Like mysteries with comic banter, likeable characters, and a strong sense of place? We've got three new entries in long-running series for you.
Strange Tide by Christopher Fowler is meant as a stand-alone inside the Bryant & May series. Detective Bryant is suffering from what appears to be senile dementia, leaving straight man May and the rest of London's Peculiar Crimes Unit (PCU) to stumble along without him. They certainly do have a peculiar crime on their hands: a young woman is found drowned in the Thames, chained to a post by a silver necklace and only one set of footprints at the scene, which belong to the victim. Fowler shows off his historical knowledge of both London and the Thames in this erudite, yet breezy book. Those who like quirky, well-drawn characters will not be disappointed.
The prolific Rhys Bowen's latest entry in the Molly Murphy series is called Time of Fog and Fire. Molly's husband has taken a job with the Secret Service and is in San Francisco. After a cryptic letter, Molly heads from New York to San Francisco by train with her young son. When she gets there, she is told her husband's funeral was the day before. Devastated, Molly decides to investigate, turning up another body in a basement. Before she gets far however, the Great San Francisco Earthquake hits, and a servant runs off with Molly's son in a panic. This novel is a nice change of pace from the usual locale of New York City, and focuses a little more on history than sleuthing this time out.
Peter Lovesey writes the Peter Diamond mysteries, and the latest is Another One Goes Tonight. Sussex Detective Superintendent Diamond gets involved in a case of two exhausted policemen who crash into a motorized tricycle en route to another call. Diamond arrives at the scene much later and discovers the victim, administering CPR. After a not-exactly-legal search of the victim's house, Diamond realizes he may have saved the life of a serial killer. This weighs on Diamond, as he firmly believes England started going downhill after abolishing the death penalty. A flawed character who has a bit of a problem with authority and a sly wit, Peter Diamond will lead the reader on a merry dance through efficient exposition and an ocean of red herrings and still probably figure it out before the reader does.
Got more mysteries involving quirky, witty characters who don't always do as they're told? Tell us about it in the comments.
Add a comment to: Three Merry Mysteries