Maw Books » mystery

Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman (Skeleton Creek Series)

Natasha Maw — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:05:45 +0000

Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman is the follow up book to Skeleton Creek. I love this series because of it’s creativity . If you are not familiar with Skeleton Creek (which you can check out my review and details here), it’s a book which is told in two different formats. One is the diary of Ryan and the second is the online videos of his friend Sarah. So basically, after about every 10-20 pages, you’ll set the book down and visit sarahfincher.com. There is a password provided in the book which will give you access to the videos. The videos are vital to the story, in other words, no skipping! I think it’s a great way to get reluctant readers excited and have a “pay off” when finishing reading a block of text. And it’s a great way to successfully combine two types of media.

Skeleton Creek finished with a huge cliffhanger. Argh! I couldn’t wait for the next book. I had no idea that I would be receiving a copy of Ghost in the Machine, so I know that I let out an audible squeal when I opened a mystery package one day and it was this book! Seriously, so excited to read this one.

In Ghost in the Machine, Ryan and Sarah are still forbidden to see each other and trying to solve the mystery at the gold dredge, which is haunted by the ghost of Old Joe Bush. Time is running out because the town has decided it’s become so dangerous that they are going to burn it down. But things get complicated when Ryan and Sarah uncover a secret society called The Crossbones which keeps the secrets of the dredge and Ryan’s father is in the middle of it all.

This is a great follow-up to Skeleton Creek. Kids will enjoy the mystery and love getting spooked with the videos. I remember that I jumped in one video and for another I had to keep pausing it because it was just plain scary. Such fun! But nothing to lose sleep over at night – unless maybe you don’t finish the book before you go to sleep which is virtually impossible because you’ll want to read it in one sitting.

The videos do take some time to load so I recommend skipping ahead to the next video as soon as you finish one so it’s already loaded by the time you get to it. Be warned though, it’s hard to not have your eyes glaze over potentially spoiling text when skipping ahead. Although everybody is in need of a few acting lessons, the videos are great. I was hoping for a third book but everything wrapped up pretty tightly.

Which does remind me. Ryan writes in his journal like ALL the time. So I was surprised to see at the end of the book he doesn’t write for four days. His last entry reads like an epilogue. It wasn’t in his character to not write during those four days where everything gets wrapped up. And Sarah also writes in the journal at the end too. I’d much rather her stick to the videos. So the ending felt a little bit unbelievable to me because they acted out of character. But all in all nothing to spoil my enjoyment of the book.

My biggest disappointment is that there is not another book in the series. I’m not ready for it to be over, I’d love to have more. And the mystery/ghost story is the PERFECT genre for this concept. October is also a great time to read this book especially together as a family. I can see everybody gathered around the computer watching the videos and somebody else poking somebody right in the middle of a cliffhanger. I can see screams. Oh, I love it.

Great book, great fun! We are reading mysteries this month for my Children’s Literature Book Club. I can’t wait to meet next week to see what everybody thought about this one.

So are you up for it?

Links of interest: Maw Books review of Skeleton Creek (including book trailer to give you an idea of video content), more book blogger reviews, Patrick Carman’s website, extensive alternate reality Skeleton Creek game.
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction with video elements, approx ages 9-12
Publisher: Scholastic. October 1, 2009
Hardcover, 192 pages. ISBN 054507570X
Ghost in the Machine is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

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Wife of the Gods, An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey

Natasha Maw — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:45:04 +0000

I was drawn to Wife of the Gods, An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey for the cover alone. I just love how African it feels.

Wife of the Gods is a whodunit murder mystery and in full honesty if the book wasn’t set in Africa without its many African themes and traditions I doubt I would have even given the book a second glance. But what sets this book apart is its Ghanan African setting as well as its memorable characters.

