Spider Woman's Daughter by Anne Hillerman

written by Anne Hillerman
series originator Tony Hillerman, r.i.p.

What a delight to be able to carry on reading the Hillerman Navajo books! After the death of her father Tony Hillerman, his daughter Anne Hillerman has taken on the cloak of wonderful Navajo mysteries. She has segued seamlessly into the series, which is not too surprising as she often worked with her father on the stories. All my favorite characters are here. Joe Leaphorn (but will he survive his attempted murder?), Chief Largo, Jim Chee, now married to fellow cop Bernie (Bernadette) Manuelito who is witness to the close up shooting. Who targeted Joe Leaphorn? Why? Where is his housemate who seems to have disappeared or just simply left the house? So much to be learned and Bernie, as the only witness, is not allowed to work the case.

This is an in-depth look at the life and beliefs of the Navajo nation and at the same time a truly well thought out police case, with surprises, action, loss and crime. Chaco Canyon is as true to reality and mystery as always. Always a major crime to be solved but at the same time we learn a bit of history, a bit of lore, a bit of healing, and a sense of community. Wow! I loved this book! It's like being reunited with old friends. Thank you Anne Hillerman for continuing the series. I've missed the stories and am so happy to be able to continue with this new book. As before, the very active Navajo police at the fore, surrounded by the legends and lifestyles of the Navajo, Zuni, Pueblo and other nations; a wonderful balance.

Note:  As a personal aside -  The Tony Hillerman books were so realistic, exciting, and full of lore that my husband, daughter and I took a trip from New Westminster, BC Canada through all the places mentioned and then some. We went to Chaco Canyon, Pueblo Bonito, Monument Valley, Gallup, Window Rock, and of course Shiprock. We had opportunity to speak with the very friendly people we met in Shiprock during their fall fair. Our first and only long trip. We learned that the Navajo knew of small towns and cities throughout BC, Alberta, and Northern Canada and most we talked to had relatives all through those areas.

My first Tony Hillerman read was the "Thief of Time" which I found in a tub of books in a pharmacy several years ago. Little did I know then that this was one of the most informative finds I would be likely to see and my favorite.

Condition - Book One: A Medical Miracle? (The Condition Trilogy 1) by Alec Birri

by Alec Birri
reviewed from Kindle

A horrific aircraft crash, a fire, a pilot with no way out, are there passengers endangered? Thus begins a complete turnaround of knowledge. Waking up in a hospital six months later is it any wonder there would be questions? The last of the dressings are being removed but does Dan recognize what happened? This book is strange but fascinating and will taunt the mind of both the character and the reader.

It seems that things are not necessarily as they seem. A bit of anxiety causes Dan to temporarily black out, but since the doctor is there but not attending, there is something different going on. "Amnesia, hallucinations, and now, paranoia." This from the doctor who is about to restart a drug treatment that apparently was in use before. The patient thinks he should go back to the scene of his "accident" to which the doctor agrees and with reason.

This book is quite creative in dealing with several issues. The more one reads, the more comes to light as to what is truly going on. We've determined some parts of it, but there is so much more. I found this book fascinating in its growth and twisting the reader around as Dan begins to make a few differences in what he allows and what he will find in the end. There are many books written about similar stories, but this one, though on a bit of slow start, which I would say was necessary, is just incredible with twists and turns. Are the patients prisoners? Are they experiments? What really is incredible is the time sequence. How long has he really been in the hospital. Who is this patient really? Strange at times, confusing at times, and yet the book has a hold on me.

Yesterday's Lost by Sam Cheever

by Sam Cheever
reviewed from Kindle

A truly horrifying nightmare of a well-described old history home from start to finish. Ghosts? Yes, there are, but not so much the type that just hang around for who knows what reason, but terrifying with no outer appearance to speak of nor floating around minding their own business. What would that business be? It's hard to say. A whole neighborhood is wary of the goings on. An older couple and their children live in the house, so what can be so terrifying?

Two detectives arrive on the scene when a call has been made. Neighbors are gathered outside, descriptions of the chaos within, only in the evening, are confusing and blood-curdling screams are heard within. What is happening? Our two detectives tentatively enter the house simultaneously front door and back door and find nothing but signs of strife, heavy air, fog and stench of death. So where are the family? What was making the screams? And who is the old-fashioned girl in the window?

This was a good story of haunting, serious damage, and broken-spirited investigators who have tragic results of their investigation. I shouldn't have read this one when I went to bed!

The Brain Loses the Game by Thomas Marchante

by Thomas Marchante
reviewed from Kindle

Who's up for a game? Is the rabbit hole still intact?
 Played like a game of chess, I have found another author to thoroughly enjoy, and especially our sleuth, Charlie Handler, who plays the game completely to win. Oh, how I love this premise! A mind that talks to itself and answers its questions to solve questions, so very me. A fitted out van far beyond what might be expected in sleuthing.

