DEATH COMES TO PEMBERLEY (P.D. James)

Has Jane Austen been reincarnated as P.D. James?  This wonderful continuation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is a joy from start to finish.  It is 6 years after Elizabeth Bennett's wedding to Mr. Darcy and Sister Jane and her husband Mr. Bingley live near Pemberley.  Wayward sister Lydia's husband, Mr. Wickham, is "not received" at  Pemberley due to his history with Darcy's sister, Georgiana.  It is the week of the traditional Lady Anne's Ball at Pemberley and Elizabeth and Darcy are busy preparing for the annual event when a coach careens up the drive and halts at the door. A hysterical Lydia emerges and screams that Wickham and Captain Denny have disappeared after exiting the carriage in the woodlands and that she fears murder.  SO begins the story of "Death Comes to Pemberley."

What is most memorable about this novel is not the mystery, but James' style, which to me is dead-on Austen.  Some may disagree, but the language and ambiance transported me immediately into the world of Pride and Prejudice.  I have to admit that I haven't read all of Austen's works and that the most recent was Northanger Abbey, not Pride and Prejudice, but I've seen all the movies (I admit that this is a bad thing for a librarian to admit!) and it was very easy to visualize this novel.  I am not an Austen scholar, just a fan, and P.D. James has done a great job imagining Darcy and Lizzie's world at Pemberley.  I loved it!

I AM HALF-SICK OF SHADOWS (Alan Bradley)

Flavia de Luce strikes again!  With every new adventure I marvel again. at Bradley's imagination and insight into the mind and heart of an 11-year-old girl.  Flavia is precocious and conniving, a highly intelligent amateur chemist who still believes in Father Christmas and yearns for the love of the mother she lost 10 years before.

In desperate financial straits, Mr. De Luce rents Buckshaw to a film company at Christmas time.  Popular star Phyllis Wyvern agrees to perform at Buckshaw to help raise funds for a new church roof, but a snow storm during the performance strands the attendees at the De Luce home.  When Phyllis is found strangled with one her own films, Flavia is on the case. She has also embarked on a quest to prove the existence of Father Christmas through the magic of chemistry.  As faithful readers will anticipate, chaos ensues with Flavia inevtiably at its center.  As always, Bradley has done a perfect job and Flavia is irresistable.

THE HEAT OF THE MOON ( Sandra Parshall)

Imagine that a chance encounter with a young girl, rain-soaked and crying with worry over her injured dog, triggers in a young woman long-ago memories of  her younger sister, frightened and looking for their mother in a violent thunderstorm.  Young veterinarian Rachel Goddard finds her world spinning out of control when she begins to experience unexplained flashes from her past that makes no sense to her.  In this award-winning thriller, Parshall's first mystery, the author weaves together the enticing story of a family haunted by past tragedies and secrets that threaten to destroy the delicate balance of their lives.  A prominent psychologist with a controlling personality, Judith Goddard was widowed tragically at a young age, but has raised her two daughters, Rachel and Michelle, to be confident and successful women.  In her intense grief over the loss of her husband, Judith has trained her daughters to put their painful past behind them and refuses to share details of life with their father or of his death.  She has lovingly and relentlessly used her professional skills to shield Rachel from the pain of a past that she claims might be too much for her to bear, suggesting that delving into the circumstances of her father's death when she was five and Michelle was three years old might stir up guilt strong enough to destroy Rachel's emotional balance.

I found Parshall's characters just a little bit stilted and stereotypical, but by the time I was halfway through the book I didn't care!  This is a page turner!  Parshall has a wonderful talent for drawing in the reader right from the start.  I couldn't wait to get back to this novel when I was otherwise occupied and I hated to put it down.  I would highly recommend it!

BROKEN PLACES (Sandra Parshall)

This is actually the 3rd in Parshall's Rachel Goddard series, but I didn't find any difficulty in enjoying this terrific mystery despite a lack of knowledge of the main character's background (see my review of The Heat of the Moon above).  It is a little unusual, though to refer readers to a previous book to fill in details that have been unearthed by a character in this one.  It didn't detract from the story, though; it just made me curious to read the other book!

