An agreeable (if conventional) continuation of Robin Hood’s adventures.
Friar Tuck tries to solve a murder mystery in Ruud’s latest Robin Hood novel, the second in a series.
Robin of Sherwood is back and up to his old tricks, sneaking into the Sheriff of Nottingham’s archery competition disguised as a fat, bearded, eye-patched yeoman named Hodden of Barnesdale. He takes first prize (of course) only to be discovered at the last moment. Luckily, the sheriff’s wife, Lady Maude (a huge Robin Hood fan), helps him switch into her own clothing to make his escape. Meanwhile, Robin’s spiritual advisor, Friar Tuck, learns of a mutilated body found in the woods outside the Benedictine Priory in Wallingwells. He has business in the area anyway—his godmother and her daughter live nearby—and the good friar hopes he can lend the nuns of the priory a hand in solving the ghastly murder, which locals have already attributed to “the work of some demon, or some vengeful ghoul.” The case quickly proves to be more complex than anticipated, and, on top of everything else, Robin’s paramour, Maid Marion, is captured by the Sheriff of Nottingham’s henchmen, who mean to extract from her the archer’s location. Can Robin step in and save the day, or will his merry band become the latest victims of Sherwood Forest’s vengeful ghoul? The author’s prose replicates the cheery, ‘Renaissance Faire’ tone associated with Robin Hood stories, as when Friar Tuck meets the Wallingwells prioress: “Tuck thought the prioress had an open, friendly face and manner. What he could see of her wimpled face was broad and sanguine, with high cheekbones, a small nose, and mouth, but large merry green eyes that sparkled at him as she greeted him.” Ruud has taken a few classic Robin Hood tales and woven them in and around a familiar detective plot structure, but he does little to offer the characters any freshness or depth. Fans of the mythos will likely be pleased by the author’s faithful re-creation, but those looking for contemporary complexity and nuance will be disappointed.
An agreeable (if conventional) continuation of Robin Hood’s adventures.Pub Date: Dec. 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-1645994497
Page Count: 326
Publisher: Encircle Publications
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.
The feds must protect an accused criminal and an orphaned girl.
Maybe you’ve met him before as protagonist of The 6:20 Man (2022): Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine, who’d had the dubious fortune to tangle with “the girl on the train,” is now assigned by his homeland security boss to protect Danny Glass, who's awaiting trial on multiple RICO charges in Washington state. Devine has what it takes: He “was a closer, snooper, fixer, investigator,” and, when necessary, a killer. These skills are on full display as the deaths of three key witnesses grind justice to a temporary halt. Glass has a 12-year-old niece, Betsy Odom, and each is the other’s only living relative—her parents recently died of an apparent drug overdose. The FBI has temporary guardianship of Betsy, who's a handful. She tells Travis that though she’s not yet 13, she's 28 in “life-shit years.” The financially well-heeled Glass wants to be her legal guardian with an eye to eventual adoption, but what are his real motives? And what happens to her if he's convicted? Meanwhile, Betsy insists that her parents never touched drugs, and she begs Travis to find out how they really died. This becomes part of a mission that oozes danger. The small town of Ricketts has a woman mayor who’s full of charm on the surface, but deeply corrupt and deadly when crossed. She may be linked to a subversive group called "12/24/65," as in 1865, when the Ku Klux Klan beast was born. Blood flows, bombs explode, and people perish, both good guys and not-so-good guys. Readers might ponder why in fiction as well as in life, it sometimes seems necessary for many to die so one may live. And what about the girl on the train? She's not necessary to the plot, but she's a fun addition as she pops in and out of the pages, occasionally leaving notes for Travis. Maybe she still wants him dead.
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781538757901
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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