 British Library Crime Classics by assorted authors (assorted years). I recently read somewhere (I wish I could remember where) that readership of mysteries and thrillers increases dramatically during troubled and uncertain times (see previous Terry Tempest Williams review). The article had numerous theories as to why, which I will skip and get straight to this review of great books to give and get. Luckily for those of us troubled by headlines of bad behavior by so many people, British Library Crime Classics exists. Poison Pen Press has reissued classic mysteries by a variety of British authors in lovely paperback forms. These make perfect stocking stuffers or host/hostess gifts for all the holiday parties in your future. Or, give them to anyone who likes a well plotted mystery, who needs something to be solved in a neatly and timely fashion, or to yourself for some diversions. If a British mystery isn't your (or your loved ones') cup of tea, try the American Mystery Classics Series by Penzler Press and The SOHO Crime series. ~ Lisa Christie  August Snow and Lives Laid Away by Stephen Mack Jones (2019) - I am a HUGE fan of Mr. Jones's debut August Snow. So I was excited to see this new mystery brings August Snow, a superbly wrought ex-police officer turned “fixer” - of neighborhoods, of people and of mysteries - back. I was even more thrilled that I liked this second in what I hope is a long series. Detroit itself is a character in both, with its gentrification front and center. ~ Lisa Christie  The Body in Castle Well: Bruno Mystery #14 by Martin Walker (2019) - In "Bruno's" latest outing, an American graduate student turns up dead at the bottom of a well. This plot allows Mr. Walker, a journalist and novelist, an opportunity to explore the French Resistance, the impact of art, and life in modern France. Enjoy and be prepared to be hungry as Mr. Walker describes all the dishes his detective Bruno prepares. If you have not yet read anything in this series, you might wish to begin with the first of its 14 mysteries - Bruno, Chief of Police. ~ Lisa Christie  Unto Us a Son is Given: A Commissario Brunetti mystery by Donna Leon (2019)- I truly enjoy this series (first introduced to me by the author Sarah Stewart Taylor), and this book is one of the best in it. This time, Brunetti's father-in-law asks Brunetti to look into an old friend's recent wish to adopt an adult and what implications that might have for the friend's estate and his twilight years. Enjoy yet another great mystery with a kind, yet far from perfect, Commissario, his English-novel loving wife, and the people of Venice. If you wish to begin at the beginning, the first book in this series was Death at La Fenice. ~ Lisa Christie  The Fleur de Sel Murders: A Brittany Mystery (#3) by Jean-Luc Bannalec (2018) - This book made me want to visit Brittany immediately. I actually found myself with a map in hand tracking exactly where the characters in this mystery travel as I read each chapter. The writing was brisk and the book just a "fun read" on a hot summer afternoon. Commissaire Dupin provides an intriguing protagonist for this series. The descriptions of France are inspiring and somehow restful; and, the characters Dupin surrounds himself with are interesting on their own. (Note: Though I may have learned more than I possibly could ever wish to know about the salt marshes of the Guérande Peninsula, foodies will have a blast with this knowledge.) As a bonus -- I now have a new series to consume. As Kirkus Reviews describes The Brittany Mysteries, "Bannelec's Breton adventures are some of the best French local color going, with a deft blend of puzzle, personality, and description of the indescribable." The series begins with Death in Brittany. Have fun using these books to plot your next European vacation. ~ Lisa Christie  Lives Laid Away by Stephen Mack Jones (2019) - I am a HUGE fan of Mr. Jones's debut August Snow. Thus, I was excited to see this new mystery brings August back. I was even more thrilled that I liked this second book, in what I hope is a long series, perhaps even better than the first. In this outing, August Octavio Snow decides to defend his neighbors when ICE raids threaten their peace and safety; simultaneously he answers a former colleague's call to discover how a young, unnamed Latina was murdered. By saying yes to helping in both cases, he becomes caught in a human trafficking ring. The plot allows the author's wry humor to deliver some food for thought about the USA's current immigration policies. Detroit, (and actually I'd argue Michigan this time), is once again a character; so much so that Nancy Pearl of NPR's Morning Edition seriously considered relocating after reading Mr. Jones's first offering -- "This book is so good, I actually put it down, and I briefly entertained the notion of moving back to Detroit.” Getting back to this second book, we really can't say it any better than Mike Lupica says in his New York Daily News review, “man, if you haven’t read Stephen Mack Jones’ Detroit crime novels about an ex-cop named August Snow, you ought to.” ENJOY! ~ Lisa Christie  There is a series of mysteries that keep me occupied and traveling no matter where I am - the “Dismas Hardy series” by John Lescroart. As someone who was lucky enough to live in San Francisco in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I’ll try just about any book that takes place in that city by the bay. I found this series because my husband reads thrillers. He gave me one in an airport years ago; I read it and promptly forgot about it. Then, he loaded a few onto my iPad and I was hooked. I read the first, then another and a third and kept plowing right on through the entire set. And, while I often turn my nose down at the thought of a thriller, these thrillers are my new mind candy. Why? They allow me to live again in my old hometown, if only for the duration of the novel. They have two interesting main characters – Dismas Hardy and his best friend, homicide detective Abe Glinsky, each supported by intelligent families. And as a bonus, and possibly most importantly to me, each plot places you firmly in San Francisco and provides an enjoyable page turner.
