The Silent Dead by Tetsuya Honda-Book Review

When a body wrapped in a blue plastic tarp and tied up with twine is discovered near the bushes near a quiet suburban Tokyo neighborhood, Lt. Reiko Himekawa and her squad take the case. The victim was slaughtered brutally---his wounds are bizarre, and no one can figure out the "what" or the "why" of this crime. At age twenty-nine, Reiko Himekawa of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police's Homicide Division is young to have been made lieutenant, particularly because she lacks any kind of political or family connections. Despite barriers created by age, gender, and lack of connections, she is mentally tough, oblivious to danger, and has an impressive ability to solve crimes. Reiko makes a discovery that leads the police to uncover eleven other bodies, all wrapped in the same sort of plastic. Few of the bodies are identifiable, but the ones that are have no connection to each other. The only possible clue is a long shot lead to a website spoken only in whispers on the Internet, something on the dark web known as "Strawberry Night." But while she is hunting the killer, the killer is hunting her... and she may very well have been marked as the next victim.

Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I am a person who is always open and willing to try new things. I am always willing to read about different cultures and different surroundings. So when Titan Book offered Japanese thriller for reviewing, I said YES. Got very excited when I started reading and the excitement kept me to the very last page.

The main character here is Reiko, a young female detective in the Tokio Police Department, probably the youngest in her team. Many of the police officers, mostly men, have a problem when a woman is in charge and do not count to ten before they express their opinion. Reiko is not just an ordinary police officer, she graduated as the best in the class and she is really smart. But being a woman in Japanese culture is not an easy thing at all. She has to face her parents, especially her mother who does everything she can to find her a suitable husband and sees her as a failure in the marriage department. She has to face her past and try to forget an attack that no woman should face ever in her life. A rape is bad enough for the victim herself, no need for the judgment of the society that sees her as damaged.

Book Review: Snowblind (Dark Iceland #2) by Ragnar Jónasson

Siglufjörður: an idyllically quiet fishing village in Northern Iceland, where no one locks their doors – accessible only via a small mountain tunnel. Ari Thór Arason: a rookie policeman on his first posting, far from his girlfriend in Reykjavik – with a past that he’s unable to leave behind. When a young woman is found lying half-naked in the snow, bleeding and unconscious, and a highly esteemed, elderly writer falls to his death in the local theater, Ari is dragged straight into the heart of a community where he can trust no one, and secrets and lies are a way of life. An avalanche and unremitting snowstorms close the mountain pass, and the 24-hour darkness threatens to push Ari over the edge, as curtains begin to twitch, and his investigation becomes increasingly complex, chilling and personal. Past plays tag with the present and the claustrophobic tension mounts, while Ari is thrust ever deeper into his own darkness – blinded by snow, and with a killer on the loose. Taut and terrifying, Snowblind is a startling debut from an extraordinary new talent, taking Nordic Noir to soaring new heights.

After finishing the novel from Gunnar Staalesen, I continue this week with another Nordic crime noir. This time, I dive into Icelandic waters and I am snow-blinded by another great author, Ragnar Jonasson. He is much younger and this is his second novel, but he has done his job well, like an experienced crime storyteller.

Book Review: We Shall Inherit the Wind (Varg Veum #1) by Gunnar Staalesen

1998. Varg Veum sits by the hospital bedside of his long-term girlfriend Karin, whose life-threatening injuries provide a deeply painful reminder of the mistakes he™s made. Investigating the seemingly innocent disappearance of a wind-farm inspector, Varg Veum is thrust into one of the most challenging cases of his career, riddled with conflicts, environmental terrorism, religious fanaticism, unsolved mysteries and dubious business ethics. Then, in one of the most heart-stopping scenes in crime fiction, the first body appears. A chilling, timeless story of love, revenge, and desire, We Shall Inherit the Wind deftly weaves contemporary issues with a stunning plot that will leave you gripped to the final page. This is Staalesen at his most thrilling, thought-provoking best.

