Joanna Koz Koz itibaren Gąsiorowo, Polonya itibaren Gąsiorowo, Polonya

İyi kitap; dürüst ve cesaret verici.

Fourth in the Coffeehouse Mystery series. The scene shifts to the Hamptons, a collection of hamlets on the South Fork of Long Island and the playground of the wealthy and their wannabees. Clare has agreed to help out a friend, Dave, with his restaurant in the Hamptons, setting up coffee and dessert service. In exchange, she and Joy, her daughter, will stay at Dave’s East Hampton mansion for the summer. But during a Fourth of July party at the mansion, which Clare is catering, a young waiter is shot. Clare is convinced that his death was a mistake and that the intended victim is Dave. Since she can not convince the local police of her theory, naturally Clare is “forced” to investigate on her own. A typical Coffeehouse mystery, this is short on plot, really, and unfortunately in this case, not very long on ambience and history, two of the series’ very long suits. We do learn something about the Hamptons; the local are called Bonackers (name origin is Native American) and something about the history. We learn a lot about the wealthy --the often relatively nasty wealthy--who use the Hamptons for second homes and status symbols. Fine, but one of the strengths of the series is the supporting cast: Tucker, the gay barista; Esther, who can be called the Shark Lady at times; Madame Dubois, Clare’s utterly charming and sophisticated former mother-in-law; Detective Mike Quinn of the Sixth Precinct, a definite love interest for Clare; and New Yorkers themselves in their diversity as they appear in the Village Blend for their caffeine fix. While Matteo and Madame Dubois appear onstage, their roles are small and the others are notable by their absence. As is New York, its history and vitality. Coyle still has the power to evoke settings and make them utterly authentic, and she does so with the Hamptons. Equally so, she brings the wealthy part-time residents alive as well, although that’s not quite so pleasant; the rich turn out not to be terribly interesting. Still, it’s lively, even if it isn’t the best book in the series. Recommended for Coffeehouse fans.

The Good: Oh my, Beth Revis is skilled at the major mind-blowing plot twist. A Million Suns kept me on my toes, just as Across the Universe did. I found myself repeatedly surprised and the ending just hooked me hardcore for the next book. There is a large amount of character growth and development, especially for Elder which felt very true to life and made the book all the more convincing. The Bad: Amy's development is stunted. She still comes off as a whiny, self-involved baby. Yeah, her life is less than awesome and it's not fair what she has to deal with, but she tends to pout rather than make any effort to improve or even just accept her situation.