I asked a cadre of my favorite writers and a few librarian pals to recommend some book gifts for the holidays. As modest as they are, don't forget these remarkable writers themselves and their own books (I've pictured a few here).
Let’s see what’s on offer:
Rhys Bowen: My favorite books recently have been The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones, not exactly a mystery but a novel celbrating food in Chinese culture. Also enjoyed her Lost in Translation, about the missing skull of Pekin Man--fascinating. And I'm just reading Interred with their Bones, by Jennifer Lee Carrell--a mystery/thriller about a Shakespeare manuscript. Obviously I've got a thing about missing documents at the moment! And I've been on a China kick this year and heartily recommend Lyn Hamilton's The Chinese Alchemist.
Suzanne Arruda: I just finished reading BEAU GESTE by P.C.Wren (since I picked up a 1926 copy for a quarter at a library book sale). It was fabulous. I'd recommend anyone read it for some good old French foreign Legion, and fighting to save a lady's honor, and all that historical stuff. Now I'm asking my hubby for a copy of the sequels, BEAU SABREUR and BEAU IDEAL. I'm also a sucker for any other H. Rider Haggard books.
I know these are "old" books, but that makes them Historical historicals in a way.
Librarian Patty Anderson: I'm a library director at a small university in Rapid City, SD. We're a "science/technology" library so recommending mysteries of any kind is unusual. However to friends my current recommendations are:
Chris Grabenstein's Ceepak mysteries (Tilt-A-Whirl / Mad House / Whack-A-Mole) Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire mysteries (A Cold Dish / Death Without Company / Kindness Goes Unpunished)
Kathy Lynn Emerson: Hmm. So many books to choose from!! I'd pick C. S. Harris's WHY MERMAIDS SING, Kasey Michaels's BOWLED OVER, and Charlaine Harris's AN ICE COLD GRAVE. Sorry, only one historical, but they're all mysteries.
Neil Plakcy: Great idea! Here are a couple of books I've loved this year that I think would make great gifts: Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter, by Blaize Clement. Dixie Hemingway is a former police officer in Sarasota, now working as a pet sitter after a traumatic incident. When one of her clients is murdered, Dixie investigates, with the help of her brother, a fire fighter, and his lover, an undercover cop. Beautiful writing, great setting and an intriguing plot.
Second Sight, by Zoe Sharp. The second of the Charlie Fox books to be published in the US, this one finds Charlie and her boyfriend, Sean Meyer, guarding a British woman who's just won the lottery and is in search of her long-lost father in the US. Charlie's a terrific character, and the writing here is crisp and moves the action along briskly.
Lord John and the Private Matter, by Diana Gabaldon. If you like historical mysteries, you'll love this one, a real page-turner set in 1757 in London. In a men's lavatory, Lord John Grey snatches a glimpse of the genitalia of his cousin's fiance-- and realizes that the man has syphilis. While trying to find a way to prove this "private matter," and protect his young cousin, he gets involved in solving the murder of a man from his regiment, a suspected smuggler.
And here are two on my own Christmas list: Murder in the Rue Chartres, by Greg Herren and Sundowner Ubuntu by Anthony Bidulka (right now only available in a Canadian edition; US edition this spring.)
Happy holidays!
Simon Levack: Here are a few that I'd be delighted to receive, with a word or two about why I'd want them:
I. J. Parker, Island of Exiles - the fifth of the Sugawara Akidata mysteries, set in Heian Era Japan (ie the 11th Century) - I find the setting of these books irresistible and admire the way the hero has grown in stature as the series has progressed. The latest one looks more intriguing than ever, with a background (a prison camp) that must be truly bleak.
C. J. Sansom, Sovereign - the great strength of these books, historical mysteries set in the England of Henry VIII, is the central character. Matthew Shardlake is a lawyer and a former crony of Thomas Cromwell, disillusioned by the realities of religious reform and embittered by his condition (he is a hunchback in a time when such people were viewed with fear and suspicion). Shardlake is a truly three-dimensional character, full of flaws and anything but heroic, and if his third outing is as good as the first two then there's a lot to look forward to.
I've not yet got around to reading any of Bernard Cornwell's series about Alfred the Great, but I intend to start with The Last Kingdom before long. Cornwell of course needs no introduction and there are bound to be strong, compelling characters, lots of action and an impeccably researched background.
One old book that I should like is Mary Renault's The Mask of Apollo, about a Greek tragic actor, Nikeratos, at the close of the 5th Century BC. It is the only one of her books set in ancient Greece I have not read, the others include The King Must Die, The Last of the Wine and the Alexander Trilogy, and every one of them is as near perfect as historical fiction can be, written by an author whose craftsmanship and love for her subject shine from every page.
Finally - for a bit of light relief and a change from historicals - Philip Reeve's Starcross, the sequel to last year's Larklight. Reeve is a phenomenon. His Hungry Cities books, beginning with Mortal Engines, gave us an unforgettable, tragicomic tale of a dystopian steampunk future. These latest are probably best described as a Victorian scientific romance for younger readers, but don't let that put you off - Reeve is one of those authors who couldn't write a dull sentence if he tried, and while I may read Starcross in an hour I shall relish every second of it.
Librarian Molly MacRae: Thanks for opportunity to push more books on kids. I’m in the children’s department of the Champaign Public Library in Champaign, Illinois.
I love the Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer. Enola, fourteen, is the much younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft. Springer writes with the flavor and cleverness of Conan Doyle. Enola is a smart, strong, girl protagonist. There are two titles in the series so far: The Case of the Missing Marques and The Case of the Left-Handed Lady. The books are attractive, with good cover art.
My other favorite this year is the Harriet Bean series by Alexander McCall Smith. The books are new in the U.S., though they’ve been out in Britain since the early 90s. Harriet is a resourceful nine-year-old whose absent-minded father is an inventor of useless things. The stories have madcap twists and turns. Titles are: The Five Lost Aunts of Harriet Bean, Harriet Bean and the League of Cheats, and The Cowboy Aunt of Harriet Bean. These books are also attractive, with bright covers and appealing illustrations by Laura Rankin.
(For adults I’d recommend my own novel, Wilder Rumors, the story of a shady museum curator, a small Blue Ridge Mountain town, burglary, rumors, and murder, but that might be a bit too pushy.)
Patricia Wynn: To Darkness and To Death, Julia Spencer-Fleming,Thomas Dunne Books, Hardcover/ 2005 --Anything by this outstanding author is worth reading.
Historicals: No Mortal Reason, Kathy Lynn Emerson, Pemberley Press, Trade paper/ 2007. Third in the Diana Spaulding Mystery Series, set in 1888, and featuring a “girl-reporter” modeled after Nellie Bly. This series is great fun, very well researched escape fiction.
(1)Silver Lies 2005 and (2) Iron Ties 2006, Ann Parker, Silver Rush Mysteries, Poisoned Pen Press. I believe both are out in hardcover and trade paper now. Ann Parker’s books immerse you instantly in the mining days of Leadville, CO. Hard hitting drama with extraordinary texture.
Mark of the Lion: A Jade del Cameron Novel, Suzanne Arruda, NAL, 2006. Set in colonial Kenya. A fascinating look at the British Colonial Period for anyone like me who is keen on Africa and its wildlife.
And thank you all for your enlightening and diverse picks!