Wulf's Book Reviews

The Unquiet Grave by Dervla McTiernan My rating: 3 of 5 stars There is a lot here that ought to work for me: a body lifted from a bog, the unsettling suggestion of ritual, and Cormac Reilly caught between a high-pressure investigation and a personal call for help. Dervla McTiernan still writes with that clean, brisk confidence that makes her Cormac books so readable, and, on a scene-by-scene level, I rarely felt bored. That slightly acid note of humour is something I usually enjoy in these novels, and it is here, too, tucked into conversations and reactions rather than delivered as showy one-liners. The problem is that the larger shape of the book never quite gels for me. The central case keeps switching gears in ways that feel more like plot-management than accumulation, and the tension leaks away whenever the narrative turns aside for threads that do not pay their weight. The bog-body premise has a fantastic, sickly pull, and I liked how the novel toys with the reader’s expectation...

Wicked Women by Angela Marsons My rating: 5 of 5 stars “Wicked Women” is one of those rare long-running-series instalments that makes you feel, within a handful of pages, that you have come home. As the twenty-third novel in the Detective Kim Stone series , it has every right to coast on familiar beats, but it does the opposite. Angela Marsons drops you straight back into Kim Stone’s world with that familiar, brisk authority - sharp observation, sharper dialogue, and a case that refuses to sit still. The premise flirts with witchcraft, but the book’s real trick is how elegantly it keeps the supernatural at arm’s length: present as culture, performance, fear, and suggestion, yet never allowed to bulldoze the procedural logic. Like Kim, I do not believe in witches, and I loved how the novel leans into that scepticism while staying delightfully ambiguous. » ‘But no one really believes in them,’ Kim stated. « That line sets the tone: we are here for evidence, motives, and human choices, ...

The Island by Adrian McKinty My rating: 2 of 5 stars Bog-Standard Survival, Served With a Side of Pretension This is one of those “family vacation turns nightmare” survival thrillers that runs perfectly well on rails, and that’s exactly the problem: I’ve seen these rails so often that there’s no tension left in them. “The Island” isn’t badly written, and it certainly keeps moving, but it’s moving through a landscape of ideas that has been strip-mined for decades. You can almost hear the genre machinery: chase, threat, escalation, “resourcefulness”, repeat. What really sank it for me is the book’s intermittent insistence on being profound. Every now and then, the prose swells up, as if volume could substitute for insight. Chapter 24 gives us: » Civilization meant nothing here. Perhaps it had always meant nothing. There were no monsters on Dutch Island, but the beast was man, had always been man. « This is not depth, it’s a poster slogan pretending it just discovered human nature. Even...

Broken Bones by Angela Marsons My rating: 4 of 5 stars Not as sharp as before, but Kim Stone’s grit keeps me hooked. Angela Marsons' “ Broken Bones ” follows Kim Stone and her tireless team as they delve into a network of crimes that expose the darkest corners of society. While its predecessor left me enthralled, this one felt like a slight step back in terms of sheer suspense, character development, and immediacy of action. “Broken Bones” deals with issues of desperation, abuse, and exploitation, exploring the ways marginalised people navigate a world indifferent to their suffering. Among the novel’s many strengths, Detective Kim Stone continues to stand out. Her tenacity, resilience, and willingness to challenge perceptions radiate in every chapter. » He turned to look at her. ‘You’re advising me on positivity?’ ‘Oh, the irony,’ she observed. « The novel also examines the complexity of human behaviour. In a powerful scene, Kim reflects on the limitations of stereotyping: » ’A ...

Lost Girls by Angela Marsons My rating: 3 of 5 stars I read " Lost Girls " by Angela Marsons because I really like Kim Stone as an investigator . Stone is often harsh at least, sometimes to the point of callously offending anyone who hasn’t earned her respect. She is also desperately compartmentalising her gruesome childhood and youth to be able to merely “function”. I simply cannot help but root for such a person. As for the three novels I’ve read by now, I’ve generally found Marsons’ books to be a reasonably decent way to pass the time, offering a reliable dose of police procedural with Kim Stone at the helm. However, this one felt a bit of a misstep, venturing into territory that, for me at least, felt unnecessarily grim. Marsons herself states, » Each story is intended to entertain and take the reader on an exciting, interesting journey. There are some subjects in the books that are difficult to stomach but I aim to treat each situation with respect and sensitivity and...

