Windsor Books

London After Midnight is great it has some really gorey parts and is extremely intense, it brings the deadly murders to life and will haunt you in your dreams. If you haven't got it yet then you should quickly run to your nearest bookstore and buy one, and it's worth every penny but be carful i'm serious in some parts i would say it would not be okay for children.

London is a fascinating place. By day it is a centre of culture and economy, government and teeming humanity. Even well into the evening, the city does not stop -- the government is used to meeting well into the night (there is a light at the top of the Big Ben Clock Tower signifying that the House of Commons is still sitting; often this light burns until nearing midnight), and the theatre and restaurant districts continue bustling well into the darker hours.

However, after midnight, the city begins to slow. Public transport stops, the pubs have closed, and decent folk have returned to their flats, terraced housing, or outlying homes. This is London After Midnight -- a place for the less reputable folk, the criminals and the cads. Many is the author who has used this rich resource as the seedbed for their stories. Peter Haining has compiled a nice collection of stories that show the darker side of London, by giving a literary tour of its criminal haunts.

Haining has arranged these stories, recent and older, into two broad categories -- Black Spots and City Sleuths. In the category of Black Spots, Haining has selected stories from such notable mystery authors as P.D. James and Graham Greene. London being the international city that it is, one also finds the likes of Fu Manchu in Limehouse. This section concludes with the ironically entitled, 'People Don't Do Such Things' by Ruth Rendell; alas, people do.

Under City Sleuths, no collection of London detectives could be complete, or even seriously considered, without the great Sherlock Holmes by Conan-Doyle. Joining him are the creations of authors such as Dorothy Sayers and Agatha Christie. Searching for the great and the overlooked, these detectives have set a standard that goes beyond the literary -- Holmes, for example, is required reading by the detective forces of many nations. Agatha Christie is perhaps the most translated female author of all time.

One of the things that makes this literary tour so compelling is the element that makes many of the typical (and not-so-typical) British mysteries a delight -- they take place most often in real places. Sherlock Holmes' flat at 221b Baker Street might not be there, but Baker Street surely is. Hercule Poirot's Park Lane, Peter Wimsey's Piccadilly, and John Thorndyke's Temple legal haunts are all real, and can be visited on tour in London. In fact, Haining says in the introduction that it was on such a tour that the inspiration for this arose.

There are twenty-two stories here, all in short-story format that can be easily read in one sitting; some may be unnerving, as crime, even proper English crime in London, can sometimes be a grisly affair. But those who love a good mystery, it doesn't get better than this.

This review refers to the paperback edition. This is a somewhat short collection of five stories featuring Inspector Wexford, a person whose age and position are similar to Inspector Morse (as seen on PBS). Four of the stories are set in England, and one on the Adriatic coast where Inspector Wexford and his wife were on vacation. Three of the stories involve murders, one a case of switched children, and the last an attempt to reopen an older, historic case. The settings seem to be in roughly the 1970's to 1980 time frame.

I personally thought that the plots were quite good for shorter stories. The stories reflect English laws and customs, so guns are not used and the violence is considerably less than in the macho, have-gun-will-travel, type novel often found in the U.S. (perhaps this is why many people like English mysteries). The characters come across well, and the plots are well developed. In one case, a guilty party is identified, but there is some question as to whether the guilt can be proven in court.

This is a very, very good short story collection. Each of the stories within is a little gem of detective fiction./ they are just as ingenious as any of her novels, the crimes just as compelling and the psychology just as accurate. the characters are well drawn and Wexford is on absolutely brilliant form.

They are clever, incredibly enjoyable, and unguessable. They are an excellent showcase of all Rendell's talents, and i would reccomend this short story collection to any fan of detective fiction. Enjoyment is guaranteed.

Miss Read brings us into this warm, simple world and just as we get comfortable death, birth, war and heartbreak makes us see this as a novel that inspires strength and not just escape. As the world encroaches in after WWII and the atomic age lands ungracefully on the small english villages Dolly Clare teaches her students "...to face whatever comes with calmness and courage, to love their families and friends with unswerving loyalty.." This book soothes the soul in this day and age of Jerry Springer.

