Reviewed by Claire Hamner Matturro Isn’t there something about a cozy mystery and a wedding that makes for a natural nexus between the two? A cozy mystery—a subgenre of crime fiction—is charming, but not without its drama, tension, and suspense, which, it so happens, are also elements of a typical wedding. Thus, within the ever-popular […]
“Troubles Wedding Caper,” by Jen Talty and “The Truffle with Weddings,” by Laura Durham
April 17, 2019 by 1 Comment
“Love and Death in the Sunshine State: The Story of a Crime,” by Cutter Wood
January 17, 2019 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Claire Hamner Matturro Even amid high crime statistics and several infamously grisly Florida murders, the 2008 killing at the center of Love and Death in the Sunshine State: The Story of a Crime (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2018) still drew national attention, including a 2016 feature on NBC’s Dateline. But it wasn’t […]
“The Stranger Inside,” by Laura Benedict
January 8, 2019 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Claire Hamner Matturro Let’s get the obvious out of the way: The Stranger Inside (Mulholland Books, 2019) is a big, grand, intelligent thriller by Laura Benedict that will have readers guessing and gasping as they avidly turn the pages. The phrase “the plot thickens” is an understatement with regards to The Stranger Inside. […]
“Key West—A Lush and Magical place for Cozy Mysteries,” by Claire Hamner Matturro
November 8, 2018 by 3 Comments
Review essay by Claire Hamner Matturro Key West. Ah, just read the words in a mystery novel and a certain whirl and whoosh of coconut-scented, warm, moist air seems to fly off the pages. From the lush tropical landscape and the complex history to the raucous party atmosphere, from the old-world elegance of the Hemingway […]
November Read of the Month: “Christian Bend,” by Karen Spears Zacharias
November 1, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Claire Hamner Matturro Karen Spears Zacharias writes with remarkable sensitivity and insight. She is so profoundly in touch with her fictional people that she can present a tale from multiple points of view with an acuity and heart-felt honesty that soon makes her characters feel like close friends to the reader. Because of […]