Seven Deadly Wonders by Matthew Reilly My rating: 1 of 5 stars Matthew Reilly's " Seven Deadly Wonders " is akin to reading a 90s action B-movie. Unfortunately, the novel fails to deliver a compelling narrative, with both the plot and characters lacking believability. While Reilly attempts to blend high-octane action with historical mysteries, the result is a muddled execution that leaves much to be desired. From the outset, the characters come off as one-dimensional and unconvincing. They are supposedly a diverse group from various backgrounds, but this diversity is sadly superficial. This oversight detracts significantly from the novel, creating a sense of sameness that undermines the story's potential. For instance, Big Ears dangling precariously over a ledge is a moment ripe with tension but falls flat due to clichéd dialogue and character interactions: » Big Ears was dangling over the edge of Level 1 directly above her, helpless. ‘I can’t get to her...

Trunk Music by Michael Connelly » “Still the same old Bosch. Your way or the highway.” « In this instalment, Bosch is back from his involuntary leave and investigates a case of the eponymous “trunk music” - a murdered man in the trunk of his own car. Bosch himself is pretty much as he always was but around him, things changed: His lieutenant, Pounds, is on another kind of involuntary and permanent “leave” and was replaced by Grace Billets. Bosch: » I’d heard that you didn’t have any actual time on a homicide table while you were coming up,” he said to her. Billets: “That’s true. My only job as an actual detective was working sexual crimes in Valley Bureau.” Bosch: “Well, for what it’s worth, I would have assigned things just the way you just did.” Billets: “But did it annoy you that I did it instead of you?” Bosch thought a moment. Bosch: “I’ll get over it.” « I liked this exchange - which is indicative of their entire relationship in this book - because, yes, he’s still “sa...

Face Her Fear by Lisa Regan My rating: 4 of 5 stars By this 19th instalment in the Josie Quinn police procedural series , Josie, our heroine, has gone through many traumata: The death of her ex-husband, the shooting of her grandmother, and the death of a colleague - things have amassed and despite being in therapy, Josie suffers from severe insomnia and now there’s bad blood between her husband Noah over… something new! No wonder Josie follows her therapist's advice and goes on a retreat with a renowned trauma therapist in a remote, isolated location in the wilderness - what could possibly go wrong?! In a setting that reminded me of Agatha Christie’s classic “And Then There Were None”, Josie faces her fear(s) when one of the other participants is murdered… A wild bear also makes an appearance and to top things off, a snowstorm suddenly starts and causes everyone to hole up together - a murderer among them! Without her team, Josie must not only work on her mental healt...

The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf My rating: 4 of 5 stars Heather Gudenkauf's " The Overnight Guest " presented a complex and engaging narrative that captured my interest from the outset. The novel interlaces two timelines and a “separate” point of view with a deft hand, and while at times the shifts between past and present required a bit of effort to stay aligned with the storyline, the overall effect added a rich texture to the reading experience. Wylie Lark, the protagonist, is a true-crime writer who finds herself trapped in a farmhouse, the location of a brutal event she's researching, during a snowstorm. The farmhouse setting in itself is one of the book's strengths: The author does an admirable job of painting a picture of the stark, wintry, partly desolate landscape. The house itself, with its history of horror, is so well depicted that it felt almost like another character – silent yet expressive. The atmosphere was sometimes as chill...

The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly My rating: 5 of 5 stars » “I didn’t know, Sylvia,” he said. “I hoped.” « I didn’t know either but had hoped for a good Bosch novel and got even more than I expected. In Michael Connelly ’s “ The Concrete Blonde ” we’re revisiting Harry’s “white whale” case, which is, of course, “The Dollmaker”’s. Harry shot that guy in self-defence four years ago but it left an ugly stain on his already rather grey vest. Harry was de facto demoted and at the time of the “Concrete Blonde” he’s being sued over that shooting when another body is found that has all the marks of a Dollmaker victim… What ensues from this point on is part courtroom drama but, to a much larger extent, a very suspenseful, exciting and smart police procedural which managed to fool me at every turn. As always, Harry investigates this at high stakes and takes great risk and, thus, we sometimes cross over into the realm of thrillers which is a very welcome aspect here. As impli...

