Sinister Sort by L.M. Harper Publisher: Self-published Genre: Cozy Mystery, Contemporary Rating: 4 stars Reviewed by Snowdrop Miranda Vincent thought East Syracuse was the perfect place to sort out her life. A host of friends, both old and new, welcomed Miranda back to the town where she grew up. She landed a job in the mail room at Crane Community College and the perfect apartment. Life is starting to look up for Miranda except for one major issue. Her new coworker, Hadley Mitchell, thought Miranda’s new job should have been hers and Hadley aims to cancel Miranda’s stamp. When Hadley turns ..read more

The Flesh Tailor by Kate Ellis Publisher: Piatkus Genre: Contemporary, Historical, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern When Dr James Dalcott is shot dead in his cottage it looks very much like an execution. And as DI Wesley Peterson begins piecing together the victim’s life, he finds that the well-liked country doctor has been harbouring strange and dramatic family secrets. Meanwhile, archaeologist Neil Watson has discovered a number of skeletons in nearby Tailors Court that bear marks of dissection and might be linked to tales of body snatching by a rogue physician in ..read more

The Man in the Cellar by Palle Rosenkrantz Publisher: Kazabo Publishing Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Paranormal, Historical Rating: 5 Stars Reviewed by Astilbe Holger Nielsen just wanted a quiet London vacation when he rented 48 Cranbourne Grove. But the rental agent forgot to mention he’d be sharing his new home with a very hungry cat and . . . the man in the cellar. When Holger Nielsen stumbles on a murder, the obvious thing to do is report it to the authorities and get on with his life. But as the crime unravels, it isn’t clear whether it’s worse to be an accessory to murder ..read more

A Long Time Dead by J M Dalgliesh Publisher: Hamilton Press Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern You can’t stay dead forever… A group of high school students gather on the Isle of Skye’s remote Coral Beach for a hedonistic night of partying to celebrate the passing of their final exams. The new millennium is on the horizon and the future beckons, promising new hope and a fresh wind of optimism. In the coming days, many will leave the island for work or to study on the mainland, whereas others will remain on Skye and forge a more traditional path muc ..read more

Identity by Nora Roberts Publisher: Paitkus Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern Former Army brat Morgan Albright has finally planted roots in a friendly neighborhood near Baltimore. Her friend and roommate Nina helps her make the mortgage payments, as does Morgan’s job as a bartender. But after she and Nina host their first dinner party—attended by Luke, the flirtatious IT guy who’d been chatting her up at the bar—her carefully built world is shattered. The back door glass is broken, cash and jewelry are missing, her car is gone, and Nina ..read more

A Team Of One by Brad Lee Publisher: Simply Sensible Entertainment Inc Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Action/Adventure Rating: 5 stars Reviewed by Fern Former Navy SEAL “Axe” Southmark is enticed out of retirement to help the analyst and the President. But does he have what it takes to save the world? As a Navy SEAL, Axe was trained to never give up. But after fifteen years on the front lines, it was time to let younger, faster men take the reins. When he’s enlisted to help the President’s niece search for both a terrorist on the loose and a traitor in the government, he doe ..read more

Carnival Blues by Damien Boyd Publisher: Thomas & Mercer Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern Carnival season is off to an explosive start in this thriller from the bestselling DI Nick Dixon crime series. Detective Chief Inspector Nick Dixon arrives late for Bridgwater’s winter carnival. He’s come to see the squibbing, the traditional firework display that brings the town’s November festivities to a dramatic close. But when the squib of Avalon Carnival Club president Richard Webb is lit, it explodes, engulfing him in flames. Dixon knows he’s jus ..read more

Sleuthing the Klondike by Joan Donaldson-Yarmey Publisher: BWL, Inc (Books We Love, Inc) Genre: Historical Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 4 Stars Reviewed by Chamomile Helen Castrel and her lady’s maid, Mattie Lewis, have just arrived in Victoria, British Columbia, from England. Helen hires Detective Baxter Davenport to go with them to Dawson City and help find her brother David, who was sent to Canada as a remittance man ten years ago. Mattie has come along to look after Helen and also because she has her own motive to find David. The last word the family had from David, he was on his wa ..read more

Shadows Of Men by Abir Mukherjee Publisher: Vintage Arrow Genre: Historical, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern Calcutta, 1923 When a Hindu theologian is found murdered in his home, the city is on the brink of all-out religious war. Can the officers of the Imperial Police Force—Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant “Surrender-Not” Banerjee—track down those responsible in time to stop a bloodbath? Set at a time of heightened political tension, beginning in atmospheric Calcutta and taking the detectives all the way to bustling Bombay, the latest instalment in this remarkable ..read more

Ice Cold Malice by Rhys Dylan Publisher: Wyrmwood Books Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Rating: 3 stars Reviewed by Fern Revenge is a dish best served… ice cold. While beach combing on MOD property, two young boys stumble across a reeking mound of tangled kelp. But it isn’t the seaweed that stinks. It’s the decomposing corpse beneath it. Called in to investigate, DCI Evan Warlow’s team are faced with finding out how and why the body of a struck-off doctor ended up on a lonely beach within sight of Laugharne’s famous Boathouse. But this is no innocent victim. This is a man with ..read more