Book ~ "Them Bones" (1999) Carolyn Haines

From Goodreads ~ No self-respecting lady would allow herself to end up in Sarah Booth's situation. Unwed, unemployed and over thirty, she's flat broke and about to lose the family plantation. Not to mention being haunted by the ghost of her great-great-grandmother's nanny, who never misses an opportunity to remind her of her sorry state - or to suggest a plan of action, like ransoming her friend's prize pooch to raise some cash.

But soon Sarah Booth's walk on the criminal side leads her deeper into unladylike territory, and she's hired to solve a murder. Did gorgeous, landed Hamilton Garrett V really kill his mother twenty years ago? And if so, what is Sarah Booth doing falling for this possible murderer? When she asks one too many questions and a new corpse turns up, she is suddenly a suspect herself ... and Sarah Booth finds that digging up the bones of the past could leave her rolling over in her grave.

Sarah Booth Delaney is living in her family's plantation and is minutes away from losing it because she has no money and no job. Harold, a local banker, wants to marry her and, though she doesn't love him, she is considering it in order to keep her home. As she thinks about it, she decides to steal her rich friend's dog, Chablis, and hold it for ransom for $5,000 to get enough money to tide her over. When she "rescues" the dog, her friend hires her to follow up to see if a fortune teller's prediction is going to come true. Someone else hires her to check into something else and suddenly she becomes a private detective getting mixed up in some decades old accidents that may be murders and some apparently missing money.

This is the first in the Sarah Booth Delaney series (there are currently 26 books in the series, soon to be 27) and I thought it was okay (okay enough to keep going with the series). I found there were a lot of characters, though, and it was hard to remember who was who at times. It is written in first person perspective in Sarah's voice. Sarah's mother's last name was Booth and her father's last name was Delaney and I thought it was weird that everyone called her "Sarah Booth" rather than just "Sarah". I found it hard to believe that she fell in love with someone basically as soon as she met him even though he may be a murderer. The oddest thing about the story is that Jitty, the ghost of her great-great-grandmother's nanny, "lives" with her ... maybe to add some humour?

Book ~ "Midnight Clear" (1999) Mary Kay Andrews (Kathy Hogan Trocheck)

From Goodreads ~ It's a few days before Christmas and sometime sleuth/full-time cleaning lady Callahan Garrity has things under control for a change, until her ne'er-do-well brother, Brian, shows up. He's kidnapped his toddler daughter, Maura, from his estranged wife, a vengeful shrew with the law on her side.

When his ex-wife is found dead, the cops suspect Brian. To save her brother and her holiday, Callahan, along with her irascible mom, Edna, and a gaggle of House Mouse employees, will crisscross yuletide Atlanta, going everywhere the search for truth leads. 

Callahan used to be a police officer and changed careers when she bought House Mouse, a cleaning service that she runs with her mother, Edna ... but she still does private investigating on the side.

It's a couple days before Christmas and the House Mouse is having their holiday party ... when they are surprised by the the arrival of Brian, Callahan's younger brother, who hasn't been in touch with the family in about ten years.  Edna is ecstatic but Callahan is pissed, especially when he drops off his three-year-old daughter, Maura, who they didn't know existed.  Apparently Brian had married Shay, the local tramp, and when they split up, Brian didn't have any custody rights so he grabbed Maura and is hoping Edna will take care of her for a couple days as he gets himself settled.  Then Shay is found murdered and Brian, of course, is the main suspect and he's being less than cooperative.

The writing was okay, though the editing could have been better as there are typos.  It is written in first person perspective in Callahan's voice.  Because it was originally written in the late 1990s and is set in the late 1990s they are still using pay phones, answering machines, telephone books, etc. As a head's up, there is swearing and violence.

This is the seventh in the Callahan Garrity Mystery Series.  Though part of a series, it works as a stand alone as there is enough background provided. It hasn't been a great series but this has been the best book so far (only one more to go).  I liked that it was less about the House Mouse employees' flakey side stories and more focused on the main story.  I found Brian to be an unbelievable character ... he cared enough about the welfare of this daughter that he kidnapped her but then pretty much abandoned her with his family who he abandoned ten years earlier.  He was disrespectful of the help that was given to him.

