A Cruise to Die for by Aaron J. Elkins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received a copy of the book through NetGalley, but as an Elkins fan, I had the first one sitting on my Kindle from a deal of the day awhile back. I read this book first--I recommend reading A Dangerous Talent, the first book, first.

A Cruise to Die For is the second in a new series by Charlotte & Aaron Elkins, veteran mystery writers with several other series. If you've seen the television show White Collar, you'll have an idea of the wit and sophistication they're striving for. The main character, Alix London, is the daughter of an art restorer who got caught forging paintings and a Boston high society rich girl. Fortunately, her mother died before her father went to prison, and thus was spared the humiliation and poverty Alix went through while her Dad was in prison. Bravely, Alix follows her own talent and becomes an art restorer as well. Dad is free now, in his 70s, and he and Alix are rebuilding their relationship.

In the first book, A Dangerous Talent, Alix became entangled with Ted Ellesworth and the FBI Art Crime Division and impressed him with her undeniable gift for spotting forgeries. Now they've asked her to sail along with potential buyers on an art cruise, on the fabulous yacht of a Greek magnate who may be running a scam. He sells shares in high-priced paintings--can you say Ponzi?

Full of derring-do and glitzy glimpses of the rich and famous, it's a fun romp. The descriptions of art and scenery are quite good, but there's something missing here that wasn't in the first book. It may be that Alix is on her own too much in this one, and she's not good enough yet to carry the book on her own. The ensemble cast is best. I am recommending the series--but start with the first one first!

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Out-of-the-ordinary authors and stories

A Different Drum

Song of the Shaman, a novel by Annette Vendryes Leach
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received a temporary electronic copy of this book through Netgalley. Song of the Shaman, by Annette Leach, is a worthy first novel. Single parent Sheri is always surprised by her son Zig, whose memory appears to go back to before he was born. Caught up in making a living, Sheri is able not to think about Zig's little quirks too much until he gets older and his strangeness, combined with adolescent surliness, gets him in major trouble at school. When Sheri loses her job and is around Zig much more, she can no longer suppress the strange memories that fill her mind when Zig confronts her surface reality. And then...you have to read the book! The present-day story is told alternating with a historical story. I'd like to have seen a tighter edit--there's some awkward phrasing, I would have cut some scenes in length, and you are right if you cynically sense a big New Age/Past Life cliche--but the author's passion and imagery transcend this. The parts that are indeed the shaman's song are well-told and true. Recommended if you have an interest in shamanism or past lives.

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Deadline by Sandra Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The publisher allowed me to read a temporary copy through Netgalley. Sandra Brown's Deadline was a pleasant surprise to me. Though I've over 20 years in the book biz, I have never read her before. I have to remember that successful writers of romance know how to tell stories! Here's the setup: many years ago, the FBI had a shootout with a gang of domestic terrorists. Most of the officers and the gang died, but the leader and his woman escaped-along with the baby born during the standoff. Fast-forward 30 years or so, and Dawson Scott, a journalist recently returned from Afghanistan with PSTD, is convinced by his godfather, an FBI agent involved in the shooting, to go cover a trial his godfather, Headly, thinks is linked to Carl Wingert, the terrorist leader who's never been caught. A beautiful young mother has to testify, and Dawson is hooked--on the woman, then the story. Ms. Brown gives a particularly satisfying twist at the end. I'm thinking once I wade through my to-read pile, or even before, I'll pick up another Sandra Brown.
Recommended for mystery/thriller book clubs; there is enough meat here to lead to lively discussion.

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Favorite mystery/thriller writers I have followed

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