Not so long time ago, I watched tv series that I really liked with the main character, Varg Veum. I had no idea that those series were made after book series. I recently bought a book from the Nordic noir section, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the main character was a private investigator named Varg Veum.I am a great fan of Scandinavian crime noir and shame on me, I haven't read anything from Gunnar Staalensen before. This is my first book from this author, but certainly won't be the last.

Blog Tour, Review and GIVEAWAY: Death in Shanghai by M.J.Lee

Blurb: Shanghai, 1928. The body of a blonde is washed up on the Beach of Dead Babies, in the heart of the smog-filled city. Seemingly a suicide, a closer inspection reveals a darker motive: the corpse has been weighed down, it’s lower half mutilated…and the Chinese character for ‘justice’ carved into the chest.

The moment Inspector Danilov lays eyes on the dismembered body, he realises that he has an exceptional case on his hands. And when the first body is followed by another, and another, each displaying a new, bloody message, he has no option but face the truth. He is dealing with the worst kind of criminal; someone determined, twisted…and vengeful.

Someone who must be caught….whatever the cost.

Death in Shanghai is the first novel in M J Lee’s Inspector Danilov series, perfect for fans of Philip Kerr.

                                          Links:  Goodreads  /  Amazon UK

Book Review: Defenceless by Kati Hiekkapelto

Chilling, disturbing, and terrifyingly believable, an extraordinary thriller by one of the most exciting new voices in crime fiction When an old man is found dead on the road—seemingly run over by a Hungarian au pair—police investigator Anna Fekete is certain that there is more to the incident than meets the eye. As she begins to unravel an increasingly complex case, she’s led on a deadly trail where illegal immigration, drugs, and, ultimately, murder threaten not only her beliefs, but her life. Anna’s partner Esko is entrenched in a separate but equally dangerous investigation into the activities of an immigrant gang, where deportation orders and raids cause increasing tension and result in desperate measures by gang members—and the police themselves. Then a bloody knife is found in the snow, and the two cases come together in ways that no one could have predicted. As pressure mounts, it becomes clear that having the law on their side may not be enough for Anna and Esko.

Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Finland. When a Hungarian girl runs over an old man on the road, it turns out that the man has already been dead. Murdered!

Senior Constable Anna Fekete is called for the road accident because of her Hungarian origin. But knowing the Hungarian language isn't the only thing that connects her with this case. Soon the murder becomes her priority case that starts to reveal much more than a dead body on the road.

Sammy arrives in Finland hidden in a truck like many immigrants like him before. He runs away from war in Pakistan and leaves behind him his family. But the dream for the promised land soon becomes nightmare. Sammy becomes drug addict and a criminal. Few robberies here and there, just to get the dose he needs. But murder was never on his mind!

An old lady is missing. A neighbor from the building where the man found on the road lived. Is there a connection?

When two girls find a bloody knife in the woods, no one knows who the blood is from. But very soon, Anna starts to connect the dots.

Anna has to deal with her own skeletons in the closet. She is an immigrant from Serbia, part of Hungarian minority that lives in Vojvodina, northern Serbia. One of her brothers dies during the war in the nineties, and her family leaves for Hungary in order to save the other son. Anna leaves for Finland, but she finds no peace there. No matter how much she tries to mix with the rest, she is always the outsider, she is always the immigrant. At least she is a hard-worker, not like her brother who likes to depend on social care.

This is my first book by this author, but it certainly won't be the last. As a lover of Scandinavian crime noir, I've found this book very thrilling and interesting. What starts like a car accident, ends like totally jaw-dropping planned crime. The plot is fast-paced, creepy and sometimes very emotional. Murder is there, also enough blood, mystery is all over the scene. The author also deals with the issue of the immigrants, all from different countries and all there from different reasons. She gives the perspective from the eyes of the immigrants but also from the eyes of the local Finnish people. The ending of the story left me little bit wandering, some things were left untold, but I suppose that was because a sequel it's on its way. I would love to read a sequel of this book.

My opinion: 4,5 / 5.

