Tag: murder mystery

Erik D’Souza’s — Death in Halfmoon Bay *****

Suzanne and her husband Charles, live in a retirement village in idyllic Halfmoon Bay on the British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast. But all is not what it seems. Regina is vying for the strata president position yet again with the only rival, Adeline. But when Adeline is poisoned from jam Suzanne had made, Suzanne becomes the prime suspect. It is rumoured that Charles had an affair with Adeline, but did he? Suzanne suspects Regina is behind the rumour and the poisoning with a double motive — first to discredit Suzanne who has long been her rival, and secondly, so she can become strata president once again. But is Suzanne right, and is she the innocent party? She is out to find answers, but when she does, there’ll be more than one murder she’s accused of committing.

Jane Harper’s — The lost man *****

Here’s one for those who love mysteries. When Cam is discovered dead from dehydration near a stockman’s grave in outback Queensland, his brothers, Nathan and Bud are suspicious. Cam’s well stocked car is parked nine kilometres away, but he had no water with him. Cam was well aware of the dangers in the forty plus degree Australian semi-desert. Something doesn’t add up. But when the police arrive on the scene and take his body for an autopsy, they find nothing to suggest murder. But Cam is not convinced and his son, Xander is also asking questions. What he discovers is not only exactly what happened, but a whole other life his brother lived that he was unaware of.

Margaret Atwood’s — Alias Grace *****

Grace leaves Ireland to settle in Canada, but family hardship forces her into employment. When she moves away from her family to work for Thomas Kinnear, her life unravels. She is accused, along with another of Kinnear’s workers, of murdering Kinnear and his mistress.

This novel is based on the notorious nineteenth century murder when many believed Grace was evil and possibly insane, while others thought her innocent. So which is it?

Margaret Atwood is a prolific Canadian writer. For me, her two best novels are Alias Grace and The Handmaid’s Tale.