THE BOOK NOOK
Mysteries – Get Started on a New Series
by Nina Sachs, MLIS
© Paulista / Adobe Stock
Mysteries. We shelve these separate from fiction, at the very beginning of the adult collection. They deserve the distinction. Mysteries are the second-most popular genre, coming close behind Romance.
For me, mysteries that are character-driven are the most satisfying, and these have loyal readers who read every novel with a recurring sleuth. So, I have chosen three from our collection. Two of these, “The House of Silk,” by Anthony Horowitz, and “In the Woods,” by Tana French, are the first in their series.
The Horowitz book is a “Sherlock Holmes Novel.” Publishers and snotty people call this type of writing pastiche, but the important thing is that Horowitz is an excellent writer, and penned “Foyle’s War” and many others. Readers will forget that Doyle didn’t write this. Horowitz has by now written at least one further novel in the series.
The detective/narrator of “In the Woods” has a secret past that would get him thrown off the case if it became known. Sometimes bloody and gruesome, “In the Woods” is a great and intense read.
Peter Robinson’s detective Alan Banks is a Yorkshireman to whom music and justice share top billing. “Piece of my Heart” is the 16th Alan Banks novel. Consider starting at the beginning with “Gallows View.”
You can request all of the other novels by these authors from the Portland Public Library. In many cases, you can request that your books be sent to the Reiche Book Nook.
The Book Nook is open Monday through Thursday, 8 to 10 a.m. Please use the Clark Street entrance.
See you there!
Nina
Nina Sachs is a librarian, Book Nook volunteer and West End resident.