My summary – Mr. Lescroart’s novels are great books for anyone missing San Francisco and/or wanting some escapist reading. Dead Irish begins the series, but you can start just about anywhere. ~ Lisa Christie For additional mysteries that transport you to interesting places, we recommend Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache novels set in the modern-day Quebec countryside, Jacqueline Winspear‘s Maisie Dobbs series set in Post WWI London, Sarah Stewart Taylor's Sweeney St. George series set in Boston/New England, Archer Mayor’s Joe Gunther series set in our home state of Vermont, and Martin Walker's Bruno Series set in France. ~ Lisa Christie and Lisa Cadow
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 Trekking Beyond by Damian Hall (2018). This book describes gorgeous long walks on every continent. A perfect book to help plan your next adventure or to help you feel far far away when you are not able to leave. ~ Lisa Cadow  Atlas of Adventures: A collection of natural wonders, exciting experiences and fun fun festivities from the four corners of the globe by Lucy Letherland (2014) – Ms. Letherland’s book encourages the reader through fun illustrations and some well selected prose, to travel the world to have adventures specific to unique locations. A GREAT holiday or hostess gift, and a great book to have lying around to peruse at your leisure. ~ Lisa Christie  The Best Place to be Today by Lonely Planet (2015) – A travel destination idea for every day of the year. May it inspire last minute travel plans this summer – even of the armchair variety. Bonus – it makes a great hostess gift. ~ Lisa Cadow and Lisa Christie
 The Nightingale by Kirstin Hannah (2015) – This book has been staring at us from the best-seller bookshelves and still in hardcover for over a year but we resisted its charms until the summer of 2016. It invites us into the wartime world of sisters, Vianne and Isabelle, in 1940’s France and tells a tale of their very different roles in the resistance movement. The Nightingale is an excellent summer read which caught this reader off guard in the final pages, with tears streaming down my face without a kleenex all while sitting in the window seat of an airplane. A compelling story with excellent character development which as with any good tale leaves one asking, “What decisions might I have made if put in the same situation?” The Nightingale shows us that there are also still many aspects of World War II to explore through the powerful vehicle of literature. ~ Lisa Cadow (and Lisa Christie)  Brazilian Adventure by Peter Fleming (1932). In 1932, Peter Fleming, brother of Ian Fleming (yes, the James Bond Fleming) traded in his editor job for an adventure — taking part in a search for missing English explorer Colonel P.H. Fawcett. Colonel Fawcett was lost, along with his son and another companion, while searching Brazil for the Lost City of Z (a trip recently memorialized by a Hollywood movie). With meager supplies, faulty maps, and packs of rival newspapermen on their trail, Fleming and company hiked, canoed, and hacked through 3,000 miles of wilderness and alligator-ridden rivers in search of Fawcett’s fate. Mr. Fleming tells the tale with vivid descriptions and the famous British wry humor, creating a truly memorable memoir and possibly one of the best travel books of all time.~ Lisa Christie  Our Homesick Songs by Emma Hooper (2018) – The fish have left Newfoundland and so has pretty much every person in this lovely hopeful novel about how things change. As the New York Times said “Lyrical…the town is filled with magic, and so is Hooper’s writing…Our Homesick Songs is a eulogy not just to a town but a lifestyle – one built on waves, and winds, and fish, and folklore.” We include it here as the novel is peopled by Irish Canadians, and because sometimes you just need to read a book that leaves you hopeful about the human spirit. Thank you Susan Voake, retired elementary school librarian extraordinaire and current superb indie bookseller for this recommendation. ~ Lisa Christie  Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys – My then 8th grader loved this tale of the World War II in the Baltic States. In it, a group of teens and a few adults is trying to escape Hitler’s and Stalin’s armies and make it to safety on the Wilhelm Gustloff. Ms. Sepetys does a fabulous job of creating memorable characters and wrapping them into a plot heavily weighted by historical events. Or, as The Washington Post stated, “Riveting…powerful…haunting.”~ Lisa Christie
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