn, Librarian at the Bridgewater Library

Characters Abe Glitsky, deputy chief at the San Francisco Police Department, and Dismas Hardy, an attorney, are back for another page turner from Lescroart. When an influential businessman and friend of San Francisco’s mayor is murdered in a double homicide, Glitsky is asked by the mayor to investigate. The main suspect is the deceased’s daughter-in-law and Hardy’s former girlfriend who turns to Hardy to represent her. Glitsky’s and Hardy’s search for the truth leads to a stunning revelation.

Even though Glitsky and Hardy are reoccurring characters you don’t have to have read the previous books in order to enjoy this one. Lescroart develops his charcters and provides descriptions of San Francisco that help the reader fully imagine the setting.