Death in Soho is the first in a new series by Emily Organ, the Augusta Peel Mystery series. It's set during the wild and crazy roaring twenties ... parties and booze, a wild nightlife, police raids ... but Augusta is happy for her quiet life of mending books and taking care of a friend's canary. She sometimes acts as a chaperone for 19 year old Harriet, and this is where the trouble starts. A body is found during a police raid. Augusta convinces her friend in Scotland yard to let her take Harriet home, but he will contact Augusta later for help in the investigation. It's a convoluted search involving actors and actresses, gangsters, gamblers, producers .... not a bad start! :-)

The timing for this read was perfect ... it takes place in October! A Picture of Murder is one of the Lady Hardcastle Mystery books by T E Kinsey. One of those new-fangled moving pictures is coming to town, excitement is high, and, it even has an appropriate theme: The Witch's Downfall! Several of the actors in the film are along to make the event even more exciting. It is well received. And then there is a murder. A murder that mimics the role the victim played in the film. Naturally, this just makes the second show even more popular. And then there is a second murder, again, just like the character played in the film. What is going on? There is a group of protestors, too, rallying against the ungodliness of the subject of the film. Join Lady Hardcastle and her trusty maid, Flo, as they work on the 'who' and 'why' of this spooky case. Just a wonderful series!

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What is the question for 'This young student, who became a popular quiz show host, was almost expelled from Catholic School.' The answer is 'Who is Alex Trebek?' and that is the title of this nice biography by Lisa Rogak. Although he had many jobs growing up, his favorite was when he was hired by the CBC (then radio). He was not married, would work any time, any day, and was eager to take on any job they offered him. And, since he was bi-lingual he could cover the hockey games and the CBC only had to pay for one announcer! He tried various TV jobs in the U.S., too (encouraged to come by good friend Alan Thicke) before Jeopardy! came along. This is the story of how he got there. There were some times of depression, and it seems he could swear the proverbial blue streak, but he also genuinely liked people (his least favorite contestant was the computer, Watson) and supported and set up many charities. He loved interacting with the audience ... wait until you read his response when one woman went 'off book' and asked "Boxers or briefs?" ;-)

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Hannah's Dream, by Diane Hammond proved to be an interesting read. It is set here in Washington, in the town of Bladenham (Blaine, Lynden, Bellingham???) at a small zoo where the main attraction is an aging elephant. Hannah has spent almost her entire life here, standing on concrete most of the time, and without the company of other elephants. Her (also aging) keeper knows there has to be something better for her. How he makes that happen is the story, and a wonderful story it is! A missing document (and you learn why it went missing) and a bit of a spin on what the new (not so nice) director wants to do along with a collection of quirky and loving citizens made for an unexpectedly delightful read, something a bit outside of what I usually read. Thanks go to Riding Reader for this!

I have to admit, I am one of those that thrills to the skirl of the pipes, and hearing and/or seeing a lone piper can move me to tears, so, how could I resist Death by Bagpipes: a Summer Murder in Edinburgh? This is the fourth in the Travel Can Be Murder series by Jennifer S. Alderson. Lana has been tasked with 'helping' out on a tour to Scotland. The lead tour guide this time is new, so new as to have never worked as a tour guide before ... he is, however, the grandson of the man who is paying for the tour that includes his entire family and he's hoping to find something the poor kid can do. He is also an old friend of the woman who owns the tour company. Needless to say, this is not a happy family reunion! Especially after the patriarch announces he is getting married, and his Will has been changed. Enter Lana's ex-husband (also a magician) to really complicate matters. When Presto the Amazing dies at his retirement dinner Lana is the best one to figure out the who and the why. And yes, bagpipes were involved. Sort of. ;-)

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Penny Green has been invited to stay at the rebuilt, soon-to-be-opened Hotel Tempesta. The former hotel burned down, and there is a curse. The owner is looking for good publicity before the grand opening and has invited local journalists for a preview in the hopes of some good publicity. Sadly, he is murdered that night, as is the 'someone' in his room (who, as it turns out, is not who you think she is when a message in code is found). Then there are the stolen paintings, and a Pinkerton agent. The search for the real murderer becomes all the more important when the knife, used in the murders, is found In Miss Green's room. An Unwelcome Guest was written by Emily Organ. It is the seventh in the Penny Green Mystery Series.

Lady Hardcastle and her maid are back again in Death Around the Bend, by T E Kinsey. They have been invited to the then new sport of racing cars ... there's even to be a woman's race! Sadly, that is not to be as one of the (male) drivers is killed in the very first race. The local police think it was an accident, but it isn't, and Lady Hardcastle and Florence are out to prove it. This is book three in the Lady Hardcastle Mystery series, which has become one of my favorites.

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The past weekend was full of guests and visitors (first time since 2019!) and there wasn't as much time for reading, so this will be a one book post again. :-)

"A celebration of the seemingly mundane" is a quote from the back of the book and I'm using it because it is a perfect description of this informative and quirky read by Spike Carlsen. A Walk Around the Block: Stoplight Secrets, Mischievous Squirrels, Manhole Mysteries, & Other Stuff You See Every Day (And Know Nothing About) mentions all those things and more. There are chapters on bike lanes, alleys, pavement (and repairs), city lights ... so many things that make up our everyday life that we may take for granted, or ignore, or just plain don't see them anymore they are just so common.

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If you enjoy adventure on the high seas, spies, political intrigue, conspiracies, contraband ... and farce, then give The Further Adventures of the 100 Year Old Man, by Jonas Jonasson (translated from the Swedish by Rachel Willson-Broyles) a try. Allan and Julius are running out of money, but before they deal with that, there is a birthday to celebrate. The plan is the celebrate in a hot air balloon. Things go awry when the balloon breaks free with just the two of them aboard. The plot is rather convoluted, and twisted, but it's not to be taken seriously! Think Monty Python here! This is a sequel to The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (see July 12, 2014 post).

Book Six in the Penny Green Mystery series, The Bermondsey Poisoner, by Emily Organ, might just be my favorite (so far). What starts as a simple story for the newspaper becomes rather more complicated when several photographs are discovered ... of the same woman, but with a different (dead) husband in each. This is the era where such photographs were popular (read the historical note). Is she responsible for their deaths, or merely unlucky? And there's a new editor at the newspaper who is, well, awful (he's the nephew of the owner). There were a few unexpected twists so again, I was reading far into the night. :-)

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I have a vague memory of a 'challenge' of some sort involving Joshua Bell, the acclaimed violinist, 'busking' for change in a Washington DC subway station. On his Stradivarius! Would anyone stop to listen, or recognize him? (He dressed for the part). Gene Weingarten was the journalist who covered this event, and many other curious and interesting events in The Fiddler in the Subway: the True Story of What Happened When a World-Class Violinist Played for Handouts ... and Other Virtuoso Performances by America's Foremost Feature Writer. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll learn something new (well, I did) (!) in this enjoyable collection of columns from The Washington Post.

Crime has not changed all that much over the years and proof of that may be found in Scoundrels of the Salish Sea: Tales of Crime and Punishment in Washington State's History, by Carol Turner. There's murder, of course, and theft, adultery, scams ... and how the 'bad guy' tried to get away with the crime (and who caught them). There's also the 'law' side here with the lawyers and judges who convicted them. The author scoured newspaper archives, journals and letters to write this glimpse of the seamier side of life here in the Evergreen State in the late 1800's to the mid-1900's.

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