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20 Books of Summer 2024 Reading Challenge #20booksofsummer24
The 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge by Cathy @ 746books has been a source of excitement for me since the beginning of May 2024. The prospect of choosing and reviewing 10, 15, or 20 books between June 1 and September 1, 2024, has been swirling around in my brain for a month. Have I…
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The Stranger’s Latchkey by R. Austin Freeman (1909)
Dr. Jervis is filling in for Dr. Hanshaw while he is away on vacation and gets embroiled in a kidnapping case of a young boy of six named Freddy. He investigates the crime with Dr. Thorndyke, Dr. Jervis, enjoying his temporary role as a traveling physician, is staying with Dr. Hanshaw’s sister, Mrs. Haldean, at…
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Queens Full: The Wrightsville Heir by Ellery Queen (1960)
Ellery Queen is back in Wrightsville for this novella and it is full of classic detective fiction tropes. The elderly Bella Livingston, a multi-millionare widow writes to her three step-childen that she is going to disinherit them in favor for her live in companion, Amy Upham who has cared for her these last few years…
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Queens Full: E= Murder by Ellery Queen (1960)
Ellery Queen was visiting Bethesda University when physicist Dr. Herbert Agon failed to make his nightly phone call with the President about a top secret and was found stabbed in the back with a stiletto. A cryptic drawing is found bawled in his left hand and is the only clue to the killer’s identity. A…
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Yellow Iris by Agatha Christie (1937)
“Yellow Iris” was first published in issue 559 of The Strand in 1937. This short story features Hercule Poirot rushing to the posh and exclusive Jardin des Cygnes restaurant after getting a frantic phone call from an unknown woman. She whispers over the phone that she thinks there will be a murder tonight at the…
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Spring 2024 TBR #4: Death-Wish Green by Frances Crane (1960)
Katie Spinner disappears off the Golden Gate bridge during a particularly nasty bout of fog. Her Ford Model T- is left behind on the bridge with her keys and handbag. The police believe she jumped, but her family and friends believe she was kidnapped. Pat & Jean Abbott long time friends of Katie Spinner’s aunt,…
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Book Tag- Birthstone Book Covers: May 2024
Happy May readers! This month we’re finding Emerald book covers and I am so excited because Emerald is one of my favorite birthstones- so rich and regal. If you want to participate in the birthstone book cover tag these are the rules: The Books: Emerald is a popular color in the mystery genre, and I…
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Queens Full: The Death of Don Juan by Ellery Queen (1960)
Scutney Bluefield acquires the empty Bijou theatre in Wrightsville with plans to breathe new life into it. He spearheads the production of The Death of Don Juan and enlists washed-up Equity actor Mark Manson for the lead role. However, Manson sustains an injury, prompting a frantic search for a replacement. Enter Foster Benedict, known for…
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The Case of the Seven of Calvary by Anthony Boucher (1937)
This book is published under the title: The Seven of Calvary in the USA and this is the version I read. The Plot: Dr. Ashwin, a professor of Sanskrit, and his student, Martin Lamb, act as a modern-day Holmes and Watson when Dr. Hugo Schaedel, a visiting lecturer from Switzerland, is stabbed through the heart…
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Spoiler Review: Busman’s Honeymoon by Dorothy L. Sayers (1937)
Hello readers! Today, we will be discussing Dorothy L. Sayers’s final Lord Peter Wimsey mystery, Busman’s Honeymoon, which is a play on the phrase “busman’s holiday,” which is used to describe a period of leisure or vacation during which one engages in activities akin to their usual occupation. Its earliest recorded usage dates back to…
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Elephants Can Remember by Agatha Christie (1972)
During a literary luncheon, Ariadne Oliver finds herself approached by Mrs. Burton-Cox, mother of Desmond, who is engaged to Oliver’s goddaughter, Celia Ravenscroft. Mrs. Burton-Cox expresses doubts about the true circumstances surrounding the deaths of Celia’s parents. Over a decade ago, Margaret and General Alistair Ravenscroft, close friends of Oliver, were found dead on their…
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To Be Read | May 2024 TBR: Books With Flowers
“Sweet April showers do spring May flowers”- Thomas Tusser, Poet I am currently on day 6 of 8 of forecasted rain, and I hope Thomas Tusser is correct that all of this rain will lead to an abundance of beautiful flowers. We moved into our house in May a little over 10 years ago and…
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The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene (1930)
The Secret of the Old Clock is the first book in the Nancy Drew series, written by Carolyn Keene (a pseudonym for multiple authors) and originally published in 1930. The novel follows the adventures of Nancy Drew, a teenage detective who is determined to solve the mystery surrounding the will of a wealthy man who…
Golden Age of Detective Fiction 