Book Review: Holmes on the Range by Steven Hockensmith

Title: Holmes on the Range

Author: Steven Hockensmith

Series: Holmes on the Range #1

Publisher: Minotaur Books 

Source: Library; Recycled Books 

Adult, Mystery, Western

1893 is a tough year in Montana, and any job is a good job. When brothers Big Red and Old Red Amlingmeyer sign on as ranch hands at a secretive ranch, they’re not expecting much more than hard work, bad pay, and a few free moments to enjoy their favorite pastime: reading stories about Sherlock Holmes. When another hand turns up dead, Old Red sees the perfect opportunity to employ his Holmes-inspired “deducifyin’” skills and sets out to solve the case. Big Red, like it or not (and mostly he does not), is along for the wild ride in this clever, compelling, and completely one-of-a-kind mystery. (From GoodReads) 

I don't have the faintest idea why it took me so long to read this book. It's a western (which I love) and it's a mystery (which I love even more) and it's got a touch of Holmes (which I love the most) and it features a pair of detecting brothers, which always wins points with me. (I blame the Hardy Boys. And Simon & Simon.)

Holmes on the Range is told from Big Red's point of view. Also known as Otto, he's the younger, more educated brother of Old Red (Gustav) who is really not that old at all. They're the only family each other has left, so while they don't always see eye to eye, they stick with each other. So when Old Red lines up to take a job at the Bar VR ranch, Big Red begrudgingly gets in line with him. As they come to find out, this is precisely the moment things start to go terribly wrong.

This was a really fun read. It's got all the things you might expect from a western including cowboys, cattle (did you know such a thing as a cattalo existed?), a stampede, an outhouse, and interesting words like "deducifying". It's got everything you might expect from a mystery including a murder, make that more than one murder, sneaking about in the dark, mysterious gunshots, and plenty of red herrings. And a cannibal. Hockensmith infuses this romp with a healthy dose of humor. Some of the characters are a little bit canned, such as the maid and the pompous old Englishman, but you've also got some very clever plot twists and unexpected moments. There's also the Swedish chef, which had better be a Muppet reference, I'm just sayin'.

I adore both Gustav and Otto. I will admit that as a reader I had a little bit of a hard time connecting with Otto as the narrator. He spends most of his time observing Gustav observing the rest of the world, and he reminds the reader frequently that Gustav is the only family he has left. I guess I wanted more of him as a character. I also wanted more of Gustav, though, so what can you do?

Read the rest of the series, I suppose.

Holmes on the Range certainly passes the "will I read the next book in the series" test and I've already checked out On the Wrong Track from my local library.

According to Hockensmith's website, there are no plans for a movie or TV adaptation of Holmes on the Range, which is a total shame. I know westerns aren't the hot thing right now, but this would make a seriously entertaining film or mini-series. Also, I vote for Christopher Gorham as Gustav.

I thought long and hard about who I'd want to play Otto and I just couldn't come up with a good idea for his actor. If you've read it, who would you choose? 

I'd recommend Holmes on the Range for anyone who enjoys a good mystery, isn't opposed to westerns, and can handle a little bit of cheesy-ness. 

Up next I'm reading Jellicoe Road, because Britney will kill me if I don't. 

Adios, pardners!

Deducifyingly, 

Gabi 

Book Review: Board Stiff by Kendel Lynn

Title: Board Stiff
Author: Kendel Lynn
Series: Elliott Lisbon #1
Publisher: Henrey Press
Source: ARC courtesy of Frisco Public Library
(And then I bought the eBook edition through Barnes and Noble)
Adult, Mystery

Elliott Lisbon takes care of a multitude of problems for the board members of the Ballyntine Foundation, of which she is the director. From catering to courting potential donors, she's the go-to gal. She also handles small "discreet inquiries" like finding misplaced Pomeranians and smoothing ruffled feathers when restaurant checks don't get paid. Her life gets a lot more complicated and her inquiries a lot less discreet when member Leo is murdered and the board chair (and her boss' favorite) Jane is pinned with the crime.


