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Death Investigator Angela Richman, Book 1

Angela Richman is a death investigator in the upper crust neighborhood known as The Forest. While investigating two very different cases – the death of an elderly bachelor, which Angela is convinced is accidental, and the death of a local teen in a drag racing incident, Angela is virtually crippled by what she believes is a migraine. One serious misdiagnosis and almost three weeks la cocky neurosurgeon. And when the doc that sent her home the first time around is murdered, Angela’s savior is the prime suspect.

While we’ve certainly seen death investigations carried out by medical examiners and such, this new series from Elaine Viets is the first to feature an actual death investigator.

I do love the idea of a death investigator as the protagonist in this series. Frankly, I’m amazed we haven’t actually seen it before. Angela is called to the scene of any death that doesn’t occur under medical care. It’s her job to photograph, collect, and collate evidence that may be linked to the death or help the medical examiner and police in determining cause of death. And While Angela is a respected member of the community, her attention to detail and her unwillingness to let the standing of some of her neighbors affect her investigations definitely creates some tension between her and other local law enforcement. And even while hospitalized and fighting for her life, the investigator still manages to ruffle more than a few feathers.

Interestingly, this first outing is based heavily in Viets’s own experiences back in 2007, when the author (as Angela does) suffered a series of strokes after being sent home under the guise of being “too young and fit to have a stroke.”

Brain Storm certainly isn’t cozy, but I’m sure Viets’s long time fans will find much to enjoy in this darker series first.

10/16 Becky LeJeune

BRAIN STORM by Elaine Viets. Thomas & Mercer (August 2, 2016).  ISBN 978-1503936317. 320p.

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Body Farm Novel, Book 10

In this tenth entry into the popular Body Farm series, forensic anthropologist Dr. Bill Brockton has a new case.

Bones were found in a field near a tree with a chain attached to it. It is not a complete skeleton, and identification is not going to be easy, but with forensics and some good detective work, Brockton soon realizes that a young man met a gruesome death that was probably a hate crime.

But things get worse before they get better when the serial killer he helped put away escapes from prison, motivated by revenge. On a lighter note, Brockton’s beloved assistant has finally completed her dissertation and is looking for a new job, leaving him bereft.

This is a dark, suspenseful story with enough forensics to please any fan of the genre. The science is fascinating and never slows the story, due to the skill of the forensic/writer partnership known as Jefferson Bass. Fans of Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell should enjoy Without Mercy, as well as the rest of Body Farm series.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

10/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

WITHOUT MERCY by Jefferson Bass. William Morrow (October 4, 2016).  ISBN 978-0062363190. 352p.

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A Ryder Creed Novel, Book 3

Ryder Creed has an elite K-9 business of search and rescue dogs. Hannah runs the business end and Ryder is the trainer, and that includes training new dog handlers like Jason, an amputee veteran. One of Creed’s dogs finds the body of a young girl who had gone missing, but also finds some dead birds.

There is a new strain of bird flu, and unfortunately it is affecting more than just birds. Homeland Security is after a doctor who has gone rogue and seems to have disappeared into thin air. There are several suspicious deaths, so when an infected person turns herself in, along with a mysterious flash drive, that helps tie everything together.

Creed’s dogs are trained to detect certain cancers and other illnesses, so he is asked to train them to detect the deadly virus, but the government doesn’t seem overly concerned about putting the dogs at risk. There are a lot of moving parts to this fast paced story and Kava brings them altogether by the end. This third book in the Creed series is sure to please fans.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

9/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

RECKLESS CREED by Alex Kava. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (September 27, 2016).  ISBN 978-0399170782. 336p.

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A Maisie McGrane Mystery, Book 3

Maisie McGrane is an undercover cop in Chicago – so deep undercover, her large, Irish family of cops and lawyers don’t even know. When there’s an assassination attempt on the mayor, the ATF and DEA want to use Maisie’s connections to infiltrate a dangerous gun and drug cartel in the city.

Meanwhile she’s recovering from some serious wounds, which she tends to forget about. But when her brother is shot, she loses sight of her mission and puts herself in more danger, not to mention her family may end up accidentally blowing her cover.

Her boyfriend is out of the country, and agent Lee Sharpe is trying to move in, complicating things further. This fast moving story has some comedic moments sprinkled throughout, but it is much darker comedy than the oft-compared Janet Evanovich.

