Murder Books

Very convenient to have three books in one! Easy print to read and as always..fun loving books!

how convient to get three mrs. murphy books all in one,also great way to get the story from the beginning in hardback at a great price

In the 4th book in the Mrs. Murphy and Tucker mystery series, Pay Dirt, a mysterious stranger has ridden into the sleepy town of Crozet, Virginia. Rumbling in on a motorcycle, the appearance of the man yelling for "Malibu" startles the small town, and they try to insist to the man that no woman by that name resides in the area. Even though the residents of Crozet are curious, they have other things on their minds. The town is worried about a computer virus, Threadneedle that is supposed to hit businesses on August 1st. When a huge sum of money goes missing from the local bank, everyone assumes that the bank has fallen victim to the computer virus. Everyone scrambles at the bank to locate the missing funds, and when the biker is found murdered, pieces of the puzzle start to fall together. And when Harry and her two famous animal sleuths get involved in the case, you can be sure that she will find and apprehend the culprit.

The 5th installment, Murder She Meowed, Mrs. Murphy and Tucker Mystery are going to the races. Mary Minor Haristeen (aka Harry) has been asked to be a fence judge for the Montpelier steeplechase race, and being a huge fan of the sport, she readily agrees. She is a witness to a violent confrontation between two jockeys, and when one of the jockeys is found dead later in the day, she quickly begins to suspect that this was not a simple misunderstanding. The murderer leaves a calling card, and when another jockey turns up dead with a similar card attached to the body, Harry fears that there may be at least two more victims. Along with help from Mrs. Murphy (a tiger cat), Tee Tucker (a Welsh corgi), Pewter (a fat grey cat), and some new animal characters (including mice, several cats, and horses), Harry is able to stop this murderous spree in the competitive world of steeplechase.

In the 6th book in the Mrs. Murphy and Tucker Mystery series, Murder on the Prowl, the little town of Crozet, Virginia is shaken by the appearance of an obituary in the local paper. On its own, it wouldn't be shocking, as people unfortunately pass on each day. However, this obituary is of the headmaster at St. Elizabeth's prep school, and everyone is shocked by his sudden "death". Thankfully, the obit turns out to be false and is found to be a school age prank, and the town quickly returns to normal. That is...until one more false obituary of another prominent citizen appears, and the boy who placed the first bogus obituary swears he had nothing to do with this one. Then, one of the men is murdered, shaking the small town and its citizens. Mary Minor Haristeen (aka Harry) is the postmistress of the town, and has solved a few cases in the past with the help of her irrepressible feline companion, Mrs. Murphy, a tiger cat, and her canine companion, Tee Tucker, a Welsh corgi. Adding to that mix is Pewter, a large grey cat who is spending more time away from her former home at the market, to enjoy time with Murphy and Tucker. The four friends jump in to solve a murder, and find themselves fighting for their lives against a killer out for blood.

This is a great series! The animals talk to one another, and feel that they are superior to humans because we do not speak "cat" or "dog". For some readers, it does take a little bit of time to get used to the communication between the animals, but it is well worth it. I love the way that the residents of the town interact with one another, and this is as much of a draw to the books as is the mystery. I am often guessing until the end as to how the mystery will be resolved, and I am also curious to see how the animals will help in solving the case. This series makes me wish I could pack up and visit Crozet on my next vacation.

If you enjoy "The Cat Who" mysteries by Lilian Jackson Braun, you might want to give this series a try.

The first book in the series is called "Wish You Were Here". Enjoy!

When I read John Schultz's "The Tongues of Men" nearly forty years ago I was deeply moved and impressed by the power,humor and originality of his writing. I can't think of a single collection of stories I've read that covers a more diverse range of characters and styles than I encountered in this unique book. This week I reread "The Tongues of Men" and today John's stories seem even more inventive, funny and disturbing than they did when I first read them. "Morgan" and "Daley Goes Home" are powerful, raw and brutally honest accounts of what it was like to be a soldier stationed in Korea in the 50's. Both are masterpieces. If Kafka had possessed John's sense of humor he might have written fiction as entertainng as "Custom", one of the funniest and wildest novellas in American literature. "The Offending Party" is as threatening and scary as anything Paul Bowles ever wrote. Once you read this book you will never forget it.

