Book Review : Crime Songs

Crime Songs
Edited by Sean O'Leary
Close to the Bone Publishing, 2025
Genre: Fiction

This is a novel attempt as this is an anthology of crime stories inspired from rock or pop songs. The editor Sean O'Leary has done a stellar job of compiling the short stories on crime ranging from theft to murder.All the 16 authors have named their short stories after title of their favourite song.

Many readers may not be familiar with some of the songs but with the internet, you will be able to find all of them.So be prepared to listen to the songs before you read the stories.It gives you a better understanding of why certain car models or dialogues are used. At least, that is how I read it. It was fun too as being a writer, I needed to know the lyrics of the original song before I read the short story.  It is nice both the title and the band are mentioned. 

Some crime writers have literally written the story from the lyrics of the song while others do an interpretation of the lyrics. Some have just taken the title and made up their own stories. Maybe it is just me but I felt "Sympathy for the Devil" by The Rolling Stones was almost like reading about the Epstein case that I ended up searching for Epstein's family. The proper whodunit was "Right Place, Wrong Time" and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  

The best way to read this book is to have the song play in the background. It is up to the reader - you can always read it without knowing the song. That would also work too. 

You can read this book in any order as it an anthology. The style varies with each short story as they are written by different award winning authors.The writing flows well but you will definitely end up with some favorites.
I think it would have been nice if someone had chosen "Bohemian Rhapsody"and "Every Step You Take" and wrote a story based on it but that is just me!

If you like songs and reading short stories about crime - anything from theft to murder, this book is definitely for you. 

You can buy the book  here Amazon

Book Review : The Case of the Missing Turtles

 

The Case of the Missing Turtles
Mallika Ravikumar
Speaking Tiger Books, 2024
Genre : Children's Fiction


This is the second book in the M4 series. If the first was a crime thriller, this one is an environmental thriller as the title suggests.

Mirchi is approached by Shimplya whose father has been arrested for smuggling turtles by the police. Strangely enough, someone has planted a bag full of river turtles on his boat while the fisherman only ventures out to the sea to catch fish. So who has done it becomes a case for the M4 to solve. 

Step in NGOs that protect wildlife, the M4 and the readers are schooled on which are protected wild life and which are not in India,the Asian wildlife smuggling network and how children are used in it. As the M4 investigate pet shops, they are shocked by how easily the pet shop owners are able to access protected wildlife 

The writing is crisp, fast paced and provides awareness of wildlife law in India. It also provides awareness about police arrests and the legal procedure for getting bail. 

While there is a happy ending, it shocks  the reader how commonplace wild life smuggling is in India.   

To buy the book go here Speaking Tiger Books

Book review: A Kind of Hush by JoDee Neathery

“Death leaves a heartache no one can heal but love leaves a memory no one can steal.” - A Kind of Hush

Wow was all I could say when I finished this unique book. 

Griff, the elder son of the Mackie family dies. Three years later, the mother dies in a freak accident that almost kills the father and the daughter. The only one left is Gabe - the seven-year-old baby brother. How do you cope with grief? Gabe shows the way. Summer, the mother is three months pregnant when she dies. Just when you think, this book is going to be about how a family copes with grief when a family member dies, the police investigate the accidental death of Summer, a social worker who helps sexual assault victims, especially children. This changes the genre to a mystery novel. While the suspect is at large, the reader is left to wonder - who did it and why? 

Zigzagging from Buffalo, New York where Summer dies to Big Bend, Texas, the author holds you mesmerized and there is never a dull moment. Most often in a mystery, the narrative is forced but this one just flows, filled with insight. While there are twists and turns throughout the story which makes the reader anxious at times for the children, it is balanced by humor. I couldn't stop grinning when I read "Einstein’s special theory of relativity is easier to grasp than a teenage girl."  The line on sexual assault was particularly insightful when one of the sexual assault victims says at Summer's funeral, "She told us our bodies were crime scenes …  just like those surrounded by yellow tape …  holding key pieces of evidence of a crime committed and she would find the truth. Mrs. Mackie said that truth would heal our internal wounds, the scars would be symbols of a fight won as we move the blame elsewhere. She gave us all a reason to believe our lives were just beginning ... not ending"

The story is about life in general and how small things can prejudice our views of people. It also shows how cops make mistakes and how they are humane too through her characters, Conner and Warren. When you buy the book, have markers handy as you will end up highlighting multiple lines in the book.

The writing style is interesting as the author mixes history of USA without interrupting the narrative.  It is crisp and a page turner. It is both utterly heartbreaking and uplifting, giving us hope.

A Kind of Hush is a book one has to definitely read in our lifetime. 

You can buy it here   Amazon

Book review : The Case of the Vanishing Gods

 

The Case of the Vanishing Gods 
by Mallika Ravikumar
Speaking Tiger Books, 2023
Genre: Children Fiction.

When a robbery takes place in an apartment complex in Maulsari and the police are left clueless, Malhar and his elder sister Meera, think this would be a better way to spend their summer holidays solving the mystery. Mirchi and Munna join them and the M4 is born. However, they are dragged into not just the robbery but a much larger mystery which involves international idol smuggling. Are the children able to crack this case? This is the first book in the M4 series. 

