Socorro Blast

It is so much fun to witness a good writer getting better and better. That's exactly what you will find in Pari Noskin Taichert's Sasha Solomon mystery series. She started with The Clovis Incident (2004) and The Belen Hitch (2005), both of which were great books and fun reads. But I've become a confirmed fan with her latest in the series, The Socorro Blast (2008).



Not only do we get reacquainted with the always imperfect and whipped cream swigging Sasha, but we also get to meet some more members of her eccentric family. We get to ride along with her attempts to solve a mystery, this time in the areas around Socorro, Magdalena, San Antonio, and Albuquerque. And to top it off, Taichert offers some timely insight into the machinations and manipulations of the media. Don't miss it!

Page Turners

It's time for another mass collaboration book list, only this time I'm asking for books that are on your curl-up-by-the-fire-and-read-a-real-page-turner list. Not those challenging books we listed last time. I really am working my way through my challenge list, but have to take a little break. I was reading Black Swan; The Impact of the Highly Improbable when the author used the word "empirical" for the third time. That was it for me--time for a little wintertime "beach" reading.

Here, I'll start us off with my list of really great to read books. I'm currently reading my way through several series, each featuring a crime-solving protagonist and all having a strong sense of place.

Barr, Nevada: The Anna Pigeon books, all starring a National Park Ranger who works all over the country. The first is Track of the Cat.

Burke, James Lee: The Dave Robicheaux books, all of which are set in the area surrounding New Orleans. Burke's descriptions will fill your senses, and make you crave a Dr. Pepper with crushed ice, cherries, orange slices, and mint leaves--really. Start with Neon Rain.

Hillerman, Tony: Wonderful mysteries set in Navajo country. The first with Joe Leaphorn is The Blessing Way; Hillerman's other main character, Jim Chee, is introduced in the fourth book of the series, People of Darkness. There is a nicely annotated list at Dancing Badger.com.

Jance, J.A.: Books featuring Joanna Brady, sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona, starting with Desert Heat. We stayed in Bisbee, AZ, where the fictional sheriff has her office.

McGarrity, Michael: The Kevin Kerney books, starting with Tularosa. All take place in various settings around New Mexico.

Stabenow, Dana: This series is set in Alaska in an unnamed national park, and stars memorable heroine Kate Shugak, Aleut detective and former FBI agent. The first in the series is (I believe) A Cold Day for Murder. The series gets better as it goes along and as Stabenow matures as a writer.

Ready? Send me your lists of the books you like to read. Just put them into the comments section of the blog so we can all share. Thanks for collaborating!