"10th Anniversary", by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

Book 10, in the Women’s Murder Club series

This is the typical James Patterson style: short chapters, fast-paced and an uncomplicated storyline with loveable and well-known characters. Everyone must be familiar with the Women’s Murder Club by now and thank goodness Mr. Patterson spares us the details in each member’s past just to make up pages.

As always in this series the unrelenting friendship of the four women and the support they offer each other through thick and thin plays a very important part in creating the atmosphere. This latest installment has three overlaying themes entertaining us with a combination of mystery, romance and suspense.

In the opening chapters Detective Lindsay finally ties the knot with her long time love, freelancer Joe Molinari, but the honeymoon is short lived. A work assignment involving a missing baby who seems to be part of a child trafficking scheme soon occupies her full attention. To complicate matters, the teen mother continually tries to derail the investigation by lying and concealing the truth.

Assistant District Attorney, Yuki, also has her hands full with a high profile case with many levels of intrigue, a case she must win at any cost.  The romantic side of her life adds a little spice to the story she is now dating Lindsay’s boss, I wonder how this is going to fly, will there be friction…..

Reporter Cindy while on assignment for her newspaper investigating a series of assaults also finds herself in hot water. While digging up the details she gets too close to the heart of the matter and also becomes a target of the serial rapist. Her relationship with Lindsay’s partner is still as strong as ever and sure to be milked in further installments.

Medical Examiner, Claire, has her hands full with her newborn and in this mystery she plays a very small part but I am sure she will be back in tip top shape soon.

If you follow the exploits of the girls I think you will enjoy this one. I consider Mr. Patterson’s style as mystery light, a soft read and a change in pace from hard core mysteries. 

"Grave Secrets", by Kathy Reichs

Book #5 in the Temperance Brenna series

I have been following this series for a very long time and for one reason or another I missed “Grave Secrets” the library had it so I seized the opportunity.

This story takes us from the familiar American and Canadian locations to a village in Guatemala. Between 1962 and 1996 during the country’s civil war, a bloody massacre occurred and thousands of souls lost their lives. The story echoes Ms. Reichs’ real life experience when she was asked to be part of an international team of forensic experts to excavate a mass grave site, identify the victims and determine how they died. Temperance Brennan plays the fictional role and will soon learn first-hand what a depressing assignment it will turn out to be, politics sometimes trumps justice.

We get to the heart of the story and the action picks up momentum when Tempe is pulled from the mass burial site to investigate other remains. The gravity of the situation is amplified when it is learned that many young girls are missing and Tempe quickly suspects there could be a serial killer on the loose and may even have ties to a respected Canadian ambassador. Tempe under pressure from Canadian authorities is encouraged to treat the disappearance of the young girls from Guatemala City as her new priority.

Teaming up with Special Crimes Investigator Bartolomé Galiano and Montreal detective Andrew Ryan, the trio find themselves in the hot seat facing a deadly adversary where power, money, and greed are pitted against the best in police technology.

After reading many novels I have come to expect lots of technical details about forensics and its related fields, this time I found myself saturated to a point I needed to skim through some. Nevertheless the plotting is quite crafty and the story very interesting although I did find the narration to have a backroom style peppered with many old clichés. The main characters are well rounded, likeable and realistic and as a diversion, Ms. Reichs added a juicy and funny love triangle and a series of red herrings to entertain us.

All this said and done, this chilling mystery may not have been my favourite, however I did enjoy it.

"Prague Fatale", by Philip Kerr

8th book in the Bernie Gunther series

“Prague Fatale” is as absorbing as its other companions in the series. The previous novels covered a varied time period right up to the 1950’s and were staged in many countries including South America, Cuba and the US. This time we start off in 1941 deep into WW11 action with Bernie now under the command of Reinhard Heydrich, Reichsprotector of Bohemia.

After leaving the horrors of the Eastern Front the smart-mouthed, cynical and stubborn Bernie Gunther returns to Berlin to regain his old position at Kripo. The RAF is targeting his beloved city nightly: the blackouts, the destruction and food rationing are playing havoc with day to day life. Bernie’s first case is to investigate the suspicious violent death of a Dutch railway worker. There is always an intriguing sub-plot Bernie is a master at multitasking hence he also finds himself in the middle of a rape attempt. Wouldn’t you know it! The victim Arianne is a real beauty and she soon has Bernie under her spell. She turns out to be more trouble than our protagonist suspects…..

When Reinhard Heydrich orders him to spend the weekend at his country house with senor SS and SD figures Bernie puts everything on hold and goes with Arianne to Prague. Things get hectic when one of Heydrich’s aides-de-camp is found murdered in his locked room. Bernie is ordered to investigate and his no nonsense, no bull style quickly raises the ire of the Nazi brass. Trouble should have been Bernie’s middle name. Most of the action takes place at Heydrich’s estate, in Arianne’s hotel room and in the terrifying police HQ in Prague.

Prague Fatale” is a fast paced tale with an endlessly explosive atmosphere, an excellent and captivating novel. Like the others it is written in a sarcastic style with a twist of dark humour, Bernie is always portrayed as a deeply flawed but sympathetic protagonist. His first person narration goes a long way in creating the ambience of the time. All the supporting characters are equally well developed and play an intricate part in the story.

This novel is a wonderful blend of fact and fiction that can be enjoyed as a standalone or in sequel to the others.