Hemlock Island

Title: Hemlock Island
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Published: September 12, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 259 Pages
Genre: Occult Fiction

First Sentence: I never wanted to rent out the island house.

Blurb: Laney Kilpatrick has been renting her vacation home to strangers. The invasion of privacy gives her panic attacks, but it’s the only way she can keep her beloved Hemlock Island, the only thing she owns after a pandemic-fueled divorce. But broken belongings and campfires that nearly burn down the house have escalated to bloody bones, hex circles, and now, terrified renters who’ve fled after finding blood and nail marks all over the guest room closet, as though someone tried to claw their way out…and failed.

When Laney shows up to investigate with her teenaged niece in tow, she discovers that her ex, Kit, has also been informed and is there with Jayla, his sister and her former best friend. Then Sadie, another old high school friend, charters over with her brother, who’s now a cop.

There are tensions and secrets, whispers in the woods, and before long, the discovery of a hand poking up from the earth. Then the body that goes with it… But by that time, someone has taken off with their one and only means off the island, and they’re trapped with someone—or something—that doesn’t want them leaving the island alive. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: This book had me confused. I know the characters were adults, except for one, and her backstory came out of nowhere, but this book felt like a young adult. The horror / occult aspect never drew me in or scared me, and the whole premise was just lukewarm and missing that 10% of reality that makes a story ring towards possible.

What first drew me to this title was the author. I have been a fan of hers since I read the first Rockton book and found myself disappointed that her usual flair of storytelling, in my opinion, was missing from Hemlock Island.

The Bitter Past

Title: The Bitter Past
Author: Bruce Borgos
Published: July 18, 2023 by Minotaur Books
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
Genre: Police Procedural
Series: Porter Beck #1

First Paragraph: We don’t have a lot of murder in Lincoln County. The long stretches of open road provide us with more than our share of high-speed vehicular deaths, the images of which can haunt your dreams, but there just isn’t a lot of people killing other people on purpose. When we do encounter it, it’s never like this. This is something from hell.

Blurb: Porter Beck is the sheriff in the high desert of Nevada, north of Las Vegas. Born and raised there, he left to join the Army, where he worked in Intelligence, deep in the shadows in far off places. Now he's back home, doing the same lawman's job his father once did, before his father started to develop dementia. All is relatively quiet in this corner of the world, until an old, retired FBI agent is found killed. He was brutally tortured before he was killed and clues at the scene point to a mystery dating back to the early days of the nuclear age. If that wasn't strange enough, a current FBI agent shows up to help Beck's investigation.

In a case that unfolds in the past (the 1950s) and the present, it seems that a Russian spy infiltrated the nuclear testing site and now someone is looking for that long-ago, all-but forgotten person, who holds the key to what happened then and to the deadly goings on now. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: I am not sure how I first stumbled upon this book. Initially, I passed it up, but eventually, I felt it was the right time to read it. I regret not having read it earlier since Bruce Borgos is an excellent storyteller who keeps the reader hooked with the right balance of plotting and storytelling. Although he has been compared to Craig Johnson, his approach and style are distinct.

The book has elements of US history and family past, but it is in the last quarter of the book where an unexpected twist will captivate the reader. This twist caught me off guard, and I was engrossed in the book until the last page.

The second book in the series, "Shade of Mercy," is set to release next summer, and it is already on my wish list.

Dead on Target

Title: Dead on Target
Author: M.C. Beaton, Written by R.W. Green
Published: September 19, 2023 by Minotaur Books
Format: Kindle, Hardcover 256 pages
Genre: Amateur Sleuth
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: Agatha Raisin #34

First Sentence: “I’ll kill him! I swear I will! We can’t let him get away with this!”

Blurb: A visit to the local village fete for a spot of fun and relaxation turns into a nightmare for Agatha Raisin when she discovers the body of the local landowner in the woods—with an arrow in his chest and his trousers round his ankles.

At first her old adversary, Detective Chief Inspector Wilkes, declares the death a tragic accident, believing the victim has been hit by a stray arrow from an archery demonstration. Agatha is convinced the man was murdered and is shocked when Wilkes eventually agrees...particularly as he considers her to be his prime suspect.

Determined to clear her name and find the real killer, Agatha launches her own investigation, quickly becoming involved with a family at war, an unscrupulous gangster—and a murderer who is determined to make her the next victim. (GoodReads)

My Opinion: Agatha cannot be ready to leave in 10 minutes; this is just one of many things that R.W. Green, the new writer of the series, will never understand about her. The plotting has potential, but Mr. Green fails to grasp the essence of Agatha.

I don't recall the reasoning behind James' hospitalization being previously mentioned. It was either a new invention, or my memory failed me, but it should have stood out.

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy reading about Agatha's adventures, but the books aren't the same since Marion's passing and the new author taking over.

Bulletproof Barista

Title: Bulletproof Barista
Author: Cleo Coyle
Published: November 14, 2023 by Berkley
Format: Kindle, Hardcover 352 pages
Genre: Amateur Sleuth
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: Coffeehouse Mystery #20

First Sentence: Prologue: One screw loosened. Then two. Then three….

Blurb: Only Murders in Gotham, the smash hit streaming show, is famous for filming in authentic New York City locations and using real New Yorkers as extras. For their latest episode, they've chosen to spotlight the century-old Village Blend and its quirky crew of baristas.

But when the film crew's week of shooting delivers an actual shooting, coffeehouse manager and master roaster Clare Cosi and her staff find themselves at the scene of a true crime.

My Opinion: The story did not primarily take place in the Village Blend, which made me crave coffee less than I usually do while reading this series. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing, just surprising. I felt the plotting was a bit drawn out, and there were not enough subplots to keep me engaged. I missed the charming naiveté of Nancy and the quick barbs of Esther. Additionally, there was not enough mention of Madam and Matt, except for a brief moment when Matt saves an incidental character.

In the next book, I hope the author focuses more on the main characters that have made this series so popular and enjoyable to read.