I have read eighteen of Miss Reads books and will continue on until I have read all of them. This and all her stories take you to simplier times and places you wish you could go to, with characters you wish you could meet. I highly recommend this and all of Miss Read's books to anyone who enjoys a good story which is as relaxing as a cup of tea by a fire in a cozy chair. A+

If you dislike cats, I wouldn't recommend this mystery, because it's all about cats.

This book took me a little time to get into, but after the first 25 pages or so, I was hooked. My heart was won by Pandora, an 8-month old Siamese with a lot of personality but a neglectful owner. Pandora plays a major part of this mystery, as Doug Perkins, the central character (aside from Pandora), goes from being a person indifferent to cats to being a true cat-lover. Pandora wins his heart, just as she won mine.

The plot involves a cat show in London. Perkins is doing PR for this show (kind of an odd show, but I guess this is Britain, after all). One of the exhibits is a pair of tigers; another is a gold statue of a cat, which gets stolen. One of the characters is murdered. Are the two crimes connected?

But much of the book involves descriptions of a half-dozen show cats and their humans, and all the goings-on at this London event. This is a very British book in tone, and the pace is fairly leisurely up until the last 30 or so pages, when things really heat up.

THis is the first mystery I've read by this author, but I intend to read more -- many more.

If I had to pick a favorite from Marian Babson's "cat mysteries," this would be it! This is the first of her books that I read, and since then I've been a compulsive Babson fan. These are the most true-to-life, hilarious cats and cat owners (and cat haters) I've ever read about. I never tire of re-reading this book, the prequel, both sequels and every other Babson book I've been able to get.

News from Thrush Green is, as are all of Miss Read's books, perfect. It provides relaxed, clean reading, humor and wonderful people. One can't ask for more.

All of Miss Read's books are enchanting and this one is no exception. I only wish that her Thrush Green books and Fairacre books would be republished as sets so I could read them all again and this time in chronological order.

Without spoiling the plot, just let me say that this book will definitely make you root for the BAD GUY.

Point Blank is a very compeling story which I must recommend to all of my fellow readers such as yourselves. I dont want to spoil the book for you, all I want to say is that it is an excellent book and a true page turner (it was for me!).

This book is short and to the point. It provides the technical details of a old\new method of having sex ("tantra") that helps build a spiritual bond of true love between the 2 partners and gets them both closer to experiencing being one with the universe. The best book I've found of its kind.

Whoever thought the best thing ever could get even better? Wow. The ancient Tibetans had good reason to be happy, what with these little secrets to work with. Fantastic!

Her husband probably died during World War I though officially he is listed as missing in action. For the last decade or so, Liz Conway has raised her three precious daughters by herself. Being a single mother is hard enough, but Liz also owes a lot of money, the debt being the inheritance from her missing spouse.

Liz gives up her life sacrificing everything so that her three children can begin the climb out of poverty. Somehow love blossoms with Bernard Peabody even if Liz is reluctant to allow her heart to call the shots at least until she knows her three darlings are happily settled. Still, the girls follow her lead as they too begin to fall in love with what Liz prays are responsible caring men.

Though there is some romance in PRIZED POSSESSIONS, the story line focuses on life in Glasgow during the Great Depression. Much of the moving plot occurs in slums teeming with abject poverty and hopelessness. Against that backdrop, Liz manages to keep her beloved family safe and secure. She is a heroine in her quiet way, which is why historical fiction fans will have a field day with this leisurely drawn character study of 1930s Glasgow.

Harriet Klausner

Although this book has nothing jumping out at you, it's storyline is good and quite entertaining.

Set in Glasgow Scotland in the Depression Era we look into the life of Lizzy Conway, a poor widow whose husband is Missing In Action during the war.

Lizzie has a load on her shoulders as she tries to make ends meet. She is indebted to the Italians through her husband's Frank unpaid debt and only managing on a small wage, it isn't easy. She has to care for three teenage daughters whom she keeps her protective eyes on, hopeful as they grow that they will find decent spouses to take them out of the slums into better living conditions and security.