This is a great book, and it belongs on the bookshelves of every serious home library. The author was my Fiction Writing advisor at Columbia College Chicago, and guided me through the writing of my first novel, American Skin. After reading this collection, I was eager to work with John, hoping that his absolute mastery of language and story might rub off on me. To me, John's book represents all the best qualities of the best fiction. The stories within are at once subtle and wild, fun and profound, highly accessible yet infinitely complex. In short, it's a book to read, re-read and treasure.

John Shultz is one of the heavyweights of American letters. Though he has achieved acclaim in the fields of pedagogy, creative non-fiction, literary editing and critical theory he is first of all an important writer of serious fiction. "Morgan" should be included on all lists naming the greatest American short stories of the last century. And that's just one of the gems in this collection, which features a startling range of approaches--from wildly surreal to starkly realistic. John Shultz is a living Master of prose. Simply put, this book is a must read.

This book is chockfull of easy to follow tips that might possibly save your life. Whether you are travelling for business or pleasure, the valuable information gained from reading this book will make your trip a lot more enjoyable in today's climate.
What's more, the contents are put forward in an easy to read format that even the novice will grasp.
A must for the business traveller and those that serve the business traveller.

Maybe it is the revelation that two historic enemies, Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan, now have state-of-the-art weapons of destruction, but I'm feeling a bit paranoid about travel again. If you're similarly spooked, check out the second edition of "Travel Can Be Murder," a practical, easy-to-follow guide to on-the-road safety. Written by psychologist Terry Riley, the paperback offers more than 600 useful and thought-provoking tips. You've read most of the information before, but consider this a refresher course on paranoia, the traveler's best friend.

Kidnappings in India and the Philippines. Violent robberies in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Washington, D.C. Hotel fires in Las Vegas and Havana. How can a business traveler keep safe while on the road? This book tries to answer that question, and for the most part, it does so in fine fashion. International terrorism, plane hijackings, hostage situations, and street crime have made the security executive an important resource for the peripatetic business person. This pocket-size resource provides an easy, convenient way of informing the corporate road warrior of the dangers that exist, how to avoid them, and how to escape them. Its small size also makes the book easy for an executive to pack with belongings so that he or she can have an on-site reference. The simple chapter layout and titling make it easy to pick out topics of immediate interest, such as dealing with hotel fires, using public facilities, or preparing for a trip on short notice. The book is written in such an easy prose style that it makes good reading for a short plane flight--though a lot of information is squeezed into the book's 185 pages. ...this is a valuable little book

As a Swedish teenager spending the summer with an Italian-American family on the island of Nantucket, I was appalled by the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole immediately imposed by a judge when a jury after less than five hours' deliberation returned a verdict of guilty of first-degree murder with extreme cruelty. In Sweden, where the rates of alcoholism and suicide are relatively high, the prison term for someone convicted of premeditated murder motivated by overwhelming passion is ten to fourteen years, and the emphasis is on rehabilitation rather than punishment. I agree with Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens that prison terms in the United States are far too long. I recently read Frank W. Abagnale's Catch Me If You Can, and I was struck by the disparity between the prison terms to which he was sentenced in Sweden (six months) and in the U.S. (several years). In recounting the trial of Mr. Toolan, Michael Wells Glueck (who published his account on the same day as the verdict and sentence were rendered) appropriately quotes Shakespeare's Macbeth:

MACBETH:
Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased,
Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow,
Raze out the written troubles of the brain
And with some sweet oblivious antidote
Cleanse the stuff'd bosom of that perilous stuff
Which weighs upon the heart?

Doctor:
Therein the patient
Must minister to himself.

