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A Blake and Avery Novel (Book 1)

It’s 1837 and the East India Company reigns almost supreme in India. William Avery was drawn to the country thanks to the work of his favorite writer, Xavier Mountstuart. But the India Avery discovers after joining the Company isn’t quite what Mountstuart’s adventures led him to expect. Then Mountstuart himself goes missing and Avery is tapped to be part of the mission to find him. It’s not an assignment Avery relishes in spite of the fact that it revolves around his personal hero. First off it means leaving the relative comfort of Calcutta. And second, his superior in the assignment is a man whose distaste for Avery rivals the soldier’s own feelings. Jeremiah Blake is, in Avery’s eyes, a man on the brink of madness. He’s unkempt to the point of resembling the natives more so than the company man he’s said to be and his methods are beyond questionable.

Mountstuart was last said to have been seen in Jubbulpore, home of the famed Thuggee Department, where Mountstuart was rumored to have been studying the fearsome Thuggee culture for the purpose of his next piece. But months have passed with no sign of Mountstuart and, in light of his more scandalous recent release, the Company has reason to want him found and ejected from the country quickly.

This first in the Avery and Blake series is equal parts mystery and adventure, but in addition to that, there’s history too. Through Avery and Blake, Carter offers readers two different perspectives of colonialism and India.

Blake is one of the old guard, somewhat encouraged to learn the language and cultures of the region the Company was commandeering. As such, he sympathizes with the natives and has understandably come to reconsider the Company’s position in the country.

Avery on the other hand has very little interest in Indian culture or the natives. In fact, when faced with leaving Calcutta and its overwhelmingly English atmosphere, he immediately tries to turn down the assignment. Fortunately Avery is still able to be molded and influenced, but only if he can set aside his prejudices long enough for Blake to reach him.

The mystery of Mountstuart’s fate and the threat of the Thuggee draw the reader in, propelling the story and giving it a fantastic suspense element perfect for any mystery/thriller fan. Even more appealing is the fact that Carter does this all the while staying true to the history of the region itself. Cameo appearances by actual historic figures help lend an air of authenticity to the tale, making it that much more entertaining.

The Strangler Vine is a fantastic series opener and has even been nominated for the Edgar Award for First Novel this year. The second title in the series, The Infidel Strain, is out now.

4/16 Becky LeJeune

THE STRANGLER VINE by M. J. Carter. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (February 23, 2016).  ISBN: 978-0425280744 400p.

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A Cassidy Clark Novel, Book 1

Jaxon Giles’ beloved dog is dead. He can’t prove it, but he knows who killed Gecko. His stalking ex-wife wants to take away anything and anyone he loves. 

Private investigator Cassidy Clark agrees to run surveillance, while in the midst of helping the city of Tucson. Women are disappearing. Gone. Were they murdered? Kidnapped and being held captive? A cult that enticed them to leave all belongings behind? 

Without bodies and any crime scenes, there is no DNA. No evidence. No trace.

My first read of a Corriere book, but certainly not the last. Potty mouth PI Cassidy Clark is at the center of this novel, but leaves room for other characters as well – the Tucson Chief of Police, the perp, and the victims. Not your usual fem-jep scenario which I liked.

A recommended read.

BYE BYE BONES by Lala Corriere. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; one edition (October 20, 2015).  ISBN: 978-1518705946. 308p.

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Dr. Caleb Maddox is one of the top toxicologists in the field. His research into the chemical analysis of pain is highly admired and heavily funded, which means his own lab is better equipped than most. And so when his friend Henry Newcomb, San Francisco’s medical examiner, asks for help on a case, Caleb doesn’t turn him down. Henry fears there may be a serial killer in their midst, but one whose methods are so obscure that even the police haven’t caught the connection. What’s worse, Henry suspects his own lab could have made the link but for faulty equipment or possible oversight on the part of his own employees. Sure enough, Caleb does find a connection in the cases that indicates undeniably foul play. And Caleb himself is considered a witness in one of the murders.

Caleb doesn’t know anything about the victim in question except that they spent the same evening at a local bar one weekend night. But Caleb only had eyes for one particular patron that evening – the mysterious woman who ordered absinthe. And it’s this woman he’s determined to keep all to himself, obsessed with tracking her down and keeping her out of the attention of the police.

From the start, I had no real idea where this story was taking me but I knew I was in it for the long haul. First, there’s the murder mystery: the idea that someone is killing men in and around San Francisco for so long with just one person making the connection was definitely intriguing. Maddox’s research and eventual discovery about the connection between the cases leads to a secret investigation that hinges completely on Maddox staying uninvolved as far as the police are concerned. Which creates something of a secondary mystery – what exactly is in Maddox’s past and why is he so determined not to have to be a witness should a case go to court?

And then there’s Maddox’s obsession with the absinthe woman. At first, this element was a bit jarring. It felt like two different stories at times – Maddox’s hunt for his mystery woman and the hunt for San Francisco’s twisted serial killer. But as Maddox chases this strange woman down a rabbit hole of modern speakeasies and cocktails, his story becomes more and more entwined with that of the city’s murders.

The Poison Artist is a brilliantly plotted psychological thriller, the kind that definitely stays with you well beyond the final page.

4/16 Becky LeJeune

THE POISON ARTIST by Jonathan Moore. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; 1 edition (January 26, 2016). ISBN-13: 978-0544520561. 288p.

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