Book ~ "Happy Never After" (1996) Mary Kay Andrews (Kathy Hogan Trocheck)

From Goodreads ~ Since retiring from the Atlanta Police Department, Callahan Garrity is really cleaning up with her House Mouse housecleaning company - especially since she added "crime investigation" to the list of services offered.

Callahan agrees to locate the missing member of the popular '60s girl group, the VelvetTeens. Then lead singer, Rita, is found passed out drunk by a swimming pool near the dead body of the trio's former producer. The smoking gun in Rita's hand suggests that the VelvetTeens won't be reuniting for a comeback tour anytime in the near future ... unless Callahan and her "Mice" can spotlight - and survive - a different killer act. 

Callahan used to be a police officer and changed careers when she bought House Mouse, a cleaning service that she runs with her mother, Edna ... but she still does private investigating on the side.

The VelvetTeens are heading for a comeback but are missing Delores, who no one has seen in about 20 years. Vondette, one of the singers, Delores' cousin and the ex-wife of a good friend of Callahan's, hires her to find Delores.  Rita, Delores' sister and a bandmate, has fallen into hard times over the years and is now an alcoholic,  When their former manager, Stu, ruins their potential comeback, Rita vows to kill him ... and then is found passed out at his house holding the gun that just killed him.  She is arrested and Callahan is then redirect to help her lawyer to prove Rita didn't do it.  Stu had lots of enemies so it could have been anyone.

The writing was okay, though it could have been edited better as there were words left out. The storyline was convoluted and there was a lot going on (too many side stories). The ending came quickly and I wasn't buying it. It is written in first person perspective in Callahan's voice.  Because it was originally written in the early 1990s, they are still using pay phones, CDs, answering machines, etc. and there are references by Callahan of growing up in the 1970s. Some of the terms used are now cringe-worthy. As a head's up, there is swearing and violence.

This is the fourth in the Callahan Garrity Mystery Series ... I read the first one in 2018 and recently picked the series back up again.  Though part of a series, it works as a stand alone as there is enough background provided.  It's not a great series but I'm now halfway through so I'll keep going to the end.

Book ~ "O is for Outlaw" (1999) Sue Grafton

From Goodreads ~ The call comes on a Monday morning from a guy who scavenges defaulted storage units at auction. Last week he bought a stack. They had stuff in them - Kinsey stuff. For thirty bucks, he'll sell her the lot. Kinsey's never been one for personal possessions but curiosity wins out and she hands over a twenty (she may be curious but she loves a bargain). What she finds amid childhood memorabilia is an old undelivered letter. 

It will force her to reexamine her beliefs about the breakup of that first marriage, about the honor of that first husband, about an old unsolved murder. It will put her life in the gravest peril.

It's 1986 and Kinsey Millhone is a 36-year-old private detective in Santa Teresa, CA.  She gets a call from a man who has bought some of her possessions at an auction of defaulted storage locker items.  She recognizes the box as stuff she left with her first husband, Mickey, when she left him 14 years ago.  She walked out after eight months of marriage because she had thought Mickey had done something and he had asked her to lie about it.  In the box, she finds a letter written to her back then which she never got.  Kinsey realises she may have let Mickey down and should have given him the benefit of the doubt so starts to look for him.  When she discovers he has recently been shot and is in a coma, she decides to try and clear his name.

I thought this story was okay.  It was interesting to find out something more about Kinsey personally.  I found it a bit unbelievable, though, that she would get so involved in preserving Mickey's name now since she hasn't talked to him in fourteen years and he was a cheating dog while they were together.  Considering how he treated their marriage, he didn't deserve it. 

It's written in first person perspective in Kinsey's voice.  I found there were a lot of characters, which I found confusing at times.  There is a secondary story in addition to Kinsey trying to find out what happened to Mickey that added more characters to keep track of.  As a head's up, there is swearing.

This is the fifteenth in the "alphabet series" featuring Kinsey Millhone.  Though it is part of a series, it works as a stand alone.  I discovered this series in the mid-1990s and have read them all.  I started rereading them last year.  With the author's recent death, Y is for Yesterday will be the end of the series.

