Judge Stone by James Patterson and Viola Davis

JUDGE STONE by James Patterson and Viola Davis (narrator) shares the tale of the title character, Mary Stone, who draws the judicial assignment of overseeing a court case involving Bria Gaines, a local doctor, and the accusation that Bria has performed an illegal abortion on a thirteen-year-old, Nova Jones. The setting is a small town, Union Springs, in present day Alabama and feelings run high, often prompting recall of past traumas. Activists from both sides, including Klan members, convey their views (sometimes with violence) on this triggering and divisive subject. As Mary’s sister says, “Call it abortion, pro-life, pro-choice, women's reproductive health. Doesn't matter how you label it, there is no middle ground. None. Not here in Alabama. The issue fires people up. Makes them unhinged.” Even the governor and state officials try to convince Judge Stone to recuse herself. As expected, Patterson provides plenty of action, with a murder, a bombing, and other threats. JUDGE STONE received a starred review from Booklist. Readers who would like to listen to Viola Davis’ expressive reading can find a sample of the audiobook at this link.

Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser

LADY TREMAINE by Rachel Hochhauser is an impressive debut, containing a clever retelling of the Cinderella story, this time focusing on its title character, the stepmother. Twice widowed and impoverished, Lady Ethel Tremaine struggles to provide for her two daughters (Matilda and Rosamund) and ungrateful, detached step-daughter (Elin), constantly hoping that a fortuitous marriage will improve their fortunes. With its themes of motherhood (“The love of a mother does away with scales and measurement altogether; It envelops and understands and embraces what is cracked along with what is beautiful.”), social standing, resilience, and feminism, this title would be an interesting and discussion-provoking choice for book groups. LADY TREMAINE received starred review from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus. It is both a LibraryReads selection and an IndieNext pick for March.

Stakeouts and Strollers by Rob Phillips

STAKEOUTS AND STROLLERS by Rob Phillips is an award-winning debut mystery, with a cute cover that captured my attention. I was expecting something light and cozy and initially felt that this was a little too silly until I started to build affection for the characters and appreciation for what becomes a fairly complicated plot set in the Bay Area. The main character is Charlie Shaw, an ex-journalist, now newbie PI, married to his high school sweetheart and dad to a six-month-old daughter. His inexperience contributes to both hilarity and danger as he shifts from tailing a client’s cheating wife to trying to find the dysfunctional, missing father of sixteen-year-old Friday Finley, a runaway who has just lost her Mom. It seems that the missing Dad is involved (voluntarily or not?) in some shady dealings including gambling, crooked cops, and even murder. Solving this dilemma and supporting the troubled teen requires the involvement of Dwayne Powell, a retired police officer and Shaw’s boss. There will undoubtedly be more in this charming series, as Phillips writes, “This book, above all else, is about fathers and daughters and the space a little girl takes in her daddy's heart.” STAKEOUTS AND STROLLERS received a starred review from Library Journal.

 

The Star from Calcutta by Sujata Massey

THE STAR FROM CALCUTTA by Sujata Massey is the fifth mystery in the series  (see The Widows of Malabar Hill and others) featuring Perveen Mistry in 1920s India. Once again, the first female lawyer in Bombay is working a unique case, this time involving the moviemaking industry. Her client, Rochana, is a famous star originally from Calcutta and now in some danger as she and her new husband may lose their film company. Even Perveen and her friend Alice Hobson-Jones may fall under suspicion when a film censor is found dead after a screening they all attended. Massey offers suspense in an intriguing setting with likeable characters. THE STAR FROM CALCUTTA received a starred review from Booklist (“wonderful history-mystery read, filled with fascinating details both of the complexity of life in British India and of the workings of the 1920s film world”).   

Everyone in This Bank is a Thief

A LibraryReads Hall of Fame selection for March, EVERYONE IN THIS BANK IS A THIEF by Benjamin Stevenson is the latest in his very entertaining Ernest Cunningham series. In this case, old Ern may have really pushed the envelope as he is trapped in a bank by a rather ineffective robber. Someone mysteriously dies and it looks like Ern could be next. He’s intent on solving the mystery, though, and playing fair with his readers by providing as much background as he can. Noting, for example, that “We've got a dead body in Byron, two hours’ drive from here, a police raid a year ago that resulted in another dead body, a missing banker, a vault that can't be opened, a bank robber who doesn't seem to care about money, and a guard who doesn't care about protecting it, plus a priest who can't talk and a bird that won't shut up.” Stevenson is very clever in crafting this series and I doubt that too many readers will jump to the right conclusion here… plenty of twists and interrelationships despite Ern’s admonition that “You don't need to solve every little thing. Just solve the things that matter.”  The audiobook is narrated by Barton Welch who does a commendable job (and has so many great lines to deliver, like: “Winston rolled his eyes and turned to Juliette, ‘Is he always this argumentative?’ ‘Yes,’ [she responded] ‘I disagree,’ I said.)”. EVERYONE IN THIS BANK IS A THIEF received starred reviews from Kirkus (“Resign yourself to being stumped, and enjoy.”) and Publishers Weekly (“Stevenson’s hot streak continues”).

Nobody's Baby by Olivia Waite

NOBODY’S BABY by Olivia Waite is a short (144 pages) novella set in space. The baby is a total surprise as people traveling on the spaceship for hundreds of years are not supposed to be able to have children. The main character, a detective named Dorothy Gentleman, has a nephew who finds the baby and wants to raise it with his partner. Their reaction to the whole situation is heartwarming in itself, as are Dorothy’s efforts to untangle the legal status of a being who is not supposed to exist. NOBODY’S BABY is a LibraryReads selection for March; that’s where I first heard about this second book in the series (after Murder By Memory) where “Becky Chambers meets Miss Marple.” Kirkus described NOBODY’S BABY as “a gentle charmer of a SF mystery that surprises as it satisfies” and Booklist gave it a starred review. Enjoy!