Gravity by Tess Gerritsen My rating: 1 of 5 stars I must have read a different book from most others… I’ve read an extraordinarily cheap science fiction thriller that feels very dated, e. g. when NASA officials threaten to fax a secret to the newspapers, when they present evidence on a cassette tape and that caters to admirers of body horror at best. Yes, it’s a thrilling page turner but of the 90s variety; think of the old b-movies with body snatchers and smart scientists, a cowboy-infested US government and many more stereotypical characters and story elements. It’s mostly disgusting with cheap thrills and the intellectual depth of a puddle. I finished it less than a day ago and, thankfully, the “story” is already fading into oblivion. I’ll stick to more modern works of Gerritsen. One out of five stars. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/gravity-by-tess-gerritsen/?feed_id=2554&_unique_id=64d11b8e63769

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn My rating: 1 of 5 stars This was an all-around bad book. Most of the story elements were pilfered from the abundance of old films mentioned here, e. g. “ Rear Window ”, “ Witness To Murder ”, and large parts from more recent films like “ Copycat ”. It also reminded me a lot of an old song by Tom Lehrer: Lobachevsky . It has basically no redeeming qualities. If you want more details, read on, but be warned: Spoilers ahead! [su_spoiler title="Spoiler"] The protagonist, Anna Fox, is an ex-psychologist who suffers from agoraphobia after both her husband and her child died after an accident. She drove the car and was the sole survivor. She still talks to both of them and pretends they’re alive but live separately. Anna is on strong medication but takes those with lots and lots of wine which she’s getting delivered in bulk. She doesn’t quite see dead people yet but suffers from lots of side effects. One day Anna witnesses...

Close Her Eyes by Lisa Regan My rating: 5 of 5 stars In this latest instalment in Lisa Regan's Detective-Josie-Quinn series , Josie is called to the body of a young woman. She soon starts to discover links to past crimes, a wealthy family in a small town not far from her native Denton and even to Anya Feist, the local pathologist with whom Josie had already formed a fledgling friendship. As in most of Regan’s books in this series, one of the team plays a big part in the mystery and in this novel it’s the afore-mentioned pathologist who has a complicated past… Also in line with most of these police procedurals, the plot is very engaging: I found myself reading at pretty much every opportunity and it was with a heavy heart that I had to return to my other responsibilities. At many times, this book was a total page turner, exciting, thrilling and suspenseful. Whereas in a few previous novels in this series, there were problems with pacing or keeping things interesting, ...

In the Dark by Loreth Anne White My rating: 3 of 5 stars Nine people are invited to stay at a luxury resort in the Canadian wilderness. One of them doesn’t even depart with the others and then there were eight… When they arrive, they find out there’s no resort but a remote derelict old lodge with no power in the middle of nowhere, there’s a storm brewing, bears and wolves around, no phone signal and a killer among them - and no way home. Sounds enticing? To me at least, that’s an irresistible premise and, indeed, for about two thirds of the novel the execution held up all my expectations: Things escalated quickly and satisfyingly for the reader (not so much for the characters…). I was already beginning to formulate a review that would praise this book as an exciting, suspenseful and thrilling work! Sadly, this wouldn’t hold up: First of all, I would have loved to read continuously about the developments in and around the lodge. After all, it’s a great setting and almost part of the ca...

Slow Horses by Mick Herron My rating: 2 of 5 stars Slow Horses by Mick Herron was excessively true to its name - it’s a very slow, half-dead horse that gets beaten and bogged down by its own limping pace. And I considered myself in danger of dying from boredom. The entire first quarter consists almost exclusively of introductions to the characters and their world. Until half the book was behind me, a person had been kidnapped and that was pretty much all. Lots of foreshadowing happens, e. g. “x is going to happen”, “y is going to happen”, etc. etc. and, yes, that’s usually technically true but also entirely irrelevant for the story and the entire novel. Also annoying were the excessively long chapters - the aforementioned 25% of the book are only three chapters… The pace very slightly picked up during the final third of this novel but it was way too late and by far not enough to keep my interest. It also didn’t help that I didn’t care about any of the characters at all. Only on...