The fascinating murder trial of Thomas E. Toolan III was a dramatic contest between the findings of learned, Harvard-educated psychologists, psychiatrists, and criminologists and mountains of testimony by both expert and ordinary witnesses, between theories of diminished responsibility and common sense. The latter prevailed. If you weren't in attendance, reading this work is tantamount to having been there. The day-by-day repartee, intended and accidental humor, pathos, and grim reality are faithfully portrayed by a professional writer and author.

For the background of this case, the reader is referred to Brian McDonald's book, Safe Harbor: A Murder In Nantucket, published in both hardcover and paperback by St. Martin's Press. The focus of this work is on the fourteen-day trial that concluded on June 21, 2007 with a verdict reached after comparatively brief deliberation.
The author of this account has written two additional published works, Living Among The Swiss and What I Learned At University, as well as a monograph entitled The Retirement Home Experience describing his parents' care and treatment at such institutions. He is a former Woodrow Wilson Fellow, instructor at Columbia University, the City University Of New York, and state universities in Colorado, Wisconsin, and Massachusetts, as well as a retired investment analyst. He is also a professional editor.

You've read the novels by Hammett, Chandler, et al. So what does a private eye really to these days? This book tells of the actual cases from some detective agencies; they are as informative as they are interesting. A PI gathers information to sell to customers; most are former policemen. Most PIs work for lawyers. In criminal cases they find evidence the defense attorneys can use. Most cases are matrimonial: catching the erring spouse and documenting it for trial testimony. Page 12 tells what a "psychotherapist" means in NY. A "bounty hunter" captures fugitives as a representative of a bondsman. British Common Law and the Supreme Court case of Taylor vs Taintor establishes the right to arrest a fugitive anywhere, anytime, anyway. Its like rearresting an escaped prisoner (p.31).

A private museum gets set up as a tax dodge. Rich people donate heirlooms and get a hefty tax deduction. They still get to visit the family treasures. But the museum has to be careful in hiring employees (Chapter 6). Is being born to money a blessing? Read page 75.

Chapter 13 summarizes the 'data mining' techniques. Many people worry about their privacy, but often throw out all kinds of personal data in their trash (p.123). It is legal for the police, or anyone, to search people's garbage. The average American is recorded in about 39 government files, and 40 business files. Social Security numbers provide tracking numbers for all kinds of records. DMV records are used to find males who have not registered for the draft. The telephone company can provide a list of all local call (p.13). Want to get an unpublished telephone number? See page 131.

One of the most common bugs is the infinity transmitter. You dial the victim's telephone, then blow a tuned whistle into the receiver. You can now listen to anything (p.190). If the target uses the phone, he hears a dead or hissing line. Page 197 gives an example of counter-intelligence: talk designed to mislead the foe.

The book tells about four cases that are interwoven into 37 chapters. These cases would be easier to follow if kept contiguous. But this interweave may give a better idea of the multi-tasking that goes into detective work.

The story about the pushcart peddlers reminds me of something I once witnessed in Manhattan. While walking to the train station, I saw a pistachio peddler whose cart was jostled, knocking these nuts into the street. The vendor was carefully picking them up for resale.

A surprisingly good account of the day-to-day operations of four private investigators, the book suffers very slightly from being researched in the late-'80s. Parkhurst followed three New York investigators and one DC bounty hunter from early 1986 to early 1988 and concentrates on one major case for each. One is a child gone missing, presumably kidnapped and possibly killed. There's a "matrimonial" in which an orthodox Jew suspects his business partner of cuckolding him and embezzling. Then there's the international search for a high-profile con artist. Finally, there's a couple looking for the husband's birth mother so they have a full family medical history for their sick child.

As he follows these four major cases through alternating chapters, he also delves into the methods of psychology of the (mostly) men who pursue them. Here the book shows a bit of its age, as the Internet has dramatically changed how information is stored and retrieved, and the protection of personal information has become a hotbutton issue in recent years. In any event, there's also plenty of smaller side cases along the way to mix things up. My favorite of these is the vexing problem of street vendors who set up right outside a client's high rent storefronts. The solution to that "case" will make you shake your head! Still, the four main investigations drive the book and are flashy and captivating enough to do so. An excellent and compulsively readable glimpse into the world of private investigators.