But her complications don't end there. Her sexy ex moves into town for a new job...as the police lieutenant. He also moves in to the house next door. He also starts dating a potential donor so Elli's got to play nice. (Mostly.) There's also Matty, who she might be dating. Thankfully she's a spunky, determined woman with a great best friend and a sporty Mini-Cooper to get her from suspect to suspect.

But proving Jane innocent is difficult with so much stacking up against her, and Elliott's inquiries aren't unnoticed. She'll have to pull out all the stops to get the criminal, the guy, and her next paycheck.



The book gods smiled upon me and I was super fortunate to receive an ARC of Board Stiff from Henery Press through the library I work for. I did a short, spoiler free gif review for it which you can see on Tumblr here if the fancy strikes you.

Board Stiff is smart and funny creates a fabulous southern atmosphere. Elliott is a heroine you can immediately get behind and root for, because you've probably been her at some point even if you've never investigated a thing in your life. She's smart, determined, and quirky (you won't find her without her hand sanitizer) and she's hilarious. Here are two of my favorite lines:

"I peek through my peep hole. I may be cranky, but I'm not crazy. I can't just open the door for some whacko killer and then yell him to death." 

And:

"I showered quickly. As quick as I could, anyway. I do things a certain way and it makes my skin itch if I change in any way. All very reasonable and not in the least obsessive." 

If you know me well, or have traveled with me, you'll know that I'm pretty picky about showering so I emotionally bonded to Elli as a character. :p

Elli's a businesswoman with some serious people skills and smarts. What I love most about her as a character, though, is her ability to stand up for herself. Whether she's dealing with potential investors, little old  ladies, tough as nails chefs, rude women, attractive men, or jackasses, Elli doesn't take anybody's lip.

One of my absolute favorite moments is when Elli pushes somebody into a pool. I won't say who or why (spoilers!) but it's one of many moments you'll find yourself cheering for her.

If you like fast paced, humorous mysteries with a kick-butt woman who can get her man and close her case, hop in the Mini-Cooper with Elliott Lisbon and hang onto your hat.

Henery Press is having a sale on their eBooks from now until June 30th, so hit up Barnes and Noble, Amazon, or your usual eBook store to snatch up Board Stiff and all the other Hen House titles for .99 cents. It's a fabulous deal for some fabulous summer reads.

Rumor from the Hen House is that Elliott and company will be back soon with her second adventure, and I can't wait!

Swimmingly,
Gabi

Book Review: Archie Meets Nero Wolfe by Robert Goldsborough

Title: Archie Meets Nero Wolfe
Author: Robert Goldsborough
Publisher: Mysterious Press
Series: Nero Wolfe - prequel
Source: Library
Adult Mystery 











Let me try to explain the depths of my joy when I spotted this on the bookshelf at the library I work at:

No, really. I startled a passing librarian with my shriek and dance of joy. I had a much better reaction from one of our other co-workers, who also was quite excited about this find.

Archie Goodwin is one of my top five favorite men of mystery, if you will. I don't actually remember how I stumbled upon the Nero Wolfe series, just that someone put the second of Rex Stout's novels in my hands (The League of Frightened Men) when I was a teenager and told me to read. So read I did, and I fell in love in with Fritz and Wolfe and Archie. But mostly Archie.

If you're unfamiliar with the Nero Wolfe series, it is set in New York and starts in the early 1930's (although carries through several decades after) and follows the cases of Nero Wolfe, a private investigator. Nero Wolfe has several extreme eccentricites, including the fact that he very, very rarely leaves his brownstone home, follows a regimented schedule every day that cannot be broken, he eats very lavish meals prepared by a live-in chef (that would be Fritz), and grows orchids in a rooftop hothouse. Wolfe does not tolerate the iterruption of his schedule, his authority being questioned, his privacy being invaded, most women, most men, stupidity, business talk over dinner, and a great myriad of other situations.What he does tolerate (with or without grace) is Archie Goodwin.

