Summary: Sunday September 3rd 1939. At the moment Prime
Minister Neville Chamberlain broadcasts to the nation Britain’s declaration of
war with Germany, a senior Secret Service agent breaks into Maisie Dobbs' flat
to await her return. Dr. Francesca Thomas has an urgent assignment for Maisie:
to find the killer of a man who escaped occupied Belgium as a boy, some
twenty-three years earlier during the Great War.
As Maisie’s search for the killer escalates, the country braces for what is to come. Britain is approaching its gravest hour — and Maisie could be nearing a crossroads of her own.
Angie’s comments: A tough mystery during a hard time. The atmosphere is
remarkable in this book, and the mystery is equally fascinating. Maisie is a
lovely, caring character who tries to do the right thing.
Recommended for readers of historical
mysteries.
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May 3, 2017
In This Grave Hour
May 2, 2017
The Axeman of New Orleans
Summary: From 1910 to 1919, New Orleans suffered at the hands of its
very own Jack the Ripper–style killer. The story has been the subject of
websites, short stories, novels, a graphic novel, and most recently the FX
television series American Horror Story. But the full story of
gruesome murders, sympathetic victims, accused innocents, public panic, the New
Orleans Mafia, and a mysterious killer has never been written. Until now.
The Axeman repeatedly broke into the homes of Italian grocers in the dead of night, leaving his victims in a pool of blood. Iorlando Jordano, an innocent Italian grocer, and his teenaged son Frank were wrongly accused of one of those murders; corrupt officials convicted them with coerced testimony. Miriam C. Davis here expertly tells the story of the search for the Axeman and of the eventual exoneration of the innocent Jordanos. She proves that the person mostly widely suspected of being the Axeman was not the killer. She also shows what few have suspected—that the Axeman continued killing after leaving New Orleans in 1919. Only thirty years after Jack the Ripper stalked the streets of Whitechapel, the Axeman of New Orleans held an American city hostage. This book tells that story.
Angie’s comments: Besides being a fascinating account of a strange series of
crimes, the book is an account of New Orleans in the late 1800s and early
1900s. It is about corrupt police and government, immigrants, false tales of
immigrant societies, and the lives and deaths of New Orleans residents.
It is very well researched, and Davis doesn’t
make any wild claims.
Recommended for readers of true crimes.
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May 1, 2017
Buried
Summary: Justice is overdue in the coastal town of Twisted Cedars
where two unsolvedmysteries lay buried in the past.
Over thirty years ago a series of murders targeting Oregon librarians was never solved. Now someone with inside knowledge is feeding clues to true crime writer Dougal Lachlan, promising him the best story of his career. Pursuing the leads means returning to Twisted Cedars, where his sister Jamie is about to marry a man he deeply dislikes. Local Twisted Cedars librarian Charlotte Hammond prefers her mysteries—and her romances--between the covers of a good book, especially since the disappearance of her older sister, Daisy, eight years ago. But then the dark and tortured soul who is Dougal Lachlan walks into the Twisted Cedars Library asking for her help. Before long Charlotte realizes there is no safe zone. Not even in libraries...and especially not in Twisted Cedars.
Angie’s comments: Buried is the
first book in the three-part Twisted River series. There is action, mystery,
and romance. The mystery is interesting, and the Tipton library does have the
other two books in the series.
Recommended for readers who like contemporary mystery.
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