Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Jane Haddam

Jane Haddam, *Conspiracy Theory*
Another Gregor Demarkian novel. Haddam likes to orient her books to the real world. In this case she talks about conspiracy theories. She gives web sites.

Gregor's neighborhood Armenian church is bombed into rubble. Meanwhile a prominent banker is shot. How will Gregor connect these two events.

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Jane Haddam

Jane Haddam, *The Headmaster's Wife*
Another Gregor Demarkian mystery. This novel deals with the politics of a boarding school. The son of a friend of Gregor's calls him because he (the son) thinks he may be hallucinating.
Everyone at the school thinks Mark is a druggie but Mark says he never takes drugs. Then his room mate commits suicide. Gregor does not want to investigate another murder but he wants to help mark.
It took me a few chapters to get into this book, which features a huge cast of characters any of whom can be the murderer.

Friday, December 26, 2008

Jane Haddam

Jane Haddam, *Hardscrabble Road*
Jane Haddam writes classical mysteries, calling her protagonist the Armenian American Hercule Poirot. Gregor Demarkian is a retired FBI Special Agent who often consults in murder mysteries.
In this mystery, Gregor is called in when a homeless man disappears. It's a complex story. A radio celebrity is arrested with a lot of prescription drugs he blames the homeless man as his supplier. Evrybody knows the old alkie can barely find the mens room, much less go to pharmacies to get prescriptions filled.
Then the celebrity is found dead.
Hardscrabble Road is the site of a monastery (female) which figures in the mystery.
Recommended for hard scrabble mystery fans.