July 2006

It's July at the Mystery Morgue, and you know what that means, so I'm not going to tell you.

This month, you'll find a true bounty of mystery book reviews, including titles from favorites like Sarah Strohmeyer, M.J. Rose, Nancy Martin and Laura Lippman.  Also, the "How I Write" column in this issue comes from Troy Cook, author of the brand new 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers.

There is also a very interesting interview with Harry Hunsicker, author of the Lee Henry Oswald series, about to launch the second title in that thread, The Next Time You Die.  And the newest chapter in our ongoing (and ongoing, and ongoing) serial mystery "Murder By Committee" is by J.T. Ellison, a newcomer whose novel All the Pretty Girls will be published next year.  You can also read her weekly entries on the blog murderati.com.

So sit back with a cool drink and take in the murder.  It's going to be a long, hot summer, but we've got plenty for you to do here at the Morgue.

In this month's issue:

4.7 Rules Of Highly Effective Writers or How I Write, by Troy Cook
The Mystery Morgue Interview: Harry Hunsicker

Reviews:
Eye of God: A Mystery, by Jon L. Breen
Consigned to Death, by Jane K. Cleland
To Thine Own Self Be True, by Judy Clemens
Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter, by Blaize Clement
Married to the Mop, by Barbara Colley
Moonblind, by Laura Crum
Shadow Man, by James D. Doss
How to Succeed in Murder, by Margaret Dumas
Flying Too High: A Phryne Fisher Mystery, by Kerry Greenwood
An Image of Death, by Libby Fischer Hellmann
The Devil's Game: An Unlikely Mystery, by David Holland
The Next Time You Die: A Lee Henry Oswald Mystery, by Harry Hunsicker
Now You See Me..., by Rochelle Krich
Family Business, by Janet LaPierre
No Good Deeds, by Laura Lippman
Murder on the Rocks, by Karen MacInerney
How to Murder a Millionaire, by Nancy Martin
The Night Gardener, by George Pelecanos
Impulse, by Frederick Ramsay
The Venus Fix, by M.J. Rose
Dead Center, by David Rosenfelt
A Killer Collection, by J.B. Stanley
The Cinderella Pact, by Sarah Strohmeyer

Ongoing Story:
"Murder By Committee," Chapter 26, by J.T. Ellison

Link to Archives

 

4.7 Rules Of Highly Effective Writers, or How I Write
by Troy Cook

Troy Cook's debut novel, 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers, just won the Silver Evvy Award for Best Novel. In his previous career he wrote and directed several films.

I'm going to let you in on a secret!

The secret to great writing is... well... first, a caveat. This won't work for everyone. You might have to adapt these rules to make them work for you.

When I was a child I used to have a difficult time writing. My pen simply couldn't keep up with my brain. Consequently I thought I wasn't a very creative person and gave up any thoughts of writing. Instead I focused on the logical and technical side of things. As a grown man I started working as a technician on movies.

And life was pretty good.

But as I worked my way up the ladder, I started getting jobs that were creative. Lighting and cinematography, and eventually on to writing and directing movies.

And life was fantastic!

This is what I was meant to do. However, just because I was meant to do it, doesn't mean I actually could. Writing is fun, but it's also easier said than done. And after experiencing the creative life I did not want to go back to a regular job. At this point I was pretty sure I couldn't survive as a cubicle dweller. Like many caged animals I become listless and depressed.

What I needed was a system. Some rules to make this work. And not 47 quirky rules, as in my debut crime novel, but a few rules that keep me going in the right direction. I came up with these rules as a screenwriter, but found that they worked just as well when I wrote my first two novels.

Rule #1: Sit my butt down in the chair and start writing! This is essential, and more difficult than it sounds. I love writing, but it's amazing how many ways I can come up with to keep from doing it. Procrastination has even come in the form of doing housework. And I hate doing housework. That's why I made the rule—it's a way of tricking my brain.

Rule #2: Don't leave the chair until my shift is up! If my brain knows that it can't leave until it does its job, it gets right to work. I keep myself on a rigid schedule, just like a "real" job. After some experimentation I found that afternoons work best for the creative side of my brain. Writing in the evening is next to impossible for me as brain drain has officially taken place.

Rule #3: There is no such thing as writer's block! I used to say this as a mantra, hoping it would scare the evil "writer's block" demons away. But then I discovered that writer's block isn't real. Think about it—is there any other job where you can get away with saying that you aren't going to work today—that your muse hasn't descended upon you? Take a truck driver; how do you think his boss would react after being told the driver has Truck Driver's Block and that he won't be able to deliver their shipment today? The trucker would be out of a job. And it's the same for writers. If you want to be a pro, you write. And you write and you write and you write. Some days, I don't have all the right stuff. But that's okay because I can always rewrite it.

Rule #4: Editing is your friend! And maybe the best friend you'll ever have.  I wish the perfect words flowed straight from my fingertips into the computer, but it doesn't happen that way. Each day I start by rewriting the previous day's work. After that's done my family takes a look at it and following that my critique group gets the pages. Sometimes there's a huge improvement and sometimes it's very small. But even with the small changes I figure that extra 5-10% improvement is what kicks it over the top. The changes that make it ready for publication. Well... kind of. Now the editor from the publisher takes over and wrings out a bunch more improvement. Did I mention before that writing is a lot of work?

Rule #.7: Believe! Persevere! I would never make it through writing an entire novel if I didn't believe in myself and persevere through the rough patches. This is very important, but it applies to everything in life, not just writing. So that's why it only qualifies as a .7 rule instead of a whole one (I'm sure it has nothing to do with the title of my bank robbing novel).

That's my system, for better or worse. The real secret to writing is coming up with a system that works. Any system. This is what works for me. Have fun writing!

 

The Mystery Morgue Interview: Harry Hunsicker

When you live in Dallas and write about a private investigator named Lee Oswald, you have better be ready to answer a few questions.  Harry Hunsicker understands.

A fourth-generation Dallas resident, Hunsicker created Lee Henry Oswald, who makes his debut in the acclaimed mystery Still River (recently nominated for a Shamus Award), and its sequel, The Next Time You Die, which makes its debut this month.

Hunsicker, a commercial real estate appraiser when he's not writing the next Oswald mystery, draws less on his own experience than on his knowledge of Dallas and its real estate to bolster the authenticity of his debut novel.

