Book of the Week: Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie

I just read my first Agatha Christie novel called "Dead Man's Folly." After all of the decades I've been enjoying mysteries, it's crazy to think that I just read my first by this amazing author. I can see why she's so famous (Besides, I've not seen much of television or movies from her novels, so don't be surprised). The story is about charity murder mystery game at a celebration (fête) in Devon, U.K. that goes wrong when the "victim" is actually murdered. it features Christie's detective Hercule Poirot. The characters were interesting, and several of them had motives, but the way she weaves them into the storyline and uncovers their backgrounds making them more suspect, was brilliant. The ending took me by surprise. 5 of 5 stars. Today's blog is also about the book and some fun facts.

 

ABOUT THE BOOK: Dead Man's Folly is a 1956 Hercule Poirot novel by Agatha Christie, featuring crime novelist Ariadne Oliver organizing a mock murder hunt for a village fête that turns into a real murder, prompting her to call Poirot for help. The story, set at Nasse House (based on Christie's own Greenway estate), involves a staged murder game where the "victim" is found dead, and Poirot must unravel the complex plot, which includes multiple identities and motives, to find the killer.

FUN FACTS

• Setting: The story is set at Nasse House, which is based on Agatha Christie's own home, Greenway.
• Origin: It was first written as a novella called Hercule Poirot and the Greenshore Folly in 1954, with proceeds intended for church windows, but Christie expanded it into the full novel.
• Adaptations: It has been adapted for radio and television, with a notable TV version starring David Suchet.

Book of the Week: Kindred Spirits: How a Spirit Befriended a Medium by Rob Gutro

Every week I publish a book of the week that I enjoyed, and this time is unique because it's a book I wrote from my personal experiences with a man named Ed who passed away and communicated to me from the afterlife.I LOVED writing "Kindred Spirits: How a Spirit Befriended a Medium"  and telling Ed's story, 23 years after he passed. *** Recently, the book found popularity again shooting into the top 200 on Amazon, because Ed's signs teach others what signs to look for from their own loved ones. Since this published in 2019, Ed continued to give many signs, so his sequel is coming out in 2027. Meanwhile, learn about today's book and there are some reviews included. 

ABOUT THE BOOK: Imagine that the spirit of someone you never met in life comes along in your new relationship. The spirit died 20 years before you met your partner, and this spirit was in a commited relationship with your partner decades before. That's what happened to author and medium Rob Gutro. The spirit, whose name is Ed, has come through in so many ways from dreams to coins, look-alikes, and more. Ed's spirit told Rob many things he couldn't possibly have known. Rob confirmed everything with his partner.

It's uncommon for a medium really get know a spirit so well that the living person considers the spirit a best friend. But that's exactly what happened to medium and paranormal investigator Rob Gutro. When Rob met his partner Tom in 2005, Ed's spirit came along for the ride. Rob never knew Ed in life.

Now, Ed often communicates to Rob and has revealed his sense of humor, his heart, and helped solved the mystery of his passing. Ed's "Spirit Treasure Hunt" showed his family he's with them, too. Ed even sent a look-alike to rescue Rob during a vacation in England. Ed also proved to Rob and Tom that he was with all of their dogs who passed.

As you read about this special spirit named Ed and his sometimes funny communications, you'll learn signs your loved ones send. This book will teach you how to be more aware of messages from your loved ones in spirit.

"Being a friend with Ed in spirit is like having a friend who lives in another state" - Author Rob Gutro describing his relationship with Ed's spirit.

REVIEW: Mike Sykes  5.0 out of 5 stars    Fantastic book , a must read !

Reviewed   September 22, 2019 Verified Purchase 

I could not put this book down. I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end . What an amazing story of a special bond that develops unexpectedly but not by coincidence ( because there's no such as coincidences.) between Rob and a very special spirit Ed. The way Rob is able to channel Ed's messages for him to help bring healing ,love ,laughter and confirmation that he like many other spirits that have crossed are still very much around us all the time . I highly recommend this book, I have only touched on a few things that I loved about this book, there truly is so much that I could go on about . You won't be disappointed, and maybe it's not a coincidence that your meant to purchase this book , or that you're reading this review.

