Book Review: Necessary as Blood by Deborah Crombie (Gemma James and Duncan Kincaid #13)

Necessary as Blood by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Gemma Janes is a Scotland Yard detective who is extremely stressed and overworked.  She worries about her job  family, a sick mother, supporting her friends, all the while trying to plan a wedding.  Once again she teams up with her husband, Duncan Kincaid to investigate the murder in the East End of London. 

In the end, clues were revealed, and guilty parties were identified and arrest in the last two chapters.  I felt it was a little too much of a rushed and tidy ending.  I wasn’t fond of the storyline in this book, but what really stood out for me were the detective teams of Gemma James/ Melody Tabot and Duncan Kincaid / Doug Cullen.  Each team worked together quite well and I enjoyed reading about their partnerships.  And who doesn’t appreciate a map included on the end pages which identifies all the relevant streets and buildings discussed in the book!

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Book Review: Too Old for This by Samantha Downing

Too Old for This by Samantha Downing
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

(3 1/2 stars)  Lottie Jones is a 75-year old “retired serial killer” who leads a “quiet life” in a small town in the Pacific Northwest.  Earlier in her life, she changed her name and moved to escape possible arrest and imprisonment for killing several people.  She only kills when she gets very angry and when opportunity presents itself.  She stopped killing once she moved, but circumstances changed and she realized that her backstory was about to catch up with her. 

This book is humorously narrated in the first person by Lottie and is almost a “how-to” book on murder.  Suspend your disbelief when you read about an elderly woman killing a visitor by hitting her over the head with an umbrella.  It’s definitely got a cozy feel, but it’s more violent than that.  It’s fairly fast-paced but has a lot of different characters to keep track of.  I read this for my mystery book club, and virtually everyone in the group loved it. 

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Book Review: Slough House by Mick Herron (Slow Horses #7)

Slough House by Mick Herron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Slow Horses gang is back at it pretty quickly after the finish of book #6 - Joe Country.  But it turns out that someone is trying to kill the entire Slow Horse squad.  Rodney Ho (Rodster, Rodman, Rodinator, or Dyno-Rod as he refers to himself) is more of a hindrance than a help as usual, but he considers himself the star of the team.  Jackson Lamb is even more offensive, if that's possible, but that is certainly part of the humor.  Peter Judd and Diana Taverner take on large roles in this book, all focusing on the secret funding of "The Park."  The entire cast is back, along with a surprise appearance by a previous Slow Horse.

The upcoming season 6 of Slow Horses on Apple TV + is due to start this month (September 16, 2026) and will be based on books #6 and #7.  I'll be interested to see how they combine the storylines, especially since there is no sign of the huge snowstorm in Wales which figured prominently in book #6.

I love reading the books, but also love to see how they translate to the screen.  The characters, the humor, the drama are all so enjoyable!   I see that they have been renewed for seasons 7 and 8!  And you know that I'll keep reading these wonderful books.  

Read more of my reviews at https://thegoodreader13.blogspot.com/.

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Book Review: The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Artie is a middle-aged high school history teacher.  He and his wife Evie seem to be at odds with one another, and he doesn’t see or talk to his grown son Rob nearly as much as he’d like to.  He wonders why people make small talk but don’t tend to talk about important subjects and speculates frequently about free will.  He realizes that people keep secrets from one another.  He is suffering from depression and isolation, and it’s starting to affect his teaching and his relationships with others.  

This is a very character-driven novel which takes us through a year in Artie’s life – 2024-2025.  The reader gets more than a peak into Artie’s mind and thought processes, interspersing vignettes with his wife, his son, his students, friends and neighbors.  And it shows the impact that Artie had on all of them.  I absolutely loved the relationship that Artie had with his son, and how it developed throughout the book.  This is the first book I’ve read by Elizabeth Strout and it certainly won’t be the last.  Content warnings.

Read more of my reviews at https://thegoodreader13.blogspot.com/.


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Book Review: Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead (Harlem Trilogy #1)

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ray Carney is the owner of an up-and-coming furniture store in Harlem, married to Elizabeth, with their second child on the way.  His in-laws live on Strivers Row in Harlem where he aspires to live, and his father-in-law is a member of the Dumas Club, a club he would like to join.  His life vacillates between running his furniture store and fencing the stolen goods that his cousin and friends bring to him. 

Whitehead’s writing gives the reader a true sense of place – the Harlem neighborhood of 125^th Street in 1959-1964 – by including real places such as the Apollo Theater and Morningside Park, and real events such as the riots.  There is an overall theme of race, class structure, and how the law can be applied.

I’m anxious to read the second in the series, Crook Manifesto, which covers the 1970’s, and the third and final book in the series, Cool Machine, which covers the 1980’s.

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