Interview by Gloria Feit

Did the area where you grew up influence your present outlook or interests?  

I was born and raised in Dallas, the fourth generation of my family to call the city home.  Dallas, in many ways, presents itself as this entrepreneurial utopia, a Mecca for the self-made man.  The competitive spirit which drives people to succeed also drives them to take chances and cut certain legal and ethical corners, making the city a breeding ground for various types of conflict, both real and imagined.  Which is a very good thing for a novelist.

As to your educational background, have you taken any formal writing courses, participated in any writers' conferences or workshops?

I have a BA in history.  A few years ago, when the urge to write became overwhelming, I took a couple of continuing education classes in creative writing from Southern Methodist University.  I also applied several times to Breadloaf and Sewanee summer writing conferences but was turned down.  I don't think they much care for hard-boiled genre fiction.  But I could be wrong.  I am a long time member of a critique group that meets once a week.  The members have been a huge help for my writing as well as a continuing source of encouragement.  All that said, I think the best education for a novelist is to read, read, read.

How/when did you become interested in mysteries?

I became interested in the genre when I learned to read, more years ago than I care to remember.  I started on the Hardy Boys and moved onto Alfred Hitchcock's young adult "Three Investigators" series.  After that it didn't take long for me to discover Robert B. Parker, Robert Ludlum, etc.

What did you try writing before your first novel?  

Grocery lists.  And a very bad short story for a creative writing class at SMU.  I also managed to bang out 90 atrocious pages of a novel about a guy named Bob.  Bob was so boring that I killed him and buried his corpse deep in a desk drawer.

What did you learn writing Still River?  The Next Time You Die?

Writing Still River I learned that I could actually finish a novel and have it make sense.  The Next Time You Die taught me that I could write a novel under a deadline.  Both are very useful things to know.

How long did it take to write Next Time?

 I can tell you to the day how long it took to write Still River.  (Six months, 19 days, eleven hours.  Approximately.)  If I had to guess, I figure it took me about nine months to produce The Next Time You Die, with about a month off to travel and promote Still River and let some story angles percolate in my mind. 

Obviously choosing the Oswald name for your protagonist was deliberate—why do you think it was a good idea? 

Conflict.  Anybody named Lee Oswald in Dallas is guaranteed to be on edge all the time.

Have you traveled?  If so, has it contributed to the content of your book?  

I've seen a lot of the world but what keeps coming out in my writing is the stuff close to home.  I'd love for Lee Henry Oswald to go on a European adventure sometime, a fish-out-of-water type of story.

How do you do your research? 

I have three sources.  Google.  Google.  And Google.  I really love Google.  Did I mention that?

Where did you get the idea for Next Time You Die?  

The Next Time You Die is about betrayal, a topic which has always fascinated me.  I asked myself what it would be like if Hank Oswald had betrayed a trust—for a good reason—and caused the death of someone close to him.  I wanted to know what Oswald would think and feel if he was faced with the same circumstances.  Also, I had this really bad dream one night after eating a triple anchovy pizza and a quart of Rocky Road ice cream.

When you create a character, how much of that character comes from your personal experience?  Are your characters just an extension of your own life and are their experiences from your own life, or are they completely fictional?

Nothing happens in a vacuum, and creating characters is no exception.  All fictional characters are based to some degree on the author's personal experience.  That said, I think very few authors pick someone out of their life, change a name, and put them on the page.  Good believable characters are an amalgamation of many things, one of which might be certain traits of people the author may have known over the course of their life.

As an avid reader, what types of books so you read?  What are you reading now?

Oy, where to start.  I am currently reading Cornelia Read's excellent and much buzzed about debut, A Field of Darkness. Next up is the latest Jack Reacher novel, The Hard Way, by one of my favorite authors, Lee Child.  I read across the board but mainly concentrate on crime fiction.  I enjoy the usual suspects: Ken Bruen, Robert Crais, James Lee Burke, Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, Rick Riordan, George Pelecanos, etc.  I've found some new stuff recently that I would recommend.  The Wheelman by Duane Swierczynski, otherwise known as the Pole With Soul or the man without enough vowels in his last name.  I thoroughly enjoyed Charlie Huston's vampire PI novel, Already Dead, as well as J.A. Konrath's third Jack Daniels book, Rusty Nail.

 

Reviews

Eye of God: A Mystery
by Jon L. Breen
Perseverence Press
Trade paperback, 216 pages, $13.95
ISBN: 1880284898
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

Eye of God evolves from a rather different set of circumstances than most mysteries.  As the title suggests, those circumstances deal with multiple murders revolving around a very successful televangelist and his daughter, both of whom have separately hired the Orange Co., CA PI firm of Al Hasp and Norm Carpenter for seemingly very different jobs: the Rev. Vincent Majors fears an insider is leaking some potentially scandalous secrets to the press and wants the traitor identified and stopped; his daughter, on the other hand, whose husband is a well-known coach and former basketball player, hires the firm to prevent a rich and powerful man, the majority owner of her husband's team, from destroying those around her. 

As matters evolve it appears that there is a connection between these two seemingly unrelated cases.  When Norm, who has become born again, tells Al that he is leaving the firm due to conflicts with his new-found Christian faith, Al prevails upon him to work on one last case, which he agrees to do by working ‘undercover' within the evangelist's ministry.  There is a murder, and then a second killing and it becomes apparent that a member of the evangelist's inner circle is the Judas as well as the killer and the PI's can come no closer to identifying him (or her).

As a sub-text, Al hopes that Norm's closer exposure to the presumed charlatan will cause him to change his mind about leaving the firm.  The suspense builds to a crescendo at a crusade/healing service at which most of the characters are to be present at a small Christian college pivotal to the plot, when the killer is exposed.  The final paragraphs left me a bit uneasy, although I guess they put the ultimate question to the born-again member of the firm, who may or may not be leaving as the book ends.  Nonetheless, Eye of God is a fast and enjoyable read.  Mr. Breen is a good writer, one previously unknown to this reader.  The various religious and anti-religious viewpoints are presented in a clear and interesting way, while the plot keeps the reader involved right up to the fast-paced conclusion.

