The King's Assassin

It is 1213 and an English army is crossing the channel to fight Phillip of France.  Amongst the soldiers are Alan Dale and Little John plus their leader the Earl of Locksley.  They manage to destroy Phillip’s invasion fleet, but upon returning they learn that Locksley’s castle has been attacked.

While Locksley is preoccupied with his issues, Dale is occupied with a promise he had made to assassinate King John.  How could he do it and survive?

Locksley hears from his son that his wife had irritated the sheriff while he was away.  It is possible that the sheriff is behind the attack on the Locksley castle.  The sheriff next threatens Dale, and his son.  Can Alan protect his son and still assassinate the king?

Unfortunately the king imprisons Alan.  He is released only because Locksley agrees to help King John try to win back his lands in France.  However, John still needs more money to fight his war, but no one has anything to give him.  The Sheriff of Nottingham bleeds the county dry, and takes Alan’s son, Robert, prisoner to force Alan to pay money he doesn’t have.  Will Alan come back from France a rich man and be able to free Robert?

The ensuing loss to the French would be costly for the English and King John more so as it would lead directly to the English barons rising up against his terrible rule and thus the imposition of the Magna Carta on him.  No man, including the king was above the law.

Author Angus Donald’s historical novel is full of action and treachery.  It is an exciting read, hard to put down.

The Children Return

An ex special forces member has been killed and partially burned outside St. Denis and Chief of Police Bruno will have to work with officers from Paris to investigate this case.  Coincidentally, Bruno receives an email from a former army colleague who has come across a lad in Afghanistan who wants to return home.  Is he a jihadi extremist or just a lad who somehow turned up in Afghanistan?

Not long after this, Bruno is attacked by two men.  He survives, and a search is put in place for them.  The uncle of the boy in Afghanistan is placed under security as Bruno feels that the men were looking for him.  Once the lad is returned to France, Bruno must set up a secure house for him and his family.  Meanwhile the French security forces have the two killers under surveillance.

Things change drastically when a child is kidnapped.  Can Bruno and his team get him back without endangering him?

Author Martin Walker has some interesting twists to this thriller.  It is a read full of excitement.  I found the book very hard to put down.

Conquest

Captain Kydd and his crew have just finished escorting the body of Nelson back to England, and are immediately sent to Madeira for for further action.  Where will the frigate L’ Aurore go now?  Kydd soon finds out that the plan is to now expand the empire.  A naval squadron is to transport two or three thousand soldiers and all their accoutrements to the Cape of Good Hope.  The plan is to take it from the Dutch.

It will not be an easy task; just getting there will be fraught with peril.  Choosing a landing place would also be important.  Fortunately a sandy beach was found near Cape Town and a successful landing concluded.  Now it was up to the army to hold off the Dutch and their allies, and if successful, advance.  Surprisingly after one short battle, Cape Town capitulates.  But, will the rest of the colony follow suit?

The new governor is in need of a temporary secretary, so Kydd suggests his good friend Nicholas Renzi.  Renzi was now earning more than his friend.  How would it affect their friendship?  Now, the governor must get the people onside.  And how safe are they from the French trying to take the cape from them?

Author Julian Stockwin’s latest novel doesn’t present many sea battles, but there is a rollicking land battle near the end of it.  A very good read for fans on historical novels.

Wolves of the North

Ballista and his men at arms, Maximus, Castricius, Hippothous and Calgacus are headed north to seek out prisoners held by an enemy tribe.  On neutral ground they meet an old enemy, however their host insists that both refrain from hostilities.

A few days later a slave is mutilated just outside the camp.  Who would have done this?  It is not the way of the people through whose land they are travelling.

Away from the river, the travellers now move by wagon train across the Steppe.  It is slow going.  Another mysterious death occurs.  It is the same killer, but who amongst them?  Before they reach their destination they are attacked a couple of times by the Alani.  Finally they are surrounded and outnumbered.  How long will they last?

Fortunately the Heruli cavalry arrives in the nick of time.  Sadly, shortly after one of Ballista’s protégés is found murdered.  The killer is still with them, but who is it?  Not long after this, an attempt is made by Alani warriors to kill Ballista and the leader of the Heruli, and that can only mean one thing - war!

One anticipates many battles in, “Wolves of the North”, but author Harry Sidebottom has taken a different approach.  The travails of Ballista and his familia are given through the thoughts of the members of the familia.  The ending leaves the reader wondering what is next and looking forward to reading the next in the series.  A good read.

The Darkest Goodbye

Newly minted DC Kirsty Wilson has been paired with DS Murdoch who is to be her mentor.  They are on their way to the scene of a brazen robbery of a jewelry store.  First on the scene, Kirsty is sure that she saw Murdoch palm a watch into his crime scene bag.  Does she say anything or keep her mouth shut?  They also have an unexpected death of an elderly woman on their hands.

Later, Murdoch receives word that their robbery case could be related to one in Northampton.  That will mean that English cops will be up shortly to Glasgow to liaise.  Sadly, it is at this time that Murdoch’s wife passes away from a terminal illness.  It is while at the hospital with Murdoch that a nurse confides in Kirsty that patients have been dying unexpectedly.

Because Murdoch is off on compassionate leave, Detective Superintendent Lorimer steps in when the unexpected death turns out to possibly be murder.  When two more women turn up dead, one having died in a similar fashion to the previous, links point to either voluntary euthanasia or murder.  Things change dramatically when Lorimer’s wife’s cousin, who was in a hospice, suddenly dies.  At the same time, the aforementioned nurse brings Kirsty damning material that could implicate DS Murdoch.

Will Lorimer’s psychologist friend, Solomon Brightman be able to solve the case before Lorimer or Kirsty can put their mark on it?

This is a top notch thriller by author Alex Gray.  If this were a movie, you would be sitting on the edge of your seat.  I found the book hard to put down and am looking forward to reading the sequels.

Sleeping in the Ground

There has been a mass shooting at a wedding.  DI Annie Cabbot immediately contacts her superior, Detective Superintendent Alan Banks.  DS Winsome Jackman is one of the victims.  Chief Superintendent Gervaise brings in a profiler to help.  Banks is surprised to find that it is someone from his past, Jenny Fuller.

Was someone out to get particular members of the wedding party or is it related to Afghanistan as the groom served there?  The sniper obviously had it planned out and knew what he was doing.

A few days later it appears they have their man.  The shooter has committed suicide in his home.  Evidence points to an interest in the bride.  Now they need to get into the mind of the killer.

Some time later the senior pathologist speaks to Banks suggesting that it may not have been a suicide after all.  He has reviewed the case and noticed a number of anomalies.  Does Banks have a different and devious killer on his hands?  If so, how does the team go about finding him?

Once again, author Peter Robinson has provided the reader with an excellent thriller.  The final pages are a real page turner.  Another book, which is hard to put down.

Sleepyhead

DI Tom Thorne has been given the task of investigating a series of deaths in which someone has been giving young women drugs and then manipulating their necks, causing them to stroke and die.  However, in the most recent case the young woman is still alive.  As Thorne leaves the hospital, he spots a note on his car.  It tells him that the first two deaths were a mistake.  The last girl wasn’t.

Then another body turns up, but this time a witness has seen the body being dumped.  The killer seems to have been in a rush this time.

Thorne has a suspect in mind, but no proof.  The other problem is that the suspect is a good friend of the doctor looking after the one victim who survived.  Things take a bad twist when Thorne is attacked from behind in front of his home, and drugged with the same drug used on the victims.

Later, a woman who is a potential witness to who the killer might be is killed.  Has the killer found some way of getting information from the police?  The thing is, there was another victim at the same time.  What’s going on?  How cold Thorne’s suspect be in two places at once?

Mark Bellingham draws the reader in to this thriller and makes them want to keep turning the pages.  I found that I couldn’t put the book down.  This is an excellent debut novel and I look forward to reading the sequels.

The Blood Card

It is May of 1953 and Britain is preparing for a coronation.  DI Edgar Stephens and his friend Max Mephisto have been asked by General Petre to meet him at Whitehall.  At Whitehall they learn that the man who had recruited them into “The Magic Men” has bee killed.  At the scene an ace of hearts was found on the body.  Max points out that it is known as “The Blood Card”.  Stephens also finds a crossword puzzle that the victim had been working on.  He finds hints that
point the new queen.  Stephens is to go to New York to investigate a lead there.

However, when he returns to Brighton, he is called to the home of a woman who had been recently found dead in the water by the pier.  A note had been received mentioning The Magic Men, plus a flyer with the name of one of the men was found in her caravan; as had been found at the place of the London victim.

When Stephens gets to the USA, he discovers that the man he had been sent to meet has been killed by a hit and run driver.  The police tell Stephens that the victim was a communist.  Could that have anything to do with the killing back in London?

Back at Whitehall, Stephens and Max discover that the general doesn’t exist!  What’s going on?  Later, the general makes an appearance on Stephens’ doorstep.  He tells Stephens the background to his con game.  They agree to meet the next day with Max, however, once again the general doesn’t show up.

Will the threat to the new queen come to fruition?  Author Elly Griffiths’ thriller is just that; a thriller that is a page turner, making the reader want more.  A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Murder in Hindsight

DS Kathleen Doyle is on the scene of a murder.  The victim is connected to a cold case, of which she informs DCI Acton.  She is convinced that the killer is performing vigilante justice for cold cases because she has noticed similar recent killings connected to cold cases.  Could the killer possibly be in the police?

As Doyle goes about her daily routine she finds that she is being shadowed.  She is sure that the shadow is no threat, but upon confronting him, discovers that he wants her to meet with a mobster who is in prison.  She refuses.  The shadow also shows her a picture of her husband DCI Acton in close conversation with a woman reporter.  Is he giving up personal secrets?

During an interview with the mother of a victim, Doyle comes to the realisation that the killer is trying to frame Acton.  Will Doyle be able to prevent this from happening?

