Posted Monday, 9 February, 2015 by jorielov Charles Todd, HarperCollins Publishers, Haunting Shadows, Inspector Ian Rutledge series, William Morrow 1 Comment
Acquired Book By: I was selected to be a tour stop on the “Hunting Shadows” virtual book tour through TLC Book Tours. I received a complimentary copy of the book direct from the publisher William Morrow, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
I borrowed the first book in this series from my local library’s ILL (inter-library loan) services for my own edification and was not obligated to post my reflections and/or review on the story’s behalf. I wanted to understand a bit of the back-story on the principle character of Inspector Ian Rutledge prior to reading the 16th book in the series. I originally perceived the idea to read this book and the 15th book in the series prior to my tour stop, however, the hours disappeared before I could. I appreciate the chance to get to know new mystery and suspense authors I haven’t yet stumbled across myself.
Hunting Shadows
by Charles Todd
Source: Publisher via TLC Book Tours
In the latest mystery from New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd, Inspector Ian Rutledge is summoned to the quiet, isolated Fen country to solve a series of seemingly unconnected murders before the killer strikes again
August 1920. A society wedding at Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire becomes a crime scene when a guest is shot just as the bride arrives. Two weeks later, after a fruitless search for clues, the local police are forced to call in Scotland Yard. But not before there is another shooting in a village close by. This second murder has a witness; the only problem is that her description of the killer is so horrific it’s unbelievable. Badgered by the police, she quickly recants her story.
Despite his experience, Inspector Ian Rutledge can find no connection between the two deaths. One victim was an Army officer, the other a solicitor standing for Parliament; their paths have never crossed. What links these two murders? Is it something from the past? Or is it only in the mind of a clever killer?
Then the case reminds Rutledge of a legendary assassin whispered about during the war. His own dark memories come back to haunt him as he hunts for the missing connection—and yet, when he finds it, it isn’t as simple as he’d expected. He must put his trust in the devil in order to find the elusive and shocking answer.
Places to find the book:
Borrow from a Public Library
Add to LibraryThing
Also by this author: An Unwilling Accomplice, A Duty to the Dead
Published by William Morrow
on 21st January, 2014
Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
Published By: William Morrow (@WmMorrowBks),
an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers (@HarperCollins)
Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook
Converse via: #HuntingShadows, #InspectorIanRutledge
About Charles Todd
Charles Todd is the author of the Bess Crawford mysteries, the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother and son writing team, they live in Delaware and North Carolina, respectively.
Website | Facebook
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2015 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge
Posted Monday, 9 February, 2015 by jorielov in 20th Century, Blog Tour Host, Blogs I Regularly Read, British Literature, Compassion & Acceptance of Differences, Crime Fiction, England, Equality In Literature, Good vs. Evil, Grief & Anguish of Guilt, Hard-Boiled Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical Thriller Suspense, Mental Health, Mental Illness, Military Fiction, PTSD, Readerly Musings, Realistic Fiction, Suspense, the Roaring Twenties, The World Wars, TLC Book Tours
Posted Wednesday, 7 January, 2015 by jorielov Laura Joh Rowland, MacMillian Publishers, Minotaur Books, Sano Ichiro Mysteries, St. Martin's Publishing Group, The Iris Fan 0 Comments
It isn’t often when I have the chance to *catch a series* whilst the breadth of the series has been written, released, and on the fringes of bowing out of the public eye! A few of the series I am attempting to read further inside during 2015 dance around this same fact, as I haven’t been able to read the books as quickly as they have been produced! However, it was such an honour to host Ms. Rowland on the curtain call for her series set in 17th Century Japan! There were moments of the story wherein I found myself a bit unsettled but overall, I felt a growing curiosity in seeking out more information surrounding Reiko and Sano — how their lives would continue to knit together and what might befall them in the end!
I had no idea as I was reading the stories I had selected from the Sano Ichiro series, that within The Concubine’s Tattoo would await the fuller back-story on how Reiko and Sano came together! I never would have guessed Rowland might have considered giving Reiko a lesser role of importance in the series — as I must confess, I appreciated the change of broadening her appeal and giving her such a strong presence within the interior structures of where the stories within the series take the reader! To me, Reiko was quite the asset to have alongside Sano!