 

Consigned to Death
by Jane K. Cleland
St. Martin's Minotaur
Hardcover, 288 pages, $23.95
ISBN: 0312347251
Reviewed by Kim Reis

Josie Prescott is a New Hampshire antiques dealer who has relocated from New York after helping expose a price-fixing scheme involving her former employer.  When her potential client is found murdered in his home, the suspects include one of Josie's competitors who also thought he was going to be hired, the deceased's grandaughter who wants her hands on the money as soon as possible, and Josie herself, who had an appointment with him the morning he was killed.

Complicating the case are three missing, extremely valuable items of questionable origin that Josie was not aware existed, and a growing attraction between Josie and Chief Ty Alverez, who is leading the investigation.

Cleland does a good job of bringing the antique world to life and manages to shift suspicion around the many suspects.  Clues are dropped so delicately that you aren't certain what you know until it all comes together.

I hope that next time around, Josie shows a little more of the personal strength that we see in her business persona, but her determination to repair her tarnished business reputation is nicely balanced with her fear of danger.

To Thine Own Self Be True
by Judy Clemens
Poisoned Pen Press
Hardcover, 238 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 1590582985
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

The author's method for creating a new novel is to select a topic, research in depth and weave the story around it, all the while keeping the focus on her main character and her love for her dairy farm and her motorcycle.  In the present case, the subject is tattooing.

Stella Crown also is a tattoo enthusiast.  In memory of her beloved friend and mentor, Howie (who died in the last entry in this series), she is having her wrist tattooed with his name around an ID engraved bracelet.  In the midst of this procedure the artist and his wife leave the room, and Stella dozes off for 20 minutes.  When she awakes, neither is around and she leaves with her unfinished tattoo, "How."  She gives no thought to where they might be or what might have happened.

The next day, the wife is found dead, and the artist is missing. Stella then starts to try to find him, contacting others in the tattooing community for help.  Then another artist, who is helping her, goes missing, and the plot thickens.  Against these events is a pending bill in the Pennsylvania Legislature to which the tattooing community violently objects. You may not learn everything you need to know about tattooing or you may feel you are told too much.  But the story flows against the background of the dairy farm and the love life of the characters when Nick Hathaway shows up unexpectedly, raising a conflict for Stella—her love for her farm or for Nick; live alone or begin a new life.  I guess we'll just have to wait to find out in the next installment.

 

Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter
by Blaize Clement
Thomas Dunn
Hardcover, 261 pages, $23.95
ISBN: 0312340567
Reviewed by Clara Johnston

Petsitter Dixie Hemingway lives in Sarasota, Florida.  Right away, you know that she likes her job.  She used to be a deputy with the sheriff's department but life changes and so do people.  If you are a pet lover, this story pulls you in on page one.

Dixie picks up house keys from one of her clients, Marilee, and never sees Marilee again.  A murdered man puts a twist into the story and Dixie experiences strange sensations as she encounters police that she knew from the force.  The return of adrenaline and crime revisit her just like it used to, but animals have a special place that humans cannot fill at this time in her life.

Marilee's next-door neighbors consist of a radio psychologist, his wife and son.  There is something in this household that just doesn't seem right.

I like the comfortable feeling I have while reading this mystery.  It was enjoyable to travel with Dixie as she sees her various clients.  The author has a knack for introducing all her characters in a realistic way.  Dixie holds a vulnerability and yet a very moxie attitude.  I also enjoy her relationship with her brother, Michael, and Paco. 

This is a mystery that will invest you because of the complexities, grittiness, secrets, blackmail and loss.  All are well blended with superb character depictions.  Listed as a first book in the series, I look forward to the next installment.

Married to the Mop
by Barbara Colley
Kensington Books
Hardcover, 244 pages, $22
ISBN: 0758207646
Reviewed by Clara Johnston

What fun to read another installment in the Charlotte LaRue saga.  For those who do not know Charlotte, she is the owner of "Maid for a Day." She and her staff clean homes in New Orleans.

Charlotte cleans for a new client, Emily, and is in for a big surprise.  Emily's husband is a big time crime boss.  Imagine all the excitement this creates in Charlotte's life.  Then there is murder.  This cleaning lady involves herself so she can find some answers.

The story line, characters and humor are entertaining and charming.   This is also true in Ms. Colley's four preceding books.  I like Charlotte and all the returning characters.

Moonblind
by Laura Crum
Perseverance Press
Paperback, 195 pages, $13.95
ISBN: 1880284901
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

Gail McCarthy, a seven-months-pregnant Santa Cruz, CA, horse vet, is contacted by her cousin Jenny, who is seemingly engulfed in an increasing state of depression, and is asking for Gail's help. 

Jenny believes she is being stalked, that her stalker may be connected to dealings in her past as a racehorse trainer, and refuses to give Gail any further information, hinting that to do so would only endanger herself and possibly Gail as well.  Added to this are Gail's concerns for one of her beloved horses, who has fallen mysteriously ill, as well as her first-time pregnancy at the relatively advanced age of 39.

The prologue immediately presents the reader with a tantalizingly mysterious event, the solution to which isn't even hinted at until more than halfway through the book and not made clear till near the suspense-filled conclusion.   The beauty of the natural surroundings in the book is brought palpably to the reader by the author's beautiful and evocative writing, and she provides glimpses into the fascinating world of racehorses. 

Recommended.

 

Shadow Man
by James D. Doss
St. Martin's Minotaur
Hardcover, 326 pages, $23.95
ISBN: 0312340532
Reviewed by Shirley Wetzel

In Colorado, on the Southern Ute Reservation, Charlie Moon and his aged aunt share a moment on the land where generations of their people have lived and died.  Daisy Perika doesn't mention the phantom she's just witnessed flitting by, foretelling dark days to come. 

At the same time, a vintage aircraft approaches the border between Mexico and New Mexico.  The plane carries laundry bags full of cash guarded by the soldiers of a drug cartel.  It is meant to land six miles south of the border, but the pilot has a surprise for them: he sets the plane down just north of the border, where his cohorts, Colombian Pedro Feliciano and orthodontist/wealthy eccentric/lunatic/genius Manfred Wilhelm Blinkoe wait for the delivery.   Their plans do not go smoothly, and soon they are on the run, much the worse for wear.