Author Anne Cleeland has a few surprises up her sleeve before the reader finds out the answers.  A good, quick read.

In This Grave Hour

Sunday, September 3, 1939; Neville Chamberlain has just announced to the nation that a state of war exists between Britain and Germany.  Fear grips the nation, because it wasn’t that long ago that they had just finished a war.    Moments later, Maisie Dobbs is called to investigate a murder; one that was done execution style on a Belgian refugee from the first war.

Maisie immediately sets to work on the case with her assistants Billy Beale and Sandra Pickering.  However she is concerned that her client may be holding back vital information.  That same day another man is killed in the same manner.  Are the two cases linked?  If so, how and why?

Meantime, children have been evacuated from London.  Three of them are at the farm where Maisie’s dad and step-mother work.  Her dad puts the two rambunctious boys to work with the horses, however her step-mother is concerned about the little girl who refuses to speak and has no identity card.

Maisie’s latest crisis is quick in coming when she discovers the bodies of two women who might have been able to provide her with more information on her case.  She determines through her research that the men knew each other, either based on where they came from or by escaping Belgium together.  There is another man she hopes to reach soon because he could be a potential victim, too.

Author Jacqueline Winspear’s mystery has two mysteries.  Can the heroine, Maisie Dobbs, and her team solve both before more deaths occur?  Will Maisie’s resolution to be strong hold true?  A good read, and hard to put down.

The Resistance Man

Bruno, Chief of Police for St. Denis has been called to the home of an elderly man who has just passed away.  In the dead man’s hand is a bank note from Vichy France.  Bruno soon learns that the old man had been a member of the resistance.

Shortly after this, Bruno is called out to a rural residence where a burglary has occurred.  The place is owned by an Englishman, and when Bruno reports the robbery to Paris he learns that the victim is more than a simple civil servant.  Later that same day he is called to another rural location where the body of a man has been found badly beaten about the head.

Bruno wonders if the robbery and murder are connected.  Later he is surprised when he finds possible evidence pointing to a connection to the elderly man who was a resistance fighter.

There is turmoil amongst the police when the press print a story about the civil servant actually being a spymaster.  Could there be more to the robbery than just theft?  Could it have international ramifications?

The brother of the victim is able to show a link between his brother and the grandson of the old man.  Money stolen by the resistance seems to be a key.

How will Bruno solve this case? Will the resistance money be recovered?  Author Martin Walker’s mystery is well written and full of intrigue.  I’m looking forward to picking up and reading the sequels.

Victory

Thomas Kydd has lost his beautiful ship, Teazer, in a battle with the French..  Although it sank, he and some of his men were rescued.  Now he is in London hoping for another command.  Unfortunately nothing is available until his friend Nicholas Renzi pulls a few strings.

Kydd is to be captain of a recently captured French frigate.  He wants Renzi to be his confidential secretary.  As excited as Kydd was, he had to await the refitting of the ship in dry dock in Plymouth.  She is to be known as L’Aurore.  Although Kydd has his ship, he doesn’t have the men to man it.  He also has orders to join Admiral Nelson in the Mediterranean post haste!  What is to be done?

He makes the onerous decision to take men from a ship that has just returned from sea.  It is a harsh decision that will only lead to resentment.  The ship is on the verge of mutiny.  Kydd’s next step will either lead to court martial or a stronger ship.  Fortunately Kydd is able to take the ship for sea trials.  After meeting with Nelson, L’ Aurore is tasked with watching for the possible leaving of the French fleet from Toulon.

When the French fleet under Admiral Villenueve sneak out of Toulon, Nelson thinks they have headed east, but his search in that direction is in vain.  At Malta, they discover that the French have retreated to Toulon.  Since the French are bottled up again, L’ Aurore is sent on patrol to the Adriatic.

Once winter is over, the French fleet once again breaks out of Toulon.  Which way are they headed?  Before Nelson’s fleet is aware, the French are headed west, likely to join with the fleets on the Atlantic and then the invasion of England!

Julian Stockwin’s remaining pages of this historical novel follow Nelson’s chase of Villanueve across and across again of the Atlantic.  It was frustrating, but would culminate in the famous Battle of Trafalgar and the death of Nelson.  The author gives detailed accounts of the final battle aboard the Victory, Nelson’s flag ship.

An intensely riveting novel, hard to put down.  What will become of Kydd and Renzi in the sequel?  I look forward to finding out.

The Caspian Gates

Ballista and his family are in Ephesus when an earthquake strikes.  Fortunately for them they were in the open when it struck.  Afterwards, Ballista is part of the committee struggling to put things to right.  Eight days after the earthquake, the Goths arrive.  They would have to fight their way out of the city.

Having safely arrived in Pirene, news arrives that the Goths have sailed south.  Ballista leaves with Maximus and Hippothous for Miletus to offer their military experience and to help defend the coastal city.  The councillors of the city agree to put Ballista in charge of the defense of the city.  Fortunately they have a few days before the Goths arrive.

Having successfully seen the Goths off, Ballista is able to return to Ephesus.  His stay there is not long as the emperor decides to send him to the Caspian Gates.  There he will be out of the way.  Along with three other officers, he is expected to ensure that the Sassanids can’t use a more northerly route to attack the Roman Empire.

Can the men get to their destination safely by travelling on the Black Sea, or will the Goths find and destroy them or would a storm send all to the bottom of the sea?

Arriving at the base of the Caucasus Mountains Ballista’s group meet the Suani.  Later at the Caspian Gates he discovers that there is much repair work to be done.

Author Harry Sidebottom’s historical novel is filled with treachery, loyalty and action.  Will Ballista and his friends once again survive through the intent of the emperor to rid himself of one of his subjects?  A very good read.

Fire Catcher

London 1666 and Charlie Tuesday is back doing his job as a thief taker.  Having seen a girl committing theft, he finds out from Mother Mitchell that the girl, Lily Boswell, is deadly.  At this same time a fire has started in Pudding Lane.

When Charlie arrives at Pudding Lane, he discovers a wall of flames.  But that doesn’t prevent him from continuing his quest.  He learns that his old nemesis, Blackstone still lives.  He decides that he must get to the palace.  However, unable to find Lily there, he goes into an apothecary where he is told that the key he possesses has the symbol of the Philosopher’s Stone.

Later he teams up with Lily, despite her deadliness.  They end up in some deadly situations, however.  Will they escape?  Meantime, the fire rages.  King Charles rallies men to stop the further spread of the fire.  But the fire feeds on itself creating a firestorm.  Can anything survive?

Author C. S. Quinn’s novel is full of exciting action from start to finish.  A hard book to put down.  The last pages tempt the reader on to the third book in this trilogy and I’m looking forward to reading it.

Keep the Midnight Out

Early one morning while on summer holiday on the Island of Mull, Detective Superintendent William Lorimer discovers the body of a young man, just above the high tide mark.  Although he knows that he will not be involved in the investigation, Lorimer can’t help but notice some similarities to a case he had investigated 20 years earlier as a new DC.

Lorimer is surprised when the SIO shows up; DI Crozier is a woman he had not met before.  He forgets to tell her about the previous case when they meet to briefly discuss the case.

The pathologist, Rosie Fergusson, determines that the victim was dead before he went into the water.

When Lorimer is able to speak again to DI Crozier, he points out that the body had been found above the high tide mark.  He also mentions the 20 year old case.  She isn’t really interested, she is more fearful that he will step in and take over the case.

Things take a drastic turn when a potential witness is found murdered and a potential suspect has gone missing.  Now Crozier comes to Lorimer for help.

Will Lorimer’s help be enough?  Is there the possibility of another killing in the offing?  Author Alex Gray’s thriller is full of potential suspects, but it isn’t until near the end that the killer is revealed.  A very good read.

Lion of the Sun

Ballista has been captured along with the Emperor of Rome, Valerian, by the Sassanids.  Ballista ensured that his men, Maximus, Calgacus and Demetrius escaped. Can they make it to safety before their pursuers catch them?  And what of the fate of Ballista?

Surprisingly, the king of the Sassanids sends Ballista and Cledonius back to the Romans to demand a ransom for Valerian.  Ballista breaks his oath to the king and remains behind to become prefect of the cavalry while the other three manage to make it to Antioch.

The empire is in turmoil.  In the west, Valerian’s son has been ousted, although he commands a large army.  In the east Macrianus the Elder has taken control, planning on putting his two sons in the purple.  They assign Ballista to operate a naval expedition along the coast, while his family is kept in Antioch.  Will Julia and his two sons survive when the Sassanids get to Antioch?

News of the sacking of Antioch reaches Ballista, and when he arrives there his wife and sons are gone.  Ballista’s blood runs cold.  How will his vengeance play out?

Author Harry Sidebottom’s historical novel has plenty of treachery, double crossing and death awaiting those involved in this historical novel.  A good read, which is hard to put down once you get started reading it

The Flame Bearer

Uthred had been trying to get back the fortress that his had stolen from him by his uncle for many years.  The time now seemed propitious to take Bebbanburg from his cousin.  Unfortunately before he can mount an attack, he is called back to York by the king.  Northumbria is under attack by West Saxons.

Headed south, Uthred stops at a fort in the Roman wall.  There he is surprised by Constantin, king of the Scots.  Constantin claims all the land north of the wall, including Uthred’s; he tells Uthred to head south or else.  When Uthred reaches York, he becomes convinced that the Scots and the West Saxons have united in common cause against the Northumbrians.

When Uthred parlays with the West Saxons, he is surprised at how courteous they are.  They claim to be building a church, but Uthred asks them why they are doing that on Northumbrian land.  The claim is that a charter had ceded it to them.  Uthred asks for gold for custom duties, but realises that in two days time when it is proposed the payment be made, he will have a fight on his hands.

