Reviewed by Krista McKeeth

The ancient city of Cairo is a feverish tangle of the old and the new, of the superrich and the desperately poor, with inequality and corruption everywhere. It’s a place where grudges and long-buried secrets can fester, and where people can disappear in the blink of an eye.

Makana, a former Sudanese police inspector forced to flee to Cairo, is now struggling to make ends meet as a private detective. In need of money, he takes a case from the notoriously corrupt mogul Saad Hanafi, owner of a Cairo soccer team, whose star player, Adil Romario, has gone missing. Soon, Makana is caught up in a mystery that takes him into the treacherous underbelly of his adopted city, encountering Muslim extremists, Russian gangsters, vengeful women, and a desperate mother hunting for her missing daughter-a trail that leads him back into his own story, stirring up painful personal memories and bringing him face-to-face with an old enemy from his past …

Published on the anniversary of the revolution in Egypt, The Golden Scales is an elegantly written, thrilling story set in a city of upheaval, chaos, and corruption.

Hardcover, 397 pages  Published January 31st 2012 by Bloomsbury USA (first published January 2nd 2012)

ISBN  1608197948 (ISBN13: 9781608197941)

Makana, a broken man who is just trying to make ends meet, is now living on a broken down old houseboat. He was once a detective on the police force but after losing his wife and child he was forced to flee his homeland. Makana accepts a job with pay too high to refuse and discovers that it will lead him down a path to face his own past.

Adil Romario may be the reason that Makana delves into the past of several characters in the story, yet the answers he discovers are far from to do with Adil himself. The answers go back years, to Cairo’s corrupted leaders and gangsters like Saad Hanafi, now a very wealthy and powerful man whose deeds both inspire and terrorize the civilians of the city. However, the real question is why, with all the connections, Mr Hanafi chooses to hire Makana?

Golden Scales has a heavy atmosphere, with the past crashing into the future, and Makana wading his way through a modern day Cairo, where the slums are squashed right up against the pillars of mansions and expensive tourist sites. Religion, politics and money all play important roles in this story. As the setting itself is one of the oldest civilizations in history and involving current day topics, I found the story to be informative as well as entertaining. Makana is a character who’s determination is at times awe inspiring, yet still he acts on instinct without rationalizing his actions. Both characteristics play out well in the story, to add suspense and character growth. He is a very hardened man, but humane at heart.

Golden Scales is a detective novel that encompasses several story lines that diverge and cross, eventually colliding into a well played out mystery of revenge, family, and power.

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Reviewed by Krista McKeeth

An ancient volume of philosophical heresy provides a motive for murder in this haunting, lyrical novel of forensics, archeology, and history—the fourth in an acclaimed suspense series. What sort of book is worth a man’s life? After a year away from working in the field, archaeologist Cormac Maguire and pathologist Nora Gavin are back in the bogs, investigating a ninth-century body found buried in the trunk of a car. They discover that the ancient corpse is not alone—pinned beneath it is the body of Benedict Kavanagh, missing for mere months and familiar to television viewers as a philosopher who enjoyed destroying his opponents in debate. Both men were viciously murdered, but centuries apart—so how did they end up buried together in the bog?

While on the case, Cormac and Nora lodge at Killowen, a nearby artists’ colony, organic farm, and sanctuary for eccentric souls. Digging deeper into the older crime, they become entangled in high-stakes intrigue encompassing Kavanagh’s death while surrounded by suspects in his ghastly murder. It seems that everyone at Killowen has some secret to protect.

Set in modern-day Ireland, The Book of Killowen reveals a new twist on the power of language—and on the eternal mysteries of good and evil.

Hardcover, 352 pages  Published March 5th 2013 by Scribner (first published March 1st 2013)  ISBN 1451634846 (ISBN13: 9781451634846)

When an archaeologist and pathologist are called out to the bogs to investigate the finding of an ancient body, they discover that there is another corpse underneath it. And this one is recently dead. The missing Benedict Kavanagh, who is known for his television debates, turns out to be the recently deceased. Nora and Carmac stay at a nearby Killoween, an organic farm community, during their investigation to find out who might be connected to Benedict’s murder and why.

