G G Collins
Auteur de Reluctant Medium
A propos de l'auteur
Crédit image: Hiking near Santa Fe, NM.
Séries
Œuvres de G G Collins
Without Notice 1 exemplaire
Étiqueté
Partage des connaissances
- Sexe
- female
- Professions
- Book Writer & Journalist
- Prix et distinctions
- Journalism Awards, Duke University Fellowship
- Courte biographie
- Walking several beats, reporter G G Collins racked up a lot of column inches, a few awards and a university fellowship. She never met a story she didn't like.
There was another side lurking. This side of her personality is fond of the strange, the frightening, the paranormal. When she graduated from children's books at about 12, she began her adult reading career with Shirley Jackson's "We Have Always Lived in the Castle." Wow! She wasn't expecting that ending.
The day she discovered the Hopi ceremony to call back the dead, she just had to ask the question: What would happen if the wrong spirit returned? "Reluctant Medium" resulted and a new series was born.
Membres
Critiques
Taylor Browning moved to Santa Fe after the death of her husband. She lives with her Abyssinian cat, Oscar, and works as a mystery editor at a small publishing house. But when the owner -- Preston Endicott, Jr. -- is mysteriously killed in his locked office, everyone who works there is a suspect, along with his ex-wife, Jessica, who made no bones about the fact that she hated the man. Could one of Taylor's co-workers be a killer? Perhaps -- and Taylor is determined to find out who had the best motive. Now if she can just stay alive long enough to figure it out...
This is the first book in the series, and as such, I enjoyed it very much. I found the chapters devoted to everyone's thoughts an interesting item, and something I encounter rarely in the books I read. I also enjoyed the little tidbits about Santa Fe and the surrounding areas and attractions as something nicely added. It gives you a feel for the area, which is always welcome in books.
Taylor herself is a good protagonist. Whatever she learns she shares with Detective Sanchez -- eventually, and in her own way. Do not get me wrong; she doesn't withhold information for her own use, as some protagonists do; she just forget to inform him until something triggers in her brain. How it triggers is also a bit of a twist, and a good one at that.
I do like Oscar, but I have a soft spot for cats anyway, and also for characters who like cats, so that puts Sanchez and Jim on my list. While Jim is abrasive, it's because he's been embittered, and as the saying goes, people can change given the right time. He might. Time will tell.
As to the mystery, it was done very well, and gave us clues throughout to determine our own suspect. I am glad to say that I was right, but then again, as I have said many times over, I read a lot of mysteries, so there's that.
When the ending comes, it was done in such a way as to be rather refreshing, since I have never read it this way before. I found it unusual yet satisfying, and am glad that I picked this book up. I will definitely read the next in this series. Recommended.… (plus d'informations)
This is the first book in the series, and as such, I enjoyed it very much. I found the chapters devoted to everyone's thoughts an interesting item, and something I encounter rarely in the books I read. I also enjoyed the little tidbits about Santa Fe and the surrounding areas and attractions as something nicely added. It gives you a feel for the area, which is always welcome in books.
Taylor herself is a good protagonist. Whatever she learns she shares with Detective Sanchez -- eventually, and in her own way. Do not get me wrong; she doesn't withhold information for her own use, as some protagonists do; she just forget to inform him until something triggers in her brain. How it triggers is also a bit of a twist, and a good one at that.
I do like Oscar, but I have a soft spot for cats anyway, and also for characters who like cats, so that puts Sanchez and Jim on my list. While Jim is abrasive, it's because he's been embittered, and as the saying goes, people can change given the right time. He might. Time will tell.
As to the mystery, it was done very well, and gave us clues throughout to determine our own suspect. I am glad to say that I was right, but then again, as I have said many times over, I read a lot of mysteries, so there's that.
When the ending comes, it was done in such a way as to be rather refreshing, since I have never read it this way before. I found it unusual yet satisfying, and am glad that I picked this book up. I will definitely read the next in this series. Recommended.… (plus d'informations)
I was browsing for a light cozy to read and I couldn't pass by the Abyssinian cat on the cover and the title that sounded intriguing. My attention was then drawn to the descriptive line ...
Oscar lives with Taylor Browning who has been working as an editor of mysteries at Endicott Publishing in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and for about a year and off hours she has been renovating her fixer-upper. Preston Endicott, Jr. is not anyone's favorite boss but luckily Taylor reports to Virginia Compton, senior editor so Taylor doesn't have daily contact with Preston. He's best known for shouting at his secretary and that desk is filled on a revolving door basis. But everything changes one morning when Preston's office door is locked, a voicemail on the secretary's phone indicated Preston was a no-show at an evening meeting, and a check with his housekeeper shared that his bed had not been slept in.