Book ~ "Mount Pleasant Cemetery: An Illustrated Guide" (1999) Mike Filey

From Goodreads ~ Established in 1876, Mount Pleasant Cemetery has a rich and textured history. It is the keeper of thousands of stories, each of which has contributed to the history of our city, province, and country.

Many of Canada's most beloved figures rest there - William Lyon Mackenzie King, Foster Hewitt, Glenn Gould, and Timothy Eaton are just a few. Other, less known historical figures are buried there also - the first Canadian soldier killed in First World War and victims of the 1949 Noronic disaster.

Along with a fascinating account of the cemetery's history, this illustrated guide includes descriptions of the remarkable monuments and the beautiful horticultural features. Accompanying maps detailing their locations make this book a perfect companion for a walking tour through the grounds. 

Mount Pleasant Cemetery is here in Toronto near where I work.  In the early 19th century, the only authorized cemeteries within the city of Toronto (then known as York) were limited to the members of either the Roman Catholic Church or the Church of England. Deceased citizens who didn't belong to either of these Christian denominations had no choice but to find burial arrangements outside of the city.

In 1873, a new cemetery available to all citizens was conceived. Originally a 200-acre farm on the far outskirts of Toronto (it's now in the centre of the city), Mount Pleasant Cemetery opened November 1876.  It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 2000.

The book begins with the early history of the cemetery, followed by chapters about the monuments and their histories and the trees and shrubs.  What follows are almost 300 stories about some of the people who are buried there (it is the final resting place of more than 168,000 people).  They range from the famous to the non-famous ... veterans, survivors of the Titanic, medical personalities, entertainers (Mary Pickford's father is buried there), businessmen, politicians, sports personalities, etc.  The stories are bite-sized with info about where the person was born, what they did and where they died.  It's a handy guide if you are touring the cemetery.

Though there are pictures of some of the people buried there, it would have been nice to have some pictures of their monuments, gravestones, etc.

Mike Filey had a column in the Toronto Sun for about 30 years and I read it for many years (I like learning about the history of Toronto).  I've read a lot of his books about the history of Toronto and have enjoyed them.

Book ~ "Bones" (1999) Jan Burke

From Amazon ~ Journalist Irene Kelly is part of the investigative team on the hunt for serial killer Nicholas Parrish's many victims. Their graves are in California's Sierra Nevada mountains and Parrish, having entered a plea bargain, is there too, leading the team to the women's corpses in exchange for a life sentence instead of the death penalty. But Parrish has planned a surprise or two. When a grave explodes, most of the team are killed, Irene flees and the killer escapes. Back home, Irene continues to work at the behest of Gillian Sayre, the daughter of one victim. Her hunt for Parrish is made considerably easier by his growing obsession with her. A cunning psychopath with a calm demeanor, Parrish heavily resembles Hannibal Lecter. Rather than eat his victims, however, he tortures and dismembers them.

This is the seventh book in the series of eleven (as of 2011) ... I'm rereading the series.

The style of this one is different from the others. The previous ones are written in first person (Irene). The chapters in this one were written by either Irene (first person) or Parrish or the Moth (third person). And there were headers at the beginning of each chapter letting you know the date and location.

This seemed to be longer and darker than the other books. The first half of the book deals with the trek into the mountains with Parrish as a prisoner to discover where he has buried Gillian Sayre's mother. The second half deals with the hunt to find Parrish again as he torments Irene and continues to kill.

It was okay, though I didn't enjoy it as much as the others, probably given the subject matter.

Book ~ "Flashforward" (1999) - Robert J. Sawyer

From Amazon ~ What would you do if you got a glimpse of your own personal future and it looked bleak? Try to change things, or accept that the future is unchangeable and make the best of it? In Flashforward, Nobel-hungry physicists conducting an unimaginably high-energy experiment accidentally induce a global consciousness shift. In an instant, everyone on Earth is "flashed forward" 21 years, experiencing several minutes of the future. But while everyone is, literally, out of their minds, their bodies drop unconscious; when the world reawakens, car wrecks, botched surgeries, falls, and other mishaps add up to massive death and destruction.

