Book Review Friday: Heat Wave

Heat Wave
By Richard Castle

It took a while for me to finally get around to reading one of Richard Castle's books.  I knew about the phenomenon, but my TBR pile is just so high ... but finally this summer I really needed something different ... boy did I find it.

For those few who don't already know, there is no Richard Castle.  The books are ghost written as a tie-in to the Castle TV series that airs on ABC.  The premise is simple.  A successful writer uses his leverage with the mayor of New York to allow him to shadow a New York City homicide detective in order to research a new book.  In the process sparks fly between author Richard Castle and Detective Kate Beckett and the Nikki Heat novel series is born.   The TV series is fun and engaging.  And so are the novels.

Heat Wave introduces the character of detective Nikki Heat and her temporary sidekick, journalist Jameson Rook.  Together with Detective Heat's team of investigators they work a homicide case as Rook prepares to write an article about one of NYPD's best detectives.  The book has a slightly Chandleresque noir feel to it, dark and witty with undercurrents of sexual tension and violence.  There are lots of subtle and, some not so subtle, wisecracks.  Fast paced with a definite tension between the two main characters culminating in steamy, but not graphic love scenes.  It's a well written story with interesting characters and lots of plot twists making for a satisfying mystery.

A few random thoughts on the books:  I've done a binge read of the the Nikki Heat series this summer, which starts with Heat Wave.   Because of how quickly I've read them I've noticed some subtle changes in technique and style from book to book and I think I'm safe in saying that there is no one person ghost writing this series. Also, for maximum effect, watch the series while reading the novels, the better to catch the inside jokes and see the clever way plot elements from the TV show are woven into the novels.  It wouldn't hurt to catch up on the reruns of Firefly, too, as references to Castle star Nathan Fillion's previous role show up on screen and in print.

Books in the Nikki Heat series:
Heat Wave
Naked Heat
Heat Rises
Frozen Heat
Deadly Heat
Raging Heat
Driving Heat

Other books by Richard Castle:
A Brewing Storm
A Raging Storm
A Bloody Storm
Storm Front
Wild Storm

If you like Richard Castle's books, you may like these authors:

Lawrence Block
James Patterson
Michael Connolly
Stephen J. Cannell
Dennis Lehane
Sue Grafton
Tess Gerritsen

Book Review Friday: The Coroner's Lunch

 

The Coroner's Lunch
By Colin Cotterill

A friend of a friend recommended this book, the first in a cozy mystery series. It's definitely a series I'll be recommending to patrons of the library.
1976, the Vietnam War is over, just barely, and the Communist Pathet Lao party has taken over the government of the small nation of Laos.  Dr. Siri Paiboun, a longtime member of the party (he's 72) was expecting to retire, but now he has been assigned to be the nation's chief coroner.  With little forensics training,  a badly equipped morgue, and only two assistants Dr. Siri tries to do his job while dealing with the bureaucratic red tape that comes with any government.  Then a couple of corpses come in that have Siri asking questions, questions that are making someone uncomfortable.
With dry wit and great historical details in an exotic Asian setting, Colin Cotterill tells a story of murder, mystery, and mysticism.

Other books in the series:
Thirty-three Teeth
Disco for the Departed
Anarchy and Old Dogs
Curse of the Pogo Stick
The Merry Misogynist
Love Songs from a Shallow Grave
Slash and Burn
The Woman Who Wouldn't Die
Six and a Half Deadly Sins


If you like The Siri Paiboun series you may also like:

The #1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith
The Jules Maigret Mystery series by Georges Simenon
The Shan Tao Yun Mysteries by Eliot Pattison 
Bruno Courreges Investigations series by Martin Walker

Book Review Friday: Curiosity Thrilled the Cat

Okay, I know it's Saturday, but I'm posting it anyway.
Happy New Year!!

Curiosity Thrilled the Cat

By Sofie Kelly

Published February 2011

First in the Magical Cats Mystery Series.

 

Kathleen Paulson decides to do something spontaneous, so she leaves her home and job in Boston and signs on as head librarian overseeing the renovating and refurbishing of the Mayville Heights Public Library in Minnesota.  Exploring the town one afternoon, Kathleen comes across an abandoned mansion that has become home to a colony of feral cats and two adorable kittens follow her home.  Hercules and Owen soon become part of Kathleen’s new family and when she becomes a person of interest in a local murder; her two feline friends prove there’s more to cats than meets the eye.

 Engaging and cozy with just a touch of magic, Sophie Kelly’s Curiosity Thrilled the Cat was a fun way to while away an afternoon or two. The mystery was intriguing and kept me guessing.  The cats were adorable.  Granted, you have to suspend disbelief to imagine a cat walking through solid objects, but anyone who’s ever owned a cat will know it’s not as farfetched as it sounds.  Mayville Heights is peopled with interesting characters you’ll want to get to know better.  Main character, and librarian, Kathleen Paulson is a like-able, strong willed animal lover, who’s only a little concerned about what the neighbors will say if they hear her talking to her cats.

 

If you liked Curiosity Thrilled the Cat, you might like these:

The Magical Cats Mystery Series by Sofie Kelly
Curiosity Thrilled the Cat

Sleight of Paw
Copycat Killing
Cat Trick
Final Catcall
A Midwinter’s Tail

Other Cat Mystery Series

The Mrs. Murphy Mysteries by Rita Mae Brown
The Midnight Louie Mysteries by Carole Nelson Douglas
The Cat in the Stacks Series by Miranda James
The Joe Grey Mystery Series by Shirley Rousseau Murphy

Other Librarian Mystery Series

The Ophelia & Abby Mysteries by Shirley Damsgaard
The Cat in the Stacks Series by Miranda James
The Karen Nash Mysteries by Mary Lou Kerwin
The Murder by the Month Mysteries by Jess Lourey