In a small village of Ketanu, Gladys, a young medical student, is murdered in the forest and Detective Darko Dawson is brought in from the large city (obviously much to the annoyance of the local police) to oversee the investigation. For Darko, the village of Ketanu brings back vivid memories. He often visited his aunt with his mother twenty-five years earlier as a boy. But that all changed when his mother went for a visit and never returned. The mystery of her disappearance was never solved. Darko intends to not only investigate the murder to which he has been assigned but also to seek out new clues into his mother’s disappearance.

It’s not easy though. Darko is a complex character who leaves behind a loving wife and a young son who needs a heart operation. He also has an anger management problem, although sympathetically it comes out when he sees those less fortunate being abused. And he can’t help but use his police power to procure marijuana.

Darko clashes with the local culture which is still held by the strong belief in witchcraft and age-old traditions, such as virgin girls being offered up to fetish priests as trokosi, or Wives of the Gods. His investigation is slowed by such beliefs and even the local police are apprehensive to question certain individuals in fear of angering the Gods.

Darko uncovers a myriad of suspects, characters who are all memorable in their own right: Gladys herself, who was an AIDS worker and gave many a motive for her death; Samuel, a young man with a simple crush; Timothy who worked with Gladys in AIDS education; Isaac Kutu, the local herbalist and healer; Togbe Adzima, the fetish priest and his several wives; Elizabeth, Gladys’s aunt and believed by many to be a witch; and even his own Auntie Osewa who has a background which she’d rather keep secret.

There was one thing that hindered my full enjoyment of the novel and that was that I couldn’t recall characters after they were previously introduced. There were a couple of times that I thought I was reading about a new character and then had to stop and see if I already knew who they were, which I realized I did. Rechecking previous passages of the book always takes me out of the story a bit. Fault of the reader and not the author? Maybe? Fault of the author and not the reader? Maybe? To tell you the truth, I’m not really sure.

Wife of the Gods is recommended for those who like a good mystery and intriguing characters. Not only is there a mysterious murder to solve but several ideas to think upon including that of new culture vs. new, African culture, traditional and advanced medicine, family relations, and more. And man, Quartey has convinced me that I’d love to visit Ghana for the food alone. So many wonderful descriptions of the food!

If there are to be more books about Inspector Darko Dawson then I will be sure to check them out. A series worth following.

Book trailer for Wife of the Gods:

When you read mysteries how often do you guess who the murderer is correctly? I don’t often read whodunit genre books but I must admit that Kwei Quartey kept me on my toes although I rightly suspected the murderer (but don’t until about 3/4 of the way through the book).

Links of interest: TLC Book Tour stops, Wife of the Gods website, Wife of the Gods excerpt, reading group discussion questions, more book bloggers book reviews, and a thoughtful interview with Kwei Quartey at Jen’s Book Thoughts.
Genre: Literary Fiction, Mystery
Publisher: Random House. July 14, 2009
Hardcover, 336 pages. ISBN: 1400067596
Wife of the Gods is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

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The Secret Keeper by Paul Harris

Natasha Maw — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:00:49 +0000

The Secret Keeper by Paul Harris is a different type of reading for me than what I am normally used to. While it takes place in Africa (and I’m all over books sets in Africa), it’s more of a mystery thriller, a genre that I usually avoid. I’m not really sure why, I don’t think I’ve ever had any bad experiences with the genre, in fact I don’t think it’s a genre that I’ve even really tried. Maybe to many different interests elsewhere? My first foray into the genre has me wondering if I should try a couple more books to see if it’s something that I should explore more.

In The Secret Keeper, Danny Kellerman, a British journalist, four years earlier landed the story of his lifetime when sent to Sierra Leone as a war correspondent to cover the political upheaval and civil war taking place there. Being on the front lines had always been his dream job, but what he didn’t expect was to fall in love with Maria, an American woman who ran a orphanage for ex-child soldiers. They have a brief but passionate relationship and when the crisis elevates he has no choice but to board a plane and go back home leaving Maria behind.