This is one in the author's "Ghosts and Spirits" series of books. Rob Gutro's other series include "Pets and the Afterlife," "Haunting Of," and "Ghosts on a Medium's Vacation."

Book of the Week: Tails You Lose: Witch City Mystery by Carol J Perry

The Witch City Mystery series by Carol J. Perry is one of my all time favorite series!  I have read most of them, and finally went back and read the second book of the series "Tails You Lose." - Somehow I had missed it, and it was AWESOME. That's today's blog.

The main characters are wonderful, Lee who teaches television at a local school (and in later books becomes a reporter for WICH-TV), her boyfriend, later husband, detective Pete Mondello, her aunt Ibby, a retired librarian, and her cat O'Ryan, who originally belonged to a local witch found murdered in book one- are all captivating. There's also Lee's best friend River North, a true witch who reads tarot.

Tails You Lose is a GREAT mystery that will keep you wanting to finish. I read it in 1 week, which is Super-fast for me. In the book, Lee is teaching a television class, and the assignment is to write about the history of Trumbull's deparment store, which happens to be haunted by one of the former residents when it also served as a home. There's mystery, secret tunnels, ghosts, and various new characters. 5 of 5 stars!

ABOUT THE BOOK:  Her instincts may be killer--but can she catch one this wicked?

After losing her job as a TV psychic, Lee Barrett has decided to volunteer her talents as an instructor at the Tabitha Trumbull Academy of the Arts--known as "The Tabby"--in her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts. But when the school's handyman turns up dead under seemingly inexplicable circumstances on Christmas night, Lee's clairvoyant capabilities begin bubbling to the surface once again.

The Tabby is housed in the long-vacant Trumbull's Department Store. As Lee and her intrepid students begin work on a documentary charting the store's history, they unravel a century of family secrets, deathbed whispers--and a mysterious labyrinth of tunnels hidden right below the streets of Salem. Even the witches in town are spooked, and when Lee begins seeing visions in the large black patent leather pump in her classroom, she's certain something evil is afoot. But ghosts in the store's attic are the least of her worries with a killer on the loose. . .

Book of the Week: The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait by Cleo Coyle

 One of my favorite series of mysteries is called the "Haunted Bookshop Mystery" series by Cleo Coyle. I've just finished the seventh book in the series called" The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait." It was wonderful,  5 of 5 stars! Today's blog is about the book.

I love the characters!!! Pen McClure owns a mystery book store in Quindicott, Rhode Island with her aunt Sadie. In the 1940s a private investigator named Jack, was killed in the store, thus he haunts it. Pen can hear him and he has helped her solve mysteries in the town. There are a lot of great supporting characters, too. One is a mailman and another is a college professor who bicker back and forth. In this story, an art collector is selling his paintings, and one is supposed to have a curse on it, that leads to various deaths, family matters, a tie in to a case that the dead detective had in the 1940s, and more. It's a great read!! I look forward to the next book! 

ABOUT THE BOOK: 

The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait is the seventh book in Cleo Coyle's Haunted Bookshop Mystery series, featuring bookstore owner Penelope Thornton-McClure and her ghost sidekick, Jack Shepard, as they investigate a mysterious, cursed-seeming portrait that causes accidents. The cozy mystery blends contemporary and noir elements, with Penelope enlisting the help of the 1940s-era ghost detective to solve the case, which involves a vintage book cover painting and a woman rumored to have gone mad.

Book of the week: Renegade by Frederic Bean (A Western)

 I enjoy reading westerns, and last year I came across a book by Frederic Bean called "Hangman's Legacy" and enjoyed it, so I've looked for others. I recently enjoyed "Renegade" about a group 4 Texas Rangers that were tasked with hunting down a renegade group of Comanches.