A surprisingly good account of the day-to-day operations of four private investigators, the book suffers very slightly from being researched in the late-'80s. Parkhurst followed three New York investigators and one DC bounty hunter from early 1986 to early 1988 and concentrates on one major case for each. One is a child gone missing, presumably kidnapped and possibly killed. There's a "matrimonial" in which an orthodox Jew suspects his business partner of cuckolding him and embezzling. Then there's the international search for a high-profile con artist. Finally, there's a couple looking for the husband's birth mother so they have a full family medical history for their sick child.

As he follows these four major cases through alternating chapters, he also delves into the methods of psychology of the (mostly) men who pursue them. Here the book shows a bit of its age, as the Internet has dramatically changed how information is stored and retrieved, and the protection of personal information has become a hotbutton issue in recent years. In any event, there's also plenty of smaller side cases along the way to mix things up. My favorite of these is the vexing problem of street vendors who set up right outside a client's high rent storefronts. The solution to that "case" will make you shake your head! Still, the four main investigations drive the book and are flashy and captivating enough to do so. An excellent and compulsively readable glimpse into the world of private investigators.

This is a nicely crafted piece of fluff that almost manages to hide its underlying cleverness. Rosemary Martin has fashioned her charmer of a heroine, Bebe Bennet, to fit neatly between Goldie Hawn in "The Cactus Flower" and Maggie McNamara in "The Moon is Blue." For those so young that those references suggest little or nothing--most of Martin's potential readership, I suppose--I mean that while Bebe is outwardly young, sweet, naive and charming, inwardly she is constructed of titanium and stainless steel, even though she herself is not yet aware that is the case.

I find myself to be an almost exact contemporary of Bebe's. Her world in this series of books is a pretty accurate depiction of the world of the 60s--not so much as it actually was but as many of us thought it was. I began seriously to work for a living at about that time. I shared office space with a number of near-Bebes and at least one absolute dead-ringer for her. Bebe's concerns with glamor, fashion and music are accurately depicted for at least that small segment of the population with which Bebe would have identified herself--as is the singular inability to see, even to the point of willful blindness, the grimly onrushing crises of Vietnam and civil rights.

Ms. Martin's prose is solid, if not especially memorable. Her sit-com characters are no more than lay figures, but they are used with writerly skill. Plot and pace are sufficient to keep the pages turning on a regular beat.

I think Ms. Martin's goal is simply to entertain. I think she achieves that goal--and perhaps rather more.

A ditsy, slightly guilty pleasure well worthy of five stars.

After leaving her hometown of Richmond, Virginia for the excitement of New York City secretary Bebe Bennett follows her boss, the handsome and sexy Bradley Williams when he becomes head of the Ryan Modeling Agency. She loves him even though he calls her "kid" because he is a decade older than her twenty-two. She does a lot to light his fire including have her stewardess roommate buy her mod clothes, mini-skirts and go-go boots (after all the year is 1964.)

However, Bebe gets no satisfaction because Bradley is emotionally involved with the company's lead model, Suzie Wexford, a woman who knows she is beautiful and sexy, and uses her attributes to climb to the top of her profession. One night Bradley leaves Suzie's apartment to buy chocolate syrup, but when he comes back, he finds she is murdered, strangled with a scarf he gave her. The police,called by Suzie's neighbor, arrest him. Bebe intends to prove his innocence as she is sure that the killer is one of the many people who confided in her that they hated Suzie.

Using the vernacular of the youth of the swinging sixties, the music that was popular then, and the other aspects of the subculture of the teenage baby boomers, Rosemary Martin makes the era go-go in cool mod Technicolor. The heroine is an adorable character, a combination of steel and sock it to me vulnerability; readers hope that her boss sees her inner beauty and falls for her. There are plenty of suspects with viable motives and guessing who the killer is becomes part of the fun of this wonderful historical (my God my teen years are historical!) amateur sleuth mystery.

