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| A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z All Books | |
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Dashiell Hammett (1989) The Maltese Falcon. (Reprint Ed.) Archetypal tough guy, detective Sam Spade, risks his reputation by trying to help a beautiful young lady. As his partner gets killed Spade is suspected for murder. The story is a complex web of betrayal and deception, in which everyone tries to get the gold statuette of a falcon. Sam's masculine strength is refreshing in today's world of male insecurity. Also an excellent movie with Humphrey Bogart - but the book is better.
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C.S. Harris (2008) Where Serpents Sleep: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery. Set in 1812 London, the brutal murder of eight young prostitutes in a house of refuge is investigated by gentlemen-sleuth St. Cyr. The amateur detective follows a trail of clues leading from the seedy brothels and docksides of London’s East End to the Mayfair mansions of a noble family. Superb characterization of early 19th century London, believable characters and a complex plot.
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Thomas Harris (1998) The Silence of the Lambs. Hanibal Lecter, a brilliant psychopath whose nickname is "The Cannibal" because he likes to eat parts of his victims, helps FBI trainee Clarice Starling to get into the mind of a serial killer and hunt him down. Made into a terrifying film - starring Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins.
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Carl Hiaasen (2005) Flush. The story is about greed, environmental crime, and corruption. The plot is set in the Sunshine State of Florida, where the Coral Queen, a gambling ship is dumping waste into the local waters. Noah and and his sister Abbey are trying to help their father, who is in prison for sinking the ship. Most reviewers say the book is cool, really funny and action-packed. Grades 5-8.
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Carl Hiaasen / Bill Montalbano (1998) A Death in China. American professor traveling in China gets entangled in a web of violence, lies, treachery, and state secrets, as he investigates his friend's sudden "death by duck". Claustrophobic!
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Patricia Highsmith (2001) Strangers on a Train. (First published 1950) In her first novel published in 1950, Patricia Highsmith introduced the character of a subtle, murderous, sociopath who lives unsuspected for years. Highsmith's psycho-thriller was the source of a famous Alfred Hitchcock film in 1953. The book is one of the great classics of psychological crime fiction.
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Patricia Highsmith (1988) Those Who Walk Away. (First published 1967) Gloomy wintertime Venice: Ray, an American traveling in Europe, has lost his wife to suicide. Ed, his father-in-law, blames Ray for his daughter's death and tries to kill him. But Ray survives and follows Ed to places all over Venice trying to explain his wife's suicide to the outraged father - seemingly unaware of Ed's unforgiving hate.
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Patricia Highsmith (1992) The Talented Mr. Ripley. (First published 1955) Patricia Highsmith wrote stories in which you almost physically feel the coming of a catastrophe. It is so unnerving that you might just want to throw away the book, because you can no longer stand the tension. But then you read on through the night. Don't get confused by the silly title or lousy cover. This is one of the best psycho-thrillers - ever!
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Patricia Highsmith (1993) Ripley's Game. (First published 1974) Dashing murderer Tom Ripley is playing a nasty game of manipulation on an inconspicuous man, leading to murder and revenge. The resulting chain of events drags the reader into a most unsettling mental state - frozen in fascination, but also terrified by the looming disaster. A dark tale.
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Tony Hillerman (2005) Listening Woman. (Joe Leaphorn Novels) Friends of native American life find plenty of desert scenery, as Joe Leaphorn investigates a Navajo reservation. Hostein Tso has called Listening Women and her assistant to his Hogan and while Listening Women is in trance, Tso and the assistant are killed. Remarkably fast-paced ethnic thriller.
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Copyright © 2006, 2007, 2008 by Claudia Heilig-Staindl. All Rights Reserved. |
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