Thriller

Operation Vanished by Helen C. Escott

Helen C. Escott’s Operation Vanished follows closely on the heels of her bestselling Atlantic Canadian thriller Operation Wormwood (2018, Flanker Press). While that book dealt with an investigation by the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, Operation Vanished has the RCMP investigating some unsolved abductions and murders of women back in the 1950s. Heading up the investigative team is RCMP Corporal Gail McNaughton, whose own father is a retired career Mountie.… Continue reading

Remote Access by Barry Finlay

A political thriller penned in “cozy” mode (no profanity, no sex scenes) by retired Government of Canada employee (and award-winning author) Barry Finlay is actually #3 in the Marcie Kane series of thrillers. While I have not read the previous two installments, I found that not knowing her backstory in no way hampered my enjoyment of this book. The action begins almost immediately and the implications are profound: Annie Logan, the wife of the President’s Cheif of Staff has been hacked by a professional hired by a Chinese businessman and a government official (unbeknownst to each other) to help defeat a Presidental order to put in force steep tariffs on imported Chinese goods.… Continue reading

Between Rothko and 3 Windows by Corrado Paina

Paina has published five collections of poetry with Mansfield Press (Toronto) including Hoarse Legend (2000) and cinematic taxi (2015). In Italy, there have been numerous publications including a collection of short stories, several collections of poetry, and the original version of this novella, “tra Rothko e tre finestre”. One of the greatest joys in reviewing books is the unexpected pleasure of discovering an excellent story when you least expect it.… Continue reading

The Jennifer Soosar Interview

Soosar is a Toronto-based writer who has just had her first novel Parent Teacher Association published. It is a suspenseful mystery set in the small, strange Pennsylvania town of Splinter Wood, where two children have died in the past two years under mysterious circumstances. You can read a full review of Parent Teacher Association here.

Miramichi Reader: Jennifer, please tell us a bit about your background, etc.… Continue reading

Parent Teacher Association by Jennifer Soosar

arent Teacher Association is, as the cover states, a “Novel of Suspense” which it very much is. The female protagonist is Lizanne Demeter, a young teacher looking for a second chance in life. She finds herself reborn, recently released from a mental institution to which she was committed after a foolish suicide attempt due to a failed romance. On a new wonder-drug for depression called Zedorn, she feels that her traumatic past is behind her and she wants to move on and start teaching children again.… Continue reading

Straw Man (A Jack McMorrow Mystery #11) by Gerry Boyle

: Straw Man was the winner of the 2017 Maine Literary Award for Crime Fiction!

Islandport Books has released book #11 in the Jack McMorrow Mystery series by Maine author Gerry Boyle. I previously reviewed #10 Once Burned and said that the hard-boiled detective created by Dashiell Hammett is alive and well and living in rural Maine, working as a freelance writer/reporter. This time Jack is up against gun runners, gangs and Old Order Mennonites in his quest for stories.… Continue reading

AMACAT (Thief for Hire, Book #2) by Chuck Bowie

Sean Donovan is back in action, albeit against his will, in AMACAT, book #2 of the “Thief for Hire” series penned by New Brunswick author Chuck Bowie. Forced out of his self-imposed retirement to help solve a murder (along with a vacationing Minnesotan couple) in PEI, Sean soon finds himself assisting an employee (who appeared briefly in book #1) at the Canadian embassy in London to clear her name in a breach of security case, as well as helping his sister out of a jam in Montreal, to whom her boyfriend has gifted a stolen, ugly (but valuable) fish mask, which results in having an overly aggressive insurance agent on her trail.… Continue reading

Strangers on the Beach by Josh Pahigian

Maine resident Josh Pahigian’s first novel Strangers on a Beach (2012, Islandport Press) is what I consider the perfect type of “summer read”. By that I mean it is a mystery/thriller that will hold your attention until the end, the type of book to take on vacation, one you can put down to have some fun, then pick up when you have a relaxing moment. That is not to say you cannot read this in the dead of winter; it’s just the location of the book (Old Orchard Beach, Maine) lends itself to summer and playing in the waves or sitting on the beach getting some sun.… Continue reading