Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah

 

 Closed Casket (The NEW Hercule Poirot Mystery based on Agatha Christie's classic character) by Sophie Hannah. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, 2016. Adult mystery.

Poirot and Scotland Yard detective Edward Catchpole have been invited to a elegant estate in Ireland by Lady Playford. The wealthy woman is about to announce that she is leaving all she has, not to her adult son and daughter as expected, but to Joseph Scotcher, an employee who apparently is dying of liver disease. Of course, someone must die and Poirot, in a drawing room scene with everyone but the dead person present, solves the crime and ties up all the loose ends after leading readers on a trail of clues.

Hannah was successful with her first Poirot novel, The Monogram Murders. The family of Agatha Christie is thanked with the dedication and endnotes so apparently Hannah is the heir apparent to continuing the characters into the future. The novel is beautifully put together with wallpaperish dividing pages and even a great map of the Lillieoak mansion. Her details about Poirot are spot on.

The Thursday Murder Club book series by Richard Osman

 

These three mysteries by Richard Osman involve the residents of an upscale retirement community. Elizabeth, a former spy, is friends with Joyce who writes diary entries. Ron and Ibrahim round out their Thursday Murder Club to discuss cold cases. The humor can't be beat and the plotting is fast and moves the stories along briskly. 

The foursome are on the trail of more murder and this time diamonds are involved. Can they solve the crimes? Again, the laughs are included in this geriatric romp. Elizabeth's chess playing husband, Stephen, is increasingly forgetting things and this sweet romance adds a bittersweet touch. 

  Former associates of Elizabeth's add zingers to this third book in the series. Elizabeth is told she must kill or be killed. Viktor of the Russian Cold War era really has a crush on her...when he is not trying to kill anyone. Ron has found Pauline, a makeup artist for the local tv news, and their visit to a massage parlor is worth the whole book! 

Family Patterns by Kristin Eckhardt

 

Family Patterns by Kristin Eckhardt. Patchwork Mysteries series. Guideposts, 2010.

Set in Maple Hill, Massachusetts, this is the tale of Sarah Hart, a friendly retirement aged woman who restores vintage quilts. When her son and his family move into Sarah's grandparents' old house in town, her twin granddaughters find a formerly hidden passageway and a baby quilt belonging to Sarah's own father. The family mystery has long been that the woman who made this quilt, Molly Drayton, disappeared one night in 1920. Sarah begins to search for clues about what might really have happened to her grandmother. With the help of the local librarian, neighbors, the quilt store owner, and others, the plot thickens into a quite satisfying mystery. The Christian beliefs are successfully woven into the story and should not be offensive to anyone. 

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

 

  Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting: A Novel by Clare Pooley. Pamela Dorman Books, Viking, 2022. Adult fiction. 

On the commuter train between Hampton Court and London's Waterloo Station, Iona Iverson and her little dog Lulu are unique. The others who board daily include Martha, a teenager who is bullied at school; Piers, a snazzy dresser with his briefcase; and Sanjay, a nurse, who has a secret crush on the beautiful Emmie. These characters are brought together by chance and become intertwined thanks to the spirited Iona who has written an advice column for years, but now finds that career endangered. The characters' friends and families all become secondary characters, too. Readers may find themselves, like the characters, advising themselves to "Be more like Iona!" and to reach out to others in their lives. 

The book is entertaining and well written. It is easy to keep the names straight. The author definitely has a sense of humor and deftly paces the story to a satisfying end. Watch for other titles like The Authenticity Project by this author.

The Old Place: A Novel by Bobby Finger

 

 The Old Place: A Novel by Bobby Finger. G.P.Putnam's Sons, 2022. Adult fiction.

A complicated story of friendship and family ties, this debut novel tells of Mary Alice Roth's teaching career ending, her sister Katherine returning home after years of estrangement, and her years' long friendship with neighbor Ellie. The small community of Billington, Texas is full of secrets, lies, and tragic losses. Ultimately, this is a tale of change, opening hearts to accept others, and forgiving even yourself.

Gilded Mountain: A Novel by Kate Manning

 

 Gilded Mountain: A Novel by Kate Manning. 447 pages. Scribner, 2022. Historical fiction.

At the turn of the last century, Sylvie Pelletier and her family arrive in Moonstone, Colorado. Her father came before them to work in the deep mines that harvest pure marble. Sylvie is spunky, smart, and graduates in Quarrytown, a small town down the mountain. She get a summer job with the wealthy Padgett family as a social secretary. Her exposure to luxury and its contrast with her life of poverty is drastic. Sylvie thinks she is in love with the bookish young Jasper Padgett, but enjoys the attention of George Lonahan, a union organizer at the mine. She takes a job as a printer's helper at the local newspaper and admires the single single woman owner's independence. In 1908, a strike at the mine changes everyone's lives. Sylvie persevers hopefully throughout the novel.  She learns about slavery from the formerly enslaved cook at Elkhorne Manor and about mine conditions and union organizing from Mother Jones herself.

Based on true accounts of early Colorado history, the novel is eye opening as it recounts incidences of early settlers, discrimination, and civil rights struggles. 

Rules of Civility: A Novel by Amor Towles

 

Rules of Civility: A Novel  by Amor Towles. Penguin Books, 2011. Historical fiction.

The book begins with a flashback to 1937 and a young Katey Kontent and her flashy roommate, Eve Ross. Tinker Grey wows them with his grace, rich friends, and access to a world that Katey has never seen. By day, she types in the Quiggin and Hale secretarial pool; by night she explores the clubs of New York City. Of course, Mr. Parish recognizes her talents and Katey switches jobs. She makes friends with Wallace Wolcott and despairs at his talk of the war in Spain.

This is a coming of age story. By 1941, Eve is long gone. Tinker has revealed his early life. And, Katey ultimately makes a life with Val by the 1960's. Near the end, on page 323, the author put in two paragraphs that, for me, sum up the whole book: Life is less a rambling journey than filled with a few brief options. The decisions we make influence our lives forever. Just ask Katey Kontent.

While Towles has written several other novels, too, this early work is a classic. See A Man  in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway for more of his work.