Doug Crandell

“Palomino Coal” by Doug Crandell opens the Mystery Magazine: April 2024 issue. Dani and her cousin, Kimmy, at the coal mine at Snow Hill awaiting their grandfather to come out of the mine. Coal mine located in Vigo County, Indiana. When the shift ends, their grandfather does not come out, and the hunt for him is on.

He went to the speakeasy to see a dame in “On The Pad” by R.T. Lawton. The cop was setup and now he has to go have a meet with a local crime boss. Not only did Detective Everett Maitland get played by the woman, she has put him in a real bind. The kind that could easily get him killed.

Larry Alan Ruse is next with “Dance with the Dolly.” Jennifer Seymour is visiting with her friend, Matilda Gray, who has a great home in the suburbs outside New Haven Connecticut. The retired Yale University librarian is quite the mystery fan. She has an extensive mystery collection as well as textbooks on forensic science. She has an extensive mystery collection as well as textbooks on forensic science. That means she knows a thing or three. That will come in handy as this package is going to be far more complicated than she expected when she did the gift order for her granddaughter’s birthday.

It is back to a historical setting in the next tale that focuses on the legendary lawman, Gus Hachette. In “First Arrest” by Jim Doherty, the backstory on how Gus Hachette became a lawman, instead of a preacher, is explained. Hachette was lucky to survive.

It is just a few years after the depression has ended in “Cover Of The Moon” by Robert Mitchell and our narrator is a man that rides the rails with no set place. He’s back in Hogg Bend, Kentucky, because he heard his Pa has died. Lots of things have changed. Some for the better. Others for considerably worse. One of those worst deals is the fact that a bully from school back in the day is now the deputy sheriff. The man is best avoided. Easier said than done.

It is back to contemporary times in “Flight Control” by Jacob Aaron Reingold. Elenna is on the plane with her children, Daniil, 14, and Zarya, 7, and headed back to their home in the Middle East. She is less than thrilled to be going back to the Sheikdom. She doesn’t have much of a choice as she is on the plane headed there from Paris. It will fly over her homeland, Balgor, which she has not been in since the war. Her options are very limited and one man on her flight seems intent on making things worse.

“In-Laws And Out-laws by John Floyd is the “You-Solve-It” this month. Retired Valentine is looking for her daughter, the sheriff. She finds her at a house where Sheriff Lucy Valentine is annoyed that her barbecue grill has vanished from her back patio. Good thing mom came to help investigate. The solution appears in the May issue.

This issue closes with the solution to the March “You-Solve-It” story, “The Wisdom of Solomon” by Eric B. Ruark.

The seven tales presented in the Mystery Magazine: April 2024 issue are all good ones. Diversity, as always, is the concept with this publication. It is again present here as the tales involved showcase a wide range of storytelling styles and themes. Those who like historical tales will find much to enjoy here as most of the stories presented in the issue fit that designation.

The result is another solidly good issue.

For quite some time now I have been gifted a subscription by the publisher with no expectation at all of a review.



Kevin R. Tipple ©2024… (meer)

A very good book. Too bad that as with many true crime books you learn who murdered whom on the first pages. This book was very well written. Once I got over my first annoyance the book grabbed me and did not let go. One thing that I wish the author would not do is the way he described the victims sometimes, it was going a bit overboard. Like constantly telling us how pretty she was, how gorgeous her blue eyes sparkled, Ann Rule does that as well. having a tendency to praise the victim to the heavens. (oops wrong wording)
All in all I do recommend this book to my fellow true crime readers.… (meer)

I wanted to love this book. I wanted it to be the "quirky love story" promised on the back cover and suggested in the title. It's not badly written and it's a quick read, one you could run through in a few hours, but I didn't even want to give it that after reaching more than halfway. You can tell this book wants to be literary--it's told present tense first person by Hobbie. A thirty-something "pizza face" who bonded with Kari, his very overweight common-law wife of twenty years, over their molestation by the deacon of their church. They've underachieved for decades, moving from job to job as bank tellers. At the start of the book Kari has been in a weight loss clinic for months, and only communicating with Hobbie through daily, often cryptic letters. I liked the idea of a love story about two people you're not likely to see on romance covers. The problem for me though, is that rather than overcoming or letting us see the beauty under the surface, so much of this story focuses on the repulsive. I got tired of so much of this book consisting of graphic descriptions of Hobbie popping, scratching, scrapping and digging into his zits. There's just enough of the quirkiness and warmth promised to save this from a one-star rating, but a first-person story depends on voice and the character of the narrator fascinating you, making you laugh or making you care--and this doesn't do it for me.… (meer)

An Uplifting Ugly Betty Story

A heart-warming story about an "ugly couple", the young man, Hobbie, is a pizza-faced unemployed former bank teller, and his partner, Kari, an overweight under-achieving girl living in a weight loss clinic.

"Flawless Skin of Ugly People" explores the themes of beauty, identity, fear, failure, love, and hate. Why do people do the things they do? Is it because of the way they were raised, events in their childhood? Do beautiful people get more benefits in life? (I think you could argue either way)

As for Crandell's writing, I wasn't enthralled by it, but it has a certain "Catcher in the Rye" quality to it. The pace is pretty quick, and at times a little mechanical considering the deep and mature subject matter.

Overall, I recommend the book for a good afternoon read. The book leaves the reader with more questions rather than conclusions which would make a great book club type of novel. I look forward to my next Doug Crandell book.… (meer)