Musing Mondays: Unintended Consequences by Marti Green

Musing Mondays asks you to muse about something related to reading/books each week…...

I am highlighting the following book this week.

Unintended Consequences by Marti Green

Nineteen years ago, George Calhoun was arrested for murdering his daughter after a body was found burnt beyond recognition in the woods. His wife testified against him and he was convicted by the jury. All his appeals are exhausted now and his execution is few weeks away. 

George has always denied murdering his daughter but without any proof or support he never had a chance to defend himself. He has remained silent except for saying he was innocent.

Dani Trumball is an attorney for the Help Innocent Prisoners Project. She is contacted by George Calhoun to save him. There is no time and his execution is six weeks away. She wants to believe that he is innocent. Forensic evidence never pointed out that it was his daughter.  NO DNA test was done. But whose body was it if not Angelina, his daughter? What really happened to his daughter. George Calhoun tells Dani an incredible story. This makes Dani determined to verify it and save him, if possible.

The story is so real and believable. Dani is in a dilemma. She has a sick son and there is not much time to find out all the truth. But her husband is very supportive and it makes her determined to take this case.

George Calhoun remained silent for nineteen years. What really happened to his daughter? What was his compulsions? Why did his wife testify against him? Why did his lawyer not insist for a DNA test? Why did the judge consider his wife's testimony enough to indict him? The novel answers all these and much more. It also speaks eloquence about a father who can go to any length for his daughter. Even to the extent of being considered her murderer. 

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I am trying to catch up with my 2013 reviews....

A Criminal Defense by Steven Gore

"What kind of idiot pleads to a life sentence? The smart move would've been to roll the dice. You never know what a San Francisco jury will do?"

Posted for The Friday 56, which is hosted by Freda's Voice

Title: A Criminal Defense
Author: Steven Gore
ISBN: 9780062025074
Publisher: Harper, Mass Market Paperback/2013
Pages: 352

Mark Hamlin, is found murdered gruesomely. He had the reputation of being a corrupt lawyer who intimidated witnesses, suborned perjury, laundered money and destroyed evidence.The way he is murdered, it is difficult to say if he was a victim of murder or of a sexual encounter gone bad. Former detective Harlan Donnally is assigned the case. As Donnally investigates, he finds himself drawn into unknown mystery. He starts to  ponder over the deceits of Hamlin. Then the reader is shown the inner workings of, the justice system which is somehow filled with intricate lies and betrayals. 

The beginning is good. In the middle it dragged quite a lot. There were too many red herrings. But the novel holds interest towards the end. 

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I am trying to catch up with my 2013 reviews....

When the Cookie Crumbles by Virginia Lowell

"Take me to Bon Vivant on Friday, seven p.m." Del kissed the tip of her nose and stepped into the porch.
"Done," Olivia said, following him down the front steps.
"And one more thing." he said.
"Yes?"
"I'll expect to see you dressed as a tavern wench."



Title: When the Cookie Crumbles
Author: Virginia Lowell
ISBN: 9780425251485
Publisher: Berkeley Prime Crime/2012
Pages: 294

Olivia Greyson and Maddie own The Gingerbread House. They bake great cookies. Now they are baking an exact replica of Chatterley Mansion for 250th Birthday Celebration of Chatterley Heights. Paine Chatterley, presumed dead, arrives in town, with his wife, Hermione, to claim his heritage and forbids everyone to visit his mansion. He is not keen to have the celebrations. The Mayor, Karen Evansen, wants the celebrations to go on. She asks Olivia to talk to the Chatterleys. 

Then Paine is found dead in his bathtub. Many of their precious heirlooms are destroyed and Hermione is overwrought. All these cast a shadow over the forthcoming celebrations. Olivia and Maddie, along with their baking, try to look for clues. They find themselves in the midst of unpleasant secrets of the Chatterley family. Olivia has to get into the bottom of all this.

Along with Del, the local police officer, who is also Olivia's boyfriend, they find the killer. The murderer is someone very close and unlikeliest of all. 

This is a good cozy mystery, the characters are very life like. I loved the cookie baking, decorating details. Maddie is a real good friend to Olivia. Elle, Olivia's mother is an interesting character. I loved the interesting stories about cookie cutters. For all cozy mystery lovers out there, I would say, go for it!