If you enjoyed reading Famous Five, Five Find-Outers as a kid or Perry Mason as a young adult, then this merges both. It also introduces you to the difference between criminal and civil offense and multiple legal terms for children and adults as a part of the narrative. Same thing goes for police procedure. Since most Indians are unaware about correct police procedure and legal procedures as it is not taught in schools, this would be a good book for all. It also shows how people suspected of crime are treated by Indian police especially if they are poor and why it is important to be aware of the law. 

The writing is clear, crisp and will hold the attention of anyone. If you are looking for a good book for your kids as neither Famous Five nor Harry Potter doesn't hold their attention, this book has the right balance of both mystery and law.  The author is a lawyer and keeps the narrative both engaging and educates the reader in police procedure. She is India's own Enid Blyton and Erle Stanley Gardner combined.  

If the "In the Name of God" by Ravi Subramanian was for adults, this one is for children, though it has enough legal information for adults too. 

To buy the book go here  Speaking Tigers 

 

 

Book Review : The Bangkok Girl

 

The Bangkok Girl 
by 
Sean O'Leary
Level Best Books, 2025
Genre: Fiction


Lee Jenson is a schizophrenic Australian private investigator living in Bangkok, Thailand. He is hired by an Australian family to find their missing daughter Zoe who disappeared in Bangkok. When Jenson accepts the case, the reader is in for a surprise.  As Jenson acts like a pit-bull with a never give up attitude, he is forced to go against the sex trafficking ring in Thailand, the Yakuza -Japanese mafia and the international network of sex traffickers who use drugs to keep the girls into the business. Does he find Zoe ? Does he fall in love? Who is the Bangkok girl?

Zipping across Bangkok, Tokyo and Hong Kong, effortlessly, the story is told realistically and without judgement. How do tourists become sex slaves? Is it ignorance or something else? It is a strange narrative that there is no exaggeration and you feel almost resigned to the fate of the girls trafficked except the protagonist doesn't give up. Lee is one heck of a character and keeps making you read. 

O'Leary narrative style is clean, the writing crisp and well paced as he takes you on a ride filled with twists, turns and surprises. If you want to know who the Bangkok girl is, read the book to find out. 

To buy the book, get it here Amazon







 

Book review : NeverEnd by Blake Rudman

 

NeverEnd 
by 
Blake Rudman
HellBound Books, 2025
Genre: Fiction 


I have read many novels but the prologue of this one was so shocking that it pulls the reader in and keeps them reading the book. Nothing is predictable as all of it comes as a surprise. 

Dr. Jon Edom leaves a medical conference on the relation between violence in society and addictive online gaming  only to reach home to find his wife Rochelle and his two young sons, Luke and Paul  have disappeared into thin air. When he files the complaint, the police suspect Jon though he was miles away during the disappearance. That there are no corpses is puzzling. Step in Rochelle's family who run a cult thanks to Rochelle programming a violent addictive game which brings them loads of money. Then there are the  enemies of the cult, and with biblical references, you are in for a ride. 

An addictive role playing game. This book reminded me of "Blue Whale" game which made adults do crazy things in real life until it was banned by multiple governments. It also shows the danger of priming in the police department that destroys objective investigation. Priming is  a social psychological term which means focusing on something/someone because that is what has been made prominent. But is the story just about that, absolutely not.

Rudman gives a masterclass in writing - how to create tension and terror with simple characterization. He creates chaos without usual terror tricks like spirits and gore as the reader is pulled into the story with its ever increasing tension. As a reader, you know something is off  from the beginning but you are not left to ponder what it could be as the next piece of chaos is thrown in. You watch characters unravel at a speed that leaves you dazed and the end is a zinger, though it is not the end. The writing is so crisp and visual that you feel you are seated next to Dr. Jon Edom. 

If you are in the mood for a dark thriller page turner, this book would be it.

You can buy the book here  on Amazon 

Book Review : Elegance and Evil - a fab weekend read

 

Elegance and Evil
by DK Coutant
The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Fiction

Cleo Cooper is on a sabbatical in Santa Fe. She misses her home in Hawaii but is shocked to learn that one of the volcanoes have erupted and many of her friends are affected there.. Then one of her acquaintances in Santa Fe, Ginger, is found dead in the desert. The death is by heat stroke according to the police but is it?

The suspects range from the son of a Russian spy to a Saudi Arabian woman who works with abused women in a Center run by Ginger and her.While the FBI is on the case, Cleo Cooper does her own investigation. The moment she begins to investigate, someone tries to kill her. It is not just once multiple attempts are made to kill her but why?

Zipping between Hawaii and Santa Fe, the author ensures logic drives the narrative instead of common prejudice against a particular nationality in a mystery thriller. It was refreshing to read and I learnt in the end, the author is also a geopolitical forecaster. No wonder. 

The writing is crisp, fast paced. It would be the perfect read if you wish to curl up with a book for the weekend. 

To buy the book , go here Amazon