When I last left this topic, I was mentioning several authors who had books out, some of which I had acquired, but hadn't gotten around to reading yet.

Well, I got through a couple of books by my must-read authors. I finished THE BOOK OF THE DEAD, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. It was a decent conclusion to the 'Pendergast Trilogy'. Everything gets wrapped up neatly. It wasn't the best of their books, not the best of the Trilogy, nor the best of any with Pendergast as a character, but it was a rapid read and ultimately satisfying.

I also finished MURDER OF A REAL BAD BOY, by Denise Swanson. This is the latest in her Scumble River series featuring school psychologist/sleuth Skye Dennison. In this one a contractor who is remodeling Skye's new house turns up dead at her place. And of course she's a suspect. So she has to solve this mystery herself, and brings it to a solid conclusion. I love the series and liked this book a lot.

Laura Lippman. One of the best crime fiction writers producing books today, in my opinion. I finished TO THE POWER OF THREE and reviewed it here. It was fantastic. 'Nuff said.

I also read THE TOMB by F. Paul Wilson, the intro to Repairman Jack in the Adversary Cycle (I think that's what it was called). Jack of course spun off from this book to a successful series of his own. This one had Wilson's usual level of rock-solid characters and plot weirdness that on the surface wouldn't seem to go together but they do in Wilson's work. I guess Wilson's publisher is releasing his back catalog of books; I'm looking forward to the rest. (An aside, a new Repairman Jack book, HARBINGERS, is due out next month.)

Next was WHO'S SORRY NOW, one of Jill Churchill's Grace and Favor mysteries, tales set after the depression and featuring a brother and sister who come from a family who has lost everything...everyone but Uncle Horatio, who has left them this mansion called GRACE AND FAVOR and his fortune, but they have to live there for 10 years, earning their keep before they inherit. This was possibly the weakest of this series. I like Jill's (real name Janice Young Brooks) stuff immensely, but I sense she's a bit tired of these series. Or maybe she is just getting sloppy. Her other series (the Jane Jeffrey series) suffered a lull also but came back strong with the last entry in that one.

INTO THE FIRE, by Richard Laymon, is an excellent example of the weirdness of Laymon's plots coupled with his focus on the internal thinking of his characters, who are usually very weird themselves. I've read a few Laymons which seemed basically pointless, but this one was one of his better ones, I'd put it up with TRAVELING VAMPIRE SHOW and NIGHT IN THE LONESOME OCTOBER, two of my favorites by Laymon. Laymon passed away not too many years ago. RIP.

Most recently I finished IN PLAIN SIGHT, the latest in C.J. Box's Joe Pickett series. Pickett is a game warden who doesn't get along with his superiors too well, and hates people who try to get around the law, or more importantly, what is right. He's got an overdeveloped sense of morality and right and wrong, and it often puts him at odds with powerful people. In this one, a ghost from his past is haunting (and hunting) him, looking for revenge. Also, there is a feud between warring brothers over a large ranch. Pickett unfortunately gets himself in the middle of everything as the incompetent sheriff and his paper pushing boss (who hates Pickett with a passion) hinder any investigation and help to put Pickett and his family in harm's way. This was the best of the series yet. Box is a terrific writer.

I'm working on Robert Crais' DEMOLITION ANGEL currently. Crais is a great crime fiction writer who has shown tremendous growth through his Elvis Cole series. This is the first non series book I've read of his, though I've already met the main character, Carol Starkey, in a couple of Cole novels. I'll let you know how it comes out.

Take care,

Scott