Harriet Klausner

Little tid bits of history and flashback lace this very cute mystery to the end. This newest book is better than the first even and will not disappoint the reader who buys it. I loved BeBe and her zany Roomie Darlene's antics. Of course BeBe only has eyes for her boss and he is trying his darndest not to fall head over heels for her. This ending took me totally by surprise. A cool whodonit to the end.

It is indeed rarest of rare to find a book that is perfectly true in terms of its name, and this book falls under that "category" (are there any other books in that class?). It is trully ultimate as a sourcebook for the "Jack the Ripper" killing that terrorised London and keeps on horrifying us after all these years. Every year we come across new "theories" propounded either by the Ripperologists, or by rank amateurs trying to cash on our queries. But this book remains true and authentic. If at any point in my life I consider myself qualified enough to uplift myself to the rank of a Ripperologist rather than being the curious folk (as at present), I will make a thorough study of everything in this book. Until then, I can merely recommend: "please get hold of a copy of this book by any means".

This book is a necessary addition to any Ripper library. It is essentially a compilation of contemporary documents, mostly police, inquest and newspaper reports. It covers the major bases, including the individual murders and some documents relating to suspects and police opinions. Although it obviously may not be as comprehensive or up-to-date as one might like, it is one of the few primary source collections on the Whitechapel crimes, which alone makes it worth the read.

An exhaustive record of all official correspondence, case file notes, evidence details and media reports concering the Jack the Ripper/Whitechapel murders of 1888-91. A very thorough research guide for serious Ripperologists. Includes all major case notes and relevant data, as well as a solid collection of photographs and drawings. Recommended for the hardcore Ripper enthusiast, and as a companion to other books on the case, especially Sugden's "The Complete History of Jack the Ripper".

A simple, if not scholarly, account of a mass murder perpetrated on a number of helpless innocents. This would be a fine True Crime book, but Richard Gambino does not want to simply tell a story America forgot. He delivers the details of the henious crime set in the intrigue of the New Orleans political scene. And gives insight, with historical perspective, to the diplomatic backlash and the response of an apathetic America. A must read for Italian-Americans, who crave a little righteous rage or for those who have any interest in the Immigration debate. This book is a reminder of one of a series of pass sins commited by a "multi-cultural conscious" society.

A simple, if not scholarly, account of a mass murder perpetrated on a number of helpless innocents. This would be a fine True Crime book, but Richard Gambino does not want to simply tell a story America forgot. He delivers the details of the henious crime set in the intrigue of the New Orleans political scene. And gives insight, with historical perspective, to the diplomatic backlash and the response of an apathetic America. A must read for Italian-Americans, who crave a little righteous rage or for those who have any interest in the Immigration debate. This book is a reminder of one of a series of pass sins commited by a "multi-cultural conscious" society.

Gambino makes one of the most heinous crimes in American history into a fine narrative. In some parts of the US, hatred of Italians was more pervasive than the animus directed at blacks and for decades Italians - specifically Southern Italians and Sicilians - were placed at the lowest rung of the social scale. This all came to a head when local, state and national officials all played a part in the worst mass lynching in US history. Even the president thought it "a good thing." There are lessons to be learned and Dr. Gambino delivers them in a fast-paced tale of the greed and hatred that resulted in a mass murder.