Uthred’s suspicions of treachery prove true, but he is prepared, and two can play the game of treachery.  Fortunately war is averted, so now he can refocus on Babbanburg.  Deception would now be Uthred’s modus operandi.  He soon learns that his enemies also have plans for Babbanburg.

Can Uthred get back to Babbanburg before his enemies can get their to aid his cousin?  Author Bernard Cornwell’s novel is slow to build towards the final climax, however there is plenty of action in the final chapter.  A very good historical novel by one of the best story tellers.

Invasion

Tom Kydd is able to finally prove that he had been framed, which resulted in his loss of the command of Teazer.  Now he finds himself back in command of the ship and crew he loves.  He also has his old friend, Nicholas Renzi as his ship’s clerk on board.  Their first task was to sail from Guernsey northeast along the French coast.

Due to his success along the French coast, it is decided to send Kydd and Teazer to join the Downs squadron.  Admiral Keith sends Kydd to the Admiralty offices in London to be apprised of the situation with France.  There he learns of the plans that are being put in place should Napoleon successfully invade England.  Kydd is shocked by both the plans of Napoleon and England.  Can the navy withstand a French invasion fleet?

Napoleon’s invasion fleet is being assembled in Boulogne.  However, Napoleon is more interested in having himself crowned Emperor of France.

Due to the fact that Teazer is sidelined for repairs, Renzi is seconded for a mission to France. His task is to bring back a man who could be helping the French to defeat the Royal Navy.  Unfortunately the contact in question is not obliging, so Renzi sends a coded message via Kydd for the Foreign Office.  His only other option is to kill the man.  Fortunately Renzi is successful, but will the man now help England?

Kydd sends Renzi to take the waters at Bath when he returns.  Kydd now finds himself at the disposal of the man from France, much to his chagrin.  He only wants to fight Napoleon.  Kydd is shocked by what the man is proposing to build.

Author Julian Stockwin’s historical naval fiction isn’t as full of action as though in the past.  Rather, he takes a look at the infernal machines that were developed at the time, but really wouldn’t come to fruition until a century later.  A good, quick read.

Journey to Munich

Maisie Dobbs is back in London, and it isn’t long long before Special Branch comes calling asking for service.  She is to travel to Munich to bring about the release of a British boffin from Dachau.  However, before she goes, she is to receive special training on how to kill - before she can be killed.

When Maisie leaves for Munich she has new abilities, a disguise and a new persona.  Will they be enough to see her through the difficult task she has been given? In Munich she finds herself being followed by a man from the American consulate, but why?

When Maisie goes to get the necessary papers to release the man from Dachau, the Nazis delay.  She has other complications arise, too.  Will she be able to get the man released from Dachau or will she also become a prisoner?

Author Jacqueline Winspear builds up the tension in this thriller as Maisie Dobbs attempts to save people from the Nazis.  One of Winspear’s best novels so far; a very good, quick read.

When the Music's Over

Alan Banks has just recently been appointed Detective Superintendent, and now with other senior officers he is to head up an historical sexual abuse case that occurred nearly 50 years previous.  He and DS Winsome Jackman interview the first complainant and then the supposed rapist.

DI Annie Cabbot and DC Gerry Masterton have been called out to a body found on the side of a country lane.  It appears that the dead girl has been badly beaten.  In fact, so badly beaten that her insides were completely messed up.  She was also brutally sexually assaulted before being beaten.

Tox screens show that the girl had alcohol and ketamine in her system.  She may not have felt anything.  Also there is DNA from three different men who sexually assaulted her.  Not long after posting an artist’s sketch of the victim, Masterton receives an anonymous phone call identifying their victim.  She had come from a poor estate.

Bank’s victim had been raped by two men.  One had been murdered shortly after she had been raped.  Was he now investigating a murder as well as a rape?  Is it possible that both murder and rape were covered up by people powerful enough to protect the rapist?

Although the two cases are years apart, author Peter Robinson neatly ties them together.  A good read, hard to put down.

Blind Alley

Three young women have been raped over the past two months, the violence escalating each time.  DI Jack Brady has been assigned the cases.  And now it appears that a fourth victim has been found in nearby North Shields.  Brady is shocked when he realises that he knows the most recent victim; she was his brother Nick’s girlfriend.  Also the method of attack is somewhat different.

Who was after his brother Nick, and why?  Could it be related to a previous case that Brady had worked on and which involved Nick?  Why would DI Bentley, who is in charge of the last case, say that all of them are tied together when he knows that they aren’t?

Brady’s team finally has a suspect in their sights, but he seems to have gone to ground.  But then, why would he turn himself in?  His girlfriend is able to give him solid alibis for each of the nights in question.  So, who was driving his car, then?  Things go sideways when DCI Gates releases the suspect due to outside pressure.

A murder case is forced on Brady, and in quickly solving it, he also solves a rape case.  The killer is imprisoned, but kills in prison, too.  What is going on?

Brady is not prepared to give up on his original case.  Can he solve it before the rapist strikes again?

Author Danielle Ramsay’s thriller is brutal and dark.  Her writing reminds me of Ian Rankin.  A good read.

The Thief Taker

London, 1665 and plague roams the city.

Charlie Tuesday is a thief taker, but has been approached by a young woman by the name of Maria, to have him find a plague doctor who killed her sister.  She is prepared to pay him handsomely. When he goes to view her sister’s body, she traps him in the house.  Why?  When Charlie looks closely at the body he sees that she has been branded with a mark like the special key he owns.  She has brought back guards to arrest him.

Charlie manages to escape, with the help of some friends.  Now he needs to prove his innocence.  To do so, he needs to enter some of the worst plague area of London.  There he learns that he is a hunted man; the king has provided funds for his arrest.

A second woman is killed and left with the same mark on her.  She had been a prostitute, so her pimp provides more money to the mayor of London and his aide to see to Charlie’s arrest.

Charlie’s investigations lead him to discover that the killer is trying to arm an army.  However, the watch are close on his heels.  Surprisingly it is Maria who helps him escape.  They set off in pursuit of the killer, but can they stop him before he kills again?  His plan includes two more victims for his magic to work.

Will Charlie and Maria be able to prevent the two deaths?  Can they survive the plague?  Author C. S. Quinn has plenty to trials and tribulations awaiting the pair in this fast paced thriller.  A good, quick read.

Smoke and Mirrors

In Brighton, DI Edgar Stephens has a case of missing children on his hands.  The snowy weather isn’t helping either.  His team learns that the children had been involved in preparing a play, which the girl had written.  The army is brought in to help with the search.

Sadly the bodies of the children are found near Hove.  They appear to have been strangled.  Edgar is sure that the way the bodies were laid out, they were meant to be found; it seemed so staged.  He asks his friend, Max Mephisto, for help.  It isn’t long before they are joined by Stan Parker, The Great Diablo, another member of The Magic Men during the war.  From the latter he learns that on of the actors in a play currently running in Brighton was in a play prior to the First World War in which a child actor was murdered.  The current producer of the play is the son of the man who produced the play where the child actor was killed.

Could the two cases be linked?  Will the killer strike again?

Edgar received a mysterious letter from the teacher of the victims.  When he goes around to see her, her finds her dead.  She too, has been strangled.  Things go from bad to worse when the younger sister of one of the first victims disappears.

As author Elly Griffiths’ young victim is said to enjoy a twist in her plays, so does the author in this story.  A thoroughly enjoyable read.  I’m sure that you will enjoy this mystery as much as I did.

Lenin's Roller Coaster

Jack McColl is in Egypt working for His Majesty while his American lover, Caitlin Hanley is working as a reporter in revolutionary Russia.  Barely back together for a day in Scotland and the pair find out that the Bolshevik revolution has occurred in Russia.  Caitlin immediately heads off for Petrograd.  Returning to London, McColl finds himself tasked with causing mayhem in the Middle East to prevent supplies from getting through to the Germans.  But he has to wait a considerable length of time before heading out.

In Petrograd, Caitlin is impressed by what the Bolsheviks have done in ten short days.  But by December conditions had gotten worse.  The Cheka was established to stop attempts to disrupt the revolution.  Caitlin is told by her editor to either Coke home or resign.  She is reluctant to leave, but a Bolshevik friend tells her to go home and become a voice there for the revolution..

McColl is joined by Audrey Cheselden and the pair head off from Baghdad for Meshed; a trip that took a month.  Unfortunately while McColl was out trying to negotiate with members of the local soviet, in Ashkhabad, Cheselden's throat was slashed.  McColl needs to get out of there.  How will he manage to do that?  Fortunately there are those who are willing to help.

Having returned to the USA, Caitlin is shocked at how perceptions have changed since the country entered the war.  She is disillusioned, so decides to return to Russia via Vladivostok.  She travels on the Trans-Siberian Railway.  The trip is interrupted many times for a variety of reasons.  When she hears that the czar and his family is held in Yekaterinburg she decides to take a side trip there only to find herself detained by the Cheka.

McColl's trek is also westward.  In Sevastopol he learns that he is to head to Kiev.  There his plans to commit sabotage go awry and he has to leave suddenly for Moscow.  However on his way there he is captured by the Germans.

Will either McColl or Caitlin make it to Moscow, or have their respective journeys come to an end?  Author David Downing's thriller is full of action and portrays Russia as it was in the early months of the Bolshevik revolution, and the terror that would ensue.  A gripping read, and hard to put down.

A True and Faithful Brother

Frances Doughty has been asked to investigate a case of a missing man.  The strange thing is, he went missing from a locked room in which there were several other men at the same time.  Shortly thereafter a body is found in the fuel store of a nearby house.  It has been attacked by rats, however there is enough evidence to point to it being the body of the man Frances was engaged to locate.  She feels that her duty is done.

Not long after this an estate agent is murdered by someone.  He had shown the house where the first victim was murdered to the victim.  Could the two cases be related?  During the second inquest, suspicion falls on the son-in-law of the first victim.  Against her best wishes, Frances is engaged by his wife to gather information, which will prove his innocence.