They discover that the people living in this area have a lot of secrets and it’s going to take a lot of digging to figure out who knows what.  As untrained detectives, Cormac and Nora appealed to me more as a reader because I could relate better to them as investigators than I could to  hard-core detective-types. The longer they stay among the community the more they get to know the people and build relationships with them. They eventually gain the locals trust and begin to put the puzzle together.

I was thoroughly impressed with the different layers to this story. It is obvious that the author did a lot of research into the history of Illuminated manuscripts, antiquities, folklore and science for this story. When digging into Kavanagh’s past, the two discover that he not only had an interest in medieval books, but also a fancy for younger girls. They find themselves in danger when they begin to figure out the mystery.

The pacing and well crafted story lines unfold with great ease. With both shocking and suspenseful moments mixed into the historical and personal lives of the people, The Book of Killoween is an entertaining and educational read. This is the first book I have read by Erin Hart and am looking forward to reading the other books in this series. 

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Reviewed by Joelene Pynnonen

Since 2008 the Ghost Adventures crew, consisting of Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin, has taken TV audiences into some of the most terrifying and haunted buildings in the world. Three ordinary guys; dozens of extraordinary locations. Now, for the first time in his book, Chasing Spirits, Nick Groff is offering a deeper insight into the show that has captivated thousands.

From early on in life, he has had a sense of adventure, and a curiosity for the unknown. This, combined with his deep interest in film, all served to spark the beginning of what would become the hit series Ghost Adventures.

Fans of Ghost Adventures will be delighted with this down-to-earth, in-depth look at Nick’s life, loves and experiences. As one third of the GA team, it is too easy for Nick’s personality to be stifled by Zak’s dynamic presence, so having his side of the story fleshes out a lot of what is not seen in the series.

While there are numerous chilling locations described within these pages, from abandoned mental asylums to darkly historic prisons, Poveglia Island is the one that will stay with me. The history of bubonic plague victims being burnt in giant pyres there and an asylum later being constructed has left the island with a plethora of restless spirits. The lockdown that Zak, Nick and Aaron go into there sounds terrifying.

For those who have watched the series but want to know more, Chasing Spirits offers rare insight into many of the locations from GA’s first season. Delving into the questions that the series has left unanswered, Nick explains what it was like to have a dark spirit attempt to take him over, how his visit to Linda Vista Hospital has changed him and what his beliefs are about ghosts. Sometimes controversial; always unapologetic, Chasing Spirits follows Nick on a journey that is both physical and spiritual, exhilarating and exhausting.

The closest you’ll come to lockdown from the safety of your lounge, Chasing Spirits is a must-read for any paranormal enthusiast.

Chasing Spirits – Nick Groff

Allen & Unwin (October 2, 2012)

 ISBN: 9781742379487

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Reviewed by Krista Mckeeth

From three-time Edgar Award–winning mystery writer Ruth Rendell comes a captivating and expertly plotted tale of residents and servants on one block of a posh London street—and the deadly ways their lives intertwine.Life for the residents and servants of Hexam Place appears placid and orderly on the outside: drivers take their employers to and from work, dogs are walked, flowers are planted in gardens, and Christmas candles lit uniformly in windows. But beneath this tranquil veneer, the upstairs-downstairs relationships are set to combust.

Henry, the handsome valet to Lord Studley, is sleeping with both the Lord’s wife and his university-age daughter. Montserrat, the Still family’s lazy au pair, assists Mrs. Still in keeping secret her illicit affair with a television actor—in exchange for pocket cash. June, the haughty housekeeper to a princess of dubious origin, tries to enlist her fellow house-helpers into a “society” to address complaints about their employers. Meanwhile, Dex, the disturbed gardener to several families on the block, thinks a voice on his cell phone is giving him godlike instructions—commands that could imperil the lives of all those in Hexam Place.

The St. Zita Society is Ruth Rendell at her brilliant best—a deeply observed and suspenseful novel of murder in the quintessentially London world of servants and their masters.

Hardcover, 272 pages  Published August 14th 2012 by Scribner (first published July 5th 2012)  ISBN  1451666683 (ISBN13: 9781451666687)

Here is a book that would make a perfect serial or television show. There are many characters involved which I found overwhelming at times. If they’d been presented more gradually, the story would have blown my mind. There is enough tension, paranoia, lies, cover-ups, deceit and yes, murder, to fuel season after season of great TV. As it is, in a single book format, it came off a little confusing, with a slow build up.

