WILL UNWOUND #128: “Will’s Mystery Project – Books 1 and 2″
May 31, 2010My first venture into the mystery genre was Donna Andrews’ Murder with Peacocks. I picked the book up when I was in one of my apocalyptic moods. The stock market had just gone done over a hundred points; my daily golf game did irretrievable damage to my sense of self esteem; I was called in by my son for a dead cat removal from his air conditioning unit; and the BP oil spill had just started.
I needed something light and funny… something… anything ….that would steer my mind clear of gloom and doom! Then I remembered reading an unwinder comment that Lilian Jackson Braun’s mysteries were funny. Great, but wasn’t she the one with cats weaving in and out of the plot? Well, forget about Braun for awhile. That dead cat I removed from the air conditioning unit was the foulest smelling thing I’ve ever sniffed. And what in heaven’s name was he doing in there….investigating a murder?
So then I started going down the “A’s” and Donna Andrews roped me in on page one, the part where Meg Langslow’s sister in law to be wants her to provide some peacocks for her wedding. Peacocks at a wedding? The funny thing is that it’s not funny. Well, it’s funny, but it’s not bizarre. Anything goes at a wedding, a fact which Andrews deliciously exploits in this laugh out loud murder fest.
What made Murder With Peacocks work for me was the devilishly satirical way that Andrews mixed 3 oddly unforgettable weddings, all of which were being coordinated by amateur super sleuth Meg Langslow , with 3 fairly unforgettable murders.
As I stated in an earlier post , all bad jokes aside, there are some trenchant similarities between funerals and weddings. Both events center on society rather than the principal persons involved. The corpse, the bride, and the groom all tend to be bit players in a larger drama of keeping up with the Joneses or exceeding them. Both events generate an incredible amount of stress on the families involved. Both events pressure family members into making financial decisions on the basis of guilt and competition (my Dad’s coffin is cooler than your Dad’s was; and my daughter’s wedding dress is a Vera Wang and your daughter’s was an out of date, hand-me-down, family heirloom). And both events are often in the final analysis judged on the basis of the food served (wasn’t it special that they made a replica of Grandpa out of the pate’ spread?).
Andrews nails the wedding as funeral scenario perfectly, and her odd cast of corpses, eccentric family members, bumbling small town police, and various oddball hangers-on provide a delicious literary smorgasbord, one that you don’t want to overindulge because Meg’s father’s big hobby is filling his garden with poisonous plants. It’s a garden that festoons the wedding grounds. Does someone get poisoned? I’m not telling but keep your eye on….oh, that’s right…I’m not supposed to tell who the murderer is. Give me time. I’ll get the hang of this.
If you’re confused, don’t be. Meg, the only sane one in the family, is there to straighten it all out for you. Never for me has murder been this darned funny. What apocalyspe?
I give Murder With Peacocks a 3 star *** rating (out of 5).
From frothy weddings and funny corpses, we move to a different place (Rome), a different time (70AD), and a different mood (dark and tough). The book is Silver Pigs. The author is Lindsey Davis. The detective is Marcus Didius Falco.
The Rome depicted here is not the Rome you read about in your Western Civ 101 textbook back in your freshman year in college. That Rome was a marvel of classical architecture, high minded statesmen, a sophisticated culture, and a strict regime of law and order. The Rome of Silver Pigs is a chaotic urban jungle of tenement buildings, con men, organized crime, and duplicitous politicians. Its winding streets of teeming humanity are hot, humid, and very dangerous.
It’s a place where you don’t want to be after dark unless of course you’ve got Marcus Didius Falco as your guide. He’s an interesting blend of tough guy, cynic, and romantic. As a man of the people, a plebian who grew up street wise and dirt poor, Falco is a republican of strong opinions. It’s not a political point of view that endears him to the imperial power structure that he keeps bumping up against. It’s a wonder that he survives, but then again he’s tough and has street cred with the local patrol officer in the working class district he calls home.
His challenge in Silver Pigs starts out as a simple investigation into the murder of a beautiful 16 year old girl from a politically powerful aristocratic family. In short order, however, his case morphs into a probe into political corruption at the highest levels of the imperial power structure . It’s an investigation that takes him into the rough and tumble world of the lead and silver mines of a faraway, backwater Roman province called Britannia. Here too you will discover a crude world of violence that they didn’t tell you about in Western Civ.