Without any help on her part, a witness changes her testimony, so Frances is freed of further investigation.  Later, the man comes to her asking her to help clear his name.  However, it isn't long after this that the police accuse Frances of being the killer.  Their case is built on circumstantial evidence.  Fortunately they don't charge her with anything.  However, all of that is about to change.

As author Linda Stratmann's heroine, Frances states, a spider's web exists in this mystery.  Who is the spider and what will become of its victims?  A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Iron Castle

Robin, Earl of Locksley has just sworn fealty to King John, and been given the promise of the return of his lands.  His friend Alan Dale was with him at the castle in Nottingham for this momentous occasion.  However, Robin is not happy because the king has not set his seal to the parchment granting Robin his former place.

Now that Robin is his man, John has sent him to Normandy to ensure that it stays part of his kingdom.  After a year of poor harvests on his land, Alan joins Robin who is known there as the Wolf Lord.  Alan is placed in charge of a Company of Wolves, which includes his good friend Little John.  They travel to Falaise where they will patrol.

Later the company travels south with King John to Mirabeau.  There a successful battle results in the capture of Duke Arthur.  Alan is given the responsibility of escorting him back to Falaise.  Unfortunately Little John is badly injured in the fighting.  After some time, Dale is told to transfer Duke Arthur to Rouen where King John awaits.  Will the Duke survive this encounter?

Shortly after this, King Philip of France lays siege to Chateau Gaillard, the Iron Castle.  John thinks that he can get enough food to the castle that it will be able to withstand the siege for a year.  However, the attempt is fruitless.  Robin, Dale and his squire, Kit manage to survive the attempt and make it inside the castle.  Built by King Richard, Chateau Gaillard was deemed impregnable.  Will they be able to survive a long siege?

What remains of the story is one of battles, death and treachery.  Angus Donald has taken historical fact and written a tremendous novel of historical fiction, which I found hard to put down.

Secrets of Death

DI Ben Cooper has been called out to a sudden death.  A man has been found dead in his car.  It appears that the man has committed suicide by using helium.  But why is there a card on the dash of the car with what seems to be an online password and the words "Secrets of Death"?

There had been a number of suicides in the area recently.  Some were classifying them as "Suicide Tourism".  Ben is concerned that the suicides may linked in some way.

Unbeknownst to Ben, DS Diane Fry is involved in an investigation of the victim he has on his hands.

A few days later a woman commits suicide on Ben's brother's farm in a caravan, which she had rented.  In this case the victim had been suffering from terminal cancer.  However, Ben is more convinced that someone is controlling these suicides.

Author Stephen Booth does tie the cases together, but in an unexpected way.  A very good, quick read.

The Bird That Did Not Sing

It is August 2013 and Detective Superintendent William Lorimer has been called out to the site of a large explosion.  Was it terrorists doing a dry run in preparation for the upcoming Glasgow Commonwealth Games or something else?  Because it was terror related, the case was passed on to Special Branch.

At this same time, Lorimer's old high school sweetheart has arranged a twenty year reunion.  That same night her husband passes away in their apartment.  She has no one to turn to, so Lorimer and his wife take her in.  Tox screen tests show that the man didn't die of a heat attack, but rather from  poison that made it look like a heart attack.  Later, when Lorimer returned to the apartment he found nothing that could point to suicide; this looked more like a homicide.

Lorimer's plate is filling up fast as he now has an additional murder case.  A young woman has been killed and left out in the countryside.  Because he is friends with the widow of the other case, he is taken off of it, allowing him to focus on the latter.

A tattoo artist is found who had applied a tattoo to a young girl, similar to the victim.  However, the address given was fictitious.  Does Lorimer have a human smuggling ring on his hands?

As Sir Walter Scott said in a poem "Oh! What a tangled web we weave when we practise to deceive", so too is the plot of Alex Gray's thriller 'The Bird That Did Not Sing'.  A thoroughly enjoyable read that was very hard to put down.

He Who Fears the Wolf

Chief Inspector Konrad Sejer has been called out to a very brutal murder.  The following day on his way in to work, a bank he has just passed is robbed.  The robber got away with a hostage.  Since Sejer is a witness, Jacob Skarre is tasked with investigating the murder.

A young man who was incarcerated in an asylum has escaped.  He was seen in the vicinity of the murder, and then recognised by a policeman who knows him as the hostage.  When Sejer meets with the director of the asylum, she fiercely defends the man who has escaped, stating that there is no way he would have killed.

Author Karin Fossum's thriller isn't so much about the police's search for the killer, and bank robber, but rather more about the minds of the latter, which is a very different twist on a murder mystery thriller.  A good read.

Treachery

Tom Kydd's ship Teazer has returned to Plymouth after a successful voyage.  Unfortunately Tom's heart and mind are not in it because while he was at sea, his love, Rosalynd died.  It isn't long before the ship is assigned the Channel Islands patrol.  Added to the crew before departure were a number of Royal Marines.  Due to his grief, and moroseness, the crew begins to grumble.

The first task assigned for Teazer by Admiral Saumarez is to check on Napoleon's invasion fleet being prepared at Granville.  Taking Teazer in close was nigh on impossible due to shoals, so Kydd, Renzi and Stirk used a small fishing smack to do just that.  In the end, it was a neat run thing.  It is decided to bomb the port from sea.  However, things aboard Teazer do not improve.  Renzi tells him the men are on the verge of mutiny.  When a second man warns him, Kydd's eyes are opened and his attitude changes.

Following that, Kydd was given a secret mission to pick up a package on the French coast.  He couldn't even let his crew know about it.  When the ship returns to Guernsey, Kydd is taken to the admiral and accused of using the ship for his own personal use.  He is relieved of his command.

Kydd decides to stay on Guernsey to try and clear his name.  His friend, Renzi decides to stay with him.  However, due to their financial situation, Renzi decides to move to St. Helier on Jersey while Kydd stays in St. Peter Port.  Renzi finds work with the squadron commander on Jersey while Kydd finds work with a drama group.  Each will provide interesting play.

Author Julian Stockwin has plenty of exciting action awaiting Kydd and Renzi in the remaining pages.  A thoroughly enjoyable read, which was very hard to put down.  I can hardly wait to get my hands on the next book in this series.

King of Kings ~ Warriors of Rome

Ballista and a few of his men, have managed to escape annihilation on the eastern boundary of the Roman Empire.  When Ballista arrives in Antioch he is surprised to find that Emperor Valerian is in the city.  Will he be able to speak to him to warn him of the Persian invasion happening on the eastern edge of his empire?  Fortunately he is able to do so, but in telling his story he makes enemies.

It isn't long before Ballista is appointed to lead a force against some of the advancing enemy.  But before he can leave, he is attacked twice.  Why would the attacker say something about a nobleman wanting him dead, and which nobleman?

How was Ballista to handle the insubordination of a patrician cavalry officer?  Will Glabrio's impetuousness bring disaster or glory?  Victory is achieved, but not the complete victory envisioned by Ballista.

For a year, Ballista is out of favour with Emperor Valerian.  Then, all of a sudden he is called upon to persecute the Christians in Ephesus.  Why?  There he is to condemn the Christians to death or forfeiture of property and exile.  It is not long before he is sickened by his role.  He stops the persecution and is recalled to Antioch.

Sometime later, he is sent as an ambassador to the enemy.  However, a truce was unacceptable to the enemy.  Will the Roman army survive or be annihilated?

Harry Sidebottom's historical novel is based on actual events, and is an excellent read for fans of historical fiction.

Murder in Retribution

DCI Acton and DC Doyle are at the scene of a murder when Acton receives a call to attend another crime scene.  It would appear that they might be dealing with a gang war.  It turns out that the first victim was Russian and the second victim Irish; the two groups involved in the turf war.  Because Acton is busy with other cases, he put DS Williams in charge of the cases.

Surprisingly, the pair find a witness with photographs of a leader of the Russian mafia carrying a gun.  Unfortunately it is at this time that Doyle suffers a miscarriage.

Within a short time, the Russian is in custody.  Doyle wonders if they have the right culprit, so she checks the crime scene again with Williams.  Later that evening, her priest visits her and Acton, wondering if Doyle is being poisoned.

Why would the Russian mafia leader be attacked in jail and why would he refuse to identify the man who attacked him?

Author Anne Cleeland has more death and mayhem in store for the reader in this murder mystery.  A good read.

A Dangerous Place

It is 1937 and Maisie Dobbs is in Gibraltar.  She is on her way home to England from India after experiencing tragedy in her life.  Maisie had been out for a walk one evening and discovered the body of a man.  Now she wants to know more about him and what led to his death.

Maisie decides to enlist the man that the Secret Service has watching her to help her in her investigation.  Then another man comes from London to see Maisie.  Maisie realises that she needs to get back into her investigative form as soon as possible.

Maisie also meets a professor, who wonders if she had ever met a colleague of his in Cambridge.  Although she had, she denies it.

It is a day later that German bombers attack Guernica, killing innocent civilians.  Maisie is overcome with grief.

As Maisie continues with her investigation, she becomes sure that she is being manipulated by the British Secret Service.  But what is their connection to the murder?  What would her mentor, Maurice and her former assistant, Billy have to say about the case?  Maisie decides to sneak into Spain to check on things; it means going into a war zone.  Will she find any answers there?

Author Jacqueline Winspear's latest novel follows a different trail this time.  There is less active investigation and more angst.  A good read.

Penance of the Damned

Abbott Segae has been murdered.  He was the religious advisor to King Colgu of Cashel.  Colgu has. When invited to visit the site of the murder, but it is in territory, which could be potentially dangerous to him.  So he decides to send his sister Fidelma to investigate.  On the way there Fidelma and her partner Eadulf are informed that it is Gorman, the head of Colgu's bodyguard who has been accused of the murder.