This third entry into the series offers little in the way of back-story, making it almost impossible to figure out who’s who, what’s going on, and why we should care, without having read the first two.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

9/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

SHOOT ‘EM UP by Janey Mack. Kensington (September 27, 2016).  ISBN 978-1617736940. 352p.

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A short, but extremely interesting book about a man who has spent four decades of his professional life as a great political cartoonist in Columbia.

Vasquez has made a reputation as someone able to influence politicians, make or break careers, change the opinions of judges and certainly become a person to be both feared and admired by his countrymen. The opening of the book shows the man, Javier Mallarino, at the height of his powers and a force to be reckoned with when he is visited by a young woman out of his past who forces him to reevaluate his past and question his own self worth.

Vasquez writes in an almost stream of conscious style masterfully bringing the reader into the thought processes of Mallarino. The almost forgotten events of his life are brought up and gone over by Javier Mallarino and bring up a story that will come up again and again.

A different type of tale but one that will cause reverberations in the mind of any reader.

9/16 Paul Lane

REPUTATIONS by Juan Gabriel Vasquez. Riverhead Books (September 20, 2016).  ISBN 978-1594633478. 208p.

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A Judd Ryker Novel, Book 3

Judd Ryker is a professor who works for the U.S. State Department and his wife, Jessica, for the C.I.A; can this marriage last? They don’t discuss their cases but they have a rule, they will assist each other blindly as needed.

Four suburban soccer dads out on a deep sea fishing trip accidentally cross into Cuba’s waters, where they are captured and imprisoned in Havana. Unbeknownst to the other, both Judd and Jessica get assigned to the case. But when Judd gets in over his head, he phones home for the assist, yet is shocked to learn his wife is a helicopter pilot who can squirrel millions of untraceable American dollars into Cuba to help him out.

There is a subplot with a power hungry politician climbing into bed with a top level spy who is equally power hungry, but doesn’t do much to further the plot. The fact that the U.S. now has relations with Cuba is mostly irrelevant here, but still, this third entry in the Judd Ryker series feels timely.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

9/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

GHOSTS OF HAVANA by Todd Moss. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (September 6, 2016).  ISBN 978-0399175930. 368p.

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Markus Novak Novels, Book 2

Markus Novak lost his wife when Garland Webb killed her and left her body in a ditch in Casadaga, Florida, home to a large psychic and spiritual community. Webb was never caught and Novak is on the hunt, his only clue is his wife’s last entry in her journal, the mysterious phrase, “rise the dark.”

Across the country in Montana, a high voltage linesman is accidentally killed while his best friend, Jay, is just a few feet away. Jay and his best friend’s sister, Sabrina, move away, ostensibly to keep Jay safe and on the ground. When the power goes out, he goes to work but Sabrina is kidnapped while Jay is instructed to take down some heavy duty power lines.

Meanwhile a beautiful young woman is traveling the country on her way to Montana, leaving a trail of dead bodies behind. These disparate stories eventually come together in a frightening story about the holes in the U.S. infrastructure and security, and a villain who seems too smart to be stopped. Novak’s dysfunctional family comes to the forefront in this excellent second book in the Markus Novak series.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

8/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

RISE THE DARK by Michael Koryta. Little, Brown and Company (August 16, 2016).  ISBN 978-0316293839. 400p.

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Clara is home brushing her daughter’s hair when a group of armed men swarms the house, arresting her and her husband Glen, and taking all her daughters away. This disturbing scene is set at the opening of the novel, and the story moves back and forth in time in alternating chapters titled “Then” and “Now” until we piece together the horror that unravels Clara’s life.

The last thing Glen says to her is, “say nothing,” and as always, Clara is obedient to her husband. She learns that he is in jail, but she is in a psychiatric hospital under the watchful eye of a couple of federal agents and a therapist, and they force her into group therapy with other young women. Clara doesn’t understand why she is in this group; she feels her story is nothing like theirs.

But as the mystery of her life unfurls, Clara’s point of view starts to change. This is superb psychological suspense; Clara starts to question everything she thought she knew about her family and her life and slowly starts to emerge from her cocoon-like existence.

The Girl Before is a compelling, albeit difficult read, but is almost impossible to put down, much like Room by Emma Donoghue.

Copyright ©2016 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

8/16 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE GIRL BEFORE by Rena Olsen. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (August 9, 2016).  ISBN 978-1101982358. 320p.

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