The story was good and kept you reading. The main character, Will, the lead Ranger was struggling with being in his 40s and feeling almost too old for the job, while leading 3 other rangers that included a good tracker, a crack rifleman, and another who was clearly an alcoholic with a gun. They were tasked with bringing a band of 10 or so isolated, renegade Comanches who brutally murdered anyone, including other native americans, because they could. They were led by a fierce, and obviously psychotic (I read between the lines) Comanche named Iron Horse. The book opens with a lot of violence by the renegades, and sets up the reason why they need to be stopped.

Will and his Rangers set out to do what the U.S. Army couldn't do - track the renegades and try to bring them to justice. It was a well-written story that kept me reading. 5 of 5 stars. .

Book of the Week: T-Rex in Magic Metal Town: Book 2 (Children's book)

This week's book of the week is "T-Rex in Magic Metal Town" by Ethan Howatt. It's a children's book with a fun story and great, colorful illustrations! It features a boy who lives in Magic Metal Town (which is explained in various artifacts from a magic shovel to a school bus) and who goes on a dig for dinosaur bones.    I bought a copy of this book for our neighbors' kids because they love dinosaurs and enjoy reading. Dinosaurs and magic are two things that also fascinate me, so I HAD to read this, and it was a really fun story to read as an adult! In fact, I hope he writes a sequel involving the magic and dinosaurs because I want to read it! 5 of 5 stars! 

I learned about this fun book because I taught a class on self-publishing and marketing your own book and one of the students in the class is the author!  He also authored another book in this series (for ages 5 to 10) and another series for teenagers. The teenage Sci-fi books include Z.O.M.B.I.E. Games, True Beauty and the Optimal Mind.

His 6 year old son also authored a book for his younger brother called "My Mom is ABC" with illustrations by his 6 and 4 year old boys. 

ABOUT THE BOOK: Ian loves dinosaurs and gets to meet one in Magic Metal Town! 

The first book in this series is called School Day in Magic Metal Town

School Day in Magic Metal TownSchool Day in Magic Metal Town

To Get the paperback:  LINK ON AMAZON

Book of the Week: Graphic Novel: Wesley Dodds, the Sandman

If you've read any of the comics from the 1940s to now, you're likely aware that before Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" from the Netflix TV series, there was another Sandman created in the 1940s. His name was Wesley Dodd, and he used sleeping gas to combat criminals. A new DC Comics Graphic novel about the 1940s character is a great read. That's the topic of today's blog. 

The original Sandman, Wesley Dodds, wore an overcoat, fedora style hat and gas mask. He carried a gun that dispersed sleeping gas. He was also a member of the Justice Society in the 1940s... Recently the character was resurrected for a series of 6 comics made into a graphic novel. It was Outstanding.

The DC Comics' graphic novel "Wesley Dodds, the Sandman" depicts the character in the 1940s, during World War 2. The story is excellent. He was a chemist and concocted different sleep-gases, but shelved the deadly ones and locked the formulas up so they would never be used. However, someone has stolen his formulas for other sleep-like gases that had fatal consequences. The story is how he fought to get them back! It's an excellent story, 5 of 5 stars.- I wish DC Comics would bring the character back in the Justice Society comic.

ABOUT THE BOOK: Wesley Dodd’s dream of a better world is now a nightmare, as DC’s original Sandman returns in a gripping new noir mystery!

No one escapes the Sandman's dark dreams, not even Wesley Dodds himself. After years of testing and experimentation, Wesley perfected his sleep gas as the optimal weapon to fight crime without causing undue harm. But when his journal detailing all his failed and far more deadly formulas is stolen, the Sandman must hunt down the thief and the people in the shadows pulling the strings!

Can Wesley solve the mystery of who broke into his home before these noxious weapons are unleashed on the world, or is Sandman fated to fade away into the mists?

Wesley Dodds: The Sandman is written by comics superstar Robert Venditti (Superman ’78) and vividly drawn by fan-favorite artist Riley Rossmo (Harley Quinn). A bold and thoroughly modern exploration of one of comics’ most classic characters, Wesley Dodds: The Sandman is part of DC’s The New Golden Age initiative, along with Jay Garrick: The Flash and Alan Scott: The Green Lantern.