You can buy the book HERE and HERE.

About the author

About the publisher

Book Review: Montmartre Mysteries by Jean-Pierre Alaux & Noel Balen

Wine expert Benjamin Cooker travels to the French capital, where his is called to help care for some vineyards in Montmartre, a neighborhood full of memories for him. He stops in on an old friend. Arthur Solacroup left the Foreign Legion to open a wine shop good enough to be in the Cooker Guide. But an attempted murder brings the past back into the present. But which past? The winemaker detective and his assistant Virgile want to know more, and their investigation leads them from the the sands of Djibouti to the vineyards of Côte du Rhône.

*Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *

And the winemaker detective and his assistant are back! This time they travel to Paris, Benjamin to visit an old friend and Virgil to attend a marathon. But the visit to the favorite wine shop in Paris goes far away from expected. Benjamin is witnessing an attempted murder, his friend has been attacked, and possibly killed, if Benjamin hasn't show up. His old friend, a former member of The Foreign Legion, now is helpless in bed in coma.

The winemaker detective has a difficult task in front of him. Who would like to kill a winemaker? Is it just a robbery that turns out wrong or is it something more? Does his past as a member of The Foreign Legion have something to do with it? But nothing, nothing can prepare Benjamin for the truth he discovers, the truth so unexpected that will literally leave him with his jaw dropped.

In this part of The Winemaker Detective Series, we can enter in Benjamin's life when he was young. The visit to Paris brings him old memories of a forgotten love, a woman once close to his heart. But he never regrets his choice, he loves Elizabeth, his wife, from the bottom of his heart. Every other woman in his life is just a distant memory.

Even this time, the story doesn't lack the wine supply. From Cuvee Vieilles Vignes to Chateauneuf-Du-Pape, you can almost smell the aroma and taste the wine in your mouth. The descriptions of the wines are so vivid and colorful, I almost emptied my own wine supply while reading. The author really knows how to distract reader's attention.

What I noticed different from previous Winemaker Detective stories is the pace of the story. While in previous stories it went up and down with a new mystery around the corner, this time it is more steady with less turn-overs. But the end is a real cherry on the top of the cake. It comes so unexpectedly after that steady pace, a real „BAM“ coming out of nowhere! I was going to give up reading, some parts were very slow (according to me), but the end left me with my mouth opened and I must say to the author: „Well done!“. Because the end saved the story, I am rating it with four stars.

My opinion: 4 / 5.

More about the authors

More about the publisher

Book Review: The Potter's Field by Andrea Camilleri

A New York Times bestseller, Winner of the Crime Writers' Association's International Dagger and longlisted for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award Witty and entertaining, the Montalbano novels by Andrea Camilleri-a master of the Italian detective story-have become favorites of mystery fans everywhere. In this latest installment, an unidentified corpse is found near Vigàta, a town known for its soil rich with potter's clay. Meanwhile, a woman reports the disappearance of her husband, a Colombian man with Sicilian origins who turns out to be related to a local mobster. Then Inspector Montalbano remembers the story from the Bible-Judas's betrayal, the act of remorse, and the money for the potter's field, where those of unknown or foreign origin are to be buried-and slowly, through myriad betrayals, finds his way to the solution to the crime.

Andrea Camilleri is one of my favorite mystery writers. His Montalbano series are one of the best in the genre. I have watched every episode of the TV series made according to his novels. Inspector Montalbano is just one of a kind, and one of my favorite detectives. The Potter's Field is the thirteenth in the row.

The police gets a call about a dead body on a private property, a place called the potter's field. It is raining heavily and when the police arrives, the body is gone. But soon after the search begins, it is obvious that the body has been washed away downhill, because of the rain. The police finds no body, but body parts, thirteen precisely.

In the very same time, a woman reports her husband missing. A man who works on a ship and travels a lot. A man connected to Colombia and related with Sicilian mafia. A man madly in love with his wife, a devoted husband who always calls her, no matter where he is. Except the last time.

