December 2017-What are you reading?

Kicking off the new month.

My library hold of The Long Goodbye came in too late for November's AlphaKIT but I am looking forward to rereading it anyway.

I started City of Endless Night by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. I love Pendergast. Some of their recent novels haven't quite lived up to the enjoyment I got from earlier ones, but this one is off to a good start.

Reading the 4th book in the 87th Precinct series, The Con Man.

I spent the weekend with the latest books from two of my favorite series -- Easy Errors by Steven Havill and Deep Freeze by John Sandford. Needless to say, it was a very enjoyable weekend.

Reading Glass Houses the latest in Louise Penny's Chief Inspector Gamache series. I recently finished reading the series from the beginning up to this point. Although I have enjoyed many of them so far I have found this entry disappointing. Maybe the last 100 pages will change my mind.

I have just finished reading Trunk Music by Michael Connelly. One of the best of the Bosch series IMHO.

I have finished another Nero Wolfe book, the 6th: Some Buried Caesar. It surprised me that Wolfe & Archie were again away from home. The banter between Archie & Lily Rowan, who makes her first appearance in this book, was wonderful to read!

>8 leslie.98: That's one of my favorite Nero Wolfe books! I recently listened to it again on audio. I love it especially as it's the introduction of Lily Rowan.

Visiting the 87th Precinct with an early installment: King's Ransom, by Ed McBain.

I like both Nero Wolfe and Ed McBain!

I am on a steady diet of thrillers and crime novels in the last few weeks - mainly steadily reading through a few authors and series.

So far in December: the 17th Spenser novel Stardust (at this point one either likes them or not - they are masculine and repetitive in some places if you read them too close to each other but I enjoy them and they have decent mysteries), the 79th Perry Mason (it just showed up in my library so I went out of order - I am at ~50 at the moment) The Case of the Careless Cupid, Sheldon's The Naked Face (the latest author I am reading/re-reading in order), Dan Brown's Angels & Demons(I do not think that I ever read this one before although I was sure I had) and Silva's The Marching Season (and I am done with his early ones - now back to his current series - it is kinda amusing how he connected the very first book with this very short series and from there the main series)

Off to reading a different genre book now but I will be back

>8 leslie.98:

When I finally got around to starting the Wolfe books from the start, I realized that Wolfe does get out of the house a lot actually. It was surprising...

Finished Glass Houses by Louise Penny. The last 100 pages did not change my disappointment in the book. Back to the Cork O'Connor series with Windigo Island.

I finished #26 in the Appleby series by Michael Innes, The Open House. Quite diverting.

I have finished a Christmas murder mystery called The Crime at Noah's Ark (though it isn't very festive, it does take place over Christmas). A very enjoyable Golden Age mystery by little-known author Molly Thynne. 4*

I finished reading Two Kinds of Truth, by Michael Connelly. This was the latest in the Harry Bosch series, and Mickey Haller also had a sizable and significant role in this one.

Connelly had Bosch on two separate investigations, or maybe three depending on how you count. He has balanced multiple investigation in the last couple of books I have read by him. This seemed a little awkward to me at times, and I wish more time had been devoted to the pill mill plot. But the most compelling story line related to the other story line anyway, so maybe it was for the best. I don't want to go into any more detail than that, because I know a few of you will probably be reading this book sometime in the near future.

Overall, it was a good entry in the series, and I was happy to see Haller again, since we haven't had a Lincoln Lawyer book in some time.

I'm reading and enjoying Dancing with the virgins by Stephen Booth. I like reading thick books this time of the year.

Re-reading Smiley's People, by John le Carré.

I have finally gotten around to The Long Goodbye -- I was certain that this would be a reread but it turns out that I have not read this before. I must have confused it in my mind with Farewell, My Lovely.

I finished P. D. James' The Mistletoe Murder and enjoyed all four stories.

Continuing the holiday theme, I've reading The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries, a book that I had started last December and put down after the holidays. It's really a stellar collection. The next story is one by John D. MacDonald.

>20 Copperskye: I am also reading The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries, a few stories each day. The one after the John D. MacDonald story was quite poignant but so far the Herlock Sholmes story is my favorite.

>8 leslie.98: and >9 tottman: I liked that book too! Archie and Lily are always good, and I love the whole series.

Finished one of the rare Erle Stanley Gardner books that is not part of a series: The Clue of the Forgotten Murder - written in 1934 and while he was looking for his style and it shows.

I started Nightblind, another Ari Thor mystery set in Iceland.