To be fair to the book it’s not all blood and butchery. There’s quite a tempestuous love affair that ignites Falco’s long lost soul. That’s right…gasp…tough guy Falco falls in love with…double gasp… an aristocratic divorcee of impeccable tastes and bearing. Thankfully, however, they do have one thing in common: a love of adventure and a flair for danger.
I absolutely loved everything about this book and give it all 5 stars…*****!
UNWINDERS, THANKS FOR GETTING ME INTO MYSTERIES. I’M LOVING THE ADVENTURE. LET’S KEEP EXPANDING THE LIST SO I WILL HAVE MORE CHOICES. GIVE ME YOUR RECOMMENDTIONS BELOW. THANKS. ALSO IT WOULD BE FUN TO GET YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE 2 BOOKS I JUST REVIEWED.
WILL’S MYSTERY BOOK LIST PROJECT
Atherton, Nancy –Aunt Dimity’s Death
Atkinson, Kat – When There Will Be Good News
Barr, Nevada –Blind Descent
Beaton, M. C. – Death of a Gossip
Black, Benjamin – Christine Falls
Braun, Lillian Jackson –The Cat who could Read Backwards
Brett, Simon – Dead Side of the Mike
Burke, James Lee – The Neon Rain
Castillo, Linda – Sworn to Silence
Christie, Agatha – And Then There Were None
Connelly, Michael - The Lincoln Lawyer
Cotterill, Colin – Coroner’s Lunch
Crais, Robert – The Monkey’s Raincoat
Crombie, Deborah – A Share in the Death
Davis, Lindsey –Silver Pigs
Dexter, Colin – The Wench is Dead
De Poy, Phillip – A Minister’s Ghost
Doyle, Sir Conan – Hound of the Baskervilles
Eco, Umberto – Name of the Rose
Evanovich, Janet – One for the Money
Fairstein, Linda – Lethal Legacy
Fforde, Jasper – Eyre Affair
Fleming, Julia Spencer – In the Bleak Midwinter
Flynn, Gillian – Sharp Objects
Fowler, Christopher – Full Dark Horse
Franklin, Ariana – Mistress of the Art of Death
French, Tara – In the Woods
Gaus, P.L. – Blood of the Prodigal
George, Elizabeth – A Great Deliverance
Gilbert, Michael – Smallbone Deceased
Grafton, Sue – A for Alibi
Gregorio, Michael – Critique of Criminal Reason
Haddam, Jane – Not a Creature Was Stirring
Hall, James – Under the Cover of Daylight
Harris, Joanne – Gentlemen and Players
Hoban, Russell – Riddley Walker
James, P.D. – A Taste of Death
King, Lauri e –Beekeeper’s Apprentice
King, Ross – Ex Libris
Krueger, William Kent – Iron Lake
Larsson, Steig – The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo
Lehanne, Dennis –Mystic River
Lovesey, Peter – Swing, Swing Together
Lutz, Lisa –Spellman Files
Macbride, Stuart – Cold Granite
Mankell, Henning – Faceless Killers
Maron, Margaret –Bootlegger’s Daughter
McCall Smith, Alexander – #1 Ladies Detective Agency
McCrumb, Sharyn – She Walks These Hills
McDermid, Val – Place of Execution
McDonald, John D. – Deep Blue Goodbye
McDonald, Ross – Moving Target
Moore, Christopher – Fluke
Neville, Katherine – The Eight
O’Connell, Carol – Judas Child
Pattison, Eliot – The Skull Mantra
Parker, Robert – Godwulf Manuscript
Pearl, Matthew –Dante Club
Pears, Iain – An Instance of the Fingerpost
Penny, Louise – The Brutal Telling
Perez-Reverte , Arturo – The Club Dumas
Perry, Anne The Face of the Stranger
Peters, Elizabeth – Crocodile in the Sandbank
Peters, Ellis – Morbid Taste for Bones
Pickard, Nancy – Scent of Rain and Lightning
Preston, Douglas and Child, Lincoln – Cabinet of Curiosities
Robinson, Linda S. – Murder in the Place of Anubis
Rozan, S.J. – Concourse
Sandford, John - Rules of Prey
Sayers, Dorothy L. – Gaudy Night
Sayers, Dorothy L. - Murder Must Advertise
Stout, Rex – Nero Wolfe series – Doorbell Rang
Taylor, Elizabeth – Angel
Tey, Josephine – Daughter of Time
Westlake, Donald – Dancing Aztecs
Willis, Connie – To Say Nothing of the Dog
Winspear, Jaqueline – Maisie Dobbs
Woodrell, Daniel – Winter’s Bone
OK, I give up. I’ll have to start requesting some of these! I think I’ll start with Doorbell Rang by Stout. I’m so glad we steered you right with Falco! The second book in the Falco series is Shadows in Bronze. But I suggest you wait a bit then come back to Falco. Simply so you get a feel for what a variety there is in the mystery genre. Will, do you like cooking? There is a mystery series with a female caterer if you think you might be interested. I loved the first several but they got rather tiresome after a while. Recipes are included with every story. Diane Mott Davidson:
Catering to Nobody (1990)
Finalist 1990 Agatha Award for Best First Novel
Finalist 1991 Anthony Award for Best First Novel
Finalist 1991 Macavity Award for Best First Novel
Maybe if you decide to try this, wait till you are thoroughly hooked on the genre. I do not consider this as good as others I’ve recommended. It also is a bit more interesting for women.