For those who prefer a different style, such as footwork, paper trails, I say give this one a chance, a very different approach that produces answers faster.

Check out the wife first, right? Caution, earplugs needed when asking her questions about her husband. Speech from Gilly is like chalk on a blackboard. No answers there anyway; Mack is the real person who Charlie needs to locate.  Or is he? He hasn't been seen or heard from since Charlie was hired to find him, dead or alive. A lot of questions to be answered. Charlie has been searching for players in this corporation since she was hired. Is this just a wild goose chase? People on her list to report on are there one moment, the next gone. And what is, to Charlie's versatile mind, entertaining. Going back in my history to when I was working, I sometimes wonder if we were being played or at least in a game, would we ever know it? Certainly an odd book and an odd choice for the future for Charlie. This had various threads throughout, but how do they get untangled? Of course, they still get tangled, wouldn't anyone in contact with the first person tangled want to know how and where that happened? I enjoyed this one completely, especially as the first part certainly was so in sync with how I solve thoughts or problems. Thank you Thomas Marchante... or is it "The Monitor?" or "The Joker?"

Inspector Rebecca Mayfield Box Set 1

by Joanne Pence

Very entertaining, really enjoyed all three stories
Beginning with The Thirteenth Santa, quite frankly I thought it took off with the hilarity of the old Keystone Kops films. How can a big van carrying 12 elderly Santas just disappear? Even more bizarre, where did the body of the thirteenth Santa come from? Christmas Eve has never been so strange. Some of the characters in the first story carry over into the next, some don't.

The second story, One O'Clock Hustle, has Rebecca Mayfield, Homicide division, working on several cases as the story goes along. Not quite a carry-over from book 1, but just as suspenseful and fast-paced as the first. It also carries over Richie Amalfi, completely in character, but would he actually kill someone? Another entertaining story, and still connected in some ways to the first and as high tension with humor as the last.

The third story, Two O'Clock Heist, is as tense and entertaining as the rest. I loved this entire boxed set, I downloaded it on to my Kindle. I can only imagine what the set would be like reading it on paper. I almost want to start reading it all again, but I just finished the set, which also included Richie's Italian Dialect, how it is used in San Francisco and what the words mean which I found really interesting. Joanne Pence has truly gone out of her way to bring an exciting and entertaining set to her readers.

Flo Charts (Silver Hills Cozy Mysteries)

by Sam Cheever
read on Kindle 

 Loved this story, full of interesting activities
This was my first book by Sam Cheever and I know I will want more. I've had this book for some time due to circumstances, but as soon as I started reading it, I was hooked. Wonderful word pictures came to mind as I read.  There is a new senior moving into the Silver Hills Senior and Singles Residence and Flo is the first to greet her. It seems Agnes has quite a presence but it doesn't stop her from being oddly accident prone because of that presence. She is certainly a good ally if you want to do any detecting. Flo and Agnes make an interesting team and good friends. Even their pets get along. But what is so unique about Agnes' cat, is that he likes to roam around the building, or is there more to it? He makes his rounds in his own unique style and process. What makes Flo so afraid of him?

When someone at the home becomes ill, work-related, Flo and Agnes start to ask questions. Flo being the questioner and Agnes providing a powerful backup. A very large woman, she is foil to Flo's lightweight methods. When the two of them try to gain access to the company where their friend works, checking it out becomes a hilarious misadventure. For a warehouse of household items and similar in storage, it has some very unexpected items here and there, not easily moved, but strangely unnoticed. All's well that ends well as soon as the police are in control...or maybe not as another case becomes a comedy of errors. Uniquely different from other cozy mysteries I've read.

Murder Below Zero

by John Lawrence Reynolds
a Rapid Reads book

 January in June, living in northern British Columbia, I can identify. Unusually cold this year, spring just doesn't seem to be in any hurry to arrive in Port Ainslee causing little excitement in the small village. Two conflicting policing sections, can Maxine Benson, chief of Port Ainslee's small police force, keep her cool and wits while the pushy provincial police both ignore and restrict her from doing her official job? The shocking discovery of a body in a ditch brings all enmity to the fore as Max tries to solve the crime with considerable interference from the overbearing head of the provincial police who are virtually scrambling the discoveries made by Max. It takes awhile but methodically Max has answers that are being ignored. Who could have murdered the man in the ditch and why does the body seem more frigid than expected? I enjoyed this book on several levels, a lot of plot packed into this Rapid Read. I will definitely be watching for more books by this author.