An intriguing mystery, exciting thriller, and overall satisfying read.
An embattled journalist finds himself entangled in a horrific hostage situation in Catron’s novel.
Managing editorBecket Thompson has dedicated his life to thePalmetto Press, losing his marriage in the process. The paper was bought by Greene Investment Group, and with that came understaffing, a smaller salary, and layoffs. Becket stands up to the paper’s publisher, a man with familial connections within the investment group, and accuses him of being unethical and selling out, leaving him wondering if he will get fired. The day goes from bad to the absolute worst when three gunmen storm the building and take everyone hostage. The gunmen turn out to be three brothers, led by the eldest, Dalton, who easily dominates the youngest, Colton. But the middle brother, Ray, is quick to anger and could turn an already tense situation into a tragedy. Ray is frustrated by the terrible economic conditions in the United States and has turned to far-right extremism in response to his financial stress. At the beginning of the hostage situation, Ray says the brothers want “the lying media to print the truth about our president” and demands that the newspaper prints stories about how the president was “making America great again.” As the night wears on, tempers flare and Ray uses his power over the hostages to incite fear and pain while Dalton pursues his own secret agenda. Catron’s novel is an exhilarating thriller anchored by a likable hero in Becket, who, throughout the terror of the situation, tries to keep people safe. The three gunmen brothers are compelling antagonists, each with a distinct personality that leaps off the page. Their political associations give the story grounding, and the author ensures they are complex characters instead of one-dimensional strawmen. The ending is a strong combination of thrilling action and sincere dialogue that effectively completes the surviving characters’ arcs.
An intriguing mystery, exciting thriller, and overall satisfying read.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: July 3, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A fresh and clever whodunit with an engaging twist.
A 16-year-old savant uses his Groundhog Day gift to solve his grandfather’s murder.
Nishizawa’s compulsively readable puzzle opens with the discovery of the victim, patriarch Reijiro Fuchigami, sprawled on a futon in the attic of his elegant mansion, where his family has gathered for a consequential announcement about his estate. The weapon seems to be a copper vase lying nearby. Given this setup, the novel might have proceeded as a traditional whodunit but for two delightful features. The first is the ebullient narration of Fuchigami’s youngest grandson, Hisataro, thrust into the role of an investigator with more dedication than finesse. The second is Nishizawa’s clever premise: The 16-year-old Hisataro has lived ever since birth with a condition that occasionally has him falling into a time loop that he calls "the Trap," replaying the same 24 hours of his life exactly nine times before moving on. And, of course, the murder takes place on the first day of one of these loops. Can he solve the murder before the cycle is played out? His initial strategies—never leaving his grandfather’s side, focusing on specific suspects, hiding in order to observe them all—fall frustratingly short. Hisataro’s comical anxiety rises with every failed attempt to identify the culprit. It’s only when he steps back and examines all the evidence that he discovers the solution. First published in 1995, this is the first of Nishizawa’s novels to be translated into English. As for Hisataro, he ultimately concludes that his condition is not a burden but a gift: “Time’s spiral never ends.”
A fresh and clever whodunit with an engaging twist.Pub Date: July 29, 2025
ISBN: 9781805335436
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
A top-class cozy infused with dry wit and charming characters who draw you in and leave you wanting more, please.
Four residents of Coopers Chase, a British retirement village, compete with the police to solve a murder in this debut novel.
The Thursday Murder Club started out with a group of septuagenarians working on old murder cases culled from the files of club founder Elizabeth Best’s friend Penny Gray, a former police officer who's now comatose in the village's nursing home. Elizabeth used to have an unspecified job, possibly as a spy, that has left her with a large network of helpful sources. Joyce Meadowcroft is a former nurse who chronicles their deeds. Psychiatrist Ibrahim Arif and well-known political firebrand Ron Ritchie complete the group. They charm Police Constable Donna De Freitas, who, visiting to give a talk on safety at Coopers Chase, finds the residents sharp as tacks. Built with drug money on the grounds of a convent, Coopers Chase is a high-end development conceived by loathsome Ian Ventham and maintained by dangerous crook Tony Curran, who’s about to be fired and replaced with wary but willing Bogdan Jankowski. Ventham has big plans for the future—as soon as he’s removed the nuns' bodies from the cemetery. When Curran is murdered, DCI Chris Hudson gets the case, but Elizabeth uses her influence to get the ambitious De Freitas included, giving the Thursday Club a police source. What follows is a fascinating primer in detection as British TV personality Osman allows the members to use their diverse skills to solve a series of interconnected crimes.
A top-class cozy infused with dry wit and charming characters who draw you in and leave you wanting more, please.Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-98-488096-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Pamela Dorman/Viking
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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