During initial discussions Fidelma is informed that Gorman is either to be turned over to the religious community for execution or left to be judged under the old laws of Ireland.  She comes to the realisation that Gorman has not really been tried, only evidence has been presented.  She calls for a proper trial to be held.

Fidelma's investigation only leads to more questions, and then Gorman escapes his confinement.  Does this prove his guilt?  Can he brought back before a decision has to be made about his guilt?  A decision which could lead to war!

When a young woman is found hanging it is thought that she committed suicide, but Eadulf points to her crushed skull that this is not the case. The rope that hung her belonged to a religious scribe who is missing.  He is found in the river dead from blows to the head.  Who killed them and why?  Is it connected to the death of the abbot?  If so, why?

As they gather more evidence, it appears to point to a conspiracy to overthrow Colgu's neighbour.  Is it possible for the little group to stop the conspiracy?

Author Peter Tremayne's historical murder mystery is full of action and intrigue.  A thoroughly enjoyable read and hard to put down.

Leaving Everything Most Loved

A young woman from India has been killed in London, and Scotland Yard has not had any success finding the killer.  The brother of the woman has come from India to ask Maisie Dobbs to take on the case.  Billy Beale feels there is something quite not right about the case.

Shortly after talking to a potential witness, Maisie is told by DI Caldwell of Scotland Yard that the witness has been killed in the same manner as the previous victim.  Maisie is also surprised when working on another case, that of a missing boy, she discovers that the family knew the first victim.  Alas, Maisie just can't seem to tie the threads together.

It's all one messy web, and although Maisie does finally figure things out, she has her own personal conundrums to solve.  The latter will be a send off for her on a new adventure.  Author Jacqueline Winspear has once again written a good mystery, although not one of her best.  A quick read.

The Zig Zag Girl

The top part and legs of a body were found in the left luggage at Brighton station.  DI Edgar Stephens would later receive the torso addressed to him as "Captain" Edgar Stephens - his rank in the recent war.  He turns to his old magician friend, Max Mephisto, for help because this reminds him of a magic act where a woman is sawed into three parts.

Max is shocked when he sees a picture of the dead woman.  She had been his assistant at one time!  From that information, Stephens is able to find her lodging and a note there that seems to have been printed out specifically for her.

The case takes a bizarre twist when a comedian is killed in his lodging room.  Stephens had been invited to visit him just before he was killed.  There is a connection between Stephens, Max and the new victim from back in the war.  Why was he killed?  Stephens is convinced that the deaths are related to their role with the Magic Men during the war.  He decides that the best option is to check on the remaining members.

Stephens then receives a picture of the Magic Men, with an X through the face of the recent victim, and a promise of "The Wolf Trap" trick.  Does this mean another victim?  What is The Wolf Trap?

Author Elly Griffiths' murder mystery has a few twists to the plot before its surprising conclusion.  A good, quick read.

Blood Will Out

DS Liz Falla has been called out to the home of a hermit.  It appears that he has hung himself.  After her boss, DI Ed Moretti returns from London, they get the post mortem report.  The pathologist wonders how a man with limited upper body strength could have created the huge knot which broke his neck.  Looking at the home of the hermit, Moretti and Falla come to the conclusion that whoever helped the man commit suicide was looking for something amongst his books.

They are joined by a fast tracked officer, DC Al Brown, who has been just posted to Guernsey.  While working on the case an attempt is made on the life of Liz's aunt's neighbour.  His neck had been slashed and the doctor who examined him found what appeared to be bite marks on his throat.  Moretti is sure that the two cases are tied together.

The question is, how can Moretti prove hi theory?  There is one person who knows who the killer is; Meg the Gypsy.  However, she is not prepared to tell anyone.

Author Jill Downie's murder mystery ends with another murder that shows who the real killer is.  A quick and good read.

The Admiral's Daughter

Thomas Kydd and Nicholas Renzi have just returned to England from Van Dieman's Land, where Kydd finds orders for him to head to Plymouth.  He is lucky enough to be given command of his old ship, "Teazer".  Even before he can get his full complement of crew and provisions, Teazer is ordered to Le Havre to bring refugees before war broke out.  However, upon arrival he discovers that Bonaparte has declared war and ordered the arrest of any English people in France!

Teazer barely makes it away, and unfortunately has to leave some of her crew behind.  The next task for Teazer is to patrol the coastline.  Kydd brings Renzi aboard to act as his secretary.  Kydd's new lieutenant is a man called Standish, who seems to be experienced and prepared to do his duty.  Before they ship out, Kydd is invited by the admiral to a ball.  It will be an entirely new experience for him.  It is at the ball that he meets Miss Lockwood, the admiral's daughter.

Teazer sets sails eighteen men short of a full compliment.  It doesn't take long for the crew to begin to work together.  At Fowey Kydd is made aware of a French privateer plying the nearby waters.  He offers to convoy ships to Falmouth.  Off Penzance they discover a French privateer, and begin chase.  The captain of that ship definitely knows the waters and is able to escape.

Returning to Plymouth, Kydd is convinced by his sister, Cecelia, to lease a house.  He installs his friend Renzi there, too.  Once settled in, Kydd receives an invitation from the admiral's wife to a picnic.  He takes his sister with him, to impress upon her his new social standing.  Later when he and Renzi host a party, Kydd is surprised when Miss Lockwood shows up as a friend of another guest.  Cecelia tells him to not think too much of it.  Renzi suggests that the young lady is toying with him.

Teazer' next task was to take on smugglers along the coast of England.  Although they capture the ship and men, they don't get the cargo.  Kydd decides to put a couple of men ashore to see if they can infiltrate the smuggling gang.  Will the information gained be of any value?

Author Julian Stockwin has his hero doing battle on land as well as at sea. Will the saying "Love conquers all" prove itself true or otherwise?  His land battles prove to have as many hazards as those at sea.  Another good sea adventure from this author.

The Swedish Girl

Detective Superintendent Lorimer is back in his old haunts at Stewart Street.  He had been called late one night to a murder scene by DS Alistair Wilson, whose daughter had called him to tell him that her flat mate was dead.  The victim, Eva Magnusson, was the daughter of a Swedish millionaire.  Lorimer appoints DI Jo Grant to head up the investigation.

Kirsty Wilson had been working when the murder occurred, while her flat mates had gone to a party.  The three boys who were flatmates all were in a state of shock at Eva's killing.  What kind of witness statements would they be able to provide to DI Grant?  Grant is sure that she has her man when DNA evidence shows that room mate Colin Young had had sex with Eva prior to her being killed.  He must have killed her in a fit of anger.

Kirsty is sure that Colin is not the killer.  She approaches Lorimer to see if he can do anything.  He tells her that he is not the senior investigator; it is out of his hands.  Later he does wonder if they might have gotten it wrong.  With Lorimer's and Eva's father's encouragement, Kirsty does her own investigating, and does find something interesting amongst Eva's possessions.

When another young woman, who looked much like Eva was killed in a similar manner, the police are forced to question whether they got the right person in the first case.  In Christmas Eve, a woman is attacked, fortunately she survives, but barely.  DI Grant is shocked at how much she looks like the two dead women.

As the investigation progresses, it points more and more back to Sweden.  Will Lorimer's trip to Stockholm bring the killer to bay?

Author Alex Gray's murder mystery isn't fast paced, rather has the slog of a real investigation, which in this case is instigated by a young girl's search for the truth.  A real page turner, and hard to put down.

Elgy for Eddie

Eddie Pettit had a way with horses, and was well respected in his community.  Unfortunately an accident took his life, however the costermongers who knew him are sure it wasn't an accident.  They have approached Maisie Dobbs to look into his death.  Eddie was a man that was well known by Maisie and her dad.

Billy Beale, Maisie's assistant, discovers that the son of a teacher who had been helping Eddie had recently drowned.  Coincidence?   The questioning by Billy resulted in him being badly beaten.  His wife blames Maisie. Following up, Maisie discovers that Eddie's teacher is sure that her son's death wasn't an accident.  She is also surprised to learn that the son had been using a desk in a building owned by her best friend's husband.

Maisie wonders what is going on when the man possibly responsible for the death of Eddie and the attack on Billie seemingly takes his own life.  Is there more to his death than a simple suicide?

Author Jacqueline Winspear's murder mystery is much more than that as it delves into conspiracies and the possible horrible future that awaits the world.  Well written and a good, quick read.

Death in Bayswater

The body of a young woman has been found in Norfolk Square.  Her throats has been slashed as has been her face.  Inspector Sharrock was sure that they had a culprit in jail that had committed a similar murder not that long ago.  It would appear that they have the wrong person jailed.

At the same time, detective Frances Doughty has been asked by a mother and daughter to investigate the murder of a young woman who was the fiancé of their son and brother.  Although he has been convicted, they are sure that he is innocent.

Due to the seriousness of the two similar murders, Scotland Yard has been called in to take over the case.  Due to a misguided reporter, a story appears in the local newspaper stating that Frances is helping the police to search for the killer.  However, Frances is studying the similarities of the three cases.

A third woman is killed, which causes great surprise when it is revealed who it is.  A matter of hours later another killing occurs.  Will there be more?  Is Frances safe?

Author Linda Stratmann's murder mystery is not only replete with mysterious deaths, but also deception and treachery.  A very good read, and hard to put down.

Persons Unknown

A man has been found stabbed to death in a park.  His identification shows that he has come from London.  DS Davey Walker is one of the officers working the investigation.  It turns out that the victim is known to Detective Manon Bradshaw; he is her sister Ellie's ex.

A week later a phone call is made to Superintendent Stanton pointing a finger at Fly Dent, Manon's 12 year old adopted son.  DCI  Harriet Harper and Davey can't believe it, but Stanton insists that he be arrested.  He had been seen on CCTV near the murder scene.  Manon thinks it is just because of the colour of his skin that he has been pulled in. Just after Christmas, Fly is arrested.  However, more evidence points to Fly having been at the scene of the crime.

