#7: Europe in Autumn by Dave Hutchinson

In a fractured, near-future Europe, a cook becomes a reluctant spy in Dave Hutchinson's Europe in Autumn.

Europe in Autumn is the first in a science fiction trilogy that reads a bit like a mash-up of John le Carré and Bruce Sterling, a pretty sober espionage tale cloaked in advanced tech and an altered political landscape (with a bit of alternate universe theory thrown in).

I enjoyed the spycraft elements, but the world-building was pretty unique as well; certainly of interest to anyone who reads either genre or both.  For my own tastes, I could have used a shade less of the latter and a shade more of the former.

Hutchinson's work was refreshing enough that I am sure to look for the other novels in the series, especially since this one, as a warning, ends on a bit of a cliffhanger.

I got this book for Christmas and read it steadily.

#6: The Crossing by Michael Connelly

Harry Bosch, forced into retirement from the LAPD after conflicts with the top brass, finds he can't let his detective skills go; so when his half-brother, a defense lawyer, brings him a client who he believes is innocent Bosch reluctantly gets involved in Michael Connelly's The Crossing.

"The Crossing" of the title refers to Bosch, a longtime homicide cop, crossing over to help an accused murderer, something he swore he would never do; but very quickly Bosch learns some crooked cops might be in the mix.

This novel also features Connelly's other series character "The Lincoln Lawyer" who has appeared in several novels and a film version (which is often humorously referenced in the novels).

Connelly has written a long series of very solid police procedurals and courtroom dramas; this one has a nice mix of both, as well as updates on other characters for long-time fans.

I listened to a good audiobook version, read by Titus Welliver, on loan from the New Castle-Henry County Public Library.

#5: A Conspiracy of Faith by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Copenhagen cop Carl Morck has been assigned to the Cold Case squad, and is content to coast out his career; but his able assistant Assad, and insouciant secretary Rose, won't let a mysterious message in a bottle go in Jussi Adler-Olsen's A Conspiracy of Faith.

This is the third in the popular Department Q series, and follows the curious pattern of its predecessors with pretty gruesome crimes counterbalanced with office hijinks. 

In this one, a dedicated and previously undiscovered serial killer has spent decades preying on closed-off religious sects throughout Denmark.  A reluctant Morck begins to realize that the killer is still very active, and very close to the detective.

This outing has two really nice set pieces--a car/train chase, and a stand-off in a bowling alley--that shows a more cinematic flair.  As it happens, A Conspiracy of Faith was made into a popular movie in Denmark, which I am eager to see.

An interesting series, although not for all tastes.  I listened to a good audiobook version on loan from the New Castle-Henry County Public Library in New Castle, Indiana.

#4: The Grabhorn Bounty by Clifton Adams

A railroad detective hunting a train robber follows the trail to a town gripped with a nameless fear in Clifton Adams' The Grabhorn Bounty.

Adams wrote pulp mysteries and paperback westerns, and this one is, interestingly, about 75 percent noir and 25 percent oater.

At the center is a poor farmer's daughter more scheming than any femme fatale Jim Thompson or David Goodis could dream up.  With a jaded detective as the central character, and a downbeat ending, horses and sixguns are all that keep it from being a straight trip down the mean streets.

Really a good read, with colorful characters and a sense of history.  Recommended for genre fans.

I got this in a lot of westerns from eBay and read it quickly.

#3: The Last of the Breed by Don Rico

A lawman retires after a promise to a dying friend to raise his son; when that son grows up and turns bad, it puts the lawman between justice and his promise in Don Rico's The Last of the Breed.

I had not heard of author Don Rico, and wasn't sure it wasn't a pseudonym; but Rico had an interesting career, being a writer/artist in the early days of comics, as well as writing paperback novels and screenplays.   

This is a very fine western, well-written with a pretty hard-nosed storyline. It feels very much like a late Randolph Scott/Budd  Boetticher western, for those familiar with that series of films. 

I really enjoyed this one, and read it quickly.  Recommended for fans.

I got this in a box of paperbacks from a friend and read it quickly on a snowy few days.

#2: Badge for a Gunfighter by Clair Huffaker

An easygoing hired gun falls into a scheme to impersonate a sheriff, and then finds he likes being the good guy after all in Clair Huffaker's Badge for a Gunfighter.

Huffaker is a well-regarded paperback writer and screenwriter, but I had never run across one of his novels until I received this one in a box of books from a friend. 

I understand now why his name is bandied about in genre circles; Badge for a Gunfighter is a cut above the typical western, with lean, solid writing and a funny, likeable protagonist.

But overall Huffaker hits all the comfortable beats; gunfighters who are badder than bad, a noble frontier widow and the son who needs somebody to look up to, and the like.  A brutal finale is satisfying.

Recommended for fans of pulp westerns.

#1: Hackett's Feud by John Callahan

A cowhand is bushwhacked for his cattle money, and kills a man in self-defense; but an ill-advised attempt to save his innocent widow's feelings ends up sparking a murderous war in John Callahan's Hackett's Feud.

I've read several Callahan novels, sturdy westerns all; apparently Callahan was actually Paul Chadwick, who wrote across numerous genres under various names. 

This is a nicely-done entry that hits all of the expected beats.

This was the other side of a nice Ace Double with The Demanding Land by Reese Sullivan.  I got it at the Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention in Chicago at a goodbye price.