Kirkus Star
THE KIRKUS STAR
Awarded to Books of Exceptional Merit

BROWSE BOOK REVIEWS




Mystery & Crime Book Reviews Available Now (page 8)


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Cover art for KANSAS CITY NOIR
FICTION
Released: Oct. 16, 2012
edited by Steve Paul

"Half novels-in-waiting, half journalistic anecdotes that are equally likely to appeal to Kansas City boosters and strangers."
The Akashic noir steamroller, now 56 titles strong, pulls up to Kansas City. Read full book review >
Cover art for THE SNOW WHITE CHRISTMAS COOKIE
FICTION
Released: Oct. 16, 2012

"Fans of Des and Mitch (The Blood Red Indian Summer, 2011, etc.) will giggle as Mitch decorates his Hanukkah bush with her teeny weeny yellow bikini. Others may think it's all bah, humbug."
Neither rain, nor sleet, nor dark of night can keep postmen from their appointed rounds. But how about murder? Read full book review >
Cover art for SACRIFICE FLY
FICTION
Released: Oct. 16, 2012

"Though Ray can be a mite sententious, he's also appealingly fallible and sensitive in this promising series kickoff."
This debut by a New York schoolteacher endows a New York schoolteacher with the power to crack a case the police can't be bothered to solve. Read full book review >
Cover art for THE LIGHT KEEPER'S LEGACY
FICTION
Released: Oct. 8, 2012

"Chloe's third (The Heirloom Murders, 2011, etc.) combines a good mystery with some interesting historical information on a niche subject."
A curator is happy to be loaned out to investigate an old lighthouse, until her trip turns from a treat into a nightmare. Read full book review >
Cover art for SALVATION OF A SAINT
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

"A retro puzzler that recalls Anthony Berkeley's classic The Poisoned Chocolates Case in its structure: a hyperextended short story whose complications keep unfolding and proliferating till it's grown to novel length."
A Tokyo CEO's determination to run his marriage as a business is ended by a dose of arsenous acid. Read full book review >
Cover art for THE HOT COUNTRY
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

"Kit is such an ingratiating narrator that you almost forget how unthrilling his larky debut is. Maybe the planned series can provide him with adventures more worthy of his steel."
Prolific Pulitzer Prize winner Butler (A Small Hotel, 2011, etc.) casts his net in distinctly shallower waters when he follows the adventures of a brash American journalist in 1914 Mexico. Read full book review >
Cover art for REST FOR THE WICKED
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

"Giving Jane more spark than readers have seen in a while, Hart (The Lost Women of Lost Lake, 2011, etc.) brings new life to an aging series and hope for future installments."
Her partner's enforced stay in the hospital won't stop a newly minted private eye from investigating the murder of his nephew. Read full book review >
Cover art for SKATING ON THE EDGE
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

"Rebecca's amusing third continues to flesh out its continuing characters while providing an eccentric bunch of murder suspects."
A skating rink owner is involved in yet another murder. Read full book review >
Cover art for ROGUE
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

Hide the good china: Sullivan (Triple Cross, 2009, etc.) launches a new series with even more helter-skelter action than his stratospheric average. Read full book review >
Cover art for PARADISE CITY
FICTION
Released: Oct. 2, 2012

"Understated, occasionally very funny (see Kunkle) and very intelligent. In his 23rd appearance (Tag Man, 2011, etc.), the Sage of Brattleboro remains as appealing as ever."
Joe Gunther and his crack team of Vermont sleuths crack a case in Massachusetts. Read full book review >
Cover art for SPANISH INQUISITION
FICTION
Released: Oct. 1, 2012

"An enjoyable but run-of-the-mill military procedural."
A military police officer is the prime suspect in an assault. Read full book review >
Cover art for WITCH HAMMER
FICTION
Released: Oct. 1, 2012

"Marlowe (Silent Court, 2012, etc.) makes an agreeable guide to Elizabethan life, and it's fun reading quips between him and Shaxsper that will later appear in plays."
Christopher Marlowe, scholar, spy and aspiring playwright, adds sleuthing to his resume. Read full book review >