Flush by Jane Clifton

"Some days a drop of water can kill you, some days it can save your life.
     In the early hours of Thursday, February 3, 120 millimeters of rain fell on Melbourne. Enough water to flush out a murder.
    The Yeraa and maribyrnong rivers had swollen and in some places had split their sides. Sedate, well behaved Kerford Road beach disappeared beneath heavy turf. Boats flipped and tossed like God's own rubber duckies. Roofs leaked, carports groaned, gutters choked, and parked cars drowned at the roadside. Century old trees in the Botanical Gardens keeled over like drunks, their parched roots suddenly losing their footing in the blistered soil. A city that had craved a good soaking for more than eight years took an unscheduled." 


Title: Flush
Author: Jane Clifton
ISBN: 9780992329549
Publisher: Clan Destine Pres/2013
Pages: 253

Oleg Kransky is the first suspect when his wife Inga Kristensen's body is found washed up on the banks of Maribyrnong River. When police reach his home, he is found with a failed suicide bit and his wife's blood stained cloth are all over the place.

Decca Brand, a psychologist, does not believe that he killed his wife. Oleg had been one of her patients. He had not been very forthcoming yet Decca could sense he loved his wife. Even now, after his arrest, he still does not communicate.

While chasing for answers, Decca and the police detectives find themselves in the midst of gritty going ons in red light area, secret past lives of Oleg, Inga and their so-called friends. From Melbourne to links in Bosnia seem far fetched but when a well known person like Col Jones is found involved, it all unravels.

I liked the twists and turns. It kept my interest until the very end. Very fast paced and not easy to put down. It was one of my last reads of 2013 and I am happy about that!

Tomorrow City by Kirk Kjeldsen

"Brendan Lavin woke up with a start to the metallic crash of an empty trash dumspter being slammed to the ground. He looked over at the radio alarm clock, which was blaring some grating Matchbox Twenty song. The time was 6:17 AM, which meant that The alarm had been going off for almost three hours. The bed next to him was empty. Maureen was still at the hospital, working another shift."

Title: Tomorrow City

Author: Kirk Kjeldsen

ISBN: 9789881554215
Publisher: Signal 8 Press/2013

Pages: 197

Brendan Lavin, an ex-con, tries to be straight person doing what he has learnt in prison--baking. However much he tries, he is unable make ends meet. He goes back to his cohorts for a last job. The robbery goes horribly wrong with four fatalities. Now he is a murderer. He has to escape New York City. He steals his cousin's passport and escapes to Shanghai.

Twelve years later, we see him having a flourishing bakery, married to a local woman and has a two year old daughter.  He keeps a low profile as he does not want his conman friends to find him. Somehow without his knowledge, his photograph is published in the public domain and when he learns about it, he is very afraid. Before he can plan to run from Shanghai, his robber friends find him and want payback. They think he turned them in before escaping to Shanghai. They want him to join them for a diamond heist. He is reluctant but he knows that his family will be harmed if he does not go along with them.

The action is full of tension and fast paced. It is an sitting read and very riveting. The action seems to hit hard and streets  of Shanghai come alive. Even with a criminal past, Brendan knows right from wrong. The characters come out vivid. Brendan gains the sympathy of the reader and we want him to go back to his family and his bakery. Those who love dark literature, it is a must read. It is one of the best crime fiction I read in a long time. 

The Rome Prophecy by Jon Trace

Title: The Rome Prophecy
Author: Jon Trace
Publisher: Sphere (February 1, 2011)
ISBN: 9780751543018
Pages: 464 

The book opens with  Cassandra – the ancient Greek priestess -- being driven through the streets and accused of treachery and then has her hand cut off in the mouth of truth. As she lies there dying, the book comes back to the present day where a hand is found at the mouth of truth but there is no body to be found. Who does the hand belong to? Where is the body or the person? 

Then a woman is found, covered in blood and roaming the streets with an ancient sword in hand. Italian carabinieri Captain Valentina Morassi is assigned to solve the case. The woman found on the streets  has a multiple personality disorder and Valentina is helped by psychiatrist Louisa Verdetti to unravel the mysterious woman.

Tom is an ex-priest and is involved with Valentina. He helps in solving the mystery using his knowledge of religion. He shares a great chemistry with Valentina.

As the story progresses, we learn about a secret cult that has lived in the catacombs beneath Rome that has gone back for millenniums. It is definitely a fast read if you like books with history, religion and archaeology thrown in a good measure. 