While working on the case, Montalbano has problems with sleeping and nightmares. He is wandering if all those dreams mean something. His friend and colleague Mimi acts very strange. Is his behavior connected with the case?

As I said previously, Montalbano is one of my favorite detectives and I have seen all the episodes of the TV series. In 2012, Young Montalbano TV series showed up, as a pre-sequel. I watched almost all of them. Good to see the great inspector as a rookie. Andrea Camilleri created a great character with a hell of an attitude. Despite the mystery and twists, he also includes the quotations from the bible and many other classic books. The moment when Montalbano reads Andrea Camilleri's book is just one of a kind.

My opinion: 5 / 5.

Book Review: The Crocodile by Maurizio de Giovanni

This is Naples as you’ve never seen it before. A chaotic, shadowy city full of ominous echoes and dark alleyways where each inhabitant seems too absorbed by his or her own problems to give a damn about anybody else. And that is exactly what makes it possible for a cold, methodical killer to commit his atrocious crimes largely undisturbed, to merge with the crowd as if he were invisible. The newspapers call him “The Crocodile” because, like a crocodile, when he devours his own children, he cries. And like a crocodile he is a perfect killing machine: he waits and watches until his prey is within range, and then he strikes.

I wasn't familiar with Mauricio de Giovanni before, but after reading this book, I am definitely putting this author's books on my shelves. Not because of the one of a kind main character, but because of the stories he tells and the twists to the very end. So, let me tell you something about this book.

When you think of Italy and Sicilia, you think of mafia. Unfortunately, mafia is the first association with every crime and every police act in Italy. Inspector Lojacono is an excellent police detective, until rumor says that he is mafia guy. And his entire world changes. To make the damage as small as possible, the police department moves Lojacono in Napoli, and his wife and daughter in another city. They both don't want to talk to him, they blame him for ruining their lives also.

But in Napoli, it is not safe and sound. A young teenager is shot just in front of his home. A boy who delivers things (read drugs) to students. Soon after his death, a teenager girl is shot, walking home from her music classes. No one sees the connection, except Lojacono, who is clearly ordered to stay away from the case. But when the third teenager's body appears, the authorities in the police station have no choice except to let Lojacono lead the case. Because he sees things that others don't, he notices things that others can't. The lead takes him far away from the three teenagers, long time before they were born. When it all began.

The Crocodile is one great detective story, with lots of police procedurals and many turn-overs.
You can also feel the rhythm of the city, with all of its trattorie (small restaurants) and good Italian food. But you can also feel the fear of the mafia and crime ratio among the ordinary people. And you can not go wrong with a main character that many people mistake for a Chinese. He is one of kind.

My opinion: 4 / 5.

Book Review: Camille by Pierre Lemaitre

Anne Forestier finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time when she blunders into a raid on a jewellers on the Champs-Élysées. Shot three times, beaten almost beyond recognition, she is lucky to survive, but her ordeal has only just begun. Lying helpless in her hospital bed, with her assailant still at large, Anne is in grave danger. Just one thing stands in her favour - a partner who will break all the rules to protect the woman he loves: Commandant Camille Verhœven. For Verhœven it's a case of history repeating. He cannot lose Anne as he lost his wife Irène. But his serious breach of protocol - leading a case in which he is intimately involved - leaves him out on a limb, unable to confide in even his most trusted lieutenants.  And this time he is facing an adversary whose greatest strength appears to be Verhœven's own matchless powers of intuition.

After Alex and Irene, comes the story for Camille himself. All of the stories are about him, about the people around him, but this one particularly. After the loss of Irene, he desperately tries to build himself a new life. He almost died with her and he is far from fine, but life goes on. He even starts a new relationship with Anne. But the destiny has other plans. Anne goes to the shopping center Galerie Monier and stumps on a robbery. The thieves beat her so badly that she is almost dead. Camille can't stand another loss.

It is the second time that the destiny plays games with Camille. He lost Irene, but won't loose Anne. The moment she wakes up in a hospital, she remember hearing few Serbian words. Being a police inspector, he uses his connections to start his own investigation. With an outcome that he might not like it.

