Three Hours in Paris

 

I was reading through what seems like hundreds of email this morning and came upon one from Soho Press, one of my favorite publishing houses. Since I'm always on the lookout for new mystery titles I decided to actually read this email and not automatically hit the delete button. I discovered that one of my favorite mystery writers, Cara Black, was doing a live virtual event tonight discussing Three Hours in Paris. The three hours in question concern a very brief visit to Paris that Hitler made in June of 1940, the purpose of which has been lost to history. 

Three Hours in Paris was first published in April, 2020, when most of us had so much on our minds and didn't keep up very well with new books. The paperback edition comes out at the end of March and I will be looking for it. I've so enjoyed Cara Black's mysteries set in Paris and this mystery/thriller set in one of my favorite historical times is going to the top of my almost infinite To Be Read pile. Here's the link to RSVP for tonight's discussion. It's at 7:00 Pacific time, which translates to 10:00 Eastern time. It's past my bedtime these days, but it's Saturday night.

It's hard to believe that this is my first post to Coffee Light in 2021. I'm not sure where 2020 went, but I'm glad it's gone. It's almost spring, the gas lines for my building have been fixed -- sixteen months without a working stove -- and I'm all vaccinated, plus a month. I've been walking, cooking (Yay!), doing some Zooming and reading. I've also been blogging away on my general blog, Buttercup Counts Her Blessings,  which helped keep me sane more times than I can count last year. I hope you're all doing well. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and keep reading! 

Can You Just Jump in?

Pardon me for composing a title that ends in a preposition, but that question seemed to be the clearest way to introduce this post's topic. Can you start reading a mystery series in the middle of the series? I had the good fortune to spend time yesterday with two former colleagues who happily remain friends. They are also mystery fans and as so often happened during my years working with reading friends, the topic turned to our latest reads. I mentioned  Cara Black's Murder on the Quai, which is number 16 in this very enjoyable series set in Paris. I offered to give my copy to my friend and she asked a good question, "Do I need to start at the beginning of the series, or can I just jump in?"

A lively discussion followed. We thought one could jump into Sue Grafton's Alphabet Series, but would caution against that for Ian Rankin's outstanding Scottish series. And, yes, a post on Ian Rankin is long, long overdue.

Also long overdue is a post on a mystery novel that begins one of my all-time favorite mystery series. I found C.J. Sansom's Dissolution in a bookstore in Notting Hill in 2005. I started reading in the bookstore and kept reading as I flew home across the Atlantic. I'm a fan of all things Tudor and besides being a complex and interesting mystery, it's an extraordinary historical novel. There are six books in the series which focuses on life in Tudor England. We meet the human, vulnerable and brilliant lawyer Matthew Shardlake, and follow him through the reign of Henry VIII. Each book builds on the one before and it would be a difficult series to jump into somewhere in the middle. The series is at most times dark, violent, sad, and yet always interesting.

When I first thought of writing a mystery novel blog I thought I would begin with a post on Dissolution. Like so many things in life I was sidetracked, but am happy to feature one of my favorite novels. If you're familiar with this series, you're a fortunate reader. If you're about to start reading it, you're in for a treat. The title refers to the Dissolution of the Monasteries, that took place under the reign of Henry VIII. 

So many books to read and so many books to write about and so, so little time! As ever, thanks for visiting and happy reading! 

It's No Mystery, I Love Paris

And I love Cara Black's mysteries that take place in Paris. No mystery, at all. 

 

 

 

I discovered Cara Black at this year's BookExpo America. I had the good fortune to encounter a copy of her soon to be published Murder on  the Quai. I started reading last week and I was hooked with the setting -- Paris -- and the main character, Aimee Leduc. This is very much a prequel and it tells the story of Aimee's life before becoming a detective. Of course it would be helpful if I had read the other books in the series, but as I've done so many times I am starting well past the beginning of the series.
 

On my most recent library trip I looked for other books in the series -- Murder on the Quai is number sixteen -- and found two more. I'm presently reading Murder in the Sentier and though I have other reading commitments, this one has jumped to the top of the list. I have to know what happens. Murder in the Sentier is the third in the series, but after this I'm going to be very organized and go back to the first volume, Murder in the Marais. Each title includes an area of Paris where the mystery focuses and describes the area in wonderful detail. If a trip to Paris isn't on your travel itinerary this year, I strongly suggest visiting vicariously via Cara Black's mysteries. That's exactly what I'll be doing this summer. 

 

Where will you be traveling in MysteryLand this summer?

 

 

So many mysteries and so little time! Here's to an iced coffee, a cozy chair and a mystery novel.