Sadly, I can’t touch the second Falco until I read 73 more mystery authors. Mick told me I was crazy to do it this way. Maybe he was right!
Will, I’ve heard that authors shouldn’t proof their own copy because they are too familiar with it.
That’s probably a good point. For me it’s a matter of wanting to move on to something else. I do need to proofread. With a blog in particular you can get careless.
Yes!!! Falco gets a five! In the next book he goes to Pompei – before Vesuvius erupts.
Mick, don’t tempt me. BTW…do you know anything about the Steven Saylor Rome series, the Medicus Rome series, or the HBO Rome series?
Saylor is a good series in terms of the mysteries. It doesn’t have the humor of Falco. Meddicus Rome actually takes place in Britain.
Thanks, Mick. How about the HBO Rome series?
I’m sorry that you’re sad about not getting to read more Falco, but look what you have to look forward to! Both are excellent reviews! As a non-mystery lover, you didn’t convince me to add either to my “to-read” list, but I was happy to hear about them, and at the end of your project I’ll definitely be well-informed about mysteries. Go, Will!
Elissa…someday you will be in the mood for Falco and then you will discover him. It’s all about the mood of the reader. Might not be for 30 years. Look at me. I’m 60!
The typo police here. The book title is MURDER WITH PEACOCKS, not pigeons. And the sleuth is Meg, not Peg.
Laurien Berenson’s dog show mysteries have an Aunt Peg, but you’re not reading that author.
If you’re into cooking, Joanne Fluke’s series, ninbegin
Sue…Many thanks. I am the world’s worst proofreader. I absolutely hate proofreading. When I’m done writing something, I’m done. Guess I better start editing. Oh well.
(Damn – hit send before I was ready.)
Joanne Fluke’s series, beginning with THE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE murder, features a young woman in a small Minnesota town who owns and runs a cookie bakery. Lots of recipes, guaranteed to put weight on as you read.
In Claudia Bishop’s Hemlock Falls series, the main character is an innkeeper in what sounds like a picturesque upstate New York village. There are also recipes, but usually only one.
Katherine Hall Page’s series features Faith Fairchild, who’s married to the minister in the Boston suburb of Aleford. When she’s not sleuthing or being the minister’s wife and mother to two small children, she’s also a caterer. More recipes.
If you’re into history, Miriam Grace Monfredo’s Seneca Falls series is set in the mid-1800s. The location is Seneca Falls, NY, and the first book, SENECA FALLS INHERITANCE, includes a scene at the meeting where Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton present the “Declaration of Sentiments.”
Your comment about weddings and funerals being essentially alike reminded me of a quote from Alice Roosevelt Longworth (Teddy’s daughter, for those who didn’t know), She said her father wanted to be the bride at every wedding and the corpse at every funeral.
From all the bios I’ve read of Teddy, Alice Roosevelt Longworth was a real kick.
An author I’d recommend is Josephine Tey (a classic British mystery writer), and an excellent way to start with her is the historical mystery called _Daughter of Time_. The central character is a policeman on his back in a hospital bed recovering from wounds, and he is brought a set of pictures from the National Portrait Gallery. His eye lights on Richard III. “Strange… he doesn’t look like a bad man at all.” In the end, the book is a very satisfying examination of the myths surrounding Richard, especially the hatchet job Shakespeare does on him. It is a different kind of mystery, but very engaging.