Archie is Nero Wolfe's presence outside the brownstone. He serves as legs and ears and eyes while interviewing witnesses, trailing suspects, and chasing perpetrators. Archie also serves as a thorn in Wolfe's side -it's offically part of his job- to motivate his boss into taking cases so they can get paid. He's a charmer and a smooth talker; a ladies man and always a gentleman. He's savvy and street smart and he quits as many times as Wolfe fires him, but it's always an idle threat. When Rex Stout's series starts, Archie's been working for Wolfe for several years.

Rex Stout passed away in 1975, and eleven years later Robert Goldsborough had his first Nero Wolfe novel published, Murder in C Minor. With the blessing of the Stout estate, he wrote several more Wolfe and Archie mysteries. Now, he hasn't written a Wolfe book since 1994 (which for you non-instant math people like me is 19 years ago) and what better way to return to the scene than with the fan's dream: an origin story. A prequel. Hallelujah.

Archie Meets Nero Wolfe opens with Archie, fresh from Ohio, working a job as a night watchman on the docks. He's nineteen and looking for his big opportunity in the city - and winds up killing two men in self defense. He's let go from the watchman position, but impresses P.I. Del Bascom and gets taken on in the private detective's office. Archie's big opportunity comes with the Big Case. Tommie Williamson, son of a very wealthy businessman, is kidnapped and his father taps Nero Wolfe to take the case. Wolfe calls in the best detectives he knows, including Bascom who brings Archie to the table. The race is on to find the boy and find the kidnappers and to secure Archie's place in literary history.

As a longtime Archie fan, I loved this book. It was a fun trip through 1920's New York with a young, sharp Archie who relayed details to the reader with great panache and flare. As a long time mystery reader, it left something to be desired. The story moves quickly, from the small introductory mysteries that set up Archie's skills into the bigger mystery of Tommie Williamson's disappearance. There's some legitimate detective legwork, and you do get a sense for Archie unfolding the process of how he'll operate as a detective for the first time. We're also shown Orrie Cather and Saul Panzer (who are very important supporting characters in most of the Rex Stout novels) meeting Archie and how they work both with and independently of Wolfe.

Speaking of Wolfe, he's not a prevalent in the book as I was expecting, but when he was he was utterly and perfectly Wolfe. Short fuse, fabulous vocabulary, and an all seeing eye to rival Sherlock Holmes himself all wonderfully played out. It was just wasn't enough! Part of the joy of the Goodwin/Wolfe read is their exchanges and interactions and I suppose I was expecting more of them having some of those first conflicts and concessions.

Wolfe is not amused by your shenanigans.

For the most part, Goldsborough does a good job with Archie's voice. Archie is a very distinctive first person narrator. Some of the story felt like it was being told by a nineteen year old Archie and some of the story felt like it was being told by the Archie who matured over the course of several decades. However, and this might be more important, Archie is completely charming throughout. And I think that's what it is. If you're approaching this book with the intent of sinking your teeth into a meaty mystery, you may come away wanting. If you're approaching this book as a handshake, as polite introduction to one of the mystery genre's greatest men, you'll be pleasantly delighted.

So, if you like 1920's New York, cozy mysteries, classic private investigators, or already love Archie and Wolfe, you should definitely pick up Archie Meets Nero Wolfe. If you've not been to the world of Stout as of yet, I don't think I would recommend you start here. Start with The League of Frightened Men or Champagne for One and then consider hitting the prequel.

Usually I try to find out if any movie rights are associated with a book, and in this case there are not. However, Archie Goodwin was brought to life by Timothy Hutton in the A&E Nero Wolfe series which ran for two seasons 2000-2001. Timothy Hutton and Maury Chakin are Goodwin and Wolfe, respectively, and neither one of them could be more perfect for the roles. It's a great mystery series with fantastic costuming and dialogue. It's available on DVD.