Fourteen months later, back in Colorado, Charlie, a full-time rancher and part-time Southern Ute tribal investigator, celebrates Daisy's birthday with his good friend Scott Parris and FBI Special Agent Lila Mae McTeague. A few miles away at another restaurant a former prosecuting attorney is gunned down by a sniper.  When Sheriff Parris arrives on the scene he questions a man who was sitting at the next table.  Dr. Manfred Blinkoe, a new resident of the area, tells Parris he's sure the shot was meant for him.  Parris thinks he's a nut job, but says if he really thinks he's in danger he should hire an investigator.  He gives the man Charlie Moon's card.

Blinkoe may be paranoid, but it seems that somebody really is out to get him.  On several occasions when he's been in danger he's seen his doppelganger, and lately others have seen it too.  Charlie has other problems to deal with: somebody's rustling his cattle, his herd is being tested for Mad Cow disease, and he has a horse that refuses to be broken, among other things.  When Blinkoe's assailant gets too close for comfort, though, Charlie, at the urging of Blinkoe's young, beautiful wife Pansy, takes the case seriously.  Sheriff Parris lends a hand, as does Agent McTeague.  The FBI believes Blinkoe knows the whereabouts of $80-million in drug money, and they'd like to get their hands on it.  Daisy is also interested in helping out, using her own special talents and other worldly informants and getting into a heap of trouble in the process.  Her first attempts at driving, with a half-blind crippled friend as her instructor, are horrifying and hilarious.

Doss has been compared with Tony Hillerman, and deservedly so.  His stories skillfully blend crime solving with vivid storytelling, and his characters are colorful and believable.  The relationship between Charlie and Daisy is sometimes funny and always poignant.  I care about them and look forward to seeing what they get up to next.    

How to Succeed in Murder
by Margaret Dumas
Poisoned Pen Press
Hardcover, 276 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 1590582608
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

The sequel to Speak Now, which won Britain's 2003 Debut Dagger Award, this novel reunites Charley and Jack Fairfax and the rest of the gang in another mystery.  Jack is retained to investigate the murder of the fiancé of the CEO of a local San Francisco software company.  Then a series of nefarious events take place at the company including the deaths of other executives and a time-bomb virus in the software code.  Quite a lot on the plate.

Neither Jack and his associates nor the inscrutable San Francisco detective Yamata have a clue.  Enter Charley and her theatrical troupe, who go undercover at the company to learn more in an effort to uncover the culprit or culprits.

How to Succeed reflects the cuteness of the debut novel.  It is a light, fast read.  It flows easily and the plot is well-founded.

 

Flying Too High: A Phryne Fisher Mystery
by Kerry Greenwood
Poisoned Pen Press
Hardcover, 166 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 1590582373
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

There have been 15 Phryne Fisher mysteries published—a 16th is underway. This is the second in the series, so we have many more to look forward to with pleasure. 

Phryne is a delightfully wacky protagonist—a liberated woman in the late 1920s, of many accomplishments—sort of a superwoman feminist.

The title is derived from two incidents in the novel.  First, we find Phryne a daredevil pilot in 1928, one who also walks back and forth on the wing of an airplane while in flight—for show. More important, a plane plays a vital role in solving a kidnapping.

A second plot involves a murder, one in which we find Phryne applying the mental logic of a Sherlock Holmes in an attempt to clear a client of the charge, while determining the actual cause of death.

Long before the Ladies Detective Agency delighted readers, Phryne Fisher was paving the way for female detectives in her own way.    This short novel hopefully will be followed by many more so you can enjoy the entire series.

 

An Image of Death
by Libby Fischer Hellmann
Poisoned Pen Press
ISBN: 1590581016
Hardcover, 285 pages, $24.95
Reviewed by Carl Brookins

Independent video producer Ellie Foreman is unwillingly trapped between murky political history and a murderous present.

When an unknown individual delivers a video to Ellie Foreman's front door, she is swept into a complex and dangerous set of circumstances.  The video depicts the apparent murder of a young woman.  Although Ellie promptly delivers the video to the local police, the scene continues to haunt her.

The pressures of her current contract to produce an upbeat video about a foster children project in Chicago, brings her into contact with members of the cream of Chicago's Gold Coast, a group Ellie is not entirely comfortable with. Things do not bode well as these disparate elements swirl about Ellie's existence and the normal life she is trying to maintain for her teenaged daughter.

Hellman has fashioned a story that intriguingly entwines two separate plots, one set in the dark days of the fall of the Soviet Union, and another in the go-go-atmosphere of upscale property development in Chicago.  If there is an occasional coincidence and if some of Ellie's activities with a friendly patrolwoman stretch credibility just a bit, there is plenty of gritty dark reality to balance.  That she is able to maintain a high level of interest in both, demonstrates her mastery of the genre and her skills as a writer. 

The Devil's Game: An Unlikely Mystery
by David Holland
Thomas Dunne Books
Hardcover, 277 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 031234077X
Reviewed by Terri M. Tumlin

Simon Curdle has been a Member of Parliament from Bellminster for many years.  While he nominally represents his district, he spends a great deal more time and effort representing his own monetary interests and backing whichever parties are willing to buy his services. When his seat becomes spectacularly empty, one would think that the voters of Bellminster have a golden opportunity to improve the situation.

The open seat leads the reader into the world of Victorian England as represented by the village of Bellminster and to the concerns and detective skills of Reverend Tuckworth, the retired vicar of the Bellminster Cathedral.  What begins as a straightforward process of filling the empty Tory seat becomes over the pages of this intriguing novel, a fight against mayhem, murder, and widespread political shenanigans. 

This is the third novel in the Reverend Tuckworth series and Holland has created an interesting and complex protagonist.  The widowed and retired vicar, who now lives with his daughter and a young ward, knows that his current concern is supposed to be the rebuilding of the burned Bellminster Cathedral, but his interest in the lives and doings of the citizens in the town lead him into the midst of mayhem and murder.

But Tuckworh isn't the only interesting character in The Devil's Game.  There is Lord Granby, who expects to name the next Member from Bellminster and who likes to play his own game with the prominent men of the town and Reverend Mortimer, the current vicar of the church, who fervently wishes that Reverend Tuckworth would keep his attention and energies on rebuilding the cathedral.  And then there is Mayor Winston Padgett, who is sure that his own aspirations to the vacant office are backed by Lord Granby.  Into this mix comes Jo Smalley, a dwarf and political operative from London engineering the arrival of an alternate candidate.  He wants to prepare the town for the possibility of a Whig representing the district. 

