Nighttime is My Time - Mary Higgins Clark

The Basics: Nighttime is My Time, Mary Higgins Clark, 2004, 434 pages, paperback

How I found it: Remember how I got How to Win Friends and Influence People from a cereal box giveaway? Well that's where I got this one too.

What's it about?: At a 20th high school reunion Jean discovers that 5 of the 7 girls who used to sit at her lunch table are mysteriously dead. During the course of the reunion weekend the sixth girl goes missing. Jean and a likeable local cop have to solve the mystery of which reunion guest is behind the murders before it is too late for Jean (dum-de-dum-dum DUMMMM!). Surprisingly, it takes over 400 pages to catch the guy even though they only have a few suspects.

Did I like it?: This was pure crap. At first I couldn't believe I was actually going to read the whole thing, but I kept going in the end because I wanted to know who did it. Throughout the book Higgins Clark (the "Queen of Suspense" by the way) throws out little clues about which one of the suspects it might be, but then 50 pages later that clue is proven to be false. I won't tell you whodunnit, obviously, but it was a "shocker"! This book was not well-written, but then again, I didn't expect it to be since it is one of those books where the author's name is larger than the title of the book on the front cover and the author has a reputation as one of those people that churn out the same plot in different forms for years. In the end, it turned out to be one of those books that you read at the beach or at the cabin in a rain storm. Definitely not worthy of bedtime reading during exam period! I'm quite glad it was free!

Will you like it?: If you like suspense/mystery/crime novels, Sugarmilk Falls, which I read recently, was 100 times better than this one. If like me, you manage to get this book for free, are looking for something mindless to read, and are sick of the vapid Bridgit Jones knockoff books (Shopaholic anyone?) this might not be too bad. Otherwise, stay away, far far away.

But don't take my word for it: A mixed bag of reviews on Amazon.ca (although I would have to say the one-star reviewers are the only ones who got it right), one from Bookreporter.com, and another from Woodsontheweb.com.

Sugarmilk Falls - Ilona Van Mil

The Basics: Sugarmilk Falls, Ilona Van Mil, 2005, 321 pages, paperback, winner of the Crime Writers Association's Debut Dagger Award (for Crime novels by previously unpublished authors). Apparently she is also a law prof at the University of Essex in the UK.

How I found it: My mom had it and lent it to me when I was visiting her. I'm not sure if she had it for her book club or not, but either way, she really enjoyed it.

What's it about?: A small francophone town in northern Ontario is shaken out of their usual routine by the murder of the local school teacher. The townsfolk, including the priest, a trapper, the local car dealer, and the resident aboriginal family form part of a great cast of characters. It's a "whodunit" type of mystery novel, but Van Mil writes rather well and makes it feel a little more like literature. Van Mil also manages to incorporate aboriginal and religious issues in a great way.

Did I like it?: It's been ages since I read any mystery or crime books. I usually dismiss them as pulpy, but this one was so well-written for the genre that I really enjoyed it. There is so much more going on here besides the murder. The only thing that I disliked is that Van Mil switches from narrating about one set of characters to another quite quickly at times and it can be difficult for a reader to get their bearings.

Would you like it?: For a first novel, this one is quite good. And for a crime book, it is quite well written and doesn't feel very formulaic. The twists aren't that foreseeable and they do end up making sense. All in all, a good read.

But don't take my word for it: A review from Shotsmag (a UK eZine for crime fiction), a review from the UK's The Independent, and one from Sarah Weinman's blog (she's a crime writer, among other things).

The Oak Island Mystery: The Secret of the World's Greatest Treasure Hunt - Lionel and Patricia Fanthorpe

The Basics: The Oak Island Mystery: The Secret of the World's Greatest Treasure Hunt, Lionel and Patricia Fanthorpe, 1995, 221 pages, paperback

How I found it: My dad and I had read a few books about Oak Island when I was a teenager and now that I live less than an hour's drive from Oak Island I thought I would pick up one of the many books about it.

What's it about?: On an island in Mahone Bay, on the south shore of Nova Scotia, two boys discovered a refilled shaft in 1795. Ever since various teams of treasure hunters have excavated parts of the island searching for some sort of treasure they believe is buried there. In the course of their excavations they have uncovered a complicated tunnel system that seems to flood any shaft that is dug to get at the suspected treasure. This book details what has been found so far, which groups of treasure hunters have operated on the island, and then goes into some of the authors far-fetched ideas about how the treasure came to be on Oak Island.

Did I like it?: For such an interesting topic, this book is pretty boring. It refreshed my memory about the ingenious tunnel system that exists on Oak Island, but other than that I didn't find it to be very credible. I skimmed the last third of the book since it dealt with the author's strange theories about the owner of the treasure. These range from pirates, to Sir Francis Bacon, to marauding Celts, to the Knights Templar and several others. I don't find much merit to any of these conspiracy theories. As well, the author intersperses details about these theories throughout the first part of the text, but then doesn't explain them until the end, which makes for a confusing read. Apparently the author is a British science fiction writer which might help explain why his writing style sucks!

Will you like it?: If you don't know anything about Oak Island this might be an okay place to start. While I can't recommend anything specifically, I can tell you that there are tons of other Oak Island books out there and perhaps you should start with something else. Or you can just check out this wikipedia article - it has the basic information.

But don't take my word for it: Most of the readers on Amazon.ca agreed with me (and were even more harsh) but it seems that the few reviewers on that site who liked the book are personal friends of the authors' (how lame).