Perfect Archie Goodwin is perfect.

If you speak Italian, YouTube also has episodes of the newer Italian version of Nero Wolfe. While Timothy Hutton is perfection as Archie, the Archie in those episodes is also quite wonderful.

No, I don't speak Italian.

Italian Archie is also good looking.

Yes, I'm learning Italian.

I recommend the Wolfe/Goodwin series to pretty much everyone, no matter whether you start with the original Stout or pick up Goldsborough's prequel. They're great characters you should definitely get to know.

Hope you all enjoy the upcoming St. Patrick's Day!

Don't drive spifflicated!

Gabs  

Review: Death Cloud by Andy Lane

 So, if you follow me on Twitter (and please do!) you may know I love a certain Doctor who travels the universe in a Blue Box.

I also love a certain Detective who unravels the universe with a magnifying glass and a different Doctor. I first fell in love with Sherlock Holmes when I was twelve years old and we read one of the short stories in my literature class. That's right. My journey with Holmes and Watson began not with A Study in Scarlet nor with Hound of the Baskervilles, but with The Three Garridebs. Crimes commence, guns fire, bromance happens. I was sold.

I loved it so much, I pushed it on my best friend until she fell in love with it, too.

Then she discovered the film, Young Sherlock Holmes. 

Thankfully, this book is not related to the film at all. I avoided it for awhile because the title is Death Cloud which made me feel like it could have supernatural overtures in it, and whenever I think of Young Sherlock Holmes and supernatural overtures my mind flashes back to this:




I'm mostly sorry if I've just traumatized you.

Fortunately, Andy Lane spares us the animated pastries of doom and gives us a rather intriguing plot and excellent dastardly villain whom fourteen year old Sherlock Holmes attempts to foil while on holiday with his aging Uncle and Aunt in the country.

On leave from his boarding school for the summer, Sherlock's older brother Mycroft comes to collect him only to inform him that he can't come home for the holiday. Their father has been called back to active duty in the military in India. Their mother isn't well and Mycroft is Very Important now, so off to Auntie and Uncle's Sherlock goes.

In the country, Sherlock finds his relatives are a bit odd and there's an evil old woman heading the staff of servants. Mysterious deaths occur both in the village and on the Holmes property, and in order to fit the puzzle pieces together, Sherlock will need the assistance of a new found friend and a newly acquired mentor. He might even have a conversation with a girl, if he's lucky.

When I first finished reading Death Cloud, I gave it three out of five stars. It's definitely an enjoyable romp. Sherlock is fourteen in this story, and his age and the writing style gear it towards middle/tween readers more than older YA, which is what I had anticipated when I picked up the title. However, there's a fair share of violence in the story and relatively graphic imagery, which may overwhelm a more squeamish tween reader. There are several Americanisms, and the writing can sometimes lean towards too young, at least for my reading tastes. My friend and co-worker Amy suggested that any Americanisms might have been changes made by the publisher, such as they did with the Harry Potter series. She may well be correct, as the first three or four books in this series are already out in the UK, and the second one is just being released in the states this month. The title of the second book in this series has also been changed for American audiences.

If this is true, publishers, to you I say jog on. Give me the Britishness.

Also three stars for Sherlock not being quite...Sherlock enough. I understand that this is an exploration of his formative days, but he was a little too removed from the final Holmes that we see for me to buy it. He started coming into it near the end, with some of the arrogance he displays, but over all he just wasn't Sherlock enough for me.

Of course, I may be biased towards the amazing sociopath version of Holmes portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch in Sherlock right now.

Also, I will tell you that this series is trying very much to not contradict anything in the actual cannon of Doyle's Holmes. This means that there's no Watson in this story, and can't be (at least directly) in any of the books to come as Holmes and Watson don't meet until Stamford introduces them in A Study in Scarlet. This, for me, is sad, because I love Watson possibly more than I love Holmes. So less a star for that.