Slowly, as recovery efforts continue, people realize that during the Flashforward (as it comes to be called) they experienced a vision of the future. The range of visions is astounding--those who would be asleep in the future saw psychedelic dream landscapes, while others saw nothing at all (presumably they'd be dead). But those who saw everyday life 20 years hence have to come to grips with evidence of dreams forsaken (or realized). Soon, the physicists who caused the Flashforward are struggling to help the world decide whether the future is changeable--and whether the experiment is worth repeating.

Gord had read this book recently and recommended it. I'd read Mindscan by Sawyer a few years ago and enjoyed it. I enjoy time travel stories and murder mysteries, and this promised both.

It has an interesting premise. The entire world stops suddenly ... as a consequence, many die in accidents (planes, trains and cars crash, people fall down stairs, etc.). For many who survive, they get to see 2.5 minutes of their life 21 years in the future. If you see some psychedelic, it meant you were sleeping at that time in the future. If you don't see anything, well, it meant you were dead.

I found this book boring. Its very science fictiony so a lot of stuff when over my head. Plus I found the writing draggy so found myself skipping ahead a lot. I found the characters cold and didn't really care about them. I thought the ending was silly.

Book ~ "Speak Ill of the Dead" (1999) Mary Jane Maffini

From MaryJaneMaffini.ca~ In the first book in the series, Camilla's best friend, Robin Findlay, is found in a hotel room with a murdered journalist during Ottawa's annual Tulip Festival. Many many people felt like killing Mitzi Brochu but for some reason the police decide Robin has something to do with the crime. Maybe it's the blood on her hands. Maybe it's because she won't say what she was doing there. It's up to Camilla to keep Robin out of the slammer even as the killer strikes again. And again. Each time the danger gets a bit closer to home. Meanwhile Camilla's family, her so-called office staff member Alvin Ferguson and chain-smoking, sherry-guzzling nosy neighbour, Mrs. Violet Parnell, run interference every step of the way. To make matters worse, her favourite sister is making eyes at her least-favourite police officer. And what the devil are all those damn cats up to?

I read the third in this series in July and liked it ... so thought I'd go back and start the series from the beginning. I like the author's writing style so have been reading the other series she has written.

One of the reasons I like this author is because Maffini is a Canadian writer. She was born in Sydney, NS, (where I went to high school) and now lives in Ottawa.

This series is set in Ottawa. Camilla goes to the Mayflower Restaurant on Elgin Street ... I've been at that restaurant a few times when I've been in Ottawa.

I like the heroine in the series. She's a lawyer so it makes sense that she digs into these mysteries and ultimately solves them (unlike Charlotte who is a professional organizer in another series). And given Camilla's Cape Breton background, she and her family drink rum and cokes ... and you know I like them!

There were lots of kitties in this book which I found cute ... they weren't annoying like the two dogs in the first book of the Charlotte Adams' series.

I figured out who dunnit about half way through but not why so there was still some surprise at the end for me.

Like the other books I've read by this author, there are many typos. This surprises me since she had a career working in libraries. Why aren't the proofreaders or editors picking them up?

Book ~ "Death on the Rocks" (1999) Eric Wright

From Amazon ~ The author tests his unseasoned detective with a couple of perplexing cases. Canadian sleuth Lucy is hired by well-to-do Greta Golden to find out more about a man who is hanging around asking questions about her. When Lucy goes undercover and meets him, she finds out he's a fellow detective and gets him to reveal that he was hired by a British law firm to investigate Greta's background, as she may be an heir to a recently deceased and wealthy man. Greta has always thought she was an only child with no living relatives so she is intrigued to learn she may have family members in England. She rehires Lucy, this time to fill in the gaps in her parents' histories. In Britain, Lucy exhumes an old story of two sisters and the man they loved, a tale of jealousy and murder. A subplot involving the odd behavior of a drugstore owner adds a riddle to this otherwise straightforward mystery.

I was excited to find this mystery series that is based in Toronto.

