Tokyo Express: A Novel

Tokyo Express: A Novel by Seicho Matsumoto, translated by Jesse Kirkwood

An official and a woman appeared dead in an apparent love suicide. There were witnesses that saw them boarding a train and they later showed up dead.  It seemed fairly straightforward. However, the man was involved in a scandal. Could there be something else involved? The detective looked at the clues and everything seemed to stack up. However, things seemed to be just a little too good. There was also little evidence of the man and the woman in a relationship before they were seen at the train station. The detective was persistent and continue to investigate. The coincidences were just too much. Eventually he discovered that it was an elaborately set up murder organized in part by a dying woman who was obsessed with train scheduled. (They did happen to get the couple seen from a platform away in a rare time when there would be no train in between.) The perpetrator (a high ranking official and his wife) almost got away with it. Once they saw they would be caught they took their lives. It was a well done whodunit. 

Long Shadows (Memory Man Series)

Long Shadows (Memory Man Series) by David Baldacci

One detective has a perfect memory. The novel opens with the suicide of his former partner (who has lost his memory). He gets a new partner. They go down to Florida to solve a case of a murdered judge and his bodyguard. Things proceed in the typical detective novel fashion. There are a few obvious suspects, then they turn out not to be the perpetrators. Then they are. Then they aren't. Finally the trail leads to international espionage, blackmail, sex and additional deaths. It all seems to fit right in with the genre.

The Big Sleep: Philip Marlowe, Book 1

The Big Sleep is a "mystery" book that is more concerned with the process than the conclusion. The detective is brought in to do some work for the "General".  In the process of investigating some blackmail, he uncovers multiple murders and many other crime operations. He is the principled, loyal detective who is going to get the job done for his small fee. He has little faith in the police solving crimes. He also freely navigates the underbelly of society without actively being part of it. While he does uncover various crimes, those were not the subject of his investigation, so he feels he has not earned his commission. It is a true "smarter than life detective" and an interesting portrayal of old Los Angeles.

Myth-Chief

Myth-Chief is a fantasy, detective, comedy work that is deep in a series of books. Perhaps if I started earlier in the series I might have found this more intriguing. Instead I had trouble following what was going on and why I should care about it. Some detectives were having a contest to solve a case and be leaders. They did stuff but cared too much about themselves, so another person became the leader. They seemed to have solved the case and have some funny things happen on the way.

The Big Over Easy: A Nursery Crime

The Big Over Easy is a great example of Jasper Fforde's British absurdest humor. His characters inhabit a world where nursery rhyme characters run around in society, yet everyone knows they are just non-real characters. They are all very British and have knowledge of nursery rhymes, yet still experience the characters as they would real people.

The principle character in this book is a "Nursery Crimes Division" officer, Jack Spratt. He was unable to get a conviction in his previous case (against three pigs convicted of murdering a wolf). Now he is investigating the death of Humpty Dumpty. It seems fairly standard, until he discovers the involvement of shoe companies and biological experiments. Jack also runs in to Prometheus who he invites to be a boarder at his house (Greek Gods that have been alive for thousands of years are not at all out of the ordinary.)

The main police force is part of the the "real world". However, it has some quirks. The force is dominated by the "guild of detectives" members. Detectives are chosen for the guild in part due to their success, but more importantly due to their ability to detail their success for the "Amazing Crime Stores" magazine. Jack has applied for membership in the guild, though he does not seem likely to receive membership. A former colleague, however, is a guild member, and attempts to obtain all of the strong convictions for himself. The department is also under budget constraints, and seriously considering disbanding the NCD. (The NCD is extremely short on budget, and a dumping ground for aliens and newbies like Jack's new partner, Mary Mary)

I read the sequel The Fourth Bear first and preferred it. Though the difference may be do more to the order in which the were read than anything else. It seemed to be more comfortable with the over-the-top inside-joke nursery-rhymes-in-real-life story. This one, however, is more of a traditional detective story, set in a very bizarre surrounding. (Ok, a very bizarre surrounding with plenty of funny moments.)