The whole plot of the story is in three days. In those three days, we follow Camille on his path to find the people who harmed his girlfriend, but we also get into his emotions for Irene and feel his pain. The whole journey is full of tiniest details of the robbery in the Galerie, seen from multiple points of view. Camille's emotions are described with so many details, and in many occasions we can see Anne 's point of view. Three days full of adrenaline rush and nail-biting moments.

What to say more and not to spoil the book? It's three days we're talking about. Very emotional book, very detailed stories, an ending that literary made my jaw dropped to the floor. A story full of twists and turn-overs, a real page-turner. It is far away from a classic detective story, very one of a kind. Gripping and unpredictable, all I have to say: excellent!

My opinion: 5 / 5.

Book Review: The Three Evangelists by Fred Vargas

The opera singer Sophia Siméonidis wakes up one morning to discover that a tree has appeared overnight in the garden of her Paris house. Intrigued and unnerved, she turns to her neighbours: Vandoosler, an ex-cop, and three impecunious historians, Mathias, Marc and Lucien - the three evangelists. They agree to dig around the tree and see if something has been buried there. They find nothing but soil. A few weeks later, Sophia disappears and her body is found burned to ashes in a car. Who killed the opera singer? Her husband, her ex-lover, her best friend, her niece? They all seem to have a motive. Vandoosler and the three evangelists set out to find the truth.

I was looking for French crime authors for my #InternationalCrime meme, and I stumbled upon Fred Vargas. Winner of International Dagger Award for three times, she (Fred is shortened from Frédérique) is not just a writer, but also historian and archaeologist. I assumed that I would love her books, and I wasn't wrong.

The Three Evangelists is her first book which won International Dagger Award and it is written in 1995, translated in English in 2006. The story starts with an opera singer, Sophia Siméonidis, who wakes up one morning just to notice a big tree in her backyard, a tree that wasn't there the day before. She is a famous person and she considers this as a personal threat from a lunatic fan. The house next door is a home of four extraordinary people. Armand Vandoosler, a former police commissaire, his god-son Marc, Lucien and Matthias. The old Vandoosler names the three young men the three evangelists, Saint-Mark, Saint-Luke and Saint-Matthew. The three evangelists are historians, for different time of history and they are all live in their own world, in the time they study. Sophia asks their help for the tree, they dig it and find nothing. But soon after that, Sophia disappears. Later, her body is found burned in what suppose to be a car accident.

The three young historians with the help of the old former detective are in the search of their neighbour's killers. Who would think that the knowledge of history can help solving a murder?

Saint-Marc, Saint-Luke and Saint-Matthew are so original characters. Each one of them lives in his own world, each one of them is some kind of knight in shining armour. Some people might consider them lunatic, but they are all very intelligent and perfectly stand on their own feet. Their conversations are even more interesting than the plot itself. Their medieval knowledge is perfectly incorporated in not just the plot itself, but also in their every day fights and talks and their own very unique view of the world.

There are other characters in the story, characters that might be involved in the murder. The husband, the neighbour, the niece, they are all suspects. They all seem like nice people, all of them concerned for Sophia's death. But nothing can trick the old commissaire's eye. And with the help of his three house mates, Sophia can finally rest in piece.

It is my very first book of Fred Vargas, but certainly it won't be the last. I am hooked on her crime noir writing and I'll be definitely in the search of her other books. And they are so many.

My opinion: 4,5 / 5.

Book Review: The Collector by Anne-Laure Thiéblemont

*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *

Publication date: August 11-th, 2015.

In the merciless microcosm of Paris art auctions and galleries, some people collect pre-Colombian statuettes, while others, like Marion Spicer, collect trouble. When she inherits a prestigious art collection from the father she never knew, her problems start. In order to come into possession of her inheritance, she must first find three priceless works of art, a quest that draws her into a world where people will kill for a love of beauty.