Also, there's a girl. Sherlock's mentor, who is an awesome character I have to say, has a teenage daughter named Virginia in whom Sherlock forms an interest. Virginia in and of herself is a well written character. She's smart and spunky, and is not impressed with Sherlock's deductive skills. It isn't her character that annoys me, it's the fact that she's thrown in to be a romantic plot driver, or at least a crush for a character that will wind up only acknowledging Irene Adler as The Woman. Maybe for teens reading this who haven't read cannon that won't be a deal. It will be interesting to see how Lane develops this in further volumes. I don't know if Virginia was written as to attract female readers to the series, or to be the token pretty girl for the male readers. At least she's got personality, I have to give Lane that much. 

At any rate, after a day or two of chewing on it, I decided to up it to four stars. The plot is very well done and the villain is pretty twisty. I do like me a twisty villain. Clearly set up as a precursor to the future Moriarty role, Lane's antagonist is sufficiently sadistic and rather cunning. The overall "evil plan" might be a little far fetched, but the action and adventure carry it along well enough to go with it.

Points for overall action and adventure, too. Sherlock doesn't back down from a fight, even when he should, which leads to some amusing and nail biting encounters.

Mycroft gets some attention in this, which I love, and he's portrayed very well. 

Andy Lane clearly did his homework, which was the final boost up to four stars for this one. There are a lot, and I do mean a lot, of nods to Doyle's cannon, from bees to boxing to a veiled reference to Holmes' future friendship with Watson. As a Doyle fangirl, I approve.

Definitely interesting enough to pick up the second volume for me, I would recommend Death Cloud to anyone who is a Sherlock Holmes fan and likes a good pastiche or to teens/adults who maybe haven't read or didn't care for cannon Holmes but like YA. 

Death Cloud was published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 2010.

I haven't seen anything about this being optioned for film, but that's not surprising given the current popularity of both Sherlock the TV series and the Guy Ritchie films. Too much Holmes on the film market? I say never, but I'm not a producer. :)

A true mystery, and an intriguing start to history's most famous detective, Death Cloud is worth your attention if you can get your hands on it.

Check out the official Young Sherlock website for more information on the books, and some nifty interactive features: http://www.youngsherlock.com/

Booking it,
Gabi

Review: The Brothers of Baker Street by Michael Robertson

The Brothers of Baker Street picks up immediately where the first in this series, The Baker Street Letters, leaves off. I usually don't go into a book with a lot of expectations, but I totally went into Baker Street Letters thinking, "This is going to be awesome! Two brothers move into Baker Street, get letters addressed to Sherlock Holmes, and solve crimes together!" Which it is...and yet, somehow isn't. Brothers of Baker Street was definitely more enjoyable for me because it was more of what I expected.

The book follows Reggie Heath, thirty-something London lawyer who is having a bit of a life crisis. He's lost most of his money, his on-again off-again girlfriend is currently off-again with him and on-again with a very wealthy man, his brother's busy making love to a lovely young woman in California, and he hasn't got a single client.

Not to mention, if someone doesn't answer all those letters to Sherlock Holmes -and only with the proper form, thank you- the lease on his offices will be void and he'll be given the boot from Baker Street.

Lo and behold, an attractive young solicitor appears and just happens to have a client for him. Reggie hasn't taken a criminal case in years, but beggars can't be choosers. So he ships the letters off to his brother Nigel, not taking seriously the one addressed to him and signed Moriarty.

He should have taken it seriously.

First off, Reggie is adorable. Oddly enough, I can't get a clear picture of him when I'm reading. Sometimes, I think I should be picturing this:

Matthew Macfadyen, Eyebrows of Awesome

But most of the time I wind up picturing:

David Mitchell, also with eyebrow action

...I know. Dashing and smart suddenly gives to awkward and ruffled. Either way, Reggie is totally put upon and just wants his life to be normal and his law practice to do well. He's trying to keep his family name respectable and desperately trying to keep Nigel in line which is a job all its own. He's smart and he knows it, and he's not afraid to take on a challenge (mostly) it's just that he doesn't know what to do after he's charged up the hill.