The title of Marcus Valerius Messala Corvinus' latest mystery appears to indicate a mystery inextricably linked to the Roman tribal voting centuries, but this proves somewhat erroneous as we plunge into the murky politics of Latium and the apparent bad feeling between the Latins and the Romans (portrayed as decidedly one-sided). Marcus and Perilla are off to Castrimoenium to visit Marcus' stepdaughter, Marilla, indulge in a wine-tasting contest at Pontius' against a sheep, explore the gneral environs, oh, and solve a couple of murders along the way. Shortly after their arrival one of the two candidates for the local censorship- Vettius Bolanus, ex-fiance of Sulpicia, is found murdered in his own loggia (Concordius being the other candidate) and Marcus is called in by Libianus to solve the case before the potentially inflammatory Latin Festival. What results is Marcus having to understand the complex relationships between a corona civis decorated ex-centurion Spurius, his son-in-law Rufinius, the aedile Ruso, the property dealer Decidius and the anti-Roman Flacchus. Thow in a particularly nasty butcher, Euxperius and the Alban Brotherhood and you develop a severe case of things escalating out of control.
Marcus' habitual case-sleuthing with Perilla drops off compared the the last two novels and this is no bad thing though he manages to replace it somewhat with Marcia Fulvina's thoughts, the elderly aunt of the current senior consul, Persicus, the latter to whom Wishart approportions buffoon-esque tendencies.
There are multiple plot threads running through Wishart's latest but he manages to tie them all in neatly and plausibly, sending us down many dead ends. A case of many motives for the first murder but no realistic suspect being the culprits. The characterisation is delightful, from the Boudicca-esque Sulpicia, to the inexperienced but knowledgeable Flacchus, to the dour old veteran Spurius and the action moves along at a good clip until Marcus eventually works out the threads, discovers the plot and in the final denouement in an abandoned villa, confronts the culprits and barely escapes with his life. Humor abounds, no more so than when Marcus indulges in a wine-tasting competition - Wishart has built him up to be somewhat of a connoisseur (without degenerating to drunkenness) over the preceding episodes - and loses to his ovine relative.
The two preceding offerings - 'Last Rites' and 'White Murder' had slipped slightly compared to the previous but Wishart has served another fine offering with this current book. It is not often you find a series where you want the adventures to continue for a very long time. Lindsey Davis' Falco is one, Saylor's Gordianus another....you must add Wishart's Corvinus to those two peers for 'A Vote for Murder' further proves Marcus Corvinus' deserved place in the Roman Murder Mystery genre.
Highly recommended.

The title of Marcus Valerius Messala Corvinus' latest mystery appears to indicate a mystery inextricably linked to the Roman tribal voting centuries, but this proves somewhat erroneous as we plunge into the murky politics of Latium and the apparent bad feeling between the Latins and the Romans (portrayed as decidedly one-sided). Marcus and Perilla are off to Castrimoenium to visit Marcus' stepdaughter, Marilla, indulge in a wine-tasting contest at Pontius' against a sheep, explore the gneral environs, oh, and solve a couple of murders along the way. Shortly after their arrival one of the two candidates for the local censorship- Vettius Bolanus, ex-fiance of Sulpicia, is found murdered in his own loggia (Concordius being the other candidate) and Marcus is called in by Libianus to solve the case before the potentially inflammatory Latin Festival. What results is Marcus having to understand the complex relationships between a corona civis decorated ex-centurion Spurius, his son-in-law Rufinius, the aedile Ruso, the property dealer Decidius and the anti-Roman Flacchus. Thow in a particularly nasty butcher, Euxperius and the Alban Brotherhood and you develop a severe case of things escalating out of control.
Marcus' habitual case-reminiscing with Perilla drops off compared the the last two novels and this is no bad thing though he manages to replace it somewhat with Marcia Fulvina's thoughts, the elderly aunt of the current senior consul, Persicus, the latter to whom Wishart approportions buffoon-esque tendencies.
There are multiple plot threads running through Wishart's latest but he manages to tie them all in neatly and plausibly, sending us down many dead ends. A case of many motives for the first murder but no realistic suspect being the culprits. The characterisation is delightful, from the Boudicca-esque Sulpicia, to the inexperienced but knowledgeable Flacchus, to the dour old veteran Spurius and the action moves along at a good clip until Marcus eventually works out the threads, discovers the plot and in the final denouement in an abandoned villa, confronts the culprits and barely escapes with his life. Humor abounds, no more so than when Marcus indulges in a wine-tasting competition - Wishart has built him up to be somewhat of a connoisseur (without degenerating to drunkenness) over the preceding episodes - and loses to his ovine relative.
The two preceding offerings - `Last Rites' and `White Murder' had slipped slightly compared to the previous but Wishart has served another fine offering with this current book. It is not often you find a series where you want the adventures to continue for a very long time. Lindsey Davis' Falco is one, Saylor's Gordianus another....you must add Wishart's Corvinus to those two peers for 'A Vote for Murder' further proves Marcus Corvinus' deserved place in the Roman Murder Mystery genre.
Highly recommended.

