An overbearing old house with a haunting overshadowing past that looms over its inhabitants. Dorothy Eden uses this trait of gothic romance in a consummate setting for Death is a Red Rose. The book is whimsical and a breezy read even though the atmosphere inside the house is ominous and heavy with secrets and lies. The surest way to intrigue a suspense novel reader is to introduce the suspects. So, here goes – Arabia Bolton is a drama loving, senile, lonely old…
Not again.. A sassy rookie FBI agent who knows better than everyone? Not what I picked up to read.. That’s what I thought through the first chapter. It reminded me of Quantico (The Priyanka Chopra starring TV series on ABC). The Killing Hour review would not have made it to Writersbrew. However, a few chapters later things got decidedly better (or rather worse.. which is a great thing for a serial killer novel). At one point a live viper jumped…
It is fun to pick up a book from an author you haven’t read before, and get amply rewarded with a a good story. Dark Clouds, by author Phil Rowan, was a chance find. If you like a terrorist chase and not too much heroics, then this book might be for you. Dark Clouds follows journalist, Rudi Flynn, as he manages his sagging career and the demands of being an unwilling spy for his government. He is an American on…
It was here, on writersbrew, that ladki kijhy said, if I like murder mysteries I should read Reginald Hill. Sound advice; that I followed. So, I picked my first book following the legendary Dalziel and sergeant Pascoe. The book was Death Comes as an End. Mid way I googled out it was the 23rd book in the series, close to the very end. I enjoyed it enough to venture into the series for a 2nd time. This time I started at…
If I had to write a one line review of the series, I would say Homeland is a good, solid show. It is fast paced without being shallow. Also it keeps you guessing and makes you actually care about the fate of everyone involved. Carrie Mathison, as the bipolar CIA analyst, is flawlessly portrayed by Claire Danes. She is somewhat of a prodigy, disregarding rules, going crazy, with a hawk eyed single mindedness, ingenuity and fierce loyalty. Her mentor, in some ways…
I have recently been watching the BBC adaptation of Agatha Christie’s murder mystery novels featuring David Suchet as the renowned fastidious detective, Hercule Poirot. It’s a charming television adaptation of the books. So, thought it was time I spoke of this love of mine. Agatha Christie wrote over 60 crime fiction novels. Hercule Poirot, the Sherlock Homes like detective penned down by Agatha Christie, is the only known fictional character to have received an obituary, that too on the front…
What is astonishing is that at different stages of one’s life the same books retain the familiar feel and continue to unlock something new each read. I sometimes wonder what lies within these books that their memory lingers years after I read them. In fact, I have never really kept them aside, but carried them within me, and now given the slightest chance I read, re-read and write to share with you. Today, I attempt to write about Rebacca by Daphne Du Maurier. An…