This volume collects Wesley Dodds: The Sandman #1-6.

Book of the Week: A UK Mystery: "In at the Death" by Francis Duncan

 This week's book of the week is a great one in the "Mordecai Tremaine Mystery" series from the United Kingdom. It's called "In at the Death" by author Francis Duncan (that's his pen name). I thought the title was Odd, so I looked up the phrase and it means: "to be present at the end or climax of something, often an event that is either disastrous or significant."  I had never heard of the author or the series, and just happened to find this book at a dollar store. It sounded good, and it was great! 

"In at the Death" by Francis Duncan

ABOUT THE BOOK: Amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine is back in another classic mystery from the author of Murder for Christmas Mordecai Tremaine and Chief Inspector Jonathan Boyce are never pleased to have a promising game of chess interrupted – though when murder is the disrupting force, they are persuaded to make an exception.

A quick stop at Scotland Yard to collect any detective’s most trusted piece of equipment – the murder bag – the pair are spirited away to Bridgton.

No sooner have they arrived than it becomes clear that the city harbours more than its fair share of passions and motives…and one question echoes loudly throughout the cobbled streets: why did Dr Hardene, the local GP of impeccable reputation, bring a revolver with him on a routine visit to a patient?

Books of the Week: Wow-- 1,000 + Pgs DC Showcase: Metal Men Vol 1 and 2

 Over the last couple of years, I bought many DC Comics 500 page black and white collections of classic comics and most recently, finally read "DC Showcase Presents: The Metal Men" Volumes 1 and 2.  I love the characters and had never read their debut comics run until now. The stories were good, but there was otwo repetitive themes throughout all of them that became tiresome... Today's blog is about those trade paperbacks.

MY TAKE - The metal man had been around since 1962 and it's a great concept. It's about a scientist named Doc Magnus who created robots who were extremely malleable and made out of different medals like lead, gold, platinum, tin, iron, and mercury. All of them are in the likeness of men except for platinum who is in the likeness of a woman. 

THEME 1:  Although I liked the early issues, one theme that ran through all of them that got to be really annoying was that platinum, the female robot, pined over her creator and was "in love with him." In Every single issue including the four debut issues in showcase magazine and the 35 issues of the metal men series itself platinum, known as Tina, cried over Doc Magnus not returning her affections. It got to be extremely tiresome. 

THEME 2: In the first 20 stories of the Metal Men, it seemed like they were always getting totally destroyed and were rebuilt relatively quickly. That also became tiresome!

ODD NOTE:  The creators did develop and conceive a villain known as Chemo, an animated chemical villain who is still popular 62 years later (although "chemo" is known today as a cancer treatment- but they would never have known that). 

 DC Showcase Presents: The Metal Men V1 & 2 B&W Archive 1962-1969

ABOUT THE BOOKS: DC's showcase vol 1 and 2 of the classic Metal Men contains the complete early run beginning with four issues of showcase before the Metal Men got into their own series! Plus, these two volumes also contain metal numbers 1 through 35. Presented in black and white , this is an archive of DC Showcase Comics Volumes 1 and 2. Spanning the years 1962 to 1969, this also includes the classic Brave and the Bold issue #55 with guest the Atom!! Artists and writers include: Robert Kanigher, Bob Haney, and Mike Esposito. **these are long out of print!**

Book of the week: "Marvel Westerns" Hardcover collection

If you like western comic book characters, you'll enjoy reading the hardcover collection of "Marvel Westerns." Today's blog is about the Marvel Westerns collection and why I started reading about cowboys and western characters. 

WHY DO I READ WESTERN COMICS AND NOVELS?  

Since I was a kid, I was always fascinated by cowboys and the Old West in the U.S. I later learned that I had a past life in Tombstone, Arizona in the 1880s, which I wrote about in my book "Ghosts of the Bird Cage Theatre on a Medium's Vacation," so that explains the fascination. 

