Sorted on book title (not in series order)

Crime Fiction

Canticle Creek, Adrian Hyland

It's been way. too. long. since the last Emily Tempest novel from Adrian Hyland was published. Been way too long since anything from Adrian Hyland was published, so I will admit to some serious stack reshuffling when CANTICLE CREEK arrived. Not a shred of disappointment about the decision...Read more

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Capable of Murder, Brian Kavanagh

My Rating: Choccies, coffee, sparkling shiraz, book in hand, comfy chair late on a Sunday afternoon in the fading sun read.

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A young Australian girl's elderly english great-aunt leaves everything to her after she dies in her home, seemingly from an accidental...Read more

Captured, Neil Cross

One of the things that I've really come to expect from author Neil Cross is not quite knowing what to expect when you pick up one of this books.  CAPTURED is the latest in a set of standalone novels that have just all been fantastic, and I'm happy to report that CAPTURED keeps up the...Read more

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The Caravan Crime

AKA: 
The Caravan Mystery

This early work by Fergus Hume was originally published in 1926 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'The Caravan Mystery' is a great crime novel by this classic fiction writer.Read more

The Carbuncle Clue

It is the summer of 1894. The Garry Street murder is the talk of London, and no one is more baffled than Gerald Conway, in whose library the dead man's body was discovered, stabbed. The only clue to the man's identity seems to be the gold bangle containing a small carbuncle, worn on the...Read more

The Carlswick Mythology, SL Beaumont

The 5th in the Carlswick series, THE CARLSWICK MYTHOLOGY is a young adult (at the upper end of the age range), slightly female orientated series, based around main characters Stephanie Cooper and her rock drummer boyfriend James Knox. Whilst it's not absolutely necessary to have read any of...Read more

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A Carrion Death, Michael Stanley

Set in Botswana, A CARRION DEATH introduces the reader to, amongst a lot of other characters, Assistant Superintendent David Bengu.  David is a big man.  A very big man.  As a young man, his friend Angus coined the nickname Kubu - which means Hippopotamus in Setswana.  That friend belongs...Read more

The Carter of 'La Providence', Georges Simenon

The second in the Maigret series (although there's some suggestion it could be the fourth although I've done zero fact checking one way or the other), this one really re-affirmed my decision to go right back to the start, and work my way through the audio versions of this series (the anti-...Read more

Carved in Blood

When Detective Inspector Jaye Hamilton stops at an Auckland liquor store for a bottle of champagne, it is supposed to be his daughter Addison has just gotten engaged. Instead, he is suddenly gunned down at the register by a balaclava-clad assailant in what appears at first to be a random...Read more

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3
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A Case of Matricide, Graeme Macrae Burnet

In a sign of just how ridiculously behind and disorganised I've been of late, A CASE OF MATRICIDE has been lurking around here for months now, and it's the third novel in a series that I'd failed to even start. Now I'm reading it back to front because this was such a fascinating read....Read more

Case Reopened, edited by Stuart Cope and Julie Ogden

This book was on my Quest List for such a long time until I finally managed to track down a copy (and was subsequently somewhat startled to find it listed on Fishpond NZ!). The reason it hit the Quest List was the premise sounded so fascinating - take a bunch of real life cases, give them...Read more

The Case of the Cock Robin Killer, C.S. Boag

Number 5 in the Rainbow series, and THE CASE OF THE COCK ROBIN KILLER might be blue about lots of things, but it won't make you blue to read it. In fact you'll probably find yourself snorting with laughter, or at least rolling your eyes as the puns fly left, right and centre.

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The Case of the Death of a Ladies' Man, C.S. Boag

Many years ago I went through one of those reader phases where I deliberately sought out weird titles just because there's nothing better than a quest. (Okay well any excuse to haunt bookshops and secondhand shops...) So THE CASE OF THE DEATH OF A LADIES' MAN appealed if for no other reason...Read more

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The Case of the Man who Died Laughing, Tarquin Hall

Even allowing for the lighter nature of this series, the idea of death by Hindu goddess in the middle of a laughter class is a bit of a stretch for anyone's imagination. But the thing I really like about the Vish Puri series of books is the gentle humour that eases the underlying message....Read more

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The Case of the Missing Servant, Tarquin Hall

Two initial observations - book covers, especially for some reason, I've noticed, when the books are Sub-Continent or Asian based, can't be trusted; and we need a new genre - something along the lines of Food Crime Porn. The latter for the sort of books that describe food that would make...Read more

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Cassie Clark - Outlaw, Brian Falkner

Another Young Adult novel, this time with less messaging and more just flat out thrills and spills, CASSIE CLARK: OUTLAW features the daughter of the Speaker of the House, a senior congressman, who has disappeared, supposedly run off with a journalist. Cassie's recovering from a bike crash...Read more

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Catch Us The Foxes, Nicola West

Before starting out, this review is going to contain possible SPOILERS. I'm finding it almost impossible to talk about CATCH US THE FOXES without them.

 

 

Flagged as Twin Peaks meets The Dry, this is also described as a deliciously dark and twisted...Read more

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Caught Between, Jeannie McLean

Book 1 in a new series featuring Māori / Chinese character Tova Tan, the title of the novel - CAUGHT BETWEEN - is particularly apt. Tan's life is littered with dilemmas, from the dangerous lifestyle of her half-brother, and her desire to stay in touch, maybe help him; to wanting the truth...Read more

Cave Diver, Jake Avila

CAVE DIVER is an action-packed, seat of the pants styled thriller, with huge villains, big threats and a single flawed protagonist trying to save the day. It recently won a Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize, along with an Adventure Writers Competition Clive Cussler Grandmaster Award and...Read more

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Cedar Valley, Holly Throsby

“On a normal morning, a lone police car would be parked out the front of the station, waiting for something illegal to happen.”

Cedar Valley, Holly Throsby’s second novel, begins with the arrival of two strangers on the first day of summer in 1993. One, Benny Miller,...Read more

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The Celtic Dagger, Jill Paterson

Dialogue.  It's something I'm increasingly aware of, as it should be part of the way that an author can show (as opposed to tell) the reader what the characters are seeing, thinking, considering, experiencing.  Combine really good dialogue with a feasible plot and an author can transport...Read more

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Cemetery Lake, Paul Cleave

CEMETERY LAKE is the third book by Paul Cleave, THE CLEANER and THE KILLING HOUR being the first two.  None of these books are connected, so you can pick them up in any order, although, being lucky enough to read them in order, you can see a certain style developing in the writing....Read more

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A Certain Justice, P.D. James

Venetia Aldridge QC, distinguished barrister, is found dead in her Middle Temple Chambers, stabbed once cleanly through the heart; sat in her chair; wearing a full wig covered in blood.

She had recently successfully defended Garry Ashe, accused of killing his aunt, and has been...Read more

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Chain of Evidence, Garry Disher

When 10 year old Katie Blasko goes missing, Ellen Destry is in charge of the case. Katie's from one of the local Estates – a poor, run-down area full of dysfunctional families, violence and drugs. Nearly everybody on the investigation team is pretty sure that Katie's disappearance is yet...Read more

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The Chain, Adrian McKinty

Consider for a moment what you would do. You've dropped your child off at the bus stop on their way to school, and you're heading towards a normal day. You've had some health challenges yourself recently, but you're getting your life back together. You're going back to work. Your life is...Read more

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