Who can Manon trust now?  The police who have taken Fly?  Fly himself?  Her sister, Ellie?

Although off the official investigation, Manon begins her own.  Fly's lawyer, Mark Talbot is helping her.  Davey also provides a couple of hints, which he shouldn't have done.  The stress of the investigation is hard on Manon as is the incarceration on Fly.  Will the family survive before the truth is found?

Author Susie Steiner's murder mystery is action packed and full of tension.  The reader is left full of concern for Manon and her family.  A thoroughly enjoyable read; hard to put down.

The Orphan's Tale

Ingrid Klemt had been an aerialist in a circus when she fell in love and married a Nazi officer.  Unfortunately, later Hitler decreed that any Nazi married to a Jew must divorce.  She was devastated.  Returning to her home she finds that it has been taken over by Nazis.  She is offered a job with a competing circus as her family seems to have disappeared.  She changes her name to Astrid.

Meantime, sixteen year old Noa Weil has stolen a baby boy from a rail car full of babies.  She had just had her own baby taken away from her.  When she cleans the baby boy up she realizes that he is Jewish.  She escapes into a snow storm and is fortunately found by a member of the same circus Astrid is in.  The owner of the circus informs Astrid that she has six weeks to train Noa to become an aerialist.  Can the older, resentful Astrid do it?

The training is hard on Noa.  Astrid doesn't like her.  However, one day after the SS comes in search of a Jew that they heard is with the circus, Noa learns Astrid's story.  She shares her own, and the two women feel closer.  Later, the circus travels by train into France.  Will their papers hold up under scrutiny?

In Thiers, Astrid is recognised by a German soldier.  As a result she is pulled from the act, and she hates Noa as a result.  Noa feels lost without her.  As the season progresses everyone wonders who they can trust.  Astrid also finds that she has fallen pregnant, only her partner knows until Noa guesses.

What the future holds for Astrid and Noa and their children, one can only guess.  Author Pam Jenoff's tale is one of tragedy and hope during a time of unparalleled threats.  A good read.

Invictus

Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro have returned to Rome from Britannia.  Cato to his new home and son; sadly his wife Julia had died shortly after giving birth to their son, Lucius two years earlier.  Immediately upon their return they are demanded to show themselves to Narcissus.  Narcissus warns them about the state of things in Rome.  He also provides Cato with devastating news about his wife, Julia.

Right Cato and Macro have been rewarded for their part in the capture of Caratacus, they are sent to Hispania under the command of their old nemesis, Vitellius.  Cato will not have a chance to get to know his son.  Once there, Cato and Macro are ordered to immediately march across the peninsula to a mine to prevent it from falling into the hands of rebels.  It is a suicide mission, for on the way to the mine, Cato finds out that he is outnumbered ten to one. It isn't long after that that the rebels are aware of the presence of Cato and his men.

Ambushed by the rebels, the cohort loses several men.  The following day, Cato makes the decision to carry on, sending the wounded back on the carts.  Will the men survive the march along an alternate route through the mountains to the mine?  Fortunately they make it undiscovered, and through stealth and determination take the mine.  They now have to prove it from the rebels before Vitellius' legion arrives.

Shortly after taking back the mine, the one man with knowledge about the mine and its silver is murdered.  Why, and by whom?  Before the answer can be determined, the rebels arrive.  Can the small cohort defend the mine before help arrives or will the rebels destroy them?

Author Simon Scarrow makes you feel as if you are right in the midst of the battles alongside Cato and Macro.  The action is intense and exciting.  A thoroughly enjoyable read, and hard to put down.

A Pound of Flesh

Newly minted Detective Superintendent William Lorimer of the Serious Crimes Squad has been to look over two similar murder cases.  But rather than deal with two detectives who wanted control of the two cases, Lorimer decides to focus on the investigation of the murder of four young prostitutes, all killed in similar manners.  He has called in his friend, Professor Solomon Brightman to help on the case.

All of his plans are thrown into disarray when a high ranking politician is found shot to death just outside Glasgow.  His murder is similar to two previous ones in that he had a white Mercedes as did the other two.  Lorimer is told by the Chief Constable to make this killing a priority and set aside the killings of the prostitutes.

Solomon's hint to "Cherchez la femme." causes Lorimer to have the CCTV cameras checked.  Sure enough, the politician's car is found on "the drag".  Were the other two men killed for the same reason?  Then forensic evidence arrives that points to the killer of two of the women to be the same man.

Can Lorimer's team find the woman who is killing punters before she kills again?  Is it possible that the two cases are tied together?  Lorimer is not allowed to check into that, but all evidence seems to point in that direction?  What is he to do?

Author Alex Gray leaves the greatest amount of tension to build up in the last chapters.  As a result, the reader is anxious to turn the next page in anticipation of what is to come. An excellent read.  Hard to put down.

The Chalk Pit

A hole has appeared in Denning Road, and when DS Clough jumps down into it he discovers that it is actually part of a tunnel system.  Did a Jesus-like figure disappear down it?  DCI Harry Nelson also has another missing person on his hands, but he is more interested in the medieval bones forensic anthropologist Ruth Galloway has on her hands.

A few days after this DS Judy Johnson discovers the body of a rough sleeper right on the steps of the police station.  He has a knife in his chest.  This is the man who had informed Nelson of the missing woman.  At the same time, Ruth gets a call from the lab informing her that the bones she has are recent.

At the weekend another rough sleeper is found stabbed to death.  He was one that Johnson had interviewed.  Later in the week another woman goes missing.  What is the  connection to the other missing woman?  Are the cases of the deaths and the missing women related?

Things change when the partner of DS Clough goes missing.  At this point, the pace of author Elly Griffiths' murder mystery rapidly picks up.  The reader is in for an exciting conclusion.  A very good, quick read.

Don't Look Back

Detective Inspector Konrad Sejer and Police Officer Karlsen have been called to the home of a missing six year old girl.  Fortunately the child returned home a few hours later.  Sometime after that, Sejer received a call from the mother who told him that the daughter had opened up after the police had left.  She had seen a naked woman lying perfectly still by a lake up on the mountain.

Sejer and Police Officer Skarre find the body of an 18 - 20 year old woman, just as the girl had said.  There seems to be no evidence at the scene.  Sejer is sure that she wasn't there earlier in the day, because some boys searching for the girl had not reported anything here.  By midnight the girl had been identified by her parents.  She was only fifteen.

A witness saw the girl going to a person with a motorcycle.  Could this be the same person seen riding down the mountain away from the crime scene?  Could it have been her boyfriend?  Why had a hitchhiker persuaded one of the witnesses that the car he had seen was red?  Could the ex of the mother of the victim also be in the picture?

Sejer is surprised when the pathologist tells him that the teen was living on borrowed time.  She had a malignant tumour in her liver.  Later her school bag is found in a shed behind the boyfriend's house.  This definitely puts him in the frame.

Can Sejer prove that the boyfriend is innocent?  If he is innocent, then who is the killer?

Author Karin Fossum's murder mystery is intense and fast paced.  A thoroughly enjoyable read, and hard to put down.

The English Agent

Kit Marlowe has been taken by Dr. Lopez to London to meet with Walshingham's agent Beak.  Marlowe is surprised when the agent turns out to be Lenora Beak.  He was not expecting a woman agent.  Walshingham's orders are that Marlowe and Lenora are to travel to Delft and prevent the assassination of William the Silent.  Even before they can start out, tragedy strikes.

Setting off for the coast in pursuit of killers, Marlowe and Lenora are attacked and Marlowe is shot.  Fortunately Lenora has medical skills, and the following day the pursuit continues, albeit at a slower pace.  When they finally get to the coast, they find that the man they are chasing has fled aboard a ship.  Alternative plans are necessary.  Those plans fail as William the Silent is killed shortly after they arrive in Delft.

Fortunately the assassin is captured.  But, will Marlowe be allowed to question him before the man is tortured and then quartered?  At the last minute he is given the opportunity to ask his questions.  He learns that a plot is afoot to kill Queen Elizabeth and put her cousin Queen Mary of Scotland on the English throne.  He and Lenora have been duped!  They must get back to England immediately.

When Marlowe meets with Walshingham, he is given the task of finding as much evidence as possible against Mary.  Walshingham also informs him that Lenora has been murdered.  He only gives Marlowe three days to find the culprit before going on to his task about Mary.

At Chartley, Marlowe discovers that Anthony Babington was the one passing messages to Mary in a secret compartment in ale casks delivered to her.  The messages hint at an invasion of England using The Netherlands as a jumping off point.

Will Marlowe's return to The Netherlands help to find the mastermind behind the assassination attempt on the queen?  Or will it lead to more death and the killing of the queen?

Author Phillip DePoy's thriller is fast paced and full of action.  A very good read, and hard to put down.

A Lesson in Secrets

Why is Maisie Dobbs being followed by members of the Special Branch?  It turns out that she is being tested by the Special Branch and the Secret Service.  They want her to become a spy at a college on Cambridge; to look for anyone who might be a detriment to the government.  She accepts with alacrity.

A week after starting her teaching position at the college, the college principal is found dead in his office.  Maisie determines that the man's neck has been broken.  She immediately calls the head of The Special Branch.

When the secretary to the late principal leaves totally unexpectedly, Maisie travels to Ipswich in search of her.  She also finds out that one of the female teaching assistants travels to London on a regular basis to take part in activities of the German National Socialist Party.  Later, returning to Ipswich, Maisie finds the missing secretary and learns some important secrets.

However, it is not those secrets that reveal who the killer is.   Jacqueline Winspear's murder mystery has a few surprises in store for the reader before the killer is unveiled.  A very good read.

The Children of Silence

Amateur detective, Frances Doughty, has been engaged to look into the case of a missing man.  Frances begins by questioning the wife of the missing man.  She comes away still not really knowing much about him.  Could he have decided to leave his wife?  Could his half-brother be behind his disappearance?