The first death could be accidental.  Not so the second.  And as the story unfolds, the reader is caught up into a Victorian world very different from the modern age.  Not only are the setting and the props from that earlier age, but the people themselves feel authentically of the period.  Even the crimes fit with the world that Holland has created.

For those who enjoy historical mysteries, this is a well written excursion into the period, with a satisfying set of complications to keep the pages turning.    

The Next Time You Die: A Lee Henry Oswald Mystery
by Harry Hunsicker
Thomas Dunne Books
Hardcover, 304 pages, $23.95
ISBN: 0312348500
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

What Elmore Leonard is to Detroit and George Pelecanos is to Washington, D.C., Harry Hunsicker is to Dallas.  In the debut novel of this series, he gave his protagonist a name that will live in infamy in that Texas city, if not in a much broader geographic area.  In this, the second installment, Lee Oswald finds himself in a morass of an unknown quantity.

The mystery begins when a drunken Baptist preacher hires Dallas detective Oswald to recover a stolen file.  Mixed in with this seemingly simple task are a number of complications, including the possibility that a new Mafia takeover of the Dallas underworld is taking place, and the leader of that group also is interested in the file.  What's in the file? 

The reappearance of Oswald's boyhood friend, a prison escapee who supposedly later burns to death, further complicates matters.  Oswald was instrumental in putting his friend in jail, despite the fact that he saved Oswald's life, apparently several times.

The novel reads quickly, and is enjoyable.  It is a good follow-up entry in this new series.

Now You See Me...
by Rochelle Krich
Ballantine Books
Hardcover, 384 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 0345468120
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

Eighteen-year old Hadassah ("Dassie") Bailor has disappeared.  After three days, her distraught family contacts (well, stalks, then contacts) Molly Blume, author, columnist and freelance reporter, asking that she help find her and bring her home.  (Molly has, in this fifth entry on the series, been married for the last 18 months to Zack, her former high-school sweetheart, now a pulpit rabbi, and the only thing marring her happiness is her current inability to become pregnant.) Molly's reputation in helping the police in several criminal investigations has preceded her, and the family, sharing Molly's Orthodox Jewish background and needing privacy and discretion above all, beg for her help. 

Dassie had gone to be with a man she met in an online chat room, the implications of which are of course devastating.  So are the consequences: in their insular community, the girl's actions, should they become known outside the family, would taint her reputation forever, and that of her family as well.  Molly understands that quite well, and, especially since she knew the girl's father, himself a rabbi, years ago (he was her former teacher, with some troubled history between them), she agrees to help them.  As Molly is drawn into the case, so too is the reader. 

Dassie, now a student at the high school where her father teaches, has been going through a typical teenager's turbulent years, and has sought comfort of a sort in the practice of self-mutilation, or "cutting," to help with what the author describes as the pain of invisibility: Now you see me.  As Molly remarks towards the end of the book, "it's sad that it takes a tragedy for people to notice you."

The additional fact that Dassie is faced with the probability of an arranged marriage encourages her to join the chat room.  Molly's probing helps her to uncover information which leads to good and bad outcomes: Dassie comes home, but a death has occurred, and Molly and the police still aren't sure who the "bad guy" is, as Dassie is completely uncommunicative upon her return home. 

The religious life intrinsic to Molly's existence is an essential part of the enjoyment of Krich's books, and when added to her writing ability and story-telling skills, makes this a series where each new entry is eagerly awaited.  An enjoyable read.

 

Family Business
by Janet LaPierre
Perseverance Press
Paperback, 296 pages, $13.95
ISBN: 1880284855
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

The family business which kicks off this new novel in the Port Silva Mystery series is a piece of property which has been in the Flynn family about 80 years, owned equally by Allie Flynn, her husband, Pete, and Pete's brother.  When Pete goes missing, Allie hires Patience Smith Investigations (another of the several family businesses here) to find him. 

The Flynn family is bitterly divided over the planned sale of part of their land to developers who want to turn the ranch into a resort, complete with bridle trails and a golf course.  Two of the three legal owners/family members must agree to the sale, of course, and Pete's disappearance is critical to whether or not the sale goes through.  The book takes places against a backdrop of the eve of the Iraq War and just after the first anniversary of the 2001 terror attacks in the US.  LaPierre here brings back the usual cast of characters, Patience Mackellar, her daughter Verity, Verity's "daughter," Sylvie, and their assorted friends and extended family.

The missing person case which is Patience's next job is to find Daniel Soto, the boyfriend of Sylvie's chorus and guitar teacher, who appears to have disappeared in the swollen rainwaters during a storm which came up just as an anti-war protest march was nearing its end with fights breaking out among its participants and their opposite numbers.  This investigation turns out to be much more problematical than the first, as it becomes clear that Daniel's background is elusive at best, and he was more than reticent about his past, which included its own family business. 

The author impresses with wisdom in the area of parent/child relationships, as well as those among friends, the essential truths of which are made apparent in wonderful prose serving an intricate plot and some human (one might say "quirky") but deeply caring characters.  Family Business is another winner for LaPierre.  The sense of place created is, as always, a big part of the reader's enjoyment.  There are complex matters visited in the book, and the author doesn't shy away from them, raising valid points but making us aware that others hold diametrically different views that may have some degree of reason on their side.   Whatever one's political views, Patience and Verity et al are welcome presences back in our lives.

No Good Deeds
by Laura Lippman
William Morrow
Hardcover, 352 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 0060570725
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

As the old saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished.  The good deed which kicks off Laura Lippman's new entry in the Tess Monaghan series occurs when Tess' boyfriend, Edgar "Crow" Ransome, invites a young black man back to the home he shares with Tess for a hot meal and a bed.  Their efforts are rewarded in an unkindly manner.  Ultimately it is discovered that the youth, Lloyd Jupiter, played an unwitting part in the murder plot which took the life of Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Youssef on the eve of the prior Thanksgiving Day, whose murder has remained unsolved. To make matters worse, Lloyd becomes sought after by local Federal agents as well as by criminal types, and it seems only a matter of who will find him first, if Tess and Crowe cannot protect him.