The author is originally from England and that comes through as he talks about Toronto. No one refers to Yorkville as "Yorkville Village". And he referred to the Harbourfront streetcar route by something weird. I didn't get the feeling that he knew what he was writing about.

I didn't enjoying the writing style ... I found it frivolous. And I didn't care about the characters.

I tried to stick with it but finally gave up halfway through and skimmed to see how it ended.

Book ~ "Write About Dogs" (1999) Keith Ryan

From Mini Book Blog ~ This is a novel about science and love and spiritual understanding. It is about a beautiful dog, a beautiful woman, a crabby school teacher, and men acting like boys. This book has ideas about marriage, large animals and inner peace. Along the way there is some frank discussion, room for error and more than a few laughs. In the end, everyone lives happily ever after.

This book wasn't what I was expecting. I love reading books about dogs and I thought there would be more of a focus on a dog. That was the attraction to me.

I found the writing style a bit painful.

I wanted to like this book because of it's title and because it's written by a Canadian author ... but I'm sad to say that I didn't.

Not the style I like, I guess.

Book ~ "Into Thin Air : A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster" - Jon Krakauer (1999)

From Amazon.com ~ Into Thin Air is a riveting first-hand account of a catastrophic expedition up Mount Everest. In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber, Jon Krakauer, on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide, Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.

Fascinating story! One that I probably wouldn't have looked for if my friend, Kim, hadn't just read it (so thanks, Kim!).

Book ~ "Girlfriends for Life: Friendships Worth Keeping Forever" - Carmen Renee Berry and Tamara Traeder (1999)

From Chapters.ca ~ What's one of the most meaningful relationships in your life? You probably have a great girlfriend who's been your best friend through thick and thin. Girlfriends for Life: Friendships Worth Keeping Forever is a tribute to a woman's most passionate defenders and trusted critics - her girlfriends. Berry and Traeder continue the best-selling Girlfriends series with a book that includes new material from fan mail and true stories from readers.

Quick feel-good book.

Book ~ "Friendshifts: The Power of Friendship and How It Shapes Our Lives" - Jan Yager (1999)

From Amazon.com ~ A rewarding, sensible self-help manual for making, keeping and improving friendships, sociologist Yager's how-to takes its title from a word she coined, which refers to the way friendships change as we move through life's stages. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with adults, children, teenagers, workers and executives, she examines the challenges to friendship posed by marriage, divorce, parenthood, job changes and geographic relocation. Yager has distilled a morass of psychological and sociological research, including her own. Among her findings: it takes an average of three years to form a genuine friendship; women, as they advance in the corporate hierarchy, increasingly distrust workplace friendships, whereas men open up and trust these friends more; friendships can be a source of help for dysfunctional families, and for adults who had poor early relationships with parents or siblings. This primer amply supports its central message, that friends are vital to our emotional health.

Excellent analysis of friendships.

Book ~ "Up the Amazon Without a Paddle" - Doug Lansky (1999)

From Amazon.com ~ This enjoyable collection of anecdotes recounts more than 60 of the author's fun-loving, hair-raising and off-the-wall excursions around the globe. His broad and balanced travel coverage takes many forms. One moment he's elegantly cruising the Caribbean on a luxury liner, the next sleeping under the stars on Mount Sinai. Any lover of adventure will enjoy accounts of blowgun hunting, 'gator wrestling, volcano hiking, and ostrich riding. Unusual experiences include test-driving a Ferrari, enduring a Chinese opera, and playing Finnish ice golf. Through Lansky's writing, one is rewarded with the pleasures of a novel, the excitement of a thriller, and the insightful information one would expect from a guidebook.

This is this second of his books that I've read (I also read Last Trout in Venice: The Far-Flung Escapades of an Accidental Adventurer) and I enjoyed it. He enbarks on many adventures and makes them sound very fun and interesting.

Book ~ "The Adventure of Food: True Stories of Eating Everything" (1999) Richard Sterling

From Amazon.com ~ A collection of true stories will make your mouth water while helping you better understand other cultures, through its touching, funny, and sometimes frightening stories of eating.

As with other compilation books, some stories are funny and some are rather boring.