As I mused about what I wanted to focus my conversation with Ms. Rowland upon, most of my emerging questions were fuelled by wanting to understand her journey with the series, and how the series evolved from Book 1 to Book 18; there were twenty years between the two bookends, and for me, it provided me with an unending muse to draw out the questions I wanted to broach of her! I hope as you read this conversation, you will not only be inspired by her answers, but perhaps, will feel inspired to tackle reading a series of this length and/or of attempting to write an ongoing series if your a writer! Read More
Posted Wednesday, 7 January, 2015 by jorielov in 17th Century, Blog Tour Host, Crime Fiction, Family Drama, Family Life, Ghost Story, Good vs. Evil, Hard-Boiled Mystery, Haunting & Ethereal, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Historical Mystery, Historical Thriller Suspense, Japan, Japanese Fiction, Japanese History, Library Love, Local Libraries | Research Libraries, Martial Art History, Reader Submitted Author Interview, Uncategorized
Posted Tuesday, 6 January, 2015 by jorielov Laura Joh Rowland, MacMillian Publishers, Minotaur Books, Sano Ichiro Mysteries, St. Martin's Publishing Group, The Iris Fan 3 Comments
Acquired Book By:
I was selected to be a tour stop on the “The Iris Fan” virtual book tour through Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. I requested and borrowed the first novel (“Shinju”) as well as the 16th (“The Incense Game”) and the 17th (“The Shogun’s Daughter”) in the series to better understand the flow of continuity and the origins of the Sano Ichiro mysteries series of which I borrowed via my local library and their ILL services.
I read portions of these three novels back to back for the blog tour and was not obligated to post a review for them. I received a complimentary ARC copy of “The Iris Fan” direct from the publisher Minotaur Books, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Interested in reading:
Due to my intense love of the Shinobi mysteries by Susan Spann, of which I previously blogged about during the Blade of the Samurai blog tour via TLC Book Tours I was motivated to sign myself up for this tour! I was not entirely sure if the context of this series would be similar to the former, but I had hoped to become wholly enthused by a new author’s interpretation of a past era of Japan, whilst being able to soak inside a new version of samurai history and the variants of where an author could take the central theme of their narrative arc! Read More
Posted Tuesday, 6 January, 2015 by jorielov in 17th Century, ARC | Galley Copy, Blog Tour Host, Content Note, Crime Fiction, Excessive Violence in Literature, Family Drama, Family Life, Fly in the Ointment, Ghost Story, Good vs. Evil, Hard-Boiled Mystery, Haunting & Ethereal, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Historical Mystery, Historical Thriller Suspense, Japan, Japanese Fiction, Japanese History, Library Love, Local Libraries | Research Libraries, Martial Art History, Uncategorized
Posted Thursday, 11 December, 2014 by jorielov Blood for Blood, Die I Will Not, John Chase mysteries, Poisoned Pen Press, S.K. Rizzolo, The Rose in the Wheel 0 Comments
On why I am showcasing a Book Spotlight in lieu of the book review:
Originally I was going to contribute a book review for this blog tour, however, I had several personal circumstances arise since the time I received the book(s) for the tour and my re-scheduled tour date. As I had previously expressed on my reviews for Death Comes to London & Death Comes to the Village I was taken ill last week and it took a long while for me to catch up on both my energies and my sleep; yet there were other things that had occurred as well, which is why I continued to lose hours to read the books I had in queue. I was fighting the clock to become current and losing ground on the hours I had left to spare in order to resume where I had left off — therefore, as I had the kind blessing of being able to receive all three of the John Chase mysteries: The Rose in the Wheel, Blood for Blood, and Die I Will Not I will be tweeting my reading adventures within the novels whilst making amends by posting my reviews after the blog tour has concluded. All three reviews will be on Jorie Loves A Story in December, as they were always meant to be showcased. I do regret I couldn’t contribute more to the blog tour, as I had planned to interview the author as well; which I had to cancel.
What initially drew my eye into wanting to participate on this blog tour is the fact these are mysteries set within the era of the Regency; one of my most highly read periods of British life and history! As I had previously disclosed on my Kurland St. Mary mysteries posts, I have the tendency to overlook reading about the Regency outside the world of Romance — so imagine my delight in finding not one, but two new mystery series!? This one is quite different from the Kurland St. Mary mysteries — the tone is set differently and the series has a uniquely different pace to it. I love curling inside mysteries of suspense where you never quite know what you will find inside whilst getting to know who the investigators are and how the writer has written the puzzle of the crime!
Let me introduce you to the novels I am in the process of reading and perhaps I shall tempt you to read them as well? I am most curious if there are other Regency Romance readers who are finding themselves happily entrenched in the Mystery / Suspense genre?
Book Synopsis:
This well imagined, carefully detailed, and cleverly plotted debut draws on actual historical events of 1811 London.