Edmond Magni is one of the greatest collectors of eighteenth-century art and an owner of a very imposant collection of pre-Columbian art. He is so obsessed with it, those figures are more important to him than actual human beings. But when he dies of an unexpected death, his only relative is a long lost daughter who never met him. The entire collection is her inheritance now, but there are conditions: she must find three missing statues. It might be a hard work for someone else, but not for Marion Spicer. She is also into the world of art, working as a private investigator and looking for stolen art. The collection of her long lost father is not a source of income for her, but a treasure of beautiful pieces of art that have to be preserved for future generations. But the world of art is not a safe place at all. Marion throws herself into the world of thieves, fake auctions, grave diggers, smuggling and making perfect replicas. In order to find the three missing statues, she stamps on something bigger: a murder!

This is my very first book from this author and from the very first page I was captivated by the plot. A very prestigious collector of art dies and his daughter who works also in the world of art inherits the most wanted collection of pre-Columbian statues. There are some very fine pieces of art here and also a detective story. It's like Indiana Jones meeting Lara Croft. The story takes you from the most prestigious museums of Paris to the old tombs in Colombia and Peru.

But what started very enthusiastic and fully-packed with adrenaline, ended somehow diluted. Maybe it was just me, but the ending left me very disappointed. After that kind of rush, I was expecting a real BAM at the end. The end didn't surprise me nor left me with my mouth open. But, that's just my opinion.

I liked Marion as a character. I liked her hunger for justice, her hunger to finish whatever she started. I liked her passion for art, her admire of pieces of history. She sees the things as evidence of existence of the people that lived on this planet before us, not as a source of money.

Overall, The Collector is a beautiful piece of art full of mystery and action. It is an interesting and fast-paced read perfect for the fans of Indiana Jones. And everyone else, of course.

My opinion: 3,5 / 5.

You can pre-order the book on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk . 

Book review: Flambé in Armagnac by Jean-Pierre Alaux & Noël Balen

* ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *

Publication date: August 6, 2015.

In the heart of Gascony, a fire ravages the warehouse of one of Armagnac s top estates, killing the master distiller. Wine expert Benjamin Cooker is called in to estimate the value of the losses. But Cooker and his assistant Virgile want to know more. Did the old alembic explode? Was it really an accident? Why is the estate owner Baron de Castayrac penniless? How legal are his dealings?"

I recently started the new meme „International Crime“, starting with French crime authors this month. I really think that there is no better start for this meme than a book about wine, mystery and a French castle.

I met Benjamin and his assistant Virgile previously in „Mayhem in Margaux“ and joined them solving the mystery of the car accident. This time they are back with another brand of wine and mystery to solve. There has been a fire in a castle where the best wine Armagnac is produced and the master distiller is dead. Benjamin Cooker is called to estimate the losses and find out more about the fire. Was is an accident or was it all about the insurance? Was the death of master distiller an accident or an attempted murder? Benjamin Cooker has to leave his wife alone on New Year and with his assistant Virgile drive on thin ice to the Chateau Blanzac to find out. But the Chateau doesn't reveal its secrets that easy. The winemaker duo has to use the detective skills to solve the mystery behind the sweetness of the Armagnac.

The character that I absolutely adore here is Virgile, Benjamin's assistant. He is smart, young, clumsy, everything. He is very educated about wine, but he is also a great detective himself. With every other mystery his observation skills are more and more expressed. He is also Virgo, like me, and I can see many of my Virgo habits in his character. It is very easy for me to connect with him as a character.

I also love the writing style of the authors. There are many expressions and old sayings that are used in my country and it is easy for me to understand the whole story. I fell in love with the characters and the plot and I felt like almost tasting the Armagnac.

So, wine lovers, and book lovers also, if you love a perfect break in the shadows of your garden or under the sun on the beach, get a glass of the tasteful Armagnac, and enjoy this cozy mystery perfect for relaxation. Even your gray cells will enjoy!

My opinion: 4,5 / 5.

Preorder the book on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.