A compulsively readable story of a long-buried disappearance.
In Cain’s debut mystery, a pair of podcasters investigate an unsolved crime involving a once-famous singer.
The action of this Florida-set novel is divided between the modern world of podcasts and social media and the world of working musicians in 1969. In 2019, Jacksonville-based Melody Hinterson and her producer, Dorian Santos, are the creators of the Tabs and Blanks Podcast, dedicated to piecing together the facts of cold cases. As the story opens, the case in question is that of Betty Van Disson, who disappeared in Northeast Florida in 2001 without a trace. Her husband, Randell, refused to cooperate with authorities, and she was never seen again. When the team learns of the existence of Betty’s diaries, the narrative splits to dramatize the tale of her romance with charismatic R&B musician Dominicus Owen and his band, the Downtown Sound. Cain does a deft job of balancing the past and present threads of her narrative, investing each with its own drama, whether it’s the escalating romantic tension between Melody and Dorian in the present or the story of Betty, starting when she was 17-year-old Betty Langdon at a concert on the Florida/Georgia line, back in 1969, and following her life through the ensuing years. Throughout, Cain effectively evokes the atmosphere of rural Florida and Jacksonville (“It has its problems, people hate its name, progress sometimes gets buried in a quagmire murky as any Florida swamp”), as well as the local R&B and rock music scene. This latter is embodied in the tale of the rise of the Downtown Sound and the early days of Dominicus’ stardom, and Cain ably and steadily ratchets up the suspense as more revelations come to light. Overall, the novel manages to get across the flavor of Florida’s music and the grimness of Betty’s life with smooth skill.
A compulsively readable story of a long-buried disappearance.Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-949935-38-7
Page Count: 482
Publisher: Orange Blossom Publishing
Review Posted Online: June 16, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
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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