The St. Zita Society is a group of local workers in Hexam Place, a very contemporary London street. They meet weekly to discuss topics of interest regarding the improvement of the neighbourhood, as well as to gossip and shed their grievances about their jobs. Members of the group are all the workers of the different families that live iHexam Place and these get-togethers are a form of stress release. All of them have secrets and desires of their own, and during the course of the story they exhibit a range of distinct human emotions from paranoia, schizophrenia, loneliness, to jealousy and haughtiness.

The real crime happens about halfway through the novel. An accidental death turns into a cover-up and from there, secrets, back stabbing and alternative motives begin to emerge. With so many characters and overlapping stories, at this point there is not a dull moment. The residents of Hexam Place may look like they are living ordinary lives to those on the outside but that’s not the case to those on the inside. Only time will tell when their secrets will be revealed.

I was lucky enough to get a copy of the audio-book for this review. The narrator was a key to my enjoyment of the story. As I am American, her accent really added to the aesthetic enjoyment to the story. She made me, as the reader, feel like a member of their group and my heart went out to some of the characters, and the emotional grief they experience in this story.

 Simon & Schuster Audio | 

• ISBN 9781442349810

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Reviewed by Krista McKeeth

Through years of success in Hollywood composing music for Oscar-winning films, Chris Lowndes always imagined he would come full circle, home to Yorkshire with his beloved wife Laura.

Now he’s back in the Yorkshire Dales, but Laura is dead, and Chris needs to make a new life for himself. The isolated house he buys sight unseen should give him the space to come to terms with his grief and the quiet to allow him to work.

Kilnsgate House turns out to be rather more than he expected, however. A man died there, sixty years ago. His wife was convicted of murder. And something is pulling Chris deeper and deeper into the story of Grace Elizabeth Fox, who was hanged by the neck until she was dead . . .

Hardcover, 436 pages

Published 2011 by Hodder & Stoughton ISBN 1444704834 (ISBN13: 9781444704839)

Chris is a widower and now, later in life has decided to return home to settle down, purchasing a house out in the country for a quite place to work on a new project. He becomes obsessed with the story of the past owners’ of the house, which turns out to be a famous recent murder cases. Everywhere he looks in the house he feels Grace’s presence and cannot escape the nagging feeling there was more to her life than being accused of murdering her husband.

The writing is so atmospheric and really takes the reader to a relaxing and sometimes melancholy world. The descriptions of the house and the land were breath-taking. It gives the reader the feeling of really being there, in this gorgeous mansion, expansive lands and quaint local stores and pubs.

This is my first read from author Peter Robinson. I loved the writing style and feelings that the story evoked. I must admit that I was expecting for the story to be more edgy as the clues began to unravel but it was like reading a classic crime novel; a slow unravelling of details and not much of a “big” moment, but an ending that lingers with you.

There are times when we are taken deep into the aftermath of World War II as Chris learns more about Grace’s life as a nurse; inlcuding pages of historical information about the process of war and the use of poisons and gas testing. About halfway through, we are introduced to Grace more directly through her old writings and get to see her life from her own perspective which was interesting and really puts us in her head. I had to take the book in sections and didn’t experience a lot of gasping, or moments that caught me off-guard.

Through his research and travels to find out about Grace’s life, Chris learns many things, solving more than one mystery along the way. These side stories held more of the “edge” I was looking for in the main narrative.

It is very much a character driven story, not only revolving around the obsession Chris has with Grace, but about his own life as well. He’s distracted from the events of his past. Moving to this quiet house was supposed to give him the space and time he needed for his new project, but he cannot concentrate and finds these distractions welcome. The time he takes to learn about Grace lets him come to terms with events from his own life.

If you’re looking for a read that is light on the crime and mystery with a slower moving plot line and a gradual revelation of secrets from the past (as well as travels from England to France to Southern Africa), this is your book. It will take you all over the world through the eyes of both Chris and Grace. Before the Poison is a novel of great writing that is both visually aesthetic and emotionally atmospheric.

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