Veterinarian Rachel Goddard has moved to rural Mason County, Virginia (Oh, no!  Now I have to read book #2, also, to figure out how she ended up here!) where she has become romantically involved with native Deputy Sheriff Tom Bridger. A few hours after Rachel "witnesses" the murder of Cam Taylor (she hears the murder takes place and discovers the body), the body of Cam's wife, Meredith, is found in their burning home.  Rachel's close friend Benicio Hernandez, an artist known professionally as Ben Hern, becomes the chief suspect.  After a contentious encounter with Cam at his home, Ben was seen again arguing with him on a remote country road shortly before Cam was shot.  Tom's former love, Lindsey Taylor, returns to Mason County to bury her parents and to stir up trouble.  Determined to bring her parents' murderer to justice and to rekindle her romance with Tom, Lindsey attempts to intimidate Rachel and incriminate Ben.  All of the Christie Capers agreed that they never saw the denouement coming, yet it made perfect sense.  I hope that Parshall develops the following that she deserves.  She certainly has a new devoted fan in me!

YARN HARLOT: THE SECRET LIFE OF A KNITTER (Stephanie Pearl-McPhee)

Well, I love Stephanie Pearl-McPhee and you can certainly expect me to be reporting on her future collections of observations on knitting and knitters.  Unfortunately, I was too ambitious in ordering interlibrary loans and taking out interesting sounding books from my own library and I ended up having to send this one back to the owning library.  Never fear, though!  I ordered another copy and will be reviewing it in the coming weeks!

...Now that I am done with this wonderful collection of essays I can say that it was well worth waiting for.  As I have said before, you don't have to be a knitter to enjoy Pearl-McPhee's life wisdom.  One of the most memorable essays here is the story of her friend and fellow knitter Lene (I may have the name wrong, but I don't have the book with me!), who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and has finally reached the point where she can no longer knit.  Stephanie and their mutual friend Ken go through Lene's stash of yarn with her, a sad undertaking, and each take home a selection of wonderful wools.  During the  next couple of years they knit the yarns and always gift them with a note that they are from Lene, a wonderful tribute to a friend who can no longer experience the joy and peace of knitting.  This particular essay, focusing on carrying on a task for someone who needs help, was heart-warming and a true reflection of how life and friendship should be.  It was inspiring!

A HOLIDAY YARN (Sally Goldenbaum)

I was a little confused when I started reading because I didn't realize that A Holiday Yarn actually come BEFORE The Wedding Shawl.  Now I feel better and less confused about Izzy and Sam's relationship!

Nell, Ben, Izzy, and the whole Seaside Knitters gang are knitting in preparation for Christmas and the opening of Mary Pisano's new bed-and-breakfast, converted  from her family's ancestral home in Sea Harbor.  Not everyone is thrilled about the new business in the area, however.  When Mary's glamorous cousin Pamela, a magazine publisher, is found dead of on the porch of the B&B after a family meeting, it appears to be suicide, but murder seems more likely, especially after another suspicious death occurs.  Is someone trying to stop the B&B from ever opening its door or did someone from Pamela's past hold a grudge for past wrongs against them? Much of the evidence points toward amiable chef and friend Kevin, so, as usual, the Seaside Knitters get involved in tracking down answers before some else gets hurt.

I have to admit that I guessed the murderer on page 182, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of this great little cozy.  Goldenbaum comes through again!

WICKED AUTUMN (G.M. Malliet)

Agatha Award winning author G.M. Malliet has a new series!  This one features MI5 operative turned Anglican priest Max Tudor.  Max had a religious conversion after witnessing the death of his best friend and fellow agent in a car bombing.  Weary and burnt out from his years with the MI5, he decides that a more simple, spiritual life was his true calling.  He is now settled into the vicarage in the picturesque community of Nether Monkslip and closely involved with its people and traditions of the charming English village.  Not everything in Nether Monkslip is idyllic, though, and as the annual Harvest Fayre approaches feathers are ruffled and feelings hurt by Women's Institute president Wanda Batton-Smythe.  Wanda considers herself to be the driving force behind the Harvest Fayre and is heavily critical of her less-than-perfect but good-natured fellow citizens.  An efficient, well-organized leader, she is also adept at reducing people to tears when her demands are not precisely met. Wanda's body is discovered in the Town Hall on the day of the Fayre and the verdict is that she died from anaphylactic shock caused by her allergy to peanuts.  Was the untimely death accidental or engineered?  Max, as vicar and confidante, is in a very good position to help the police investigate, and he does.

Malliet's cast of villagers range from the seemingly stereotypical, such as the grieving Major, Wanda's widower, and Mrs. Hooser, Max's hopeless housekeeper, to the fascinating, including Awena Owen, proprietress of the New Age shop, Goddesspell, and Noah Caraway, the wealthy antique expert and owner of Abbot's Lodge.  Who in Nether Monkslip had NOT fantasized about killing Wanda, but who had motive enough to actually do the deed?  Malliet keeps the reader guessing until the end and every page is a pleasure.