Four years later, Danny is living back in London with his girlfriend and is at odds with his father. Danny receives a letter from Maria which pleads for him to return to Sierra Leone because she’s in trouble and needs his help. But the letter didn’t arrive in time, and Danny learns that Maria was murdered just days earlier in a roadside robbery. Danny can’t shake the feeling that there isn’t something right and that there had to be more motive surrounding her death than just a “roadside robbery.”

Against his family and his girlfriend’s wishes, he returns to Sierra Leone to find answers. While there is a new type of peace in Sierra Leone, it’s not the same country that he left. Former rebel leaders now hold high offices in government and secrecy and corruption seem rampant. And asking to many questions about Maria gets Danny further into trouble and he soons finds himself in dangerous and life threatening situations. As he uncovers more of the mystery surrounding Maria’s death, he finds that she might not be the woman that he thought she was.

What I liked about this book was knowing that the author Paul Harris is a journalist turned novelist and that he spent time as a war correspondent in Africa covering the conflict in Sierra Leone. I found that completely fascinating and wondered how much of his experience was pulled into the novel. Thank goodness, I was able to ask Paul directly and you’ll be able to see some of his thoughts in my author interview which I’ll feature tomorrow. I will be the first to admit that I’m really ignorant on the political climate of Sierra Leone and I appreciate being introduced to new places and new people through fiction.

The Secret Keeper was fast paced with lots of twists and turns that had me unable to guess how the book would end. I liked the multiple story lines, one told in 2004 as Danny researches Maria’s death and the second in 2000 with Danny’s first trip to Sierra Leone and his falling in love with her. I enjoyed seeing how the two stories came together and revealed their relationship together as he was uncovering her death.

What I didn’t like about the book? Long time readers of my blog can probably guess that I am not a fan of lots of foul language. I can stand some language but when I feel like I’m getting bogged down with it than I get very distracted. At one point, I almost wish I had kept track of the number of times the “F-word” was used. When the characters get into a rollicking conversation, it could be as many as 5-6 a page. Of course, it’s not every page, but it’s just enough to make me a little hesitant to recommend it to those who like cleaner reads. On a good note, the sex scenes were very tastefully done. The “leave it to my imagination” kind.

I don’t think The Secret Keeper will make my top ten reads of the year, but overall, I liked it. It had a great storyline, believable characters, and set against a volatile background of war, greed, murder, and deceit, it makes for an intriguing read. I can also see it as a great movie. Plus, you know me and my Africa war books. I’m always up for anything that covers those type of issues. Just beware the language.

The Secret Keeper will be on tour the rest of May and into June with TLC Book Tours, so do check out what other bloggers are saying. As for me, I’m really curious to see what everybody else thinks. But that’s not all folks! Come back tomorrow for an interview with Paul Harris. I have to admit that this was one of my most intimidating interviews I’ve ever conducted. What do you ask a man who has risked his life covering war stories in Africa? You’ll find out. And as if that’s not enough, I got my hands on a second copy of The Secret Keeper, so I’ll be doing a giveaway tomorrow as well!

Do you have any other recommendations for books set in Sierra Leone? This is a topic that I’d love to read more about.

Links of interest: The Secret Keeper website. Blog stops with TLC Book Tours.
Genre: Mystery/thriller.
Publisher: Dutton Adult. April 2nd, 2009
Hardcover, 336 pages. ISBN: 0525951024
The Secret Keeper is available from your independent bookstore, Powell’s, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.
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Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller

Natasha Maw — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 12:00:31 +0000

Want an adventure? Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller will give you just that!

Life will never be the same for Ananka Fishbein after she ventures into an enormous sinkhole near her New York City apartment. Climbing down a filthy rope ladder deeper and deeper into the ground to find a mysterious underground room, Ananka knows she has stumbled upon a big scret, but she has no idea exactly how big.