After talking to many people, Frances doesn't seem to be making any headway.  However, it seems that her client's brother-in-law has intentions of evicting her client from the family home as per the will of her husband.  A short time later, remains are found with a satchel containing the business cards of the missing man.  Is he now found?

Things change when one of Frances' former clients is found murdered, and the man charged had been at odds with him.  As her investigation continues, Frances finds that people she has spoken to have been frugal with the truth.  However, Frances is able to see beyond that frugality and discover some very nefarious plans.

Author Linda Stratmann's Victorian murder mystery is full of subplots, which leave the reader guessing just which way she is going with the storyline.  A good read.

Command

Captain Rowley of the Tenacious had made life hard for Lieutenant Kydd ever since taking over command.  He finally found something to remove him from his ship.  Brought before the admiral of the fleet, Kydd assumed that his naval career was over when the admiral sent him to Malta.  Much to his surprise, there he learned that he was to become captain of a sloop named Teazer.

Commander Kydd's new ship needs to be outfitted and crewed.  He sets about doing that.  However, it will take time, and then there are the sea trials, but they go well.  Their first real task is to get dispatches to Admiral Warren, warning of a French fleet sailing with supplies for the French army in Egypt.

Back in Malta, Teazer's next task is escorting a convoy to Dubrovnik.  For that successful voyage, Kydd is awarded some silver plate by the merchants of Malta.  The crew also brings aboard a kitten.  Every ship needed a cat, and Sprits'l would help lift Kydd's spirits.  He is given orders to search for a French corvette seen near Malta and tackle it.  The enemy ship is found in a cove on the island of Lampedusa.  Kydd challenges the captain to come out and fight.  Will this end in the destruction of little Teazer or glory?

Glory would come for Teazer later, and with it notoriety for Kydd.  However, not long after this peace breaks out.  Teazer is ordered to Plymouth where the crew and commander would become unemployed.  At this same time, Kydd learns that his dear friend Renzi lies on his deathbed.

Back in England Kydd is depressed.  He is a sailor with no ship.  He petitions the admiralty for one, but it being peace time, there are no ships.  He decides to try a merchantman, and there his fortune changes.  He is to captain a ship to Botany Bay loaded with cargo and convicts.  He is also shocked to find that one of his paying clients is Renzi, headed to self exile.

Will Kydd ever make it back to the navy or will this new land gain another settler?

Author Julian Stockwin's naval novel has less action in it than previous novels of his because of the peace that came about between Britain and France at this time.  However, it is still a very good read.

Fire

1666 and London is a tinderbox - in more ways than one.  Also, the 666 is the sign of the devil.

Thief-taker Pitman and his helper William Coke have been tasked with stopping a proposed assassination of the king.  Fortunately they are able to thwart a bombing of the king at the theatre.  However, before they can apprehend the bomber, someone stabs him to death.

Later, Pitman and Coke have the conspirators trapped.  Unfortunately they manage to escape and in the process, Pitman is severely wounded in the thigh.  The following day was Coke's wedding day.  After the wedding a good friend came to Coke telling him that his daughter had been kidnapped.  He provides Coke with the money demanded for her release.  What could Coke do, but oblige.

Arriving to meet the kidnappers, Coke's drink is spiked, and he is placed in a compromising situation with the girl.  His new wife is brought to the scene also.  How will he get out of this?  He is taken by a press gang.

While Coke is missing, his wife Sarah, is incarcerated in a debtors prison, for debts taken on by him.  Meantime, Pitman is on the road to recovery.

On September the second, in a bakery in Pudding Lane, in the wee hours, a fire started, and wouldn't be put out.  Two children are born in those hours, too.  One to Pitman's wife and one to Sarah Coke.

And the wind picked up.  Can anything be done or has the Beast arrived?  Pitman joins the fight to stop the fire.  Not long after this, Coke returns from the sea. Although asked to help fight the fire by King Charles, he requests permission to find Sarah.  However, has he arrived in time to save her from the inferno?

C. C. Humphreys' novel of the Great Fire of London is intense as the fire itself was.  A thoroughly enjoyable read.

The Circus

Inspector John Carlyle, and Sergeant Joe Szyszkowski have just been called to a crime scene; a man's body is dead on the walk in front of a house and a boy inside the house has a bomb attached to his neck.  After the bomb squad ensures the boy that the bomb is fake, it explodes.  Fortunately Carlyle and Szyszkowski were not near.

Later the sergeant is called to the home of a missing fourteen year old girl, while the inspector deals with a body in a garbage truck.  It turns out that the victim in the truck had been stabbed several times.  He was also a reporter whose paper was being investigated for phone hacking.  Carlyle's commander tells him to focus on the bombing incident.

Discussing what they have found out to date with his Sergeant and WPC Hall, Carlyle learns that his old nemesis, Trevor Miller is connected to the the reporter and that the missing girl has a boyfriend who is thirty-two years old.

Later Carlyle finds himself warned about investigating the reporter's death because it has the potential to affect another investigation.  However, more deaths await throughout the investigation.  Are they linked together or not?

Author James Craig's murder mystery is full of action and intrigue.  A good read.

Tainted Angel

Vidia is an "angel" used to lure men into spilling secrets.  It is with surprise then when she hears words from a fellow agent that appear to make him to be a double agent working for the French!  Is it an attempt to entrap her?  Her home is then searched to see if she was holding any secrets there.

Shipments of gold to the army on the continent have been disappearing.  Why?  Could it have anything to do with Brodie, the man who is her supposed guardian?  An attempt to kidnap her outside the Prince Regent's home is unsuccessful.  Who was responsible for it?  The French or someone else?  Vidia is sure that it was her own people.

Vidia has been compromised by a man she works with and is now expecting his child.  When she tells him of it, he immediately insists on marrying her.  However a short time after the marriage, Vidia realises that it was not a true marriage when she sees a man poorly disguised as a fisherman, who was the chaplain who married them.

Author Anne Cleeland has plenty of twists and turns and counter turns in this spy novel.  I must admit it is not one of her best works, however.

Britannia

Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro have discovered what appear to be the Druids preparing to cause the Roman army problems during the upcoming winter season.  Unfortunately, while returning to their Fort, Macro is shot in the thigh with a hunting arrow.  It requires major surgery.  While he survive it?

Acting governor Quintatus has decided to drive the Druids to their sacred island of Mona and destroy them there.  He has sent naval ships to the island in advance of the attack.  He orders Cato to have his men prepare for battle.  Quintatus also subtly suggests to Cato that Nero is on the rise in Rome, and to protect himself and his family, he should become Quintatus' man.

When Cato and his men march out of the fort, he leaves Macro in charge of the auxiliaries who have just arrived.  They are not up to military standards and Macro has plans to change that.  Once Cato joins Quintatus, his men are tasked with leading the army towards Mona, and setting a bloody tone.

The advance towards Mona is slow due to rain and mud and of course the enemy.  Back near Macro's fort, one of his scouts discovers an enemy column.  The scout brings back an enemy who, after an interrogation, informs Macro that there is an enemy column advancing behind Quintatus' column.  They are marching into a trap.  Macro needs to warn them.

Having reached the coast, the Roman army needs to get through the enemy coastal defence before crossing the channel.  Neither will be easy as winter begins to settle in.   On top of that, Quintatus refuses to accept Macro's logic about the enemy army behind him.  He is also upset by the fact that Macro has also brought a man to liaise with the newly appointed governor of Britannia.  Macro has also brought bad news for Cato.

Macro's information proves true.  Quintatus is forced to abandon his attack on Mona and retreat.  Will the Britons destroy the Romans during their retreat having already cut off their supplies?

Author Simon Scarrow's latest novel about Cato and Macro is full of battles, death and sacrifice.  We are left wondering if the might of the Roman Empire is enough to ever defeat and subdue the Druids and their followers.  A very good read.

Cold Earth

Jimmy Perez is at a funeral when the side of the hill the mourners were standing on slid away.  They were fortunate to get away, but a woman in a croft down below wasn't so lucky.  Who was she?  There doesn't seem to be anything to identify her in the croft.

Later James Grieves, the pathologist calls to tell him that the woman hadn't been killed by the slide.  She had been strangulated.  Perez then calls the mainland to ask DCI Willow Reeves to come help with the investigation.  Willow is able to come up with a possible identification and it seems to be confirmed by a man who rented the croft sometime earlier.

However, when they contact the place the victim worked, it turns out that she is alive and well.  So, who is the imposter?  Her identity is discovered when Jimmy finds an old photo of her.  His sergeant, Sandy Wilson recognises her as a star in a TV series.  Now to determine what her connection to the island is.

The body of a local lawyer is then discovered on the shore of the island.  He had a legal connection to the house where the body of the woman was found.  Why would he have been killed?  As Sandy checks the accounts of the dead man, he finds something both surprising and suspicious.

Author Anne Cleeves requires the detectives to do further investigation before they find the killer.  The ending has quite a twist to it that the reader doesn't see coming.  A very good read.

The Cater Street Hangman

The Ellison household is shocked when one of their maids is garrotted, just like two other young women in the area have been.  They also feel that Inspector Pitt is quite impertinent to think that he can question the women of the house.  It just won't do.

Why has the inspector taken an interest in continually questioning Charlotte Ellison?  Is it as her sister, Emily suggests that he is interested in her romantically?  Or for other reasons?

When the daughter of the local sexton is killed in the same manner, it sends shockwaves through the Ellison household.  The death causes further turmoil in the house when Charlotte shares her suspicions of Emily's boyfriend with Inspector Pitt.

Tensions mount as the family turns on itself in the terror it is experiencing.  Will they destroy themselves before the inspector discovers the killer?

Author Anne Perry's murder mystery presents no suspects until the last pages of the story.  Well written and and well worth the read.

