Missive #289 Published 4 June 2024

This book concludes the Canaan Crime trilogy. Usually it doesn't make much difference in what order you read a trilogy but in this case this third book is a sequel and the two prior books are best read first. A good mystery, as were the prior two. The author has some stand alone books that I have now added to my To Read List.

Missive #287 Published 1 June 2024

This is another one of Huxley's ‘fusing idea with story’ which I'm guessing was to be his continued writing style. The book would have been about half as long without his philosophy. I could have possibly enjoyed the book more if he had provided translations for all the French and Latin that was his wont to quote.

Missive #285 Published 30 May 2024

Alan, the beadle of the manor of Bampton, had gone out at dusk to seek those who might violate curfew. When, the following morning, he had still not returned home, his young wife Matilda sought out Master Hugh de Singleton, surgeon and bailiff of the manor.

Two days later Alan's corpse is discovered in the hedge, at the side of the track to St. Andrew's Chapel. His throat has been torn out, his head half-severed from his body and his face, hands, and forearms lacerated with deep scratches.

Missive #282 Published 23 May 2024

It’s a dreadfully long monster of a book,” Wildeblood says pettishly, “and I certainly won’t have time to read it, but I’m giving it a thorough skimming. The authors are utterly incompetent—no sense of style or structure at all. It starts out as a detective story, switches to science-fiction, then goes off into the supernatural, and is full of the most detailed information of dozens of ghastly boring subjects. And the time sequence is all out of order in a has the most raunchy sex scenes, thrown in just to make it sell, I’m sure, and the authors—whom I’ve never heard of— have the supreme bad taste to introduce real political figures into this mishmash and pretend to be exposing a real conspiracy. You can be sure I won’t waste time reading such rubbish, but I’ll have a perfectly devastating review ready for you by tomorrow noon.”

“Well, we don’t expect you to read every book you review,” Peter says mollifyingly, “just so long as you can be entertaining.

Missive #281 Published 20 May 2024

An investigation of the back-and-forth between advocates of a strong dollar and those of a weak one.… An engaging outing for financial policy wonks that should also serve as a warning to economic policymakers. — Kirkus Reviews

This book has some good historical information but I knew most of it without reading the book. If you have been paying attention to what has been going on for any length of time this book is probably not for you.