And of course, I NOW notice that someone else beat me to the punch… the perils of hitting too quickly!
Thanks, Mark. The Tey will be an interesting experiment for me because my local library (Livermore Public) only has it in an audio format. I’ve never listened to a book before so that will be a double first. A number of people on this blog have told me that the audio experience can be really enriching. We shall see.
I for one want to read both books. Great reviewing, Will, and I’m so glad your first tries were successful.
Thanks, Karen. I’m a little rusty on book reviews. It must have been about 33 years ago that I did some reviewing for School Library Journal.
Absolutely agree on the Falco series – plot, characters, events, are all worthy of the 5. The series is quite lengthy now, but it never wears out or loses freshness. I think I am behind on the newest. So glad you like it. Stephen Saylor has another series about Rome, much darker in feel but again, not the stuff you read in Western Civ. Roman Blood is the first one. Gordianus the Finder is the “detective”.
I myself would give “Murder with Peacocks” a 4, but then I have lived in the south and really know all those people. The mystery was better than I expected when I got started, and I found most of the characters to be real, not stereotypes. She almost had me at the end with the false revelation but not quite.
BTW, Andrews name has fallen off your list so you might want to check and see if anyone else is missing.
PS – I picked up a different Sharyn McCrumb thinking it would be a mystery, and it turned out to be a pilgrimage story about Dale Earnhardt and racing instead. If you are into NASCAR, you might want to add St. Dale on your list for when you are done with mysteries. It was hilarious and good to fans.
Karen…thanks for a heads-up on the list. I will fix it. I didn’t give Peacocks 4 stars because I could never understand why Meg’s mother was attracted to Jake as a potential husband. I could kind of understand the divorce from Meg’s father in that she probably had her fill of his eccentricities but Jake seemed like a loser from the beginning. So I gave it 3 stars. Had Andrews created a more attractive Jake the book would have been more polished. It was her first attempt and from the unwinders I’ve heard that her other books are better. Just my thoughts.
Since you enjoyed Silver Pigs so much, may I recommend Ruth Downie’s “Medicus” series? It takes place in Roman Britain, and its main character is a Roman army physician.
The writing is fantastic and it’s got some very funny moments.
I was thinking of this series too – it starts with Medicus and is about a Roman physician working in Britian after a nasty divorce. Russo soon gets a reputation as the doctor who likes to see the dead bodies and takes on the duties of medical examiner as well as legionary doctor.
I listened to this, as narrated by Simon Vance, and enjoyed it very much.
J and J…this one definitely makes my list. It will be fun to compare with Falco.
May I suggest M. M. Kaye’s “Death in….” books?
Her husband was in the British military and when she was allowed, she’s live where he was stationed. During her time, she’d make notes about the things she saw and later wrote a mystery set in each location. She had an eye for detail, so they’re very evocative of place and time.
They’re not a series and since you’re choosing by feel, I won’t recommend a particular title: just pick based on where you’d like to visit: the Andamans, Berlin, Cyprus, Kashmir, Kenya, or Zanzibar.
This sounds great. Thanks, EA.
It’s driving me crazy! Why are you reading Kate Atkinson’s “when will there be good news” (book 3) rather than the first book in which she introduces the character of the ex cop in” case histories”?
Amy…I guess that’s why I have a big sister to keep me on the right track. I’m just going by what my blog readers tell me to do. Thanks for the tip. It will be interesting if anyone else notices that. Hope all is well.
Oh! I absolutely loved When Will There Be Good News; where is your “book report” Will?
Hope you’re right about the Falco book. I just bought a copy on Alibris.
Beth, you mean there’s a mystery book you haven’t read? Enjoy.
Since you’re adding a few new authors, I’d suggest Lawrence Block–and more specifically the Bernie Rhodenbarr series, most of them having titles beginning “The Burglar Who…” or similar. They’re romps more than pure mysteries, and the protagonist–a burglar who’s also a used book/rare book seller–is fun. I’ve only read four (of ten or so); #8, The Burglar on the Prowl, is a good choice, I think. (LPL has several of them–that’s where I get them.)
Thanks, Walt. These sound like fun. Hope you’re enjoying the great weather.