I have always been a reader of DC Comics' Jonah Hex character, but in the last 2 years I started reading the Marvel Comics western characters and have enjoyed the stories from the 50s, 60s, 70s and early 80s (when they all seemed to go away). 

The "Marvel Westerns Hardcover" is a comprehensive collection that brings together some of Marvel's most iconic Western characters. It features Rawhide Kid, Kid Colt, Arizona Annie, The Black Rider, the Man From Fort Rango, Red Wolf, Hurricane, Gunhawk and Two Gun Kid, among others. One of the stories is about the origin of Rawhide Kid by Jack Kirby.There's also a special section in the back with text explanation for each of the characters.It's well-worth a read!

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SIDE NOTE - About "Ghosts of the Bird Cage Theatre on a Medium's Vacation" 

#1 in General Western US Travel Guides and An Amazon *Top 100* Bestseller!
Shot in the throat! Ghostly Faces! Meet the resident Bird Cage Theatre ghosts as some shared the pain of their violent deaths. Others revealed their lives as actors, drinkers, gamblers, prostitutes, or gunfighters to medium and paranormal investigator Rob Gutro on the museum’s ghost tour. He and his friend photographed faces of 2 ghosts in a painting and a mirror. Rob also sketched some ghosts he encountered. You may encounter them, too!

The Bird Cage Theatre is a very haunted and historic landmark in Tombstone, Arizona. It was a big part of the wild days of the Old West in the United States. Because of the raw emotional events that occurred there, a number of people have chosen to stay behind as earth-bound ghosts.

Book of the week: "The Ghost Had an Early Checkout" by Josh Lanyon, Great LGBTQ Mystery

 I recently enjoyed the second book in a series by Josh Lanyon called "The Ghost Had an Early Checkout." It's the followup to "The Ghost Wore Yellow Socks," which I reviewed back in January 2025.  It features the same characters, an artist named Perry, who is partnered Nick, with an ex-Navy SEAL turned private investigator. Today's blog is my review of the "Early Checkout."

The characters, Nick and Perry are very likeable, and I could relate to both. I love the way the author portrays their relationship, with the anxieties, ups and downs. Since it's an MM book, there's a scene with romance, but the story mostly focuses on the interesting mystery. The author is masterful in presenting the various characters/suspects and it will keep you guessing. Another 5 star book by Josh Lanyon. Josh is truly one of my favorite authors. She knows how to write an MM mystery with great characters. 

ABOUT THE BOOK: Now living in Los Angeles with former Navy SEAL Nick Reno, artist Perry Foster comes to the rescue of elderly and eccentric Horace Daly, the legendary film star of such horror classics as Why Won’t You Die, My Darling?

Horace owns the famous, but now run-down, Hollywood hotel Angel’s Rest, rumored to be haunted. But as far as Perry can tell, the scariest thing about Angel’s Rest is the cast of crazy tenants—one of whom seems determined to bring down the final curtain on Horace—and anyone else who gets in the way.

Book of the week: "Idaho"- a Dell Comics 8 issue series - Great stories, characters!

I love reading and collecting comics and have since the 1970s. Recently, I was in a comics shop and bought an old western Dell comic called "Idaho" for $1.00 that didn't have a cover on it. It was from 1963. I loved the main character, a cowboy named Idaho, and his older sidekick named Frazzle. Together they would ride the west searching for adventure, and winding up helping people in need. I managed to find issues to the entire 8 issue run, and enjoyed them all. I was disappointed when I learned that no other comics company picked up the character, but it will always be one of my favorite western comics.

ABOUT THE SERIES: Dell Comics IDAHO: #1-8 FULL RUN (1963-1965)

Dive into the wild west with the Dell Comics IDAHO series, featuring the adventures of Frazzle and Idaho. This full run set includes issues #1-8 from the years 1963-1965, all featuring beautifully painted covers (except issue 8, which was hand drawn) that capture the essence of the western genre.

This is a rare out of print limited series and features the entire run! They contain one continuous story in each issue, broken into chapters. It's excellent storytelling, and they are great westerns! It's a shame that no comic company picked up the characters after this run.