David Wishart produces great Roman mysteries from a part of Europe Rome never reached - just north of Hadrian's Wall. A Vote for Murder is one book in Wishart's series about Marcus Corvinus, a young patrician, set during the reign of Tiberius.

The interplay among Corvinus and the recurring supporting cast is one of the strengths of Wishart's series. Perilla (his wife), Marcia Fulvina (her aunt) and Marilla (his and Perilla's adopted daughter) are all well developed characters and each contributes to this book, which is set in the Alban hills at Marcia's villa. Merton (Corvinus' chef) and Bathyllus (his somewhat surly, opinionated and insubordinate major-domo) play a major role in this book as well.

The mystery itself is well plotted and the book is well written, as are all in this series. A local election provides the backdrop for the mystery, though the interplay among Merton, a sheep and Marilla is also of note. I look forward to each installment in the series, as I do to those of Steven Saylor, Lindsey Davis and Rosemary Rowe.

I came across this book, and it sounded interesting. So, I read it.

The book combines the technology of the United States in 1838 with my country's zeal for exploration. Take that, and add a mysterious death. Throw in some interesting characters, and a clever protagonist, "Wiki".

The result is a mystery that I had trouble putting down. I read most of it last night, but waited until this morning to finish. I did not want it to end....fortunately there will be a sequel.

Anyway, the characterisation (?spelling) is wonderful. I felt that I had begun to know these people....and I know nothing about ships of that time.

Somehow, the author has given us a bit of understanding of how things worked then. She also provided us with a great mystery.

The mystery is resolved....I almost got it....but, "Wiki" is quicker.

If you like books by Patrick O'Brien, or if you like mysteries, or, if you would like to try a new book, this is for you. I highly recommend it.

At the end of this book, you will definitely be left wanting more. You know that the tale has just begun and are hoping the author finishes the next story sooner rather than later. The characters are richly drawn, the descriptions of life on board detailed enough to illuminate the surroundings, but not so detailed as to detract from the story and mystery itself. I would definitely recommend this book.

In 1838 Norfolk, someone takes a shot at half Maori William "Wiki" Coffin, Jr. before fleeing the area. Wiki next sees the corpse of a woman in his boat. The Sheriff arrests Wiki for murdering Mrs. Tristam Stanton, wife of the expedition's astronomer. However, not long afterward, the Sheriff frees the "darkie" though he has no papers. Instead he believes that the killer is on the ship the Ex. Ex. already sailing on an exploration expedition in the South Seas. Since Wiki is a linguist with the expedition, the Sheriff asks him to investigate the murder on board the vessel.

As Wiki catches up to the ship, he also begins making inquiries. However, he finds the crew's bias towards his race and national origin makes it difficult to obtain answers as well as delineate who is simply a bigot from a killer. Still, Wiki persists even as the ship is wracked with blunders, confusion, and dangerous decisions that almost sinks the effort before reaching the destination let alone solve a homicide.

This is a terrific historical mystery with the emphasis on real events and relationships circa 1838. The story line contains a fabulous who-done-it, but many of the red herrings are caused by racism that makes an individual seem nasty enough to commit murder. Wiki is a wonderful protagonist who hopefully stars in future South Sea adventures, but the key to this superb tale is the insight into the seemingly doomed real United States South Seas Exploring Expedition of 1838.

Harriet Klausner