Private Games by James Patterson

Private Games by James Patterson


Look at him on his knees, with his back to me and my knife at his throat.

Why, he trembles and shakes as if a stone had just clipped his head. Can you smell it? Fear? It surrounds him with an odor as rank as the air after a bomb explodes.

"Why?" he gasps.

"You've angered me, monster," I snarl at him, feeling a deeper-than-primal rage split my mind and seethe through every cell. "You've helped ruin the games, made them a mockery and an abomination."

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My Views:

Sir Denton Marshall is a member of the London Organizing Committee. He is brutally murdered a few days before the London Olympics. His decapitated head is placed on a previously headless statue of an ancient Greek senator. Peter Knight is called immediately to the place of crime. He is an investigator at the London office of Private International and his company provides security for the LOC. His mother was engaged to Marshall.

A serial killer who calls himself Cronus, named after the Greek God of Time and the son of the ancient rulers of Earth and Sky is the killer. He wants to clean up the modern Olympics. Cronus has a past and he with the help of three Serbian sisters (named Furies by him) are ahead of all the investigative agencies to kill people at their will. Cronus letters to a reporter named Karen Pope telling her of his plans in advance.

Scotland Yard Inspector Elaine Pottersfield (Knight's sister-in-law) along with Knight, have to find Cronus in time to avert more death and destruction at the Games.

Patterson has kept the chapters short and very readable. I liked the pace and the story line. The character development is also good. I do recommend it for fast paced Crime Fiction lovers. 

Moving can be Murder by Susan Santangelo

Moving can be Murder by Susan Santangelo

I had  to say goodbye one more time. But how does say goodbye to 34 years of memories?

"It's just a house, Carol. It's not a person." I could hear My Beloved Husband Jim's voice telling me that over and over again. "It's much too big for just the two of us. We should cash out and move now, before the real estate market gets worse."

He'd finally worn me down.

~~Page 1

The House closing was definitely off.

The dead man was our buyer, Jack Cartwright.

~~Page 64

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Book Blurb:

Empty-nester Carol Andrews would prefer leaving her beautiful antique home in Fairport, Connecticut, "feet first" to selling it and moving on. But her Beloved Husband Jim convinces her that a nearby active adult community is the best fit for them at this time of life.

Their house sells, and Carol returns alone the night before the closing for a "pity party" farewell tour. And discovers the dead body of the buyer in her living room. Wow. Talk about seller's remorse!

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My views:

Carol seems like scatter-brained female much given to emotions. When she goes one last time to her home, she finds the body of the prospective buyer! Needless to say, the sale is put on hold.

Carol's best friend is a suspect in that murder. And Carol decides to find out the truth. She discovers some secrets which Mary Alice, her friend never shared with her. 

Although there is this murder, but the book is full of wit. It makes the reader chuckle many a times. It is a very readable cozy mystery. Susan Santangelo is an author to look out for!!

The Frozen Shroud by Martin Edwards

The Frozen Shroud by Martin Edwards
ISBN: 9781464201073
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press/2013
Pages: 276

Back Cover:

Death has come twice to Ravenbank, a remote community in England’s Lake District, each time on Hallowe’en. Just before the First World War, a young woman’s corpse was found, with a makeshift shroud frozen to her battered face. Her ghost – the Faceless Woman – is said to walk through Ravenbank on Hallowe-en. Five years ago, another woman, Katya Moss, was murdered, and again her face was covered to hide her injuries.

Daniel Kind, a specialist in the history of murder, becomes fascinated by the old cases, and wonders whether the obvious suspects really did commit the crimes. He spends Hallowe’en at a party in Ravenbank – only to find death returning to this beautiful but isolated spot. Once more, the victim is a woman, once more her damaged face is shrouded from view.

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My views:

One of the murder victim is called Shenagh in the instead of Katya Moss, as given in the back cover. This could have been taken care of while editing. 

Shenagh Moss's murder is the second one, the first being Gertrude, who was killed almost 100 years ago and is supposed to roam as a faceless ghost during Halloween. The third murder happens five years after Shenagh is murdered, again at Halloween. This time it is Terri, a very close friend of DCI Hannah Scarlett. All murders have something in common. Their faces are battered and shrouded from view. 