Lizzie Conway the good mother and fighter takes a last chance on life for the good of all....but will it work out as planned? Read this refreshing book....a wonderful book for women of all ages..

There is a lot more info on the Quiller series at www.quiller.net, a fan site.

How Elleston Trevor (aka Adam Hall)would have laughed - so folks who bought this shamefully out of print classic also bought *JK Rowling*? Well, why not and God bless them and God bless the technology that can crunch the stats to come up with that one.

Hall's lone ferret of a spy is one of the great creations of fiction and I think this is the latest one to be essayed by Hollywood to fit on the screen. It'll be the usual fiasco, of course, because Hall's muscular poetry and Quiller's inner dialog simply won't translate and, anyway, it'll have to be dumbed so far down that it might as well be some hack ghoster providing the screenplay, which is probably what it will be.

Of course, you can't actually *buy* any Quillers these days because the publishers are incapable to keeping them in print, but that should end when the movie comes out and Travolta or whoever they get struts his stuff and tries to get the shotokan right. (I hope it is Travolta because Elleston piled such contempt on the Ron Hubbard lot in his lifetime that it'd be poetic justice for one of them to come an artistic cropper trying to take on Hall's elegant storyline and real flesh-n-blood hero.)

"He belonged to no part of society,not anymore.He was a man alone,who
answered to no one on this earth,not even the United States
Government;who would answer only to God."

It wasn't the author's name or even the title that attracted me to this book;because,quite frankly they were both unfamiliar to me. I read a lot of Westerns, and particularly like some of the great artwork on the covers. It was the artwork that immediately caught my attention in this case.
If you've read any of my reviews,particularly those on the "Longarm" or "Trailsman" series;you will see that I prefer Westerns that stick with being a Western and are not too much of a Mystery,Detective or a Whodunnit.I prefer to have the outlaw pretty well identified early on,and then a fast-action saga,with lots of gunslinging,street,canyon,and saloon fights and shoot-outs.This coupled with some near impossibl life threatning experiences of survival,all in the pursuit and bringing outlaws to justice in the Old West style.Therefore character development and description are more to my liking than mystery convolutions,analysis and explanations.I also like to find a good amount of history of the time sprinkled throughout ,yeah,some real and some stretched,and legendary.
This is the first novel I've read by Pronzini.He is a great writer;and keeps your interest flowing from beginning to end.This novel has a good storyline and the main character ,John Quincannon is a one of a kind.
You have to get used to the idea that he is not a Gunslinger,a Marshal,a Texas Ranger,or a Bounty Hunter ;but basically a Detective or sleuth working as an investigator for the Secret Service.
Historically,the Secret Service was created in Washington DC in 1865 (this story is set in 1893),with its prime function to protect against counterfeiting,and part of the Treasury Department.As the years went on, it was given the responsibility of protecting the President(after McKinley's Assassination).Then ,as the years went on, it also took up the role of many types of fraud,which has expanded greatly with the expansion of communications ,computers and electronics.In 2003 ,with the new War on Terrorism,they are now no longer under Treasury,but now in the Department of Homeland Security.
I very much enjoyed this historical element of this novel and in spite of my preferences;I found it a great read.
So;if you want to read a Western with a somewhat different slant,and you enjoy the combining of mystery and the Old West,with some interesting historical connotations thrown in,you should like this one.
The age of the Old West was coming to a rapid end at the time of this saga,1893.Though in this novel,the railroads and telegraph were still the modern thing, elecrticity,which would bring electric lighting,the telephone,motor vehicles and everything else,would result in unimaginable changes to the Old West,virtually overnight.
Little wonder Quincannon was ready for a lifestyle change at the end of the tale.

This master storyteller has crafted another masterpiece. The tale could fit in either the "Detective" or "Western" genre and is set in the silver mining area of Idaho's Owyhee Mountains. Pronzini devotes great effort to technical accuracy and lifestyles of the 1890's. In addition to pleasing the reader he educates on the details of counterfeiting, opium addiction and silver mining. His principal character, as in THE PINKERTON EYE, is an imperfect and flawed detective that manages to succeed despite his faults. This is an excellent story and I recommend it highly.