Regency London knows Constance Tyrone as the conspicuously celibate founder of the St. Catherine Society, dedicated to helping poor women. One wet November evening a carriage mows down Constance outside her office. Curiously, while her corpse’s one foot is bare, the other is shod in a clean satin slipper despite the muddy road. Why was a gentlewoman abroad in the night? And if she died under the wheel, whose hands bruised her neck and stole her monogrammed crucifix?
Dismissing the idea of an accident, Bow Street Runner John Chase forms an unlikely alliance with Penelope Wolfe, wife of the chief suspect. A young mother paying the price for an imprudent marriage, Penelope is eager to clear her husband Jeremy, a feckless portrait painter whose salacious drawings of the victim suggest an erotic interest. Chase’s first task is to learn the identity of the mysterious benefactor who goes bail for Wolfe while Penelope traces the victim’s last movements. Barrister Edward Buckler, intrigued, shakes off his habitual lethargy and joins their investigation.
As horrifying murders on the Ratcliffe Highway claim all London’s attention, the trio discovers that it won’t be easy to unravel the enigma of Constance Tyrone, a woman who revives the legend of martyred St. Catherine. Read More
Posted Thursday, 11 December, 2014 by jorielov in 19th Century, Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Books for Review Arrived by Post, Cosy Historical Mystery, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Indie Author, the Regency era
Posted Monday, 8 December, 2014 by jorielov Catherine Lloyd, Death Comes to London, Death Comes to the Village, Kensington Publishing Corp., Kurland St. Mary Mysteries, Lady Darby Mysteries 0 Comments
Death Comes to London by Catherine Lloyd
Published By: Kensington Publishing Corp. ()
Available Formats: Trade Paperback, E-book
Converse on Twitter via:#KurlandStMaryMysteries, #DeathComesToLondonBlogTour
Acquired Book By:
I was selected to be a tour stop on the “Death Comes to London” virtual book tour through Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. I requested the first novel in the series to better understand the flow of continuity and the origins of the Kurland St. Mary mysteries series of which Kensington sent me a complimentary copy of “Death Comes to the Village”. I read both novels back to back for the blog tour and was not obligated to post a review for the first novel. I received a complimentary copy of “Death Comes to London” direct from the publisher Kensington Books, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
I sometimes find curious extra bits tucked inside my review book parcels, and this time around Kensington surprised me with a few things: a bookmark for “Death of a Dog Whisperer” by Laurien Berenson replete with the ENTIRE series listing on the opposite side of the bookmark! How lovely! I am going to be seeking this series out via my local library! My grandmother was keen on the series (at least I am thinking she was! I only remember there was a cookery mystery series she loved to read and I felt it was this one?) but it was the Double Fudge Brownie recipe bookmark which whet an interest to see when in 2015 I can borrow “Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder” to sort it out for myself! And, ooh yes! I am going to bake these brownies too! Which girl do you know wouldn’t savour a ‘free’ chocolate maddeningly rich brownie recipe!? The third surprise was a postie (postcard) annoucement for Kat Martin’s “Against the Sky” February release — on the flipside, it reflects her Alaskan series! However a rather buff agent of the law is on the cover of “Against the Sky” also set in Alaska (perhaps their the same series?) and I happily read “first time in print”! Ooh how lovely – perhaps it was an e-book previously!? (as an aside I found a tweet which answers my questions! see below this review!) Thank you, Kensington for whetting the whistle of my curiosity with these lovelies!
Inspired to Read:
As I have expressed recently, my love and passion for reading cosy mysteries are twofold: I appreciate the ones which take-on a particular historical setting and thereby become a part of the emerging sub-genre “Cosy Historical Mysteries” of which I defined a bit underneath this tour’s author’s guest post; all the while I appreciate the traditional cosy mysteries which harken back to the grandmother of the genre itself Agatha Christie! (read my thoughts on Dame Christie via my tour stop for The Monogram Murders) The Regency is a era of folly and mirth of joyful readings for me — I positively adore reading romances set during the Regency era and the fact this particular mystery series is set within a tranquil and quaint village outside of London; well, you can well imagine how wicked happy I was to request to be on the blog tour! I believe as you read my review of the first novel Death Comes to the Village prior to reading this review of the sequel you shall understand fully why I am drawn into reading cosies!
I read this installment with my newly given reading marker with the cutest hound dog and a stack of books seen on the front side of the Death of a Dog Whisperer bookmark! I had forgotten to mention there is a wicked lovely puzzle you can play with the cover art for “Death Comes to London” on the author’s website! Read More
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
Posted Monday, 8 December, 2014 by jorielov in #IndieWriterMonth, 19th Century, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Cosy Historical Mystery, England, Equality In Literature, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Indie Author, Jorie Loves A Story Features, LGBTTQPlus Fiction | Non-Fiction, Regency Era