Tess, a former newspaper reporter, now a private investigator, has been hired by her old paper to take three recent cases in the news and use them as sort of intellectual object lessons, walk them through all the possible scenarios in an investigation, running a daylong seminar on how PI techniques can be applied to investigative reporting.   The cases involve an extramarital affair rumored to involve the Maryland governor, a State Senator claimed to live outside of the district he claims as his home, and the Youssef murder, about which the cops, FBI and Justice Department have all been very close-mouthed, with ugly rumors circulating about a hidden life led by the victim.  But the pressure increases exponentially when the things and people Tess holds dear are placed in jeopardy.  The suspense goes into overdrive as the book nears its end.

Laura Lippman's writing in No Good Deeds is as good as we have come to expect after her earlier books, and that is good indeed.  

Murder on the Rocks
by Karen MacInerney
Midnight Ink
Paperback, 281 pages, $12.95
ISBN: 0738709085
Reviewed by Caryn St.Clair

Murder on the Rocks, the terrific first entry of the Gray Whale Inn Bed and Breakfast series, is the epitome of the classic cozy mystery. Set in the Gray Whale Inn on Cranberry Island, Maine, it has an innkeeper as a protagonist, a resident cat and a heavy focus on food throughout the book with fantastic recipes included at the end.

New innkeeper Natalie Barnes is struggling to make a go of the Gray Whale Inn in her first season of ownership. Reservations have been slow coming in and the bills keep piling up. Worse, developer Bernard Katz is trying to buy the property adjacent to the inn and plans to build a large resort. Not only would the resort greatly impact the inn's future, but it would destroy the nesting area of the endangered terns.

When Natalie discovers Katz dead, she becomes the prime suspect. The sheriff seems uninterested in looking for other suspects, so Natalie decides to investigate in an effort to clear herself.

MacInerney's book is filled with well-defined characters that are easy for the reader to either like or despise. This reviewer might quibble with the sudden unpredictable actions of some of the characters at times, but overall the characters successfully drive this book forward. The mystery was plotted well with clues to the killer's identity successfully woven into the plot.

Throughout the book, MacInerney has included some very interesting material on lobster trapping which this reviewer was quite interested in reading. I wish she had included more information on the terns if there are indeed endangered terns nesting on the islands off the Maine coast.

Overall, this was a very nice beginning to what is hopefully to be a long series.

How to Murder a Millionaire
by Nancy Martin
Signet
Paperback, 272 pages, $6.50
ISBN: 0451207246
Reviewed by Caryn St.Clair

How to Murder a Millionaire is the first book in the Blackbird Sisters Mystery series featuring Nora Blackbird and her sisters Emma and Libby. The three sisters are known as the Blackbird Widows since each of their husbands died young, a tradition that has been going on in the Blackbird family for generations. The Blackbird family is "old money," Mainline Philadelphia, but unfortunately for the sisters, their parents lost the family fortune and fled to Europe in disgrace, leaving the girls broke. As parting gifts, the parents left each of the girls one thing of value from the family. Emma was given the art collection, Libby the family furniture and Nora the family estate—along with the $2-million tax bill.

Clearly Nora needs a job. An old family friend hires Nora to cover and write about the same social events she has attended as a participant her entire life.  While attending an event at her boss's home, Nora has the misfortune to find the host's body. When another family friend becomes the prime suspect, Nora starts her own investigation into the murder. Thus begins Nora's other, unofficial career, that of an amateur sleuth.

Martin's writing is snappy and fun to read. The book is filled with eccentric characters.  In this book that introduces the sisters, the reader finds out that Libby has a large number of poorly behaved children that keep her life in turmoil as well as a second husband who dresses in full Confederate uniform for formal occasions. Emma dresses in either sexy clothing or riding gear that is often covered with horse slobber, and Nora can't drive because she is prone to sudden fainting spells. Nora has a new beau with alarming family connections; her new boss turns out to have some unusual hobbies, and her sisters keep disappearing just when she needs them most.

How to Murder a Millionaire is a fast paced entry into the "chick lit" category of mysteries. It's a book that has a little bit of something for nearly everyone. There's a murder to solve, some erotic art with a questionable past, a little bit of romance and of course, those entertaining Blackbird sisters to keep the reader coming back for more.

The Night Gardener 
by George Pelecanos
Little, Brown
Hardcover, 384 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 0316156507
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

The gritty realism of the mean streets of Washington D.C. is brought compellingly to life in George Pelecanos' rendering of the language and actions of its denizens in The Night Gardener. 

Three men whose professional lives were joined at a moment in time two decades earlier are inexorably drawn together again when a local black teenager apparently is the latest victim of a killer who has been silent for all those intervening years.  The three earlier murders by a man dubbed the Night Gardener, for his method of killing in the early morning hours and dumping the bodies in local community gardens, have never been solved, and they have haunted these men, who are very different from one another except that they were all involved as copies in those three cases.

Two of them are no longer cops, but they seek each other out when the latest murder occurs and it appears to be the work of the same person.  All four of the teenagers killed were black and shared one other commonality: their first names were palindromes, leading the papers to call them the Palindrome Murders.  To make matters even more personal for Gus Ramone, the one of the trio still a cop and now in the Violent Crimes Bureau, the newest victim was a friend of his teenage son.  Derek Strange, known to readers of Mr. Pelecanos' earlier novels, is a (very) peripheral presence here.

The book is distinguished by the obvious affection and empathy for the characters created by this author, and the beautiful prose, all the more stark as it is juxtaposed against the language of the street.  The reader is made to feel the difficulties and rewards of the lives of these men and women struggling to raise their families in an increasingly hard world.  Another winner for Mr. Pelecanos.

Recommended.

Impulse        
by Frederick Ramsay
Poisoned Pen Press
Hardcover, 254 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 1590582837
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

Frank Smith writes mysteries (and even had a television show).  Now in real life he is faced with two mysteries: His wife disappeared four years ago without a trace and Frank is the leading suspect.  And after having ignored any contact with his high school for half a century, he sets off for Baltimore from his Arizona home for his 50th class reunion at Scott Academy. 

While attending the festivities, he is told about the disappearance of some boys 25 years earlier, and is challenged to solve the mystery of their disappearance.  He carefully points out that mystery writers start with the end and fill in the blanks, and if professionals couldn't discover what happened to the boys, he should not be expected to, either.  Nevertheless, he undertakes the task, with the assistance of a woman who is his former next-door neighbor.

