Crime History...but keep your personal politics out!

Popular Crime: Reflections on the Celebration of Violence… by Bill James

I enjoyed the book. I think he did a good job highlighting many of the cases and made his point how the media drives the popularity of a case and can in some cases taint it in the criminal justice system. My only problem with James is he should keep his personal view on politics to himself.

Please let me join the Vidocq Society!!!!

The Murder Room: The Heirs of Sherlock Holmes Gather to Solve the World's Most Perplexing Cold Cases… by Michael Capuzzo

I actually liked this book. I have always been very interested in the Vidocq Society and found the history of how the organization was formed very interesting. I was familiar with most of the cases presented in the book, through other reading I had done in the past, the the macabre details were not shocking to me but might be to some. I read the book, not to focus on the cases, but on the people in the organization. I found it an interesting point of view by the author and I thought that the life stories of the three original members (Walter, Fleisher, and Bender) were fascinating. They have always been portrayed very differently in the media and it was great that they offered to participate in having the stories of their life made public. There are many books that contradict the work of the Vidocq Society, but I am glad that this book was written and portrays them as an organization that does help families and law enforcement organization, and that their work should not go unrecognized.

I am a Kip Yarber Fan!

Corpses and Canyons by Don Yarber

Corpses and Canyons was an exciting page turner by Don Yarber. Rarely, do I have the time to sit down and read a book from cover to cover in one evening. This book was the second in the “Kip Yardley Mystery” series. I was a bit nervous about reading a second book in a series, because I had not read the first, but as soon as I had started to read it, it did not matter. Kip Yardley, P.I., is a likeable character, helping out an old friend Jeremy, as they try to solve the murder of Jeremy’s friend. The book has lots of plot twists and turns, much like driving through a canyon road, and I enjoyed the unpredictability of the story up until the very end. The characters were interesting, and you never knew who to trust. It had all of the makings of a good mystery.

Cold Cold Sea

I had a love/hate relationship with this book.  It was a thriller and and and like a bad addiction, I could not stop reading until I finished the book. As sick and twisted as some of the characters were, I wanted more and the author delivered!  I read this book over the weekend with my three year old at my beach house...I will be keeping a closer eye on my kids now!

You Got Me!!!

Very rarely do I read a book where an author captures my attention.  In this case,  right off Ms. Cooke had my full attention, because the subject matter dealt with a therapist working with a severely emotionally disturbed child, who came from an unstable home.  Since this was my job for many years, I was fascinated to read about the dynamics and issues that went on between the therapist, social worker, and the boy, and as geeky as this sounds, how policy worked in Northern Ireland.  I was immediately sucked in, and could not put it down.  I was impressed at how realistic it seemed, even when sometimes the lines between therapist and patient seemed to be crossed, maybe I was getting a little too  into the story, but in the end...Carolyn Jess-Cooke, You got me!