Daniel Kind is a specialist in history of murder and he finds the three murders somewhat related.  Kind and Scarlett's past come to haunt them both. Hannah keep no stones upturned to find the murderer of her best friend Terri. 

This is my first novel by Edwards and certainly not my last. He keeps the reader totally in the story. The descriptions of the background is also done very well. The secondary characters are also interesting, each having a failing or two. My toes curled while I was reading this.

Death By Bourbon by Abigail Keam

Doreen Doris Mayfield DeWitt tapped her tapered glossy ruby nails on the gleaming end table while watching the woman pace before her. Although she felt like swiping the woman with her claws, she remained passive, watching as her guest spewed forth countless words trying to explain her situation. 

Title: Death by Bourbon
Author: Abigail Keam
ISBN: 9780615651590
Publisher: Worker Bee Press/2012
Pages: 196

Book Description:

Life takes a dramatic turn for Josiah when she witnesses a death at an engagement party for Matt. Matt? Yes, Matt.

Charming socialite Addison DeWitt falls into a fit after taking a sip of bourbon. That would be upsetting enough, but Josiah is sure it is murder. However, no one will believe her except for Lady Elsmere and Meriah Caldwell, the famous mystery writer. The three of them conspire to bring the murderer to justice. It turns out the suspect is always three steps ahead of them.
To make matters worse, Josiah's daughter, Asa decides to move to London, Franklin leaves town and Jake starts singing a different tune. Josiah doubts her ability to meet the future alone. Maybe it's time to sell the Butterfly and move to Florida with the rest of the old folks.

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My thoughts:

With ups and downs, this book made a very enjoyable read. It has wit, humour and suspense mixed in the right ingredients. I especially loved Asa, Josiah's daughter. The two sentences given below are taken from a letter she wrote to her mother. For all those who love a good whodunnit and cozy mystery, this makes a great any time read.

"The frame is covered from silver melted from the jewelry Dad took that awful evening when he left us. I figure things are pretty even now."

~~Page 193

The Summons by John Grisham

Under the stern gaze of General Nathan Bedford Forrest, and standing there in the center of a room that was timeless, Ray began to realize that his father was not breathing. He comprehended this slowly. He coughed, and there was not the slightest response. Then he leaned down and touched the Judge's left wrist. There was no pulse.

Judge Reuben V Atlee was dead.

The Summons by John Grisham: Judge Reuben Atlee is a much respected person in Clanton, Mississippi. He lives alone in his ancetral home. Then one fine day he summons his sons to talk about the estate. Ray Atlee is a professor and Forrest Ray is the proverbial black sheep who is into all kinds of addiction. Both his sons have issues with the Judge. 

None wants to visit him but when Ray reaches the estate, he finds the judge dead and also he becomes a part  of a secret which is only known to the judge and now him. But there is someone else who knows about the secret....

Ray tries to play an amateur detective and for that he almost gets killed. The ending is, well, unexpected. Grisham is a master of that. He can hold you enthralled  till the end. This is another one which does the same, minus the courtroom drama......

Back From The Dead by Peter Leonard

“We’re going to surprise them,” Harry said. “And if they’ve done anything to Colette, you’re the first one I’m going to shoot. Believe that if you believe anything. Take off your coat, throw it over here and turn around.” He did and Harry checked the two outside pockets of the jacket, found a parking receipt, and a pair of handcuffs. There was also a piece of notepaper that had an address on Crooks Road in Troy and a phone number. “This where they have Colette?”

Title: Back From The Dead\
Author: Peter Leonard
ISBN: (P) 978-1-61188-063-2 (E) 978-1-61188-064-9
Publisher: The Story Plant/2013
Pages: 282
Genre: Suspense

Back from the Dead is sequel to Voices of the Dead. Harry Levin, a holocaust survivor and Ernst Hess, a Nazi death angel again come to confrontation. Hess has supposedly been killed by Levin in Voices of the Dead but wakes up to a hospital bed. He knows he has to find Levin and kill him. 

Levin can't believe that Hess is alive but he cannot ignore all the signs that point him that way. He knows he has to stop Hess from killing more Jews and for that he has to travel all over the world to kill Hess, again.

Leonard does not disappoint. He takes us into a action packed roller coaster ride. With touch and go suspense, this novel is as good as Voices of the Dead. With a conclusion which is deeply satisfying. I look forward to read more from Peter Leonard.