Not only does she discover the long-forgotten Shadow City beneath Manhattan’s bustling streets, she meets the mysterious Kiki Strike, a black-clad, Vespa riding, cafe-au-lait drinking girl who seems to appear and vanish like magic.

A million rats, delinquent Girl scouts out for revenge, and a secret city below the streets of Manhattan combine in this remarkable novel about a darker side of New York City you have only just begun to know about . . .

What fun! I really enjoyed Kiki Strike if not for it’s complete lack of believability. My one and only irk with Kiki Strike was the fact that five 12 year olds have no parental supervision, roam the streets of New York City, hail cabs, order lattes at cafe’s, have an endless cash flow, and have the know it all brains to plan all sorts of escapades and able to get themselves out of anything. Oh, and they don’t bat an eye when they meet skeleton upon skeleton underneath the streets of New York City. I would be a little weirded it out. But really, these things don’t matter much. I don’t even know why I bring it up.

If you like solving mysteries, enjoy adventure, and tons of girl power then I’d suggest Kiki Strike. It’s a perfect mother daughter book club book or read-a-loud. I’m looking forward to reading its sequel Kiki Strike: The Empress’s Tomb.

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The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

Natasha Maw — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 07:01:04 +0000

The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency is my first Alexander McCall Smith book. In this book, Precious Ramotswe, is Botswana’s first lady detective who is hired to track down missing husbands, catch con men, track delinquent girls, and help solve the mystery of a missing boy. I enjoyed this book. Precious was witty, smart, and a very likable character. I enjoyed the “installments” as she solved each little mystery. This is the first book in the series and I plan on reading the rest of the titles which are (mainly for my benefit): Tears of the Giraffe, Morality for Beautiful Girls, The Kalahari Typing School for Men, The Full Cupboard of Life, In the Company of Cheerful Ladies, Blue Shoes and Happiness, The Good Husband of Zebra Drive, and The Miracle at Speedy Motors. Other than that not too much to say. It was a fun read.

Visit Alexander McCall Smith’s website for more about the author and his books.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Natasha Maw — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 03:04:42 +0000

I just finished reading The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. At first, it took me quite a while to get into this book. I got about a fourth of the way through and than it sat there, forever (well, maybe just a few weeks). I just didn’t have the motivation to pull through. Once I got over my hump, I sailed right through it and wasn’t able to put it down.

I was intrigued with the mystery. The Thirteenth Tale is Setterfield’s first novel, which in my opinion, is quite the feat. It felt as though Setterfield herself could be Miss Winter, the prolific author in the story. I won’t give up the ending, but I was quite pleased to realize the major twist in the end a few pages before it happened. I would definitely recommend this book to those who would like to rediscover the art of storytelling.

This book also renewed my interest in rereading many classics, as the story featured many “stories within the story.” Now added to my to be read pile for 2008 are Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, and Emma by Jane Austen

Book Description
When Margaret Lea opened the door to the past, what she confronted was her destiny.

All children mythologize their birth…So begins the prologue of reclusive author Vida Winter’s collection of stories, which are as famous for the mystery of the missing thirteenth tale as they are for the delight and enchantment of the twelve that do exist.

The enigmatic Winter has spent six decades creating various outlandish life histories for herself — all of them inventions that have brought her fame and fortune but have kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she at last wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. She summons biographer Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth, hidden by those who loved her most, remains an ever-present pain. Struck by a curious parallel between Miss Winter’s story and her own, Margaret takes on the commission.

As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire.

Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida’s storytelling but remains suspicious of the author’s sincerity. She demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves.

The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.

