The Coroner

This is the debut entry in Jennifer Graeser Dornbush's "The Coroner's Daughter" mystery series. It is a decent although fairly predictable plot. Dr. Emily Hartford, a surgical resident in Chicago is called home when she learns that her estranged father has had a heart attack. Here's the plot summary and lukewarm recommendation from Kirkus : When Dr. Emily Hartford learns of her father's heart attack, she leaves her promising Chicago surgical career and new fiance, Brandon, to return home only to be pulled into a murder investigation led by her old high school sweetheart.Emily had abruptly left Freeport, Michigan, as a teenager after her mother's death. She felt that her father, Freeport's medical examiner, either couldn't or wouldn't tell her the truth behind the death. And although she had left a note for her boyfriend, Nick, who is now the sheriff in Freeport, he never found it. Now, shortly after arriving to take care of her father, Emily gets pulled into the case of Julie Dobson, a state senator's daughter. Julie was a brilliant horsewoman with a promising career until she was found thrown from her horse, dead from a head wound. Standing in for her father, Emily does Julie's autopsy, and when signs point to murder, both Nick and Emily struggle to find the truth. Meanwhile, Emily weighs her feelings for the almost too-perfect Brandon against her rekindled feelings for Nick, a quandary whose outcome the reader will never doubt. Although we are repeatedly told of Emily's many struggles, the reader is held at an emotional distance by prose that is adequate but not polished. Too, the use of "gonna," "wanna," and "gotta" may be phonetic depictions of how people speak, but its constant use in print is annoying. If Dornbush will trust her own ability to convey insights via actions instead of explanations, readers might want to find out what happens next in the obviously planned sequel."

If you like Patricia Cornwell but want something less grisly, this should fill the bill. I did find the lack of good editing very annoying, however.  

 

My Friends

This novel by Fredrik Backman is certainly touching in some ways but none of the characters really engaged me. The Washington Post calls it "an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a stranger's life twenty-five years later." 

Kirkus summarizes the plot as follows: "Never in her wildest dreams would foster kid Louisa dream of meeting C. Jat, the famous painter of The One of the Sea, which depicts a group of young teens on a pier on a hot summer’s day. But in Backman’s latest, that’s just what happens—an unexpected (but not unbelievable) set of circumstances causes their paths to collide right before the dying 39-year-old artist’s departure from the world. One of his final acts is to bequeath that painting to Louisa, who has endured a string of violent foster homes since her mother abandoned her as a child. Selling the painting will change her life—but can she do it? Before deciding, she accompanies Ted, one of the artist’s close friends and one of the young teens captured in that celebrated painting, on a train journey to take the artist’s ashes to his hometown. She wants to know all about the painting, which launched Jat’s career at age 14, and the circle of beloved friends who inspired it."And they close their review with this praise: "The novel is humorous, poignant, and always life-affirming, even when describing the bleakness of the teens’ early lives. ...A tender and moving portrait about the transcendent power of art and friendship."

Publishers Weekly gushes that "The author is at the top of his game." I have to admit that I only read the first and last thirds of the book.  

 

The Searcher

Now that the third installment has hit the shelves, I finally got around to reading the first in Tana French's "Cal Hooper" series. I always try and go back to the original book when I am interested in a new series. I have already put the next two books on hold at the Library: The Hunter and The Keeper.  Cal Hooper is a retired police detective from Chicago who,  after a painful divorce has bought a small run down house on the outskirts of a small village in west Ireland--the perfect escape from a job and a city he has gone sour on.  Or so he thinks. Then a ragged looking teenager, Trey,  comes to Cal and cajoles him into finding his missing older brother. Everyone claims to think that Brendan was full of big ideas and just ran off, but Trey is convinced he wouldn't run off and cut off all communication. Whether it's because Cal is an interloper in this insular community or because something more sinister is going on, Cal meets a wall of silence when he starts asking questions.

Publishers Weekly calls this book superb and closes their review by saying "Insightful characterizations, even of minor figures, and a devastating reveal help make this a standout. Crime fiction fans won't want to miss this one." Library Journal offers this: "Though neither the expected crime novel nor a quaint mystery, this work brilliantly meshes the two as it touches on belonging, morality, and the jarring way criminality seeps into almost all crevices of society. A thought-provoking ending provides opportunities for reflection on self and community." Booklist praises French by saying she"displays impressive versatility. ... a variation on country noir..." and continues, "This is a fine thriller, but it's also a moving story of an unlikely friendship that grows from refinishing a ramshackle desk to rebuilding two nearly broken lives."  Finally, Kirkus concludes, "Cal is a complex enough character, though, and it turns out that the mystery he’s trying to solve is less shocking than what he ultimately discovers. French's latest is neither fast-paced nor action-packed, and it has as much to do with Cal’s inner life as it does with finding Brendan. Much of what mystery readers are looking for in terms of action is squeezed into the last third of the novel, and the morally ambiguous ending may be unsatisfying for some. But French’s fans have surely come to expect imperfect allegiance to genre conventions, and the author does, ultimately, deliver plenty of twists, shocking revelations, and truly chilling moments. Slow moving and richly layered."