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden My rating: 3 of 5 stars Meh! I was so looking forward to reading “ The Housemaid ” by Freida McFadden - a supposedly psychological thriller involving a mysterious housemaid, an eccentric rich couple and a huge mansion. What could possibly go wrong?! And at first, things were looking good: Ex-convict Millie gets hired by Nina whose sole occupation seems to be being wife-to-Andrew. During the first part of the book Nina comes across as one part weird, three parts excessively psychologically cruel and two parts unhinged. Mille, who has supposedly recently been released after 10 years (!) in jail is in dire circumstances, living in her car until she becomes Nina’s live-in maid/victim. Still, instead of being pretty much broken she unrealistically comes across as a pretty happy person… Cecilia, Nina’s child from a one-night-stand, is inconsistently portrayed as petulant and entitled in the first part but makes a miraculous and totally unbelievable “re...

The Innocent Wife by Lisa Regan My rating: 3 of 5 stars Oh, well, here we go again - just when a mostly-meh year has ended and a new year begins, it begins with yet another meh novel… I usually like Lisa Regan's Josie-Quinn novels a lot - they’re usually very well paced, engaging and suspenseful. Josie and the entire team are interesting and everyone gets some time in the spotlight, e. g. in a recent instalment we learned a lot about Josie’s ever-angry boss. At another time Mettner, her colleague, fell in love with the press liaison, Amber, and so on. This time around in “ The Innocent Wife ” (what a cheesy title!) by Lisa Regan , there’s nothing but the plain murder mystery - and that is, indeed, rather plain. And bland, and boring. For about 80% we just follow Josie and colleagues around on a wild goose chase after the killer. Sadly, that chase is neither very interesting nor is the eventual reveal much of a result of police procedure but much of it is plain old luck - an...

A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny My rating: 5 of 5 stars » A tale of demons and witches, hidden rooms and unexpected saviors. Of Fate both cruel and kind. « “ A World of Curiosities ” by Louise Penny is another brilliant entry into a series that has long ensnared me with its curious mixture of crime, mystery and thriller in combination with true emotional depth. The almost mystic village of Three Pines and its cracked and sometimes broken inhabitants also plays a central role in this instalment. Gamache no. 18 grants us insights into the past of Armand Gamache and how he came to join the homicide department of the Sûreté in the first place. Even more importantly to the story, though, we finally learn how both Armand and Jean-Guy Beauvoir first met each other which is enticing on its own. Around this old case of murder and corruption, the story in this book evolves as the victims of the past re-emerge in Three Pines. A secret room, an old grimoire , a spellbook, a curious ...

The Cabin in the Woods by Sarah Alderson My rating: 4 of 5 stars Well, “ The Cabin in the Woods ” by Sarah Alderson was definitely a good read: Rose is on the run, currently hiding in the eponymous cabin in the woods. The book tells her story in (mostly) alternating chapters, jumping back into her past and again into Rose’s present in and around the cabin. “Cabin” is a suspenseful read during which you’ll keep guessing what’s going to happen (until a certain point…), you’ll have to suspend your disbelief a bit and the ending comes rather abruptly but it’s an entertaining read. And, at least for me, it had the wonderful “just one more chapter effect” which carries this book to a slightly generous four stars out of five. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/the-cabin-in-the-woods-by-sarah-alderson/?feed_id=1190&_unique_id=637901c0eeb1b

Stranded by Sarah Goodwin My rating: 4 of 5 stars » Fortunately I have learned that there is no justice, aside from what we make for ourselves. There is only survival, and the victor tells the story. « My wife and I lay in bed, reading. When I noticed I had read the same paragraph for a third time, I decided to call it a night. Two hours later, I woke up. My wife was still reading. Another two hours later, she was still reading. When I woke up at 05:00 (a.m.), she was asleep. The next morning I asked her which book she had read because, obviously, I wanted that, too! Turns out, it was “ Stranded ” by Sarah Goodwin . I immediately got started. “Stranded” tells the story of a group of eight people who get shipped to an uninhabited island to live there for a year. They only have what they brought, can sometimes find caches of supplies but are mostly on their own. Everything they do gets recorded by cameras in the trees around them and by body cameras. With them on the island are tw...