MYSTERY REVIEW

Unholy Rites
By Kay Stewart and Chris Bullock
Touch Wood Editions


The last time I read a Danutia Dranchuk mystery, the RCMP constable was chasing the bad guys on Vancouver Island. This time she’s in Derbyshire, England, to research methods in crime reduction initiatives and working with the local police. While there, she’s made contact with her friend, Arthur Fairweather, whom she first met three years earlier, in the first book in the series, A Deadly Little List.

Arthur’s mum has died and Danutia travels to her funeral, only to be caught up in Arthur’s conviction that it wasn’t a natural death. It certainly seems an odd place to Danutia, when it’s revealed the town is getting ready for a well dressing ceremony and Arthur’s mum was heavily involved in it along with Celtic rites and rituals.

A series of mutilated goats, used in ritual killings perhaps, weave into a tale of a sketchy minister whom Arthur’s mum didn’t trust, her missing scrapbook, a young boy who goes missing, and a dear, or perhaps not so dear, friend of the deceased who dispenses herbal remedies.

When the brakes are cut in the car Danutia and Arthur are using, the case that really isn’t officially a case, takes on even more sinister tones. And when Arthur is kidnapped and held captive along with the missing lad, it’s up to Danutia and the local constabulary to find them both, before a madman kills them in accordance with the rituals of Old Beltane Day.

The setting is marvelous. Stewart and Bullock have drawn a small English town with it’s eccentric residents and countryside so real, it’s like taking a trip across the pond. The writers have drawn on a wealth of information about pagan rites and current ceremonies, which is all fascinating. And, as Danutia and Arthur join forces to track the killer, they also dance around their mutual attraction. However, when Danutia learns of her promotion to corporal, their evening’s celebration leads to unforeseen consequences.

Kay Stewart and Chris Bullock wortk together when both characters, Danutia and Arthur, are front and center. As a team, they write seamlessly. For the second book in the series, Sitting Lady Sutra, Kay Stewart was the solo author. It’s a strong series with interesting characters and always, unusual plots. I look forward to seeing where the next book takes them.


Kay Stewart is the author of police procedurals featuring RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk. Unholy Rites, written with husband Chris Bullock, is the third in the series. Kay has also published short stories, personal essays, and writing textbooks. She taught at the University of Alberta before moving to Vancouver Island to devote her time to writing. She is active in the crime-writing community, having served as National Vice President and President of Crime Writers of Canada and co-chair of Bloody Words 2011.

CRIME ON MY MIND

Springing into new titles!

It's almost spring (I seem to be stuck on a certain theme these days)and the other good news is that the new spring titles have started arriving! There are some criminously delicious new books from Canadian writers that may already be in the stores...so prepare your lists and start shopping!


From the award-winning Mary Jane Maffini comes a brand new cosy series, co-authored with her daughter, Victoria Maffini under the name of Victoria Abbott -- got all that? It's a Book Collector's series, the first being, The Christie Curse. They will be launching this book along with another award-winner, Barbara Fradkin, whose 9th Inspector Green novel, The Whisper of Legends comes out in April. The date for the celebration is Tues. April 16th. See more details under Events.

Just out, The Poisoned Pawn by Peggy Blair. This second fast-paced crime novel brings Cuban police Inspector Ramirez to Canada. And Gail Bowen continues her successful Rapid Reads series with the fourth Charlie D novel, The Thirteenth Rose.

Also new to the shelves, from West Coast authors kay Stewart and Chris Bullock, the third book in their RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk series, Unholy Rites. Stay tuned for a review next weekend.

And coming up:

In April, Jack Batten brings his criminal lawyer Crang back into action, after a long hiatus, in Take Five.
Ottawa author David Whellams second Peter Cammon mystery, The Drowned Man, brings the retired Scotland Yard detective to Canada. It appears in May, as does Twilight is Not Good for Maidens, by Lou Allin. Set on Vancouver Island, BC, this is the third in the RCMP Corporal Holly Martin series, the second series for Allin.

And, there are more! Check out the Crime Writers of Canada website at www.crimewriterscanada.com for a listing of all the new cool Canadian crime that's just happened or is on the way!

Happy mysterious reading!

Linda Wiken/Erika Chase

READ AND BURIED
Berkley Prime Crime, now available
A KILLER READ, also available at your favourite bookstores and online.
Nomianted for an Agatha Award, Best First Novel 2012
COVER STORY available for pre-order; coming Aug. 2013.

CRIME ON MY MIND

Water-Witching for Unholy Rites



Unholy Rites, the third the Danutia Dranchuk mystery series, is due out in March from TouchWood. This time RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk finds herself drawn into investigating ancient rituals in England’s Peak District.