At a small publishing company, the list of suspects seems as though it will be focused on the employee list until Taylor begins reading the latest manuscript submitted by flamboyant and high maintenance author Dominique Boucher. The locked-room plot is eerily familiar. As Taylor is concerned for her job since she loves her little house and wants to keep that roof over her and Oscar's head she's very attentive to the actions of her coworkers and then she sees Dominique one evening in an unusual venue for the author. As Taylor investigates it seems as though everyone is rightly on the suspect list.
After stress filled days at the office Oscar knows the purr-fect ways to give Taylor the calm evening company she needs and has his own clever reminders when her attention is diverted. It was no surprise to learn from About the Author that
For fans of Ellery Queen and Agatha Christie locked-room mysteries this is a contemporary gem! I'm looking forward to spending more time with Taylor and Oscar.… (plus d'informations)
"Feline royalty expects to dine on schedule and penalties can be quite severe when expectations are not met."I was definitely ready to meet the royal Abyssinian as I knew there would be smiles ahead. Oscar did not disappoint.
Oscar lives with Taylor Browning who has been working as an editor of mysteries at Endicott Publishing in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and for about a year and off hours she has been renovating her fixer-upper. Preston Endicott, Jr. is not anyone's favorite boss but luckily Taylor reports to Virginia Compton, senior editor so Taylor doesn't have daily contact with Preston. He's best known for shouting at his secretary and that desk is filled on a revolving door basis. But everything changes one morning when Preston's office door is locked, a voicemail on the secretary's phone indicated Preston was a no-show at an evening meeting, and a check with his housekeeper shared that his bed had not been slept in.
At a small publishing company, the list of suspects seems as though it will be focused on the employee list until Taylor begins reading the latest manuscript submitted by flamboyant and high maintenance author Dominique Boucher. The locked-room plot is eerily familiar. As Taylor is concerned for her job since she loves her little house and wants to keep that roof over her and Oscar's head she's very attentive to the actions of her coworkers and then she sees Dominique one evening in an unusual venue for the author. As Taylor investigates it seems as though everyone is rightly on the suspect list.
After stress filled days at the office Oscar knows the purr-fect ways to give Taylor the calm evening company she needs and has his own clever reminders when her attention is diverted. It was no surprise to learn from About the Author that
"Collins has been cat mom to a dozen kitties, all with their own eccentricities. Oscar is the reincarnation of her late Abyssinian cat."as she describes the behavior with the insight and humor of a cat owner.
For fans of Ellery Queen and Agatha Christie locked-room mysteries this is a contemporary gem! I'm looking forward to spending more time with Taylor and Oscar.… (plus d'informations)
Native American legends combined with the psychic. Rachel Blackstone must find what and who is behind the earthquakes happening in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Follow along as she gathers the facts and goes into the countryside to investigate.
This is a book that you will want to read more than once in order to draw out all the information on the Hopi legend of the end of the world; and, to remotely visit the beautiful countryside of New Mexico.
This is a book that you will want to read more than once in order to draw out all the information on the Hopi legend of the end of the world; and, to remotely visit the beautiful countryside of New Mexico.
Statistiques
- Œuvres
- 11
- Membres
- 45
- Popularité
- #340,917
- Évaluation
- 4.1
- Critiques
- 9
- ISBN
- 6
Elements I liked:
I liked how the story jumped right in with the mystery, rather than giving a chapters-long lead-in like some cozy mysteries do. It was an engaging read with plenty of possible culprits and a classic locked-room mystery. With so many people having what seemed strong reasons to see the victim gone, the story kept me reading to see who the real culprit was. And while I ultimately did figure out who it was, and even a little bit of the why, it wasn’t until close to the reveal, so it made for a satisfying read. The descriptions of the Santa Fe setting were detailed and interesting.
Elements I struggled with:
Especially near the beginning, numerous, abrupt jumps between characters’ points-of-view made it hard to connect with the characters and left me feeling that I wasn’t really getting to know them. Unfortunately, many of the descriptions of the setting read more like a tourist guidebook than places in which the characters lived and interacted. The book would benefit from an additional edit to fix the several instances of what looked to be missing words.
Overall:
This entertaining cozy whodunit contains many of the common elements of cozy mysteries and was a fast, easy read. The story should appeal to fans of cozies who are looking for a familiar-feeling and enjoyable read.
(Read August 2022)… (plus d'informations)