New MRBC June 2021 Vote (Mystery)

[JSWolf]

We have 8 books for the May 2021 vote. This will be a multiple choice vote. If there is a tie, we will have a run-off vote. The vote will end on Thursday sometime.

[JSWolf]

Billy Boyle by James R. Benn

Spoiler:

What’s a twenty-two-year-old Irish American cop who’s never been out of Massachusetts before doing at Beardsley Hall, an English country house, having lunch with King Haakon of Norway? Billy Boyle himself wonders. Back home in Southie, he’d barely made detective when war was declared. Unwilling to fight—and perhaps die—for England, he was relieved when his mother wangled a job for him on the staff of a general married to her distant cousin. But the general turns out to be Dwight D. Eisenhower, whose headquarters are in London, which is undergoing the Blitz. And Uncle Ike wants Billy to be his personal investigator.

Billy is dispatched to the seat of the Norwegian government in exile. Operation Jupiter, the impending invasion of Norway, is being planned, but it is feared that there is a German spy amongst the Norwegians.

Billy doubts his own abilities, with good reason. A theft and two murders test his investigative powers, but Billy proves to be a better detective than he or anyone else expected.

Eye of the Needle by Ken Follet

Spoiler:

His code name was “The Needle.” He was a German aristocrat of extraordinary intelligence—a master spy with a legacy of violence in his blood, and the object of the most desperate manhunt in history. . . .

But his fate lay in the hands of a young and vulnerable English woman, whose loyalty, if swayed, would assure his freedom—and win the war for the Nazis. . . .

Plum Island by Nelson DeMille

Spoiler:

Wounded in the line of duty, NYPD homicide detective John Corey convalesces in the Long Island township of Southold, home to farmers, fishermen -- and at least one killer. Tom and Judy Gordon, a young, attractive couple Corey knows, have been found on their patio, each with a bullet in the head. The local police chief, Sylvester Maxwell, wants Corey's big-city expertise, but Maxwell gets more than he bargained for.

John Corey doesn't like mysteries, which is why he likes to solve them. His investigations lead him into the lore, legends, and ancient secrets of northern Long Island -- more deadly and more dangerous than he could ever have imagined. During his journey of discovery, he meets two remarkable women, Detective Beth Penrose and Mayflower descendant Emma Whitestone, both of whom change his life irrevocably. Ultimately, through his understanding of the murders, John Corey comes to understand himself.

The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey

Spoiler:

1920s India: Perveen Mistry, Bombay's only female lawyer, is investigating a suspicious will on behalf of three Muslim widows living in full purdah when the case takes a turn toward the murderous.

Death is a Lonely Business by Ray Bradbury

Spoiler:

Ray Bradbury creates a stylish and slightly fantastical tale of mayhem and murder set among the shadows and the murky canals of Venice, California, in the early 1950s.

Toiling away amid the looming palm trees and decaying bungalows, a struggling young writer (who bears a resemblance to the author) spins fantastic stories from his fertile imagination upon his clacking typewriter. Trying not to miss his girlfriend (away studying in Mexico), the nameless writer steadily crafts his literary effort—until strange things begin happening around him.

Starting with a series of peculiar phone calls, the writer then finds clumps of seaweed on his doorstep. But as the incidents escalate, his friends fall victim to a series of mysterious "accidents"—some of them fatal. Aided by Elmo Crumley, a savvy, street-smart detective, and a reclusive actress of yesteryear with an intense hunger for life, the wordsmith sets out to find the connection between the bizarre events, and in doing so, uncovers the truth about his own creative abilities.

A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn

Spoiler:

London, 1887. After burying her spinster aunt, orphaned Veronica Speedwell is free to resume her world travels in pursuit of scientific inquiry—and the occasional romantic dalliance. As familiar with hunting butterflies as with fending off admirers, Veronica intends to embark upon the journey of a lifetime.

But fate has other plans when Veronica thwarts her own attempted abduction with the help of an enigmatic German baron, who offers her sanctuary in the care of his friend Stoker, a reclusive and bad-tempered natural historian. But before the baron can reveal what he knows of the plot against her, he is found murdered—leaving Veronica and Stoker on the run from an elusive assailant as wary partners in search of the villainous truth.

The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King

Spoiler:

In 1915, Sherlock Holmes is retired and quietly engaged in the study of honeybees in Sussex when a young woman literally stumbles onto him on the Sussex Downs. Fifteen years old, gawky, egotistical, and recently orphaned, the young Mary Russell displays an intellect to impress even Sherlock Holmes. Under his reluctant tutelage, this very modern, twentieth-century woman proves a deft protégée and a fitting partner for the Victorian detective. They are soon called to Wales to help Scotland Yard find the kidnapped daughter of an American senator, a case of international significance with clues that dip deep into Holmes's past. Full of brilliant deduction, disguises, and danger, The Beekeeper's Apprentice, the first book of the Mary Russell–Sherlock Holmes mysteries, is "remarkably beguiling"

The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne

Spoiler:

The Red House Mystery is a classic "whodunit" set in an English country house. An eclectic cast of characters are gathered in the house when the owner's brother, recently arrived from Australia, is found murdered in a locked room. Two of the house guests take the investigation upon themselves and they wade almost playfully through the abundance of evidence and theories.

[Mims]

A good variety to choose from. I selected one I have not read by an author that is new to me; one that I have read but should be readily available to most MRers; and, of course, the one I nominated. I will happily read or re-read whatever is chosen because it is really nice to have the MR book club continue.

[JSWolf]

And the winner is...

The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne

[Paperbackstash]

Great. We had a lot of good possibilities for Mystery.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Paperbackstash

Great. We had a lot of good possibilities for Mystery.

I agree. I do think we had a pretty good selection.

[JSWolf]

Who is reading The Red House Mystery?

[hildea]

I finished it a few days ago, and am looking forward to discussing it

[Mims]

I read it several years ago and will reread before discussion. I did read “the Widows of Malabar Hill” earlier this week and will continue with this series - a good example of what I like about MR Book Club- lots of recommendations from varied viewpoints to books I might not have found on my own. Currently rereading “Alas, Babylon” because of May’s Club selection. This edition has a really nice introduction by David Brin whom I discovered with the June selection.

Still waiting to see if book club will elicit the interesting politicking and promotion of nominees that we saw in the past.

Forgot to thank Hildea for my find. ��

[hildea]

Originally Posted by Mims

Forgot to thank Hildea for my find. ��

I haven't read it myself yet, and don't remember where I saw it recommended, but I'm planning to read it. Your Billy Boyle recommendation also looks interesting.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Who is reading The Red House Mystery?

What is the schedule? When is the discussion supposed to start?

[JSWolf]

I'm thinking the 20th to start the discussion.

[JSWolf]

Given that I am moving home this week and I don't know what sort of time or Internet I'll have, would someone else mind starting the discussion thread? Thanks.

[hildea]

Sure, I can do that (if noone else beats me to it the 20th )

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by hildea

Sure, I can do that (if noone else beats me to it the 20th )

Thank you. That would be a big help.