The plot turns on a series of impulses, but, perhaps more likely, coincidences, by various characters.  The story moves along smoothly on various levels.  This is Frederick Ramsay's third mystery, and a very enjoyable one.

 

The Venus Fix
by M.J. Rose
Mira Books
Paperback, 416 pages, $6.99
ISBN: 077832317X
Reviewed by Theodore Feit

The third novel in this series—featuring sex therapist Dr. Morgan Snow and NYPD detective Noah Jordain—equals or surpasses its preceding entries.  The tight plotting and taut writing keeps you guessing right up to the conclusion.

The theme is internet pornography and its effect on various types of persons: grown men, boys and girls and the women who perform the acts.  The story revolves around the effects on a judge (Snow's patient) and his lawyer wife, and a group of teenaged high school students Morgan treats in a clinic setting, whose lives intersect.  The judge and the male students are addicted to watching the porn.

Noah becomes involved as one performer after another—four in all—are poisoned and three die.  Their professional lives and the conflicts of patient confidentiality and the police's need for information to prevent further murders again complicates the Snow-Jordain relationship.  Further exasperating the on-again-off-again affair is the willfulness of Snow's 13-year-old daughter's attempt to reunite her divorced parents.

How all this is resolved smoothly but unexpectedly shows how talented the author applies her craft, especially her insights not only into the fantasies she explores, but also the insecurities and self-doubts of her characters, especially Dr. Snow, as well as Noah's frustrations with Morgan's professional ethics and her inability to commit.  The Venus Fix is more than a worthy successor to its predecessors—it is a great read.

 

Dead Center
by David Rosenfelt
Mysterious Press
Hardcover, 310 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 0892950027
Reviewed by Gloria Feit

New Jersey defense attorney Andy Carpenter, the love of whose life, Laurie Collins, left him 4-1/2 months previously to return to her Wisconsin roots, is asked by his ex to take on the defense of a local boy accused of 2 brutal murders.  Although at first reluctant, Andy ultimately agrees to temporarily relocate to Wisconsin—the consensus among his friends is that he is doing so to win Laurie back and that the case is his excuse, but Andy insists they're wrong—probably.

Laurie is now Acting Chief of Police of Findlay, Wisconsin; despite their earlier talk of marriage, Andy's unwillingness to give up life as he knows it in New Jersey didn't dissuade her from returning to her family, friends and longtime home. 

The young man accused of the murders is the son of the family who lived next door to her growing up, and she is convinced he could not have committed the crimes.  The two young women who were brutally stabbed wee members of a Mormon-like group, the Centurions, the leader of which is called the Keeper, elected by the other leaders of the Church, like popes.  Andy finds that penetrating the Centurions is a difficult, if not impossible, task.  Apparently no members ever leave, and no non-members are tolerated in their circle – they talk to outsiders as little as possible.  The biggest problem facing Andy is that the town where the girls lived is populated solely by Church members, who are very insular and refuse to so much as allow him to walk their streets, much less talk to him. 

The manner in which Andy overcomes these considerable obstacles in his efforts to win his client's freedom makes for a helluva good yarn.  The courtroom scenes are well-drawn, the dialogue crackling; the on-again-off-again romance has the reader pulling for love to conquer all.  Andy, and the author for that matter, can perhaps best be described as witty and irreverent (or maybe that should just be "wiseass") but charming.

There must be something in the water in New Jersey—it has produced in recent years the emergence of three cute and funny guys in Myron Bolitar, Andy Carpenter and Aaron Tucker (the first two of whom are also single with decidedly scary friends).

For some reason I had thought that this series, of which this was my first book, was darker than it is; I found it a light (despite several murders) and fast read and very enjoyable.  Recommended.

A Killer Collection
by J.B. Stanley
Berkley Prime Crime
Paperback, 205 pages, $6.99
ISBN: 0425207455
Reviewed by Caryn St.Clair

A Killer Collection is a delightful first book in a new series featuring Molly Appleby, a writer for Collector's Weekly Magazine.

Two murders occur in this book. The first victim is George-Bradley Staunton, an avid pottery collector who had no scruples when it came to getting the pottery pieces that he wanted. The list of people who might have wanted him dead, and their motives, is a lengthy one.  However, the police rule the death accidental so Molly, who believes it to be otherwise, decides to investigate.  Things really get interesting for Molly's investigation when one of the "persons of interest" disappears and the most logical suspect in Staunton's death is found dead. This time there is no question of it being murder; the victim has been shot. Stanley has crafted a well written mystery that keeps the reader guessing and looking for clues to the murderer(s).

Stanley has developed an interesting group of characters that I assume will reappear in future books. Molly and her mother both have cats, though the cats are only present, not helping to solve the crimes. Molly's mother, Clara, is an antiques expert who works for an auction house as well as selling items on eBay.  Lex and Kitty run the auction house Clara works for and are Molly's best friends. The people that Molly works with are the usual assortment found in many offices. There is the boss, Carl, who is trying to quit smoking and is therefore a bit of a grouch, Clayton, who knows all the information about what is going on in the lives of everyone, and Mark, a co-worker, who is also possible love interest for Molly.

Stanley has set her series in North Carolina. This book focuses on the area of the state where many potters live and work. She includes a map at the beginning of the book and some information on the history of Southern Face Jug Pottery, complete with photographs, at the end.  Readers will find themselves experiencing the wonders of working with clay. There are many passages that put the reader in the hands of the potter as he is working a piece of clay from an unformed lump through the preparation phase, to the wheel as an object is made.

While this book delves into the world of North Carolina pottery, it's easy to see that future books in the series could explore all sorts of interesting collectibles and antiques. I hope that the rest of the series will be as informative in the subject matter as this one is.

 

The Cinderella Pact
by Sarah Strohmeyer
Dutton
Hardcover, 287 pages, $24.95
ISBN: 0525949577
Reviewed by Caryn St.Clair

In a departure from Stohmeyer's Bubbles Yablonsky series, The Cinderella Pact is a stand alone dealing with the "weighty problems" of three friends. Inspired by her struggles with weight loss over many years, Strohmeyer has not only written a very funny book, but has set up an online support group for readers to join as they attempt to lose weight together.