Hello, Will….re: audio books, like you, I was originally reluctant. My experience had been self-improvement audio books which tend to put me to sleep, or send my mind wandering. However, the first fiction audio I listened to– a Louis Lamour, yet– made me a convert. There have even been times when I found the (unabridged) audio better than the print version, odd as that sounds.
Tip: Grandchildren and audio books on long drives are a great combination. My middle grandson, age 12 and easily bored on long trips (translation: obnoxious), becomes contentedly quiet when there is an audio book playing.
Jeanne…Yes, I will give audio books a try. A couple of the unwinders, I think Jessica was one, raved about the delivery style of some of the readers. Apparently, what I’m learning, is that certain readers have developed cult like followings. I don’t really drive very much because Livermore is a wonderfully bikable town. There is a nature preserve with an arroyo that meanders through the middle of the town and it has a dedicated bike path. Fortunately the path, which is located a couple of stone throws from my house, goes directly to the library. But…I do dedicate 30 minutes a day to a lifecycle in my garage. During that time I typically listen to Mozart operas, but I think I’m going to shift to audio books. I love a good western, by the way, and Lamour is about the best there is. Thanks for the tip, Jeanne.
Re: Westerns, if you haven’t read Monte Walsh, put it on some yet-to-be created list.
We’re talking Book Mountain again, aren’t we?
One more suggestion for your reading list — try P.J. Tracy’s Monkeewrench. The programmers of children’s teaching software try their hand at an adult video detective game only to find that someone is duplicating the murders in real life, right down to the last detail. Interesting characters and a couple of good twists at the end. I keep re-reading the series and still find myself doing the one-more-page thing at 2 a.m.
Thanks! Deborah
Thanks for your remarks about “Silver Pigs”! I’ve read most of Steven Saylor’s Gordianus the Finder mystery series (ancient Rome, Caesar & Cicero period) and really enjoyed them, so I think this might be a good addition to my historical mysteries reading list.
I love mysteries, usually of the cozy variety. Here are two more authors for you: Rita Mae Brown has two series of mysteries that take place in the Virginia countryside. The other is by Batya Gur, featuring her Israeli detective Michael Ohayon – interesting to find out more about modern Israeli society while enjoying a good mystery. You have a good list started. I’m a children’s librarian so I know of some good children’s mysteries, too, that adults would love just as much as children – such as Nancy Springer’s Enola Holmes series.
Possibly Philip R. Craig’s A Beautiful Place to Die, the first in the Martha’s Vineyard mysteries.
I have so much fun with Andrews that I look forward to each book. Still say Crouching Buzzard is her best yet.
Davies Silver Pigs is perhaps the grimmest of the series, but yes very well done.
Has no one mentioned Donna Leon? Set in Venice in the jurisdiction of vice-commissario of police Guido Brunetti,a genius at detection,this series is very popular at my little tiny library. Not often we have a waiting list, but we do for these mysteries. The first installment is Death at La Fenice.
Not sure where to post this. Just finished reading “The Back Page: Advice for a Mystery-Hater” by Bill Ott. He suggests some mystery reads for you. I agree with his Daniel Woodrell suggestions. Excellent books but be prepared for dark stories. I am a librarian who loves mysteries.
Amy, thanks for the tip. By the way, we devote the weekends on this blog to books. The last two months we have focused on mysteries. Every Sunday I will be reviewing the mystery books I read the previous week.
I’m a librarian who doesn’t read mysteries and I just read your column in the May 1 issue of Booklist. The only two mystery series I’ve enjoyed are the Benjamin January series by Barbara Hambly and the Harry Dresden series by Jim Butcher. The Dresden books are fun but dark, with a wizard as the detective. They have a lot of humor but not the obsession with romance that a lot of other paranormal detective series have. I read the Hambly books, which are also very dark, because I liked her fantasy work, but she has great characters and beautiful language. I admit that I couldn’t tell you the actual mystery plot of any of these books!
I hate mysteries too. The only ones I like – and I really like them – are a juvenile series called the Roman Mysteries by Caroline Lawrence.
I recommend Christian Jungerson’s “The Exception.” Set in the small office of The Danish Center for Genicide Information, it portrays the escalating bickering & backstabbing among the prime characters, all women, three researchers and a librarian. When two begin receiving death threats via email, fear and suspicions mount, as everyone wonders whether the evil is from without or within.