Signal for Vengeance

It is 1860 and in Dorset a woman stumbles on the body of her lover on the railway tracks.  Inspector Robert Colbeck has been requested, however Superintendent Tallis proposes to send an untried detective in his place because Colbeck's wife is due with their first baby.  Colbeck is annoyed that Tallis would take this job from him.  He convinces Tallis that he and Sergeant Leeming can do the job as it isn't that far away.  The victim was a railway policeman and that is why Colbeck was asked for.

It appears that the victim was left lying across the railway tracks, so that the next train along would slice him into three parts.  Colbeck and Leeming are able to get help from the local doctor, however the man who sent for them is more of a nuisance than a help.  It isn't long before the pair have a number of suspects in mind.  But how do you eliminate half a dozen suspects and come up with the right one?

Author Edward Marston's murder tale sets the two sleuths on several trails of which none seem to offer any hope of success.  It isn't until virtually the final pages that the reader finds out the true killer.  A good, quick read.

Sleep Like the Dead

DCI William Lorimer has been called to a murder scene by DS Ramsay.  Pathologist Rosie Ferguson tells him that the victim died in the wee hours of the night.   Why had an apparent upstanding citizen been killed in what appears to have been a professional hit?

A few days later two more victims appear.  Both shot in what appears to be a professional manner, in the home of a known drug dealer.  Did he kill them, and where is he?  Evidence shows that the dealer's sister was the ex-wife of the first victim.  What's the connection and how can they find her?  As time goes by, Lorimer is convinced that she has been killed, too.

However, when Dr. Solomon Brightman informs the police that he had seen her just the day before her ex was killed, a new light is thrown on the case.  Could she and her brother have been involved in the killing together?  The death of a police informer creates new connections, which in turn give another perspective to the case.

But, how will they draw the case to a conclusion?  Author Alex Gray's novel is tense with brutal killings and psychological intent.  A very good read.

The Rhetoric of Death

Master Charles du Luc, a Jesuit priest in training is on his way to Paris to teach rhetoric, Latin and French at the Jesuit school there.  The king had recently revoked the Edict of Nantes, and Charles had helped his second cousin Pernelle, a Huguenot, escape to Geneva.  As a result another cousin, the Bishop of Marseille has now sent him into exile.  Charles will be working with Father Jouvancy, who is also in charge of dancing instruction at the school.

The day after his arrival, a young student of the school is run down by a man on a horse. The lad's godfather, is Father Guise, librarian of the school, and he states that it was an accident.  However, another witness tells Charles that the rider deliberately targeted the boy.  Charles tries to reconcile the reports of the different witnesses.  Had the lad been out looking for his older brother who had gone missing a day earlier?

Charles is ordered by the rector to halt his investigation.  However, the next day, he discovers the body of the older brother in the latrine.  This time he is asked to determine how the boy was killed.  Later, Antoine, the victim's younger brother tells Charles that his brother had sent him a note, which a friend saw his godfather take from him while he was unconscious.

Later, Charles is informed of a secret set of stairs that lead into the school from a bakery.  Could this be the way the killer moved about?  A day after this, Charles is found with the body of a witness by the head of the police.  He threatens Charles and demands that he become a police spy within the school.  What choice does Charles have?  That same day, the rector assigns Charles the task of finding out who the killer is.

Charles then learns that the death of the student might be connected to a possible French interference in the government of England.

Author Judith Rock has more death awaiting plus plenty of treachery.  Can Charles save those that mean so much to him and stay within his vows as a Jesuit?  Well written and based on historical fact.  A good read.

Hunting the Eagles

It is A. D. 14, and Centurion Tullus and his optio Fenestela are in Rome, where, if they are found could mean their execution, to watch the triumph of Tiberius. Unfortunately Tullus is recognised by Germanicus, who surprisingly offers him a position when he goes to Germania as governor and to exact revenge for the destruction of the three legions by the Germans.

Back with his century, Tullus finds it hard to keep his temper against those who demean those who made it back from the massacre done by the Germans.  In their arrogance, they claim that it would never have happened to them.  Rumours of mutiny are starting to float amongst the legions, too.

Across the Rhine, Arminius, Tullus' foe and leader of the Germans is preparing for the expected attack.  It will be a tougher enemy this time because Augustus has died and the new emperor will want to make his mark.

When Tullus hears of a potential mutiny, he takes it to his superior, who doesn't seem overly concerned.  When a full blown mutiny breaks out, Tullus' century stays true.  However, the mutineers do damage to many officers and kill some.  Will Governor Germanicus' arrival quell the rebellion?

Germanicus capitulates, and further trouble is averted; for a time.  However, trouble continues to fester so Germanicus orders that the ringleaders be executed.  He then plans a punitive attack across the Rhine before the winter season closes in.

The following spring, Germanicus attacks across the Rhine in force.  A daring raid results in the capture of Thusnelda, pregnant wife of Arminius.  Germanicus then hits the Germans with a three pronged attack, on coming from the North Sea.  How will Arminius and his allies respond?

Tullus takes Germanicus to the site of the ambush.  It is an emotional time for him and those who survived with him.  It is a month into the invasion before Arminius' soldiers begin to harass the Romans.  It is unnerving. Having struck deep into Arminius' heartland, will the Romans be able to safely retreat before winter sets in?

Tullus and his men are with Caecina on the retreat.  Unfortunately they end up trapped between a forest and a bog with Arminius and his army in the forest.  What are their options?  Will it end in another slaughter of the Roman army?

Author Ben Kane gives the author a real sense of life, death and battles at this time. Life was not easy, and at times death could be hard; not just on those who died, but those left behind.  A thoroughly enjoyable read, and I look forward to reading the concluding book in this trilogy.

Lara's Gift

It is 1910 and Lara's father is a kennel steward and breeder of borzois for a count in Russia.  Once again ten year old Lara is allowed to name the latest born pups.  However, her father is prepared to do away with the runt of the litter.  She begs to keep Ryczar, and he only gives in when she has a vision about the pup.

Lara wants to become the kennel steward in place of her father, but he sees her potential as the wife of some man.  She sees herself as one who could breed a borzoi worthy of Tsar Nicholas.  First but Ryczar, now known as Zar, and she would have to kill a wolf.  Zar's first encounter with a wolf at the age of four is close to a disaster for the untrained borzoi.

When her brother is born, Lara's place in the family is diminished.  Her parents see her as taking on womanly roles, learning to sew and look after her little brother.

Amongst Zar's first offspring is a little female that no one thought was going to make it.  However, she does and is named Chara by Lara.

Later, Lara's vision of a disastrous wolf hunt would come true.  Her father would lose his favourite borzoi and Zar would become the hero of the day.  Lara's father has difficulty accepting it all.  Following Zar's success, the count who really owns Zar, presents him to Tsar Nicholas.  Lara is stunned.

The day Zar is taken away, Lara has a vision of him in danger.  Can he be saved from the wolves?

Author Annemarie O'Brien's novella is a good, quick read.  Animal lovers will enjoy it.

Distant Summers 1936 - 1938

In 1936, P. G. Downes decided to canoe into northern Saskatchewan from Pelican Narrows to Brochet at the northern end of Reindeer Lake.  His daily journal records the trials and tribulations of the trip, plus who he met and what he learned.  Unfortunately Downes was unable to complete the trip due to weather conditions and limited time.  For anyone who has canoed in northern Saskatchewan, this will bring back memories of your own trips.

Downes returned early the following summer, however he travelled up the lake to Brichet with others in an 18 foot, powered canoe.  His intention on this trip is to learn more about the people of the area and their stories.  Another objective of Downes was to photograph the people.  Many were very shy about having their picture taken.  Part of his return trip homeward bound included a flight in a float plane, and offered a different perspective to the lake and rivers he had travelled over.  One of his experiences includes smokey days due to forest fires in the area.

Before getting to Downes' travels of 1938, numerous Cree tales are recounted.

On June 23, 1938 Downes left Prince Albert, Saskatchewan for Ile a la Crosse in a float plane.  His description of being aboard that plane reminded me of a few similar flights I've taken on float planes on my own canoe trips in northern Saskatchewan.  The canoe trip from there to La Loche was not an easy one as the river they travelled on was low, with many meanders, and much poking needed.  Rather than using the 12 mile Methye Portage, Downes' guide uses the 20 mile Swan Lake Portage to the Clearwater River.

Downes finds the Clearwater River different compared to the ones he had canoed previously.  As he nears Fort McMurray he discovers that there is a sulphurous smell and taste to the water on occasion.  At Fort McMurray, Downes buys a canoe and starts off downriver on the Athabasca River on his own.  As he travels downstream he foresees a time when oil will be retrieved from the tar sands to supply the world.  He discovers that the delta of the Athabasca is winding and muddy.  His trip across the western end of Lake Athabasca is fraught with large waves, but he makes it to Fort Chipewyan without any water in his canoe.

Moving north onto the Slave River, Downes finds the river flowing fast and more rapids to maneuver.  By the end of July he is at Fort Smith.  He waits there for a ride on a barge northwards on the Slave River.  He is experiencing some depression and has an infection in one of his legs.  Once on the Mackenzie River, Downe's spirits lift a bit.  As they progress northwards, the river widens and the landscape changes.  At Norman Wells, Downes trip turns up the Bear River.  By mid-August he has arrived at Great Bear Lake.

A couple of days later he is at Eldorado and has the opportunity to tour the mine there.  On the 28th he flies out to Yellowknife.  The community there is very different.  At the beginning of September Downes departed Yellowknife once again on a barge.  Arriving at Fort Smith he is held up before being able to fly out and home.

For anyone who has canoed in northern Saskatchewan or been further north canoeing, I highly recommend this book.  Although it was written 80 years ago the sense of remoteness is still there today.  The author also gives you an insight into how things were at that time, allowing the reader the opportunity to compare it to modern times.