The idea of setting a book in England came years ago, when my husband Chris Bullock and I were at the Buxton Gilbert and Sullivan Festival to promote our first joint novel, A Deadly Little List. Chris is a man of many interests, however, and wasn’t ready to start a second novel right away. So I wrote Sitting Lady Sutra on my own, solving the problem of what to do with Chris’s main character by sending ex-patriate Arthur back to England to care for his ailing mother.

Meanwhile, during visits to Chris’s English friends and relations, we explored possibilities for a Peak District novel. Stone circles and abandoned mines seemed promising until we discovered local mystery author Stephen Booth had already claimed that territory. Then we came upon the popular local custom of well dressing and its attendant festivals, and thought “aha!”

Well dressing likely began as a pagan custom of bringing flowers and garlands to the quixotic springs that bubble up and disappear in this limestone landscape, in gratitude for the blessing of water. In late Victorian times, these simple garlands became elaborated into the forms we see today: large clay-covered panels depicting religious or secular scenes made entirely from natural ingredients such as flower petals, cones, seeds, and small stones. Hydrangea petals, with their wide range of hues, make spectacular skies; sprigs of parsley make luxuriant borders. When finished, these panels are erected adjacent to wells or other sources of water, blessed in a special ceremony, and after a week or so of slow disintegration, removed. The money raised through donations and accompanying activities help to support village churches, schools, and other community organizations.

Well dressing festivals take place in over a hundred Peak District towns and villages between May and September. Because we visited at different periods, we were able to talk to well dressers as they created the panels and to observe the blessing ceremony at several major sites, including Bradwell, Stoney Middleton, Whaley Bridge, and Tideswell. You’ll find photos on my website: www.kaystewart.ca.

Tideswell was crucial to our final choice of setting, for while we were exploring the area, we came across the history of Litton Mill, notorious for its exploitation and abuse of orphan child labourers during the Industrial Revolution. Here was another and much more sinister use of water that we could weave into our narrative, along with the story of Lindow Man, a prehistoric bog man most likely a victim of ritual sacrifice.

How do all these elements fit together? Read Unholy Rites and find out.


Kay Stewart is the author of police procedurals featuring RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk. Unholy Rites, written with husband Chris Bullock, is the third in the series. Kay has also published short stories, personal essays, and writing textbooks. She taught at the University of Alberta before moving to Vancouver Island to devote her time to writing. She is active in the crime-writing community, having served as National Vice President and President of Crime Writers of Canada and co-chair of Bloody Words 2011.

MYSTERY REVIEW

Sitting Lady Sutra
By Kay Stewart
Touchwood Editions

RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk makes her second appearance in this new novel by Kay Stewart. The first one, A Deadly Little List, which Stewart co-authored with husband Chris Bullock, saw Const. Dranchuk, recently graduated from the academy. Now she’s stationed in Victoria, B.C. and recently named Special Investigator in trying to find a serial killer before more women are murdered.

The Sitting Lady of the title is the name of a waterfall just outside the city. It’s where the body of a teenaged girl is found after six months of decay. Nobody has reported her missing. Is she just one of many lost souls or a victim of Handy Dan, the nickname of the serial killer Dranchuk is tracking. Until that can be established, she must cooperate with Corporal Farrell from the West Shore division, not a happy situation for either woman.

Dranchuck works closely with Corporal Surinder Sharma, head of forensics, in searching for both the identity of the girl and her killer. His timely words of wisdom and quiet relentless methods help Dranchuk to focus her own skills. She’s invited to his home to celebrate Thanksgiving and the Hindu festival of Dussehra, where she meets his two sons and niece, an art student who has been estranged from the family for many years. The Sharma family stories and traditions weave a colourful texture into this police procedural. And we learn about the tragedy that beset the family decades ago in Toronto. But Dranchuk eventually has questions about Sharma’s handling of the case. She feels he’s dragging his feet but doesn’t know why.

Dranchuk’s own past becomes part of the story as she tries to deal with a secret from her youth.

The setting also plays a major role in the mystery. From Victoria’s bustling city streets to the haunting forests and wild streams of Witty’s Lagoon Regional Park, Stewart is a great travel guide and paints a vivid picture of this soulful place.

Sitting Lady Sutra is a well-written mystery with a solid plot and sub-plots that intertwine and surprise. Stewart knows how to write a compelling novel with dialogue that is sharp and believable, as are the characters. It’s always a pleasure to find a strong female protagonist who is also good at her job. Danutia Dranchuk is definitely one.