What attracted me about Michael Robertson's writing was that his characters are real people, and he reveals them as real people through the circumstances of the plot (which can be far-fetched) and their choices. Reggie and Nigel and Laura all develop over the course of the story in a way that feels very honest. Sometimes it's frustrating, but it would be difficult to balance a proposal from a suave millionaire publisher you were fond of if you weren't sure the man you loved would ever figure out he loves you that much, too like Laura has too.

And I really like the character of Laura. She's a redheaded actress that's whip smart and six kinds of sassy. She's not intimidated in the least by anybody and she's not star struck by wealth - but she knows it would be an asset. She's a tough woman and not afraid to speak her mind.

My favorite Laura quote:

     "Nigel," said Laura. "If you are now going to tell me that your touch

 made a woman speak in tongues, I'm leaving the room."

Also quite a bit of trivia learned about the famous London Black Cabs which are apparently some of the safest transportation in the whole world. 

I'm still not quite satisfied as far as Reggie and Nigel working together as a team. I'd like to see more of that, mainly because it would be highly entertaining. 

The plot will require some suspension of disbelief, but it's well worth it. 

The Brothers of Baker Street was published by St. Martin's Press (a Macmillan imprint) in 2011. 

According to rumors, Baker Street Letters has been optioned by Warner Brothers for television. Perhaps Mr. Macfadyen and Mr. Mitchell can duke it out for the lead role. :D 

I give it four out of five stars, and do hope that Reggie, Nigel, and Laura return for a third adventure in the near future. 

Booking it, 

Gabi 

do what she please

Okay, so I'm the only person in North America not at the Hunger Games premiere tonight and this is tragic, mainly because I am super excited to see Lenny Kravitz as Cinna. 

And if I knew nothing about the Hunger Games, this alone would have me in line for a ticket: 

Seriously. 

I have read all three books, so I can also claim loftier reasons (and I definitely have other reasons) for wanting to see the film other than Lenny. Erm, Mr. Kravitz. 

All that to say that I really love reading and books and music and film and the mixing of all kinds of media. My name is Gabi and this will be my blog to follow my love of all of those things. But mostly books. 

I've worked libraries for a while and I've been at my current library for two and a half years. I can tell you that approximately 105 people are on hold for the first Hunger Games novel so it might be time to make a "while you're waiting" reading recommends list. 'Cause that's gonna take a while. 

My favorite books/authors right now are: 

- All of the Inspector Gamache novels by Louise Penny. She is an amazingly gifted writer and she crafts a terrific mystery. More importantly, you will absolutely fall in love with her characters and make your heart wrench with what happens to them. 

- The Seven Kingdoms trilogy by Kristin Cashore. A gorgeous YA series that takes you to the lands of the Seven Kingdoms and the Dells, you'll meet strong young women, gifted ones called Gracelings, Monsters, princes, the creepiest villain this side of Voldemort, and a librarian called Death. (Technically pronounced Deeth, but still. :D) 

- Anything and everything Sherlock Holmes. I fell in love with Holmes and Watson when I was twelve and never looked back. When they announced the BBC Sherlock I thought I wouldn't be able to take the idea of Sherlock in modern times but Holy Mother of Doyle it is the Best Adaptation Ever. The Brits make the best television. 

Not a book, but I also have a great love for: 

My Doctor is 11. Bow ties are cool. 

Mysteries and Young Adult are my two home genres, so I'll mainly be reviewing those. I do like to spice things up sometimes and throw some random historical fiction or romance or a western in there occasionally. One never knows. 

Thank you for stopping by and I'm extremely excited to meet everyone in the book blog-o-sphere and I hope you'll bear with me as I get this blog off the ground! 

Booking it, 

Gabi