Reviews (from Bookmarks Magazine)
San Diego Union-Tribune 4.5 of 5 Stars
“It has elements that recall the classics: the extraordinary governess; the mad mistress; the adoration of siblings; a well-meaning doctor; interfering townsfolk; unwanted pregnancies; elopements; disappearances and returns; orphan children and mistaken identities; tragedy and evil and suspense. … Like a childhood favorite, it is timeless, charming, pure pleasure to read.” Julie Brickman

Philadelphia Inquirer 4 of 5 Stars
“Fictional narrators tend to be ghostly figures, and Margaret is ghostlier than most, but that may be because Vida Winter remains so incandescently alive, even though she is old and her life is drawing to its close. … Those who buy and read this complex, compelling and, in the end, deeply moving novel are unlikely to feel they’ve been shortchanged.” Frank Wilson

Rocky Mountain News 4 of 5 Stars
“This is a book-lover’s novel, with rich characters, fascinating plot twists and plenty of secluded moments infused with the soothing smell of cracking leather and old paper. … The Thirteenth Tale is a smart, thoughtful look at truth and deception: While uncovering personal truth is often unsavory, it can ultimately help draw us closer to the essence of who we really are.” Jennie A. Camp

Boston Globe 3.5 of 5 Stars
“This debut novel gets a lot of that rich bookishness right, heavy on the gothic detail and romantic suspense. … A few more hints, a little more basis for the ending, wouldn’t have spoiled this mystery.” Clea Simon

Washington Post 3 of 5 Stars
“Setterfield’s erudite novel amounts to a sort of brainteaser, a literary riddle to occupy the mind rather than a new vision to inform it. … And yet, for all its successes—and perhaps because of them—on the whole the book feels unadventurous, content to rehash literary formulas rather than reimagine them.” Margaux Wexberg Sanchez

Los Angeles Times 1.5 of 5 Stars
“The Thirteenth Tale explicitly sets out to capitalize on our longing for a good old-fashioned read but fails to deliver on precisely that. … Although [it] is nothing like either of the Brontës’ masterworks (despite being set in Yorkshire), it’s odd that the one Setterfield keeps invoking is not Wuthering Heights, which at least also deals with fierce, quasi-incestuous passions, but Jane Eyre, with which her book has even less in common.” Merle Rubin

Reading Group Guide (from www.thethirteenthtale.com)
Watch out! Reading the following guide will allude to key plot details. Proceed with caution!

Compare and contrast Margaret, Miss Winter, and Aurelius — the three “ghosts” of the novel who are also each haunted by their pasts.

It is a classic writer’s axiom that a symbol must appear at least three times in a story so that the reader knows that you meant it as a symbol. In The Thirteenth Tale, the novel Jane Eyre appears several times. Discuss the appearances and allusions to Jane Eyre and how this novel echoes that one.

The story shifts significantly after the death of Mrs. Dunne and John Digence. Adeline steps forward as intelligent, well-spoken, and confident — the “girl in the mists” emerges. Did you believe this miraculous transformation? If not, what did you suspect was really going on?

Dr. Clifton tells Margaret that she is “suffering from an ailment that afflicts ladies of romantic imagination” when he learns that she is an avid reader of novels such as Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, and Sense and Sensibility. What do you think he means by drawing such a parallel?

What other parallels exist between The Thirteenth Tale and classic 19th century literature?

When did you first suspect Miss Winter’s true identity? Whether you knew or not, looking back, what clues did she give to Margaret (and what clues did the author give to you)?

Margaret tells Aurelius that her mother preferred telling “weightless” stories in place of heavy ones, and that sometimes it’s better “not to know.” Do you agree or disagree?

The title of this novel is taken from the title of Miss Winter’s first book, Thirteen Tales of Change and Desperation, a collection of twelve stories with a mysterious thirteenth left out at the last minute before publication. How is this symbolic of the novel? What is the thirteenth tale?

When do you think The Thirteenth Tale takes place? The narrator gives some hints, but never tells the exact date. Which aspects of the book gave you a sense of time, and which seemed timeless? Did the question of time affect your experience with the novel?

Links of interest: More book blogger reviews.
Genre: Fiction, Gothic Mystery
Publisher: Atria. September 12, 2006.
Hardcover, 416 pages. ISBN 0743298020
Source copy: Library
The Thirteenth Tale is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.