Helsinki Blood   James Thompson
Latest in this deeply entertaining, brutal, emotionally bleak series about inspector Kari Vaara. Everyone is seriously damaged as he tries to get out from under police corruption, win back his wife and daughter, and save their lives. Hope there’s another one.

Deep Down, A Jack Reacher Story   Lee Child
Very entertaining “Kindle Single”, set back in the 80s, about Reacher solving the penetration of the Navy by a Soviet spy. All the things that make the novels so good are here. Just too short. Really liked it.

Hit Me   Lawrence Block
Latest in Block’s Hit series. Now Keller has a wife and child and thought he was retired. Not so fast. As usual. Block’s quick, clean style, entertaing dialogue, and interesting plot made this novel hard to put down.

The Winter of Frankie Machine   Don Winslow
Entertaining novel about a mafia hit man who just wants to be a San Diego businessman. Characters are pretty shallow, but the style is entertaining, and there’s plenty of slam bang action. Quick, pleasant read.

The Snowman   Jo Nesbø
Latest Harry Hole police procedural where a snowman is integral to a series of murders of women. As always in this series, excellent writing, interesting characters, and a complex plot that is perfectly executed. This time Harry’s loved ones are also targets. Very good.

Death in Breslau   Marek Krajewski
Strange, difficult mystery, set in Breslau during the rise of the Nazis, when it was still part of Germany. Three women are sliced open, then scorpions placed in their bodies. The difficulty derives primarily from the poor translation that includes some sentences that unintelligible in English. Too bad.

War Stories, Poems about Long Ago and Now  Howard Nemerov
I’ve loved Nemerov’s poetry since I was a teenager. This collection is about WWII, Vietnam, and since. I wish more people knew his poems. Very good.

Getting Off    Lawrence Block (writing as Jill Emerson)
Utterly entertaining guilty pleasure of a novel about an irresistible woman who murders anyone she sleeps with. And she sleeps with a lot of people. Clean, simple style that pulls you right along. Absolutely loved it.