Field of Blood

For some reason I just couldn't get into this one. Set back in the 1980s where men were men and women weren't, maybe that was the problem. Mina did a good job of telling the main and separate tale, but wee Paddy Meehan and not as wee Paddy Meehan just didn't drive me forward through this thriller.

Deception

This crime novel is written as a fictitious after the fact diary, an interesting conceit. But talk about your unreliable narrator. Nevertheless an interesting take on a crime and its affect on a family. I enjoy Denise Mina and will read more of her work. I especially liked how the story ended; not at all sappy.

Stardust

I went from noir to noir and at least this noir was set in an actual noir period and place, Hollywood right after World War II complete with returning GIs, German emigrés, and Red Menace hunters. Kanon painted a vivid picture of studio system Hollywood, but unfortunately the novel, at times, read more like a screenplay than a novel (though heaven help us if someone attempts to convert the 500 pages). Overall, I enjoyed it and found it an amusing quick read.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

This has been on my want to read list for about a year, and I'm glad I could finally track it down at the library. The novel, set in Sweden, starts slow. It took me some time to get used to the Swedish names, especially the place names given that I have zero knowledge of Swedish geography. But once the story begins to shift from financial reporting and background checks to that of a disappearing heiress things really pick up and it's hard to put the book down. I won't give any of the plot points away, but I really like how complex this story is, both in terms of the number of elements and people in play to what they've all been hiding. I can't wait to get a hold of the sequel.