When Nola Devlin, an editor for Sass, "the celebrity magazine with an edge," applies for the job as the new ethics advice columnist, she is all but laughed out of the office. Nola assumes that it is because she is fat, frumpy and basically invisible to management. To prove to herself that she is right, Nola makes up a resume for a British woman, "Belinda Apple," and applies for the job again.  When Belinda is hired, Nola debates what to do until she finds out how much Belinda's salary is.  From that moment on, Nola is "Nola the editor" by day and secretly, "Belinda the columnist" by night.

If trying to lead a double life on the sly isn't hard enough, Belinda's columns become wildly popular, making it harder and harder for Belinda to remain the elusive woman living abroad. Worse yet, her two best friends, Deb and Nancy, take to heart one of the columns written on the subject of weight loss. At their urging, Nola agrees to join them in their own "Cinderella Pact" a last ditch effort to lose the weight for good and transform their lives forever. Each of the friends takes a different road to the weight loss. Any reader who has ever struggled to lose weight will relate to the struggles of these three friends.

Readers of all sizes will laugh along with Nola as she tries to juggle her two identities. The more popular her Belinda columns become, the more people in her Nola life become involved. Some of the maneuvering to keep Belinda out of Nola's personal life takes on nearly a "Lucy and Ethel" feel. This is a laugh out loud, can't put down until you finish book. Oh yes, one last thing for Bubbles fans... Bubbles does make a small appearance in the book after all. 

 

Murder by Committee

Read past installments and find out more about Murder By Committee

Chapter 26
by J.T. Ellison
(With nods to Vince Flynn and John Sandford)

J.T. Ellison's debut novel, All the Pretty Girls, will be published by MIRA Books in November 2007. She blogs at Murderati.com and KillerYear.com. For more information on her work, visit JTEllison.com.

"Harper? Harper, wake up."

She moaned in her sleep again.

I wiped the sweat from her brow, sprinkled a few drops of water on her lips. Her IV was dripping slowly, giving her some nourishment. It was the best I could do on this island, I wasn't prepared yet to conduct trials, so all I had was emergency surgical rations instead of hyper-nourishing liquids.

***

Harper had landed her plane here unexpectedly. She had been here just a week before, not expected back for another two. It was a smart move on her part; the oil line had been cut on her Harpy. I assumed she'd seen the gauge failing and had dropped down to the first available landing strip.

I'd been on the other side of the island when I saw her go overhead. I rushed back to the Jeep, thrilled at the thought of seeing her again. I loaded up all the samples and took off down the trail, the Jeep's big tires eating the dirt. It didn't take more than five minutes to return to base, but what I saw when I turned that corner incensed me. I didn't think as rationally as I could have.

Two men, Chinese by the looks of them, had Harper and another man at gunpoint. I stopped moving, hopeful that they wouldn't hear my approach. I pulled my binoculars to my eyes. The taller of the two was shouting incomprehensible words. The shorter lunged forward and hit Harper on the head with some sort of baton. She went down. The man with her turned away, as if to run, and the taller Chinese goon knocked him out too.

I didn't know who they were, or where they'd come from. They must have come by boat. No matter. If they were here, it wasn't because of Harper. She was a coincidence. They were here for me.

I reached into the back of the jeep, swiftly pulled out my rifle. I was in a perfect position, on top of low rise, less than 500 feet to the North, upwind. The scope brought them within range. I slid down the side of the Jeep until I was parallel with the ground. Breathe slowly, squeeze, CRACK. CRACK. The goons dropped gracefully, falling in place like their marionette strings had been slashed. Four bodies on the tarmac, and one belonged to the woman I loved.

***

It had been two days, and I was getting worried. She'd been hallucinating, crying out names, making little sense. There was one word though, that slipped out of her mouth yesterday which drove me to my computer. Anselmo.

Not the Saint, the philosopher of the Catholic Church. Anselmo was the project I was working on. What brought me to Ojai in the first place. But Harper didn't know what Anselmo was. She'd never heard the term. It was one of the most secret projects underway, and there was no way a simple smuggler would have picked up on it. She knew I was here, of course. I'd been here for three months, and she's flown in several times on her runs. We'd lived it up, played in the surf, ate the excellent food prepared by my chef on the island, Otto. She'd always kissed me goodbye with the promise of a return visit in a week or two.

No matter. I had the man who had hitched a ride. He told me an interesting story. We'd become friends, of a sort. The best thing about unexpected visitors, getting to know them. I'd quickly realized that this man, Guthrie by name, was a perfect candidate for Anselmo. I'd cleared it with my bosses; he'd been unknowingly dosed and was ready to go, my first human test case.

And I'd begun to wonder about Harper. Was she really just a happy go lucky smuggler, a woman who wanted her freedom?

I sent a message to headquarters, explaining the situation. They assured me it was a fluke. I had a bad feeling that something bigger than me, bigger than all of us, was about to happen. The two Chinese proved that. HQ knew nothing about them. So they said.

I had all my emergency escape plans activated, just in case HQ was lying.

Now it was Harper that had me worried. The bump on her head was the size of an egg, and I was beginning to think she might have some sort of cerebral hemorrhage the CAT scan hadn't caught. If she didn't come to soon, I was going to be forced to relieve the pressure. I'm a brilliant scientist, yes, but I didn't relish the idea of doing brain surgery on my lover, especially on a remote island with a cook and a stranger for backup.

I brushed the hair off her forehead. She opened her eyes, glazed and shiny with fever. She'd been doing that, but this time it seemed like she saw me.

"Harper? Harper, honey? Do you know where you are? Do you know who I am?"

"Greer?" she groaned. Thank God, she was back with us.

"Yes, hon, it's me, Greer. You've given me quite a scare."

"Oil line. Man... hit me, I think. Head hurts."

"Shhh. Here, have some water." I held a straw to her parched lips. She sipped a bit, then her head fell back. Her lustrous blue eyes shone for a moment, then closed.

"Came... to warn... you... Greer."

"Came to warn me about what? Harper? Stay with me, honey."

She was drifting away, but her mouth was still moving. I bent down close to hear her better.

"Danger. Greer. They're coming..."

She slipped away, her breathing slow and steady. She'd be fine, eventually. I went to the window, stared out at the glistening black sand.

Harper had come to warn me. I was in danger. But from whom? Or what?

Perhaps her passenger would know more. I stepped back to the bed, swiped a cool cloth across her forehead. She smiled a bit in her sleep.

Forget it. That was it. I knew what I had to do. I needed to get the two of us off this island. Now.