Another re-read: The Distant Echo, by Val McDermid.

>21 leslie.98: I'll be reading that next one, "Crime's Christmas Carol", tonight. It's a great collection.

Just finished Midnight Line. Wonder what Jack Reacher will do when he can't find a pay phone. There are none in my area. Also read Midnight Line, Deep Freeze and End Game.

Received a review copy of Not Safe After Dark and Other Stories by Peter Robinson. Have read the first two stories and enjoyed them.

Just started Manitou Canyon by William Kent Krueger.

I decided to spend the day with a Kindle book that had been languishing for far too long -- Julie Smith's Jazz Funeral. Being in the frozen north, it was nice to vicariously visit the heat of New Orleans! I had forgotten how much I enjoyed her Skip Langdon character...

I just started Dame Agatha's The Harlequin Tea Set and Other Stories.

Just finished reading Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane. It wasn't bad, but it was a little disappointing compared to his other work. Still, a decent Lehane is better than a lot of other stuff out there.

Now reading None But the Dead, by Lin Anderson.

Having finished The Case of the Journeying Boy, a 1949 mystery by Michael Innes, I am about to reread a more contemporary holiday mystery -- Not a Creature Was Stirring by Jane Haddam.

Finished The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny. Enjoyed it.

Next up is W is for Wasted by Sue Grafton.

I read Dashing through the snow by Mary Higgins Clark for a holiday book.

Just started Deception on His Mind by Elizabeth George. Normally I like these, it's a decent series with enough crime, background and the ongoing lives of the cops to be interesting and different each time out, but this one is getting to me. It's got a lot to do with racism and the ugliness that goes along with it. Lots of hate, vitriol and violence. I may end up skimming a lot of that. I know it exists. I know it's a problem. I just don't want it in my head.

Added Hidden Order by Brad Thor to my reading rotation.

Started Sulfur Springs by William Kent Krueger. This is the last, thus far, in the Cork O'Connor series. I will have to savor it and wait for the next. A departure from the previous books in the series: it takes place in Arizona rather than Minnesota's North Woods.

Finished W is for Wasted by Sue Grafton. Enjoyed it.

Next up is Dead Simple by Peter James.

Raiding the stash of books I keep at my parents' place and reading A Suitable Lie, by Michael J. Malone.

Finished Not Safe After Dark and Other Stories by Peter Robinson. Enjoyable collection of stories.

Next into my reading rotation is The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne.

Finished another holiday read Santa Cruise by Mary Higgins Clark

I always like to read a Donna Andrews cozy for Christmas and this year it was How the Finch Stole Christmas! and it was awesome!

Now I'm reading The Night Market by Jonathan Moore which seems to be straddling some genres, but I'm really enjoying it so far!

I have been enjoying Envious Casca by Georgette Heyer entitled 'A Christmas Party' by my e book provider so that I had to hunt down the original title. It is a deliciously old-fashioned mystery set in the Christmas period. anyone who enjoys classic country house settings of the sort found in Agatha Christie stories may well enjoy this as much as I did.

One of my favourite authors: Hidden Depths by Ann Cleeves. The 3rd in her Vera Stanhope series. Always good reading.

I'm reading one of my Christmas presents. Murder under the Christmas tree. A short story collection.

Currently reading Bad Chili by Joe R. Lansdale. I am only about 50 pages in, and I have already laughed out loud a couple of times. I am finding that this series is reliably entertaining.

I've started Artemis, a crossover mystery/sci-fi one by Andy Weir.

Finished Dead Simple by Peter James. OK read.

Next up is The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter.

I finished Robicheaux by James Lee Burke which was amazing!

I enjoyed Not a Creature Was Stirring. I then listened to the audiobook of The Crooked Wreath by Christianna Brand -- it was okay but not as good as some of the other Cockerill mysteries.

And I finally finished The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries -- and it is a big book! Many different styles of mystery short stories by authors old & new. This was one of my Christmas gifts to myself last year (bought with an Amazon gift card) & I enjoyed it very much.

Trying out a new author, David Liss, with The Devil's Company. 1722 London; conspiracy afoot in the British East India company. This isn't the first in the series, but easy to jump in and a good read so far.

My last book of 2017 is done. I finished The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter. I enjoyed. Very convoluted.

NEW THREAD - http://www.librarything.com/topic/279788

Finished on Dec 31- a great read: By Gaslight by Steven Price.

>51 tottman: So you got it before its official release date? Lucky you!